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Windrow

In front of you is our windrow composting. We use cuttings from Wakelyns meadow here mixed with veg plant waste. It is mounded in a long row and turned once or twice by hand.

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We've been putting up the caterpillar tunnels this

We've been putting up the caterpillar tunnels this week ready for the start of the summer season. The hoops which were bent from the strong winds have been switched around 180 and the structures are looking lovely and symmetrical.
🧄
Due to the garlic being in both tunnels, we're going to leave the sides up high, keeping the garlic vented rather than creating a hot house. Tomato strings can go in and we plan to plant them out on Friday. Tomatoes won't need to high heat that chilies will, meaning we can still keep the sides up for the garlic.
🍅
#organicvegsuffolk #vegsharesuffolk #diycaterpillartunnel

Our new @therooapron so wonderful for cropping PSB

Our new @therooapron so wonderful for cropping PSB :) what a dream to use. Very excited to have these in our tool shed now...
🦘
#vegshares #suffolkvegbox #suffolkcsa

Florence fennel and chioggia beets straight out of

Florence fennel and chioggia beets straight out of the CAT tunnels going to @goodery_uk for their veg boxes.
🌱
We've actually dropped the CAT cover now, as the days are getting too warm for the winter crops. This is the wonderful thing about CAT tunnels, they can go from covered space to open air space in about an hour.

LIVING COMPOST DAY...what a beautiful day with @co

LIVING COMPOST DAY...what a beautiful day with @compost.club
🍂
Thanks so much to @compost.michael for coming and sharing his catching enthusiasm. Soil and compost changed this mans life...bringing him into a new career, and out of himself with the diversification of his microbiome via more hands in the compost, well, that's what we spoke about at lunchtime anyways, there's no scientific proof of it, but we both felt it was very likely.
💫
The morning was focused on SOIL, and the work of @dr.elainer.ingham of @soilfoodwebschool we spoke about the wide array of life down there within the busy highway under our feet. We also spoke about COMPOSTING techniques, and the options and theory behind each. The afternoon shone lovely sun on us while we made two small composting units (see pics)...one of Elaine Inghams design, and a Johnson Su bioreactor using materials that we had in abundance on the market garden. We'll keep you up to date on progress within the two towers...
🌞
Scrummy 2 course hungry gap lunch and elevenses were provided by @wakelynsbakery Thanks Henny!
❤️

The mushroom tunnel got it's sliding door yesterda

The mushroom tunnel got it's sliding door yesterday and the rest of the shade, netting and final, finishing touches of wood, and is now ready for its raised beds. We'll make them out of scaffolding boards.
🪵
We really can't wait to get the beds made, the Poplar chipped (as Ramiel), and this spawn in. And then, to wait and watch and keep watered...
🚿
#suffolkorganic #growyourown #mushroomtunnel #organiccsa #vegboxsuffolk #vegsharesuffolk

@charles_dowding @wakelyns 2024 what a lovely trea

@charles_dowding @wakelyns 2024 what a lovely treat, aside the rain just as we were going out!
🌧️
40 people spent the day with us and Charles in the office building of Wakelyns. We had a lively and informative slideshow for the morning, with a delicious lunch from Henrietta and her team @wakelynsbakery followed by a small tour of our market garden and caterpillar tunnels. The afternoon outdoors session finished making a central heart-shaped no dig flowerbed by our Compost area.
❤️
Usually with no dig the aim is for as few edges as possible as this is where weeds can encroach and they can be hard work to maintain. However, having left a heart shape un-mown for the last three years and really enjoyed having it in the centre of our alleys it felt appropriate. This is often where we come together to share lunch and it's right by our tool shed, and Compost area. It's going to look gorgeous full of flowers.
🌸
Thanks again Charles for coming all this way, and sharing your enthusiasm and deep understanding with us all.
The evening talk had a good 70 attendants, and was hosted by Claire of @contemporaryhempery
🌿
#nodig #vegboxsuffolk #organicvegsuffolk #charlesdowding #wakelyns #wakelynsbakery

