mindfoodcio

[mindfoodcio]

January update

Hi Everyone We’re here to wish you all a Happier New Year! Ok, so it’s a bit tricky out there at the moment - and as such, we’ve taken the decision to put our usual sessions on hold for the next 3 weeks, or until local Covid case numbers start falling significantly again. We'll keep you posted. It’s been a tough call as, technically, we’re still permitted to run our support groups - but because so many of our participants come to the plots by public transport, we don’t want anyone taking risks with their safety when the advice is so clearly to stay at home. The great news is that we're ready to support you through Lockdown 3: as one MindFooder put it, "It’s so good that you have MindFood at Home activities in your bag of tricks"! Yes, it’s 'all systems go' with our MindFood at Home programme, so we can stay connected with nature, and each other, until we’re all back together again. The aim is to keep ourselves happily - and mindfully - distracted by the wonders of growing, and a renewed dedication to our own self care. We can do this! First up, here's a quick recap of how the MindFood at Home programme works...

MindFood at Home In the last few weeks, thanks to our Lottery Community Response funding, we’ve been developing our MindFood at Home programme to help you to stay connected with nature, and nurture your wellbeing, even if you’re housebound. Each week for 6 weeks, we’re emailing our MindFood-at-Homies a nature-themed ‘pep talk’. We cover all of the Growing Wellbeing course topics with home-made lockdown videos, mindfulness links and prompts, and lots of ideas to get you growing at home. It’s ideal for the Winter months, if you’re shielding, have mobility difficulties or full-time caring commitments. It may be that you're building up to visiting us in the future, or perhaps you’ve already joined us in the past and fancy a refresher. As you can see, we've been getting lots of seedlings started so we can share them with anyone who needs them.

There’s just a quick sign-up process to access more of the MindFood at Home programme - please email us at info@mindfood.org.uk with your full name, date of birth, telephone number, and address if you’d be interested in any seedlings we have to share (or just your postcode if you’re unsure). If you're already fully signed up with MindFood a simple text will do! In addition, if you're feeling a bit isolated and fancy a nature-&-wellbeing-themed chat over the phone, please do let us know and we'll give you a call.

Growing Wellbeing Although we won't be at the growing sites for a little while, we are still encouraging people to sign up for new Growing Wellbeing courses via eventbrite. The next dates are: Tues 12th January - 1pm-3pm (Horsenden Farm) Fri 22nd January - 1pm- 3pm (Cleveley Crescent Allotments) Wed 3rd Feb - 10.30am-12.30 (Cleveley Crescent Allotments) We’ll start these courses off on Zoom: 2pm on Tuesdays and Fridays, and 11am on Wednesdays. Lucy will be able to chat you through the course topics, and it will also be a chance to meet others in your group. By the time we get on site, it’ll be like a grand reunion! You'll need to complete our full Health & Safety registration form for this, as the aim will be to get you to the plot as soon as possible. Zoom for Beginners Try not to be too put off by Zoom - don’t worry if it takes a little while to get yourself up and running (literally EVERYONE does, unless they've had a secret practice first...hint hint!). And fear not, there will be no embarrassing introductions to prepare and Lucy will do most of the talking till everyone feels more comfortable with the format. It will be VERY informal!

[mindfoodcio]

December Newsletter

With Christmas just around the corner, we wanted to send you all a message of peace and goodwill, and a huge thank-you for your incredible support this year. We’re so grateful for your help in the gardens, and your fantastic contributions from home. We’ve absolutely loved the brilliant photos of your own growing projects, your encouraging messages for other growers, and your enthusiastic likes and shares on social media. We’ve also really appreciated your recommendations to friends, family, and neighbours - it’s been a tough year indeed, and it’s been heartening to know you trust us to help. THANK YOU! We couldn’t do it without you...you ARE MindFood! 🙌🏾🙌🙌🏿🙌🏼

MindFood at Home In the last few weeks, thanks to our Lottery Community Response funding, we’ve been developing our MindFood at Home programme to help you to stay connected with nature, and nurture your wellbeing, even if you’re housebound. Each week for 6 weeks, we’re emailing our MindFood-at-Homies a nature-themed ‘pep talk’. We cover all of the Growing Wellbeing course topics with home-made lockdown videos, mindfulness links and prompts, and lots of ideas to get you growing at home. It’s ideal for the Winter months, if you’re shielding, have mobility difficulties or full-time caring commitments. It may be that you're building up to visiting us in the future, or perhaps you’ve already joined us in the past and fancy a refresher. As you can see, we've been getting lots of seedlings started so we can share them with anyone who needs them.

Winter Cheer! One of our favourite activities in December is making xmas wreaths: first by weaving the willow bases, and then by carefully attaching an abundance of colour to them. Foraging for all the greenery then decorating the wreaths makes for some very mindful time in nature. It helps to draw our eye to all the lush and vibrant evergreens that are still thriving around us, and encourages us to seek out additional colour and structure to make our own fabulously unique creations! It's genuinely a celebration of how much beauty and life we have to take us through the Winter months. And this is why we decided it would be a nice idea to make some extra ones to gift to MindFooders we felt could do with a bit of a lift and couldn't make it on the day. We hope you'll enjoy this small selection of beautiful wreaths we've been making over the last couple of weeks...we wish we had space to show you them all.

Growing News With all the wet weather recently we've been super-grateful for the shelter afforded to us by our polytunnel and new geodesic dome. We've been using the warmer space to extend our cropping season - no lettuce shortages here! And we've been preparing give-aways for MindFooders and to get ready for Spring. Indoors and out we've been replenishing our growing beds with compost, so they are rich in nutrients for next year. All but the final few broad beans are in the ground now, and doing well at both sites. The ones here feature our world famous 'origami loo roll pots' that can be planted directly into the ground.

Crop of the month Have you ever tried Persian Cress? It's absolutely delicious, and we have it in abundance both at the Cleveley plot and at Horsenden Farm. It's harvested at a larger size than the mustard cress that most of us know, and its mild peppery sweetness is a perfect addition to salads. It was introduced to us by a lovely Iranian MindFooder several years ago and we've been growing it ever since. We save the precious seeds at the end of each season - the leaves shown here are the great great grandchildren of the very first seeds we ever sowed! We'll be aiming to share more Persian Cress with home-growers in January.

[mindfoodcio]

June Newsletter

My goodness, it’s June already!

