Talks & Events

Wine Tasting Evening

Thursday 5th October, 7:30 to 9:30pm

We are looking forward to this great fundraising event with Richard from Urban Wine Co which produces wonderful wines from gardens, allotments and smallholdings from across London.

Furzedown Farmers’ Talks

We are having a series of free talks with Tom Gibbs who is studying for a master’s in Land and Ecological Restoration at the Eden Project in Cornwall while working on their outer estates horticulture team. He lives in Tooting and started ‘Garden Ecology Services’ to deliver engaging and accessible lessons on ecology and gardening to people of all ages.

Spaces are limited, please book at reception.

Getting Started With Fruit and Vegetable Growing’.
29^th September 3.30am-5.00pm

Go through some things to consider when designing your veg plot (from a container to a garden patch), followed by practical activities: seed saving from fruit and veg that is ripe currently and sowing appropriate seeds for the time of year.

Beyond Fruit & Veg: Other Vegetable Garden Essentials
3^rd October 9.30am-11.00am

We’ll look at non-edibles and other foods to grow in the veg garden, with some practical propagation practice using cuttings, seeds, and division.

The Secrets of Soil: It’s Importance in the Vegetable Garden
3^rd November 3.30pm-5.00pm

We’ll look at the difference between soil and compost, their uses in the garden, and their importance for food production. If attendees are able to bring a sample of their own soil we can do an activity comparing them and doing a hands-on activity to classify the texture. We can also look at ways to build soil health in the vegetable garden, including composting, producing leaf mould, and practicing ‘no-till’ gardening.

Celebrating Black History Month

Friday 20th October 2023

5.oopm – 7.00pm

Price : £7.00 ; £5.00 members

Kathy Casimir MacLean, a local Dominican author will talk about her book Black Man Listen – The Life of J R Ralph Casimir

The talk, based on her lovingly written biography, by his granddaughter Kathy Casimir MacLean, explores Casimir’s political and personal life, and sheds much light on little known aspects of Dominica’s march to independence.

The Project Gardener’s Group

In May we started a new group at The Project for anyone who is interested in gardening and finding out what’s growing on in our area!

Every month there will be a meet-up to share tips, ask advice and learning about local green initiatives – including The Furzedown Farmers lottery bid.

We got a community planter to put outside The Project and have a dedicated plot in Tooting Community Garden. If you want to join in please email Debbie debmorey25@gmail.com

Saturday Movie & Sports afternoons – Free at The Project

Every Saturday afternoon from 1pm to 4pm we are offering a FREE drop-in session to watch a classic movie as part of Wandsworth’s Warm spaces initiative. Entry is free and everyone is welcome, and we will also be providing food and refreshments for attendees.

The first film we showcased was the classic Hitchock film Rebecca (1940) starring Joan Fontaine and Lawrence Olivier, which was popular – as was the popcorn!

23 September 2023: The Big Heat

30 September: Singing in the Rain

7 October 2023: Dial M for Murder

14 October 2023: Roman Holiday

We’re happy to put on anything that is of interest in the future, so please make a request of what you’d like to see. Any questions please contact us on services@furzedownproject.org

Energy Workshops

As we face soaring energy prices this winter, The Furzedown Project hopes to run FREE workshops on how to reduce your energy bills. The first ones in 2022 were very successful and we hope to do more.

This is in partnership with South West London Energy Advice Partnership (SWLEAP) (Habitats & Heritage and CREW Energy). It provides free energy advice across the London Boroughs of Richmond, Wandsworth and Merton to anyone in fuel poverty. To find out more about them visit: www.swleap.org.uk

Furzedown Voices

We are looking forward to lots of different talks and in 2023 had the wonderful Theresa (who’s aunt is a member of The Project) bring in costumes from BBC’s Strictly Show and gave a fascinating talk. If you have any thoughts about what you’d like to hear, have any connections or could give a talk yourself please let us know.

Way back in 2014 we discussed the possibility of having a couple of talks on topics which might be of interest to our members. We started off with Helen Long, who told us some fascinating stories about the history of Furzedown. Little did we know that three years down the line, they have been a resounding success, proving not only very popular with our members, but also with members of our local Furzedown community.

Topics are based on the interests and skills of our members. We have had over twelve talks on subjects which include: Alternative Therapies, local history, Music Hall and Christmas traditions, Knitting and Crafts, Healthy Eating, Patterns in Asian Culture, History of E & A Wates and the Old Toy Museum.

The talks usually lasted approximately 2 hours, with a special musical talk and entertainment just before Christmas. We’re very fortunate to have a very talented group of members, tutors and local contacts who offer to share their expertise and experience with us.

Below are the posters used for our talks. We have included photos where we can, and we hope it will give you a flavour of the variety of our talks. Please come along when you see a notice in the newsletter or on the website and enjoy one of our talks.