Calling all Ilkley gardeners, allotment holders and would-be growers. We’re pleased to announce the launch of our first project: it’s a home-grown produce share.
Many people enjoy growing their own fruit and veg. Not only does it taste good, it is very satisfying and much cheaper than the supermarket. Local produce can also reduce food miles and if you grow it yourself, you know more about what went into it. And gardening is good for the gut - it gets you out in the fresh air and digging over the veg patch is a good workout.
If you’re a gardener, you know this already. You also know that come mid-summer you’re often left with a wasted glut of falling fruit. Transition Ilkley member, Ian Wilson, said, “Last year we had more plums than we could eat ourselves and had cooking apples left rotting on the tree.”
The produce swap site, Lourish.com, could help us all to make the most of what we grow. It provides a platform that helps gardeners exchange their surplus produce with other people. The lourish.com website is free to join and there is no cost involved for anyone to swap their produce. It’s open to anyone over the age of 16 and members can swap anything home-produced, growable and edible. This includes fruit and veg, plants and seeds. Once registered on the site, you can forward an invitation to others, with a personalised message. Full details are on the lourish.com site.
Lourish is a social enterprise which aims to combine communities' back gardens, allotments and smallholdings into a sustainable local food network on everyone's doorstep.
Set up an account and then send it on to your fellow Ilkley growers. The more people we tell, the more we can grow and share together. And get growing - so that you have something to share.