May was a bit of a busy one: all that wall-to-wall sunshine made for lots of extra watering on the plots, so when the weather finally broke a couple of weeks ago, we were delighted to grab a moment to take stock. As we always say, if you want to enjoy the rain, just take up gardening!

We soon put the gift of time to good use, looking at ways to share more of what we do with our community while we’re unable to run our usual groups. Please tell us about local groups that might benefit from our help. Or better still, let us know if you’ve been inspired to share your own spare plants with anyone in need of a natural lift. What an amazing growing community we could be! Take care everyone - hope you'll enjoy this super-interactive edition

The MindFood Team

More special deliveries!

With lots of spare veg plants ready to go into the ground, we’ve reached out to primary schools with garden space to give them a good home. So far we have made deliveries to schools in Ealing, Hanwell, Greenford and Perivale, with more to follow this week in Southall and Acton.

We’ve also donated plants to Mandeville School in Perivale for children with profound and severe learning difficulties, and are planning a delivery to Springhallow School, who teach children with autism in Greenford and West Ealing.

These are just a few of the brilliant schools who have been supporting the children of key workers through lockdown - and we're already looking ahead to Summer clubs!

Supporting each other

We’ve also been keen to support national campaigns and causes, both locally and on social media.

During Mental Health Awareness Week (mid May) we posted daily videos on how to incorporate the 5 Ways to Wellbeing into your day. They reached over 10,000 people!

This week we’re working with the Carers Trust team at Sycamore Lodge in Acton to support Carers Week.

You can click on the link below to see our 'Carers Week Special', which rounds off with a link to the Carers Trust, and the services they can offer unpaid carers in Ealing. They accept self referrals, so please do share.

www.facebook.com/mindfoodcio/videos

The same link will give you access to all the videos we've done since lockdown.

And because Black Lives Matter, we are urging everyone to inform themselves, and promote anti-racism. Anti-racism is a proactive and enduring commitment to tackle racism in ourselves and in others.

We would also love you to learn about the pioneering work of Descendants in Acton, who have been supporting and inspiring children of African and Caribbean descent since 1993. And you may like to make a donation to Black Minds Matter to enable black people to access specialised mental health support if they need it.

Growing news

At Horsenden and Cleveley we've been enjoying the first of our heritage strawberries 'Red Gauntlet' and 'Royal Sovereign' - not only are they resistant to botrytis (a type of fruit mould), but they are super delicious, and promise a second crop later in the year...

In other news: we've seen baby courgettes following their beautiful yellow flowers; we're getting our sweetcorn into the ground; and making sure we have plenty of squashes and pumpkins to share in the Autumn. At Cleveley we also have lots of grapes to look forward to - we're pruning back every week, so they are looking vibrant and strong.

Crop of the month  

Broad beans are the big story - they are an excellent source of protein and, it seems, a good learning experience too.

We harvested loads of beans at the Farm, but many of our plants at the Allotments were taken over by black fly

This showed us the importance of garlic as a companion crop, and we also came to learn a new recipe for natural bug repellant that we'll be using for future crops.

To find out more about this, visit our facebook page to check out our little film ‘Field of Beans’.

And finally...

We're starting to envisage a time when we'll be able to welcome newcomers to the growing sites, so please could we ask you to spread the word that:

1. New participants can register for eventual Growing Wellbeing courses by emailing us at  info@mindfood.org.uk

2. The deadline for the MindFood Makeover fund has been EXTENDED to the end of this month (click the link below and please donate/share away!).

www.spacehive.com/mindfood-makeover

3. A limited number of volunteers are invited to help keep the sites tidy and productive. Please check the guidelines on the Volunteering page to see if you're eligible, and contact Lucy by email to register an interest.

[mindfoodcio]

May newsletter

Hi Everyone,

We do hope you're all keeping safe and well - what a month it has been, and here we are in May!

Despite the trials of lockdown, the MindFood team have plenty of good news to share with you. And how lucky do we feel to be able to draw on our connection to nature as a ready source of hope and wonder?

We're sure that, as 'like minds' you'll understand how restorative and comforting this connection can be, so if you know anyone who is struggling and hasn't quite found a way to access it yet, please do share our details. We won't be running growing sessions on site for a little while but, as you'll see, we're already refocussing our efforts on giving people the MindFood experience at home.

Take care,

The MindFood Team

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Special Delivery!

Many of you have been in touch to say how much you're missing your usual gardening sessions with us, so we've been doing our best  to bring the food-growing to you.

Each week we're making special veg plant deliveries to members of the MindFood family. They let us know what growing space they have, and we find something to suit. Anne-Marie, pictured here, was thrilled with the goodies we brought for her allotment. Others, who may be unable to leave the house or grow things outside, are cultivating salad leaves, chillies and tomatoes on window sills and balconies.

And we've been rounding off the week with a virtual trip to the plot so we can all share our latest growing highlights. Look out for these in our next newsletter...

Mindfully Creative

Camilla and Sarah have been working on some innovative ways to develop our creativity, even if we're shielding indoors.

Every Thursday they are posting fun new nature-based challenges on Instagram and Facebook - like this ink-making one here, which shows you how to use store-cupboard ingredients to make natural water colours.

We'd love to see how you're getting on with your own mindfully creative endeavours too. And who knows, one day they might even make it into a virtual MindFood gallery?

Growing Wellbeing at Home

Lucy has been having fun making short videos as a way to teach the key elements of our Growing Wellbeing programme. She's no technical wiz but has really enjoyed learning some new skills!

The 'chats' are a useful way to refresh your memory if you've attended our courses before, but also a great place to start if you're raring to go before our plots open up again.

Lucy is keen to point out that she is no Monty Don - either in terms of gardening or presenting. But she IS a big believer in giving people the confidence to just have a go, and at MindFood we say that when it comes to growing, half the fun is discovering what works best for you.

Growing news

At Horsenden, Pauline has been doing a brilliant job keeping everything going at the Farm, ready for when we're all able to make a return. In the polytunnel, it's been out with the old crops and in with the new: we've harvested an abundance of spinach, salads and radishes, replacing them with early Summer crops of carrots, mangetout, and strawberries, and making way for veggies that love the heat like cucumbers, aubergines and chillies. Outdoors, the potatoes, courgettes and tomatoes have all got off to a great start. And the broad beans are bursting with plump pods, ready to harvest any second.

