Glee at the abundance of free food – and outrage that while a goodly proportion of the world hungers and starves, the other half discards food with little or no conscience. There were boxes of eggs, tossed because one was slightly cracked, packages of chicken portions and cheeses, all well wrapped and on their sell by date, carefully stacked cartons containing dozens of yoghurts and fromage frais, boxes of dried foods – rice, pasta and cereal, bags, bags of ripe fruit and vegetables, and incomprehensibly, a crate of bottled water and several dozen tins of pet food. All clean, dry and completely safe to eat.

That was my first ‘dive’, several years ago, and for a long time after that, a friend and I made regular nocturnal trips to relieve local supermarket skips of their bounty. Our food bills were decimated by our plunder, CCTV cameras all over Devon probably have acres of footage of us performing all kind of acrobatics to retrieve our skip goodies, and on more than one occasion, we distributed our spoils to others in the know.

When, two years ago, we opened our home as a retreat, it was clear that my skip diving activities did not sit well alongside running an establishment where people pay to stay, and from day one, I gave up my regular runs to skipland. I missed it then, and I still do. Not just because there’s a certain childlike excitement to be had at the knowledge of unknown variety and quantity of goodies just waiting to be plucked from the depths of the skip. But also because it’s impossible for anyone laying claim to any kind of humanity not to feel something akin to grief at the thought of the endless quantities of good and decent food that is sent to swell our landfill sites, each and every day. Food that could nourish, sustain, and fill the bellies of those who go to bed hungry every night – many of whom live in the UK, and some of whom are certainly only steps away from a supermarket skip.

This is a ludicrous and cruel situation brought about by nonsensical bureaucracy and a completely unreasonable fear of food past its sell by date – something shamelessly nurtured by the greed of multi million dollar food manufacturers. Just thinking about it makes me want to weep, quite frankly.

I was brought up with the certain knowledge that waste is a terrible thing. My grandmother showed me how to boil up the carcass of the chicken we had just eaten, to make a tasty stock. I watched vegetable parings being cooked and fed to our hens, and the cooking water added to soup for flavour, and I saw stale bread being turned into the delicious ‘Pain perdu’ – now known as eggy bread or French toast. Delicious with jam or syrup as a breakfast or dessert.

In our house food was treated with respect and valued. My grandmother would have been horrified at the casual waste that is often seen as normal, today. My skip diving days have left me with an even keener sense of the need to cherish any and all leftovers and scraps, and I take a certain pride in the knowledge that in this house, food is not thrown away. Soup is a big favourite here, and I defy anyone to find something savoury than cannot be used in soup. Cream that’s on the turn adds a certain je ne sais quoi to any vegetable broth, and a dollop of cottage pie or some left over pasta (yes, even lasagne) adds bulk and body to a winter soup, rendering it a meal that will give succour to body and soul. Mix cold curry with cold potatoes, whip up some mayonnaise with a couple of egg yolks and some good olive oil, mix together with some chopped celery or something else crunchy, and you have a wonderful winter salad. (Save the egg whites and make mousse.) A left over and tired looking fruit salad makes a great fruit smoothie, or, bubbled on the stove for a few minutes with some cinnamon and brown sugar, becomes the perfect base for a delicious fruit crumble. And of course anything that absolutely cannot be used is given to our hens, who oblige us by providing glorious golden yolked eggs.

We’ve been exhorted by the government – quite rightly, to avoid food waste. The way to do this is to plan meals, shop and cook accordingly, use your freezer and use your imagination, to turn leftovers into delicious nutritious repasts. But it’s to their eternal shame that the government didn’t also point out that supermarkets are chucking perfectly good grub out before we can get our hands on it, and this situation needs to be rectified.

So pester your local supermarkets for an account of what they do with food that’s on its sell-by date.

Ask them to display it more obviously, suggest that they liase with shelters for the homeless and the like, who might be able to do a regular collection of food that’s about to go out of date – and feed it to those who need it.

I went to one of our local supermarkets a fortnight ago, half an hour before it closed, and saw that there were about 100 cartons of organic strawberries knocked down to 20p a carton. More to embarrass him than anything, I asked the manager what would happen to any unsold strawberries. ‘They’ll go in the bin,’ he said, without even flinching, ably displaying the kind of attitude that promotes such shocking and thoughtless waste. As I bought the lot, I reflected that we have a hell of a battle on our hands.

