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The weekly newsletter asked what we are up to...?

Well, in the garden I am on a big slug removal drive! I am also deciding on which seeds to plant this year. I have some raspberries, loganberries and blackcurrants I want to plant out this weekend, and really, looking for some more time to do everything in!

On the local food front, have a nice bottle of NF cider to open later this evening...

What about you?

Tues 18th January

Dear All

Happy New Year!

We shall be having fresh pork this…

Transition Lymington have started to set up a local Land Share scheme for the SO41 area. So far we have been offered a garden in central Lymington and are looking for a gardener ideally within walking or cycling distance of the garden.

The Local Food Summit last month focused on Possible Solutions to the existing problems with local food.

Below is a list of solutions that were talked about on the day, and put them under some main headings:

• More land for growing
• Increase Food…

I have just updated the map to include the monthly markets in Plaitford, Hale, Beaulieu, Lyndhurst, Sandy Balls and Braxton Gardens. It also now has a couple of places to eat out, where local food is served (see the knife and fork symbols).

Please let me know of any more local food outlets. They may be just a sign at the side of the road…

Just found this great website - The Real Seed Catalogue.

"We grow all these veg for our own family use, so if it's in our catalogue, we know well how it grows, and how it tastes. You'll find no hybrids or genetically modified seed here - just varieties that do really well and taste great when grown by hand on a garden scale."

They also tell you how you can save your seed yourself and may be even start a seed circle:…

Hi all, does anyone have any jam jars with or without lids (or coffee jars or similar) hiding in cupboards that are extra to requirements?

I have had a request from a lady in Hordle who is making jams, preserves, chutneys and pickles from forest and garden produce for the New Forest Festival.

If you live locally and have some spare, please email me - Sarah at events@newforesttransition.org and I can come and…

For those of you in the North of the forest. The village of Martin is NW of Fordingbridge, through Damerham and past Tidpit.... You can find out more about the Future Farms project on their website:

You are invited to the…

It’s Festival Time!

New Forest Transition Celebrations Group in association with New Forest Festival

are proud to announce a…

Take a look at the RHS Grow your Own Webpages to see what you should be doing this month:

• Vegetable Sowing and planting
• What to harvest
• Fruit Trees - care and pruning

After finding local produce on the menu of the Fisherman's Rest in Lymington, (a great burger by the way) I have started to add another symbol to the map, to pin point pubs and restaurants that serve New Forest produce - its a knife and fork!

Take a look at the map, and tell us about other pubs, hotels and restaurants that serve luscious local food!…

A chicken tractor is a bottomless, portable pen that fits over your garden beds. Just set it wherever you need help in your garden.

The chickens peck and scratch the soil to clean your beds, eat pest bugs and weed seeds. Best of all, they provide eggs and meat with that old-fashioned flavor. Chicken tractors have helped thousands of gardeners have better gardens and taken chickens out of factory farms and put them in the garden where they…

We are a new Wellness & Beauty Centre and Training Academy located at Silver Street in Hordle/Sway. We provide a complete range of wellness, beauty and holistic therapies from our centre using only natural products produced – where possible – within the New Forest and local area.

In addition to our treatments we retail local arts, crafts and products through our centre and eventually online.

We would…

The County Council now sources a range of meats and apple juice from Hampshire, as well as over 10,000 cabbages and 600,000 free-range eggs annually. School caterers HC3S have increased the value of produce they source locally by around £1million.

The County Council is helping to put more local produce on the public sector plate by encouraging other councils to follow its lead in buying local.…

I have just picked up the Brockenhurst College Adult Education Brochure and there are a few courses in there, that might be of interest:

At Lymington Community Centre

Fruit and Veg - How to Grow your Own,

3 sessions on a Tuesday morning or a Thursday night starting Oct 10 or Jan 2011.

Phone 01509 679457

Courses at Ringwood School, Parsonage Lane, Ringwood including

Sewing - Learn to…

Can you help us?

We want to map all the local food producers/outlets/places in the New Forest. This might be someone who just sells the extra eggs and honey at their front gate, a farm shop, a jam producer, or even - if you know of any - a fruit tree, where the fruit /nuts/quinces/crab apples, just go to waste every year - on common land?

It would also be great to map some local resources: any experts out there, who we can call upon for advice? Any land that you…

Have you being trying to buy local food? Reasonably priced and of good quality?

Having problems accessing land to grow your own food?

We are hoping to raise some of the issues of buying and growing local food and also start to find solutions to those issues.

On Thursday 30th September, with the backing of the NPA, District Council and a few other local names,…