At Cleveley, it’s a similar picture...but with the perennial scourge of couch grass - we can't wait to have all you willing weeders back! We've also been enjoying the first of our beautiful globe artichokes (above).

Crop of the month  

It's spectacular spinach!!

At both sites, we've been able to harvest loads of this super-nutritious stuff, both as baby leaves for salad and the bigger leaves for cooking. It's been shared with house-bound MindFooders from Brentford to Wembley and Southall to Northolt.

Most of us already know how rich in iron spinach is, but it is also packed full of nitrates that can help reduce cholesterol levels and lessen the risk of heart disease.

Mindful exercise of the month

With so many colourful flowers starting to appear, now can be a great time to go 'colour-hunting' if you're out for a walk. Just pick a colour and look for as many different flowers of the same colour as you can. And if you are staying at home, try listening at the window for as many different types of bird song as you can. Both very simple ideas, but incredibly effective!

Sustainable tip

Use sour milk to feed tomatoes - they'll love the extra calcium boost, which will help them fight off the unappealing named 'blossom end rot'. (Thanks Julia for this great tip!)

And finally...

It has certainly been a tricky few weeks for fundraising and we find ourselves with just a week to go (!) to crowdfund around £1500 for our MindFood Makeover at Cleveley Crescent on the Spacehive crowdfunding platform.

Although we would dearly love to be able to take advantage of Ealing Council's pledge of nearly £2000, and are very grateful indeed for your generous pledges too, we just don't think we'll get there. And that's ok - we absolutely understand that there are so many pressing priorities around us at the moment.

But we did want to say an HUGE thank-you for your support. There is of course still time to make a last minute pledge, but if we don't make our target in time, all pledges will be automatically cancelled and we'll resume our fundraising efforts in earnest again soon. 

Virtual Events

Garden Day - Sunday 10th May

Garden Day is a chance for people to down tools, and spend time celebrating their gardens. Everyone is invited from balcony and indoor gardeners to flower border fanatics and lawn devotees. You can even wear a flower crown - check out Instagram and Facebook for instructions, and to look at our own efforts.

The Sustainable(ish) Online Festival - 11th to 15th May

If you want to find out more about how making small sustainable changes can make a big difference to the planet, then this is the event for you. There will be master classes, discussions and tutorials all week to inform and inspire.

To paraphrase the Sustainable Life website...

"It'll be just like Glasto but with cleaner toilets, less mud, no tents, music of your own choosing, and a lot more personal space."

[mindfoodcio]

Spring Newsletter - Stay at Home Special

Spring greetings from MindFood! We do hope this finds you well.

These are challenging times indeed - which is why we’ve decided to bring you a 'Stay at Home Special' Bumper Photo Edition of our newsletter. And, as ever, it still has the reassuringly dependable mix of food-growing news, wellbeing tips and all round positivity, to help brighten your day and bring nature into your home. As you may already know, in line with guidance about social distancing regarding Covid 19, we have put a pause on our usual MindFood activities. We are working hard behind the scenes to find ways to support our community. Look out for the survey link below and see how you can help to shape what we do over the coming months. Connecting with nature, practising mindfulness and sharing delicious nutritious veg has never been more important. So in this respect, you should all count yourselves as trailblazers - thanks so much for your continued support 🙌🏽🙌🏾🙌

The MindFood Team

At Home with MindFood

Many of us will be spending a lot more time at home than usual over the coming weeks, so it's really important to be able to adapt and try to make these best of these unusual times. We're here to help you to do this, and our aim is to lead by example, so we're looking at new ways to bring MindFood to you.

It's already clear that many people have found within themselves an awesome amount of resourcefulness and kindness that they may not have realised was waiting for just this moment.

We know that many of you count among these lovely people, and we've already been inspired by so many of our MindFood family's encouraging messages and practical ideas for activities to try at home. We hope you'll share loads more of them with us - on social media, whatsapp, by email, or with a simple text.

Credits: Farah's sprouting garlic (now planted out), Natasha's picture-perfect seedlings

Growing News

At Cleveley, the rainbow chard ('Bright Lights') just keeps giving! After a good tidy-up a couple of weeks ago, the sweeter-tasting young leaves are coming through aplenty. The supply looks set to be so abundant that we'll be looking to share it with local charities like the Felix Project, who distribute fresh food to those in need.

At Horsenden, the rhubarb has been a generous early favourite. The broad beans are already in flower, the garlic bulbs are beginning to fatten up nicely, and the fruit bushes are coming back to life. The first leeks have gone into the ground, and in the polytunnel the feathery fronds of carrot seedlings are starting to emerge.

Crop of the Month

It must be mizuna! These mustard greens have been a tasty staple throughout March - a delicious way to liven up salads, add another dimension to stir-fries, or simply wilted and folded into an omelette.

They are a useful crop to grow through Winter and Early Spring as the seeds germinate at low temperatures, and even young seedlings are very resistant to the cold. Mizuna belongs to the Brassica family, which means you don't have to love kale or sprouts to get a rich supply of Vitamins A, C & K, and tons of antioxidants.

Mizuna is so nutritious and easy to grow, that they have even experimented with cultivating it on the International Space Station.

Mindful tip

Whether you're able to get outside, or just standing at a window, then what could be more mindful than looking for signs of spring: birds chattering in the trees, the first green leaf buds on branches, perennials springing back to life for another year, colourful flowers filling the verges again, and the blossom. Oh the blossom!

Sustainable tip

Save egg shells to sow seeds into, so that you can plant them straight out into your garden or window box. No seeds at the moment? Save some from veg or fruit, and see if you can get them to grow. 

And finally...

Please help us to help more people just like you, by clicking on the link below to find out more about our ideas to support you in the coming months.

We would love you to let us know what you think of our plans, offer up ideas of your own, and register an interest in how you would like to get involved.

5-minute Survey

Social Distance Learning

Next week we'll be having a go at bringing Growing Wellbeing and Naturally Creative to Facebook and Instagram.

On Mondays at 10.30 over the next 6 weeks we'll be sharing Growing Wellbeing-themed content on Facebook: there will be growing-at-home tips, plot updates, wellbeing tips and even a store cupboard recipe challenge. We'd love you to join in!

On Thursdays at 10.30 we'll be sharing a Naturally Creative moment with you on Instagram, and would love you to send us pics of your own creations to inspire other followers.

