Author: britishseabuckthorn

Uncategorized

Euroworks and trials to deliver a post Brexit future

britishseabuckthorn

Last week was the biannual Euroworks conference in Latvia. These conferences always provide a great opportunity to network and learn from other experts in the European sea buckthorn industry.  With either Matt or I having attended every one since 2010, it was a great disappointment not to go this year. Brexit has caste a shadow over the future which needs careful thought in ensuring the whole farm has a capacity to move forward. Like it or not the EU Common Agricultural policy has provided an understandable system for decades. Subsidies are at the heart of this providing food security and affordability as well as helping to protect the environment. The announcement from the government that subsidies are guaranteed until 2020 offers is little comfort if Brexit is not going to be triggered until 2019 anyway.

As coastal farmers there are uncertainties over the future maintenance of sea walls. This is not new, but the potential of further government spending cuts will not help this position.

The funding of agri-environmental scheme that were targeted at taking land out of food growing and providing habitat for often rare and threatened species is also under threat.

But life will go on – as with the issues with climate change, it is all about flexibility and being willing to adapt. The sea buckthorn at Devereux farm is looking healthy. The regular doses of compost tea are achieving the desired results and the plants will be going forward into 2017 both strong and healthy. It is clear that the European varieties from Germany and Latvia grow without issues here. They yield well and can be harvested by branch cutting and freezing without problem. Seth Pascoe down at Cornish Sea Berry has had a great harvest so far with his Sirola german variety being first to ripen and deliver.

The Siberian varieties I have faith in as their berries are larger and sweeter. The first challenge was to reduce the risk from disease which has been achieved this year. The focus for 2017 will be to reduce the loss of the harvest to birds. Devereux farm is next to the Hamford water national nature reserve. We have just had a report of over 500 pages produced indicating the number of species present on the farm. It illustrates the habitat creation work on farm delivers a healthy bio diversity, but the success of some of those species comes from the fact the farm offers a great food source. As I reflect on the efficiencies of the soft fruit industry which grows most of its fruit in poly-tunnels it is clear that our Siberian plants are going to need physical protection to guarantee a crop.

What has come out of 2016 has been the opportunity to taste some of the fruit from these varieties. The comparison with the European varieties is substantial in taste, so working to grow a viable crop is going to be worthwhile.

The other challenge is efficient harvesting.   Hand picking is still a principle option in Siberia. Labour costs here in the UK are high. The branch cutting and freezing method works well for the german varieties but cutting branches in summer risks introducing disease. We have already experienced how disease prone some of the siberian varieties can be. The Lisavenko Institute in Siberia has suggested that four of our varieties could be suitable – Elizaveta; Klaudia; Inya and Etna. The last three have turned out to be strong plants in 2016. Elizaveta is a fast grower, but has proved to be the most prone to stress. Lisavenko have indicated that irrigation would reduce this, but Devereux farm is located in a very dry part of the UK. Relying on irrigation may become difficult in the future if climate change provides extreme summers. I think it is better to grow plants that can rely on surviving without irrigation if we can. They will develop deeper roots and with soil management it should be possible to progress without the need for additional water.

It is this soil management which I see as delivering the best means of reducing stress. A healthy soil with a high level of organic matter will have a greater capacity to hold moisture; retain a strong microbial population to reduce soil borne diseases; and an optimum source of nutrients and trace elements for the plants.

Managing stress, linked to providing a timely compost tea spray soon after branch cutting I am hopeful will provide the ability to harvest our Siberian varieties in the same way as the german ones. The advantage is that the fruit is removed from the plant with minimal handling and damage. It is fast and that preserves the nutrient quality.

As with developing all new crops none of this is going to happen in five minutes. The plan is to do the cutting trials over the next three years to be able to compare different options and perfect method. With an objective to deliver consistent quality and quantity these trials are as crucial as surmounting the issue of the birds. Each issue will have a solution – as with everything to do with farming it just takes time.

