Woodoaks Farm celebrates Open Farm Sunday
By Rose Lewis, Head of Woodoaks
900 people came along to Woodoaks Farm in Hertfordshire on 9th June to celebrate Open Farm Sunday.
Soil Association have been custodians of Woodoaks Farm since 2020, when owner, Sally Findlay, donated the 350 acre farm for safe keeping to the Soil Association Land Trust.
As part of our promise to take care of and protect the land, we're working hard to transform it into something that can deliver wellbeing to our local community, nature and the planet.
For many of our Farm Sunday visitors, it was the first time they had come to see what we've been up to. Our trailer ride around the farm proved an instant hit with the young and old, and we were able to show how far we have come on the farm’s transformation.
Tractor rides for all. Pic Sue Lacey Photography
We travelled across the newly planted agroforestry field which has transformed from a 70 acre arable field (a monoculture and biodiversity desert) to a revitalised landscape with wild flowers, hedges and trees bursting into life.
Mixed species grassland. Pic Sue Lacey Photography
Visitors took a tour through our new market gardens. They met Melanie from Golden Rose Flower Farm, part of a growing community of flower growers in the UK encouraging us to buy native home grown varieties.
Golden Rose Flower Farm. Pic Sue Lacey Photography
Kids were able to get their hands into our compost, full of worms and other organisms which help turn food waste into amazing soil, which is then spread on our market gardens to help plants flourish. They looked through microscopes to see these mini beasts at work with the help of our specialist wildlife volunteers.
Compost turning. Pic Sue Lacey Photography
Examining bugs. Pic Sue Lacey Photography
Find out more
- Find out about Soil Association Land Trust's custodianship of Woodoaks Farm
- Join Woodoaks Facebook community