[mindfoodcio]

February newsletter

Hey folks - we’re back!  It’s February, and for some, Love is in the air...

But here at MindFood, we're thinking Love is in the earth (- sorry, couldn’t resist!)

It's also in the generous donation of wool & bracken compost we received from the good people at Dalefoot last week...and in the thousands of seeds already being sown for Spring and beyond. Who wouldn’t swoon?!

Look out for news of our Big Saturday Seed Swap this month and share the love 💕

Lucy & the MindFood Team

Are you Naturally Creative?

The answer is YES...because everyone is!

And if you're not sure you believe this, then maybe you just haven't found the best way to channel your hidden talents yet?

This is where nature works miracles: its effortless beauty will help you create something wondrous!

Camilla's Naturally Creative sessions at Horsenden Farm are on Thursdays, at the new time of 10.30. They are a fun opportunity to explore ways to be mindful in nature: walking and foraging for inspiration, then heading back to the Farm to transform ideas and finds into sketches, collages, posies, garlands, paintings, sculptures...or whatever you fancy!

Mini Make-Over at Cleveley Allotments

Our beloved geodesic dome is nearing the end of its natural life, and is sadly beyond repair - and with all the rain over the last few months we’ve been pondering how to make Cleveley a bit more weather-proof, while still keeping us in touch with the elements...and we believe we’ve found an innovative solution!

We’ve decided to start a crowdfunding project for an exciting replacement: a completely frameless dome...called the Aura Dome (pictured left). It's extremely durable, and designed to last 10-15 years. What's more, its polycarbonate hexagonal panels are easy to replace, and fully recyclable.

We've just posted our bid on Spacehive, a local crowdfunding platform, and would love to get lots of pledges to show the big funders (Ealing Connects, Veolia and GLL) that this is a popular project.

Just pound or two from lots of people at an early stage in the campaign will make the world of difference. We’d be grateful if you could share this project with your friends, family and colleagues. Many thanks!

Www.spacehive.com/mindfood-makeover

Big Saturday Seed Swap

We’ll be hosting our first ever Seed Swap on 15th February, at Horsenden Farm from 12.30-2pm. Just bring along any spare seeds you may have (bought or saved), meet other keen gardeners, compare notes on favourite crops and make a trade that suits you both. Everyone's a winner!

We’ll have plenty of seed envelopes for you to use at our repackaging and labelling station, so it couldn’t be easier. There should be a real buzz at the Farm that day, with Plot to Plate from 10-12, tree-planting with the Friends of Horsenden, and freshly baked bread and cakes for sale from 11 too...

Growing news

At Horsenden, the warmth of the polytunnel means that spring has already sprung in there, and we’re enjoying persian cress, oriental mustard greens like mizuna and choi, and the first radishes of the season. Outdoors, our broad beans, garlic, and onions are all doing well, and we’re starting to force the rhubarb for delicate pink stems.

At Cleveley, it’s a similar picture - we’re also enjoying the beauty of our savoy cabbages as they start to take shape (pictured top), harvest the last of our little gem lettuces, and planting out our spicy mixed salad leaves. They’re remarkably resistant to winter temperatures!

Crop of the month  

Pea shoots! We’ve been growing these at Cleveley in the relative shelter of our dome.

Their juicy tips offer a taste of spring, and only take a couple of weeks to germinate - delicious as a garnish for fish dishes, added to stir-fries and salads, or simply by the handful.

Peas belong to the ‘legumes’ family, along with beans and other pulses. As well as being super-nutritious for us, legumes draw nitrogen out of the air and feed it into the soil, making them a natural fertiliser.

Mindful & Sustainable

Mindful exercise of the month

Enjoy bare branches of winter trees, taking a moment to appreciate their form. Notice spring buds that are already taking shape. Look for what’s thriving in the cold - you’ll be surprised at how much is looking vibrant and green.

Sustainable tip

Check out your ecological footprint - understanding your impact on the earth’s resources will help you see and measure how small changes you make today can help to make a better tomorrow.

Footprint calculator - www.footprintcalculator.org

And finally...

MindFood are delighted to have been selected by the Media Trust and City Bridge Trust as one of just 10 London charities to have a short promotional film made for us.

Over the coming weeks we will be shaping how we tell MindFood's story with our very own director. Then we’ll get to work with a professional film crew who are volunteering their time to help us create something really engaging for us (and you!) to share far and wide.

We’ll keep you posted, but let Lucy know if you’d like to get involved as we’re sure to need lots of extras!

MindFood dates

For any Mindfood sessions or for Kew visits & activities, please email info@mindfood.org.uk to book your freeplace in advance.

Growing Wellbeing 6-session courses

25th February - Tuesdays 1-3.30 at Horsenden

4th March - Wednesdays 10.30-1 at Cleveley Crescent Allotments

6th March - Fridays 1-3.30 at Cleveley

The Cleveley courses are running concurrently, so they're ideal for anyone with unpredictable schedules - eg. carers, job hunters, freelancers and anyone on zero hours contracts - as it's easy to swap sessions in any given week without missing out.

Sustainable Wellbeing

Monday sessions at Horsenden from 10.30-12.30

This is a follow-up course to Growing Wellbeing, designed to develop a sense of purpose & motivation, and offer practical ways to realise hopes, dreams and aspirations. You’ll also be part of a team site development project, with activities like painting, carpentry and landscaping to try.

NB On 10th Feb we have invited Juliette Carpentier, a local naturopath and nutritionist to come and talk to us about her work. All welcome, so do let Lucy know if you're interested in joining us that day.

Naturally Creative at Horsenden Farm

Thursdays 10.30-12.30

Camilla hosts this regular nature-based craft group. See above for more information on how creativity can be a rewarding way to cultivate Mindfulness in Nature.

Plot to Plate at Horsenden

Saturdays 10am -12

Pauline runs regular gardening sessions on Saturdays, incorporating tips and techniques to improve wellbeing. And of course, a nice cuppa.

Local events

Big Saturday Seed Swap

15th February - 12.30 to 2pm at Horsenden Farm (see above for more details)

Kew Gardens Orchid Festival

8th February-8th March

MindFood will be visiting Kew on:

Tues 18th Feb 1.30-4 (half term, may be busy)

Wed 26th Feb 10.30-1

Friday 28th Feb 1.30-4

NB: timeslots need to be pre-booked with Kew asap, so please let Lucy know by 10th Feb if you would like to join one of our visits (limited to MindFood growers only)

[mindfoodcio]

October news & course dates

Welcome to our October newsletter!