Skip picture credit : Welsh Green Dragon

This Blitz spirit could still be felt in the 1950s. I was looking at some old family photos to use in this article and you get a real sense of people not having very much but still having fun, despite the demob suits and borrowed wedding dresses.

Somehow we all seem more willing to pull together when times are tough. When life gets comfortable and easy, this sense of camaraderie fades, we forget about how a little can go along way; how to preserve and make the best of what we’ve got.

But here at Make it and Mend it we’ve noticed something very interesting – and heartening. That Blitz Spirit is making a comeback. It has nothing to do with warring nations, gung ho or derring do, but is a collective battling of a new enemy – the economic adversity that is making its presence felt around the globe and the realisation that, as the occupants of this lonely planet, we have become profligate in the way we use its rich resources.

This spirit has been one of the driving forces behind Make it and Mend it. People all over the world want to share ideas about how to use leftovers, mend and alter clothing, repair and reinvent furniture, or make Roman blinds using old duvets.

“You can find this spirit alive and well today – on allotments and in sewing circles, at car boot sales and DIY stores. And we think that’s a cause for celebration”

We also started to think about why now, in particular, people seem to be so keen to share and support each other to explore a more sustainable lifestyle and values that seemed so pronounced during the war years?

One thing about the war was the way it gathered people together, in air raid shelters, underground stations, church halls… Over the tea and commiseration, people forged bonds and supported each other. Today the internet is allowing us to forge friendships and share ideas just as air raid shelters did back then, while  we duck for cover from the financial bombing so many of us are experiencing now.

“The spirit that seems to be fundamental to a Make it and Mend it lifestyle is alive and well on websites, Facebook, Twitter… the shared cups of tea may be virtual but the empathy is real”

So, over the coming months we want to conjure up this new Blitz spirit and we need your help…

We need your stories

If you really want to know about making and mending, ask someone who lived through the war years. We want to hear from grannies and uncles, aunties and grandads. People like Arthur, 92, pictured on the left. “Everybody had an allotment back then.”

“My grandad had a huge allotment. Under his back garden a big potato  kiln was buried that kept them fresh and stopped them going to seed,” he remembers. “There was a real spirit of helping each other. And nobody ever used to grumble about what they didn’t have. They were just happy they had something.” Arthur

We’ll be posting wartime stories and insights as videos on the site.  Could you make a video – maximum 2 minutes in length – with a relative like Arthur talking about some aspect of making, mending and sharing from the 1940s?

We’ll gather together these war time reminiscences from people around the world – not just the UK.

If you have a YouTube account you can post the video there and send us the link, or email us a video direct (remember, maximum two minutes):
email info@makeitandmendit.com

We need your ideas

We’re increasingly aware these wartime values are being applied today. What do you or your neighbours do that reflects this spirit of sharing and sustainability? Send us your repairing and mending tips, economy recipes and money saving ideas. And tell us what inspires you and your friends?

Leave a comment below
Or email info@makeitandmendit.com

Meet the spirit…

» On the allotment

» By cooking with leftovers

» In Doreen

XX

The jam was easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy – I did a very basic sugar and lemon juice and fruit recipe and it tastes great – not just as a jam but also as a relish with hard cheese – great with a nice bit of Manchego (see below for the recipe – the jam not the Manchego!).

As to growing the fruit: that’s proved surprisingly easy. I have a tree that was planted 2 years ago in a south facing border. I’ve had to cut it back quite a bit and it will definitely need some more heavy pruning this autumn as it’s getting very tall. Last year it gave me 2 delicious figs but I got a whole kilo of fruit this year. My fig tree seems no exception to the rule that these trees  are enthusiastic growers – it produces shoots from the base of the tree and as I’d like to avoid my tiny urban garden becoming an exclusive fig zone, I’ve cut these back.

When it was first planted, the fig looked a bit poorly and I had to water it a lot and that first year also give it some feed. Since then it’s needed nothing.

