We are incredibly grateful to every one of you who has generously contributed to our urgent fundraising appeal. So far, we have raised a whopping £23,426.50, purely from individual donations!
This has enabled us to buy a second-hand Fendt tractor which we are extremely excited about! Until now we have shared a tractor and it wasn't always available when we needed it. Now we have our very own to attach our new sprayer and under-vine strimmer to. Hoorah!
Controlling the weeds and grass under vines is one of the most challenging aspects of maintaining an organic vineyard. Keeping the growth low keeps the air flowing making it less likely for disease to establish and spread. Choosing to be certified organic we do not use chemicals to control the growth, it was always done manually, so the strimmer is a huge step forward for us in management of the vines.
The machine has been made for us by Voxx Machinery, a fantastic independent company in Kent who specialise in fruit and vineyard machinery. A huge thank you to owner Rob for pulling out all the stops for us.
We still need to fundraise for other resources to be sustainable long term, but with these essential pieces of equipment we stand a far better chance of preventing and controlling the spread of disease and bringing in a good crop this year. Combined with a massive effort from our volunteer community, we are hopeful we will pull through.
Please keep everything crossed for us and if you are still able to donate to our campaign, please do so. We will put every penny to good use so that we can continue being a benefit to the community and ensure the future of London's vineyard. You can donate Local Giving fundraising page here.
THANK YOU!!