Cutting trails will be linked to developing a machine to help with the branch harvesting. This should all nicely be completed by the magic time of 2021 by which time our political masters will have found their solutions to Brexit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Uncategorized

Euroworks, research and progress

britishseabuckthorn

Next week is the Euroworks sea buckthorn conference in Riga, Latvia. These events are every two years and not only provide a great networking opportunity but also share new developments in growing and processing. The industry is alive and well and normally this event is in October when the farming calendar slows into autumn work. August here at Devereux farm is full, both with sea buckthorn issues and the arable harvest.  The Soil Association first inspection starting the three year conversion for the sea buckthorn to certify as organic is completed. The paperwork was not as onerous as I expected. In fact the day prompted some interesting lines of research for the future.

Farming by its nature works in longer cycles than most industries. Modern economics drive this process faster but for conventional arable crops there is still an annual procession. Like it or not the world has always been changed and not everyone likes it. My latest addition to my library in my office is a 1653 copy of the English Improver improved by Walter Blith. A captain whose mission was to persuade soldiers that had been involved in the English Civil War that farming was a more profitable business than fighting. Under the chapter on plantations of hops,saffron and liquorice he mentions how the City of London  objected to the growing of hops as they considered it spoilt the taste of beer as they knew it.  England had had the troubled times of Civil war, splitting the population and as a consequence negativity pervade. Captain Blith mentions that the country was starving – ” which was just answerable to the Principles of those men that now cry down all devices and ingenious discoveries and so this day therby stifle and choak improvement”. As the referendum on the EU fades it is a reality. It split the country as in the Civil War, and there is as much uncertainty now as there was then. But positive change will come if it is allowed to.

One of the referendum issues that was a fear was the potential loss of research funding. The EU Horizon 2020 funding process offered 3.4 billion euro to the UK research industry bringing the brightest and the best teams across Europe to work together. All fields of science are involved and this is what drives discovery in medicine, technology, agriculture and so on. The fear is that without funding our best researchers will go abroad to find work. There is a petition currently running at a little over 36,000 supporters to ensure that any Brexit deal preserves the UK access to the EU collaborative programmes. As with all petitions it needs 100,000 for the government to take it forward. So I for one are on that petition and hopefully any readers of this blog will join and pass the message on.

Research is an essential for progress. The Siberian sea buckthorn varieties at Devereux farm have been developed from breeding programmes started in the 1930s.  The result has been to produce sweeter tasting, large berried, thornless, high yielding varieties. This is the same form of work that has focused on all crops as we tame the best qualities in nature.  The qualities within the sea buckthorn berry are highly complex encapsulating 190 nutrients that provide the benefits that many formative research papers have recognised.

So why is sea buckthorn not on the UK market alongside strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. I would suggest it is still held back, not by a recognition of its nutritional quality but in the need for a mechanical harvester for the smaller farmer. In germany the market is established and farmers are investing in fields of 25 hectares (60 acres). Harvesting and processing facilities are established utilising high cost contracting equipment. This crop supplies the growing internal market for natural cosmetics and supplements within the country. Germany is one of the highest consumers of such products coming from an appreciation of natural health products and the environment they come from.

The trials of growing Siberian sea buckthorn at Devereux farm is making progress. It is disappointing that the 2016 crop had issues  but the problem has been identified and solution found. Birds remain the principle issue. Corvids – rooks and jackdaws in this case, have taken a real liking to these sweet sea buckthorn berries. They do not eat the german or finnish varieties, but love the siberian ones. I was told yesterday however that the german variety Sirola is also targeted by birds – particularly starlings.( which is the earliest ripening german variety at Devereux)

A huge bird cage is part of the solution, but radio programmes this week revealing how intelligent these birds are indicates that this will not be more than a single solution problem.

The harvesting issue is foremost in my mind as the most important issue to solve. Following advice from the Lisavenko Institute in Siberia I am working with East Malling research (EMR) in Kent to devise a trial on whether it is possible to branch cut harvest siberian varieties. The variety Elizaveta is on the list suggested. This is the one that grows rapidly, but also is prone to catching disease. Branch cutting may encourage it to regenerate, but it will be interesting to see whether cutting the branches makes the plants more susceptible to disease.

