From: songbird@anthive.com   
      
   Bloke Down The Pub wrote:   
   > "songbird"  wrote in message   
   > news:bbg1gi-r5a.ln1@anthive.com...   
   >>  i've volunteered to see if we can get a local group going   
   >> for talking about gardening, mini-seed-swaps, etc.  pretty   
   >> much just going to be informal as i don't want to get into   
   >> prepared speeches and presentations.   
   >>   
   >>  each gardener has to start out someplace, so if i can help   
   >> a few people out each month i'll consider it worth the time   
   >> spent.  if nobody shows up it just means i've spent a few   
   >> hours sitting and reading at the library or talking to people   
   >> i used to see more often.   
   >   
   > Best of luck with this.  In the dim and distant past the local councils used   
   > to have allotments rented out to tenants, with a hefty waiting list.  There   
   > was often a large communal shed where the bulk purchases were stored until   
   > collection and where the tea was brewed.  Weekends there was always someone   
   > around to chat with and gain knowledge from but apart from the "one man"   
   > that run the shed and purchases nothing was regular and if you wanted to see   
   > someone you just kept turning up until he appeared, never too long as if   
   > your allotment was left unattended too long the council tended to reallocate   
   > it.   
   >   
   > My point was we turned up for one thing and helped out with other things.  I   
   > think your seed exchange could be the "reason" for turning up and good   
   > conversation the reason for staying on, also the offer of produce, self   
   > picked, for the offer of a little manual labour might also we good.   
      
     it went ok, there were five of us the first meeting.  :)   
      
     i did give away some peas, beans, cosmos, onions and garlic.  by   
   far the most interest is about the garlic.  even if out of normal   
   season spring planting happens it should survive.  by the end of   
   the summer i can have much better sized cloves to plant for people   
   who want it for next year - it is just a way of getting a toe in.   
      
     everyone has deer problems.  i just fence because nothing else is   
   as reliable.  outside the fences i take my chances and usually do   
   ok, with some damage here or there (mostly from the deer trampling   
   plants on the way through to eat other things).   
      
     i took most of my bean collection thinking if nobody showed up   
   i could take advantage of having a nice big table to organize and   
   work on winnowing out some things and consolidating others.  but   
   people showed up so i didn't get any of that done.   
      
      
     songbird   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)