Winter 2020 No.53 The

ORGANICThe journal of the Organic GROWER Growers Alliance

Patrick Noble (p34) & Arthur Pearse remembered p36

FarmHack

Seedbed Roller/ Dibbler p16

What’s new in organic Organic spirit in Iraqi Kurdistan p30 seed? p10

Review of the 2020 season p20 Page 1 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 IN THIS ISSUE The ORGANIC GROWER Pete’s Points...... 3 The Organic Grower is edited by Phil Sumption, with help from News...... 4 Carolyn Wacher, Jim Aplin and Kate Collyns. If you have any news, events or ideas for articles please get in touch. OGA, LWA and CSA Network UK webinars.. 7 [email protected] The Frost report: autumn diary...... 8 Thanks to all our contributors. Adverts: John Crocker [email protected] Weed control in organic viticulture...... 9 Copy date for next issue: February 15th 2021 The Organic Grower is the membership magazine of the Organic What’s new in the organic seed trade?...... 10 Growers Alliance CIC (OGA). Views expressed in The Organic Grower are not necessarily those of the OGA or its committee. Every effort is made to check the factual accuracy of statements made in the Soil obesity – is your soil putting on weight?.13 magazine, but no guarantees are expressed or implied. In particular, readers should satisfy themselves about the authenticity of products Smart pathways to market...... 14 or inputs advertised. Material may not be reproduced without prior written permission. Data Corner. Crop focus No.3: Cherry toms.. 15 Printed by Severnprint on 100% recycled paper using vegetable based inks and powered by renewable energy, with a view to seeking out FarmHack: Seedbed Roller/Dibbler...... 16 more environmentally friendly mailing solution on all future copies. Organic Growers Alliance CIC Summertime polytunnel relay cropping ...... 18 Company No. 11551999 Registered in England and Wales OGA review of the season 2020...... 20 From Haughley to Elm Farm...... 22 How to reinvent yourself: Jason Horner...... 25 Editor’s notes Welcome to the Winter issue of The Organic Grower! As usual, at Growing the Goods: Horticultural ELM T&T...26 this time of year we reflect on the past season, and what a season Babylon Brandy...... 28 it has been! Thanks to all our contributors who have shared their stories, highlights, lowpoints, top tips and hopes and wishes for Carbon footprinting for organic growers...... 30 the coming season (centre pages pp20-21). Book reviews...... 32 We were saddened to hear of the recent passing of OGA stalwart and frequent contributor to these pages Patrick Noble. We Participatory certification...... 33 remember him (p34) and include an essay of his on Sovereignty (p35). He leaves a legacy of thoughts and words in his books, Obituary: Patrick Noble...... 34 and articles in past issues of The OG. We also reflect on the life of Sovereignty by Patrick Noble...... 35 Arthur Pearse who since the 60’s, with wife Josephine, inspired generations of future growers at Tamarisk Farm, in Dorset (p36). Obituary: Arthur Pearse...... 36 Winter is a time to take stock and plan ahead, whether that is to Nature note – plant life...... 38 reinvent yourself (Jason Horner p25), analyse the carbon footprint of your business (p30) or to fine tune your Summer polytunnel Events and Christmas quiz...... 40 cropping schedule (Canalside: p18).

Athough many seed companies OGA CIC Directors have had Brexit on their minds Pete Richardson Devon 07821 403739 [email protected] Chair this year, many have still been Tony Little Wales [email protected] Wales able to introduce new varieties to Ben Raskin Wiltshire 07990 592621 [email protected] SA liaison their ranges. In what we hope is a Jim Aplin Worcs 07796 317542 [email protected] Secretary regular seasonal feature we cover these on pp10-12. Tamara Schiopu Oxon 07795 334474 [email protected] Mick Marston Newcastle 07764 221425 [email protected] North of England Finally, I would like to wish you all a restful festive season and a healthy and prosperous New Year. Antonia Ineson Scotland 07872 057985 [email protected] Scotland rep (not Director) Phil Sumption, Editor Cover: Ruby Chard (Photo: Phil Sumption)

Page 2 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Pete’s points Introductions Doing our best Holly Jarvis Dear Growers, Hello! I’m Holly Jarvis, OGA’s new Administrator and Membership This has been an extraordinary growing Secretary. I live in Todmorden, year so far...and maybe there is a little West Yorkshire; home to a thriving light for the new season with vaccines community of growers including on the horizon... the ‘Incredible Edible’ project and As OGA chair I wanted to acknowledge other excellent sustainable farming and say thankyou to all our Directors and enterprises. It’s an inspiring place Phil our editor for all their hard work and to be. I’m lucky to be involved in commitment over the last few months several community growing groups, Photo: Holly Jarvis given how trying each individual’s and have been enjoying building a forest garden during lockdown. circumstances may have been . I am also continuing my studies in Horticulture (online) with the

So that member growers know where we have got to ...the OGA RHS, so I’m keeping busy! now has two new employees Holly and Greta (see opposite) I am absolutely delighted to be working with the OGA. I’m keen we have put in place a Vision ...Strategy ....Rolling Agenda to connect with, and grow, our membership - so please do get and have started work in conjunction with others on a series of in touch. I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know those of technical seminars as well as looking at an Organic Matters online you who I have spoken to so far. It’s great to hear the passion, conference next year. knowledge, and commitment to organic values, and see glimpses

Our commitment to all our grower friends is to work with these of your produce and farms across the UK. Please keep in touch documents for the benefit of ALL organic growers harking back with any news, job vacancies, photos, or events, as well as any to our original aims when setting up at Elm Farm in the 90’s ..... ideas of how we might offer you more support. You can contact organic core values, technical excellence. best practice organic me on [email protected] systems built on long experience and history. Greta Hughson This allies very closely with the English Organic Forum report I’m Greta Hughson, and I’m Organic - A Way Forward (see OGA website) in our adherence to OGA’s new Development organic core principles and how we as directors see ourselves Manager, working one day working with other groups in the future. This report has taken many a week. I currently live in months of hard work, skill and commitment to show government suburban Surrey, but I grew up and the public how organic systems can be of benefit to our “public Photo: Greta Hughson in Shetland and recently studied good “ health in more ways than one! The Board fully support this for an MSc in Sustainable Food at the Centre for Alternative report and have helped fund it along with others . Technology (CAT) in mid-Wales, so my heart is in the country. At As grower/directors (see Jim’s ‘OGA needs You’ - on website and the moment, I’m making do with a very productive allotment! I’m p4) we have been ‘doing our best’ ...even within our IT limitations really pleased to be working with OGA, particularly because of and would be delighted to see new energy and skills on the board the wealth of experience and knowledge among the membership if any of you talented and hard working growers would like to and the strength of commitment to organic values. I’m proud to give something back to the organic world . support its development. Thank you for the warm welcome I’ve had so far. Happy Christmas one and all. Pete Richardson, Chair, Organic Growers Alliance I’m keen to strengthen links, learning and support between members, promote the great work you’re all doing, and increase OGA’s reach and influence. Please do get in touch to tell me about OGA T-shirt you and your work, your specialist subjects, your ideas for the OGA, and particularly anything you would like us to cover in We have limited stocks of our OGA t-shirts our events programme. I’d also love to hear from anyone who left. Available in M, L, XL at £15 all printed would like to get more involved in OGA’s work and I’ll be coming on organic cotton. up with opportunities for different ways you can participate. https://organicgrowersalliance.co.uk/ Drop me a line at [email protected] shop/

Page 3 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 OGA news

Recent online events The OGA needs you! On 3rd November, OGA hosted a meeting on ‘Coping without The OGA largely depends on voluntary work by growers and Copper’ in the organic potato supply chain. There is a full update ex-growers to guide and push our work forward for mutual on page 7. benefit. Many hands make light work. To that end we invite On 1st December, OGA hosted a meeting in partnership with expressions of interest for the voluntary role of Director. the Soil Association, on building healthy soils for organic flower This is an unpaid position, with expenses where needed. You growing. Full report in the next issue. will need to be able to meet on Zoom at least once a month Collaborations and spare a few hours a month for the work of the board as it arises. We are particularly interested to hear from anyone We are pleased to be flying the flag for organic horticulture in two with experience in one or more of these areas: HR, food policy new partnerships. and representation, administration, management/leadership, In 2020, as the impact of coronavirus meant face-to-face events were strategy, finances, fundraising, chairing skills or any prior no longer realistic, we ran a series of online events in partnership experience of governance. with the Landworkers’ Alliance and the CSA Network UK. These We also need help in technical advice, representation, training, proved very popular and made learning and networking accessible online activities or any other area, including ideas you have to people who might not have been able to come to an event in where we are not already active. person. Although we look forward to gathering together ‘in real life’ again, online events will continue to play an important role next If you are interested in either of these, please contact Pete year and beyond. OGA, the CSA Network UK and Landworkers’ Richardson on [email protected] Alliance have formed a partnership with the Gaia Foundation, and together we have been awarded funding from Farming the Future to run more online events over the next two years. We are planning for these now, so if you have ideas for subjects relating to organic Annual membership survey horticulture that you would like to see covered, or experience you Once again, we are running a short survey of our membership. would like to share, please do get in touch. This helps us to understand more about who the OGA represents We have also received news that a new project has been funded by and how best we can support and represent you. Please spare a Farming the Future – the Agroecological Research Collaboration. few minutes to complete the survey (just 12 questions!). This is a partnership between OGA, Landworkers’ Alliance, the https://forms.gle/AToWZUEsVRqBwznK8 CSA Network UK, and the Ecological Land Coop, and it aims to Any questions, comments or suggestions, please contact Greta address the lack of research which is led by and meets the needs ([email protected]) or Holly (hello@ of farmers and growers practising agroecology, including through organicgrowersalliance.co.uk). organic horticulture. A new research coordinator will work with the four organisations to identify research priorities and will build relationships with academics and researchers. Do you have particular research or data gaps in mind? Please do get in touch with your ideas. The OGA and organics in Scotland Representation While the concerns in Scotland over Brexit and the Internal Our representative on the Soil Association Farmer and Grower Market Bill remain (see Autumn 2020 issue), and the Scotland Board recently stepped down. OGA is keen to put another Food and Drink post to develop organics is still to be filled, there member forward for the board to represent organic growers, so is some positive news. A meeting is being held in early December let us know if you would be interested and we can help with your to establish a stakeholder group for organics in Scotland, with a application. There are four meetings per year and travel expenses wide range of organisations and people invited to attend. They are paid, although currently all meetings are online. represent aspects from production, processing and sale to climate change and biodiversity. The response to the invitation, sent out There are often opportunities like this, to represent OGA and by the OGA and Nourish, has been very encouraging, and over organic horticulture. We would love to have more members 30 representatives are signed up. The hope is to build a strong involved, so please let us know if you might be interested, and how partnership to make a real step forward in organics. we can support you to shout about organic horticulture from the rooftops and in the corridors of power! Antonia Ineson

Page 4 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Policy news For Peat’s sake A new Agriculture Act Environmental groups have written to the Environment Secretary The new Agriculture Act, the first for fifty years received royal calling for a ban on the use of peat in compost by 2025. Monty assent on 11th November. Vicki Hird of the Sustain Alliance Don also signed the letter, describing peat in compost as commented on what all the hardwork of lobbying has achieved: “environmental vandalism”. The call comes as the volume of peat “Much farm support will now be based on delivering public sold in the UK in the last year tops two million cubic metres. goods or benefits – supporting farmers whilst helping deliver The National Trust, Friends of the Earth, the RSPB, The Royal on top priorities like nature protection, soil health, climate Horticultural Society, Plantlife, CPRE, the countryside charity, The change mitigation, clean air and water, and animal welfare. Wildlife Trusts, Garden Organic, and Wildlife and Countryside Link Environmental Land Management and other policies across all say that unless a legal ban is introduced then some of the world’s four nations should be better as a result. But there is more work to most precious and important ecosystems could be lost forever, and do on implementation. the government’s climate and nature aims will be undermined. “A mention in the Act for agroecology, soil protection and far New figures show the rate of decrease in the retail and professional greater recognition of the role of whole-farm approaches in horticulture sectors is ‘small and slow’. The voluntary target to end delivering sustainable food and farming. All valuable steps. its use in the amateur sector by 2020 has been completely missed, and the 2030 target to end its use in the professional sector is also “A brand new fair dealing regulation and transparency for the on course to be missed. In the retail sector, peat is down from 53.3% supply chain – as we know supply chain abuse can hurt farmers’ of material in 2015 to 44.6% last year. In the professional sector peat livelihoods and sustainability here and overseas. This could, if is down from 63.9 % of material in 2015 to 62.9 % last year. The properly implemented, be a real game changer - ensuring farmers majority of the two million cubic metres sold or used in the UK and growers have tools to demand better deals and a regulator to in 2019 was imported from the Republic of Ireland and other EU enforce new contract codes of practice, designed with each sector countries, with the remainder coming from peatlands in the UK. in mind so supply chains have to play fair.

A Defra spokesman said: “We are committed to phasing out the “A multi-annual financing process which will hopefully ensure use of peat in horticulture in England by 2030, and are looking at that public support is there for farmers, how legislation can achieve this. We urge all gardeners to play their “And a legal commitment to provide regular reviews of UK food part and only use peat-free products. We are investing £10m to security which will be vital given the challenges ahead.” improve the condition of our peatlands as part of our commitment to protecting and restoring this precious habitat - cementing the However, Vicki further reflects on what didn’t get in the Act: UK’s position as a world leader in environmental biodiversity. “We didn’t manage to realise our big ambition on agroecology – We plan to set out proposals to further reduce the use of peat in but it is in there and we will build on that. On agroforestry, new horticulture in our forthcoming England Peat Strategy. We are entrants and county farms, climate and pesticide targets we got continuing to work with the industry to make the transition to peat promises but not in the Bill. We fought hard to get public health alternatives simpler. For example, we are jointly funding research as a purpose in the Bill – seems obvious to most of us that food with the industry to overcome practical barriers to peat replacement is health. But no, it appears that it is not obvious to farm policy in professional horticulture using commercial scale trials. This £1m makers. And we did not get better protection for farm workers – a project ended in December 2019 and has shown promising results major disappointment. and a report will be published with results later in 2020.” “We won concessions and partial U-turns on trade and food EU Reg postponed to 2022 standards to enhance parliamentary scrutiny but not a final big ask to give protection for standards a legal footing – despite The EU Commission has postponed the application of the new unprecedented public concern (2.65 million signatures; 260 MP organic legislation by one year to January 1, 2022, to allow more letters) and the biggest coalition of unusual partners I have ever time for Member States to finish work on secondary legislation. seen together. This means that the progressive parts in the Bill, to Jan Plagge, President of IFOAM Organics Europe and the support farmers in protecting nature, tackling land-based climate German growers’ association Bioland, expressed his relief: “The challenges, protecting animal welfare, reducing pesticides etc, are all postponement will enable a smooth transition for the farms, at risk from more agri-food imports produced to lower standards.” companies, inspection bodies and authorities, allowing them https://www.sustainweb.org/blogs/nov20-new-agriculture-act2020/ to adapt to the changes appropriately and make the necessary preparations.” The EU organic regulation has been brought into UK law as part of the Agriculture Act.

Page 5 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 General news Accelerating the degradation of Trap crops for Potato Cyst Nematode biodegradable mulch films Trap crops can reduce PCN by up to 80% but so far have been A Spanish Operational Group (EIP-agri) is encouraging farmers difficult to commercially establish in the field. Through the in their region to use biodegradable mulch films and provides Innovative Farmers programme, four farmers in Shropshire and solutions for accelerating the degradation progress. Operational Lancashire have teamed up with Andrew Wade (OptiGro), Ivan Group AColchados BioDegradables (GO-ACBD) is coordinated by Grove (independent), Matthew Back (Harper Adams University) Abelardo Hernandez from the Association of Fruit and Vegetable and Anne Stone (AHDB Potatoes) to co-design a practical trial on Producers-Exporters (Proexport) based in the region of Murcia. the best way of establishing trap crops in UK soils. The consortium includes five well-known agricultural companies Trap crops are better described as ‘deceiving’ rather than and together they work with two research centres specialising ‘trapping’ plants. The chemicals released from the trap crop roots in biodegradable mulches. Abelardo: “The Operational Group signal the presence of suitable food and trigger the nematodes to partners assessed the problem and it became clear that the solution emerge from their safe hiding place in the cyst. The nematodes had to be addressed in two ways. First, by reducing the amount begin feeding on the trap plant roots instead of the potatoes, ahead of non-biodegradable debris. This could be done by encouraging of potato cropping. A double benefit is gained with this control farmers not to use polyethylene films under 15 micrometre - by consuming the trap plant, instead of their optimum host thickness. The second part of the solution, is reducing the time potato plant, the nematodes cannot accumulate enough energy that biodegradable mulch film remains in the soil.” to reproduce and complete their life cycle, thereby reducing the chances of subsequent infestation within the soil. Abelardo: “So far, we have discovered that in order to increase the speed and level of the degradation of biodegradable-mulch film, it The farmers drilled the trap crop seeds in late June/early July, must be ploughed into the soil at about 25cm. At this depth there is shortly after cereal harvest, and a second sowing took place one enough humidity and organic material to ensure microbial activity. month later. Two species have been used - Solanum sisymbriifolium After having ploughed the film into the soil, we need to introduce (Sticky nightshade) and Solanum scabrum (African nightshade). S. a second crop to get a sufficient level of degradation. This second sisymbriifolium can reduce PCN densities up to 80% but has been crop provides extra humidity and organic material, which boosts difficult to establish in-field. S. scabrum establishment and use is the microorganisms involved in the degradation process.” less well understood in the UK, but comes from the tropics and higher altitudes, so may be better suited to UK climes. Thompson and Morgan buys The group hypothesised that deeper sowing might work better Suttons Seeds than shallow, so have decided to compare establishment from two planting depths: 1.5cm and 3cm. These are wild plants recently T&M has acquired 100% of the share capital of Suttons Seeds Ltd brought into cultivation. In the wild, such seeds would grow from and its three brands: Suttons, Dobies and the Organic Gardening inside their fruit, or inside animal dung. So, whilst we would expect Catalogue. Suttons will remain in Paignton, its traditional home. small seeds to be drilled shallowly, they often fail to emerge. The acquisition coincides with the launch of the T&M Marketplace, platform that allows Thompson & Morgan’s partners in the Using hand-held cameras and drones, the group are measuring horticulture industry, including garden centres and growers, to trap crop ground cover and sharing this via their WhatsApp sell their products online. group and at meetings. PCN counts were taken before sowing the trap crop and will be compared after trap crop destruction. Wanted! Potato growers interested Initial findings in helping select new varieties from So far, the take-home messages are that earlier sowing, avoiding the Sarpo breeding stock in 2021. water-logged soils and higher seeding rates appear to be more successful. Trap crop establishment has varied considerably At the Sarvari Research Trust and Bangor University, we are between farms, but to the surprise of field lab coordinator, Andrew breeding new blight resistant potatoes that will appeal to British Wade, S. sisymbriifolium sown at 1.5cm deep has the highest ground organic potato growers. cover, “I thought the scabrum would be more vigorous with more Drop us a message at [email protected] if you would like to biomass. Separate to the trial, I hand sowed some scabrum on the grow a few new seedlings and tell us how they compare with the side. That was on the 1st June and it did really well. So it might need varieties you will be growing in the same field and selling to your a higher seeding rate – both were sown at the same seed rate in the customers. We can send you seed of one or more varieties and trial.” The findings may also disprove the group’s hypothesis that instructions for what we want you to do for us. Just let us know deeper sowing may work better than shallow. how many seed tubers you have room for in the trial. (Source: Innovative Farmers)