I will miss the Euroworks conference but hopefully if the trials go well at Devereux the results will be of interest as a presentation at the next one in 2018.

 

Uncategorized

There is always light at the end of the tunnel

britishseabuckthorn

June has been followed by July. A strange statement, but this was June 2016 – the month and year of Brexit. June 1916 was also part of another momentus event – the Battle of the Somme. Both are historic events, but like all history, time moves on and people live through it. As a dedicated European, currently I think I am standing at one end of a long dark tunnel. I have great faith in our new prime minister which means there will be light at the end of the tunnel and all that needs to be done is control a fear of the unknown.

Leadership is essential in troubled times. As a somewhat unconventional farmer my future  as a small farmer is focused on an alternative crop ( sea buckthorn). I have huge uncertainties about living on an eroding coastline with a sea may become for aggressive as climate change takes hold. Andrea Leadsom is now my Leader as the new Minister at DEFRA. The old Department of Energy  and climate Change has been dissolved with Energy being merged into Business. So does that mean the new government is a climate change sceptic.  Maybe it is considered an unaffordable funding area? Alternatively if might be merged into DEFRA which is of course the Depertment for the Environment.

The conservative Fresh Start project provided some outlines of post Brexit priorities. Food security and protection of the countryside; reduced red tape; improved access to international markets. Support for rural development; intervention to stop wheat and milk farmgate prices falling below cost of production; expanding UK investment in science and technology and grant funding animal welfare. A commendable wish list that is highly supportable.

Pre Brexit I had the feeling that there was only one government department pulling the strings – that being the Treasury. If a project was essential or politically sensitive then it gained support. In the reality of post Brexit our new Chancellor has already said there will be no emergency budget. A reassuring statement that I hope shines a beacon for both UK agriculture and the country as a whole. Beneath this glimmer of optimism I have to say that the tunnel I am looking into is still dark, dank and cold – but there will be and always is light at the other end.

On a similar note I view the sea buckthorn project at Devereux farm. The difference is that I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and it is bright. This year the fact that the weather of winter 2015/16 was so poor resulted in the male sea buckthorn coming through the season in poor health. Their poor health led to poor pollination which simply resulted in a very small number of berries.

As with our post Brexit chancellor looking at his position, I look at mine and see that through changing the management of the plants i can feel that the problem is containable and solvable. A summer of monthly foliar feeds has developed a field of strong growth and healthy plants. Some individual diseased plants are still an issue but I suspect that will always be a result of a localised problem of soil health.

This month the first area of plants have been covered with a mesh grid on which to hang anti bird netting. The birds are still, and will always be an issue. Devereux farm’s locality by the Hamford water national nature reserve and our practice of creating and maintaining wildlife habitat leads to an environment in which birds will thrive. I could shoot them and there are some pests which need culling if they damage the environment they live it. But there are alternatives available and those are the approaches that need to be taken.

This coming week the Soil Association are coming for the first preliminary inspection in the transition process for the sea buckthorn to go organic. The sea buckthorn is grown organically anyway, but as a new crop I see it as an essential part of the process to conform to a management system that consumers understand and trust in. So there will be more paperwork and I hope support and advice as to how to both manage the crop and bring it to market.

Although there are few berries to find harvest this year will take a more academic role. The german method of harvesting sea buckthorn focuses on cutting branches and freezing them so that the berries fall off the frozen branches easily and without damage.Most of the plants are Devereux are thornless, larger berried, sweeter siberian varieties. Traditionally these are hand picked by very skilled pickers. Without the availability of Siberian pickers I need to find an alternative.

The Lisavenko research institute in Siberia  has suggested four of the varieties at Devereux as possibly more suitable than others with this branch cutting/freezing process. As experience has shown, these Siberian varieties has been prone to stress and disease whilst adapting to live in their new environment in Essex. So cutting branches could trigger susceptability to disease. I hope that the fact the plants are in such good condition following this year’s programme of monthly foliar feeds will give them the ability to recover and regenerate from this method of harvesting. With a research plan put together by East Malling research I hope that this may provide a more efficient way of harvesting our siberian varieties as they grow into maturity in the future.

