Growing From Your Roots

Garden Organic’s Growing from your Roots (GFYR) project has been busy working with a wide range of community groups in the West Midlands, helping to spread the word about how to grow exotic crops in the UK.

Anton Rosenfeld Project Officer says: “We’ve held workshops in Walsall and Birmingham focusing on growing and using produce from a diverse range of countries from Bangladesh, Jamaica to Zimbabwe and beyond. The morning session focused on how to grow leafy crops including Vietnamese mustard, African Kale and patra leaves. This was followed by a practical afternoon session sharing top tips on how to grow plants such as lemongrass and cardamom. People also talked about crops they’d like to be able to grow here; such as Nigerian bitter leaf and fluted pumpkins, both of which are said to have health benefits.”