A chance for landowners, farmers and market gardeners to hear from those who have made the conversion of all or part of their farm to CSA; how they did it and what the pitfalls and benefits have been; and ask their own questions about conversion. Hear from four speakers about their different journeys to CSA: the opportunities and challenges, and why they chose to make the shift.

Every landscape holds a thousand secrets; of the damage done to it, of those who came before us and of the subtle energies which run through it, similar to the acupuncture meridians in a human body. None of these energies can be seen with the human eye but they all impact on the land, a phenomenon sometimes referred to as "geopathic stress”. The health, fertility and yield in cows has been shown to be affected…

Soil scientist, Dr. Karen Vancampenhout, tells us we need to stop thinking about soil as ‘brown stuff’. Although many of us engage with soil on a daily basis, sometimes we forget how important it is to stop for a moment and really appreciate its beauty. Participants will be invited to explore their personal relationship with soil, using mindful and sensory engagement, and considering how we connect with the systems underfoot that underpin and anchor our…

Over the long arc of history, humans have eaten extraordinarily diverse diets: thousands of varieties of cultivated crops and wild foods. There is a rich bank of human and culinary history, as well as an important resource for food security and climate resilience, in the world’s rarest foods: from wild honey harvested by the Hadza in Tanzania to windswept wheat on Orkney. These foods could hold the key to our food future, but they are…

A presentation of the process of preparing a sample and a practical view of what can be seen in a microbially rich compost. We'll be sharing our experience of 40 plus compost piles and how it relates to your soil. During the session we will demonstrate how to prepare a microscopy slide for viewing and will run through many fields of view in search of fungi, bacteria, protozoa and nematodes. We will bring samples of…

This presentation will explore working and environmental conditions at the bottom of the corporate supply chain. Wage workers are often at the sharpest edge of the exploitative practices of corporate food systems that aim to extract wealth from both the land and the people that work it.Catherine McAndrew

The native ponies of Wales are in decline. They live in many landscapes including coasts, moors, marshes and mountains that provide a range of socio-ecosystem services. These services include supporting (e.g. biodiversity), provisioning (grazing), regulating (flood prevention) and cultural services.

Farming is fabulous, but it is not only hard work, it is also frustrating to be a farmer in these challenging times.

Farmers relying on ‘subtle energy systems’ for farm and livestock health, such as bio-energetic, biodynamic, homeopathic, radionic and other resonance systems, report a corresponding amplification of the health and vitality of the whole farm. This session shares the experiences of farmers achieving measurable results with such systems and explores the questions this raises.