Right at the beginning of this blog I mentioned the issue of living on the coast. This week I saw the Naze cliffs that protect our family farm on here in North east Essex came every closer to breaching threatening the farm with being flooded by the North Sea. Whether this is driven by changing climate or not, the threat is real and will become a dominant issue over the next few years. But then as with Brexit and the sea buckthorn – there will be solutions – it just takes time and in an era of networking and collaboration, almost anything is possible.

 

Uncategorized

Keep calm and carry on.

britishseabuckthorn

That famous phrase – Keep Calm and Carry On, comes to mind as I watch the EU referendum results unravel. In such a grave situation there is no place for emotion. What is clear is that for whatever reason there is no plan for the UK to go forward if the vote to Leave the EU wins. There is no leader. We are heading for a period of crisis management during which time all one can do is not make big decisions and wait until reality reveals itself.

This week has been marred also by the most torrential rain which just gets in the way of trying to make progress with anything. It was by chance that I watched a channel 4 repeat on extreme weather a couple of nights ago. We all know that flooding has been an issue in the past. In 1483 a flash flood saved King Richard III, as a rebellious army led by the Duke of  Buckingham became bogged down in severe flooding of the Severn Valley. Events down the ages have been noted but even climate change sceptics are having to accept today’s events are more frequent and dramatic. The North Atlantic jetstream is reacting to a warming of the atmosphere. Like it or not, we are in changing times and more extreme weather is something we need to come to terms with – just in the same way as we will need to come to terms with leaving the EU and all that it means.

In the sea buckthorn field I have to admit I let my emotions get ahead of rationality. This year has been very free of insect pests. Last year aphids attacked the siberian variety Altaiskaya with a vengance. The result was devastating for some plants with extensive loss of leaf and even death. Trying to maintain an organic growing methods meant that by the time I had found and obtained a solution ( Neem ), the damage was done. Coming out of that experience I am naturally suspicious of all insects on my plants. So when this month I saw a small black, larvae looking bug on my leaves my instant reaction was physical removal. It was not until a late night investigation into insect identification that I realised that these larvae were ladybird larvae. Ladybirds that eat aphids. So the moral of the story is not to be too quick to judge.

The other interesting feature of progress relates to the development of berries on the Siberian plants. Possibly I should say the lack of development as most plants with the exception of Klaudia and Inya have almost no berries this year. An exchange of emails with the Lisavenko institute in siberia has identified that the reason is poor pollination brought about by the poor condition of males in the pollination period in April. Having had a cold and wet late winter and spring the lack of nutrient availability starved the plants with an end result of few berries. Discussions with Soil Hub International have agreed that 2017 the plants will be given a monthly compost tea spray from February. As most varieties are now coming out of dormancy in January, there is enough leaf to start to feed them. So as with many issues – a problem has a solution.

The emails with Lisavenko also included a discussion about harvesting. The Siberian varieties are traditionally hand picked. In the UK this is an expensive option,especially if the crop has so few berries. Last year the german varieties at Devereux farm were harvested by having 0.5m sections of branches cut and then frozen. In a frozen state the berries can be knocked off without damage, then the leaves seperated and a good clean sample of fruit produced. This is efficient and cost effective. Then the germans however say that not all varieties are suitable for cutting. Siberian varieties are not cut, and my experience of some varieties at devereux indicates that they are sensitive to damage and disease prone. But with no work undertaken into whether one can/cannot cut siberian varieties it seems to make sense to give it a try. The issue will be tool hygiene and management of the plants after cutting to encourage recovery and re-growth.

So Lisavenko have suggested four varieties that they feel are most suitable. Soil Hub International are designing some enhanced compost tea variants to test as post cutting spray to rejuvenate the plants. The final part of the puzzle is to ensure that there are objective and quantified results gained from the excercise. So I am asking East Malling research in Kent to help in the design and possibly management of the trial.

