Wilder Kent Blog

John Dinnis of Filston Farm (part of the Darent Valley Farmer Cluster) wrote this blog about his experience at World Environment Day in Brussels with Defra and UN delegates. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) wanted a farmer to attend - a farmer who works directly on the land and who could give their perspective on the challenges and advantages of being involved with a water quality or river restoration focused project. By the sounds of it, he had a great (if unexpected!) day - read on for his experience.

In episode 10 of Talk on the Wild Side, Rob Smith spends a day at Moat Farm for a Healthy Hedgerows workshop. He speaks to a self-confessed hedge geek, a hedgelaying expert and conservationist, a local landowner, and the host of the workshop.

In the 9th episode of Talk on the Wild Side, Rob Smith talks to Emma Loder-Symonds about Nonington Farm (near Canterbury) and their regenerative approach to farming. They have managed to cut costs AND fertilisers and pesticides, while keeping yields high. Rob also talks to Liz Milne, the Natural Environment and Coast Manager for Kent County Council about the Local Nature Recovery Strategy for Kent.

Industrial agriculture was designed to maximise the production of a single crop or animal, but these practices are not always best for the environment or the farmer. The solution is to build a resilient landscape where food production is maximised AND in harmony with nature.

Rory Harding explores how Kent Wildlife Trust are getting involved in the developing Local Nature Recovery Strategy for Kent and Medway and why.

It’s been an exciting year for the Darent Valley, and the headline is collaboration. Kerry Williams, Project Administrator for the Darent Valley Landscape Recovery Pilot, writes about how project partnership is supporting one of our best loved farmland birds; the Barn owl.

Rory is Nature Recovery Manager at KWT and began his career with us facilitating the Upper Beult Farmer Cluster group. From a farming background himself, he believes in the huge potential of farmers working together to achieve nature recovery at scale, hand in hand with productive farming.

Wild About Gardens (WAG) Volunteers were down at Marden Meadows last month getting a tour from local farmer, Lou Carpenter. Alan Rainey from the WAG group describes the importance that these relationships have for the future of our planet.