Creating community through food and fellowship
2020
2020 wasn't an easy year for anyone but here at the garden we achieved a lot and took good care of our mental health at the same time.
In our final video of the year Sharon plants some shallots from the supermarket to see how they get on
Sharon explains how our shop at the Harmony Hub works.
Updated to add, our shop at the Hub is no longer running in the same way, our plans for the hub are currently in development, stay tuned to our latest updates to find out more.
The first in our series of videos on how to make a Christmas wreath. You can use this if you want to make your own base for the wreath or you can buy a base and add your own foliage.
The second in our series of videos on how to make a Christmas wreath. Adding the foliage and decorating it.
We love saving the seeds from our plants to grow again next year, it's so sustainable and allows us to keep growing the things we enjoy.
The last of our recipe videos for this year. Our friend, award winning chef Karl Buxton shows us how to make a lovely winter soup
Sharon explains what to do with plants that have gone to seed. See our seed saving video above for more info.
Karl Buxton returns with his delicious Quesadillas.
A mid project update from our community growing project at Skinningrove.
Zoe explains how unwanted weeds can provide important nutrition for our plants
Our good friend, award winning chef Karl Buxton teaches us how to make a lovely root vegetable stroganoff
How to grow courgettes if you have a smaller growing space. Vertical growing is a great way to make the most of whatever space you have.
We often think that by the time we reach August we've missed our chance to sow new seeds. Sharon and Zoe discuss what can still go in the soil at this time of year.
One of our most exciting discoveries of the year has been biochar. It can increase plant yields enormously and we can't wait to see what happens when we try it.
Our first try of using biochar to improve the health of our cucumber plants.
Sharon explains a little bit about planting families, which is something we've started to experiment with this year. We also take a look at how the broad beans we planted in November have progressed and talk about a new type of cucumber we've planted in one of our polytunnels.
It's been a while since our last video and spring has brought some miraculous changes in the garden here. In this video Sharon shows us around the site and explains a bit about our plants and our methods. Watch out for the update on the shallots and garlic from our earlier videos.
Sharon and Francis explain our composting system and how you can create similar at home. We have three compost heaps that are in order from newest to oldest and we build our heaps in layers to help them decompose quickly.
Francis and Olivia feed the chickens and ducks at the start of the day and discuss what the animals need most in their diet and how best to get it to them
Because we garden organically using natural methods our spring preparations involve lots of weeding. Luckily we have lots of wonderful new helpers who've joined us for work experience placements.
Francis talks us through some of the garden recycling projects we're working on at the moment. We're big believers that if something can still be used it shouldn't go into landfill, as the video shows, if things are no longer fit for their original purpose they can often be used in the garden.
A personal development tool with a difference! If you've ever felt like something is a little off in life, like you're just not in sync with the rest of the world then the Rekalibrator might be the tool to help. The Rekalibrator is a type of labyrinth. Unlike a maze, a labyrinth has only one route and is used for contemplation and reflection. The Rekalibrator is a unique kind of labyrinth, in that it is used to deliver learnings about permaculture.
ETA we no longer have the Rekalibrator set up at Kirkleatham but you can contact David if you'd like to find out more.
Amazing Garlic Girl Sharon explains how and when to plant garlic and tells us a little bit about variations in the planting season depending on where you are in the country
Sharon explains how to plant shallots and how to care for them once they're in the ground. Shallots can be planted from mid November to mid March, though in the North of the UK we have a couple of extra weeks and can plant slightly later
Sharon explains a bit about our pay as you can shop. It's main purpose is to prevent food waste so we sell food that would have been thrown away by supermarkets in exchange for donations of whatever you can afford.
ETA our pay as you can shop is no longer running from the Harmony Hub, stay in touch to find out what other exciting developments are happening there instead!
As Francis explains in the video, friends of Growing in Harmony will learn how to make the most of any outdoor space for growing food and will be allocated their own space to try out the techniques, we can then take these methods out into the community and pass them on to others, enabling people to grow more of their food locally, building communities and supporting the environment along the way.