Barnet Horticultural Show

Posted on July 19, 2014 by Christina25

The Barnet Federation Horticultural Show will take place this year on Saturday August 16^th at Rathbone Allotments, Ryalls Court, Oakleigh Rd South. For visitors, this is a chance to see the very best produce grown by allotmenteers throughout the borough of Barnet. It’s also an opportunity for you as a grower to enter your own produce in competition with others in the borough. The show opens to the public at 12 midday on the Saturday and continues through until 5.30pm with the prize presentations starting at 4.00pm.

Show categories cover fruit, vegetables and flowers. Entry forms and full entry details explaining exactly how entries should be presented are attached here for anyone who would like to enter produce for the show and there are also copies available in the Trading Hut.

Note this is a separate event to our own Woodhouse Allotments produce competition and barbecue which will take place in September as usual. The Horticultural Show is a borough-wide competition involving all of the 49 allotment sites across Barnet.

Trading Hut – management update

Posted on July 19, 2014 by Christina25

New manager

We are delighted to announce that Graham Clark (plot 68) will be taking over as coordinator for the Trading Hut, in charge of orders and facilities. Graham makes a great brew, so why not join him for a cup of tea or coffee in the Hut when it’s open?

The team

You’ll find various members of the committee behind the till in the Trading Hut at opening times. We also want to bring in as many plotholders as possible to contribute to the running of the Trading Hut – if you’d like to help out, even if just for one session every six weeks or so, contact tradinghut@woodhouseontheweb.org.uk.

Opening hours

The Hut will be open at weekends as usual, between 11.00am and 1.00pm on Saturdays and Sundays. We are looking at opportunities to open at other times, potentially later in the afternoons for example as that seems to be when many plotholders visit the site.

We can also open the Trading Hut informally when keyholders are on-site. If we’re available there will be a notice up in the Trading Hut window to tell you where to find us.

Items for sale

The Trading Hut doesn’t just sell compost. Don’t forget we have a range of fertilisers and soil conditioners, slug pellets, canes, and strimmer line. Many of the fertilisers, soil improvers, etc, are sold loose by the kg so you can specific exactly how much you need.

And of course we also sell seeds. Currently we stock seeds from Kings and Franchi Seeds Of Italy. Both of these ranges are priced at a considerable discount and we are happy to order specific varieties for you. If you have an alternative preferred seed supplier, let us know and we will see if we can viably stock these in the Trading Hut.

REMEMBER: TRADING HUT PRICES ARE CONSIDERABLY LOWER THAN THOSE IN ANY LOCAL GARDEN CENTRE.

ASK US IF THERE IS ANYTHING WE DO NOT STOCK THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO SEE ON SALE.

Summer Social in pictures

Posted on July 6, 2014 by Christina25

It was good to see so many people at the Summer Social on Saturday. Many attendees took advantage of Kevin’s mobile tool-sharpening service – blunt blades are now a thing of the past on our site.The food and drink was plentiful, from the barbecue to produce-based dishes brought by members to the delicious Turkish flatbreads. Guests, both young and older, enjoyed making coloured birds from milk cartons under the supervision of Csilla Gruiz, and some of us acquired compost bins designed and manufactured by Graham Clark from discarded pallets. Csilla also found time to enter and win the quiz, ably assisted by Isobel Glover.

We also took the opportunity to pay tribute to Jan and Dave’s sterling work over the last five years running the Trading Hut, and wish them a very happy ‘retirement’ and some time finally to enjoy their own allotment uninterrupted.