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Crapes Fruit Farm

Details

Commenced:	01/11/2011
Submitted:	11/10/2012
Last updated:	07/10/2015
Location:	Crapes Fruit Farm, Rectory Road, Aldham, Colchester, Essex, GB
Phone:	441206211962
Website:	crapes.wordpress.com
Climate zone:	Cool Temperate

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Crapes Fruit Farm

Project Type

Rural, Commercial

Project Summary

An experiment in regenerative agriculture on a 15 acre apple orchard.

Project Description

rapes Fruit Farm is a 90 year old 15 acre apple orchard in North Essex, England. As both the economy and the climate have taken a turn for the worse we have been forced to evaluate the ways we do things.

In 2012 we went chemical free. We have stopped using herbicide under the trees and mycobutinal to treat scab disease. We have opted for more holistic techniques and technologies such as. compost teas, understorey mowers and cover crops.

With only 5% of our usual apple crop this year we have tried to diversify our produce by growing more vegetables and planting more soft fruits and perennials. We have made the best of our current veg area and dutch light glass house using techniques such as raised beds, no dig mulching, companion planing, cover cropping. We also plan to extend our vegetable growing space by cutting out a row of trees this winter.

We have just got chickens which we will be rotational grazing. We hope to get kune kune pigs in the new year.

To find out more about the project visit these various links:
http://crapes.wordpress.com

http://dreadbensdiploma.weebly.com/crapes-fruit-farm.html

http://dreadbensdiploma.weebly.com/project-3---crapes-greenhouseveg-plot.html

http://dreadbensdiploma.weebly.com/project-4---crapes-orchard-trial-plot.html

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