Future farming at School Farm, Dartington

Nick Gooderham

Salad-loving staff and tenants will be well aware of fresh salad sprouting in the entrances of many buildings around the estate. These are just some of the fruits of the recent hard work at School Farm where pioneer horticulturalist, Nick Gooderham, has been breathing new life into the previously unoccupied premises. This spring two dilapidated tunnels received new skins and more land was prepared for the busiest growing season the site will have seen for years.

School Farm is more than just a salad growing operation. Nick, an experienced horticulturalist previously at Suttons Seeds, is pioneering low-carbon growing technology based on organic standards and a ‘minimum tillage’ policy; disturbing the soil as little as possible. The project is borne out of our Landscope initiative which aims to regenerate the landscape through sustainable, land-based business and enterprise.

One of Landscope’s key sectors is ‘future farming’; developing ways to grow our food in an oil-scarce world. Our current methods of food production are highly dependent on cheap oil and contribute significantly to our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions so developing ways to feed ourselves in the future is a very pressing issue.

School Farm is working without reliance on artificial pesticides and fertilizers, intense use of machinery or regular disturbance of the soil, which releases a surprising amount of GHG emissions and reduces soil fertility.

Despite the belting start to this season, with some of the glasshouses being sprayed white to slow things down (in April), this is hard work and the margins are tight. Nick has been grateful for the involvement of Dartington villagers and staff as volunteers, distributors and customers.

Look out for those salad bags and other seasonal School Farm produce for sale biweekly at Foxhole, Blacklers, the Gallery, Warren House, the Barn, Parks School and Schumacher College.

For further information about Landscope at Dartington Schumacher College, click here http://www.dartington.org/landscope/

Schumacher College is part of the Dartington Hall Trust, a company limited by guarantee, registered in England and as a charity (company no. 1485560, charity no. 279756). Registered office: The Elmhirst Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon TQ9 6EL, UK.