Organic vegetable growing for beginners

The aim of our organic vegetable growing course is to provide a fun and informative day that will enable you to leave with the confidence and inspiration to plant, grow, harvest and eat organic vegetables.

During the day we’ll cover the following:

• What you need to start a kitchen garden

• Where to site your kitchen garden

• How to prepare your planting area using the no dig philosophy and its benefits

• Composts and mulch, the different types what to use when and in what quantity

• Seeds - where to source them and how best to grow them

• Seasonality - what to plant when and how much to plant

• Crop and soil management

• How best to sow - modules/direct sowing

• Plant Association to reduce pest and disease and maximise crops

• Advantages of polytunnels/greenhouses/covered growing area

Including both practical and theory, the course runs from 10:30am - 4pm and is held in a tent on the lawn at our farm. Home cooked lunch and refreshments will be provided, using ingredients sourced either from Batelease Farm or locally. Please bring wet weather gear if required, as there will be excursions to the land.

Alasdair Cameron, owner of Batelease Farm, will be your teacher for the day. Alasdair is trained in both garden and interior design, with 17 years experience in designing, building, maintaining and planting gardens of all shapes and sizes all over the UK.

Alasdair is passionate about the landscape, nature and plants both flowering and vegetable. He sees the courses he runs as a chance to share his knowledge and enthusiasm and give others the confidence to enjoy growing.

In December 2005 Alasdair and Tor Cameron collected the keys to Batelease Farm, once a working farm with approximately 100 acres, in 2005 ten acres of unmanaged land and a cob house with one sink, an ancient coal rayburn, concrete floors and not much roof to talk of. Both the land and house were in need of a radical make over and this is still an ongoing process!

Alasdair and Tor’s vision for Batelease Farm is to grow as much of their own food as possible, within the realms of a landscaped garden and a working smallholding. The farm provides a beautiful backdrop for people to visit and learn more about gardening.