Second crop - these won't ripen

The kind of figs we get in the UK are all female and so develop fruit without fertilisation of flowers – unlike wild figs, which rely on the good works of the fig wasp. Instead here our figs grow as tiny little embyro fruits in the leaf axils in late summer and don’t ripen until the following year – as long as the frosts don’t get them first. There’s also a further crop of this year’s figs that appear in late summer but they don’t ripen in this climate, so you need to get shot of them in September. Last year whilst I only got 2 ripe fruits I had a load of dud second crop fruits which I took off in September and lo and behold my big summer crop arrived this year.

The other joy of figs is the foliage of big lush leaves, which give the garden a distinctly Mediterranean feel. So figs are getting the big thumbs up from me.

Now as to my grapevine – the jury’s still out. I have 2 bunches of unripe grapes – but one has decided to grow on my neighbour’s side of the fence. We’ve yet to discover if either of us will get anything edible – and I think it’ll be a long time before we get to try our hands at wine-making.

Here’s how to make the jam

• Equal quantities of figs and sugar (ideally about a kilo of each)
• Juice of a lemon

Remove the stalks from the figs and chop roughly, keepng the skin on. Put all the ingredients in a pan and simmer till the sugar is completely dissolved. Boil for about 10 minutes and check for doneness  repeating the test as needed at 1 minute intervals. (I always keep a few saucers in the freezer for this purpose – drop a little bit of the syrup onto the plate and if you can push it up so the surface slightly crinkles it’s ready).

More tips on jam making

Here at Make it and Mend it when know how important it is not to throw money away, so here’s our guide to prolonging the life of school clothes – whether you’re buying new this term or trying to squeeze more life out of the items you already have…

1. Re-sew all the buttons on before your children wear anything

The way that buttons are attached in factories means they’re always falling off. Pull one little thread and the whole lot is gone in 2 seconds. So before you let your children wear anything, re-sew all the buttons and finish off with a dab of clear nail varnish over the thread to hold it in place and stop it unravelling. » Button sewing tips

2. Reinforce the knees on trousers

Little boys (of any age) and trousers don’t mix well. Within minutes of putting on a new pair, the knees will be worn, if not torn. To help prolong the life of the trousers, simply reinforce them by adding a patch on the inside of the trousers over the knee area.

If the knee area is already too damaged, turn the trousers into shorts for next summer, by cutting off at the knees and hemming them up.

3. Brush up your sewing skills – or acquire new ones

You can develop you sewing skills so you’ll soon be patching and mending clothes, letting out or takinging in a waistband and hem skirts and trousers. A few basic skills go a long way. And if you invest in a decent sewing machine you’ll save yourself a fortune in the long run. Modern machines are much easier to master. And their own brand machines start at just over £100 – the JL125 has a choice of 18 stitches, stitch width control, twin needle sewing, freehand darning, monograms and embroidery.

The Supermum basic repair kit: sharp scissor with points that you can insert in seams etc. A selection of good quality thread in neutral colours (and including white, black and grey), hemming take for emergency repairs (see our link to hemming without sewing), pins to hold things in place while you carry out repairs, pack of needles, needle threader, iron patches (that can be cut to shape), marker pen and name tape. Name tape tip: Kids often hate having their names in things as they get older. Try sewing the name tag inside sleeves or under seams where they can be checked but are not on show.

» John Lewis sewing machines

» Basic hemming skills

» Hemming without sewing – the non-sewers solution

» Sewing accessories, knitting and haberdashery

4. Only use a cool wash

Take you washing machine down to 30 degrees. Not only is this environmentally friendly, but clothes friendly too.

5. Wash inside out

Make sure you turn jumpers, skirts and trousers inside out before you wash them. This will protect them from damage and keep the colour longer.

6. Prolong the working life of shirts by keeping them white

Constant washing can make whites go a bit grey and dingy but, with a little forethought, you can keep shirts looking clean and fresh.

To keep shirts white, simply soak the shirt in a bowl of warm water and lemon slices and then leave to dry in the sun. Lemon juice and sunshine are natural bleaches and the clothes will smell lemony fresh.

7. Download our fantastic stain busting guide

Stains on school shirts are inevitable, but with a little help from our stain guru Stefanie Zia, ink marks will be a thing of the past and you’ll be equipped to conquer even the worst grass stain.

» Download a FREE copy of our stainbusting  guide

Ditch the dryer

Apart from costing a fortune in electricity, dryers do dreadful things to clothes. Use an old fashioned clothes line and you will be saving money and clothes. Did you know that in the United States 10-15% of  domestic energy is expended on dryers. We support Project Laundry List – campaigning in the USA for a return to line drying.

