Information Board & Benches - Sutton Community Funding

Yesterday, we took delivery of an information board, which is proudly installed inside the main entrance of the site.

We also took delivery of a couple of benches, one for Gill Maynard, in memory of her husband Peter, a former committee member and a stalwart of the allotment society.

The benches will be installed in the garden area in the front, which will be made a feature to the entrance of the site. This area will be a communal area for rest and reflection.

There are also a couple of direction posts to make the site less daunting for new comers and visitors.

These improvements were funded by the Sutton Community Fund, which generously gave us a grant of £2,000 earlier this year, and for which we are most grateful. I hope that members will make good use of these facilities.

Carl Brown - Site Rep
30 July 2009

Carshalton Lavender Weekend

Over the weekend (25-26 July) we harvested the whole field apart from 6 rows which we left as people were busy picking their own there.

We may harvest what's left there later.

Some of what we harvested went straight into our new still and we were delighted that it worked very well. I think our visitors were fascinated to see the whole traditional process carried out in front of their eyes. We got a good yield of excellent quality oil from this - the first distillation on this scale in Carshalton for probably 150 years.

The rest of the flowers we harvested went off to Norfolk to a commercial distiller - we had booked this earlier as a reserve just in case we had any problems with our own still, but in future we plan to do the whole job here.

Much our lavender oil will be sold as before in 5 ml bottles either direct to customers or through various local groups. The rest will be sold to health food shops and other outlets, and some will be made into a variety of products such as those which were on sale at the stalls during our open days. All the proceeds of our sales go to maintaining the lavender field and taking forward our work of restoring the traditional lavender industry.

Carshalton Lavender Pick Your Own Weekend

Our neighbours Carshalton Lavender, are hosting their annual Pick Your Own / Harvest weekend, this coming weekend - 25th & 26th July 2009

10am-4pm

both days at
Stanley Road Allotments

Extra attractions:
NEW Lavender oil distillation
Lavender arts & crafts
Local artists at work
Aromatherapy/massage
Lavender beauty products
Barbecue
Lavender cookies
Speciality breads
Beekeepers
Information display
Lavender plants for sale

PYO lavender
Small bunches, £1; large bunches, £2; buckets, from £6

Please bring scissors if you have them, a bag for your lavender and protection from the sun, if it’s sunny.

The Local Lavender Project was established by environmental charity

BioRegional Development
Group, with the London Borough of Sutton, Yardley
of London and Downview Prison. It aims to restore
the world-famous lavender industry of Carshalton
and Mitcham. Enthusiasts from Downview grew and
planted cuttings on vacant Council allotments. Each
summer the public are invited to pick their own
lavender and the remainder of the crop is made into Lavender Essential Oil.

Since 2003, a group of volunteers, ‘Carshalton Lavender’, has managed the field and organised the harvest days at Stanley Road Allotments.

For more information and/or if you would like to help out, please ring 07948 174907. You can also visit http://www.carshaltonlavender.org/

How to get there… (postcode for Oaks Way entrance is SM5 4NQ)

By rail: frequent trains from London Victoria, West Croydon and Sutton to
Carshalton Beeches – 10 minute walk
By bus: 154 West Croydon – Morden: alight in Stanley Park Road
127 Purley – Tooting Broadway:alight in Woodcote Rd at the junction of Stanley Park Road
157 Crystal Palace – Morden: alight in Stafford Road outside Sainsbury’s
Saturdays only- S4 Roundshaw – St Helier: alight in Gaynesford Road

Please come by public transport or cycle if you can. Parking is very limited.