Programmes and short courses in Sustainable Horticulture

“An ounce of practice is generally worth more than a ton of theory.”Small Is Beautiful: A Study of Economics as if People MatteredE. F. Schumacher

Letter from Jane

“At Schumacher college the kitchen is central to community living, which itself is at the heart of education. The way we grow our food is a vital part of all students’ learning. Nature and ecological cycles teach us how to do this sustainably; we would love you to come and join us and share in this marvellous journey.”

Please read on to discover more…

About the College Our GardensSchumacher Practical Residency in Sustainable HorticultureForest Gardens Short CourseThe Living Soil Short CourseSpeaking of Food Short Course

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Lead Gardener

Jane Gleeson

About the College

Schumacher College courses offers the practical skills and strategic thinking required to face the ecological, economic and social challenges of the 21st Century.

Over the last 25 years we have developed an international reputation for our holistic and systemic approach to learning; we have been teaching sustainable horticulture here for eight years.

Schumacher College is set on the historic 1,200-acre Dartington Hall Estate with its beautiful Grade II listed gardens, just two miles from Totnes, the World’s first Transition town.

The college believes that how we grow our food is central to who we are as humans; that the dominant model of large-scale, mechanised, monoculture in food growing is in need of deep repair. We have developed a six month immersive hands on programme of ecological and regenerative food growing using principles of agroecology and permaculture.

Our Gardens

The College gardens are nine acres of rich biodiversity serving as a living classroom. The 5 and half acre agroforestry field is given over to alley cropping; a developing forest garden; a sweet chestnut plantation alongside pasture fed chickens; a stunning craft and pollinator flower garden; and a hazel and willow coppice. We also have four polytunnels; two herb gardens and a perennial vegetable no-dig garden. All integrated with wildlife areas and spaces for complementation.

All this is the foundation for the food grown and used by the college kitchens and serves as a profound “hands in the soil” learning experience for the whole community. Our students find their time truly transformative. The gardens are as much about nurturing people as plants.

Schumacher Practical Residency in Sustainable Horticulture

Explore how to protect and restore the soil, foster and sustain a healthy ecosystem, and limit the consumption of finite resources whilst growing an edible harvest.

The Practical Residency in Sustainable Horticulture runs from April to September 2019 and incorporates the Certificate in Permaculture Design (awarded by the Permaculture Association) - if you want to smell sweet soil and get your hands dirty whilst stretching your mind and nourishing your spirit - then do join us.

Skills you will aquire

• Gardening techniques (composting, mulching, seed sowing planting propagation, seed saving etc.)

• Cultivation of annual and perennial food plants, including forest gardening

• Understanding soil and plant science• Observation and experimentation skills• Site design (using permaculture principles)• Chicken care• Integrated pest management• Use of green manures • Post harvest processing and kitchen liaison

To learn morewww.schumachercollege.org.uk/sustainable-horticulture-2019

Forest Gardens and Edible Ecosystems; Design, Harvest and Use14 - 18 May 2018With Martin Crawford and Caroline Aitken

This course explains how the symbiotic relationship between forest and food can be wonderfully productive. We help you start designing a forest garden according to your needs and look at the range of produce that can be grown.

Discover how to harvest, process and make delicious meals from Forest Garden produce. Learn from UK agroforestry pioneer and expert Martin Crawford and Caroline Aitken of Patrick Whitefield Associates; joint authors of Food from your Forest Garden.

The course involves a tour of the UK’s oldest existing forest garden, and the Agroforestry Research Trust trials site including an innovative forest garden greenhouse.

www.schumachercollege.org.uk/courses

The Living Soil: Healthy Soil, Healthy Planet8 - 12 October 2018With Laura Lengnick and guests

This is a practical, hands-on course on how to cultivate soil that is alive and vital; soil that is teaming with a diversity of beneficial organisms; soil that is capable of supporting a resilient healthy web of life on Earth.

You will learn about tried and tested methods for growing healthy soils, practice using some simple tools for measuring and monitoring the health of your soils over time, and explore the potential for soil health to catalyse the regeneration of your health, the health of your community, and the health of our planet.

www.schumachercollege.org.uk/courses

Speaking of Food: Sharing Stories, Cultivating Resilience15 - 19 October 2018With Laura Lengnick and guests

The way that we eat is fundamental to our identity as a species and crucial to the health and well-being of our communities. Yet it also fuels the 21st century challenges that threaten our very existence. How do we resolve this dilemma?

This course explores how positive visioning for food resilience can act as a catalyst for personal and social transformation in this age of climate change.

Sharing our hopes, our fears and our stories of climate change sparks the kind of social learning that can put us on the path to a climate resilient food future.

www.schumachercollege.org.uk/courses

facebook.com/schumachercollege@SchumacherCollyoutube.com/schumachercolllinkedin.com/school/schumacher-collegeSchumacher College is part of The Dartington Hall Trust registered in England as a company limited by guarantee and a charity. The Dartington Hall Trust, Company No 1485560, Charity No 279756, VAT No 402196875. Registered office: The Elmhirst Centre, Dartington Hall, Totnes, Devon, TQ9 6EL

Schumacher CollegeThe Old Postern, DartingtonDevon TQ9 6EA, United Kingdom

Email info@schumachercollege.org.uk Telephone +44 (0)1803 865934 www.schumachercollege.org.uk