8. Dry clothes with care

When hanging dark clothes on the line turn them inside out. Remember the sun is a bleach, by turning coloured clothes inside out you will help stop them fading and keep them looking newer for long.

9. Invest in some Scotchguard

One of my son’s infant teachers always wore cream clothes to school and always looked immaculate, despite being surrounded by lots of little children. Her secret was that whenever she bought anything new would give it a quick spray of Scotchguard first before wearing. The result was a pristine outfit that was easy to clean.

» Buy Scotchguard products online

10. Invest in a de-bobbler.

Nothing makes clothes look worn quicker than bobbling and unfortunately the cheaper the item of clothing the more likely it is to bobble. By investing in one of these cheap little machines your jumpers will retain that just bought look for a little longer.

» There are a range of wonderful de-bobblers to choose from…

11. Looking after school shoes

If you can afford it, buy leather shoes. They may be more expensive initially, but they will last much longer and are easier to keep looking good. Get into the habit of cleaning shoes at least once a week. Remove any dirt with a little saddle soap first and then nourish with a leather conditioner or a good quality shoe polish. Not only will they look better for regular cleaning, but you will be feeding the shoes and will keep the leather nourished and waterproof.

And invest in some Dubbin

Dubbin is an old fashioned product that isn’t often seen these days except by hikers and treckers, but it works brilliantly for nourishing shoes and keeping them waterproof. It’s a tub of wax that you rub gently into the shoes on a regular basis and can be used with polish as well.

» Read out great tips on shoes care

More back to school tips? Click on this image to read out great ideas for packed lunches

School care ideas – thanks for some of the ideas above go to some of our fellow Twitterers

• Taphophile – Taphophile_au
• Alice – anecat
• Brigitter Ratzer -BrigitteRatzer
• Bertie Smith – BertieRSmith
• www.bookshelfboyfriend.com – BBoyfriend
• djstoreroom

» Follow us on Twitter

But even the most loved electrical appliance cannot live forever. And occasionally I might want to upgrade – a computer or a TV. So what do you do with an electrical appliance that doesn’t work any more or is superfluous to requirements?

I don’t want to just chuck it in the bin. Londoners alone throw away 180,000 tonnes of electrical items which could be donated to others or where components could be recycled. The UK creates 1.5 million tonnes of electrical waste a year. 75% ends up in landfill. Electrical goods can contaminate soil and water.

If it doesn’t work but you still love it

You can occasionally find electrical repair shops but they’re not as thick on the ground as they once were. Internet search and local business directories might help and there’s nothing better than word of mouth. In the past I’ve found repair shops by talking to local shops that sell electrical goods. Of course, if the item is not that old or still within its warranty, you should take it back to the shop where you bought it for replacement or repair.

In her book ‘Mend It! 400 Easy Repairs for Everyday Items’, Sian Berry dedicates a whole chapter to repairing electricals.
» Buy it on Amazon
» Dave’s hi fi DIY hi fi repair tips

It it doesn’t work and you don’t want it

A whole range of not for profit organisations will repair non-working items or cannibalise them for spares. These include the Enfys Foundation in Swansea, Doncaster Refurnish and national organisations such as Emmaus. A good place to start looking for a local organisation that will recycle electrical goods is the Recycled Products Guide. The guide is actually designed to help you track down recycled goods to buy, but it’s also a great way to find organisations willing to take old phones, computers, fridges, TVs… to repair and reuse. And you can search for local organisations using your post code.

» The Recycled Products Guide
» recycle.more.co.uk has a whole section on recycling electric waste

Here’s a great little video from RecycleNow.com explaining how items get recycled – so incase you’re wondering how the different metals get sorted or the various types of plastic – this will show you.

It works, but you don’t want it

The British Heart Foundation will accept working electrical goods as part of an initiative launched this summer with Recycle Now. They also have specialist furniture and electrical stores. » British Heart Foundation furniture and electrical stores

Mobile phones
Old mobile phones are a perfect example of still-working items that people often want to dispose of because they’ve opted for an upgrade.

