Broadgrove Farm Shop News

1st September 2008
Its been a busy time since the last update. Non-stop planting, caring for our plants, harvesting and weeding.
Another new page has been added to this site which is entitled 'autumn harvesting'. This along with the previous season pages can be found under the news section.
Even with the dire summer weather we have been harvesting some excellent produce with more to come.
We are also seeding and planting vegetables which will produce into the winter and some virtually through to spring.

June 2008
1st
The weekend saw us finally get one of the poly house frames recovered. Besieged by previous delays we finally got a day where we could do it and that the weather held the right conditions.

Added another photo to the summer growing page: here

May 2008
4th Week
New 'Summer Growing' page has been added to follow on from the 'Spring Planting' page that was created in March.

Little change to 'links' page

First Three Weeks
The sunny weather has really given the plants a boost. Courgette's are growing rapidly, the first of the range of salad leaves we are growing (which again are new to us) is being picked. Tomatoes are being planted with 10 or so different varieties.

The shop itself has become home to an increased range of grocery items. The new products are continuing to keep in tune with being a farm shop. They include new pickles, chutneys, chilli products, cooking sauces and fruit coulis. There is also a range of traditional style drinks.

Very busy time especially as we do virtually everything by hand which makes us very different from many other shops.

April 2008
April has been a busy month of sowing, pricking out, planting. All sing along now..."we plough the fields and scatter the good seed on the ground ..... and in trays, pots and modules too" Not entirely the correct words but more accurate. Loads of different things have been planted and in the main they have come very well. With the exception of the one batch of cucumbers lovingly brought into this world only to be killed off by a certain family member (you know who you are!) Some new things, to us, that are fully planted and growing well include Kohl Rabi, Sorrel and Broccoli Raab (Rapini). There any many others which are still very small so I am not going to tempt fate and name them yet.

We have also grown a couple of different flowers to use as companion planting especially for attracting the bees and other beneficial insects. Its good for the crops and good for the insects and the environment so that's a win win situation. Being a small holding we can do this and again goes back to being a traditional farm with traditional methods

Started selling some vegetable plants such as beans, courgette's, marrow and tomato.

March 2008
Last week of March
Added a new page 'Spring Planting' to show more information on the fruit and veg we are planting over the coming months.

3rd Week in March
More seed was ordered to further expand the range of fruit and vegetables that we will be selling in the summer and autumn. We have also started selling some veg plants in the shop.
The drey which the fruit stands on finally had the proper shelving made thanks to a family friend. Yes I forgot to get a photo.
Added a few links to the seed merchants that we have used this year. Also corrected the order of the fruit and veg section of the top menu as it was out of order (oops). Slight update to fruit & veg introduction.
Mustards arrived now giving a good choice. We also took delivery of more chutneys, dressings & marmalades increasing the existing range.

First Two Weeks of March
Seed has arrived from four different merchants and amounts to around 70 different types and varieties. We are trying lots of new things this year which we have never grown before. Some we have never heard of before! It is going to be interesting to see what some of them turn out like. Lots of seeds have been sown, some have already been pricked out. The green house we are using for sowing is full of planted seed trays and modules. Lots more to do over the coming weeks.

After a slight delay the new range of mustards should be arriving around the 11th of March.

February 2008
1st-8th:Took delivery of products from three suppliers and radically expanded the range of grocery jars products. We now have a good selection of sauces, herb jellies, salad dressings and vinegars while also expanding the variety of existing products. All are from local companies or British businesses that produce their items in traditional methods. Again we include many items that are award winning and have featured in articles from quality magazines and newspapers.

We also took delivery of more shelving units which has quadrupled (again) the display area. Not all assembled but another work in progress. One of our customers commented recently that we should put everything on wheels as its always being moved and improved.

A new range of cider will be coming next week too!

A start has also been made on sowing seeds for a large range of vegetables that will be the summer crop. Amongst those are broad beans, cabbage, lettuce and courgette's to name but a few.

January 2008
30th: New jars of honey today from a very local supplier

28th: Ordered some herb jellies which should be arriving next week. Another addition to the grocery jars range.

Had lots of praise regarding the shelving units, painting and new range of products from customers which is obviously great.

25th: Painted the back wall of the shop today a rather nice colour from B&Q called toffee cream. Makes a big difference to the shops appearance.

Took delivery of a new range of jams, marmalades, chutneys, salad dressing and pickles from two new suppliers. Eagerly placed on the new units and it looks great.

24th: The new shop units arrived today and after some brief assembly it looks good (although I forgot to take a photo). It must have at least quadrupled the amount of shelving space for the jars in the groceries range (preserves, mustards, chutneys, pickles etc). The improvement over the previous rather Heath Robinson shelving is considerable in appearance and practicality.

We also got the shopping baskets today for customers use. No more carrying armfuls of produce or taking multiple trips back and forth from the counter. Although a contentious issue on the type of basket to go for; practicality and hygiene won the day.

Moved the counter around slightly to give customers better access to the fruit on the dray.

18th: Painted the roof beams and uprights that had not been finished off since... well a long time.

December 2007
28th The website goes live. Although needing considerable additions in some sections the overall design and layout has been worked out and is available for public viewing.