ES Colony Lot

SOMETHING TO SHARE

➥ 2017-11-01: My colony lot was put to sleep for the winter. During the autumn the construction of the platform, i.e. a wooden floor along the side of the cottage, and the paving of the paths, were the two great events.The platform needed a special permit from the board of Tanto Norra. I made a drawing, which was approved, and the work started. September 9, the platform was ready. In the middle of September the paving started. The stones and concrete blocks came from a lot in Farsta, where the community of Stockholm had decided to build houses. At the end of September I had an inauguration on the lot. October 7, we had the autumn cleaning and fixing of the whole Tanto Norra area. My contribution was to paint one of the gates. Next day we had the "Big Bags", where we were able to get rid of all the scrap on our lots. October 21, was the last time we had coffee outside. At the end of October I removed things from the cottage and the lot for storing at home during the winter. Autumn was grey and dull. Unfortunately I did not have time to cut dead flowers and turn over the soil but there is another season arriving, spring.

⚘ A COLONIST PRAYER ⚘ Oh Lord of Springs gone by Spring blooms only memory slots, Summer flowers weeping on lots, Autumn colors soon forgots, Winter creeping into spots. Oh Lord of Springs to be My feet weigh heavily in stride, My back follows with pain denied. Please grant another Spring to me. — V. P. Stokes (Winter 2017)

➥ 2018-05-20: Spring is on the way. In January we started a seed circle. We, 10 members in Tanto Norra, met to prepare for the spring season. We changed seeds, made joint purchases and shared information and knowledge about how to grow plants etc. Beginning in March we started the planning more seriously, soil and fertilizer were ordered. Spring was also grey and lo-o-o-ng. March 22, we elected members to the new board of Tanto Norra. April 23, our order containing soil and fertilizer was executed. May 3, we made a fire of old thorny bushes and other things from our lots, which we could not compost. At the same time we started the spring sowing. A honeysuckle moved in to my lot from Råcksta. May 14, potatoes were planted, the American way. The potato assortment this year: Cherie and Amandine. May and June were extremely dry months, and seeds and plants had to be watered every second day. The harvest of strawberries was amazing. Strawberries and potatoes being ready the week before Midsummer was something new and a pleasant surprise to me, in my career as a colonist. Now we will see what happens next.

⚘ SPRING TULIPS ⚘ Tulips shyly smiling, greet the Spring tightly closed when at first we meet tulips slowly opening, begin to sing, gaining volume ever sweet. No longer shy, as days grow longer, raising their heads they begin to flirt tulips dressed in many a color breezes swirling each floral skirt. Tulips brazen painted hussies, part their bright lips trying to seduce the busy buzzing bees far too bold for dainty tussies virbrant tulip flowers produce visions certain to please. — Mary Havran (March 16, 2008)

MY COLONY LOT AND ME

"If you wish to be happy for a short time, get drunk. To be happy for a long time, fall in love. To be happy forever, be a colonist."

In June 1914, World War I broke out and soon afterwards, butter, bread, sugar, milk, coffee and potatoes were rationed. The butter went quickly and the cheap potatoes were soon finished. This led to extensive hunger riots. As early as 1916, the city of Stockholm gave out free seed potatoes to the citizens, and they were allowed to cultivate these in the middle of town. At Tanto in Södermalm, the slopes near the water were put at the disposal of those living nearby. These potato growers formed the colony association Tanto South in 1917. Tanto Small and Tanto North followed in 1919. In the early 1920´s Tanto North's original area consisted of cultivation lots, and the dominant crop was potatoes. In 1984, the association received a permit for the contruction of cottages (limited to 10 sqm) on their lots. Twenty years later, I queued up for a lot in Tanto North. Today the association consists of 93 lots, 83 with cottages and 10 without. We have a nice club house, which was opened in May, 2006. In the beginning, water was obtained from Lake Mälaren. Now, we have access to municipal water. Most cottages do not have electricity but there are a few exceptions.

E.S.

In August 2003 one of my best friends married in a colony lot in Tanto North. I was invited as a witness. It was the beginning of my career as a colonist. I was offered the opportunity to become a co-worker with the sister to the groom. She had a big lot of over 400 sqm, so there was room for both of us. After a number of years, it was my turn to get a lot of my own. It was then the club's smallest lot of 56 sqm. This lot I had for 4 years and grew potatoes, onions, vegetables and berries. In 2015 I bought a small yellow cottage with white trimmings and 167 sqm of land in the same area. It was a wonderful start, but it meant a lot of work moving bulbs and bushes etc. During the first year I spent a lot of time fixing up the cottage. It needed to be painted inside and outside. The veranda fence had to be replaced. When I couldn´t do it myself, I hired help. At last, I started with the cultivation itself. Over the next 2 years I have acquired wooden pallets for growing, built new pathways and a new patio “platform”. The platform is a wooden floor at one of the long sides of the house, where you can have coffee in the sun and relax in peace. My neighbors and I like to have long cosy breaks and chat. We also cooperate very good, i.e. exchange seeds, share perennials and participate in the colony association work. This website I intend to use partly to tell what's happening on the lot, and partly as a kind of logbook for myself.

Where does the time go when I am at my colony lot?

Relaxing

65%

Cleaning

10%

Watering

8%

Trimming

6%

Weeding-Pest Control

4%

Digging