September has been a month of two seasons: we've been enjoying the last of the Summer harvests, and also delighted to usher in some delicious Autumn produce...all just in time for Apple Day!

Sitting right on the cusp are these gorgeous cape gooseberries: summery sweet berries with a hint of pineapple about them, delicately encased in their lacy autumnal shells.

And there's been a touch of the new school term around here too as we introduce a talented line-up of MindFood recruits to the team. All local or home-grown, they will have responsibility for fundraising, food-growing and supporting our busy programme. So let's give them all a big welcome…in our NEW TEAM SPECIAL!

Warm wishes and a very good World Mental Health Day to you all for tomorrow,

The MindFood Team

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But first, a farewell...

…to our great friend, founder and fundraiser, Ciaran Biggins, who is taking time out to explore life outside MindFood for a few months.

He set up MindFood nearly 8 years ago, and has worked tirelessly to develop and establish the project, and secure funds for its continuing success, so he really deserves a break!

Always keen to lead by example, Ciaran has recently taken a page out of the MindFood book by retraining as a gardener to spend more time in nature – we wish him every success!

Welcome to Jane!

This is Jane Newman: she's our brilliant new Fundraiser. She has an impressive track record of fundraising in Ealing, which includes raising nearly £7m to restore Pitzhanger Manor, and project managing the restoration of Walpole Park. She also has more than 20 years experience in the voluntary sector, and has been a grant assessor with the Big Lottery Fund and Children In Need too.

Our new Grower...

…is Camilla Phelps, who joins our team in November. Camilla has gardened with us for a couple of years, and is now ready to start leading groups of her own.  

She is an experienced community gardener, and has managed both Gardening and Mental Health awareness projects while working at the BBC.

The new role allows Camilla to continue her Thrive Social & Therapeutic Horticulture Training while helping us to develop the Cleveley Crescent site and bring new ideas to the Thursday Mindfulness in Nature programme.

And our Sarah...

Sarah Edwards has the formidable role of Programme Support.

She has been with MindFood for nearly a year and a half, and earlier this year co-ordinated the creation of our  eye-catching Hanwell Hootie Guitar (featured in our May newsletter). She has a background in freelance Graphic Design, and is a talented communicator both within our team, at outreach events and on social media. We look forward to seeing more of the Edwards’ signature colour and flare with eye-catching posts and attention-grabbing posters to help us share the MindFood story.

Growing news  

At Horsenden Farm

In the polytunnel we've been harvesting loads of fiery chillis, more aubergines, and enjoying our first home-grown watermelon and cucumelon (pictured here). And we even unearthed our first sweet potatoes this week - so proud! Outdoors, green kabocha squashes and butternuts are coming through at a steady pace, and (fingers crossed!) we'll have some pumpkins in time for Halloween.

At Cleveley

The allotments have given us an abundance of rainbow chard, kale and spinach, as well as some lovely leeks and a plentiful supply of Italian flat-leaf parsley. We've planted out garlic for the Spring and we've also been busy propagating new plants for next year: harnessing strawberry runners for more heritage plants, and preparing cuttings of our ever popular Japanese Mint.

Crop of the month  

It has to be chillis! They've come in all shapes, sizes and heats: lots of Cayennes and Habaneros, not to mention 'Vampires', 'Satan's Kiss', and the disturbingly named 'Ring of Fire'.

Chillis are members of the Nightshade family: Solanaceae, so they're related to tomatoes and potatoes. The health benefits are hotly debated as we don't consume huge amounts at a time.

Their popularity as a spice can't be disputed though - the best way to conserve them is to dry them thoroughly. Or to keep their fresh flavour, try blitzing them with root ginger and olive oil to make a paste for adding to curries.

Mindful & Sustainable

​Mindful exercise of the month

It is said that people who can’t sit still are the ones who need mindfulness the most.  So why not simply start by trying to sit absolutely still for two minutes, and see what you notice. It can be quite a revelation!

Sustainable habit of the month

Switch to led: LED light bulbs are extremely energy efficient and long-lasting; an LED bulb can cut energy consumption by over 80% when compared to conventional light bulbs and can last up to 25% longer.

And finally...

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us on Apple Day on September 28th - what a great day! We had a wonderful team to help with harvesting, setting up our stall, selling our produce, and encouraging visitors to guess the weight of the incredible 6kg marrow that Harj grew. And thanks too to Heather for all the lovely succulents she nurtured especially for us.

All together we made £215 on the day - a MindFood record for selling our own produce!

Here's the lovely family who won the marrow competition, together with their prizes, generously donated by Waitrose and Horsenden's Solas School for Complementary Therapies.

And a couple more photos of the day...

MindFood dates

For any Mindfood sessions or for Kew visits & activities, please email info@mindfood.org.uk to book your free place in advance.

Growing Wellbeing 6-session course

4th October - Fridays 1-3.30pm at the Cleveley Allotments (still ok to join this Friday, 11th Oct)

16th October - Wednesday mornings 10.30-1, also at Cleveley

29th October - Tuesdays 1-3.30 pm at Horsenden Farm

Sustainable Wellbeing

Monday sessions at Cleveley: 10.30-12.30

A follow-up course to Growing Wellbeing, designed to develop a sense of purpose & motivation, and offer practical ways to realise hopes, dreams and aspirations.

You’ll also be part of a team site development project, with activities like painting, carpentry and landscaping to try.

Mindfulness in Nature at Horsenden Farm

Thursdays 10-11.30am

We will be doing more woodland crafts through October: exploring the mindful aspect of creativity has been very popular indeed!

Saturdays 10am -12

From mid-October we'll have regular gardening sessions on Saturdays, incorporating tips and techniques to improve wellbeing. And of course, a nice cuppa.

Events in London

If you hurry you can just catch City Lit's Mental Wealth Festival this week to coincide with World Mental Health Day on 10th October. Click on the link at the bottom of the page for details of speakers and workshops between now and Saturday 12th.

