Autumn 2025 Newsletter
Harvest Festival - gardening awards!
This September we took part again in the annual Harvest Festival, winning first prize in a number of categories and second in a few more! Thank you so much to all our staff and volunteers for making this happen. Here's a list of all the Gardening category prizes we won, followed below by the Animal and Young Farmer categories...
First in 'potted annual'
First in 'mini garden made by an adult'
First in 'jar of honey'
First in 'display of seasonal produce'
First in 'pollinator friendly plant'
First in 'bouquet of herbs'
Second in 'container of eggs'
Second in 'biggest pumpkin'
Finally, we won the overall trophy for gardening, seen in the photo of Lutfun (our Community Gardener) and Chris (our Head Grower) at the top!
Harvest Festival - animal and Young Farmer awards!
Now for the Animal and Young Farmer categories!
First in 'best male goat' with Chewy
Second in 'best male lamb' with Barley
Third and Fourth in 'best female sheep' with Samphire and Saffron
Fourth in 'best guinea pig' with Nutmeg
Young Farmer Halima came fourth in 'best 12-14 year old handler' with Barley the sheep
Young Farmer Gemma came third in 'best 15-18 year old handler' with Chewy the goat
...and Gemma also came second in animal who looks most like handler (she dyed her hair blonde specially!) with Rye the sheep
Congratulations to all our amazing Young Farmers - we love working with you!
Half Term Activities
Come on over this half term for a series of fun and free events! We're cooking with farm vegetables at Farm to Fork, building a pizza oven out of clay, and getting creative with some spooky autumn crafts. And visit us this Halloween with our special exotic animals' session!
Book these and more on our website by clicking on this link.
Winter Fayre! Saturday 13th December
We are having a Winter Fayre! Expect live music, kids activities, a tea tasting session, a 'personalise your own planter' session, a choir, a spinning stall, a lace-making stall, and lots of market stalls with warm food and drinks. There will also be a camp fire to sit around.
Keep an eye on our socials (links at the bottom of this newsletter) to reserve your free ticket.
Sheep Drive 2025
On Sunday 28th September we took part in the annual Sheep Drive event on Southwark Bridge, as we do every year, by holding our usual Farm stall and leading our sheep over the bridge. It is organised by the Worshipful Company of Woolmen, and we wouldn't be able to do it without our wonderful volunteers, pictured. This ancient tradition keeps alive the rites of Freemen of the City of London, by allowing them to walk sheep into the city without paying tax. You can read a blog by us here about the 2023 event.
We are grateful to have received sponsorship this year from the Worshipful Company of Grocers.
Photo credits: Andy Barker
New Additions to the Farm Fam!
We recently welcomed to our ducks family three Mini Silver Appleyard Ducks named Pippin, Pixie and Pearl; and two Cayuga Ducks named Talise & Twęttwęt. You will find them in the recently renovated pond up on the Farmyard.
In addition to the ducks, we also now have Turkeys! You can meet Audrey, Greta and Marilyn in the house where Toby the tortoise lived over the summer. These ladies came from a farm that was closing down. They are quite shy and still getting used to their surroundings, which is why you might see a Farmyard volunteer perched in there coaxing them with some treats.
Lily the Guinea Pig
Veteran guinea pig Lily has gone to live in South London with our Education Manager, for some respite care as the weather changes. She was losing weight at the farm and struggling to keep condition. She has limited eyesight remaining which isn't surprising, as we estimate her to be around 6 years old. Since moving in with Kirsten and her partner, she has become accustomed to a steady stream of fruit and veg and has gained an impressive 200g in 2 weeks!
VEG OF THE MONTH - Naga Chilli + Radishes
As the weather cools down it’s the perfect time to sow radish. We grow a few different small varieties in succession, meaning we are sowing a fresh batch each week, which will give us a consistent harvest. They are crunchy and peppery, can be enjoyed raw or cooked & you can even eat the leaves!
Naga chilli is one of our staples, a super spicy variety. They have been slowly ripening all summer long and are now ready to be harvested.
Visitor Engagement Volunteers
This week we welcomed the start of a brand new volunteer role initiative designed by our Volunteer & Community Outreach Manager, Hafsah. It is a brand new volunteer role designed to support our visitors. Carmen and Nancy joined us back in May, and after a few weeks of training are now at the Farm every Saturday to answer any questions visitors might have, direct people to our new farmyard additions, and generally be our welcoming crew!
More recently they have helped us to roll out our visitor surveys which is a short survey aimed at helping us understand our visitors better, so that we continue to adapt and improve our site and offerings in a way that is inclusive and effectively serves our community.
Come along any Saturday so they can say hello to you.
Right to Grow: Tower Hamlets campaign
The RTG campaign is building momentum in Tower Hamlets, with the Farm partnering in many events to further the cause. This campaign helps residents in this borough to:
Identify and use public land for growing
Secure space with fair terms and long-term options
Build stronger, healthier communities through shared growing, cooking, and learning
Respond to climate and social challenges with local solutions
Protect and sustain spaces like community gardens for future generations
On Saturday 27th September, Farm staff, Sam Dodd and Community Horticulturalist, Carmen Ho co-ran a walking tour, beginning with a tour of the Farm and as part of the Power of Food Festival.It ran participants through how to take over an unused space for food growing, and covered 4 miles on foot by visiting existing spaces across Spitalfields and Bethnal Green that have done just that: our Farm, Bethnal Green Nature Reserve, Approach Road Community Garden, Canal Club Community Garden, and Cranbrook Community Garden. These spaces encompass gardens in housing estates; wildlife-friendly nature reserves; community orchards; guerrilla gardening initiatives; and gardens for arts, children, and education.
The Right to Grow campaign are looking for signatures on the petition to Tower Hamlets Council. Please sign and share by clicking this link!
Site Improvement News
Thanks to the hard work of our Site Manager, Steven, we recently installed electrics in our small animal enclosures, meaning heating and lighting during winter; began upcycling pallets into benches and furniture for use around the farm as part of our efforts to resuse as much wood as possible to work towards our green credential aims - this saves us money, but also keeps stuff out of landfill unnecessarily. Come by and have a look!
Winter Opening Hours - 26th October 2025
As always, our winter opening hours will kick in soon, when the clocks go back. From 26th October 2025 we will be open from 10am to 4pm, Tuesday through to Sunday. To leave enough time to see everything, make sure you get here by 3pm on the day/s you plan to visit.
That's it for this edition! Thank you for reading.
The Farm is open Tuesday to Sunday from 10.00am to 4.30pm.
We look forward to welcoming you soon.