Page 6 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Webinar series Coping without Funded by Farming the Future, we have been working in partnership with the CSA Network UK and LWA to deliver a webinar programme copper in potatoes aimed at supporting small-scale agroecological farmers. Organic potato production remains reliant on fungicides based on copper for management of late blight. Scotland and Wales have Seed Saving in the UK effectively withdrawn approval for the use of copper already and This session featured Kate McEvoy and Ben Gabel, co- in England an ‘emergency authorisation’ was in place this year, founders of Real Seeds, who gave a virtual tour of their site in but it cannot be extended indefinitely. A meeting in November, Pembrokeshire. Kate gave a guided ’tour’ in pictures of the Real led by Tony Little and Mick Marston, directors of the Organic Seeds land and seed crops, and talked about the challenges and Growers Alliance (OGA), highlighted various aspects of the issue. joys of growing seed in west Wales, and Ben talked through the Maike Raaijmakers from Bionext, the umbrella organisation for processing, cleaning and packing sides of being a seed company. organic farming in The Netherlands, presented their experience https://vimeo.com/451102020 of driving change through ‘The Dutch Potato Covenant’ (See Building resilient seed systems OG51), a partnership between organic potato breeders and A walk through various international grassroots seed systems and traders, organic farming organisations and retailers. The group how we can use these lessons to build our seed network here in worked to define ‘robust’ potato varieties, upscale production, the UK. https://tinyurl.com/y2632slq develop resistance management on farms and increase sales of Irrigation Q&A these varieties. By 2019, figures showed that 80% of Dutch organic In a highly informative Q&A session, Pete Dollimore drew on his potatoes sold were robust varieties. long experience at Hankham Organics and wider knowledge to Progress in the UK answer a wide range of topics. From an overall view of irrigation systems to precise details of individual components of the system Hugh Blogg from the Soil Association gave an update on the and tips for how to manage them effectively, Pete covered themes current regulatory situation and progress in the UK. In 2019, including: issues to be addressed with different water sources, the Soil Association held an organic potato workshop which moving water around the farm and field irrigation, when to agreed on: the need for temporary licensing; the need for retailers use filters and how to maintain them, low pressure systems, the and packers to collaborate; the set-up of a working group to pros and cons of drip and sprinklers and more. With a wealth of address issues across the sector; and the need for field trials to technical detail and pointers to further information, this webinar explore alternatives. Following the workshop, a briefing paper is well worth a visit if you’re looking at installing or improving an was published in December 2019. Work on temporary licensing irrigation system. https://tinyurl.com/yxh2h4hv resulted in an emergency authorisation of Funguran Progress from 10 July to 30 September 2020, in England. All the main Why the CSA model works for everyone supermarkets were approached to collaborate but only Waitrose This session was for anyone interested in setting up or converting has so far shown interest in being involved in developing and to a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) model. It heard selling blight-resistant varieties. from four different CSA growers about what CSA is, why they’ve The Rural Innovation Support Service (RISS) in Scotland has a chosen the model and how it works for them and everyone. project on improving resilience of organic potato production. https://tinyurl.com/y6juzxxf RISS plans to go to the Scottish ministers with a phase-out plan for Building an antiracist farming movement copper, rather than cutting it out immediately The LWA and Land In Our Names (LION) hosted a webinar Breeding for blight resistance with Leah Penniman from Soul Fire Farm in New York to Dr David Shaw from the Sarvari Research Trust explained that explore how we build an antiracist farming movement in the UK. blight control is getting more difficult, partly due to climate https://vimeo.com/460112810 change. The trust is breeding blight-resistant varieties but varieties How can CSAs help to address food poverty in the UK? can lose resistance, sometimes after only a year or two of growing. A discussion of how we can combat food poverty and increase Sarvari uses ‘participatory variety selection’, where lots of people access to food. Panelists include Humphrey from Edible Futures, report back on new varieties. Jocelyn Parot from Urgenci and Dee Woods from Granville Next steps Community Kitchen. https://tinyurl.com/y57kz5wy Tony led a discussion on next steps, offering support to the work Planning for uncertainty that Hugh is leading at the Soil Association. Other suggestions This workshop introduced the basic concepts of contingency, included working more effectively with the Organic Trade Board whether COVID-19 or impacts of the climate crisis; which crops and communicating integrated management plans with Defra, will work best or just thinking about how you’d manage a long- perhaps formulating a joint response from the meeting. term staff absence. https://tinyurl.com/yy88ylmr Greta Hughson

Page 7 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 The Frost report: autumn diary Saturday 12 September the lemon yellow Pomodoro. Both ripening in It’s warm with hotter weather forecast. Good for harvesting the late summer sunshine. The cucumbers are squash but too early to pick potatoes to store. (unimproved) Marketmore and a diminutive variety Cocktailgurke from ProSpeciesRara. It’s an early haf bach mihangel, in the Welsh language, a little It’s a Cucamelon variety aka Molothria scabra.

Michaelmas summer. Compared with earlier in the year when Photos: David Frost I’ve grown mini cucumbers before but these are Tomato: Pomodora unseasonal warm weather was greeted with a dour, “we’ll pay for ridiculously small. this” now the farmers say, “you get haf bach mihangel for free!” We’ve also grown Küttiger carrots from Daughter Clara sent us an idea from the Cook House restaurant in ProSpeciesRara seed. They’re a white Newcastle. She remembers we have a well-grown Brown Turkey chunky, Chantenay type. The story goes fig tree in what I laughingly call our Mediterranean garden. The that they originated in Afghanistan but Cook House chefs say stick a leaf into basmati rice to infuse it with were maintained by women farmers in a beautiful coconut flavour. It’s great but we found it best just to Küttiger, Switzerland for 300 years. They lay the leaf on top of the rice as it cooks. And it’s even better with could easily be mistaken for parsnips till jasmine rice. Küttiger carrots you eat them. Raw or cooked they have a mild, sweet flavor. But where’s the carotene in white carrots? Monday 14 September Harvesting courgettes, escarole and beetroot. The courgettes are Wednesday 30 September slowing up at last but we keep up the search for recipes such as Picked lettuce, endive and cabbages for an order. Just finished in zucchini cake. time as the heavens opened and the rain came down in torrents. It’s that special west Wales hard rain. It falls heavily in remorseless Yesterday we picked a basketful of sheets. Anyone selling waterproofs needs to test them here. wild parasol mushrooms Macrolepiota procera. Big and delicious but I Wednesday 7 October don’t think they can be cultivated Apparently house sparrows are in decline but here the numbers for commercial production. For seem to increase each year, especially since we’re keeping hens again. supper we had globe artichokes They happily peck the organic mixed poultry corn. The main flock and vinaigrette; stir-fried savoy in numbers well over 30. Large, but nothing like the huge flocks I used sesame oil seasoned with soy sauce; to see around the grain stores on the arable farm in Bedfordshire and the fried parasols. where I worked all summer long in my late teenage years, trucking the cereal harvest from distant fields back to the farm. Apparently mushrooms are high in vitamin D – good to help protect Tuesday 27 October against Covid 19. The second lockdown is starting but so far only in Wales. The Thursday 24 September difference this time is we’re engulfed by produce. Today we picked the last of the apples and sorted those for storing, those The old medieval date for the start of harvest and here we’re well for juicing and outgrades that we’ll use for chutneys. Enjoyable, ahead: lifting potatoes and the apple harvest are the big jobs. but we need to arrange the juicing. Whether lockdown means Each year when digging potatoes I disturb at least one field mouse we shouldn’t take them to the press 25 miles away and across nest and think of the Burns poem, To a mouse. And his warnings the county line into Powys is the issue. Is it essential? Some of about the best laid plans of mice and men. I’m surprised that mice the earlier fruit won’t keep much longer but in Wales our First have young so late in the year. This week as the nest was exposed Minister says, “Don’t do what you can. Do what you should.” the mouse ran off unscathed leaving blind and naked offspring Tuesday 3 November thrashing around in despair. I gently covered them with soil and move on. Their chances of survival are low but that’s farming. Storm Aidan has arrived just as the leaves of the Japanese maple, Acer palmatum septemloben and the American Sweetgum, Sunday 27 September Liquidambar styraciflua are colouring. Red leaves from the maple I started growing with an enthusiasm for are blown into the little stream that flows passed the farmhouse. tomatoes but these days the polytunnel It’s not quite like the Kyoto Imperial Palace in Japan where the is full of seeded modules in spring so river turns blood red when the Acers shed their leaves: it’s just a tomatoes along with cucumbers are little gem in the autumn of this strange and eventful year. relegated to late planting. This year’s David Frost http://www.tyn-yr-helyg.com/ tomato varieties are Black Opal and Tomato: Black opal

Page 8 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Weed control in organic viticulture

A French Operational Group (EIP-AGRI) has been working on mechanical weed control techniques in organic viticulture while controlling fossil fuel consumption and reducing production costs. Surveys, evaluations and monitoring were carried out with organic wine growers in Occitanie followed by field experiments on two different soil ‘itineraries’ (step- by-step procedures).

The first itinerary aimed to maximise yields by limiting the presence of weeds completely both around the vines and between the rows, all year round. The weed control interventions began after the harvest to prevent weeds setting in. Over the three years of the field trial, the winegrower tested a number of different tools in order to achieve this, identifying the most efficient and those to be avoided.

On the second farm, the wine grower wanted to preserve the quality of the soil by limiting tillage as much as possible. This

Photo:EIP-AGRI itinerary aimed to keep the ground covered with a cover crop in There have already been a number of initiatives and programmes the winter and then during the growing season, limit competition in France to encourage farmers to reduce the application of from weeds for water and nitrogen consumption with a mulch chemical plant protection products and the use of fossil energy. cover between the rows (by rolling the winter cover crop with An alternative to herbicides is mechanical weed control, which is a a roller crimper). In autumn, as far as possible, the wine grower common practice in the vineyards of Occitanie. The main objective kept the ground covered and under-sowed new species. Cover of the project was to analyse how much energy tillage tools and crops were used to restrict weed growth. other soil cultivation techniques consume and to identify the Both itineraries enabled the winegrowers to reduce their use of factors which influence this consumption. The second objective of herbicides and fuel, and reduce production costs. The different this project was to study how to articulate the different techniques itineraries developed are available to other winegrowers and over the period of a year in order to optimise fuel consumption and can be adapted to local context or according to the equipment costs for the wine grower. “At the start of the project, we had very available. few references on the consumption of each tool. Our priority was therefore to establish a consumption range for the most commonly Nicolas Constant said: “The results of this whole project indicate used tools, according to their condition of use. We aimed to create that the possible fuel consumption gain for a given soil cultivation step-by-step procedures, called ‘soil itineraries,’ this includes when, strategy is in the order of 20-30% by choosing the right tools, the where, how and how often to apply the soil cultivation techniques”, right settings, the right times of intervention. If wine growers explains Nicolas Constant, the manager of this study. wants to further reduce their consumption, they must think differently, modify their strategy. This is not always possible The project began by carrying out surveys on soil cultivation because changes in strategy often entail investments in equipment practices including mechanical weed control amongst 334 and have an impact on the organisation of work. wine growers in Occitanie (specifically the former Languedoc- Roussillon region) of which 129 were organic. Results indicated “The results are useful for wine growers who already use soil that organic winegrowers use many different soil cultivation cultivation techniques to prevent weeds as they are able to strategies, depending on their production objectives, the local optimise their interventions. It also has helped to promote the climate, their available material and labour resources. However, transition to mechanical weed control for wine growers who the surveys did identify that an important strategy was keeping currently apply herbicides. The technical results from our project the grass in the vineyards during the vegetative rest period and will also provide support to conventional winegrowers to are mechanically clear the grass during the vegetative period. All looking to convert to organic farming, or who wish to greatly the wine growers surveyed said they use mechanical tillage, reduce the use of herbicides.” demonstrating the relevance of this project. Source: EIP-AGRI Working with two organic wine growers, the project partners set https://ec.europa.eu/eip/agriculture/en/news/ up two field experiments in order to monitor fuel consumption and inspirational-ideas-weed-control-organic time spent on weed control operations. Both vineyards were in the Contact: [email protected] same pedo-climate context, but they both applied a different soil itinerary. The partners compared the efficiency of weed control and the energy performance when using these two different itineraries.

Page 9 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 What’s new in the organic seed trade?

We asked suppliers of organic seed in the UK, what they had new in their catalogues for the 2020/2021 season. These were the responses. Agrico Moles Seeds We are excited about a number of new blight resistant varieties that Dill - Hera: A compact variety are coming through the breeding process but many of them are with attractive blue green foliage. still very young and under trial and/or commercial development. Ideal for pot production, baby leaf and bunching. Resistant to bolting. This year we do, however have organic seed available of both 25 grams for 1,000 9cm pots. Dill Hera Alouette and Rudolph. Lettuce - Admir: An excellent green oakleaf lettuce variety with glossy leaves. Forms attractive round shape. Good volume. Strong against tipburn. Suitable for spring, summer and

Photos: Agrico autumn production. Resistant to Lettuce Admir Alouette Rudolph Lettuce Aphid (Nasonovia ribisnigri), LMV and Bremia BL16-35. Rudolph is a maincrop ware variety with an attractive red skin and a very high yield. Large uniform sized oval round tubers with a dark Real Seeds red skin , shallow eyes and white flesh colour. Quite firm cooking with a moderate dry matter content. Suitable for long term storage. The one that I think might be of interest is our Plaza Latina Alouette is a maincrop ware variety with red skin and blight resistance tomatillo – I think it’s head in the foliage and tubers. Oval long tubers with a dark red skin colour and shoulders above any other Photo: Real Seeds , shallow eyes and a deep yellow flesh colour. Firm cooking with tomatillo I’ve grown, both in size Plaza Latina Tomatillo good fresh consumption characteristics. Late blight resistant in both (it’s the beefsteak of the tomatillo world) and in flavour, eating foliage and tubers and resistant to PCN Rostochiensis. quality exceptional. Growth habit is also good in that it is trainable Cotswold Seeds up a string (works nicely on two leaders) rather than sprawling as most do. One for chefs especially maybe? The organic red clover variety Milvus will be available in 2021 Seed Co-operative in limited quantities, stocks Broad beans - Hangdown: often run low after the spring Green seeded, mid season hardy season. This variety is not new, Photo: Cotswold Seeds variety. 4-5 medium sized beans Red clover: Milvus but sufficient seed is not always produced in long hanging pods. available to supply the market. It’s an interesting variety because Very good yields. Beans remain Swiss plant breeders used the Matenklee or mountain type red tender and green when cooked. clover as a parent and have bred a more persistent variety which has been proved to last a full four years in the UK. It suits a 3-4 White cabbage - Express: Very year silage mixture or as a component of a medium term dual versatile, pointed cabbage. Can purpose cut and graze seed mix. be sown late summer to harvest the following spring, or sow Kings Seeds indoors in Feb/Apr to harvest in Oct / Nov. Onion Red Tide Organic F1: A hybrid red onion of excellent quality and Carrot - Dolciva: Juicy, Nantes storage capabilities, ideal for adding type selected for taste with colour to salads. rapid juvenile development and healthy, sturdy foliage. Resistant Available from: www.kingsseeds.com Photos: Seed Co-op

Page 10 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 to Alternaria. Cultivation period: approximately 120 days. Suitable variety Blue Annalise - both of which have significantly better for bunching and for late cultivation for storage. Sowing from end blight resistance than the previous red and blue fleshed varieties. of February for early harvest to the end of May for storage. Both Heidi Red and Blue Annalise are salad type textures with similar size and shape to Charlotte. Carrot - Fine: Early/second early Nantes type, cylindrical and Heidi Red slightly conical with a smooth German Speciality variety with skin. For late sowing also good medium blight resistance. The for keeping. High yielding with Heidi Red (Heiderot) potato healthy and strong leaves. Strong produces long shaped tubers flavour. Prefers sandy soils. with bright red skin and flesh. Parsley - Giant Italian: Plain Heiderot is characterised by a red leafed parsley with large meat colour and a slightly buttery, leaves and strong stalks. Very delicious potato taste. It is ideal for high yielding, quick and tall salads and boiled potatoes. growing. Sensitive to bolting in Blue Annelise unfavourable conditions. Blue Anneliese is the newest Onion - Red baron: A somewhat addition to our Speciality range. flattened onion with a beautiful It produces long shaped, blue red colour and a strong flavour. skin and blue-fleshed tubers. This is a relatively high-yield Slightly creamy flavour with a

onion that also stores well. ‘Red Photos: Skea Potatoes nutty aroma. Baron’ is a versatile variety since it is also suitable for use as a We also took over the production and marketing of the Sarpo bunching onion. range of blight-resistant varieties a few years ago and have stocks of them available (note - not all Sarpo varieties are organic). Pea - Ambassador: A well- known garden pea. Mid-season As we sell organic and conventional produce, we have clear variety with 8cm long pods labels on our products (and of course invoicing) and customers with a blunt ended shape. can search for organic. We have 29 varieties available and firm Particularly resistant to powdery favourites like Cara and Arran Victory are there as well as the mildew and thus suited for later newer varieties. sowings. Height up to 80cm. Our biggest project is the development of our website potatohouse. Tomato - Golden Sunrise: Early co.uk where we try to make it as easy and cost effective as possible maturing and prolific with a to source a full range of organic and speciality seed potatoes from sweet, fruity flavour. Grow as a six tuber packs to mixed pallets of 25kg sacks. We grow most of cordon. Suitable for growing in the varieties including all of the organic varieties ourselves, but the greenhouse or outdoors. being based in the heart of the high health seed production area of Scotland we have added some other varieties from neighbouring Skea potatoes growers to complete our portfolio. We are looking to supply a Our main up and coming variety service to gardeners, allotment groups, market gardeners and is Gatsby - an early maincrop small-scale growers. with good blight resistance. With Tamar Organics the loss of copper sprays it is performing well by giving a crop Spaghetti bean - Canetti: Unusual slim-pods which grow up of large tubers before the blight to 60 cm in length. Vigorous plants need warm sheltered site so destroys the foliage. It is a cross between Saxon and Valor with best grown under-cover. Pale-green, ideal for Asian dishes can be high resistance to dry rot and powdery scab. Gatsby is a general- boiled, steamed or stir-fried. purpose, white-skinned, white-fleshed variety with long oval Dwarf bean - Domino: Productive bean for single mechanical or tubers suitable mainly for boiling and baking. hand picking.

