The plight of the bumble bee...

" If the bee disappeared off the face of the earth,
man would only have four years to live”

Maurice Maeterlinck The Life of the Bee, Nobel Prize for Literature

Afternoons on the acre!

These events are proving to be tremendously popular, especially with young families, and it's lovely to hear the peals of laughter as the children play with gay abandon around the garden. We've had bbq's, picnics and full sit down lunches with activities ranging from nature trails, butterfly hunts, vegetable picking and also intrepid maze exploring. What will you do with your "Afternoon on the Acre" on the acre?  

Fenella enjoyed an afternoon with her family and thoughtfully shared this lovely account: - 

 "It was just what we all needed and reminded me of the importance of such a space. Having done a tour and checked out how well Corin has been looking after things, we sat under the happiness tree in the shade playing cards and board games. After a cool drink and a snack, we said our goodbyes all too soon. Jamie and Louisa satisfied their curiosity and I was transported back to the prepandemic simpler time of weeding and potting on, with tea and cake amongst friends."

And Sarah, a local mother, kindly sent in these pictures of her daughters and friends daughter enjoying the acre, she said of her time on the acre that it was like a spa day - praise indeed!

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Other News! 

Men in Sheds are proving to be the busy bees of the acre! Not content with having just one project on the go, our chaps have several including building our pizza oven, the pond decking, building a new gate for our neighbours....and they keep adding work to their list. Just fantastic! 

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There are times when, as a human being, you just have to look at nature and be awestruck by what you are observing. This was certainly the case on Saturday when the yoga class had the chance to glimpse into the lives of the honeybees that are kept in the grounds of the Old Vicarage. Their hives are a model example of how a community works together in harmony towards achieving acommon goal, which is ultimately the survival of their group. We watched the undertakers as they removed the dead and took them far from the hive, and the workers with their legs covered in pollen returning home. Others were assigned tasks - packers, suckers, nannies, defenders - in all something like 25,000 bees living and working in a close knit community. We also watched as the Queen bee was given a blue spot which denotes the year she came to the hive. Did you know the Queen only uses her sting on other Queens and not on humans? I didn't either! 

Musings from the Acre It might be stretching a point too far to compare the acre to such a complex society as the bees but we all have a part to play to make space2grow a success. In return the acre gives so much back to us and here is Dave's story of his time at space2grow;


 "I have been visiting the Acre for nearly a year, after a false start after breaking my ankle on a run, as a volunteer as part of the Thursday morning group. So I thought that it was time that I gave some feedback, which I'm happy to be used in the news letter if it fits.

Last year I was made redundant after 18 years working in the network communication industry, specialising in mission critical communication solutions. Previous to that I was an electronics engineer in the British Army for 24 years. 

I have looked upon my redundancy as an opportunity to do something different, which has given me time to volunteer and to give something back, the Thursday morning gardening group is ideal for me. I've really enjoyed the work on Thursday's, meeting people from different walks of life and with varied experiences. Hopeful I have also played my part in helping the Acre develop in meeting its aims.

I was really happy and keen to get back into the Acre after the recent lockdown, and didn't need to be asked twice when asked if I would like to take home some produce grown in the Acre when attending a recent Thursday group. Lockdown has made me more aware of our environment, its importance and the need to look after this valuable resource. As the graffiti on the side of a bridge over the westbound M4 states "There is no planet B". I took freshly dug onions, garlic and potatoes home and made a simple, but delicious meal with ingredients. The potatoes were part boiled, sliced and roasted on a baking tray with sliced onions, crushed garlic which was sprinkled with olive oil and pepper. Accompanied with a salmon steak cooked in a foil parcel with a sprinkle of water and lemon juice, and a portion of mixed vegetables. The taste of the freshly dug potatoes and onions was definitely enhanced when compared to shop purchased produce, and the satisfaction of using ingredients dug by myself and taken home via cycle power very high. 

I felt good knowing that I had contributed a very small amount to reducing carbon footprint and increasing personal activity/exercise in a positive way. If everyone was able to make some very small changes to reducing carbon production and increasing exercise, the collective result would be huge. Much like British Cycling making lots of marginal improvements; Sir Dave Brailsford changed British Cycling's fortunes when he took charge in 2002. He took the team from winning only one gold medal in its 76-year history to winning seven out of 10 gold medals available in track cycling at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and they matched the achievement at the London Olympics four years later. 

Hopefully my small contribution to the Acre is helping the collective aim.

Best Regards - Dave Merrick”

We'd love to hear from you We know that everyone takes a different experience from the ace and if you have a personal anecdote which we could include then please email it to info@space2grow.space.

As we creep out of our lockdowns some of you might be wondering if there is much you can do at the acre. We do need some additional help to keep the acre going this summer so if you like weeding, clearing and watering - and can volunteer in the mornings - then please contact us at info@space2grow.space

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