Pottering in the poly tunnel!
The Growing Academy is the first ever Organic Fruit and Veg Growing Course to be held at Laurelbank Farm. Building on my experience teaching at South Eastern Regional College, I’ve decided its time to take the next step and open my own Growing Academy - right here at the farm!
It’s the perfect setting (even if I do say so myself!) for gaining both the theory and the practical experience of growing your own food. Our converted barn, “The Gallery”, provides a uniquely bright and inspiring space to teach. We have recently reconfigured another farm building to create practical indoor workspaces for our incoming students, and of course we have our giant polytunnel - the perfect place to shelter our winter salads.
Of course most importantly we have 7 acres of organically certified land on which we’ve have been growing vegetables (using organic and no dig methods) for 7 seasons now. Our farm currently produces enough organic produce to feed 30 families as part of “Farm and Feast,” our Community Supported Agriculture scheme. So it’s fair to say we know a thing or two about growing fruit and vegetables!
Our 30-week part-time course is designed to provide participants with a comprehensive understanding of organic fruit and vegetable cultivation. Students will learn about sustainable growing, soil health, propagation, pest management, and harvesting techniques, all within the context of organic growing.
The course will include both theory and hands-on practical sessions, to equip participants with all the skills and knowledge needed to grow organic fruits and vegetables successfully and easily.
This is a in-person course based at Laurelbank Farm – a 7-acre organically certified farm, outside Saintfield. County Down.
This is not an accredited course. However, we will have regular online quizzes to reinforce learning and to help students catch up if they miss a week or two.
The course will run for 30 weeks of classes on Tuesday afternoons. From Tuesday 20th February to Tuesday 29th October. Classes will be 3 hours in duration from 1:30pm to 4:30pm. There will be breaks from class for the Easter week and for a few weeks over the summer.
No prior growing / horticultural experience is necessary. This course is the perfect introduction for anyone interested in organic growing practices, who would like to learn how to grown their own fruit and vegetables.
This course is for adults aged 18 years and over.
Here are the details:
The syllabus: You can download the syllabus for the course here.
The food & drinks: There will plentiful tea, herbal tea, coffee & water. If you would like anything else to eat or drink please feel free to bring whatever you fancy. We will organise a biscuit rota!
The time: Every Tuesday, 1:30pm - 4:30pm, for 30 weeks beginning on Tuesday 20th February.
The place: Laurelbank Farm, 121 Middle Road, Saintfield, Co. Down, BT24 7LS
The cost: £450 per person (inc VAT and booking fees). This works out at just £15 per class. If you would like to pay in 3 instalments please contact Jo to arrange this. (jo@laurelbankfarm.org)
What to bring: Please bring suitable footwear and clothing for the weather. This is a hands-on course so we will be outside in the fresh air getting our hands in the soil, whatever the weather!
Cancellation Policy: The course is not refundable once the class has started, so please think carefully before signing up to the class. Thank you.
Some testimonials from students who attended my Organic Fruit & Vegetable Growing course, at South Eastern Regional College last year:
“I loved the teaching. Jo really knows how to engage the class and has the perfect qualifications with both the academic background and the fact that she has and works an organic farm. She doesn't just tell us information but helps us work out and understand the principles of (organic) growing for ourselves.”
“The teaching was excellent, engaging. Informative and stimulating. Jo is so generous with both her knowledge, her own queries and our often weird & wonderful questions and tangents!”
“Excellent statement of learning intentions at the start of each lesson and time spent at the end focussing on what we had learned. I liked the lack of rigidity in the teaching as and when questions from the students were discussed. Jo was a wealth of knowledge and I gleaned a lot from her lessons.”
“You brought joy, knowledge and enthusiasm every week. I loved how you shared the failures and made us all feel ok about our own, and learn from the bad. It was always clear what we were going to be covering. There was logic and flow. I feel like we learned MORE because you would explain and share knowledge instead of sticking rigidly to only what we needed for this course.”
“I really enjoyed how the course was taught and could not recommend Jo enough. She was enthusiastic and knowledgeable at all times and this really set the tone for the whole year. In addition, she was very organised and the weekly class email update in particular helped me keep on track.”
“Jo helped me to join up some vegetable growing dots that gardening books have not been able to do in the past. Having a teacher from an actual organic farm was a total bonus too - so inspiring to see organic veg growing ‘in real life’.”