In the speciality category, we have been working on red and blue Red cabbage - Klimaro F1: Productive red cabbage with good fleshed varieties for a few years, and for Organic production we disease resistance. Can be harvested small or allowed to grow have a new red fleshed potato Heidi Red, and a new blue fleshed large. It stores very well too. Harvest late-October and November.

Page 11 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Cauliflower - Amabile: New, fast-growing, open-pollinated, summer cauliflower for harvest from mid-June to mid-July. Strong, white curds with good self-cover, they mature in about 70 days from transplant.

Cauliflower - Tabiro OP: Vigorous, late-autumn variety for harvest October and November. Medium sized but heavy heads of a creamy colour and fine aromatic flavour. Matures in 100-110 days from transplanting. Elsoms offer a superb

Leek - Oslo F1: A professional-quality hybrid leek to replace variety selection of Navajo F1. It has long shafts and dark-green leaves. It has good organically-produced seed. resistance against pests and diseases and gives a clean high-quality yield. It can be harvested from October through to mid-winter. Speak to Stephanie Beavis about Elsoms organics today. Onion - Hylander F1: A top quality Rijnsburger hybrid with m 07904 331572 valuable resistance to downy mildew. Vigorous grower and high e [email protected] yielding giving high quality onions that store well.

Radish - Mooli: Large white roots for Asian cookery

Chilli Pepper - Aciburun: Aciburn is a thick-walled, fleshy, long chilli which ripens from green to red. Very high yields of lovely chillis which are mild when green but get hot (though not too hot) as they mature. Originally from rural Turkey.

Chilli Pepper - Positano: Bird- type chilli which grows in upright bunches on the plant. The bullet-shaped fruits are produced in very large numbers and are hot but not over-hot. Ideal for drying and for grinding for the production of chilli powder.

Spinach - Tundra F1: Tundra F1 is a new spinach which is slow to bolt even in high temperatures. It is ideal for summer cropping in all but the most challenging seasons. Tundra F1 is slow growing so is not suitable for very early sowings as it will grow too slowly in cold soil. Plant from mid-late spring into early summer and again in early autumn. The leaves are oval in shape and have an upright growing habit. Resistance to downy mildew races 1-13, 15 and 16.

Squash - Hungarian Blue: Hungarian Blue has light-grey to turquoise skin and bright orange flesh. A Crown Prince type with fruits that weigh about 6kg and store well. Plants are trailing.

Chard - Bright Yellow Bright Yellow: Has crispy bright green leaves and a striking broad golden-yellow stem making it a ☎ 01775 840592 colourful and tasty addition to ✉ [email protected] the veg garden. Can be used as Gosberton Bank Nursery, Gosberton, Spalding, Lincs, PE11 4PB baby leaves for salad or cooked Biodynamic and Organic Plant Breeding and Seeds Limited, trading as Seed Co-operative Registered under the Co-operative and Community BeneÞt Societies Act 2014 as a when fully grown. Community BeneÞt Society, registration number 7013. Photos: Tamar Organics

Page 12 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Soil obesity – is your soil putting on weight?

This is a new phrase, used to refer to soils that have been excessively overfed with large amounts of organic matter, usually over fairly extended periods of time. The most obvious result of soil obesity is very high N, P and K (in some cases P indices of 8-9) with usually a very high Soil Organic Matter (SOM) content of over ten percent. The effects of soil obesity are usually seen as trace element deficiencies in crops due to lock-up in soil. This condition has been seen in tunnel crops where there has been a long term no-dig and heavy annual surface mulching. I would not say this is a common problem, but it is definitely a problem and I have seen quite a number of farms in the past year with definite signs of soil obesity. Many smaller-scale farms have been established in the past decade using no-dig principles. The practice of no-dig has much to commend it, especially in respect of preserving soil life and SOM. We have had such a system for the past six to seven years in most of our tunnel area and see good results despite only applying 10 mm compost every four to five years. Soil obesity can also exist in soils within tunnel crops which have been subject to cultivation if organic inputs have been very high. The natural rate of leaching and nutrient loss from tunnels is much less than that experienced on outdoors cropping.

When I first started organic vegetable production way back in the Excessive N and P levels can be subject to leaching on outdoor 70’s there was no real advice and almost nobody else doing it. So, it sites, especially during high rainfall periods. Potash tends to be was very much a case of just trying things out. My decision-making less mobile and less of an environmental problem. process was mostly based on the need to destroy weeds, insects, So, what is the correct amount of SOM to maintain our soils assuming diseases and add as much organic material as one could find, as that the SOM is adequate to start with? This will vary a lot depending the one thing we thought we knew was that organic matter is good. on soil type, crop off-take and available nutrients in added materials. So, the more organic matter we plaster on to our soil, the better You need to know your soil and how much nutrient you are adding everything will be. Or so we thought. Looking back, I see just how with bought-in fertility. Analysis of both soil and inputs is essential incredibly naive and stupid we were. The idea that we could get in planning how much you can safely apply. It is surprising how few rid of all weeds, pests and disease was a heavy negative vibe that growers seem to have much of an idea as to how much material is we now know is neither achievable nor desirable. Conventional actually going on to their land. A dressing of compost 50mm thick agriculture still follows the same philosophy, the idea that is the same as 500 cubic metres per ha (202m/acre) or around 250 annihilation is the way forward. With experience, I can now look tonnes/ha. (101 t/ac) This, by most accounts, is a staggeringly at these negatives in a very positive way and can create fantastic large amount of material and would take a very large area of land reliable yields of crops by working with nature’s natural systems. to produce, so very much a case of ghost acres. Organic inputs in At the very heart of this natural system is the health of the soil. these amounts are adding way more N+P than crops could possibly Back in those early days, if we’d had access to lorry loads of cheap take up in one season, so if these amounts are used on an annual green waste compost or any other organic material, no doubt we basis then it is probably inevitable that soil will become obese due to would have joined up to the “more organic material is better” accumulation of nutrients. Mark Measures has covered the aspect of mantra. I suspect the very idea that one can apply too much managing soil nutrients in his article in OG52. Nutrient budgeting, organic matter to your soil is something that most growers would although not a precise tool, will give a fair indication of nutrients both find hard to accept. But is more organic material really better in and out of your system and this is a practice that growers can do for our soils? One of the main principles of organic production themselves. Gaugeing the correct amount of organic matter can put is that we at least maintain our soils’ organic matter levels. This your soil into good health and save valuable resources. is the absolute minimum. Depending on soil type and levels of A very comprehensive study* in Minnesota USA on urban SOM it is also sometimes necessary to improve these levels. This is gardens showed that these are characterised by high nutrient especially true of most conventionally managed arable soils where inputs. Inefficient conversion of these nutrients into crops lead to on most farms SOM has declined over the past century, in some build up and potential loss of P and N from garden soils. Although cases dramatically so. On these farms increasing SOM is definitely urban gardens make up only 0.1% of land area in the Twin Cities, needed. But what about soils that are inherently high in SOM compost application to these urban gardens still constitutes one of levels? In this situation it is only necessary to add enough SOM the largest inputs of P to the watershed. This is a very interesting to maintain the soil at a comfortable level, comfortable being what report and well worth a read. the soil can absorb and process without choking. An excessive amount of material has the potential to suppress the biological Iain Tolhurst activity in the soil. The fungal and micro activity starts to slow * Excess phosphorus from compost applications in urban gardens creates potential pollution hotspots. Gaston Small et al 2019 Environ. Res. Commun. 1 091007 down and this can affect the soil’s ability to release some nutrients.

Page 13 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Smart pathways to market

For several years it has been apparent that the all-pervasive smartphone and all its associated ‘apps’ should be able to offer some way for smaller growers and producers to link up with customers. The gains for growers could be considerable, such as only harvesting produce that is going to be sold or reaching out to new customers and keeping the retail price. But the know-how has been mainly in the hands of the corporate titans of Silicon Valley. The good news is that several innovations are rising to take advantage of the opportunities. As some of these new pathways to the market intersect with policy initiatives, there may be substantial opportunities in the near future.

REKO rings apparent that the situation is most suited to peri-urban, or urban areas as travel distances are shorter, with a more significant Our story starts with a Finnish man on holiday. In 2012 Thomas potential customer base. Snellman, an organic producer and activist, whilst on holiday REKO rings remain alive and vibrant using the structures of noticed how some French producers had long-lasting contracts Facebook, but some people have raised questions about this with customers, often meeting with their peers and customers at relationship. In some of the closed groups, members have noticed the same place at the same time for about an hour to deliver the targeted advertising which has raised questions for them about produce. In this way, producers have already sold the product, the group’s confidentiality. Other people, especially after the and by taking it to the same place at the same time as others, it revelations about Cambridge Analytica, have come to question makes it very easy for the customer. It is like a very quick farmer’s Facebook’s role in society. REKO rings demonstrated the potential market where all the produce is already pre-purchased. of existing technologies before the pandemic accelerated the Snellman translated this concept into the context of Finland uptake of online sales. by naming it “REKO (Fair Consumption in Finnish) rings” and bringing growers and producers together with customers in Dynamic purchasing platforms closed Facebook groups. Within these groups, growers could list There are other developments in this area, that take the same what they had available for sale, and customers could order what insights but apply them in different ways. In abstract terms, a they wanted paying through a payment service only available in REKO ring is a variety of a dynamic purchasing platform. The ideal Scandinavia at that time. Then the delivery would take place at a platform matches sellers with purchasers, allowing for changes in later date at an agreed place where all the customers would collect the supply, either operating at fixed prices or through auctions. their orders. Ensuring that customers could collect from more Vendors can enter onto the platform as much or little product as than one grower or producer at the same time, in the same place, they want, with the software offering purchasers the chance to multiplied the attraction of the REKO rings. aggregate from different suppliers. This capability allows small From its inception in 2013, the REKO rings spread quickly producers to list products alongside larger businesses, with the through Finland initially, but then more widely throughout products being listed and sorted by many criteria, not just prices Scandinavia. By 2018 about 180 REKO rings were operating in but production system or provenance. Finland, about 20 of which are in the Helsinki area. As with so Currently, the UK government is interested in the potential of many innovations, the strengths of the REKO rings are also its these systems to allow smaller businesses entering contracts to weaknesses. By making use of existing technology, Facebook, supply the local and national state. Much of public procurement and often the willingness of volunteers to organise the groups, is dominated by larger firms, as the problems of volume and they spread very quickly. As no significant investment is paperwork make it hard for smaller enterprises to compete. needed, the rings solve some of the problems of linking growers Dynamic platforms would allow, for example, school food with customers, as well as payment transactions. But at times the contracts to be supplied via smaller, local businesses. It would volunteers struggled with the workload as the groups expanded enable local councils to select local companies with the backstop quickly plus the ever-present problems of tricky customers, not of national suppliers. Suppliers could put as much or as little all of which are solved by being online. product into the system as they wanted, with a minimal amount REKO rings have spread quickly throughout Scandinavia with of paperwork to supply into the platform. interest in the model in Germany, Belgium and France. Entirely The Soil Association working with Defra, Sustain, the Pasture Fed whether the REKO rings have produced the model of fair Livestock Association, the NFU and several organic businesses have consumption has not yet been established by research. There is been working through the ‘Dynamic Food Procurement National certainly a lot of anecdotal evidence of growers establishing new Advisory Board’ to advance these possibilities. The board’s goal is businesses, finding it a powerful way of quickly and efficiently to divert a third of public sector food and drink spending to come connecting to consumers, without a retail partner. It has become from sustainable SME producers by 2023. Software to enable these

Page 14 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 platforms has already been tested in practice and support for the with the main point of access increasingly being the smartphone, legal and policy aspects is coming from central government. The at least part of the answer is already in our hands. South West Food Hub, a community interest company, is facilitating Dr. Matt Reed the pilot, looking to recruit growers and farmers to explore the Reader in Food Citizenship, Countryside and Community Research Institute, opportunities the new platform offers for accessing public sector University of Gloucester procurement in the south-west. REKO rings: https://rural-urban.eu/publications/good-practice- The opportunities for online sales as represented by the REKO reko-retail-and-distribution-model ring model is one way in which the internet is changing how all Dynamic food procurement. https://www.dynamicfood.org/ businesses operate but solves some of the particular problems of sustainable growers and producers. As with all routes to market, https://tinyurl.com/tabledebates-Reed there is no single solution, but a new set of opportunities are www.thesouthwestfoodhub.co.uk appearing. The possibility of supplying the public sector could see new linkages between local communities, and local SMEs, quite different from providing food to individuals and households. But

No. 3 Crop Focus: Data Cherry tomatoes corner In this issue, we’re sharing some more of the data we gathered in 2019 as part of the OMG (Organic Market Gardening) Data Project - and this time the focus is on cherry tomatoes (polytunnel or glasshouse production). The table below highlights some of the averaged data:

Cherry tomatoes These are the group averages. There’s always more interesting detail to be found within Cost of seed (per 1000 seeds) £134.42 the dataset.For example, we found that there Cost of bought-in modules (per 1000) £1,004.35 were two quite distinct timings on stringing Potting on (plants/hr) 108 up: one group of growers who averaged 0.25 Planting out (plants/min) 1.1 mins/plant (c.15 seconds/plant) and a second Spacing (plants/m²)* 2.4 group whose timings clustered around 0.62 Stringing up (mins/plant) 0.44 mins/plant (c.37 seconds/plant). We felt that Training (mins/plant per week) 0.32 this would benefit from more investigation - perhaps some video explanations from faster Harvesting (kg/hr) 20.2 growers, showing their methods. Yield (kg/m²)* 6.4 As mentioned before, this data comes from Yield (kg/plant) 2.7 a group of 10 growers who took part in Average wholesale price (£/kg) £3.76 the pilot project in 2019 - a small sample Average retail price (£/kg) £5.67 from only one season - and, as such, these Average wastage 0% averages should not be treated as firm *m² areas include pathways or wheelings benchmarks. In sharing the data we’re mainly hoping to demonstrate how useful proper benchmarks could be for organic growers. With more funding and more growers getting involved we could collectively generate meaningful data for a much wider range of crops. With the kind of data shown above, we think this would help growers focus on under-performing crops, learn best practice from top performing growing sites, as well as improve staff training and crop planning. Rob Alderson & Beth Stewart

Photos: Liv James OMG Data! Project – [email protected]

Page 15 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 FarmHack: Seedbed Roller/ Dibbler FarmHack is a community of farmers and growers developing appropriate tools for small-scale ecological farming. I hope others are inspired by this write-up to share designs, come to a FarmHack (when gatherings are allowed again) or possibly even follow this roller design and make it yourself.

