Farm

History

Sunnyfields farm was converted to organics 1986 by the landowner who then employed a manager to run the farm. It initially supplied several supermarkets with a limited range of crops. The manager left in 1989 at which point Ian and Louise Nelson took the farm on as tenants. Ian and Louise were already running Naturally Best Foods an organic home delivery business which provided a valuable outlet for the farm. In addition a farm shop was soon built to provide the other main outlet for the farms produce. From this base it has grown to be a considerable business employing up to thirty people during the summer growing over eighty different crops both in the field and in polytunnels.

The land

The farm is 9 ha (30 acre) of grade two and three clay soil over a solid clay base which is a challenging soil for growing vegetables in. There are seven rather irregularly shaped fields with good hedgerows which is wonderful for wildlife but means that there is only about 7 ha of land available for growing In 2001 an additional 5 ha certified organic field of grade one silt over gravel was taken on allowing a considerable increase in the amount of crops grown.

How we farm

Rotation

We have a seven year flexible rotation. For two years the land is down to a grass clover sward which is occasionally mown. In future we plan to have organic chickens for eggs and meat which will graze the pasture. For the other five years we grow a range of vegetables making sure that the same crop family are not grown on the same ground more than once every four years. Some crops that are particularly vulnerable to soil bourn pests and diseases, such as brassicas we prefer to grown even less frequently on the same piece of land.

We regularly apply composted farm yard manure or certified organic municipal compost to maintain soil health and supply nutrients.

Cultivation

We use a six food 'bed system' where the tractor tyres always travel in the same place creating a wheeling thus keeping the soil in-between free of compaction. The main form of cultivation is to loosen the soil between the wheelings with ridged leg tines then follow that with a bedformer to create a tilth and level seed bed.

Planting

Nearly all our crops are transplanted with the exception of root vegetables and sweet corn. Using transplants makes better use of our limited land area and gives the crops a head start over the weeds. All the plants are planted by hand with four rows always fourteen inches apart to a bed. We vary the spacing of the plants along the row to get the right crop densities.

Pests and disease

We have very few problems with invertebrate pests and diseases due to the wide number of crops we grow, our diverse rotations and the biodiversity on our farm. Vertebrate pests are a much bigger problem, particularly rabbits which we fence off, and birds against which we use enviromesh covers over the crop.

Weed control

Our main methods for weed control are our diverse rotation, non-soil inverting cultivation techniques, false seed beds for transplants and stale seed beds utilising a flame weeder for drilled crops. After planting we use a customised brush hoe with mini ridgers for most of the weeding and then hand weed when necessary.

Irrigation

We irrigate to get optimal yields from the crops and to ensure recently planted crops survive until they get their roots down. For newly planted crops we use a custom made water bowser fitted to a tractor that puts a good measure of water down the crop row. For bigger crops we use hand moved sprinklers or reel irrigators.

Harvesting

Most crops are harvested by hand to order. The main exception is potatoes which can not be overwintered in the ground in the UK. The produce is normally harvested into field crates and then taken to the packhouse to be sorted and packed.