Polyculture

A holistic approach to edible gardening

with Alys Fowler

Friday 17 May 2024

10am - 4pm (arrive at 9.30 for coffee/tea)

£120

Group Size - 10 people

Polyculture is when many diverse edibles plants are growing together to create a thriving ecosystem that not only provides you with food, but supports the soil food webs and above ground wildlife too.

Successful polyculture systems also have lower demands in terms of feeding, watering and weeding.

We will spend the day with Alys, looking how to grow edible plants using ecological growing methods, taking an in-depth look at polyculture growing systems for productive gardens.

We will explore which vegetables to grow, including perennial vegetables, fruit, and unusual edibles. We dive into soil ecology, light requirements and home breeding to get the most out of your polyculture mixes. Ideal for all levels of experience.

Alys Fowler is a gardener and writer with a longstanding commitment to growing food sustainably and to community gardening. She trained at the Royal Horticultural Society Wisley, The New York Botanical Gardens and The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. She writes a weekly column on gardening for the Guardian Weekend Magazine and is the author of six books including The Thrifty Gardener in 2008, The Edible Garden in 2010, which accompanied a BBC TV series and Hidden Nature which was shortlisted for the Wainwright Prize. She has recently moved from Birmingham to Wales where she is creating a new garden and teaching at Aberystwyth University.

Lunch 

Alison will prepare a simple vegetarian lunch including produce from the garden. We will round up the day with tea and cake. If you have any specific dietary requests do let us know on the booking form.

What to Bring

Check the weather forecast before you travel and ensure you bring appropriate clothing, whether that’s waterproofs or sun hats, or possibly both!  You may wish to bring a notebook and camera too.

Getting Here

Directions will be emailed to you a couple of weeks before the workshop. Use Damson Farm rather than the postcode on Google Maps.

Accessible Payment Options

We would like this workshop to be accessible to those are on a low income, particularly, though not exclusively, gardeners or other land workers. If the full price is a stretch for you please email alison@alisonjenkins.co.uk to chat about the options.

Cancellation policy

As a small business it’s not sustainable to offer refunds. However if you need to cancel your place up to 28 days before the event you will be offered a credit towards another workshop.   After that time, the offer only applies if we’ve been able to re-sell the place. It’s not possible to promote cancelled places for re-sale less than 4 days before the event.