Mental Wealth Festival 2019

Community Open Week at Kew

21st to 27th October

MindFood and other community groups will have a chance to work with artists, Kew scientists and participate in a range of hands-on activities throughout the week. We have pre-booked a number of sessions but availability is limited, so please get in touch with Lucy (lucy@mindfood.org.uk) this week to confirm your place for any of the following:

Monday 21st October - Sensory Walking Tour 2-3pm

Tuesday 22nd October - Tool Shed (Garden DIY) - 1.30-3pm

Thursday 24th October - Planting Workshop 2.30-3.30pm

Cleveley Crescent, London, United Kingdom

07720092954

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Look out for our special series of Mindfulness in Nature Bushcraft sessions - on Thursdays at the Farm through September. They’ll be hosted by Emma of Horsenden’s Be Wilder Forest School fame 🤗 To sign up for any or all of the sessions, just email Lucy at info@mindfood.org.uk #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #bushcraft #learnsomethingneweveryday #keeplearning (at Horseden Hill) https://www.instagram.com/p/B1MHXg-HkTu/?igshid=uajb6imz95nc

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All this rain has its up side! 🌱🌿😀 Harj planted this marrow with us, and got to take it home to share with his family 🤗 #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #veggies https://www.instagram.com/p/B1JnZUEnNZt/?igshid=14hohvz71omok

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Check out our August newsletter 🌱🌿 😎 https://www.facebook.com/339070959525552/posts/2214661361966493/ #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #veggies https://www.instagram.com/p/B0v6PLbnd7b/?igshid=y4ds9d439vlw

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Maybe... 😏 #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #veggies https://www.instagram.com/p/B0bjc9rHy05/?igshid=1ww9ybo706xmk

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Anything more beautiful than fennel in a grey summer sky? #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #veggies https://www.instagram.com/p/B0biBTvnKFp/?igshid=y7x1hekadr9d

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Could this be the beginning of a yellow courgette glut? ...BRING IT ON!! 😋 #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #veggies https://www.instagram.com/p/B0bIhdiHtAv/?igshid=12bft33vh2dt7

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Cool cucumber 😏 #wellbeing #nature #gardening #sustainability #mindful #mindfulnessinnature #wastenotwantnot #charity #therapeutichorticulture #fivewaystowellbeing #gardens #ealing #goodmentalhealth #growthmentality #give #zerowaste #fiveaday #horsenden #ealing #allotment #giveitagrow #nationalparkcity #veggies #staycool #cucumbers #polytunnelgrowing (at Horseden Hill) https://www.instagram.com/p/B0WV3KBHhgv/?igshid=m4r0ytcxigsq

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March MindFood newsletter

Hello from the MindFood team,

Spring is the season of new beginnings. Fresh buds bloom, animals awaken and the earth seems to come to life again. It seems very apt that in this season of new beginnings, we are able to share some very exciting news about MindFood's future....

MindFood has been successful in securing 4 years of funding from Ealing Council's 'Community Connections and Self Care Fund' as part of a consortium led by Ealing based charity Neighbourly Care. The funding will enable us to run our popular 'Growing Wellbeing' course up to 3 times a week for the next 4 years.

The funding will also enable MindFood to launch a brand new course called 'Sustainable Wellbeing'. This new course runs from a minimum of 6 weeks to a maximum 16 weeks, and is specifically tailored to meet the needs of those who want to build on learnings from Growing Wellbeing, and are keen to work proactively to achieve specific personal goals related to health and wellbeing. As well as spending time boosting your gardening skills, we will look at techniques to improve motivation, and ways to define and measure goals to set yourself up for success and sustainable wellbeing. The sessions will be based on our pioneering 'Five Ways to Grow' framework which uses the exploration and practice of food-growng to help inform and shape personal growth.

Check out the dates for the diary section to find out when the first Sustainable Wellbeing course starts along with all other key dates over the next couple of months.

Growing news  

February was a great month for raised bed building: we made a total of 3 and are already on with a 4th. Most of the people who helped us with this project were first time carpenters, showing that you won’t know what you can do until you try. The sense of achievement was fantastic!

The polytunnel at Horsenden has warmed up considerably over the last month, speeding up the growth of everything in there. Salads, kale, carrots and leeks are getting a head start on spring with fresh new harvests every week. We’ve also been experimenting with square foot gardening to give us more flexibility with quick crops, creating a protected space for edible flowers, and allowing participants to take ownership of a defined area and crop.

Meanwhile, the broad beans are thriving at Cleveley, and our spring onions and garlic are doing well in the shelter and warmth of the dome. This is a trial space for members of the Allium family, aimed at protecting them from Allium Leaf Miners that thwarted our efforts last year (‘Keep Learning’!). Our cuttings of Japanese mint are coming on well and should be ready to sell in the coming months - they have a deliciously fresh spearmint flavour which is perfect for herbal teas.

At both sites, sowing is well under way - we’re seeing our first tomato seedlings get stronger every day, and each morning brings a wave of germination whether it’s chillies, peppers, herbs or aubergines. Temperatures at this time are (usually) too low for germination to take place, so a warm window sill - or table, if you don’t mind having supper in your lap - can make a huge difference to how quickly things spring to life.

And all the while...daffodils, daffodils everywhere 🤗

Jobs coming up in March

- More sowing - especially herbs

- Filling and planting out beds

- Cultivating our huge new outdoor space at Horsenden - a vast area that was double-dug single-handedly by one of our Saturday volunteers. You know who you are - thanks so much again 

- Adding lime to the brassica beds to make the soil more alkaline...which they’ll love

Vote for MindFood in your local Tesco store  

We are excited to share that we have been been shortlisted for the Tesco Bags of Help scheme and we now need your help to vote for our project so we can secure the top prize of £4000. The funding will pay for a brand new weekly 'Mindfulness in Nature' session that will support people experiencing anxiety, depression or stress to improve their wellbeing. The sessions will  include guided mediations, mindful walks and mindful drawing exercises. We passionately believe that spending time in nature is the perfect place to practice mindfulness, noticing the smells, sounds, tastes and textures of the natural environment.  

