An update from the Market Stall – August 2022
This month on the Market Stall, we continue to see spring greens and cabbage doing well locally. Produce from across England is in good supply with varieties of lettuce and broccoli; with damsons now available too.
You can find our recommendations for produce based on their supply origin below.
All produce is available while stocks last. If you would like to place an order for collection or delivery, please get in touch.
|
Few – from down the road, or within Devon and Cornwall |
Some – within England and the UK |
Lots – overseas from Europe and further afield |
| Strawberries | Spring onions | Apricots |
| Spring greens | Lettuce – flat and little gem | Green gages |
| Kale | Cress | New Zealand apples |
| Cabbage – Hispi, Savoy & Primo | Courgette | Nectarines |
| Cauliflower | Peaches | |
| Broccoli, purple sprouting broccoli | ||
| Runner beans, broad beans | ||
| Fresh beetroot | ||
| Damsons | ||
| New season celeriac |
Galmpton Wildlife Corridor project update
We’ve now had 27 individual gardens from around Galmpton sign up to the Wildlife Corridor project. There have also been 31 recorded sightings of hedgehogs this year, all of which are plotted on the project map.
We are still looking for more people who live in Galmpton to sign up to the project. You can also report a sighting by popping down to the shop to complete a report slip, which will then be added to our map.
If you are interested or would like to report a hedgehog sighting, pop into the shop, give us a call on 01803 842148 or contact us on galleonstores1993@gmail.com for more information.
Get involved in the Galmpton Wildlife Corridor project
The Galmpton Wildlife Corridor project aims to work together to create wildlife corridors interconnecting through Galmpton village, to encourage the movement of all local wildlife.
If you live in Galmpton and are interested in allocating part of your garden to a corridor, please pop in and complete a form so you can be added to the map. We are also looking to hear from villagers who have had a sighting of hedgehogs in their garden within the last year or so.
For more information, give us a call on 01803 842148 or email galleonstores1993@gmail.com.
Sustainable Spring cleaning tips and eco-friendly Easter ideas
Back in February we shared tips from one of our customers on making your own natural, non-toxic cleaning products. As we move into a new season, Jacqui has shared her tips for greener Spring cleaning using simple household ingredients that you may have already. There’s no fumes or toxins involved, nor packaging or transport and doing so can save you money. Like her eco-friendly gift ideas for Mothering Sunday and Easter, it’s also a creative and fun way of making your home smell of your favourite scents.
Many of the ingredients below are also available to purchase at Galleon Stores.
Spring cleaning
Make rags from old cotton textiles, e.g. curtains, table cloths, tea towels or clothes. You can use the homemade cleaning recipes from our previous post for floor cleaner and surface spray.
Windows
An old but greener method – use old newspapers scrunched up and a vinegar spray. Make up 1 part white vinegar to 3 parts water and shake together in an old spray bottle. Optional: add sieved lemon juice or lemon essential oil for a fresh scent. The vinegar smell evaporates. Do this on a dull day as sunshine produces streaks. Leaves windows sparkling and lets the light in!
Wooden Furniture
Damp dust with a wrung out rag. Make a polish (either in a jar or a spray with a big enough nozzle) using 3 parts olive oil to 1 part white vinegar and your choice of essential oil e.g. lavender, orange, lemon, alternatively sieved lemon juice. Shake together in a jar, dip a rag in and apply to wood. Use a clean rag to buff. Make this fresh as it doesn’t keep long. Cleans and moisturises wood beautifully. Rinse rags under a hot tap and then put in with laundry for reusing. You can also simply use coconut oil.
Mothering Sunday/Easter/birthdays
Some eco-friendly gift ideas you can make at home:
Plants: grow seeds and root cuttings from your garden e.g. fruit bushes, flowers, interesting veg, shrubs, herbs. Use peat free UK compost. Herbs benefit from topping with grit to keep them well drained. Put in a beautiful upcycled pot e.g. terracotta, china. You can save these from your spring declutter or pick up cheaply from charity shops. Make labels from slate from the beach or recycle card. Tie with a piece of old ribbon, raffia, twine, strip of material (e.g. from an old dress). Add a brown luggage label with the name of the plant and any instructions.
Chocolate: melt chocolate and pour in small pools on to a tray lined with baking parchment. You can use dark and white swirled together too for a marbled effect. Add dried fruit and nuts e.g. cranberries, sultanas, glace cherries, flaked almonds, pistachios. Leave to set in fridge. Wrap in recycled baking parchment and twine or put in an upcycled tin and decorate.
Bath salts: mix together any of following – Epsom salts, Himalayan pink sea salts, coarse sea salt and your choice of essential oils. Layer in a clean, dry jar with dried flowers e.g. rose petals, lavender, marigold, camomile. Attach a label with instructions to sprinkle 1 tbsp under a hot running tap.
Posting
Needing to send gifts by post? Use brown paper and brown paper tape (both available at Galleon Stores) for a more sustainable alternative (sellotape has to be removed before composting/recycling).
Galmpton Wildlife Corridor Launch – 3rd April
We’re delighted to share details of the Galmpton Wildlife Corridor Launch on Sunday 3rd April 1000-1230 or 1330-1600.
The event will allow people to come and learn what we can do together to help nature thrive in our village, by making safe passages for wildlife.
Add your garden to the village map, swap ideas with one another, explore a large wildlife friendly garden and join our Whatsapp group to share resources, ideas and future events.
Free welcome tea, coffee and cakes provided. All ages welcome and dogs welcome on leads.
Find us at 3 Manor Court, Kiln Road, Galmpton TQ5 0EH.
If you have any questions, please give us a call on 01803 842148. In the meantime, you can also now purchase a ‘Slow Down Hedgehog Area’ sign from Galleon Stores for £12.
