Allotments / Community gardens Books

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisA guide on how to start your own community orchard - from getting support and tackling legal issues to organising working parties and selling produce. Since the 1950s we have lost 63 per cent of our orchards through development or neglect, and even though we have been able to grow 3,000 varieties of apple in England, almost 70 per cent of apples we buy are imported. Common Ground has worked to interest local communities in creating and saving orchards to provide fruit and nuts, havens for wildlife and places of beauty. The Community Orchards Handbook shows how to start your own Community Orchard, from getting support and tackling legal issues, to organising work, selling produce and enjoying the fruits of your work together. It gives suggestions on ‘apple mapping’ and saving local varieties, and practical advice on planting, harvesting and safeguarding your orchard. It also includes a comprehensive resources section and is full of examples of diverse Community Orchard projects across the UK.Trade ReviewAnyone thinking of establishing a community orchard would be foolish not to pay close attention to the points made, and will find helpful resources abound, both as website links within the text and in an appendix bursting with legal and policy documents, ideas for funding, sources of equipment, and contact details of national and local groups. * Smallholder *This new, revised edition has sections on how to get started with planning an orchard, gaining support, writing a consultation, talking leases and other legalities such as insurance, securing access, dealing with health and safety and organising work parties. * The Landsman *The new editiom reflects the increased interest in community food growing and will be invaluable help for communities and schools wanting to establish an orchard. * This Is Dorset *The idea of Community Orchards is so good, so obviously right, that I think it's fair to describe it as vital. It will bring so much benefit to so many, in such an upbeat and positive way. I can't wait to see it happen more and more widely. Congratulations to Common Ground for their inspirational leadership and whole hearted good sense. * Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall *Common Ground's Community Orchards Handbook is a rich and diverse eco-system in itself, at once practical and lyrical, with elegy and energy intertwined. It's a handbook to be revelled in as much as dipped into for the handy hints. * Jonathon Porritt *The Community Orchards Handbook sits within arm's reach of my desk, along with one or two other Common Ground publications. It is an indispensable and inspiring reference for anyone wanting to enrich the meaning of where they live and introduce biodiversity and delight into their locality. * Kevin McCloud, presenter of Grand Designs *This wonderful book is an invaluable source of information for anyone interested in community, locally-produced food, and preserving and planting orchards. It is a 'must' for anyone who cares about these things. * Rosie Sanders, artist and author of The Apple Book *This book is aimed at anyone who wants to establish a local community orchard. It is an infectious well-judged mix of the inspirational and the practical. If you are thinking of setting up a local community orchard, the first thing you should do is buy this book. * Richard Borrie, editor of www.orangepippin.com *Community Orchards Handbook is a delicious book. It argues that we need orchards around us not just because they reconnect us to culture, our sense of place and our history, and not just because they can boost our food security, but because they have a great potential for bringing us closer together, to form a focus point for community. A new social and cultural renaissance based on apples? Why not... * Rob Hopkins, Transition Towns Network *We used Common Ground's Community Orchards Handbook when we started The London Orchard Project, and it has proved invaluable ever since. It is a must-have for the aspiring orchard leader. * Carina Dunkerley & Rowena Ganguli, founders of The London Orchard Project *Common Ground has made thousands of people aware of the value of the local, the ordinary, the commonplace, and the everyday in their lives... It has renewed interest in the English apple and created a feast for it (Apple Day in October). For speaking to a part of our hearts that no one knew how to speak to before, Common Ground is the best green charity in these islands. * Michael McCarthy, The Indepedent *This book encourages and celebrates the community spirits, social health and wellbeing that can be generated by fruit trees and orchards. * Reforesting Scotland *Table of ContentsForeword 1. Orchards and Local Distinctiveness 2. What are Community Orchards? 3. The place of orchards in our landscape and culture 4. Some success stories: land and orchards saved as Community Orchards 5. Community Orchards – how to start 6. Finding out more 7. Planting a Community Orchard 8. Adopting an old orchard 9. Conserving and attracting wild life 10. What to do with the harvest 11. Celebration 12. Safeguarding your orchard 13. Orchard fruits and wild fruits Appendices 1) Choosing the right legal structure for your Community Orchard 2) Model Constitution, Draft Tenancy Agreement, Draft Donations Policy and Example Risk Assessment 3) Orchard groups and support organisations 4) National contacts

Read more less

Book SynopsisA celebration of some of Britain's most important and beloved buildings – its sheds. From the humble to the not so humble. ‘An eloquent exploration of the creative, reflective and innovative space of the shed via some of the UK’s most stunning landscapes.’ – Gardens Illustrated magazine The National Trust looks after many of Britain's most important and beloved buildings – its sheds. They lurk in the shadow of grand country houses; they brave the elements on the tops of cliffs; they have inspired famous writers and housed everything from beehives to birdwatchers. These beautiful and sometimes eccentric structures are as individual as their owners. A Victorian coastal shed in Cornwall is where the Reverend Hawker went to write verse, and smoke opium. It's also the smallest building cared for by the National Trust. George Bernard Shaw’s shed could be rotated throughout the day to make the most of the sun, while sculptor Barbara Hepworth used hers for napping in. Rather than a place in which to create, many of these sheds are the creation. Alongside the literary writing dens and horticultural hideaways there are also floating sheds, coastguards’ sheds, artists’ studios, summer houses, beach huts, camping pods, bothies, teahouses, follies and much more. ‘This illustrated book will bring on a serious case of wanderlust.’ – The English Garden magazine Trade Review'A perfect gift for lovers of quirky architecture and interior design' * The Bookseller *

Read more less

Book SynopsisAllotments are sanctuaries for growing, often on the fringes of suburbia, where life is getting ever more stressful and expensive. Here, a simple urge to grow-your-own or become self-sufficient, brings us closer to a community of people, wildlife and plants that are often more diverse than the cities and towns that surround them. An allotment is a utopia. It is a green place where anyone can occupy a piece of land, and grow with freedom of expression. Allotmenteering started with The Diggers in seventeenth-century Surrey, in response to the Enclosure Acts which deprived ordinary people of access to land. But the idea spread, first across England and the British Isles, then through Europe and the world. 'The Allotment', originally published in 1988, is the classic study of allotments. Encompassing the oral recordings of plot-holders alongside descriptions of regional variations on the plot itself, such as pigeon-fancying, seed collecting or leek competitions, it looks at British society and history through the prism of allotments. With a new introduction by Olivia Laing, this is a story that is just as relevant today, and is essential for those interested in social history, land ownership and gardening in twenty-first century Britain.

Read more less