The number of options here has increased enormously. There are even organisati0ns that will pay you for old phones, recondition them and sell them abroad.  If you want to make sure a worthy cause benefits, check out » Shelter in the UK and, in the US, carbon offset project sponsor » TerraPass

Computers
There are also a number of schemes dedicated to recycling computers. It’s not just that your old computer may have a long and useful life elsewhere in the world, but remember they contain metals and other components that can damage the environment if not disposed of properly. Check with your manufacturer if they offer a pick up and recycle scheme. Dell, for example, do. » There are over 50 organisations in the UK refurbishing PCs for good causes

It doesn’t work and nobody else wants it

Before you consign it to the local rubbish tip, take a look at what you have in front of you…

1. Is the plug removable? Take it off and keep it as a spare.
2. Even if the plug is integrated with the lead, you should still be able to recycle the fuse, if it has one.
3. Can drawers and shelves from old fridges and freezers be found a second life in the garage for storage?
4. Does it have wood, screws, casters on the bottom… that could be used again?
5. Let your imagination get up close and personal – I saw an old TV once that had been turned into a planter. It looked fab (wacky, but fab).

Think about the life-cycle of your plugged appliance before you buy

Ideally buy electrical goods from manufacturers who take recycling seriously and may even have a service to help you recycle at the end of a product’s life. There are a numbers of things that businesses can do.

In Europe there’s the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive (WEEE Directive), which aims to reduce the amount of electrical and electronic equipment being produced and to encourage everyone to reuse, recycle and recover it. Importers, re-branders and manufacturers of new electrical or electronic equipment need to comply – but some seem to do this with more energy and imagination than others.

There’s no harm in checking out recycling policies before you buy. That’s what the internet was invented for. Some companies have made very public commitments to reducing, reusing and recycling. For example, Dyson will recycle your old vacuum cleaner for free when you buy a new Dyson from their online store. In the US, Sony Electronics instituted a nation-wide Take Back Recycling Program so consumers can recycle any Sony-branded product free of charge.

Other useful links

» Recycle for London which gives a guide to recycling options in all the London boroughs

» Read our blog piece about Hounslow’s new kerbside scheme for recycling electrical goods

Square Foot Gardening (SFG) is a way to use a small amount of ground to grow a large number of different vegetables.

It doesn’t need a lot of space and you can grow up to 16 different crops in just a four foot square plot. So what exactly is it? The Square Foot Gardening method was created by an American TV presenter, Mel Bartholomew. The aim was to get as much yield from as small a space as possible, with minimum effort and no weeding.

Mel was inspired by the fact that the average gardener wasted lots of time having to weed between the traditionally long rows of plants.

By getting shot of the rows and replacing them with intensive deep beds, divided into one-foot squares in a grid pattern, he was able to reduce the amount of maintenance needed significantly and make crop rotation and spacing much easier to manage. Sounds bloody marvellous to me!

The SFG method has really taken off in the States and is growing in popularity in the UK and elsewhere. It’s particularly good for school plots as it enables kids to try their hands at growing a wide range of vegetables in a small space and doesn’t involve a lot of onerous teacher maintenance.

“It takes only 50% of the costs, 20% of the space, 10% of the water, 5% of the seeds and 2% of the work of a normal vegetable garden” says Mel

How to build and maintain your own SFG plot

• Make a 4 feet by 4 feet raised bed, between 6 inches and a foot deep. Place a lattice on top consisting of one foot squares to separate the different vegs you’re going to plant.
• Mel uses a soil mixture of equal thirds of compost, peat moss and vermiculite. This mixture retains water well, is full of nutrients and gives you a completely weed-free start. BUT it’s not a sustainable soil as peat and vermiculite are non-renewable resources. Use your own compost instead or get advice from a good nursery on a more sustainable soil choice
• No digging! The beds are weeded and watered from the pathways, so the garden soil is never stepped on or compacted. If you don’t tread on it you won’t need to dig it – yay!
• Plant inside the squares: Each square has either 1, 4, 9 or 16 plants in it depending on the size of the plant. For example a single tomato plant would need a full square, strawberry plants or lettuces can be four per square, and up to sixteen onions, carrots or radishes per square. As an exception to this, there are a few larger plants that span two squares. Climbing peas, maize and beans can be planted in 2-square rows and supported by poles or lattices in the usual way.
• Thin with Scissors: Instead of pulling up excess plants which can disturb the root systems of the plants you want to grow you snip them off with scissors.