Chloe and Dimitri getting out the rest of the broa

Chloe and Dimitri getting out the rest of the broad beans on Monday under the glorious sunshine. The land here at Wakelyns is very heavy clay, as you can most probably see from the photo. Whilst we dream of it being lighter and easier to work, we are very grateful for how it holds the moisture through the summer, and for all the minerals it contains.
🌱
#organicsuffolk #growvegsuffolk #suffolkfood #suffolksmallscaleagriculture

Beautiful rainbow chard coming off the field this

Beautiful rainbow chard coming off the field this week, well out of the caterpillar tunnel in fact. When the leaves are young like this colour is so vibrant. They're going really well for us inside the caterpillar. Is the first time we've done a fresh autumn sowing for an early spring crop like this.
🍃
At the moment, we are wholesaling crop, as we are not running the CSA veg shares, which need a lot of weekly diversity. There CSA veg shares will be back up and running from June this year. Reserve your space if you are local and want one!
Otherwise, chefs and cooks do you get in touch to buy our beautiful local Organic produce...
🥗
#organicsuffolk #suffolkchefs #wholesalevegsuffolk #localfoodsuffolk #smallscaleag #seasonalsuffolk

Broadbeans have started to go in now. They're one

Broadbeans have started to go in now. They're one of our first crops to be sown, year on year. Who doesn't love a broadbean, cooked young and in pod. Ouu, we can't wait...
🌱
#marketgardensuffolk #organicvegsuffolk

No Dig Day Course based at RealVeg CSA, Wakelyns i

No Dig Day Course based at RealVeg CSA, Wakelyns in Suffolk
📔 Sunday, 10 March '24 10:30am – 4pm GMT
📍 Wakelyns, Metfield Lane, Fressingfield, Eye, Suffolk, IP21 5SD
https://bookwhen.com/charlesdowding/e/ev-s7c3-20240310103000
🪱
We invite you to a no dig day course all about how to grow abundant and healthy vegetables using this time- and soil-saving method. The team from RealVeg CSA have the ideal setting for a no dig course in the heart of Suffolk.
🌳
@wakelyns is one of the longest-established and most diverse Agroforestry sites in Europe. The small land-based businesses based at Wakelyns collaborate to maximise the contribution to and from their 23 hectares. RealVeg CSA operate their no dig veg box scheme in the alleyways. The site presents one or two challenges and we will look at solutions, as well as gleaning insights into no dig generally.
🍎
The focus of the day is how to grow and how to get a vegetable bed started. As a group, we'll make a no dig bed on the day. Before that Charles will give a slideshow to explain the background, and methods he recommends.
🪵
You will get to see and understand why undisturbed soil is so beneficial. The no dig method promotes strong growth, water retention and good drainage, and the result is fewer weeds. Charles will cover compost and how to make it, succession planting and interplanting. The RealVeg team will share their story and their experiences with no dig at points throughout the day. This course is for beginners and those more experienced gardeners who want to learn more about no dig.
🐜
Refreshments and lunch included
Included in the ticket cost is a bountiful and seasonal elevenses and a two course lunch. Henrietta Inman @wakelynsbakery is a cook, baker and author and will be our chef for the day, supported by the Wakelyns Bakery team. Her food is inspired by and created with the abundance from the arable alleys and tree lines of Wakelyns' diversely beautiful agroforestry system. Henrietta uses produce from RealVeg CSA, all no dig of course!
🥬
#nodigsuffolk #marketgardensuffolk #nodig #charlesdowding #wakelynsagroforestry

