Kindling's Chris had the pleasure of attending MERCi's workshop on How to Grow Flax and came away with a fuller understanding of the potential such urban agriculture holds for our derelict land.
Just down the road from MERCi's Bridge 5 Mill a very unusual crop has been growing this summer - flax. The Sow Sew Project was the winner of a competition to find a temporary use for open space in New Islington and when the flax is harvested in a few weeks it will be turned into fabric and given to artists to work with.
The three hour workshop involved project manager Sophia talking about the history of flax production (it was last grown on a commercial scale before the industrial revolution); its many many uses (its fibres make linen and ropes, the 'shive' used as a construction material or cat litter and the seeds provide oil for cricket bats) as well as the practicalities of growing it in inner city Manchester.
The workshop attendees included artists who are interested in using the linen to make clothes, urban horticulturists interested in growing the crop and even a bike making company who use the fibres in the construction of bike frames.
Sophia's enthusiasm for the project reflects the opportunities this crop, and the growing, harvesting and processing techniques MERCi are refining, has to offer regeneration projects and sustainable land management and Kindling is looking forward to watching this project grow and grow.
For more information please visit the EN4M website.
The Sow Sew Project is supported by property developer: Urban Splash and the Development Trust Association.