Growing, gathering and wholebeing at 10 Trees.

Flowers are setting seed, fruit is hanging heavy on the orchard trees and leaves are starting to fall - yet the soil is still warm and now wet enough to see a new flush of autumn veg in the kitchen garden. This month we’re celebrating everything that 10 Trees has become this year by putting on a tasting table of opportunities for us all to grow, gather and practise wholebeing, together in the garden. If there’s something you want to do at 10 Trees that we haven’t yet thought of, get in touch.

Growing.

We’ll be learning about seed saving and how to extend the growing season together on Saturday 27th September at our first Love what you grow event. After the weekend, Love what you grow becomes a new community space for people wanting to grow better food in the valley. We’ll be gathering every Wednesday 10-1 to grow together at 10 Trees. If you can’t make that, there’s a new Love What You Grow WhatsApp group for growing along with each other and posing our burning gardening questions. And we’ll be running workshops with seasoned growers in the valley - watch out for the first one on compost-making on Friday 24th October.

Gathering.

On Sunday 28th September we welcome people into the garden for our first Slow Sunday. These will be gentle days of community gathering and seasonal fun, and this month it’s a celebration of all things apple-themed! Next month, Slow Sunday is Sunday 19th October and we’re hoping to co-create some woodcraft activities. Our community work days are Fridays 10-1 if you fancy seeing new and familiar faces.

Wholebeing.

It’s also the time of year when we feel the draw in ourselves to hibernate and self-care as light levels fall. We sank into this with a wonderful handpan sound bath in the garden the other day, as part of Open House’s Music as Medicine programme launch. There’s a chance to experience this one last time before we bed down for the winter, on Sunday 5th October. And for those of you on journeys into your inner worlds this autumn, we’re offering a deep dive into reconnecting with yourself through the natural world on Friday 17th October. Details coming soon.

And then there’s Pickle Club.

We also need to tell you about Pickle Club - which sold out so quickly we forgot to blink. We’ll run it again soon. It’s a good reminder that the quickest way to see our events as they go live is through our WhatsApp group. 

Thank you to everyone who has leant into the garden and to our growing community so far - we have been blown away by your enthusiasm! It is very much a space that continues to be created in community, for community - and every offer of time, wisdom, or things (from beeswax to horse manure) means the garden can give more back to all of us. 

PS. We were lucky enough to bump into a young Asian couple from Sheffield at the garden gate the other day, just as we were heading home. It would have been easy to say a brief hello, close the garden gate and go on our way - instead, we chose to open it wide and let them in to explore and enjoy to their heart’s content. As the world steps into troubling times, safe and welcoming gathering spaces like 10 Trees become more important than ever - so thank you for your support.