So by next year I hope I will have good pollination leading to a good crop of berries and the ability to harvest them in an efficient and cost effective method. Simple – it just takes time. I just wonder how long it will take to manage our new status of the UK outside the EU. Somehow i do not see it as simple.

Uncategorized

A time of reflection and learning

britishseabuckthorn

As another week comes to an end it is not only sea buckthorn that fills my thoughts. The needless, mindless murder of Jo Cox MP makes for a fear for the future. The tactic of terrorists and self- publicists to unsettle ordinary people by such senseless acts cannot work as all it does it raise resilience in knowing what is right and what is wrong. What I feel is sad is that these acts have a deep seated root cause that has been years in the making.Some of it based on an erosion of standards, of respect for others and for authority. It may be overstating the issue, but I see the quality of the bickering and accusation of both sides in the EU referendum as a symptom of this. Whatever the decision after June 23rd, there will be divisions at the heart of government. We, the voters will get on with our lives, but if those lives are to improve we need to know that those that run the country can and will solve the problems that are around us. The loss of Jo Cox is the most bitter illustration of some of these deep seated problems. The causes of which will only be solved through unity and strength in a government that we can again look to with pride and admiration.

After such saddness it seems the rest of what has happened at Devereux farm has little relevance. But the highlight of the week was a visit from fellow sea buckthorn growers from Mongolia. It is always refreshing to discuss common interests with others who see a different perspective on issues. The Mongolian climate is a diametric opposite of east coast UK. Their sea buckthorn plants emerge from winter in late April. The plants would not survive without irrigation, for which they fortunately have an adjacent river that is fed with melt water from surrounding mountains. The sea buckthorn is grown organically, but harvesting method is still a primary issue. A post Soviet era country with an economy that is still adjusting to a free market has to find new industries to improve an uneviable unemployment problem. Growing sea buckthorn is a potential opportunity and  follows a historic tradition of using sea buckthorn within the country. We have all been brought up with a knowledge of Genghiz Khan, the 13th century leader who united the Mongol tribes and conquered all land from the Great wall of China to the German border and down to the Middle east. Sea buckthorn as a nutritous wild plant has almost cult status as a means of maintaining both human health, and in the 13th century also an important fodder for the horses that made the Mongol empire possible. It is interesting that the Mongolian government give all school children sea buckthorn juice daily, in a similar way to the time when all UK schools had free milk. Such a policy action is a recognition of the benefits that can be gained from the nutritous sea buckthorn berry.

June is a time when the plants at Devereux farm are finally showing the potential crop of berries for this harvest. As it takes six or so years for plants to mature to potential yield many of these Siberian plants still have some time to go. The fact that they also have to adapt to a mild climate and a soil that is the opposite to that which they are accustomed is also a factor.

Observing the development of berries on the plants has been tinged with anticipation. It is however the nature of a trial crop to hope for the best, but expect something rather more realistic.

Some varieties have little or no berries at all. Some started with a mass of tiny berries, but most have not filled and have dropped off. Others are showing some useful indications that the future will be bright. Krazy Klaudia, that every year wakes from dormancy in mid winter is possibly now looking the most reliable and successful with both lush healthy growth and a useful showing of berries. Chuiskaya, one of the older Lisavenko Siberian varieties is a strong, large  good looking plant that also has enough berries to indicate that it will be viable in the future. Inya, unlike Chuiskaya has a taller trait and it is showing great promise with large berries. Large berries should be a characteristic of Augustina. This variety has had some disease issues in the past but as experience develops ways to master the problems I am hopeful Augustina will also show promise.

Again – as a trial it is difficult to know what to expect. I regularly report back to the Lisavenko Institute for horticultural research in Barnaul, Siberia, as they supplied my plants. This last week, an exchange of emails with the Institute director is in agreement that the good news is that it is a significant achievment to have healthy plants. The fact that there are mixed results with berry yield we have agreed is probably down to poor pollination.

Sea buckthorn is wind pollinated with males sea buckthorn plants fertilising females within a 100 sq.m. area around them. This last winter we had a very mild December followed by a wet and cold late winter/spring. The males came out of that winter looking yellow and in poor condition. With pollination in mid April, this has to have been a problem.