Voting is open in all Tesco stores in Ealing  throughout March and April. Customers will cast their vote using a token given to them at the check-out in store each time they shop. Here is the full list of Tesco stores:

ACTON EXPRESS   W3 9RH   ACTON METRO     W3 7RR  EALING BROADWAY METRO   W5 5JY   GREENFORD METRO UB6 8QY  GREENFORD OLDFLD EXP    UB6 8PP  HAVEN GRN EALING EXP    W5 2PB   HOOVER BUILDING UB6 8DW Superstore NORTHFIELDS ELING EXP   W13 9QR  NORTHOLT EXPRESS        UB5 5AU  SOUTHALL KING ST EXP    UB2 4DB  UXBRIDGE RD W EAL EXP   W13 8SB

MindFood dates for the diary 

6 week 'Growing Wellbeing' courses starting on: 

- Friday 8th March at Cleveley Crescent Tuesday 19th March at Horsenden Farm

- Wednesday 3rd April at Cleveley Crescent (scheduled on Wed to avoid 2 bank holidays)

- Tuesday 30th April at Horsenden Farm

Friday 3rd May at Cleveley Crescent

- Monday 13th May at Cleveley Crescent

All sessions run from 1 to 3.30pm

NEW! Sustainable Wellbeing course:

1st April - 10.30am to 1pm at Cleveley Crescent

This course runs from a minimum of 6 weeks to a maximum 16 weeks, and is specifically tailored to meet the needs of those who want to build on learnings from Growing Wellbeing, and are keen to work proactively to achieve specific personal goals related to health and wellbeing. Participants should aim to attend weekly to get the best from this course, but if this is not possible due to work or caring commitments, the 6 sessions can be completed at any time within the 16 week programme. Please contact Lucy if you’re interested in signing up.

Plot to Plate

From week commencing the 1st April, our 'Plot to Plate' sessions will be on Tuesday (changed from Wednesdays) and Friday mornings from 10.30am to 12.30pm. 

Saturday Volunteering at Horsenden Farm

- Sat 16th Mar - 10am to 12.30pm - SEED SWAP: bring your spare seeds to swap with others. We’ll also be doing lots of sowing and potting up, ready for sales in April, July and September

- Sat 20th April - 10am to 2pm - not a MindFood session, but an option to join the ‘We love Horsenden’ team for general volunteering on the Hill (eg you can join the plogolution: ‘plogging’, walking/jogging combined with litter picking)

- Sat 27th April - 10am to 12.30pm - join us at MindFood as part of Capital Growth’s Big Dig event that celebrates food-growing projects all over London. We’ll have young plants to sell too, if you’re looking to do some growing at home

- Sat 18th May - 10 to 12.30 - working alongside the ‘We love Horsenden’ team, tasks tbc. 

Green events in London

Events at Gunnersbury Park

Bird watch walkabout

Sunday, 10th, March start 8.30am

Meet: outside the Museum.

An illustrated introduction to mosses/liverworts and lichens

Tuesday, 12th, March at 2pm

Booking essential on visitgunnersbury.org. Event is free.

Ealing libraries presents  - A Little Book of Latin for Gardeners How did the delphinium get its name? Which parts of the body lend their names to auriculas and orchids? What does an everlasting pea have to do with Indian miniature paintings?

These are some of the questions answered in Peter Parker’s adventurous exploration of the mysteries of Botanical Latin. He will be discussing his incredible new work at Northfields library followed with a Q&A with the author himself. Friday, 22 March 2019 18:00 – 19:00 

Salopian Kitchen open day 

Cultivate London have a monthly open day on Saturday 13th of April from 10am - 2pm. Visit Cultivate London's website for more information.  

Kew Gardens Tool Shed Garden DIY Sessions are continuing,  please contact Lucy asap if you’re interested in signing up for sessions from April.

[mindfoodcio]

February MindFood newsletter

Hello from the MindFood team,

Despite the recent arctic conditions we're excited that Spring and a new growing season is within sight. Our newsletter this month gives a taster of some of the jobs we'll have coming up on our growing sites that you can get involved in, a mindful exercise to try out and lots of events and ideas for where you can get your vitamin (N) fix over the next month.

January was a busy month at both Cleveley and Horsenden where we’ve been building and repairing raised beds, and replenishing them with compost and manure, so they’ll be ready and full of nutrients for all the veg we want to grow in the coming months.

We’ve been drawing up crop plans too - we’re looking at introducing lots of new veggies, with sweet potatoes, asparagus, tomatilloes, watermelons, cornichons (mini gherkins), more herbs and exciting varieties of chilli peppers being added into the mix this year.

Jobs coming up in February

February is another good month for getting the basics sorted - the annual site clear-out is already well underway, and we’ll be cleaning all our pots, seed trays and potato tyres stacks. We’ll also as be clearing weeds, ‘rehoming’ slugs and snails, and repairing our protective mesh frames to give young seedlings the best start possible.

There will be an opportunity to build new raised beds at Horsenden on the morning of Sat 16th Feb - (see our Dates & Events section below) if you fancy giving basic carpentry a try, or if you’re keen to share your expertise and skills. The soil warms up faster in raised beds and they drain better too so they’re a great way to deal with heavy clay soils.

We’ll also be planting fruit bushes at Horsenden for the first time, and mulching around the ones at Cleveley and cutting back branches that have already fruited. The raspberry, blackberry, gooseberry and redcurrant bushes that we planted last year should be properly established now, so we’ll be hoping for a much more productive second year. Recipe ideas welcome🙂

We’ll also be chitting our new potatoes - this sounds complicated, but essentially it’s allowing them to sprout new shoots by standing them on end in a module tray or egg box and place them in a bright, cool, frost-free place.

Mindful exercise of the month

Practising mindfulness for just 10 mins a day is a tried and tested way to feel stronger, calmer and more on top of things. This exercise is taken from actionforhappiness.org who have loads of ideas for improving your wellbeing.

Walking mindfully:

Why not try this on a walk that you often take, for example to work, school or college. Or you can choose to go for a walk specifically to practice mindfulness. - Set yourself a time - say 10 or 15 minutes (sometimes setting the alarm on your phone is good so you don't need to keep looking at your watch). - As you walk, focus your attention on the soles of your feet and how they feel as each in turn touches the ground. From your heel as it lands and through to your toes as you move to the other foot. Notice where your weight is, the texture of the ground on your feet and how this changes as you walk, how warm or cold your feet are, the noise your feet make as you walk… - Don't judge or worry about what you are experiencing or change the way you are walking as a result. The aim is simply to focus and notice. - If your mind wanders or gets caught up in thought, bring it back to your feet and noticing the sensations of walking. (It is very normal at first for our mind to wander - eventually we learn to keep it focused.) - Keep going until your alarm rings.

