Info, news & debate
Land
How to identify trees in winter
It’s one thing to identify deciduous trees in summer, with their distinctive leaves on full show, but what about winter? Without leaves, we have to look at other telltale signs. After a bit of practice, it can be easier than you think. Have a go, using these helpful methods, which will make it easier to …
Want to help set up a community-supported agriculture scheme, Jan-Apr, and stay in a yurt next to a river?
Are you feeling like you need a change of scenery for a little while? Feel like you would like to be out in the countryside more? Well how about staying in a cosy yurt with a log burner by the river Avon
The Ecological Land Co-op are currently recruiting for two new roles
The Ecological Land Cooperative (ELC) is a social enterprise based in Brighton, East Sussex. They exist to create affordable access to land for new entrants to ecological agriculture and mixed farming.
In praise of the wheelbarrow: low-impact transportation at its best?
Perhaps these days most commonly associated with the garden, there’s more to the humble wheelbarrow than you might think. Sophie Paterson explores its potential, past and present, as a low-impact form of transportation.
Does the sustainability of meat production depend on the size of a holding and the number of animals kept on it?
I want to investigate at what size meat production becomes unsustainable (in terms of acreage, number of animals etc.) – i.e. whether it can be sustainable at all, and if so, whether there’s an upper limit, above which it can’t be sustainable
How the ‘One Planet Development’ policy is helping people get back onto the land in Wales
Something special is happening in Wales. The country is using legislation to shift itself into a very different direction from England. It wants to be more sustainable. It wants to reduce its ‘ecological footprint’ to a level that’s fair compared to the rest of the planet’s population and resources.
Making an ash pack basket
In a post kindly shared from the Native Hands blog, our basketry specialist Ruby Taylor recounts a recent trip to the woods to make a beautiful ash pack basket.
Join our new online community Living Low Impact
We’re excited to introduce our new Facebook group Living Low Impact – and you’re invited!
What’s the best thing to do with the uplands, in terms of sustainability?
This is a question asked in an interesting debate on Facebook along the lines of uplands and their appropriate maintenance with regards to grazing. There are several fascinating projects and opinion pieces that were linked to
‘Land for What?’ meeting in Leicester tomorrow (sorry for short notice, but it’s worth it)
Sorry for the ridiculously short notice, but if you’re interested in land issues, and have nothing on this weeked, this is really worth getting yourself to.
Using pigs for woodland conservation
At this year’s Scottish Smallholder Festival I attended a fascinating talk by Jack Flusk and Katie Swift of Conservation Pigs about their pioneering use of pigs for woodland conservation work. With benefits to the pigs, the pig keeper and the woodland this is a practice which could become far more widespread.
Opportunity to rent (or cropshare) 7 organic acres in Sussex
There are 7 acres on offer with this rental rent or organic cropshare opportunity in Sussex (postcode TN35 4AP). It’s across the road from the village of Fairlight and a 5 minute drive to Hastings.
A natural building bookshelf with Jeffrey the Natural Builder
In this post, Jeffrey the Natural Builder shares his top reading recommendations based on an original natural building books post on his blog. It’s over to him from here. Please note that this article contains affiliate links to bookshop.org – if you purchase we receive a small percentage. Thanks!
How to build or repair a dry stone wall
Dry stone walling involves either stripping and rebuilding existing walls that have fallen into disrepair, or gapping – repairing gaps where the wall has collapsed. Fewer new walls are built, although foundations sometimes have to be relaid.
Would you like to become a member of a nature-based permaculture community on the Isle of Skye?
Since December 2016, I, Ludwig Appeltans am the proud owner and custodian of the most beautiful peninsula in Scotland.
So you want to be a farmer? Thirteen words of wisdom from me to myself
In this post based on an original at Small Farm Future, farmer Chris Smaje relates words of wisdom curated as part of a talk he gave at the Oxford Real Farming Conference in 2016.
An introduction to tool sharpening with Robin Wood
“A sharp tongue is the only edge tool that grows keener with constant use.” So said the American writer and diplomat Washington Irving. In this post, we explore the importance of tool sharpening in woodworking with artisan Robin Wood MBE.
Grazing: why simulating wild herds maximises benefits for farmers, livestock and ecology
“Many sheep farmers waste more than a third of the grass on their farm because they do not plan grazing wisely.” This is according to Susan Buckingham, extension officer at the Institute of Biological, Environment and Rural Sciences’ Grassland Development Centre
Haymaking by hand: a guide from Indie Farmer
This week our friends at Indie Farmer shared with us their how-to guide to haymaking by hand, in which founder and editor-in-chief Nigel Akehurst collaborated with small-scale farmer Simon Fairlie, co-editor of The Land Magazine.
A matter of scale: how small farms provide more jobs and more food per acre
Our new report, “A Matter of Scale”, highlights how a diverse and vibrant sector of small farms is providing employment, attracting new entrants and incubating entrepreneurs.