Applications every 3-4 weeks of liquid Life compost tea have reverted the males to large healthy, lush and dark leaved plants. Next winter I will start application of Liquid Life in February to help stimulate root growth and get plants off to a better start. The fact that we will only have a small crop this year is disappointing, but it will provide a learning curve and an opportunity as to developing how to harvest them.

Uncategorized

Consumer confusion and a milestone year

britishseabuckthorn

I should consider this last week to have been a massive milestone – finally taking the plunge and signing up with the Soil Association to make the sea buckthorn at Devereux farm organic. In effect, it is already being grown organically – certification provides the verification that this is true.

Truth is becoming an issue as the EU referendum becomes closer. One side countering the other with statements that offer us the voter with little in the way of fact. This type of spat also broke out in the nutrition advice world as the National Obesity forum was accused by National health England of being irresponsible in the publication of its latest report. The forum saying that we should stop counting calories as these do not provide a simple resolution to the obesity crisis. National health England reads their advice as being irresponsible as it indicates that high fat diets may not necessarily be the evil they are portrayed as whilst starchy and sugary replacements can offer dangers in other areas.

As ever, the consumer stands back and looks and listens to experts whose publicly displayed disagreements result in further confusion. The results can be seen in a Mintel market report just issued that shows consumers are now turning away from healthy processed food that market themselves as “low in”, “light” or “diet” products. There is a call for clearer nutritional information and ingredient transparency – but when experts do not dispense clarity how can anyone make a rational decision. The unfortunate consequence is a loss of trust and respect. Mintel go on to suggest that in food terms consumers are looking for product that has nothing to hide – including that clarity on where it comes from and how it is made.

So it is also interesting that in a week when the EU is under fire and nutritional rationality is in a mess, that the EU committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection was debating the problems of unfair practices in the food supply chain. This follows all those reports that big supermarkets offer farmers poor buying deals. Practices that result in fresh vegetables being ploughed back into fields or sold for very little for livestock feed because they are not a precise shape. Food is perishable and farmers and growers have a small window of opportunity to sell their goods before they are out of sell by date. With 90% of the EU industry represented by small and medium sized business there is a problem within a highly competitive  food supply chain when buying power is used irresponsibly.

This discussion has been on-going but finally the report from this committee indicates that there is a serious problem. It prompts the EU commission to look to competition law to ensure that producers should be fairly paid for their goods. In the end it is the consumer who will benefit from this. As diary farmers, fruit and vegetable producers go out of business because the market pays for milk and fresh produce at cost price or even below then choice falls and production ever moves into the hands of big business. The side issues – if they can be seen as such are a loss of product quality and diversity, much of which is based on old tradition and cultural background. This loss also adds power to the buyers who become stronger and gradually out compete smaller retailers who themselves go out of business. In the past the EU commission has focused on consumer rights, but this new committee report recognises that unless there is an even playing field for the whole supply chain then in the end those consumer rights to choice and quality are undermined.

I should now return to sea buckthorn. The siberian plants at Devereux farm have been susceptible to pest and disease. They are after all an exotic plant living in a new environment with a lot of adjustments to make for different soil and climate. The reason for only now signing up as organic is a reflection of the feeling that the plants are responding to how they are looked after and the risk of disease is lessening. having started in 2009 this has been a long haul, but this process has some benefits. This last week, while giving the plants their next feed of compost tea and quietly going about my business I have grown to appreciate the environment I work in. Early in the morning I have met up with a massive hare. I should not be so complacent as it could be the cause of the younger plants being chewn and broken back in the spring. But as such a magneficent animal – I can forgive this and just appreciate the moment of meeting with both of us eyeing each other  without fear or suspicion, before both returning to the job in hand. That evening our resident barn owl cruised over my head. The fact this year the area between the rows of sea buckthorn has been left uncut possibly allows for better hunting. Skylarks add to aerial displays with their characteristic tune filling an otherwise dull and cold sky with something to make me smile. None of this is part of the plan – it is just a consequence of finding a way to make the sea buckthorn grow. But it does make for a great place to work.