I’m a new entrant to market gardening, and have good seed to soil contact. The additional function done two seasons at Meanwood Valley Urban of the mesh roller is the ability to mark out or Farm in Leeds. My route into growing has been even dibble holes into a prepared bed ready for through horticultural support work, working transplants, eliminating the substantial task of with adults with learning disabilities. The project digging transplant holes. The dibbers are clipped is under-staffed and under-resourced and my into the 1” (25mm) mesh at known spacing to friend and colleague Ben and I job-share the mark transplant holes at your desired spacing. support work as well as being under-qualified The circumference of the roller is very growers responsible for two acres of market important and is set to be divisible by the most garden. We have not done apprenticeships and common spacings of 4”(10cm), 6” (15cm), 12” only a few seasons of community garden work, (30cm) using the 1” mesh. Elliot Coleman commercial nursery work and a handful of days suggests a 11.5” (29.2cm) diameter roller that volunteering on farms as well as Kindling’s gives approximately 36” (914cm)circumference. short course in commercial organic horticulture. The Jonny’s model has six wheels inside three Consequently I am learning one page ahead of independent segments of the roller, enabling the season and reading fast! The New Organic Grower by Elliot turning without digging ruts in the end of your bed (very fancy)! Coleman has been a constant companion over the last two years. Bike wheels seemed like the obvious starting point and I We love the appropriate technology that he promotes and aspire found a website with useful wheel size charts – https://www. to be human-powered. We have imported a few of the hand tools sheldonbrown.com/rim-sizing.html – the important info is the from the United States such as the tilther and four-row seeder, but bead seat circumference. I was initially focused on copying the this turns out to be super expensive once you add on 20% VAT on- Jonny model and so I made my first prototype using wheels as top of the pricey tool, not to mention the carbon cost of importing close to 36” (91.4cm) circumference as possible. I used a child’s lumps of metal! wheel with outer circumference of 37.7” (95.8cm).and I spent a I like problem-solving and have come from a long line of long time and many grinding disks cutting the rims off to reduce mechanics and metalworkers. The necessity of mechanical skills the circumference. I cut it as far as structurally possible and it was is one of the things that attracts me to a farming career: I love still a couple of inches too large. It turns out that bike rims are having a go at inventing things so I was particularly inspired by actually a strip/tape of metal connected to make a circle and when Elliot Colemans’s DIY ethos to adapting tools to improve their I cut so much off the rims, the two ends disconnected, making the functionality and making even making his own equipment. The wheel completely useless. In the end I trimmed a bit off the end of mesh seedbed roller/dibbler manufactured by Johnny’s Select this strip of rim metal and bolted it back together to make a circle Seeds in the USA (Jonny’s Seedbed Roller) looked like a great again. This gave me close to the right circumference, but still a multifunctional tool, but seemed a ridiculous thing to airfreight: little large. This resulted in a slightly larger spacing between one around £350 to import once you include freight and import tax. transplant hole per rotation: I calculated this would lose a meter or That is without any dibbles to mark out with. If you wanted to so of transplants per bed, so not great but worth a go. dibble four rows of 4” (10cm) spaced holes using the larger dibbles, I discovered re-usable stainless steel cable ties (yes these exist! There requiring 36 dibbles, it would cost roughly another £300. I guessed is a great tool to tighten them extra tight and cut any excess off in there must a simple DIY way to make an equivalent device. one motion) to strap galvanised 1” (25mm) mesh to two wheels. A The Roller connecting rod between the two wheel axels was made from a solid The function of the seedbed roller is to firm the seedbed after rod with drilled holes at each end with a thread tapped into this for cultivation, levelling the surface in preparation for direct seeding a solid bike axle [(3/8 inch x 26 tpi (9.52mm x 0.977 Pitch mm)]. My or transplanting. The use of a mesh roller to firm the cultivated uncle did this for me (he is a blacksmith) and I guess most people soil is advantageous over a solid drum which can create a hardpan would need to find a metal/machine worker to do this. For my on the surface: the mesh breaks the surface into a finer crumb for prototype I only had two bike wheels of the right size and enough mesh to make a 15” (38.1mm) width roll so this is what I did.

Page 16 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Roller Mark II This version was much quicker to construct. These new wheels are more or less the perfect size and the angle-iron and handle mechanism could be re-purposed from the first roller. The seam where the two ends of the mesh meet is cable tied with the stainless ties. I made the error of cutting the mesh exactly to the circumference of the wheel rather than overlapping the two edges of the mesh by a square or two. If it was overlapped I think the roller would have less of a ridge where the seam is and it would roll a little smoother. Nevertheless it still rolls smooth enough and the ridge is barely noticeable.

The larger roller performs much better. It is about waist height so Photos: Luke Tilley you can use body weight to firm the soil or use a concrete block The frame and handle are bolted to the outer thread of the bike if this is awkward. Working a whole bed-width produces a more wheel axles using a usual bike nut. The handle was cobbled together even finish and it is easier to control. One person can do this on with things I had to hand (a keyboard stand) but it is effectively their own from the path holding the cross bar. stainless steel tubes straddling the angle-iron (angle-iron is a The dibbler solution manifested as heavy duty metal spring clamps common material used to support upright metal a shelving units). used for market stalls/tarpaulins. I was able to buy several bulk The strength is achieved by running a long threaded rod inside a boxes of these second-hand from Gumtree and eBay averaging £0.70 strong metal tube and bolting ether end with a large washer against each: these are ether exactly 1” (25.4mm) wide or a little wider. We the angle-iron. It worked ok, made a smooth firm finish on half the squeezed them slightly narrower in a vice so that they would easily bed, but it was unstable with the concrete block on-top and narrow slot into the mesh. We also cut the handles down in length so that in width, so it fell over easily and was hard to control. Attaching the they can fit at a close spacing without contacting each other inside weights to the outside of the frame at the height of the axel made a the drum. The spring clamp is very strong and sits in the mesh big difference to the stability, however I was disappointed to only with the mouth of the clamp slightly open. This seems to create a have 15” (38.1mm) width for our 30” (76.2cm) beds. nibbling effect on the soil and less compaction than the solid metal Keen to try dibbling I decided to start by importing the dibbles from Jonny’s. Fitting these clamps and extracting them is a manufactured dibblers from Jonny’s in the United States as I slight challenge: we found that the best way was to hold the mouth couldn’t see how to make my own. Also with a half size roller it of the clip open using a large spanner while inserting or extracting was going to be half the price… Still the bill was painful, working them (keeping the hand well away from the spring action!). out around £7.30 a piece! They also did not function that well: The roller/dibbler combo works well: it took two passes to I found it much harder to push the roller smoothly and it would make deep, well-formed holes big enough for our transplants, often skid forwards, distorting the spacing. They also seemed to but retracing our progress along the bed worked fine. The end fall out easily and got left in the soil often: this is because they are result was a perfectly spaced grid of transplants. There are some only held by two small tabs, and also due to the natural spring improvements/developments that I would like to make to the in the metal. Overall, it was a bit disappointing. The concept still design: a more ergonomic handle that sticks out over the path seemed good and I was excited by the potential. I was sure there (possibly extendable for when working a double bed); and an was a way to make a spring loaded dibbler, I just needed to find axle between the two wheels that uses an M10 threaded bar with an analogous component readily available. I contemplated this for a connector to the bike axle nut, to eliminate the need for a metal a while looking around for inspiration. worker to drill and tap the thread into the centre axle. Meanwhile my dad suggested that a larger circumference roller would direct more vertical force onto the dibber and into the soil I would be interested in hear from anyone interested in following which should reduce the skidding and require less weight for the this design idea. Please feel free to get in touch via [email protected]. same compression. I studied the wheel sizing charts again and uk. For more information on FarmHack visit farmhack.org discovered that a 650B road wheel is double the circumference of the Luke Tilley Jonny’s seedbed roller 72.2” (183.4cm). Unfortunately 650B wheels Farm Hack is a community of collaborators which aims to share knowledge and are an unusual wheel size used on smaller adult racing bikes, skills for a more just and sustainable food system. For information about future so finding second-hand wheels seemed impossible. Fortunately Hacks check out our webspace: http://forum.goatech.org/c/farmhack/21 Decathlon sell a fairly budget 650B road wheel, and a pair of front wheels cost me £75 all in (https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/650- road-bike-front-wheel-black/_/R-p-X8360178). I replaced the quick release axles for solid axles (for strength) from the local bike shop.

Page 17 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Summertime polytunnel relay cropping at Canalside When I started at Canalside five seasons ago, the tunnel rotation saw three of our seven tunnels totally empty for 2-3 months over the summer. This was with good reason – as a CSA, we grow for our members, and during peak summer months we have little incentive to grow additional produce if other crops are peaking and we have enough veg to provide a good veg basket for our members. However, as our membership has grown over the past few years, and added to the fact that the share can get a bit Solanum-and-bean-heavy over summer and can feel like it actually lacks variety at that time, I have been experimenting with a variety of other crops to fit in the tunnels during this time.

Passing the baton The gap we’re talking about is when early summer hungry gap crops are done with: that’s new potatoes and early carrots and also early beetroot and nursery leeks. The earliest of these are out by the start of June, with more and more beds becoming free until middle of July. Then we need the tunnel space again for winter crops that start going in from the beginning of September – we do a share for our members all year round and we don’t buy in, so getting these crops well established is crucial for our model. Filling tunnels in summer is not as easy as it sounds, as you can rule out anything that bolts in mid summer (most brassicas) or anything that requires a longer time (melons nearly worked for us in this scenario, but not quite). Everything is planted from modules (pots in the cases of peppers and squash) following the principle that the day one crop goes Clearing Huauzontle from Tunnel beds, September 2020 out, the next one goes in. New Zealand Spinach Peppers There is just enough time after the earliest potatoes come out This is the most successful summer to get a bed of sweet peppers in, which will give us a small but tunnel crop we grow and extremely acceptable yield before pak choi goes in at the end of October. We popular with members. It follows sow in mid Feb and pot on with liquid feed to keep them happy tunnel potatoes in June, planted out until the spuds are out. from modules. Once it is established we cut approximately 35kg every Huauzontle fortnight to give 170 x 200g bags. Give it a few years and It rapidly spreads to smother the ‘Huauzontle’ will roll off whole bed, so hardly any weeding the tongue as easily as is required. It won’t tolerate frost Tetragonia tetragonoides. so it’s out by the end of September We have found this to be followed by direct-drilled novel vegetable (to the overwintering rocket. Module sow Chenopods as broccoli four to five weeks before planting. is to the brassicas) to Basil be perfect in filling Photos: Dom van Marsh Members can’t get enough of it the summer tunnel gap – of course as a CSA we have an eager to accompany their tomatoes. market for every sprout of this strange delight that we can pick, Following early beetroot, we plant which might be more challenging for other growers, depending on a bed at the start of June, which your outlets. Another rapid growing and weed-smothering crop, we crop regularly until the earliest the one problem is making sure you don’t hoe it out under the overwintering spinach goes in misapprehension that it’s fat hen. Alternatively, just pick fat hen during September. We use multi- and call it Huauzontle, no-one will notice anyway! Module sow, sown modules ready for planting five weeks after sowing. one seed per cell, four weeks before planting.

Page 18 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Amaranth Not yet a success for us, but I will keep trying. This year we planted ‘Kerala red’ after early potatoes but the aphids leapt straight off the potato trash onto the amaranth plants and decimated them. I still feel it has potential as a short-lived tunnel relay crop. Again, finding enough people who want to eat it may not be straightforward. The seed is microscopic so we sowed in a tray and pricked out, but next time I will use multi-sown modules – it grows extremely quickly, it is only three weeks from sowing to planting in late May. Celery and Fennel These are the perfect summer relay crops, following early carrots. They aren’t so bothered by high temperatures – even celery grows fairly quickly indoors in mid summer given plenty of water. Provided the fennel doesn’t bolt while your attention is elsewhere, both are a superb addition to a late summer veg share, again leaving the way clear for overwintering crops. We sow in modules five weeks before planting for fennel, and sow celery in a tray (for pricking out) about six weeks before planting. Butternut squash In the past we have found that butternut squash planted in the tunnel in early July will just about give ripe fruit by October and still be out in time for an overwinter crop. I have however stopped growing it in this way as I sometimes find quite a high proportion of the fruits aren’t fully ripe, and also I am really annoyed by the supermarket fetishisation of butternuts over other squash that are much more Organic Apple Trees easily grown in the UK. We did a blind taste test and all participants in the trial rated green kuri as equal to or superior than butternut. Over 500 varieties Sow mid-May for transplanting mid-June. Direct-drilled short-lived leaves Sometimes we direct drill coriander or dill for a quick cut in the summer – not bad to fill a rapid 6-week gap but of course they bolt very quickly. I know many people will grow brassicas and other salad leaves in this way – we don’t because mixed salad isn’t a big part of our model in the summer. Dom van Marsh

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Page 19 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 OGA review of the season 2020 1. John McCormick, Helens Bay Organic, Belfast Lough, NI How was it for you? Spring started with glorious sunshine up to the end of May and no rain. Our min-till area ( 16 x 100 m beds overwintered under silage plastic) was a Godsend as it retained the moisture that is slow to evaporate from our clay soils so early transplants did exceptionally well and cropped early. May plantings needed watering in, a novelty over here. June brought the correct amount of rain so all was good. Monsoon season arrived in early July and other than a few breaks is still with us (pretty normal here) but the combination of warmth and water made for one of our best growing seasons ever for everything. The only downside to damp soils is having to make friends with more weeds than we would prefer. Lettuce and chard were the star performers. Tomatoes were slow to start but kept giving into November. Late beetroot and swede were our poor performers this year. The other downside was Covid which needs no explanation. However, our box scheme grew from 250 to over 400 in a blink of the eye and is still growing albeit at a more organic pace. It happened just in time to increase our production. Despite too much late summer rain, social distancing and managing customer safety at the farm shop we all got through the season unscathed and in good form. Low point: Having to do so much hoe and hand weeding while our tool carrier sat idle due to damp soils. Top tip: Make beds up for July succession planting well in advance so at least we can flame weed and plant if the soil is damp. Christmas wish list: A 40 inch drop spreader which can be towed with either our tool carrier ( a David Brown 2d ) or our BCS so we can sow green manures in beds immediately when they finish cropping...New Year’s Resolution: Up our game with green manures.

2. Adam York, Glebelands, Cardigan How was it for you? Mixed season (aren’t they all), starting with a nasty drought.Our low tec irrigation kit just kept up, although the Celeriac didn’t like it of course.The storms of August reflect climate change volatility in this case really opening up the yield differences between Squash varieties. Crown Prince+Muscadets did remarkably well while Buttercups+Uchiki Kuris basically failed.Celebration+Summer Lightning-so so. Highlight: Feeling vindicated over our Pandemic response.– we never closed. Seeing our Purple Sprouting 12 programme work week in-week out for a change. A decent Aubergine crop. Low point: Repeated grief from local libertarians (we’re farmshop operators as well as growers). Top tip: Decent on-site composting and good local green waste. 11 Christmas wish list: Gift from God-some south facing land.... New Year’s Resolution: Get another toolbar rigged up for earthing up of brassicas (so little off the shelf kit in UK).

3 .Kate McEvoy Real Seeds, Pembrokeshire 1 How was it for you? Seed demand continued exceptional throughout the year. We never got 13 our summer lull with customers buying autumn sowing salads etc, and it’s only picked up further coming into the autumn with sales for next season starting while we’re still working to finish processing this summer’s seed harvest. The weather managed to be wrong in almost every conceivable way at some point. From hot days/cold nights & bone dry early on, wild winds, wet weather & no sun in June, a bit of summer briefly in July then back to wet again. Despite all this 9 10 most things have come through OK, winter squash seed harvest down (those June winds) but 8 bumper yield on courgette seed (all that water!). 4 Top tip: If you usually order seed from the EU for your farm use get your orders in well before 2 3 Christmas. From January 1st all seed coming into the UK will need a phytosanitary certificate which is likely to make small individual grower orders uneconomic. 7 Christmas wish list: Like a lot of people I imagine - a Covid vaccine!

6 4. Nathan Richards, Troed Y Rhiw Farm, Ceredigion 5 9 How was it for you? It’s been – and is – a wild ride. We went from being marginal eco-hippy farmers to ‘key workers’ overnight. Our box scheme hit 187 boxes within two weeks of the lockdown and amazingly, with gargantuan effort, we were able to 5. Ed Sweetman, Goonown Growers, St Agnes, Cornwall 8 do it. We’ve only seen a small drop off in numbers as lockdown eased with people How was it for you? A total rollercoaster! The dry start with no irrigation reacquainting themselves with the delights of good, nutritious fresh local produce and was interesting, although it was helped by having such a small site and lots the enjoyment of cooking. Our box scheme numbers remain constant, a little under of volunteer help. Apart from that the weather did us proud. Starting a new three times the size it started the year at. ‘Climate change’ farming continues to be our business just as lockdown kicked in was very weird – absolutely everything great challenge. The dry spring was difficult but not impossible, and having years of was new and unknown. However, I think overall it turned out to be a pretty green manure, organic matter and farm-made compost in our soils, the difficulty has good time to start as there appears to be a bit of a renaissance of buying local been in crop establishment, both drilled crops and transplants. Moving irrigation, is a and supporting food producers. Equally people are more used to getting whole new world of pain and is an area we are going to have to improve. home deliveries and miraculously, environmental awareness still seems to be Continuous rain in summer is seemingly the new normal and presents real challenges increasing despite the pandemic. on our land, particularly getting late crops out and over-winter green manures in. Highlight: Some magnificent early crops, especially my first attempts at After years of wet summers and warm winters, I ‘ve realised I need to take a systems growing Japanese Salad Turnips, which have been a revelation. Customer approach to field-scale production, and so have started lifting the whole field-scale feedback has been out of this world and has genuinely warmed my heart. operation (approximately 15 acres) up onto a bed system with mechanised production, Also, getting to December and realising we had exceeded all our projections. incorporating ramial woodchip in the wheelings between beds. Low point: Discovering that the reason our lettuces were all dying was due to Highlight: Our experiments with stone fruit production in high tunnels. The peaches a serious wireworm problem. Then reading up on wireworm and finding out I out-performed even my wildest expectations in both crop yield and flavour. We was in for a whole world of pain. That and getting refused planning permission continue to plant more stone fruit adding more peaches and nectarines. Viva soil based, three times for polytunnels! integrated vertical farming! We are also trialling silvoarable; growing a milling wheat (Wakelyns YQ) in wide alleyways in our soft and top fruit orchard. Top tip: Believe in yourself and the power of your community and don’t let the b#st@rds get you down! If at all possible, when starting on a new site Low point: The slow erosion on worldwide organic standards, particularly in the US, straight after pasture give yourself at least a year to reduce any potential and the influence that has had across the pond, the slide towards a US trade deal with wireworm issues. Otherwise, in the first year, just don’t bother growing consequential poorer food standards, all bring me down. lettuce, potato, carrot, beetroot, dwarf beans, sweetcorn, squash etc. etc. Christmas wish list: .. let there be enough Brussel sprouts on the farm. Christmas wish list: A successful planning appeal. And world peace. New Year’s Resolution: Start every day by asking the same question:where’s the New Year’s Resolution: To make time for my family and get down to the ecology? beach as much as possible.

