In parallel with the year-long courses, a number of activities were held that were open to everyone. Given the great interest in the courses and the fact that two-thirds did not get a place on the course, it was important to be able to offer a wide range of activities. The range included short courses, study trips, lectures, study visits, garden tours, networking meetings, cooking, harvest parties and inspiration meetings. In principle, all activities were packed and very much appreciated. In total, the meetings held in 2019 had well over 500 participants. All of them are documented here on the blog, for those of you who want to remember or perhaps missed the meeting.
Crowded when Uncle Green lectured in Frödinge.
Many of the participants returned for several activities and the Cultivation Academy quickly became a forum to meet like-minded people in their local area. The plan was to build on the local and hold meetings to stimulate small networks in the growers' immediate vicinity.
Unfortunately, the pandemic hit with full force in the middle of that planning. Everything had to be canceled and we thank our lucky stars that we managed to carry out as many activities as we did in 2019 – and that so many people had time to meet each other!
Instead of physical meetings, the blog suddenly became a more important meeting place than we could have imagined when we started it. Around 70 posts were published in 2019. They had just over 9,000 views and 5,053 unique visitors. So far in 2020, the blog has already had just as many posts and even more visitors and views.
There are many garden forums online. What distinguishes Odling as a lifestyle is that it is mainly aimed at the geographical area and the six municipalities in Astrid Lindgren's Hometown: Nässjö, Eksjö, Vimmerby, Hultsfred, Högsby and Oskarshamn.
We are pleased to note that several local networks around cultivation have been started in the footsteps of the Cultivation Academy, some participants have started their own courses and many are cultivating in new ways and are also more involved in sustainability issues. Surely there are also activities and processes that we are not aware of! What has the Cultivation Academy meant to you? Please write and tell us!
Continuing to stimulate more local networks is still high on our wish list, in a post-pandemic future. Under current restrictions, the blog is a way to keep the Cultivation Academy alive.
After the end of the project, the blog will be mainly managed by Hillevi Helmfrid. Do you want to share information, events or anything else that is interesting for other growers in the area? Everyone in the Cultivation Academy network can contribute posts to the blog! Send text and images to hupp@hillevihelmfrid.com
Another way to meet, ask questions and discuss cultivation is Facebook group Cultivation as a lifestyle, a closed group where you who grow under natural conditions in Northeastern Småland are welcome to become a member.
In other words, we can continue to meet, be inspired and learn from each other. We can also dream about what we would like to do in the future.