As we move into June the focus is always on the harvest. Between now and then the plants with the most berries on need to be protected against the rooks and jackdaws that so expertly came and helped themselves to last year’s harvest. Actually having a crop also means developing the best way to harvest. These Siberian berries should be larger and supposedly sweet. So, after so much effort these are not just berries but like semi-precious jewels.The plants are thornless so hand picking is possible. As the plants are still young, cutting off branches to freeze in order to remove the berries needs careful thought. With between 1-2000 plants coming into harvestable fruit this is a learning process. Then of course comes selling. 2016 will be a milestone year.

 

Uncategorized

Sea buckthorn – looking a picture of health.

britishseabuckthorn

The original concept of growing sea buckthorn at Devereux farm was in the long term to establish a commercial crop, but the process of getting there was accepted as having to go through a number of trial stages. Choosing Siberian plants was a good in theory concept. Higher yield, multiple varieties, few or no thorns, sweeter and larger berries, an understanding of disease resistance all adding up to making theory sound like a good idea. Obtaining them from a Russian institute in Siberia was ably assisted by the InCrops Enterprise hub based at the University of East Anglia. Year by year though the practical issues of finding practical solutions to growing a plant that is out of its climate comfort zone has been a concern.

This week the plants have had their second dose of compost tea product called Liquid Life. This is bought in from Soil Hub International and apart from plant nutrients it also contains a diverse population of micro organisms that support the natural defence mechanism of the plant against pathogens and stimulates growth. The results have been revealing.

Before the first application the Siberian males in particular had not come through the winter well. They showed 60% or more of yellowing leaves. The female variety Altaiskaya, which suffered so badly last year from pest attack in  June also looked weak. The troublesome Elizaveta had survived the winter well but the leaves had a curl in them indicating stress.

Three weeks on and these issues are gone. Not only that but new growth is developing well in the base of plants. Berries are setting. Klaudia, the crazy variety that broke bud on New year’s eve is doing particularly well. Inya strangely has poor leave growth but almost more berries than leaves. Other varieties, Augustina ( projected as having the largest berries); Chuiskaya – the oldest variety, and Etna – the youngest all look promising. Some however show no sign of fruit. Sudarushka looks particularly healthy with lots of leaf but no berry.

I put some of this down to the condition of plants at pollination. Next year I need to move the compost tea application back into early April to improve the functionality of both males and females. I also think that maybe I should introduce some German males to spread the pollination period. As with Klaudia, most varieties are still adjusting to our strange soil. Pollination is key and if the males are out of synch with any of the female varieties ( such as Sudarushka ) then I need to find a way of reducing the risk of poor timing.

Improving soil quality and health has always been an issue. The compost tea will help with this, but ultimately a regular dose of true compost around the plants will help. This will happen later this year once the bespoke compost spreader arrives. In the meantime I have to consider how to manage weeds. Weeds are not just weeds. they are plants that can smother a young plant and compete for soil nutrients. They are also though potentially a habitat for predator invertebrates that can target pests. They may take their share of moisture from the soil, but they also shade the soil from direct sun. In commercial fruit growing terms I know I would be told that they should be kept down or destroyed. But I am coming to the conclusion that as the mature plants look very healthy then maybe the presence of weeds around the plants is not so detrimental.

Last year I cut the grass with a ride on  mower on both sides of each row of sea buckthorn. This year I think I will cut half the rows in this way. The other half I will strim down the tall weeds immediately next to the sea buckthorn plants and then cut a single mower width down the middle of the grass between the rows. This will prevent the weeds from growing into the sea buckthorn branches, but allow beneficial insects to be present in immediate proximity to the sea buckthorn plants. This is after all a trial. The strim and mow option will probably take slightly longer than mowing two rows alongside the sea buckthorn, but if it results in healthier plants then it is worthwhile.