The mushroom shade tunnel has been getting its cov

The mushroom shade tunnel has been getting its cover fitted this week. @firsttunnels provided the shade net, which Holly stitched together to suit our tunnel. It fit like a glove and needs a few final tweaks before we hang the sliding door.
🛞
This tunnel was kindly donated by Jacqui and Andy Worsley who visited @wakelyns last year on one of our open days. They're friends of friends and wanted the tunnel out of their garden, where it had been successfully growing food for them for 12 years!
🥬
We plan to utilise the tunnel to grow more wine caps, which were a roaring success last year. Also we'll use the space to setup some shiitake logs, which will fruit in a few years and some other varieties of mushroom, hopefully keeping us in production most of the year round. We're fine tuning the last details of it all now, and it's very exciting.
🍄
Huge thanks to Dmitry and David for your help with take down, transport, construction and covering. And, additionally to David for donating the sliding door mechanism, which will hopefully make things nice and smooth.
🪚
Being situated within @wakelyns agroforestry means we've access to fresh woodchip, an idea growing medium for certain spps of mushrooms. The tree alleys provide a certain amount of shading, which we're utilising as much as possible by placement next to the mature sizeable seabuckthron.
Watch this space...
#suffolkmushrooms #gourmetmushroomssuffolk #winecapssuffolk #wakelynsagroforestry

LIVING COMPOST DAY 30th March with Michael Kennard

LIVING COMPOST DAY 30th March with Michael Kennard of @compost.club Brighton...book your tickets now via https://wakelyns.co.uk/events/living-compost-day/
🪱
The day will run 9:30-4pm, and ticket price of £60 includes lunch and elevenses from our homegirl Hen @wakelynsbakery
🍪
We’ll be covering the soil food web and all the microorganisms that do the following:
Naturally cycle nutrients.
Build soil structure.
Naturally suppress weeds, diseases and pests.
🪱
We’ll touch on how the soil microbiome can influence the food we eat and therefore our own health, as well as it’s potential to sequester carbon.
🪵
There will be examples of effective composting methods, discussing pros and cons in different situations and how you can design the right composting system for you.
🌳
In the afternoon we will build a compost bay together so that you can go away with practical knowledge.
🔨
There will be loads of time throughout the day for your questions as well.
💬
The aim is to get you started or up skill your composting and deepen our understanding of the diverse ecosystem that is our soil, to lead us into a regenerative future.
♻️
If coming from far away, why not stay over in a Wakelyns Ley Alley Pod, or come as a group and book out the beautiful farm house @wakelyns
🌸
#compostclubsuffolk #compostedsuffolk #compostforlife #wakelyns
Ps: photo credits various, from @compost.club grid

There's nothing more satisfying than freshly woodc

There's nothing more satisfying than freshly woodchiped paths! These are in a second, very windswept, looking caterpillar tunnel.
🌬️
We'll have to do something about this wind-sweep once all the storms have stopped. Both tunnels are presently showing this distorted shape. We'll have to unlace drop the cover and probably turn the ribs around to let the wind almost blow them back into shape.
🌬️
We don't plan on leaving the tunnels up again next winter, so will drop them and use low tunnels on individual beds.
🌬️
Hope your tunnels are holding up!
#diytunnels #caterpillartunnel #marketgardensuffolk #smallscaefarmingsuffolk

New tunnel got some woodwork today. Next thing, a

New tunnel got some woodwork today. Next thing, a cover...watch this space.
#diypolytunnel #organicfoodsuffolk #organicsuffolk

@charles_dowding @wakelyns 10th MARCH. There's tw

@charles_dowding @wakelyns 10th MARCH.
There's two options this year:
A day course 10:30-4pm, with refreshments and a delicious local lunch from @wakelynsbakery £120.
https://bookwhen.com/charlesdowding/e/ev-s7c3-20240310103000
And, an evening talk 7-8:30pm @contemporaryhempery HQ in Fressingfield £12 including refreshments.
https://bookwhen.com/charlesdowding#focus=ev-s69a-20240310190000
🐌
The day course will begin inside with Charles talking all things No Dig, and in the afternoon we'll go out into the RealVeg alleys and focus on how to grow and get a vegetable bed started. You will get to see and understand why undisturbed soil is so beneficial. The no dig method promotes strong growth, water retention and good drainage, and the result is fewer weeds. This course is for beginners and those more experienced gardeners who want to learn more about no dig.
🌳
The evening talk will focus on why Charles puts a mulch of compost on top of each bed each year and lots of other ways to get the most out of your garden. We'll look at composting, succession planting, inter-cropping and see the result from his trial beds at Homeacres.
🥕
BOOK NOW to avoid disappointment, and we look forward to seeing you all.
❤️

