Read the latest newsletter from Harvest

Our latest newsletter May updates from Harvest Workers Coop went out to subscribers today: Check it out or read the text version below

News from Harvest Workers Coop

It is a joy to see freshly picked, locally grown lettuces in the shop. Martin and Sara’s Hilltown Salad Mix is going out of the door by the bag full! Picked in the morning, bought in the morning and eaten at lunchtime – what could be better! However we are into hungry gap when the winter harvest has been used and the new crops are not yet ready. The wet and cold of early Spring has certainly taken its toll but the wet garlics, new potatoes and asparagus are all signs that the new produce is a coming in.

You may well have noticed that the Harvest team has grown. Fran, Chris, Adam, Jess, Lizzy and Callum are all taking on different roles both in the shop, on the mobile shop and out in the community. Meet the two probationary new co-op members below.

Look out for our new Working Together for a Wilder Town Project. Sara says “This will be promoting environmental and social sustainability in the Okehampton area. The aim is to contribute to regenerative efforts by working at the intersection of food production, local ecology and community building for a greener, wilder and healthier Okehampton.” The next event is Pete Yeo’s walk Okehampton’s Changing Green Spaces. Martin says “There are still spaces left for this Sunday with some deep nature connection in one of Okehampton’s beautiful green spaces. Our gardens and woodlands are changing as climate changes. What will our woodlands look like with fauna and flora moving north, which plants and trees will fill the spaces as they become vacant. People by nature want to resist change, but It’s already happening.” Thought provoking stuff indeed.

Warmest of wishes 🙂

Martin, Sara, Fran, Chris, Jo and Kevin

In the Shop

We are really lucky to be working with Fran and Chris. They are working in the shop every week and starting to explore what other areas can be developed with Harvest. It is very exciting.

Chris says “I am a conscious nature lover who deeply values health and believes our mind and body are our greatest possessions. I love outdoor adventure, natural movement fitness, growing my own food, cooking and learning about human potential and living a natural non-toxic lifestyle.”

Fran says “I’m Fran and along with my partner and young son have begun a small holding. We have a couple of sheep, a few pigs, laying chickens and have planted many a hedgerow and fruit tree. We wish to develop our connection to the natural world and live closely to the land. I’m interested in increasing the accessibility of well produced food and the joys that go with it to more people in our community! I’m excited to be working with Harvest and look forward to sharing in this journey with you.”

In the next newsletter we will be introducing some other new faces!

Project News

The MOBILE SHOP is now out in NORTHLEW on FRIDAYS!

The mobile shop is stopping at Northlew on Friday mornings. Look out for us outside the Green Dragon between 10 and 12! Sadly the village’s Square Shop closed a few weeks ago. We think all communities should have a shop and so our mobile shop is starting a weekly stop. Not the same as having an everyday shop but the best we can do. Where shall we go next?

Thanks to David Blackshaw for the picture. It is Jo and Jess in the picture. Jess has started doing some work in the shop and out on the mobile as well as helping with some of our sessions.

A reminder of all the stops and times for the market and mobile shop!

The Tuesday Market
Hatherleigh Market (market stall not mobile shop) 9am to 12.30pm

The Thursday Route
Sampford Courtenay, The Square 1.15 to 2.00pm
The Beeches, nr Sampford Courtenay Station 2.15 – 2.45pm
Belstone, Car Park 3.15 to 5.00pm

The Friday Route
Northlew, by the Green Dragon 10:00 – 12:00

Community Outreach

Lizzy has been working for Harvest on developing links out in the wider community visiting a wide range of groups including parish councils, schools, National Trust, Mental Health Alliance and more! If you are part of a community group that would be interested in talking to us about projects and possibilities then do get in touch at community@harvestworkerscoop.org.uk (mailto:community@harvestworkerscoop.org.uk)

And who is Lizzy? You will have to wait for her introduction in the next newsletter!

Events coming up

The Great Big Green Week Eco Fair in the Charter Hall Saturday 17th June
Celebrations in the Park Sunday 9 July
Taw River Dairy Open Day Sunday 16th July
The Okehampton Show Thursday 10th August

Harvest will be at these events with a mixture of information stalls (did you know last year Harvest won first prize for the best trade stand at the Okehampton Show?) the mobile shop and, excitingly, some drop in food workshops – bike powered smoothies and fermented vegetable pots anyone!! More information about all of these in the shop and in the next newsletter.

Our Next Events

Family Workshop : SPRING BLOSSOM

Saturday 27th May 2pm – 4pm EcoHub

Pay what you can (suggested £5 / family) Booking essential through the Harvest Shop or email
* Seasonal Cooking & Celebrations
* Fireside Storytelling
* Gardening
* Natural Craft

Working Together for a Wilder Town : Okehampton’s Changing Greenspaces with Pete Yeo

Sunday 28th May 11am – 3:00pm
Join us for a circular walk exploring how we may understand and relate to the climatic & floristic changes happening around us, guided by Pete’s informed, fascinating and spirited approach.
Pete Yeo is a reconcilation ecologist and nature mentor.
This event is part of our Working Together for a Wilder Town program of events kindly funded by Devon Community Foundation.

All About Calendula with Diana Lee

Wednesday 7th June 7:00pm – 8:30pm at the EcoHub
Calendula is an amazing herb – find out more about it’s history, how you can use it and how to make a useful salve.
Diana is a Registered Medical Herbalist who trained with the IRCH (www.irch.org) and qualified in 2008. She is also qualified in Bach Flower Remedies and recently as a Mycotherapy practitioner She lives near Holsworthy on an organic smallholding where she uses permaculture and forest garden principles.
£10 (£5 reduced rate) including herb tea, calendula cake and a salve to take away.. If you can’t afford either but would still like to come just let us know.
Please book by email to hello@harvestworkerscoop.org.uk or call into the shop.