Page 20 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 11. Antonia Ineson, Myreside Organics, Perthshire 12. Wendy Seel, Vital Veg, Aberdeen How was it for you? I find it hard to review this year - the effects of covid seem to How was it for you? Busy! have changed time and made memory even more unreliable than usual. Basically, Highlight: we have had an excellent growing season with great crops, it has been a hard year for everyone, in or out of organics, but we all know that, so and we have had more than the usual amount of lovely thank you to be more specific. messages from our customers. But actually the highlight for me was Highlight: Customers ordering and collecting from the farm gate, in place of farmers the reed warbler pair who chose to nest in our young hedge beside our markets - and saying they appreciate the produce. Trump losing. pack house, and who greeted us with ferocious calls each day! Our Low point: Brexit and covid, obviously - but what also got to me was a report in the spring hedges are planted to nurse our vegetable crops and provide homes for on the collapse of insect populations. This spurred me into action, so I have taken on a bit ‘beneficials’ – but they bring a lot of joy too. more land and am planting it up with native and fruit trees, digging a pond, and learning Low point: We modified our compost heaps to prevent the sides rotting. about how to encourage it to rewild. The roe deer think I have done this for them, so the We can’t use preservatives on wood other than borax, which provides little next task is deer fencing. protection in an active heap, so we thought that recycled plastic stock boards Top tip: Don’t try growing watermelons in Scotland. They grew very well, and I got might do the trick. We keep the heaps covered, but we got the aeration about five fruit which looked like watermelons (if small) but they needed a lot more wrong and have ended up with a soggy pile! Live and learn. sun and heat to taste sweet! This is the latest of an annual series of trying one new Top tip: Think twice, do once (especially with compost heap plant - all to date have been once only. Stick with the old favourites, which round modifications!). here is what the customers want anyway. Christmas wish list: New wellies Christmas wish list: Apart from the end of covid and some sort of deal with the EU, New Year’s Resolution: Too early to say! trees for the new Myreside Forest and help to get them planted. New Year’s Resolution: Remember to enjoy the growing and selling, and to appreciate the flora and fauna I work with.

9. Simon Harlock, Community Harvest, Whetstone, Leics 10. Joel Rodker, Norwich FarmShare How was it for you? Another topsy turvey year. Winter gave way to Summer in April and May How was it for you? What an unforgettable year! We’ve with virtually no rain, and barely a nod to Spring in between. Then followed a more overcast and not stopped! We completely changed our veg distribution rainy season for June and July. Nice late Summer conditions followed for August and September to delivery only, developed a whole new packing system, letting plants catch up. Our cabbage ‘programme’ for Summer and Autumn cropping ended managed a much bigger number of volunteers and created pretty much before Autumn even began. They just kept maturing quicker than expected. Not sure an online sign up sheet managing key volunteers to do what the crop sharers thought with seemingly endless cabbage throughout the Summer. Leeks jobs when the growers aren’t at the farm. Also doing more have grown well this year and are looking good going into the Winter. Was pleased to actually media work and coping with increased membership. I’m get the potato crop out of the ground - last year over half just rotted off in the field with the early really pleased with how we dealt with the changes and our onset of near continual rain and so were not able to get them out. community has been very supportive. It’s proved that we can adapt quickly and that our model can be flexible. Highlight: Seeing improvements to soil structure (clay loam) from experimental minimal tillage. And more specifically growing an heirloom Winter celery underplanted (not trenched) beneath Highlight: Really good harvests of calabrese and fennel, so cucumbers in our polytunnel - started harvesting like chard taking only outer stems, when many new volunteers who have been really helpful and given cucumbers finished and already taken our third harvest. Celery ‘marketed’ as cooking celery. us loads of positive feedback about their experience and what we’ve achieved. Seeing the membership grow. Increased Low point: Difficulty getting to work and irrigating sufficiently during the dry Spring with the need for amounts of garlic, squash and kale to help us through the homeschooling due to lockdown. winter. Raspberries growing on the farm - a great snack! Top tip: On our scale (1 acre field veg and triple span polytunnel) using heavily weighed down Low point: Not being able to have an open day, discarding so double layer mypex (the under layer with planting holes burnt in) for 5-6 weeks, to kill off over- much chard in early autumn due to caterpillar/slug damage, Winter green manure (mix of vetch and phacelia) after flushing in early Spring. Take off upper negative comments from members about veg quality – we still layer of mypex in late Spring/early Summer ready for planting sweetcorn and Winter squash have a lot of educational work to do in explaining to people direct through the plastic. Perfect min/no-till growing with virtually zero weeding. how we grow and operate and what our vision is. Knowing Christmas wish list: The perfect cheap everlasting sheet mulch that doesn’t leave a legacy of we could grow more food if we had the money, time and micro plastic?? infrastructure to facilitate that (maybe that’s a positive). New Year’s Resolution: Not to stress too much about the weather/climate and be more accepting Top tip: Just because you’ve done something a certain way that some crop failures are likely every year. for many years doesnt mean you have to carry on doing it 9 like that, be open minded, don’t wait for a crisis to try new ideas, they might lead to big improvements. 8 Dom van Marsh, Canalside CSA, Warks Christmas wish list: Shipping container to convert to a walk- How was it for you? I’ve got to be honest and say really good. My final season here at Canalside in cooler and another one to use for tools so we can use our was brilliant from the PoV of both growing and participation. The pandemic highlighted the cabin as a warm and dry place to do computer work.New enormous role the CSA (and the food we produce) plays in the lives of our members wash and pack area with sheltered space for volunteers. A Highlight: The Hungry Gap ceasing to exist. Also record yields of potatoes, squash and celeriac, compost toilet (our landlord doesn’t want one). A caterpillar plus outstanding carrots, celery, fennel and many others. tunnel. More co-linear hoes from Johnny’s. Low point: Onion disaster, entirely down to human error (mine). New Year’s Resolution: Hoe more often and earlier. Keep Top tip: Embrace the furlough army reminding myself we can’t do everything and changing the food system is a massive task - don’t get burnt out. Christmas wish list: A grower to replace me!! New Year’s Resolution: A smooth and successful transition to our new market garden in the Wye Valley. 7. Jack’s Veg, Kent How was it for you? Generally a good year, we beat our sales target (Covid helped) There has been a better retention rate with veg boxes and wholesale which has kept us continually 6. Amelia Lake, Real Food Garden, Cornwall busy. The weather has been pleasant and allowed us to How was it for you? Another season of extremes here. May was challenging, including complete a lot of infrastructure jobs as well as good growth propagating in the heat and coping with the constant ill-informed demands for veg from Covid on plants. scared folks. Three weeks of rain in June put a stop to the onions which were a very poor harvest. Highlight: Going 100% no dig The high winds seemed to be the final straw for the squash which limped through to a small harvest too. But the tomatoes, French Beans, brassicas and late carrots had a whale of a time! We Low point: Remembering the struggles of life before no dig, and noticed that our no-dig beds had been hammered with the rain all winter and because of the lack finding moles in a new no dig area! of tillage lacked air for the first time. But we also were still rewarded with better water retention Top tip: Go no dig, and integrate trees and livestock into in May and less water logging in June compared to our neighbours. All in all a really busy year your system! with good resultant turnover but so many hours work to get the produce and to deal with the Christmas wish list: Paper pot transplanter! new demand due to Covid. New Year’s Resolution: Become more of a public face and Christmas wish list: We’d love a chipper to make our own ramial woodchip compost! open the farm up to the public.

Page 21 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 From Haughley to Elm Farm

November 6th 2020 marked the 40th anniversary of the founding of the Organic Research Centre (ORC: originally the Elm Farm Research Centre [EFRC]), which will be celebrated over the next twelve months. Next year will see the Soil Association celebrate its 75th. There is a sense, though, in which these pillars of the organic movement have both existed for more than 80 years. The Soil Association’s origins can be traced back to the establishment of the Haughley Experiment on Eve Balfour’s Suffolk farm in 1938, and there is a connecting thread which also links the ORC to Haughley. The Living Soil Allaby, a member of the editorial staff at that time, told me that Pye pressed money on the Association faster than it could be spent. It Lady Eve, impressed by the arguments of Viscount Lymington’s appears that Pye had been an early member of the Soil Association, book Famine in England, published that year, instituted an heard from naturopath friends that it was in difficulties and decided experiment to investigate the ecological interplay between the to visit Haughley. Evidently he liked what he saw there. health of the soil, of plants, of animals and of human beings. The Experiment continued despite pressure from within the Considering nutrition as a cycle, it aimed to study this cycle as Association’s Council to concentrate on applied research for a whole through successive generations, on a farm scale, under the benefit of the Association’s farmer members, and to act as a three different land-use systems. These were ‘Stockless’, carrying demonstration farm. In the end, those voices prevailed and the no animals and fertilised by crop residues and chemicals; ‘Mixed’, Experiment, as originally conceived, was abandoned. A further receiving crop residues and animal manure plus chemicals; financial crisis in 1970 revealed the Association to be facing and ‘Organic’, receiving only crop residues and manure. A full bankruptcy, and the Pye Charitable Trust saved it from this fate account of the Haughley Experiment can be found in Lawrence by taking over the farms, now re-named the Pye Research Centre Woodward’s Introduction to the Soil Asssociation edition of (PRC), in October 1971. Balfour’s The Living Soil, published in 2006. Although the PRC was a separate undertaking from the Eve Balfour’s commitment to the Haughley Experiment led to Association, it maintained close links. Its stated research aims publication of The Living Soil in 1943 and thence to the founding were “fully compatible with the ideals and beliefs of the Soil of the Soil Association three years later. But, the Experiment Association”. But the General Director, Colin Fisher, stated was always problematic. It was a substantial drain on the unequivocally that the Centre would have no bias towards any Association’s funds, and many members were doubtful not only existing farming system, and rejected any suggestion that the about its financial implications but about whether the Association truth was known and required only to be verified. By 1976, the should be involved in scientific research. Equally, there were Centre had expanded its scope in order to examine various factors those who considered the Experiment to be the main reason affecting the composition, morphology and yield of the crops, and for the Association’s existence. A special Haughley edition of regarded as its most important research the study of the harvest Mother Earth in October 1956 argued that it was wrong simply crops in order to assess their nutritional value. to assume the validity of organic principles and be content with Once the EFRC was founded in 1980, Jack Pye became interested in demonstration farms. If the Soil Association wanted to persuade its work and asked if it would take over the research at Haughley. agricultural scientists of its views, it should submit central issues This was not feasible, and Haughley was wound up in 1982, its to controlled experimentation. equipment being transferred to Elm In June 1962, the Association published a survey of the Experiment’s Farm. Jack Pye died in 1984, and a work since 1938, summarising its farming operations since 1952, plaque in his memory was unveiled in drawing some tentative conclusions, and hoping that it would the courtyard during the winter of 1985- now be possible to investigate the nutritional quality of food in 86. Owing to the threat of bad weather, relation to the soil on which it was grown: the issue on which Eve Balfour, the original begetter of the the organic movement had been wanting to pronounce since research nearly 50 years earlier, was the 1930s. The survey outlined a number of research initiatives it unable to attend the ceremony. hoped to undertake in order to do so. Lawrence Woodward and the Astors Jack Pye The EFRC, at Hamstead Marshall in Berkshire, came into existence Before long, though, the Experiment was hit by further financial thanks to a man whose father had in 1946 advocated a post-war problems. These threatened to be terminal, but a benefactor agricultural policy very much at odds with the hopes of the early appeared in the form of the property developer Jack Pye. Pye gave organic movement. In his book Mixed Farming and Muddled the Soil Association £60,000 (more than £900,000 in today’s money), Thinking, co-written with B. S. Rowntree, Viscount Waldorf Astor enabling it to buy the farm and undertake other projects. Michael had argued against traditional farming methods and in favour

Page 22 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 of large-scale, mechanised, specialist enterprises. His son David, however, who became editor of The Observer newspaper, was led to a concern about environmental issues through his friendship with E. F. Schumacher, President of the Soil Association from 1971 until his death in 1977. Lawrence Woodward met David Astor’s daughter Alice during a school exchange year at Dartington College. They married in 1972. Woodward shared with his father-in-law an awareness of the problems facing agriculture in a world of finite resources. In 1975 he and David Astor met Schumacher to discuss developing Photos: Organic Research Centre preliminary examples of technologies and strategies appropriate Hardy Vogtmann, Martin Wolfe and Lawrence Woodward in 1999 to a world of diminishing resources. Woodward had taken a course in agriculture and had visited and worked on organic The plant/herb/nutrient link farms. Through Schumacher, he began farming organically on Forty years ago, in November 1980, and following preparatory part of the Springhead estate in Dorset. visits to farmers, growers and agricultural scientists, the EFRC Woodward did not find the Soil Association particularly held a colloquium on the topic The Research Needs of Biological encouraging towards his efforts, but did initially collaborate Agriculture in Great Britain. Lawrence Woodward argued that the with David Stickland of Organic Farmers and Growers. Soon, organic movement needed to undertake “an academic, theoretical however, he sought help abroad. In Switzerland he met Dr Hardy investigation of the plant/herb/nutrient link”, and to develop Vogtmann, who explained to him the importance of biological a practical, efficient use of this knowledge as a central part of its systems and cycles. Vogtmann, farming techniques and systems. As for the movement’s claim that as readers of The Organic organic produce enhanced the health of those animals and humans Grower will no doubt know, who consumed it (which was what Eve Balfour had set about became a staunch and long- investigating back in 1938), Woodward considered that it had little term supporter of Lawrence proven scientific basis. Organic techniques required both rational Woodward’s work at Elm examination and to be applied to farms in ways which made Farm and of the emergent new both agricultural and economic sense. Fundamental beliefs about UK producer movement. organic husbandry would have to be abandoned if found wanting.

David Astor’s brother Lawrence Woodward saw the EFRC as a bridge between Jacob was Chairman of the mainstream agriculture and the organic movement: not just Agricultural Research Council, through the Astor family connection but through the organic arable and he facilitated meetings farmer Barry Wookey. Wookey had contacts in the government with established research and persuaded the Agricultural Development and Advisory bodies. Although most were Elm Farm Estate Agent Service to monitor work on his farm. The EFRC participated interested in the EFRC’s work brochure 1980 in this research. It supported, too, the radicalism of the Organic and potentially helpful, the Growers Association (also founded in 1980) and helped initiate institutional agenda had no British Organic Farmers (founded in 1982). As noted above, Pye space for organic cultivation. passed on the scientific equipment from Haughley; he also passed Supported by David Astor, on the title of the company, Haughley Research Farms. Woodward established the The EFRC/ORC’s projects have included the Organic Advisory Progressive Farming Trust, Service; a soil analysis service; involvement in the establishment which bought Elm Farm, a 232- of organic standards; work with the Ministry of Agriculture on acre holding. It was registered as nitrate monitoring; farm-scale monitoring of biodiversity; research a charity in 1980. Its enterprises into stockless cultivation; herbal leys; conversion planning; included dairying, beef, sheep nutrient flows; composting and food quality; the development and cereals. The farm was run of agroforestry, and the revival of stimulating conferences as a total biological system, encouraging a younger generation of organic growers. and was eager to learn from developments in mainland But has Eve Balfour’s hunch, that organic methods of cultivation Europe, where similar establish a ‘wheel of health’ benefiting plants, animals and humans, techniques were generally David and Bridget Astor. Co- been proved correct? A month or so before the March lockdown, more advanced than in Britain. founders and funders of Elm Lawrence Woodward visited me to discuss the Haughley Farm Research Centre Experiment, and pass on some archival material relating to it.

Page 23 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 He believes that, since the ecological concept of holism is central to the organic philosophy, it remains exceptionally difficult to establish the truth of a hypothesis involving an indefinite number of variables. And if that concept of holism cannot be grasped, then the idea of the farm as a living entity, operating as a closed system (or closed as far as possible), will itself make no sense to the dominant reductionist mind-set. The obstacles are, in Woodward’s view, intellectual before they are practical, though the practical obstacles are daunting enough.

Is it necessary, though, to seek scientific evidence of the nutritional benefits of organically-grown produce? Did those members of the Soil Association Council who wanted to concentrate on demonstration farms have a point? It seems to me that if you are sustainable farming and growing claiming that organic foodstuffs benefit human health, marketing them and charging a premium on that basis, you are morally wholistic training & individual learning required to provide evidence for it. The problem then is the FOR STUDENTS & PROFESSIONALS difficulty of doing this when a holistic approach to research is so certified demandingly complex. Sir Albert Howard recognised this back professional in the 1940s, and Lawrence Woodward’s intellectual honesty led him to a similar conclusion. quality assured work based training Woodward has recently established a new project, Whole Health online training Agriculture (wholehealthag.org), which renews Eve Balfour’s original quest for evidence of the link between humus and health. seminars The problems implicit in her hunch of more than 80 years ago continue to challenge the organic movement today. www.bdacollege.org.uk Philip Conford Philip Conford’s latest book Realising Health: The Peckham Experiment, Its Descendants, and the Spirit of Hygiea is published by Cambridge Scholars Publishing (£19.99 pbk). See book review (p32). rganic Plants Vegetables, salads, herbs, strawberries and flowers. For field, polytunnel and greenhouse production. Wholesale, nursery shop and mail order. SMALL PACKS www.organicplants.co.uk OR BY THE TRAY www.delfland.co.uk Growing with you... Delfland Nurseries Limited Benwick Road, Doddington, March, Cambridgeshire PE15 0TU Tel: 01354 740553 Fax: 01354 741200 Email: [email protected]

Page 24 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 How to reinvent yourself after a long career: Jason Horner

Everyone has advice for growers who are just starting out, the do’s and don’ts, the little nuggets of wisdom given freely and with the best of intentions. When it comes to the closing chapter of your career, there is a lot less advice readily available. There seems to be two schools of thought, you either put your head down and keep going, or quit while you are still ahead and able to do so.

