The drive to Watch Oak Farm is tucked between the Vicarage and Castle gates just outside the town centre at Thornbury in South Gloucestershire. It is then a bumpy ride down the track, that they share with their neighbours, to the farm. On the left hand side is a conventional farm and to the right is the mixed culture of a biodynamic holding. After passing the small sign at the entrance, the visitor is met by a multitude of ducks and chickens that populate the farm forecourt.
Watch Oak Farm is part of The Hatch Camphill Community, which together with the Sheiling School (for special needs children) form the Thornbury Camphill Community. They are amongst the oldest Camphill Communities in England having been established since the beginning of the 1950's. The Hatch provides a skills training in a community setting for about 25 young adults with special needs.
Paul Pietersee, his wife Corienne and their family live at the farm with five residents and three volunteers. The farm evolved from the original smallholding that was part of the Sheiling School. About 15 years ago, the farmer, Detlef Maas, moved into the small cottage, which then became the seed for the new farm development. Over the next few years the farm buildings were constructed providing a milking parlour as well as housing for the animals. In 1991 the farmhouse was then built onto the existing cottage thus creating a community house for the farmer's family and the residents who work on the farm.
Paul together with Adrian Schofield, from the Sheiling, care for the daily running of the land. Adrian's prime responsibility is the walled-in garden where he grows vegetables and seeds. The land team comprises a small group of residents as well as two volunteers from Germany.
The soil on the 32 acres at Watch Oak is not too heavy, despite being in the Severn Valley. It is a sandy/clay loam with bluish clay underneath. It is quite easy to work and responds well to cultivation. It is fairly well drained even in extremely wet conditions. It also has good water holding capacity, which means that no extra irrigation is needed during the dry summer months. On top of this they have access to eight acres from Thornbury Castle and rent half an acre from the Church. They also have the use of 25 acres of land at Cherry Orchards Camphill Community in Bristol in return for helping them with scrub clearing during the winter.
The field crops are rotated across two large fields each about two acres in area. Potatoes, root crops and cabbages are grown there for consumption within the community. The walled-in garden at the school provides the summer vegetables, such as salads. There is also a vegetable garden at the Hatch, which grows a wide range of vegetables to supplement this. The community also cares for an orchard, which provides a variety of apples, as well as some pears. It was recently expanded to include some local varieties.
The farm is well stocked with sufficient animals (both in variety and number) to provide the land with the fertility it needs.
The backbone of the farm is the small herd of pure Shorthorn cattle (which are related to the Oaklands herd). They have ten milking cows and are currently raising their own bull. All the calves are kept and raised mainly for meat, one or two heifers being kept to develop the herd. On average, the cows give about 3500 to 4000 litres of milk per lactation and are fed on home-grown haylage. On top of this, they get about two kilos of bought-in 50% organically grown concentrates. Paul said that there has not been a single case of mastitis due to good stress management. The animals are given plenty of space, winter housing, a regular brushing down and a great detail of personal attention.
Paul is enthusiastically developing a small flock of sheep. Currently he has eight Jacobs as well as a few Charlais. His aim is to create a flock of about 15 sheep to graze the orchard as well as follow on after the cattle in the pastures. The Jacobs give fleeces that are well sought after, so there should be no problem finding eager customers! The two breeding sows (Gloucester Spots) provide plenty of piglets, which are kept, for meat.
Apart from these staple elements, the farm boasts quite a menagerie of fowl as well as two goats (for the children, says Paul). The lake behind the farm buildings not only creates a wonderful play area for the children but is also home to the moorhens and ducks. Chickens and ducks roam freely around farm yard enhancing the life of the farm.
Watch Oak farm is part of the Severn Valley Group, which make their own preparations for local distribution and use. Apart from using the preparations in the compost, the land is regularly sprayed. The fields are sprayed with horn manure as a standard procedure after grazing (followed by topping and chain harrowing). They are also sprayed with horn silica one week before putting the animals on to graze a.
Being part of the Severn Valley Group also means an involvement with the Severn Valley Biodynamic Training. This is a training for apprentices working on biodynamic farms in the area. Even though Watch Oak does not currently have an apprentice working there, they recently hosted one of the weekend seminars
Paul sees the farm primarily as a community farm where the main obligation in working the land is to try and involve others where possible: "All this work wants doing and there is a place for each person to fit in there." Those living in the Thornbury Camphill Community feed off it and enjoy walking across it. To this end he feels that it is important to create many possibilities for people to get in touch with the land.
Both the Sheiling School and The Hatch are therapeutic communities. The work on the land fits in perfectly with their ethos by providing a real working farm environment for both the children and residents to take part. There are many occasions during the year when all those living and working in the community join in with the work. They have helped with tree planting, weeding, harvesting, preparation spraying and the celebration of the Festivals such as St Johns and Michaelmas.
Recently the farm team have been creating footpaths over the land. Instead of fencing out the hedgerows and wildlife and making the paths along the edge of the field, the fences are set out a little with the paths on the inside. Consequently people can walk within nature and look at the field rather than walk by the edge of the crops and observe the wild life.
As for the future, Paul expects that they will be awarded Demeter status for their products. For this to they will need to be able to supply their own fodder. They hope to achieve this by expanding the farm with the purchase of a few more acres nearby. The walled in garden already has Demeter certification for their vegetables and seeds.
Richard Swann
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