The strive to become more self-sufficient is often viewed in some quarters as inherently selfish—closing oneself off from the world and producing only enough food for your own needs (and to hell with the rest of you). In reality, I’ve found that self-sufficiency is in many ways a misnomer—as I’ve strived to become more self-sufficient, I’ve felt more connected and more part of a community than ever before.
As an organisation, GIY, while being primarily about helping people to grow their own food, is also about bringing people together. The network of GIY groups (over 100 at the time of writing) is about GIYers coming together in a spirit of generosity to share advice, tips, problems and produce. I have found GIYers to be a most magnanimous bunch—particularly (and I’ve always found this interesting) the more experienced ones. It’s very heartening to think that the closer to self-sufficient GIYers become, the more they are keen to share their knowledge and their produce. Of course the very existence of GIY groups depends on more experienced growers being willing to share their knowledge with the rest of us.
This week I visited fellow GIYers, Alan and Sue Pimm, who live about five miles from us. They have many decades of experience and have an idyllic and supremely productive vegetable patch and garden. Alan also has a commercial polytunnel in his garden (which I would give my right leg for) which enables him to escape the vagaries of the Irish summer and to grow some more exotic fare such as figs and grapes.
I always thrill at being able to walk around the veg patch of another GIYer, particularly when it’s a very experienced grower like Alan. But it is the generosity of spirit that always enthralls me—I came away with a load of little tips (using a capillary mat for watering seedlings for example) but also with seeds (for a New Zealand everlasting spinach which I am looking forward to trying) and lettuce seedlings which Alan thrust on me as we walked around. He even offered me a well-established grape plant in a pot (surely the ultimate act of generosity!), which reluctantly I had to turn down due to lack of space. So there’s the irony—self-sufficiency as it turns out is not all about self—it can be an incredibly generous pursuit at the same time.
Things to Do this Week—Make your own Ribena
Here’s a recipe to deal with those gluts of blackcurrants. This makes about 750ml of a lovely ribena-type drink that will keep for 3 weeks in the fridge. You can also freeze it in ice-cube trays and then just pop a few cubes in a glass when you need a drink. First of all de-stalk and wash 450g of blackcurrants. Place them in a saucepan with 250g caster sugar and 260ml water. Over a low heat, melt the sugar, stirring occasionally. Bring the syrup to a gentle boil and simmer for 5 mins. Add the juice and zest of 1 lemon. Simmer for another 5 mins. Allow to cool and then pour in to a sterilised bottle through a fine sieve. Dilute to taste. Yum. You could also add this liquid to reusable popsicle sticks to make home-made ice-pops. Freeze for at least 10 hours.
Recipe of the Month—Tomato and Basil Soup
This recipe was sent on to me by one of our patrons here at GIY, the wonderful Clodagh McKenna. It’s incredibly easy to make and a great recipe to showcase your own fresh tomatoes and basil.
Ingredients
• 800g cherry or plum tomatoes cut in half.
• 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
• 1 red onion cut into large chunks
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 10 basil leaves, torn
• 500ml chicken/veg stock
• sea salt and black pepper
Preheat the oven to 160°C. Put the tomatoes, garlic and onion in an ovenproof dish, season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Using clean hands massage all the ingredients together for 5 minutes to enhance the flavour of the soup. Roast in a pre-heated oven at 160°C for 20mins. Allow the tomatoes to cool slightly once they have come out of the oven, and tip them into a large bowl with the fresh basil leaves. Allow the basil to infuse the tomatoes. I usually do this for about a minute. Pour the chicken stock in a saucepan and stir in the tomatoes and basil and place over a low heat for 20 minutes. To serve, place a piece of toasted baguette on top with melted parmesan cheese.
Be Inspired. Be Informed. The GIY Gathering 2012—September 15th–16th.
The 4th annual GIY Gathering takes place in Waterford on the 15th and 16th of September as part of the Waterford Harvest Festival. The event will bring together up to 400 people from every corner of Ireland for a two day festival of learning and to share tips, ideas and advice on growing your own food. So whether you’re a complete newbie or an old hand, interested in complete self-sufficiency or just growing some herbs or salads on a balcony, we can offer you all the inspiration and information you need.
This year’s Gathering has a truly international feel, bringing together some of the world’s leading food-growing experts and advocates from Ireland, UK, US and New Zealand. Speakers include BBC Gardeners World presenter Alys Fowler, River Cottage head gardener Mark Diacono, founder of Kitchen Gardeners International and inspiration behind The White House veg garden Roger Doiron, Darina Allen, Joy Larkcom, Klaus Laitenberger, Ella McSweeney, Joyce Russell, Kitty Scully and Trevor Sargent. A €20 ticket gives you access to all Gathering events over the two days, Free GIY GROW magazine and includes a packed lunch on the Saturday. We have a range of Bundle tickets for GIY Groups. Get your Tickets from www.giyireland.com.