» Mel’s also written a new book about the method that you can buy on Amazon

A video with Mel explaining the method and how it could be used to help fight world hunger

OFFER

If you want to try SFG , then to make things even easier and help you plan your planting and rotation, the good people at Growveg.com have incorporated SFG into their vegetable garden planning software. Give it a go

» GrowVeg.com – 30 day FREE trial

» Follow this link for a demo of the tool in action

Holly

“If you’re bored of the same old sandwiches and want a different picnic lunch this summer holiday, Pastry Puffs are a delicious treat that are easy for you to make yourself. You can buy the puff pastry from any super market in the chilled or frozen aisle.

1. First defrost the pastry according to the instructions.

2. Choose what you want to make for your picnic, I did Rosemary Puff Sticks, Cheesy Puff Twists and Puff Pizza!

Flour your surface first

The rest is obvious. For the sticks all you need is salt and the herb you like, mine is Rosemary. For the twists I just used cheese but you could add marmite or something else like that. For the pizza you need tomato puree or passata, cheese and whatever other toppings you like, I like Quorn Ham and Basil or Oregano.

You can also do sweet pastry puffs with apple, cinnamon and sugar – Yum!

Sticks flavoured with Rosemary

Making twists with cheese

3. Next roll out your puff pastry on a surface sprinkled with plain flour.

4. For the sticks and twists cut the pastry up into thin strips.

Baked twists

5. For pizza (see the picture at the top) you can keep it rectangle, cut a square or shape it into a circle with a round tray.

6. Then all you do is add your toppings and bake following the cooking instructions on your packet which should be about 200 for 15 – 20 minutes.

When crispy and cooled spread out your rug and ENJOY YOUR PICNIC.“

» More about Mags Bradley and the Kids in Sussex website

Like the ebb and flow of the tide they wear down seemingly insurmountable obstacles. And often overlooked until the very, very last stages.

Shhhhh – can you hear that?

It’s the sound of billions of sewing machines, in leafy suburbs and developing world factories. It’s  hammers, mending, renovating and reinventing. It’s the sound of foodmixers and eggbeaters. And it’s the soft pulse of nature as runner beans curl their tendrils round serried ranks of trellises and tomato plants sway gently in allotment breezes. It’s a revolution alright.

“somewhere on a rollercoaster of post WWII consumer durables and changing social and work habits we got a little dizzy and lost our way a bit”

People have always made and mended, but somewhere on a roll of post World War 2 consumerism and changing social and work habits we lost our way a bit. It was easier to buy than to make, to chuck away rather than mend. We were all working so hard and were so busy, who had time to pick up a drill or a needle and thread?

But people aren’t silly and soon loads of us were longing for the days when you weren’t judged by the labels in your frocks – or the size of your credit card balance. Oh, we wanted to enjoy life and apply a little lipstick before  doing the gardening, but we also wanted to be more than just a “consumer”.

And we started to learn (or relearn) old skills. We conjured up memories of granny’s knitting needles flicking furiously in the firelight on long ago evenings. We roamed the shelves of DIY stores looking for spare parts and visited junk shops looking for rare parts. We viewed a trip to the tip as defeatist, unless we came away with something rather than just going there to throw stuff away. And all the time the sound of making and mending was getting louder and louder.

Join us and turn a quiet revolution into a very noisy one

Make it and Mend it is all about empowering the people to be a little more independent of the high street, cherish the things they own and worry less about the things they can’t afford.

• It’s about the self satisfaction that comes from repairing a much loved sweater or stopping the kitchen table from wobbling.
• It’s a feeling that can only come from building a set of book shelves, or breathing new life into a junk shop find.
• It’s about being more inspired and energised when you open your tool chest or sewing box than you ever do when you open your wallet.

A manifesto: the revolution resolution!

1. We don’t buy it or bin it just because we can afford to

We create something new, or make some repairs. We help each other and act as a gateway to other useful resources.

2. The true inspiration for Make it and Mend it is you

You can sign up on our website. There are also branches of the revolutionary force on the Facebook Page, the blog, the forum, the Twitter stream – wherever you happen to hang out.

3. The longest journey starts with a single step.

Make it and Mend it is all about making small changes and acquiring new skills in easy stages.

