A rainy Thursday evening in September can be soaking wet and dead boring and tedious…. and absolutely, absolutely wonderful!
The latter applies especially to those who walk around in the rain for two hours if they are garden people, who have done nothing but wait for precipitation for crops and water barrels, who are used to dressing according to the weather and who meet to be inspired by like-minded individuals.
Yesterday, Odlingsakademien 3.0 organized the second garden visit of the autumn, this time to the garden company Trollslända Lunden, in Västra Årena between Järnforsen and Målilla.
Here live Anja and Tom Degen, together with their 13-year-old son Milan. When they arrived at the site, the beautiful house, barn, and outbuildings were surrounded by pasture land. Here, the family has planted about 100 trees and more than 50 berry bushes. The trees are intended to eventually provide wandering shade to the now very sunny garden. Most of the trees are located near a compost heap of organic material, where pumpkins were first grown, and then it became perfect compost soil and now functions as a vegetable garden – and gives the trees good conditions to grow. The principle is that all land should be covered. Where this year's potatoes have been harvested, mustard and honey phacelia have already been sown. In places where snails have stopped most of the growth, Anja has planted berry bushes and comfrey. Remember to choose True comfrey, with pink/purple flowers, over Uppland comfrey, with blue flowers, which is an invasive species.
Despite the Emån river winding right past the farm, the family has chosen not to water with river water due to the low water level. Instead, they collect rainwater and water only once a week. Some plantings, with trees, shrubs, and perennials, they have not watered at all, and despite the dry summer, the aronia in these places still produces plenty of berries.
Behind the barn, there is not only the nursery with grafted trees waiting to be planted, but also a prototype and own design of a separating toilet built from recycled materials. By allowing the farm's and farm shop's guests to use the toilet, all visitors contribute to charging the farm's biochar with valuable nutrients. Trollslända Lunden does not yet have its own biochar stove, but has borrowed from Ödevata and received large amounts of biochar.
Behind the barn is the farm's large cultivation tunnel from Norhage, with a frame of Swedish pine and channel plastic with thermal insulation. The generous ceiling height provides both growing height and even temperature. During the hottest months of summer, the temperature was even lower in the greenhouse than outside. Here, healthy tomatoes are still growing. The middle bed is already used early in the spring for all the seedlings that Anja and Tom raise both for themselves and for sale. The bed has been built to fit plug trays from Quickpot. Under them, a heating cable is laid and over it is stretched a cover cloth. During the Discovery Days in Hultsfred municipality and the Spring Festival in Småland's Garden, large quantities of plants raised on the farm are sold. When the plants are sold, cucumbers and spaghetti beans are planted in the middle bed.
The cultivations contribute to biological diversity, not least through the beautiful circular cultivations, where the couple has created raised beds of stones or wood filled with organic material. Here, many species of animals thrive, while the newly planted trees receive nourishment. The large circle in the middle has become a gathering place for the farm's guests. Here, among other things, the salad variety Punterella grows, with dandelion-like salad leaves, which when it blooms produces incredibly beautiful light blue flowers.
You who missed this study visit need not despair. Trollslända Lund's farm shop is open every Thursday as long as there are vegetables to sell. Then there is of course also the opportunity to take a look at the garden and to taste Anja's delicious fika. Her German cheesecake comes highly recommended.
More information: https://www.trollslaendalunden.com/