My final comment relates to the Latvian varieties here at Devereux farm. There are 400 plants – 4 varieties ( Sunny; Mary; Tatjana; Goldrain ) with 100 plants of each. I am purposely not  giving them any Liquid Life or other fertiliser. They have to survive on their own. The result – they have grown larger and stronger than the Siberian plants for none of the effort that has to go into their Russian cousins. The downside is that they have thorns, but as a growing success they are an excellent example of ease and sustainability.

June is the month when pests are likely to become an issue. Sea buckthorn fly particularly is one that reached Germany in 2013. It is a scourge in Asia and can destroy 50% and more of the crop. I have sticky traps to identify them. Aphids attacked Altaiskaya last year in June. I am hopeful however that with the plants in good health, and knowing the issue then it will be able to control the problem before it gets out of hand.

Uncategorized

2016 – a year fo.r decisions, but time will tell

britishseabuckthorn

Devereux, and our other farm, Walton Hall  are like rural enterprises across the UK looking to the future. The principle arable enterprise bumps along with incomes that go from unexciting to  non-contributory to the business. The days of a nation wide network of government funded agricultural research stations are gone. The term food security for the UK raises its head occasionally, but not ahead of economic viability. In fact food security and climate change are two huge issues whose importance is accepted, but neither gain political traction for long enough to develop a cohesive long term plan.

It is an old farming adage – live as if you will die tomorrow, but farm as if you will farm for ever. Live well, but look after the land because it is a vital resource. 2016 will be a pivotal year for this farm as we grapple with whether we should have a long term view on protecting our land from the sea. It seems that within five years the natural cliffs that protect our farm from the sea will have been breached by the sea.

Records for Walton Hall farm go back to the 12th century, when St.Paul’s of London owned the land. There were sea defences then, but clearly nothing like our 5m high sea walls. All the same the farm, not only was a sizeable part of the farm lost to the sea but a whole village with it. Their lives commemorated in a pew created in the cathedral for the purpose. Through the centuries there has been a continual battle of both government and private investment to hold the line against the sea, with varying degrees of success.

1953 was our last failure. A tide that cost the lives of 300 along the East anglian coast and 1800 in Holland and Germany. The resultant new wall  on the Naze was constructed with 100% government funding both to rebuild the wall, but also to start a ten year process to re-juvenate the soil into productive arable land. Land that had been used for sheep grazing improving yields by one third following huge leaps forward in plant breeding and mechanisation.

The land now has a capacity to grow four tons of wheat, but within a global market, this enterprise is hardly profitable in an industry that demands high rates of investment in machinery to keep productive.

So if the land is economically non-productive – should we just abandon it and let it go to sea? If wheat can be imported cheaper, what is the reason for continuing?  If UK agriculture requires public funding to keep it solvant, is this sustainable either politically or economically?

But as that old farm adage indicates, we should respect the value of the soil because you never know when you might need it. In 1953, Europe was starving and that was the driver for government to maintain farm assets and maintain productivity. History tells us of the times when we needed these assets to feed the nation and these were times when the nation was great, but then plunged into crisis.

Our challenge here is a climate change issue. A rising threat of unpredictable and long term proportion. Coastal farmers in other parts of the world have already given up their land because they do not have an option. But on the East Anglian coast we do have options. Partnerships are developing and innovative ways of reducing flood risk are being trialed. The risk has grown. Walls are bigger and stronger, but as I reflect that our 5m wall came within 0.4m from being overtoped in 2013 and that this was a surge tide that we see every five years the risk is real.

This was one of the drivers for Devereux farm developing an alternative enterprise by growing sea buckthorn. Farmers have diversified for years and the drivers for this have always been economic. All businesses have to react to market changes and have to evolve to survive. Our position here is no different to one reflected on all low coastlines.

Farming is an industry that looks to the long term. Land may be handed down through generations but with that comes responsibility. In an age where short term accounting and success is gauged on business growth not survival, there are few places to look for for advice. What is for certain is that where there is a will there is a way. The sea buckthorn enterprise is working and looking forward to its first crop. It has taken time, and so it is good to allow time to resolve problems and find the ways to reduce the mountain back down to a molehill.