Firstly, HAPPY NEW YEAR all you veg and community

Firstly, HAPPY NEW YEAR all you veg and community minded people out there x
🎆
Secondly, Thanks so much to @tnlcommunityfund for the second round of funding we received in the latter part of last year. This lot will help us deliver community days and develop our compost making abilities and facilities.
🪱
Without funding lots of small scale farms would struggle to make ends meet. We, running our business from very rural Suffolk don't have the catchment benefits of being peri-urban or indeed urban. Our business is also young, coming into its forth season this year 2024 coming, so diversification of our business streams is underway but not fully developed. Thanks again @tnlcommunityfund for the support, we appreciate it so much, you're helping us build local food resilience, farming based communities and Agriculture Supported Community aswell as feeding the soils and nurturing the local fungai.
🍄
#lotterysupport #lotteryfunded #localfoodproject #supportsmallscalefarming
Ps. Beautiful graphic in the first slide is from Eve on the architecture program @central_st_martins

We've hooked up water catchment on the pack shed,

We've hooked up water catchment on the pack shed, and feeling very happy about the tidy up in-front of the shed. More space for pulling our veg around without sliding about in the mud!
🪣
#watercatchment #smallfarmsuffolk #diyordie

Various states of ripeness on the tomato front at

Various states of ripeness on the tomato front at this time of year, but also, especially after the summer we've had... was not quite enough heat and sun to ripen all of the Solanaceae. These have been the vines and ripening in the tunnel for the last week as we needed to move the tunnel. The red ones are going into shares and greens will go in next week.
🍅
#vegofsuffolk #csasuffolk #organicvegsuffolk

Annnnd it's up (again)! Yay!! Some refinements we

Annnnd it's up (again)! Yay!!
Some refinements were needed, we made some tweaks here and there, and we'll need to redo the scissor doors to make them really nice and tight, but otherwise a fun and dynamic day.
🔨
Now we can get on with planting out the rest of oriental winter greens and overwintering salads.
🥗
#diycaterpillar #csasuffolk #growyourownsuffolk

We worked on preparing the beds in the new positio

We worked on preparing the beds in the new position of the caterpillar tunnel today. Moving over the last bits of the wind row and putting them on the wider central bed.
🪱
The window has been quite a success this year, in that it's provided us with a lot of material. We've also topped all of the beds in the other caterpillar tunnel and put it to other beds throughout the year. It was pretty easy to make with Meadow cuttings, woodchip, grass mowings (dry and fresh), bits and bobs of veg trimmings, sheeps wool, some comfrey liquid (from fermented leaves), and anything else we could get our hands on from around the farm (though, I think the list just about covers it).
🍃
we've just started a new pile which is already getting quite sizable, as there are various clearing jobs that happen this time of year, and it's warm enough for the mowing to keep need doing.
🍂
The two side beds of the caterpillar tunnel (to be) in the picture I'm going to be covered in a home-made compost which is been made with quite a lot of woodchip this year, meaning that it feels a bit more like a mulch than a compost. We are still quite happy with it, though as a mulch material. But going forward we do plan to pop in slightly less woodchip to the compost bays.
🪵
Watch this space for the ridgepole going in, the cover going on, and the beds all being planted up in the near future. Most probably after the storm, which is about to start coming through.
🌬️
#csasuffolk #marketgardensuffolk #smallscaleagsuffolk #diysuffolk #compostsuffolk

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