We work using no-dig practices but what exactly does that mean?

The soil should be left undisturbed as much as possible. You may occasionally need to use a trowel or a fork when planting certain crops or removing stubborn roots but the aim is to greatly minimise soil cultivation.

You should also feed the earth by adding organic matter to the surface, imitating what would happen in nature where any dead material decomposes on the soil surface before being incorporated further into the soil by organisms. Plants are grown directly into this layer of organic matter.

This way of working is more time efficient but why else is it a good way to grow?

By reducing disturbance to the earth you are allowing important organisms to create a healthy soil environment for plant growth. Structure is improved by busy earthworms, insects and other microorganisms as they create a balance of different sized soil particles and air space, allowing plant roots access to water, air and nutrients. With good structure there is a reduced chance of soil compaction and drainage problems.

Adding organic matter encourages the busy soil organisms and a healthy fungal network, both of which increase plant access to beneficial nutrients. Mycorrhizal fungi forms a symbiotic relationship with plant roots; fungi accesses hard to reach and immobile nutrients in exchange for plant sugars. Soil organisms breakdown organic matter into a form that is readily available to plants.

No-dig avoids bringing annual weed seeds to the soil surface where they will germinate but more importantly, it avoids releasing stored carbon into the atmosphere.

Leading voice on no-dig growing, Charles Dowding, has shown that these practices not only encourage a healthier crop but also increase the overall yield.

How do we put no-dig into practice on the farm?

To create beds we first put down a layer of cardboard to suppress grass and weed growth and then shovelled on a layer of mulch around 5 inches deep. The card and mulch prevents most weed growth but not all, so in the first year we did have to do some weeding. Cardboard and bark chip pathways around the beds also help to suppress weeds and prevent them from invading bed edges. We chose not to use wooden bed sides as these make an excellent hiding place for slugs and other pests!

We add a layer of farm made compost onto the beds each winter to feed the soil for the following season.

Our outdoor beds are 1.2m wide and 5m long, with pathways of 45cm wide. It was important for us not to create beds too long or wide, so we can move from one bed to another quickly, without walking over crops, and harvest efficiently.

September 2025 - Spent sweet peas, ready to be composted

January 2026 - Farm made compost, matured for 12 months

January 2026 - Planting into bed mulched with farm compost

To kick-start our first year of growing, we bought in locally made compost which was good quality but very expensive. For us, creating our own compost quite quickly became one of the most important and rewarding parts of no-dig farming, it means no part of the crops go to waste and it saves money.

Throughout the opening season we were able to build our own composting set up and added in a huge amount of waste material from the farm and neighbouring businesses; spent crops, cut grass, bark chip, coffee chaff, spent hops, autumn leaves, kitchen waste, card and woody branches. The result in the winter was a delicious farm made compost!