Ingredients

• 65g caster sugar
• 175g butter
• 4 tablespoons sifted icing sugar
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh lavender
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 160g plain flour
• 35g of cornflour
• ¼ teaspoon of salt

Preparation method

Cream together the butter, caster sugar and icing sugar until light and fluffy.

Mix in the lavender and lemon zest.

Combine the flour, cornflour and salt and add to the butter and sugar mixture and blend well to a smooth dough.

Roll the dough into a ball, place in a covered bowl and refrigerate until firm, about 1hour.

Preheat the oven to 170 C / Gas mark 3.

On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out to 8mm in thickness. Cut into shapes with scone or biscuit cutters. Place on baking trays.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes until biscuits just begin to brown at the edges.

Remove from the oven and leave to cool.

NB  You can use fresh lavender for these biscuits, but if you aren’t lucky enough to be able to grow your own or lavender is out of season, you can always buy dried cullinary lavender nibs to use this recipe.

www.myspicesage.com

Near where I live, the clunk of tea mugs is often replaced by the gentle clink of  wine glasses, as office types de-stress over the broad beans. And allotments have become, for some, a kind of status symbol. Heck, in my area there are 38 allotment sites and all have waiting lists. (There are 368 people waiting for a plot on Weald Avenue North End.)

They add a certain cache to home grown and home cooking. Courgette fritters with homemade basil mayonnaise are all very well, but if you grew the ingredients on your allotment, as opposed to the bottom of the garden – that’s cutting edge social oneupmanship where I come from.

So, do you have what it takes to handle an allotment? As it’s almost National Allotments Week – August 9-15 we decided to ask a couple of current allotment holders for their tips.

And to all of you nurturing a little plot somewhere, we say ‘Well done. Enjoy. And pass me the wine.’

Emily O’Brien acquired her allotment 9 years ago. She shares the cultivation with two other women, which she recommends – particularly for first time allotmenteers. “It’s really nice if you’ve not been able to get up for a couple of weeks, to know that somebody else is watering the seedlings. Plus it’s a lot of ground for one person.”

Emily left and Sarah right

Sarah Potter, one of Emily’s co-allotment holders also values having other people to share the work with. “It makes it more social and you learn things.”

As well as fruit and vegetables they grow flowers and lavender. “It’s much nicer to take some flowers home from  the allotment rather than buying them in your local supermarket,” says Sarah. She also values being able to harvest vegetables just an hour or two before she cooks them.

Families seem to enjoy running an allotment as a group activity. “You do feel the children are safe and they can enjoy exploring,” says Emily.

Councils may turn a blind eye if you locate something like a swing on your plot, as long as it’s being cultivated. One of Emily’s children, Meara, is currently growing her own carrots. “They taste much nicer,” says Meara.

Getting an allotment

• Talk to your local council. It’s worth viewing several local allotments before deciding on a location as some are more attractive than others. You should also ask about waiting lists.
• Talk to other allotment holders when you check out a site. Ask questions (soil quality, whether there’s a weekend seed shop etc). Also enquire if there’s anybody who might be looking to share their allotment, or older people who might appreciate a hand in exchange for sharing their plot and its produce.
• The rental cost varies but budget for around £30-50 per year.
• Consider the pros and cons. Allotments need time and it’s not as simple as popping into the garden.

Books and equipment

» The Half-hour Allotment from the Royal Horticultural Society

“I would recommend this book to anyone who is tempted to take on an allotment, whether they are short of time to spend on it or not. . .  good value for money and will be referred to again and again” Gardens Illustrated

“Full of ideas for how to cut down the time you need to spend on your plot while still aiming for top-class results” Pippa Greenwood, Daily Mirror

“Easy to follow and eminently practical” BBC Countryfile

» Spear & Jackson E-Series Ergonomic Digging Tools

“Solidly made from stainless steel, these award-winning tools have a patented, stirrup-design central foot tread to ensure maximum power with less effort so you can really dig in” Lakeland

“”I purchased this fork as I have recently taken on an allotment and was experiencing back pain with all the digging. I’ve found this fork easy to use and I don’t get the back pain using it or after using it. I can work for a lot longer than I did with my old fork. I certainly find it easier to use and wouldn’t go back to the traditional style of garden fork” Doris, user review