I started growing in 1992, working as an apprentice on a farm in Co. Wicklow for the early part of the season. It was enough to convince me that it was what I wanted to do, a path that I could see myself taking. At the time, most of my friends said that making a living off the land could not be done, and indeed there were very few good examples of it being done and hardly any support available for those wanting and willing to try. We got all our information from books and the occasional farm visit to other local growers. We learned by trial and error, building on our knowledge as we muddled along. The term ‘self-taught’ certainly comes to mind.

29 seasons later and it is time for me to think about getting out while I still can. I read an article in this magazine by Brian Adair a couple of seasons ago that struck a chord with me, and I knew that I was getting closer to having to make a decision. I also knew that physically, it was getting harder to do what I had been Photo: Jason Horner Jason Horner with Sarpo potaoes doing. I turned 55 last month, and although I can still manage the workload, most of the time I am too knackered to do much else. feels like the obvious next step to take, and I am as excited by this So, at the beginning of this season I decided that it would be my prospect as I was when I first started growing for the market. last one growing commercially. I feel fortunate to have been able to grow commercially for as I have been selling in Ennis Market since 1997, and have done well long as I did. From the very beginning, I heeded Eliot Coleman’s over 1,000 markets during that time, so finishing up there is going advice and always took time off. I have kept myself fit cycling, to be a huge change that will take some getting used to. Over the swimming, and walking, and prepare for each coming season last few years, I have tried to figure what it is that is so addictive as though I am an endurance athlete. After all, every season is about being a grower. For me, I think it is the buzz I get from seeing a marathon, not a sprint! When I started, I never imagined that a seed germinate and then develop into a fully grown plant, and it is I would still be growing in 2020. It has been a great pleasure, it that unique buzz that I am reluctant to part with entirely. So, rather never felt like work, and I never struggled to get out of bed on than giving up growing altogether, I have planned a smoother and Monday mornings! less drastic transition, a kind of ‘warm down’ if you like. For now though, I am hoping to have more time to go fishing For the last dozen or so years, I have been growing seed crops for and to perhaps cycle further afield. I am also looking forward to the Irish Seed Savers Association who are located quite close to me having a summer holiday, something I have only done once since here in the mid-west of Ireland. My plan is to transition into seed I started. It really is the small things in life! saving on a part time basis and see how things evolve from there. This year, I grew 15 varieties in small quantities, alongside the crops I Finally, I would like to acknowledge a few of the people who have was growing for market. I estimate that even if I double that number helped me and inspired my growing over the years. I am indebted next year, I should still have a significant amount of free time. to Billy Clifford, Deirdre O’Sullivan and Norman Kenny (RIP), Penny and Udo Lange, Tolly, Eliot Coleman (who I have never No more long days harvesting for the market (one harvest day this met) and last but by no means least, Joy Larkcom. year I logged 28,000 steps using a Fitbit), or early alarm calls to spend hours standing in the wind and rain at the market. Growing was something that I fell into, but in the best possible way. My advice to anyone looking to get started would be to The timing also seems right, with last year’s seed sales up for follow your dreams with dogged determination. It is a great way every seed company, with some up by a factor of two. For me, it of life, very doable and most definitely worth it.

Page 25 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Growing the Goods: A Horticulture Test and Trial for the Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS)

What would you want an agricultural payment scheme, based on ‘Public Money for Public Goods’ to reward, if it was to focus on the ‘Public Goods Actions’ delivered by horticulture? This is the question that a diverse group of growers have grappled with over the summer, in Phase 1 of the Landworkers’ Alliance ‘Growing the Goods’ Horticulture Test and Trial.

The Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMS) will replace tool called the Land App. Participants ranging from small-scale the Basic Payment Scheme and Countryside Stewardship Scheme organic urban growers to large-scale conventional orchards and post-Brexit. Defra have been working with a range of stakeholders potato farmers engaged enthusiastically. All seemed to welcome to develop a scheme that will reward the delivery of public goods. the opportunity to develop an environmental payment scheme These are the environmental and social benefits, such as biodiversity, that will benefit horticulture, which has long been neglected by clean water and public engagement provided by land managers, Defra as a source of good environmental management. alongside food production, which don’t get rewarded by the market. The trials begin Organisations were invited to submit proposals for ‘Tests and Trials’, In September, the main trial began, involving 40 more growers in order to investigate the practicalities of how ELMS might operate. drawn from across the UK horticultural sector. Their first task About 200 ELMS Tests and Trials have either been completed or are was to test the two methods for conducting a Public Goods Action in progress, and the results of these are being fed into the National Audit. Although many found The Land App a challenge to use at Pilot of ELMS that will begin in September 2021. first, once they had mastered it, most were enthusiastic about the Growing the Goods is the only Test and Trial focusing on potential it offered for recording spatial information about their horticulture and is an amalgamation of two proposals submitted holding which could be built on year-by-year. by LWA, the other one looked at peer-to-peer learning and how agroecology could mitigate climate change. Our aim is to develop accurate and easy to use methods for self-assessment of the public goods actions that growers are currently delivering, leading to the creation of Land Management Plans. In ELMS, the Land Management Plan will be the legal contract that identifies the public goods provided by growers in return for their payment. In addition, we are testing ways of sharing knowledge about public goods actions, comparing traditional expert-led workshops with peer-to- peer learning formats. Our task is to work with growers from across Screen grab of one participant’s holding, mapped on The Land App to show the horticultural spectrum, including organic and non-organic, different habitat types large and small, fruit, vegetable and ornamental plant producers. We are now into the phase of testing different ways of sharing Co-design workshops knowledge, to inform and inspire participants to increase their environmental ambition and include additional Public Goods Phase 1 involved 20 diverse growers coming together for six Actions when they create their Land Management Plans in the New Zoom workshops over July and August to co-design a method Year. The impact of the two workshop formats, peer to peer and for auditing their public goods actions. Together, we adapted an expert-led which will involve the use of films, presentations with ecological classification system called UK Hab Map, which can be Q&A and information leaflets will be evaluated when displayed in used to comprehensively map every habitat in the UK (woodland, the Land Management Plans. Sadly, due to Covid, we had to drop grassland, cropland and coastal habitats) and allocate codes the farm visit options, so both forms of workshop are being delivered to indicate how it is managed. Hitherto, apart from intensive via Zoom. In October, the topic for the workshops was ‘Beauty, orchards, vineyards and a crude horticulture classification, very Heritage and Public Engagement’ and both formats of workshop little detail existed on horticultural habitats in UK Hab. As a result were very well received. Blackbark Films made a beautiful short of the co-design workshops we have added and defined 185 new film about public engagement, featuring The Apricot Centre and management codes, many of which result in public goods, as well Canalside CSA. The topic for November’s workshop is ‘Climate as sub-dividing horticulture into various habitat types. Change Mitigation and Adaptation’ and our expert-led workshop The result of the co-design was two contrasting approaches to will involve Iain Tolhurst of Tolhurst Organics and Andy Dibden conducting a Public Goods Action Audit, a simple checklist and a of Abbey Home Farm. Another short film has also been made about mapping method using a GIS (Geographical Information System) these farms.

Page 26 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 It is heartening to see growers from such different backgrounds insights to the contribution that horticulture can make to a more engaging with each other so positively. Our fears of a cultural sustainable food system. divide between organic and non-organic, large and small growers Rebecca Laughton - Landworkers Alliance have been unfounded. On the contrary, in both the co-design [email protected] workshops and now in the main trial, participants have seemed willing and open to learn from each other. Each brings valuable Wales Real Food and Farming Conference: 16 – 19 November 2020

When the organisers decided to hold the Conference online, if there was trepidation over whether it would work, it turned out to be sorely misplaced. A total of 250 tickets sold and an average of 50 participants per workshop speaks to the enormous success of the event. While I missed meeting up with old friends and making new ones, being able to dip in and out of the programme, which ran over four days, rather suited me; my workshops of choice didn’t clash and I wasn’t constantly being herded from one place to another. Cosy chats between the workshops (somewhat reminiscent of a radio chat show!) took the place of the coffee room gossip, and the whole thing had a wonderfully relaxed and pleasant feel.

In terms of content, one the most interesting sessions for me was production. This is thriving in Wales. Gary Mitchell from Social Managing Health from Farm to Fork. ‘Vitality’ was the common Farms & Gardens estimates there are 450 community gardens/ thread that ran though all the presentations and discussions. For orchards, 12 CSAs established and as many again in development Anne Evans of Blaencamel Farm, that was manifested in how their and 115 community allotments. While producing a significant produce tastes and looks, the depth of colour and the fragrance. amount of food these projects have a vital social role to play, “When people taste something they love, their first question increasing community cohesion, improving access to quality fruit usually relates to the variety” she said. “But often we use the and veg, improving diets, education (in its broadest sense} and industry standards. The difference is in how we grow”. She sees improving physical and mental wellbeing. their controlled microbial composting systems, with which many So, hats off to the organisers. Jane Powell, Steven Jacobs (OF&G), OGA members will by now be familiar, as the key contributor Jane Ricketts Hein and Dr. Eifiona Thomas Lane (Bangor to that vitality – creating a healthy soil that feeds into plant and University) all deserve special mention and thanks. One of the ultimately human health. Both GPs on the panel highlighted participants said the event had “completely changed their view of their struggles in taking an holistic approach in a system tightly online conferences.” I think that goes for me too. focused on treatment over prevention. As Peter Mansfield rather neatly put it, “what we have is a disease service; what we need Tony Little is a health service”. That approach to health based on sleep, Recordings of the conference sessions will be available on the YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCLaS2F6tYmv3v4hvBSp9njA and the movement, nutrition and connectivity - as advocated by GP Sally website, https://wrffc.wales/cynhadledd-2020-conference/ in due course. Bell - is viewed as ‘alternative’ by the wider profession but tells

us much of what we need to know about the challenges we face. David Frost Frost David

Spain. Estimated production 1,633,000 tons in 2020 in tons 1,633,000 production Estimated Spain.

The session on ‘Expanding Edible Horticulture in Wales’ 10.

Sauerkraut

highlighted the yawning gap between Wales’ demand for fruit 9.

Japanese for chestnut chestnut for Japanese

and veg based on five a day and its production. In terms of land 8.

Squash, climbing beans, maize (Origin Mesoamerica) (Origin maize beans, climbing Squash,

area, we would need 2-3% of the agricultural land area given over 7.

Powdery and Downy mildews. PiWi =Pilzwiderstandsfähige =Pilzwiderstandsfähige PiWi mildews. Downy and Powdery

to horticultural production; it is currently at about 0.2%. There 6.

are certainly challenges, but Peter Segger of Blaencamel farm was (90%). humidity

clear that these were far from insurmountable. He thought that a relative of hours six least at and 10°C, of temperature

Potato late blight. Two consecutive days with a minimum minimum a with days consecutive Two blight. late Potato

target of growing 75% of Wales’ requirements within its borders 5.

by 2035 was perfectly achievable – equivalent to another 50 farms methods

Distinctive cultivated plant improved by traditional farming farming traditional by improved plant cultivated Distinctive

producing about 10ha of field veg. When you consider Wales has 4.

Hokkaido

an abundance of livestock farms, many with existing arable crop 3.

Chioggia (Chioggia beetroot, Rosa di Chioggia radicchio) Chioggia di Rosa beetroot, (Chioggia Chioggia

rotations that could potentially introduce veg, it suddenly doesn’t 2.

Onions, carrots, celery carrots, Onions,

seem that big an ask. 1. A follow-up session looked at the role of urban/peri-urban Answers 2020: Quiz Christmas OGA

Page 27 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Babylon Brandy

Being a Kurd isn’t easy now and probably never has been. Through all recorded history the nation and its people, currently split between four overbearing states, has never had a country to call its own. Latterly, in the chaos and radicalisation that followed the deposition of Saddam Hussein those in Northern Iraq have been able to achieve a semblance of autonomy as a region within the Iraqi state, with its own capital at Erbil. The outcome for Iraq’s Christians, mostly of the Assyrian Church or its offshoot the Chaldean, has on the other hand been nothing short of disastrous. It is only in Iraqi Kurdistan that they now find some security and toleration as the region asserts its distinctiveness from the rest of Iraq.

There is evidence too that distillation, originally for making perfume and for medicinal purposes, was being practised here by 2000 BCE. Herodotus, who wrote his entertaining ‘Histories’ in the fifth century BCE, tells us that the Persians (who ruled these lands in his day) would only make decisions when drunk – and then reconsider them when sober. But if for some reason they found themselves making a decision when sober, then they’d get drunk so that they could reconsider it . . .

Be that as it may, the Christian farmers are carrying on an ancient practice of the region, and they continue to grow their grapes with methods that owe little to modern times. Some of the fruit is sold as table grapes, some dried for raisins and some processed into a concentrate for sweetening. Photos: Bo van Elzakker The vineyards near Shaqlawa A distinct local variety is used, grown as a bush so it needs no trellising and hardy and resilient enough to make do without The distillation of an idea irrigation even though summer temperatures can reach 45ºC. In 2008 two members of the Dutch consultancy Agro Eco were Asses and mules provide the motive power for cultivations. A researching, as part of a development project, the region’s potential little dung is used for fertilisation but there are no other inputs as an exporter of organic fruit products. The two were Saad Yacoub, to the soil or the crop. The production could thus meet organic a Chaldean Christian born and raised in Baghdad and by then a standards with no greater change than the co-ordination and Dutch citizen, and Bo van Elzakker, a founder and director of documentation of the farmers’ activities. The distillation process Agro Eco and someone with great experience of setting up organic was simple and low-tech too – the squeezed grapes or raisins supply chains in different parts of the world. One day they were being fermented for a fortnight or so in open barrels without visiting some Christian grape growers near Shaqlawa, about 50 added yeast. After distilling, which could be done in the field or km north-east of Erbil in the foothills of the mountains that border backyard – anywhere so long as water was available for cooling, against Iran. Invited for tea it wasn’t long before a bottle of brandy certain wild-harvested flavourings were added to the spirit. This appeared, and surprisingly good it was too. They learnt that it was was then stored in glass jars for three months before filtering and the custom of these farmers to supply themselves with enough of bottling in time for some Christmas cheer. this spirit to keep the winter chill at bay. The idea soon took root of certifying the growing of the grapes and increasing the production of the brandy, and then organising its export and marketing. That was in 2008. The lead time turned out to be longer than expected, but it’s now available to buy in Europe and the USA – Babylon Organic Brandy, darkly resplendent in its Babylonian-style bottle. This is the story of how it eventually got here.

We wouldn’t associate Iraq with alcohol, but that’s because of relatively recent history. The country occupies the Fertile Crescent – Mesopotamia, the lands watered by the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Here - at least so far as Indo-European cultures are concerned – the domestication of animals and crops originated, along with such arts of civilisation as pottery, wine-making and the baking of bread.

In the distillery

Page 28 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 out of business, their clients being transferred to CCPB in Italy. In 2014 the deteriorating situation with the rise of Daesh/ISIS and the refusal of the Iraqi embassy in Beirut to grant visas made it impossible for inspectors to visit so that by December 2015 the organic licence had lapsed.

In the summer of 2015 a sudden daesh advance led to the evacuation of the village, the brandy remaining in its barrels, locked in a cellar. While in the refugee camp, the lead distiller decided to emigrate to Australia. A new lead distiller was found, but the impossibility of travel in the district and the lapse of certification meant that no new raisins were processed. Daesh came as close as 4 km away, but never penetrated the village itself – the brandy remained safe! When the situation seemed to have stabilised most of the

Saad Yacoub testing the specific gravity of the brandy villagers returned. Even so a heavy bombardment of Daesh forces at a distance of 10 km took place during one bottling session. The Commercialising the process villagers watched it from their roofs. Crop production continues as before, but some changes were It was the autumn of 2018 before it became possible to bring the necessary in the distilling department so that the farmers brandy from Kurdistan to Amsterdam. Problems with certification could profit from turning their non-commercial side-line into a continue. The CCPB office in Beirut considers that it is not worth the marketable enterprise. As Bo puts it: “Knowing in what primitive risk to be certifying alcohol in a Muslim country where the central conditions the brandy was being made, there was ample space government is obstructive. It was hoped instead that an Armenian for improving production and cellar practices, to get a better (and thus Christian) certifier would carry out the inspection, but and more consistent quality of the brandy. These are in time of the current conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan has led to its harvesting, use of harvesting crates, drying of the grapes to raisins, postponement. All the same it is planned to resume purchase of more careful fermentation, improved distilling, standardisation of grapes in the coming year and to make arak, an anise-flavoured ingredients following the old recipe, storage in used French oak, spirit more traditional to the Middle-Eastern market than brandy. later in Persian oak barrels, filtering and bottling”. Meanwhile there are six batches of brandy to be bottled in turn. The one available now is the 2010 vintage, bottled in 2016 in a Originally the focus was on a group of farmers from one particular limited edition of 600, of which 300 remain. This is the ‘Cristiani’ village, with one farmer acting as lead. They would do the distilling bottle, bearing a small cross. The second batch will use a ‘Kurdish’ together, pooling their equipment. Certification of this group was bottle, depicting the centuries old citadel of Erbil. A third batch initiated with LibanCert in Beirut, a company with the advantage is being considered using a Yehudi bottle, to celebrate the of Christian Arabic-speaking staff. However, the farmers’ Muslim restoration of the tomb of prophet Nahum (600 BCE) in Alqosh, neighbours started to complain about the increased smell of near the Tigris north of Mosul. Mesopotamia traditionally had a fermentation in the air, so the following year fermentation and significant Jewish population as it does a Christian one, many Jews distillation was transferred to an entirely Christian community. A once living in the village where the brandy is made and stored. professional still was bought. Then the lead farmer died and his There is even the thought of making an Arabic/English bottle for son was not interested in taking on the role. Fortunately, another the Gulf market. As Bo diplomatically phrases it: “even when it is family member was found who would supervise the farmer group prohibited, some Arabs like a historical, regional product”. and document and lightly organise their farming activities with, for instance, all the organic farmers’ fields being ploughed in one My wife Jan was sent a bottle as go. He also organised that the fresh grapes were dried to raisins so a present for the work she’s done that fermentation and distillation could be done in cooler periods in helping the newly founded of the year, to better effect. Production was increased with the Alliance for Organic Integrity addition of another farmer group, this one being more distant get off the ground. Bo is one of from centres of population and thus already accustomed to drying the directors, hence the gift. It’s the bulk of its grapes to raisins. delicious stuff, but I fear will be beyond the means of most readers Problems along the way of this magazine. There’s more of Not all was plain sailing. Experiments were made with using clay the story, and more photographs, jars for bottling, in deference to Mesopotamia being the place on the Babylon Brandy website. where pottery was invented, but these leaked so the change was https://www.babylonbrandy.com/ made to glass. Another problem was that in 2013 LibanCert went Tim Deane

Page 29 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Carbon footprinting for organic growers

It won’t have escaped your notice that carbon emissions have become a major issue for society, and all businesses must rapidly decarbonise so that we can collectively hit our zero carbon commitments. This includes farmers and growers, but we’re also in quite a special category compared with most businesses, in that we can go beyond ‘net zero’ and actually sequester more carbon than we emit. That’s quite an exciting possibility!