City Bridge Trust fund Plot to Plate in 2019  

We are extremely grateful for the support of the National Lottery community fund who funded our Plot to Plate programme over the last 12 months. Over 25 people accessed the course and through our evaluation tool we know that since attending Plot to Plate; 75% felt calmer, 93% felt happier, 63% are sleeping better, 88% are eating healthier foods and 60% are visiting their GP less.

We are delighted to announce that City Bridge Trust will be funding MindFood to deliver two weekly sessions of Plot to Plate for the next year. We are extremely grateful for their support and look forward to another great year of Plot to Plate on both our sites.  

Also just a reminder to please consider choosing MindFood as your local Co-op's cause for the next year. It is really easy to support us, just log in to your Co-op membership card and choose MindFood as your cause so that 1% of your spend is donated to us.  A big thank you to everyone who has chosen us as we've already raised £500 towards a Saturday version of our Plot to Plate course.

MindFood dates for the diary

6 week 'Growing Wellbeing' courses starting on: Friday 8th March at Cleveley Crescent 1 to 3.30pm Tuesday 19th March at Horsenden Farm 1 to 3.30pm

Saturday Volunteering at Horsenden Farm Sat 16th Feb - 10 to 12.30

Building raised beds in the polytunnel and filling them.

Sat 16th Mar - 10 to 12.30

SEED SWAP: bring your spare seeds to swap with others. We’ll also be doing lots of sowing and potting up, ready for sales in April, July and September

Register Interest

Green events in London

Incredible Edible Seed Swap

Join Incredible Edible Lambeth for their annual Seed Swap in partnership with the Garden Museum on 9th February.

Orchids at Kew

Celebrate the incredible biodiversity of Colombia through Kew's spectacularly colourful orchid display. 9 February until 10 March 2019. Contact Lucy to let us know if you’d like to join our visit to Kew on Tues 19th Feb or 1st March.

Salopian Kitchen open day

Cultivate London are having an open day on Saturday 2nd of March from 10am - 2pm. Visit Cultivate London's website for more information.  

Organic Lea are advertising trainee gardening roles: The trainee roles start in the week beginning 25th March; and the deadline for applying is 10am Monday 11 February. Interviews are week beginning 25 February.

For more details about all the roles, who to talk to and how to apply see Organic Lea’s website

Kew Gardens Tool Shed Garden DIY Sessions are continuing, but fully subscribed until March - please contact Lucyasap if you’re interested in signing up for sessions from April.

[mindfoodcio]

October Newsletter

We hope you're enjoying the beautiful colours of Autumn. In this newsletter we share some tips around food and mood, where you can get your Vitamin (N) fix, as well as all the opportunities to get involved with MindFood over the next month.

An apple-solutely great day

We had a fantastic day at the Horsenden Hill's Apple event at the end of September. Thanks to all our volunteers who helped out with crop harvesting, setting up the stall, selling produce, packing up, as well as giving the garden a good water at the end of the day. Everyone who volunteered made fantastic MindFood ambassadors with their generosity, friendliness and enthusiasm for the project. It's no wonder so many people wanted to talk to us on the day and spend over £120 with us too. The money we raised will go towards new tools, equipment and seeds - which is great news for everyone!

Food and Mood - tips for your mental health

On week 4 of our Growing Wellbeing course we explore the link between what we eat and how we feel. Our diet has a significant effect on how well our brain works. Just like an engine, if we power our body with the right fuel and avoid clogging it up with unnecessary ingredients it will perform to its maximum potential.

Here are five types of foods that can help improve your mental health:

1.    Fatty Fish: salmon, herring, sardines, mackerel and seaweed. Foods high in omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to reduce symptoms of common mental health issues.

2.    Complex Carbohydrates: wholewheat, bulgur, oats, wild rice, barley, beans and soy. Complex carbs release glucose slowly, providing a steady source of fuel for the brain and body.

3.    Lean Protein: fish, turkey, chicken, eggs and beans. Next to carbohydrates, protein is the most abundant substance in the body. Lean protein sources help keep serotonin levels balanced.

4.    Leafy Greens: kale, spinach, romaine, mustard greens and broccoli. Leafy greens are packed full of folate and other B vitamins which can help guard against depression, fatigue and insomnia.

5.    Live Cultures: probiotic yoghurt, kefir, kimchi and sauerkraut. Fermented foods contain healthy bacteria shown to reduce anxiety and stress. eating too many processed foods may compromise the delicate balance of bacteria in the gut.

Check out the charity Mind’s video on food and mood for more tips. 

Danone corporate volunteer day

We had a team of 15 employees from the Marketing department of Danone (makers of Alpro, Evian & Actimel) volunteer to help improve our site at Cleveley Crescent. The team got through a huge amount of activity including building 8 new raised beds and literally laying down a tonne of bark chipping to improve our paths. We're keen to explore working with more companies so if you or someone in your family works for a company that might want a nature based team building day, do get in touch to let us know.

Last Growing Wellbeing course dates for 2018

Our 6-session ‘Growing Wellbeing’ course is a fun balance of learning how to grow food, and how to use tips and techniques to improve your wellbeing.

We'll make sure that there will be plenty of activities that will keep us warm and dry so don't be put of by joining the course in late autumn and early winter.

Please share the dates with anyone you think might be interested:

Fridays 1.30pm - 4pm from 16 November at Cleveley Crescent, nr Hanger Lane tube

Tuesdays 1pm - 3.30pm from 27 October at Horsenden Hill Farm, nr Perivale tube

Green events in London

Here's a summary of where you can go to get your Vitamin N(ature) in London over the next month:

Here's a summary of where you can go to get your Vitamin N(ature) in London over the next month:

Bird watch walkabout Gunnersbury Park

Sunday, 4th, November – meet outside the museum 8.30am

John Wells is a local naturalist and friend of Ealing Transition. He leads regular walks around the borough to help people gain a deeper appreciation of nature

Please email johnwells3@hotmail.co.uk or text/telephone 07583797219 to confirm your place.

DIY skills workshop in Kew’s community allotment

Tuesday 30th October or Tuesday 20th November

These free monthly intergenerational workshops will help you hone your DIY skills or give you the chance to share that perfect allotment ‘hack’ you’ve been working on. Each month there will be a new challenge to tackle, from building potting benches, cold frames, to constructing bird boxes, recycling and repurposing waste materials, repairing old tools, investigating natural materials… and much more!

Email Lucy at info@mindfood.org.uk for more information.