Make your own natural non-toxic cleaning products
We’re continuing to add to our range(s) of sustainable alternatives in the shop, and reducing plastic waste. This also includes sharing top tips and recommendations with our customers, to offer inspiration for you to try things at home.
The following DIY guides are from one of our customers Jacqui who shares ideas on making your own natural non-toxic floor, surface cleaners and room fresheners.
Planning to give any of the ideas a try yourself? We’d love to hear how you get on, or if you have any of your own tips to share.
Floor cleaner
You will need:
White vinegar (available as a refill from Galleon Stores, just bring your own non-metallic container)
Discarded citrus peels (citrus has antibacterial and antiseptic properties)
A large jam jar or Kilner jar with a non-metal lid
How to make:
- Fill a jar half full of white vinegar.
- Add citrus peels whenever you have them and submerge in the vinegar.
- When full of peel, top up with vinegar to cover if necessary. Give it a shake and leave for two weeks.
- Strain the liquid into individual, labelled bottles (use a fine sieve or muslin) and compost the peel.
- Dilute a cupful in a bucket of warm water to wash floors.
Spray surface cleaner
You can also use the above mixture diluted 50/50 with water in a labelled spray bottle for cleaning kitchen and bathroom surfaces (not granite or limestone), sinks, fridges, windows and mirrors.
Room freshener
You will need:
Vodka or witch hazel
Essential oils
Spray container
Funnel
How to make:
Simply put two tablespoons of witch hazel or vodka in a spray bottle with your favourite essential oils (orange, bergamot and geranium are fresh and zingy). Shake and top up with distilled or tap water. Label with instructions to shake before using.
For a festive Winter scent:
Use a mixture of clove, cinnamon, pine or orange.
Sleep spray:
Just use lavender oil to aid a blissful night’s sleep.
The room fresheners also make lovely gifts for your nearest and dearest.
New sustainable swap: Bazoo Toilet Paper
We’ve recently started stocking Bazoo Toilet Paper, the world’s first and only carbon negative toilet paper. Co-founded by two University of Exeter graduates, the soft 3-ply toilet paper offers 300 sheets per roll made from 100% FSC certified bamboo with no chlorine-bleach, inks or dyes, and zero plastic.
As Bazoo offset twice as much carbon as they emit, every Bazoo roll bought physically removes carbon emissions from the earth’s atmosphere. We’re sold!
For more information on the new product, or to place an order for collection or delivery please get in touch.
An update from the Market Stall – February 2022
Our local fresh produce is increasing in variety as we approach the Spring. From our local farmers across Devon and Cornwall this February, our picks include:
- Cabbage varieties – Savoy, Red, White
- Green Kale
- Spring Greens
- Cauliflowers
- Swedes
- Baking Potatoes
- Salad Potatoes
- Cox’s Apples
- Fresh Beetroot
From further afield, but still within England you can also find:
- Leeks, Onions
- Sprouts
- Vacuum packed Beetroot
- Lettuce – Little Gem, Round
- Blueberries and Raspberries
- Comice Pears
All our fresh fruit and veg is available while stocks last. Drop in and browse our full range, or for more information on any of our produce and to place an order for collection or delivery, give us a call on 01803 842148. Alternatively please email galleonstores1993@gmail.com.
How customers can support Galleon Stores through 2022
Welcome to the New Year and thank you all for your support during these last two years. Together we have kept Galleon Stores and Post Office open at all times, allowing us to meet the various needs of the local community. A big thanks also goes to all of our staff, without whom this would not have been possible.
With restrictions having eased, our challenge for the coming year is to maintain the local support we have received. We will continue to offer a friendly, flexible service with a wide range of goods and services, and an emphasis on local, fresh and plastic/packaging free produce.
- Check out our Market Stall for fresh, local fruit and vegetables, with monthly recommendations on best value and best in season on our website.
- Use our top-up service, which offers refills on cleaning products including Ecover washing up liquid and fabric softener, Faith in Nature shampoo and conditioner, hand gel, disinfectant and hand soap
- Browse our large range of locally baked breads and cakes
- Support our local suppliers through buying wine and beer to jams and honey
- Ask us about joining the Galleon 100 Club – a simple partnership between Galleon Stores and its customers to support our vision of a sustainable local shop
- Post your letters and parcels, send returns and Click and Collect to support Galmpton Post Office. You can also access banking services, currency and buy travel and gift cards easily.
To get involved and continue supporting your local shop, drop in to the shop during our opening hours. You can also give us a call on 01803 842148, or get in touch with Kay, Gary, Rose or Teresa if you have queries on any of these opportunities.
Reuse and recycle through the shop
Now that we have relaxed restrictions to allow more than one customer in the shop at a time, we’re encouraging customers to utilise the services in the shop to reuse and recycle where they can.
We offer a range of top-up services for cleaning products in the shop including hand soap, washing up liquid and fabric softener.
The process is simple: purchase your first bottle and once you’ve used it up, bring the bottle back in to top it up again. A member of staff will then scan the relevant barcode depending on the size of bottle. We’re delighted to hear that there are now a number of people in the village who’ve not purchased a new washing up bottle for nearly 2 years.
A recent customer came in to the use the top-up service for the first time last week. Having switched to the Ecover Lemon and Aloe Vera Washing Up Liquid four months ago, she shared her thoughts on using Ecover:
‘I’ve found it’s really good value, and a little goes a long way. It’s also really friendly to sensitive skin and doesn’t feel as abrasive as some washing up liquids, without sacrificing the quality and rigorous cleaning of the dishes!’
Alongside our top-up services, you can also find larger quantities of varieties of flour available in brown bags as opposed to plastic ones.