There’s a whole number of reasons why it’s good to understand The first place to start is data collection. Download the spreadsheet your business’ carbon footprint, and to measure it regularly: and collect all the data required that is relevant to your business over the previous twelve months. This is often the most time • You can’t manage what you don’t measure consuming part, depending on how organised your data is and • It gives you great insight in to your business whether you have done the process before. It gets easier on • There’s a moral obligation to do the right thing (us organic subsequent occasions! growers tend to be quite good at this one) Once you have your data you can enter it in to the Calculator • Saving carbon can save you money online. You’ll see your carbon footprint calculated in real time • Environmental credentials are good for business and build up visually on the screen. It’s expressed in both tonnes

• Legislation enforcing change will probably be coming of CO2e (carbon dioxide equivalence), and a percentage of total anyway at some point – get ahead of the game emissions. This is really useful for understanding where your Calculating your carbon footprint main emissions sources are. For organic growers it’s also an easier process as you can So, how do you get started? There are several free online carbon completely skip the ‘Inputs’ page (agrochemicals) and, for many calculators available to farmers and growers in the UK, but growers, can also skip the Livestock page. We also tend to have I’m going to be biased and recommend one – the Farm Carbon smaller and simpler businesses that are quicker to make a carbon Calculator. Why? Well partly because I wrote it and manage it, but assessment of. also because it’s user-friendly, comprehensive and fully covers carbon sequestration. We’ve been at this for over ten years, so After all your data has been entered you can review your carbon know a thing or two about how to do it. I also happen to be an report, which will show the carbon balance, comprising of organic grower. emissions and sequestration. Understanding your results The carbon report is presented with a breakdown of carbon emissions and sequestration in varying levels of detail, from overview to granular. It’s also expressed in tonnes of CO2e per hectare and per tonne of product. The summary table opposite is taken from my farm’s carbon footprint:

As you can see it is overwhelmingly carbon negative (-19.24

tonnes CO2e in total) due to sequestration in soils, woodland and some fast growing coppice. This is very exciting and means that all the produce sold is sequestering carbon effectively. Many of my customers are pretty excited about this.

You can use the Calculator to understand where your emissions hotspots are, where sequestration opportunities lie, and therefore make a plan to improve your carbon footprint. Using the Calculator as a decision-making tool is easy, for instance understanding the impact of increasing soil organic matter, planting some woodland, reducing fuel use, reducing transport, etc. This really helps to make informed decisions for future planning.

Carbon emissions displayed in the Fuels sector

Page 30 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Summary of Scilly Organics’ emissions and sequestration sources Opportunities Organic horticultural businesses have the ability to cut their carbon footprint by doing a number of key things, such as cutting fuel use, using 100% renewable electricity (and/or generating your own), keep buildings and machinery going for as long as you can, and ensure your veg distribution is done efficiently.

Perhaps the biggest opportunities are on the sequestration side. Perennial crops, woodland and hedges are all good news when it comes to locking up carbon (and often for biodiversity, water management and soil health as well). But for cultivated systems it Photos: Jonathan Smith is crucial to pay attention to increasing soil organic matter (SOM), by whatever means possible. For each hectare where SOM is 100% peat-free increased by 0.1%, you sequester around 9 tonnes of CO2e. Not to mention the other numerous ‘co-benefits’ that this brings.

There will be many market advantages in having a low carbon business in the future. Many of us in the organic horticultural sector have been trend-setters, but in the sphere of carbon footprinting I Proven peat-free growing media and ingredients sense we have a bit of catching up to do. It’s an important issue to • Sylvamix® Natural Melcourt’s Soil Association-approved grapple with, not least in making the case for why our future land sustainable peat-free growing medium is widely used throughout the UK for a wide range of applications from seed sowing to use should have more organic horticulture. containerisation

We need to win the arguments with policy makers, government • Bark-based growing medium ingredients are unrivalled departments and our customers. And to do that we need to in quality and consistency and Soil Association approved get serious about carbon • Bark-based mulches are effective, consistent and cost competitive and prove why we tick all those boxes, ‘public money All Melcourt products are based on materials sourced and manufactured in the UK - backed up by customer service that is widely acknowledged for public goods’ as well as being second to none. as producing nutritious, Melcourt have been supplying the grower market in the UK for three affordable food, creating decades and have been certified by the Soil Association since 1991. jobs and enhancing UK food sovereignty. Jonathan Smith Melcourt Industries Ltd • Boldridge Brake • Long Newnton • Tetbury Jonathan Smith runs Scilly Gloucestershire GL8 8RT Organics, and is manager of the T: 01666 502711 • F: 01666 504398 • E: [email protected] Farm Carbon Calculator. www.melcourt.co.uk @melcourtltd https://farmcarbontoolkit.org.uk/ Collecting seaweed

Page 31 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Book reviews A Small Farm Future You might not agree with all his conclusions, but you will be stimulated and engaged, and perhaps inspired to be a part of the Chris Smaje change that is needed to improve the current UK farming landscape Chelsea Green Ben Raskin This latest offering from the growing stable of Chelsea Green UK authors is timely. Realising Health: Brexit, climate change and Covid 19 are all The Peckham Experiment, Its providing ample incentive to re-evaluate our Descendants, and the Spirit of Hygiea food system. Smaje sets the scene by listing Philip Conford what he sees as the ten crises facing us; among others population, Cambridge Scholars Publishing health, soil and water. These challenges will be familiar to most. I never tire of telling people that organic His solution is little short of a food and farming revolution, farming is built on a concept of health. Not requiring systematic change at both farm and societal level. enough people know it, not enough farmers and growers act on it. The book covers a lot of ground, looking at changes in production Philip Conford agrees. In the introduction to his masterful book, systems and land use, as well as diet and population shifts. It is Realising Health, he is unequivocal that health was at the beginning inevitable therefore that some subjects that might have warranted and centre of the organic movement, farming and food – which is a more thorough treatment did not get it. For instance, though where it should still be. Smaje gives us a couple of pages on it, I was a little disappointed But what is health? As Conford says, it is “an elusive concept”. He starts that the potential of agroforestry to improve productivity (as to pin it down from the first chapter and tracks it through the story of well as soil, and water quality for instance) was not more fully The Peckham Experiment, Its Descendants, and the Spirit of Hygiea. Don’t let explored. Perhaps it was implicit in the land change figures he the book’s subtitle put you off. This is a highly readable, informative, outlined to reach his small farm future. thought-provoking and at times uncomfortably challenging, exposition I particularly liked his treatment of how we should view progress of ideas, experiences and insights on health which have the potential to and growth, which reflected my own thoughts, but articulated transform lives and society. them so much better. He says “we can learn from past societies The Pioneer Health Centre, based in working-class Peckham in with neither an embarrassment at reviving old ways nor an urge to South London aka “The Peckham Experiment”, from 1926-1950 was mimic them precisely”. He argues that progress is sometimes a good truly ground breaking. Conford intelligently sets out how its cause thing, but can also take us away from the right path. On growth and message have reverberated through the years since. Today, its “continued growth is no advantage, and in fact is disadvantageous pioneering focus on the dynamic of positive health and the practical and ultimately pathological”. On both these our government and application in general family practice of wholistic concepts, has some farming organisations should heed his words. more relevance and seems to be attracting more attention than ever. For readers of this magazine he does go into the debate about organic Its founders, George Scott Williamson and Innes Pearce, were certification and the new kid on the block; organic by another name medical doctors but thought of themselves as “applied biologists”. “regenerative agriculture”, highlighting the problems, arguably of They used biological (ecological) terms. For example, they wrote our own making, that the commercialisation of organic principles that “health was active and would grow and spread given the through standards and certification has brought, and how this can right conditions”; that “health is infectious”; and that health is a sometimes hinder support to some farmers even while it provides a “mutual synthesis of organism and environment” – which could market reward mechanism for others. serve as an excellent description of real organic farming. They As someone who sees huge potential in the Community Supported supported an organic farm which supplied fresh food to the Agriculture (CSA model), part time farming and more co-operative families who were members of the health centre. Unsurprisingly, working between farmers, I also would challenge his determination they had a significant influence on the foundation of the Soil that ‘family’ owned farms were the single best version of a small farm Association – links which Conford explores. future. However, these are relatively small matters. He writes clearly, This book, an antidote to ‘holistic’ cliches, is a must for anyone bringing often quite complicated sociological debates and research to interested in health, nutrition, ecosystems and living networks, life. He is also a very balanced thinker. Throughout the book he not only and especially for organic farmers and growers, who want to view acknowledges other points of view or visions, he frequently challenges them wholistically. his own propositions, and recognises some of the challenges. If this book was not written by a farmer, you might accuse him of a romantic Lawrence Woodward view of farming life. However, he knows the labour that goes into Whole Health Agriculture running a farm, but also the reward from that labour.

Page 32 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Participatory certification is needed to protect the integrity of organic growers The integrity of organic production and produce is in danger of being undermined by the increase in unverified organic claims which, if not tackled, will destroy the reputation of organic as ‘food you can trust’.. The OGA needs urgently to look at how ‘participatory certification’ can provide effective guarantees at a price which growers can afford and, can also, provide much needed education to growers and consumers alike.

The burden of organic certification has been a long running Regrettably these criteria did not get adequately developed. sore amongst the organic grower community. Cost is one thing, Latterly, another aspect has emerged; namely the importance of paperwork is another and whether certification is really needed maintaining a consistent level of standards, production quality for local, direct sales is the third, and for many, the crunch point. and development through the involvement of peer groups of local Some growers have always insisted that certification is essential producers. This, to my mind, is a third criteria. to the long-term wellbeing of the overall organic market; many The fracturing organic grower have seen it as vital for the survival of the organic movement as a community force for change. So, they have swallowed the costs, the hassle and periodic frustration certification places on their businesses. It may be contentious to say it but the recent and very welcome emergence of ‘new entrants’, CSAs and community growing To date these growers have shown admirable tolerance of those schemes to the broadly organic community has led to a new who can’t or won’t certify – even when they have been operating in dynamic on marketing claims and a profound level of confusion the same local markets. They have recognised that some growers about what is or is not organic, agroecological and regenerative. are even smaller, more hard-pressed than they are; and they have One consequence, as many readers will have come across, shrugged off the free riders – those that can afford but won’t. are growers who use statements such as “we grow to organic Some growers argue that their sales are local and direct; that principles”, “we aren’t certified but we use organic methods”, they talk to their customers, provide information about how they “we use regenerative methods, which are better than organic” grow, they run open days and everyone knows they use organic whilst selling and promoting their produce. methods, practice organic principles, that they are, in essence, No doubt that the intentions of all concerned are well-meaning but organic and don’t need certification to verify it – despite the legal these things create the conditions which undermine trust in organic issues which may arise. production and produce, undermine the livelihoods of some I am sure that there are some growers who are doing a great job organic producers and will clear the way for an unregulated, hybrid informing, educating and communicating with their customers conventional market far removed from the truly wholistic methods how they are putting organic principles into practice; that there we espouse – even if some ‘regenerative’ methods are used. are some growers who regularly have their customers over for a tour of the holding – and that is great. To prevent this, I believe the OGA needs to, at least consider, and ideally develop a participatory guarantee scheme to involve and But there aren’t many. And like the old adage about teenage sex; cover growers currently a) following organic standards but not “most of those who say they are doing it aren’t, and the ones who certified, b) those aspiring to follow organic principles/practice are doing it, aren’t doing it properly.” and wish to indicate they are in some other way under the An inspector needn’t call ‘organic umbrella’, and c) those growers using organic techniques From the early development of organic standards and certification but identify themselves as ‘agroecological’ and/or ‘regenerative’. it was fully understood that the primary value of third-party Protecting organic integrity certification was/and is for those buyers and consumers who were unable to visit the producer and find out for themselves The scheme would be built on the published organic principles what happens on the farm or holding. and standards but adapted to grower conditions and concerns, and based on the three criteria outlined above. At its core would In the case of small scale producers with local and direct markets, be the active engagement of regionally based peer group growers criteria for reducing or eliminating third-party certification were in partnership with their consumer/citizen community. identified: a) effective and regular access for the buyer to the farm/ holding – which is more than just being able to buy direct, it also Such ‘participatory certification’ falls outside of the current scope means a chance to look around; and b) access to information about of organic regulations but has a long history in a range of countries, the operation of the farm/holding – which is more than marketing focussed on the small-scale grower community serving local information and branding, it involves some level of detail and the markets, and complementing third-party organic certification ongoing opportunity to ask questions. which focuses on wider markets and trade.

Page 33 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 There are a number of issues – such as legally appropriate https://www.ifoam.bio/how-governments-can-recognize-and-support-participatory indications of organic production – that need consideration. www.ifoam.bio/our-work/how/standards-certification/participatory-guarantee- However, as other countries have demonstrated, these can be systems resolved. https://www.ifoam.bio/our-work/how/standards-certification/participatory- guarantee-systems/pgs-faqs Lawrence Woodward If you are interested in this idea and being involved in taking it https://www.ifoam.bio/sites/default/files/2020-03/poa_english_web.pdf forwards please contact [email protected]

Obituary: Patrick Noble 1949-2020

I met Patrick Noble only once, but we Despite a deep passion for his world view he corresponded quite frequently and he would was never bitter or angry. The long queues always send me a copy of his latest book. at the conventional meat stalls on the market Walking Home arrived in September, soon compared to his relatively few stalwart followed, to my dismay, by a ‘farewell’ organic customers must have frustrated e-mail. him, but he channelled that frustration into just doing a better job, and of course, into Although Patrick’s literary style was eccentric, that other side of him, the deep thinker and the contents of his books were wide-ranging, philosopher. provocative, witty, completely independent- minded, and dedicated to the cause of a future I always enjoyed his writing; he was deeply in which organic cultivation would be central challenging, not just to industrial farming as Photo: Joyce Noble to a sustainable, convivial society. We both Patrick Noble at home in 2019 you would expect, but to his organic farming deplored the swoon of certain sections of the organic associates who he felt were not going far enough movement (what Patrick termed the Narcissist Tendency) into or staying true to the true organic principles. When I moved to the arms of consumerism – though Patrick, as a long-established the Soil Association and social media became ‘a thing’ he was a practising farmer had a greater right than me to do so. frequent pricking of conscience for us. He saw it as his duty as a critical and clear-sighted friend. While of course, I didn’t agree He was well-read, with a sense of history which enabled him to with everything he said, I always valued his criticism, which was look beyond the various forms of tinkering proposed as responses carefully thought through and untainted by the latest fashion in to the environmental crisis. He recognised that the organic farming or political trend. pioneers had held views whose implications required profound change in Britain’s social and economic arrangements: not a Catching up with Patrick at OGA events was also a highlight. cosying up to the existing system. Former OGA Chair Alan Schofield remembers him like this: “Just like the star he was, Patrick was a constant. He was ever present Patrick Noble was a 21st-century representative of the radicalism (usually with a small pile of his latest literary offering by his side) at which marked the organic movement’s early decades. I feel his most if not all of our conferences, both national and local. A vocal passing as both a personal loss and a diminution of the movement’s campaigner for all green issues he always managed to put a smile collective memory. on my face whenever we met with his very obtuse view on our Philip Conford world. He was passionate and eloquent whenever he contributed, Patrick’s external persona was one of dry, laconic wit accompanied and many will remember him fondly for all his efforts.” by what Tony Little eloquently describes as “an inextinguishable As a regular attender at OGA social twinkle in his eye”. I first met Patrick when working at the now gatherings, I mostly remember defunct Welsh College of Horticulture. As the only two organic our late night chats, delving deep producers at the monthly farmers’ market we naturally gravitated into carbon cycles or the role of towards each other, and I looked forward to his greeting of the supermarkets in our supply “Morning comrade” as we set up our stalls. As the market chains. They always left me feeling quietened toward lunchtime, we had more time to talk. Sometimes provoked and stimulated. And then it might just be about the morning’s sales or commiserating after another couple of ciders, he about the rain, and yes, it does rain quite a lot in North Wales. would extinguish his hand-rolled fag More often, he’d be sharing his enthusiasm for his latest farming and out would come the harmonica. enterprise such as his Welsh variety apple trees. Ben Raskin Photo: Phil Sumption Patrick with harmonica. OGA AGM Penpont, March 2009

Page 34 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Sovereignty by Patrick Noble

It’s a fine thing, we say, to take back control of our seeds, our food production and our lives. It’s plain that consumerism has brought us to a cliff edge. Ordinary people must gain sovereignty over methods of production, because dependency on the sovereignty of others had brought chaos. We have not been acting on the evidence of our senses, instead we have been lobbying that others – our providers - act on that evidence. We pay for the produce and ask for it to be just as we like. That is the consumerist contract.