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We are a not for profit workers’ co-operative made up of farmers, educators and storytellers.
We grow and source good organic food for our little farm shop in Okehampton.
We create opportunities for our community to explore all things food and farming and to celebrate Good Mood Food!

It would be lovely to see you in the Harvest Farm Shop
Monday – Saturday 9:00 – 5:00 in Red Lion Yard or Tuesdays at Hatherleigh Market or out on the mobile shop on Thursdays and Fridays
Do keep an eye out for all our latest happenings on our website, in store, or on social media

We are recruiting….

…and we are very excited about it! Please see below for all the info about job and don’t hesitate to get in touch if you’ve got any questions. We are looking forward to your applications!

Martin has written a piece about seasons, weather, food and rainforests. It is well worth reading.

The rain clouds and storms roll in pretty regular, the barn is being buffeted by gales as I write. If you don’t work with the seasons and climate here, you may ‘die of a cold along with the devil’ as the local Northlew saying goes.

Martin Godfrey

Harvest Workers’ Co-op who run Harvest Farm Shop in Okehampton are taking a mobile shop selling organic produce including delicious fresh produce from local organic farms to YOU! We also visit local markets.

Do get in touch if you are interested…
We look forward to seeing you on the mobile shop or if you are in Okehampton pop into the Harvest Farm Shop in Red Lion Yard, opposite Grants Coffee Shop!!

Market : Every Tuesday

Hatherleigh Market in the Community Centre (market stall not mobile shop) 9am to 12.30pm

The Route : Thursday

Hatherleigh Market (market stall not mobile shop) 9am to 12.30pm
Sampford Courtney, The Square 1.15 to 2.00pm
The Beeches, nr Sampford Courtney Station 2.15 – 2.45pm
Belstone, Village Hall 3.15 to 5:00pm

Why are we doing it?
We want to raise the profile of and access to local organic food, support local food producers and give a different choice to supermarket shopping. We feel that the mobile shop can strengthen communities and give opportunities to bring people together. We are a group of local regenerative growers and educators who like meeting and talking to people.

Huge thanks to Devon Social Entrepreneur Accelerator Programme for their help with this. Both financial and through training and providing a network of amazing individuals who want to make a difference in the world.

We are working with Devon County Council to offer up to 3 FREE fruit and veg boxes in March to families in the Okehampton area who are recipients of the government’s Healthy Start scheme.

Healthy Start provides financial support to put towards the cost of fruit and veg, pulses, cows’ milk, and formula – you can find out if you are eligible and apply online for the scheme on the Healthy Start website<https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/>.Your first box from us will contain a range of organic seasonal fruit and vegetables along with a free information booklet that includes tasty and nutritious seasonal recipes, to get you started with your delicious local produce!

You can also have 2 litres of local Taw River Dairy milk each week through the Milk Project scheme

Want to sign up?· Email hello@harvestworkerscoop.org.uk or pop into the Harvest Farm Shop in Red Lion Yard· Simply show us your new Healthy Start card or a Healthy Start voucher when you order·

Boxes can be collected from 10th March· You must be eligible for Healthy Start and live within the Devon County Council area. If you enjoy your boxes, you can continue to order a Healthy Start box or simply buy fruit and veg from us as often as suits you, where we will also provide you with nutritious seasonal recipes to try!

If you are still receiving Healthy Start paper vouchers and not yet signed up to the card, apply now<https://www.healthystart.nhs.uk/how-to-apply/> to make sure you don’t miss out! Everyone must re-apply for the scheme, even if you are already receiving Healthy Start.

We are very friendly … do pop in and ask any questions or message usPlease pass this information onto anyone who you think might be interested

A family friendly activity with no tractors and machinery! We will be turning hay, stooking and making hay bales by hand using a clever hand baler kindly loaned by Adrian Thomas.

We love the EcoHub! It is a great space wooden framed inside and outside with a growing area and a row of apple trees. It has been great over the last few months to have been engaged by Growing Our Futures, who set up and look after the building, to be the gardeners of the growing spaces! Jo and Kevin from Harvest, along with the families who come to our monthly family workshops, have been bringing the beds back to life.

Follow the journey below!

The existing beds had become very overgrown and were based in the foundations of an old building. We created narrower beds from timber in order to allow easier access. We used a card layer covered with a thick layer of compost. Most unwanted plants were stopped by this however couch grass is still an issue!!

It has been great working with local families on this.

At the back you can see an earth kitchen, potato patch and courgettes and squash planted into old tyres. We have covered the ground underneath with card and black sheet so next year we can set up new beds.

It is a great journey – do call by and see how it is going. We are usually up on Fridays between 6 and 8

Update on Snow Opening!

Harvest Farm Shop is OPEN today – Saturday 3rd March – we will be closing a bit earlier at 4 though

We are trying very hard to be open however there has been a little too much snow at times! Liv and Henry opened for a short while on Thursday before having to get back to Winkliegh before the snow came in.

Martin and Sara walked down on Friday to open up. Here they are on their snowy walk in. They enjoyed chatting to all the Okey folk looking for good rooty vegetables for hearty soups. All our vegetable boxes were delivered.

Jo and Kevin opened up on Saturday as normal. Big thanks to Martyn Bragg for doing a special tractor delivery of the Shillingford Organics vegetables to us at the bottom of Ide High Street for us to bring in for Saturday morning.

As I wrote the first version of this post I was surrounded by the sounds of West Town Farm folk keeping working in the snow making sure that all the animals are safe and well cared for. Thanks to all the landworkers everywhere! You might recognise Martin in the picture from when he was working at Shillingford Organics.

We hope you are keeping safe and warm but also enjoying the snow.