Many in Extinction Rebellion are asking just that – that vices to a new, but ill-defined virtue? If I have a skill, then it is governments and corporations change their provisions to be just natural to want sovereignty over my workshop, my farm, my as they’d like. It may be that the bulk of people in the protests mill, or my potter’s wheel. What we do creates the culture and form a consumerist rebellion. The UK Green Party and the what we do is specific. But undefined sovereignty is dangerous. ‘educated’middle class are at the heart of that dependant outcry. It creates a new enclosure.

They demand the better behaviour of banks, oil companies and Every little sovereign, over every little field, or baker’s oven must be governments. Prominent journalists and so on have made sure bound by the greater law – the law of the commons. Over centuries, that they have been very publicly arrested. The one demand they commons have been broken and scattered in the spoil heaps of do not make is to take back sovereignty. Unlike true commons enclosure. In an enclosure, my field, or my work-place becomes my movements, such as the diggers, who simply, elegantly and sovereign castle, in which I can behave as badly as I choose, and in truthfully dug, they demand nothing more than the changed which no trespassers may be lawfully permitted to say otherwise. behaviour of existing monopolies. Here is the true rebellion – as the children say – of ancestors Yet, if people did not buy oil, oil companies would evaporate. If and descendants, embodied in contemporary behaviour. As the people did not fly, no aeroplanes could take off. Such a movement children also say, behave! By all that’s holy, dig like a leveller! Sing would be in the commons tradition. That tradition remains in our the joy of the ol’ sun ‘n moon illuminating a durable, responsive intrinsic morality. It is easily understood and could be inspirational. culturing of our mothering soil. And they say, be kind. If we all shopped at market stalls, or the proper shops of skilled Patrick Noble trades’ people, then the supermarket would close. Sovereignty Editor’s note: This article was written in November 2019 and published of skill and ingenuity could be returned to the commons and life posthumously as a tribute to Patrick. would return to our half-dead towns and villages. If the Extinction Rebellion was rebellion against ourselves and our current ways of life, then it would prove a true rebellion. I’ve seen little evidence of that. The School Strike for Climate asks that adults take control of their lives, their trades and their work-places – and that they begin to behave properly as adults should. It could have provided the spur to a real commons/real economic movement. Instead, we adults have cleverly betrayed the earnest eyes of children and have shrugged responsibility from ourselves to the abstract shoulders of an abstract THE PUBLIC ARE HUNGRY idea – a government; a corporation. Extinction Rebellion has betrayed FOR FOOD THEY CAN TRUST the School Strike, to fight what does not exist – only people and their resources exist. A corporation is an abstract idea, made physical by the LET GREEN OWL MANAGE very many purchases, which we ordinary adults make. To truly see YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA – AND the fabric of a corporation, watch a queue at a supermarket check-out, or count the clicks on their websites. Viva School Strike! - but it seems HELP GROW YOUR BUSINESS to me that Extinction Rebellion, remains locked in consumerism. It “Green Owl has helped build a community expresses the outrage of the green consumer. Already corporations around my veg box business through are re-writing mission statements to include those new ‘green’ social media. I know it’s all being markets. If it’s the coming thing, then it’s theirs to be exploited. Does done for me, so I can just get Extinction Rebellion ask for that exploitation? – Plainly, yes, since it on with other things.” asks for those corporate/government changes. Sonia Oliver, Coleshill Organics

But then again, some may demand sovereignty without caring

what they’d have sovereignty over and how – my life? your www.greenowlmedia.co.uk seeds? Do they ask for a simple transference of power from old

Page 35 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Obituary: Arthur Pearse 1927–2019 Organic growing lost one of its pioneers when Arthur Pearse died on 29th December 2019, at the age of 92. Together with his wife, Josephine, he established Tamarisk Farm and its market garden in West Bexington on the coast of Dorset near Bridport. Since the 1960s, when Tamarisk Farm was developing as one of the early organic farms in the South West, Arthur and Josephine have inspired generations of aspiring growers. Arthur’s beloved market garden by the sea continues to thrive as an important part of Tamarisk Farm, providing fresh vegetables to the surrounding area. Head in the clouds Arthur grew up in rural Somerset as the youngest child of a rural rector. He developed a deep love and knowledge of nature, especially butterflies and birds, from an early age and recalled cycling across Salisbury Plain one summer morning, accompanied by a loud chorus of sky larks. Coming to adulthood immediately post-war, conscription took him into the Air Force, where he trained as a pilot. Flying over East Anglia in the floods of 1947 he saw a river break its banks and bring a house down, then vast acres of agricultural land submerged. He picked up a lifelong fascination with the weather and cloud Arthur Pearse in 2003 formations, supported by studying meteorology at Southampton University. Following a year teaching Tamarisk Farm in Westminster Choir School, he went up to Oxford University to On settling in West Bexington, Arthur determined to achieve a read Geography. It was here that he met his wife to be, Josephine lifelong ambition and establish a small market garden. When he Bennett, on a biogeography field trip to South West France, leading and Josephine were offered the chance to buy 60 acres of farmland to a strong relationship that was to span seven decades. along the back of Chesil Beach, they took the plunge and started After graduation he continued for a year at Oxford studying Tamarisk Farm. Arthur named it on the spur of the moment one anthropology. He then married and had a spell of teaching in day when the Ordnance Survey were present editing the local map. Harlow New Town. Their first two children, Mark and Ellen were He called it after the abundant, salt-hardy shrub that grows on both born and they started growing vegetables to feed them, first in the the garden and the beach. Josephine came from a farming family window boxes of their flat, then in their garden. They bought Manor in Lincolnshire, so together with her knowledge of farming they Cottage in West Bexington in 1957. However, it was to be some forged a farm based on the principles of providing good, nutritious years before they were to settle in Dorset, as he took up a teaching food for their large family, while protecting nature. This was the post in Nigeria. These years proved to be formative for the new decade of Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring and the first negative family, as Arthur’s way of teaching and interacting led him close to effects of industrial farming were beginning to show in the UK. his students, allowing him to help some of them through different The Pearses were active in a campaign to prevent a nuclear power challenges and resulting in lifelong friendships. He, Josephine, Mark station being built on The Fleet, a few miles along the coast, and and Ellen, also absorbed the culture of Nigeria and its agriculture. their reed bed and wet meadow-land behind Chesil Beach became Arthur used to describe flying over towns in the north of Nigeria one of the earliest Dorset Wildlife Trust nature reserves. which were surrounded by desert, but with a ring of green around Their relationship with the Soil Association began when they were each town. These rings were determined by the distance a person starting gardening in Harlow, introduced to it by an influential could walk in a day with a hand cart of produce, to sell at the town Quaker friend, Sewell Harris. They continued reading and market. The fertility was generated by the cartload of night soil they learning while in Nigeria, where growing in an arid climate was would bring back on their return journey. Their third child, Joy, was a challenge they enjoyed. Once in Dorset their interest in organic born while they were in Nigeria, and she was followed by three farming expanded through meetings and visits with the great more children Christopher, Henry and Andrew after their return early pioneers in the South West, Rolf Gardiner, Ralph Coward to England in 1960. and Peter Joyce. Formal certification started in 1973 and they were

Page 36 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 amongst the first wave of Soil Association licencees. They received little clothing, but always his beloved knee pads, on his hands and an award in 2014 from the Soil Association for long continuous knees tackling a patch of couch or blasting white fly off brassicas certification and Tamarisk Farm continues to be organic, with a with a hose in one of the tunnels. His teaching skills came through substantial list on the trading schedule! in the garden, and he was fond of innovative ideas which could help make work easier. For example, when sowing a row of seeds, The garden grows he would move along the bed sideways and regulate the sowing Meanwhile, the market garden was established, year by year, rate by making a pinch of seed last the distance between his parted with shelter from the strong ‘Sou’Westers’ through the planting feet. He would then mark the open drill with twigs before covering of numerous trees as shelterbelts and in every corner. Rows the seeds to ensure that watering was directed to the right place. In of apple and pear trees went in, planted up the track way and windy West Bexington, he also perfected the art of keeping plastic around, sheltering first a large ‘Dutch Light’ greenhouse and on polytunnels, by using rope across the top, with a tyre tied on then various assorted polytunnels which were assembled to either side, and attaching the plastic at waist height to a batton create protected cropping areas. Blackcurrants and other soft rail, enabling the loose plastic below to be lifted out to weed couch fruit bushes provided further shelter for outdoor salads. Over the roots. His legacy of sand laid around the base of tunnels to facilitate years, Arthur continued some teaching, initially working a few weeding the couch out of the heavy clay remains to this day. hours a week in the schools their children attended and some evenings at the Weymouth Technical College. Later, he was head- Latter years hunted to become a lecturer in sociology at the College. Over the Arthur’s sense of humour was years, many wider family members, local people and WWOOFers also well known among the helped with the endeavour of building up the farm. Arthur’s sister generations who WWOOFed and brother-in-law were involved in the biodynamic movement at Tamarisk Farm - always around Stroud and summer days brought the cousins together to subtle and understated, but help with haymaking, weeding and harvesting of quantities of fruit wonderfully funny. Many and vegetables. In the early 1980s Arthur and Josephine bought times, when I have mentioned a two acre garden up the hill, where three 1920s holiday chalets that I grow vegetables at were added to the accommodation for a relay of WWOOFers. Tamarisk Farm, people While some stayed only a week or two, others stayed for years. have said, “Oh I remember Photos: Tamarisk Farm Tamarisk Farm. I WWOOFed Happy summers were spent by many friends and family on the Arthur Pearse in 2017 there years ago. How are farm, with hot work parties cooling themselves in the sea before Arthur and Josephine?” Until about five years ago, when Arthur lunchtime picnics and by moonlight after hard evenings of was in his late 80s, I was able to say, “Yes, they are well, Arthur haymaking. Through the 1970s and 80s Tamarisk Farm became still works in the garden every day……..”. We all thought he known as a landmark where people could buy strawberries and would continue in the garden until the end of his life, but a broken other fresh produce from the stall on the wall. Tamarisk tomatoes hip in 2016 abruptly ended his days in the market garden. After became legendary in the Bridport area for their flavour. In the Josephine had nursed him back from a few worrying months 1980s, after Arthur retired from his job at Weymouth College, in and out of hospital, they turned their attention to the garden production was stepped up a notch. For about 15 years he and behind Manor Cottage. Together they designed and created a Josephine ran a vegetable box scheme which distinguished itself beautiful amphitheatre of colour, which they could enjoy from by running all year round and only using produce from Tamarisk their terrace or sunny conservatory. Although they both stayed Farm. Self sufficiency and nourishing food were prime motivating closer to Manor Cottage in recent years, Josephine and Arthur factors for Arthur and Josephine and their family. Over the years, continued to welcome us all – family and farm workers – into many different farming enterprises were tried, ranging from elevenses each week day. This ritual of sharing tea, bread and Anglo Nubian goats and 20 breeding sows in the early years, to cheese and stimulating conversation, whether about how to plant the current mix of vegetables, sheep, cattle, cereals and pulses runner beans, the finer points of milling or Australian Aboriginal and laying hens. In the 1980s Arthur and Josephine’s daughter art, was typical of the warm hospitality with which all have been Ellen and her husband Adam returned to the farm, and now welcomed to Manor Cottage for decades. their grand-daughter Leila and her partner Ben have joined them. Together they have all developed a farm environment which Josephine’s care of Arthur in his final years was inspiring and nurtures both human and natural life, with rare and abundant devoted. They had the pleasure of welcoming five great grand- wildflowers, insects and birds living side by side with contented children in recent years, and were surrounded by all three Red Devon Cattle, sheep, hens and diverse crops. generations of their family for that final Christmas. Arthur is survived by his wife Josephine, six children, sixteen grandchildren Arthur loved the sun, and was never happier than when working and five great grand-children. in the garden with the warm air of summer on his skin. On a hot day, until only a few years ago he could be found wearing very Rebecca Laughton and Josephine Pearse

Page 37 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Nature note – plant life There is another thing about weed seedlings, and that is their apparent ability to germinate preferentially among the very crop plants that they resemble. I can’t be the only organic grower to have come up against this notion, while shuffling up the row with eyes and nose to the ground. I had a reminder of this the other day while weeding out a newly planted flower border. Over the several square yards of the whole I came across only one seedling mayweed. It was hidden among the prostrate fronds of a little anthemis for which its leaf shape was a spitting image, save for a difference in shade between them. Probably mayweed is always a likely candidate for this sort of subterfuge. That’s because it’s the form of the carrot that it most commonly resembles, and of all crops it’s carrots that are most likely to demand hand-weeding and thus give the greatest chance for this sort of observation, or fancy. Alliums are another crop that often want close attention in their slow infancy. Then you find it’s tiny grasses that have seized their chance to trick the eye. Add to this the belief I’ve come across among weeders that ‘it’s only grass’ and can be ignored and you have the beginning of a problem.

It’s all illusory of course, simply a result of more of the seedlings the attention of credulous hippies. This maintained that before that happen to resemble the crop being overlooked than those that going into some woodland in order to fell a tree the tribespeople don’t. All the same I wouldn’t put it past them – plants I mean. It’s would announce their intention of so doing. At this all the trees not as if they are not alive, and all things that live use whatever would faint. Quite what the point of this was I forget, presumably a strategies are available to hang on to life, to flourish and increase form of self-anaesthesia, but the idea of trees communicating didn’t if they can and at the least to perpetuate their kind. seem far-fetched. Trees and all other plants form communities, and communities communicate – of course they do! It’s one of the pleasures of being an organic grower that you do often have your nose to the ground, this being the position from Our monotheisms proclaim humanity’s separation from the rest which life in all its miniaturised fascination is best observed. The of life as the Crown of Creation, empowered to do what it will livestock farmer and still more the arable farmer, especially now with the world. The Reformation and Enlightenment did for the that they are cocooned in a sealed tractor cab, see little of this – remaining magic and since the Industrial Revolution, when most though they may have more familiarity with the longer view. It’s of us left the land, we’ve practically ceased to invest different a truism that farmers on the whole make lousy gardeners. Broad plants and animals with special powers and qualities. Our sciences acres of cereals or rape don’t encourage interest in the individual have tended to reduce everything to separate bits of disconnected plant while the stockman, used to a charge that moves and makes matter, as knowledge has replaced wisdom and been replaced in noises, tend to view plants as inanimate objects. its turn by information. Lately though the process seems in some respects to have got to the other side, microbiology revealing But the art of good husbandry, stockmanship - the observation, complexities and relationships that previously we could hardly empathy and care that together make a good farmer - applies just have guessed at. I think of Peter Wohlleben and his book The as much to plants as it does to animals. In some ways more, as Hidden Life of Trees which has had a wide readership and which plants cannot move to find shade or water – something to explain credibly animates the woods and forests. Among other things to your planning officer perhaps. The crops we grow are as much he shows how trees do communicate, through scents and via the a product of domestication as the animals we keep, and as we mycorrhizal network, which he calls the wood-wide web. And if have domesticated ourselves in the process. They have swapped trees – why not all plant life? It’s only a matter of our perception of the determined survivability of their wild forebears for a fat and size, and as Chairman Mao put it in some other context - “size is of cosseted life, and that’s why we have to nurture them as they the least importance, for a giant corpse only feeds more vultures”. succour us. Or is it the other way round? Either way our crops and animals would be as lost without us as we’d be lost without Here we come back to organic agriculture, which time and again them. We’re all domesticated together. has shown itself in advance of the mainstream in understanding and wisdom. It was Sir Albert Howard in ‘An Agricultural It’s different in the wild. Our weeds can’t move of their own accord, Testament’ (1940) who first gave mycorrhizal associations the but they have ways of spreading their progeny about and generally prominence that they undoubtedly have. Lady Balfour built on making a mess of what we’re trying to do. You could call it agency, and expanded this theme in ‘The Living Soil’ three years later. without that implying any more than a mechanical and choice- Both are still worth reading, as much now as they were then. less mode of life. But at the other extreme of growth – a tree that Meanwhile you can now buy mycorrhizal fungi from your has stood for several human lifetimes and that, as it towers above garden supplier - £11-95 for a 360 g pouch (probably cheaper on us, exhibits clear signs of individuality – you might believe that the internet). But you’re an organic grower, so you don’t need to! it knows something we don’t. The branches reach into the sky we cannot ourselves inhabit and the roots go places where we Tim Deane can’t follow. I remember reading a reference to Native American forestry practice, probably in some publication designed to catch

Page 38 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Page 39 - The Organic Grower - No 53 Winter 2020 Events OGA Christmas Every Sunday in January 2021. Real Organic Virtual Symposium. 3-5pm EST (8-10pm GMT). A virtual series of talks and live panels, Quiz 2020 organised by the Real Organic Project in the US, with more than 50 1. In cooking, a mirepoix traditionally includes prominent organic farmers, scientists, and climate activists which three chopped vegetables?

• Sunday January 3rd: What is the Real Organic Project? 2. Which island in the Venetian lagoon is associated with a • Sunday January 10th: What is soil health? variety of beetroot and a variety of radicchio? • Sunday January 17th: Farming and climate 3. Which Japanese island gives its name to a variety of winter • Sunday January 24th: Health and nutrition squash? • SundayJanuary 31st: What can we do? https://www.realorganicsymposium.org/ 4. What is a landrace plant?

Thursday 7th to Wednesday 13th January, 2021: ORFC Global 5. A Hutton Period alert is a warning about which plant 2021. ORFC are working with partners around the world to host a disease? groundbreaking and radical ‘real’ farming conference online. The 6. PIWI vine varieties have resistance to which plant diseases? seven-day event will give farmers, food producers, researchers, policy-makers, NGOs and all those who support a better food 7. “The three sisters” is a system of growing which three food and farming system the chance to come together as a movement, plants together? exchange ideas, learn from each other and perhaps form new 8. What does the word ‘Kuri’ mean as in Kuri squash? alliances across six continents. https://orfc.org.uk/ 9. What kind of foodstuff is “finely cut raw cabbage fermented by lactic acid bacteria”?

10. Which country leads the world in olive oil production? Merry Christmas David Frost Answers page 27 and Happy New

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