Coming from a long line of Shropshire farming families the Hollins’ can trace their lineage back to the 1700’s. Arthur Hollins took on the tenancy of Fordhall farm at 14 swapping his schoolbooks for farming duties when his own father died. He followed the patterns of land management established by previous generations and ploughed and fertilized his fields like all his neighbours did and Father had done. His sharp observational skills, love of nature and inquiring mind led him to quickly realise his light sandy soils were not faring well under the plough. Soil erosion and declining fertility led him to question the whole practice of tillage.

One day while out on a walk in the woods along one edge of the farm he was struck by the realisation that the part of the farm which had not been cultivated or fertilized grew with more abundance and vigor and had better soils than the area he had been farming. Arthur was an extraordinary innovator.. being one of the first producers of yogurt in the UK, a pioneer in fruit yogurts, farm gate sales and many other innovations. So daring to turn modern farming conventions on its head was perhaps not a surprising development to come from him. He studied entomology at a local college and became ever more convinced that his many friends in the soil.. the soil biota itself was the key to fertility, not nutrients in their chemical form but the soil life itself that makes plants healthy and preserves soil structure over generations of cultivation.

Based on detailed observations Arthur developed his own permanent pasture system, with mixtures of many varieties of grasses and herbs. Working tirelessly to restore a natural abundance to this land.

Arthur was active until well into his 80’s so this is a long story.. however it ended nearly in tears when the landlords were tempted to sell the farm to the neighbours at the Muller factory and Britain’s oldest organic farm was under threat. A community share issue found some 8000 investors who managed to set up a trust and save the day at the 11th hour. So once again Fordhall has broken the mold of small farms disappearing under development and has managed to protect the organic soils there which are the product of Arthur’s life long work. In fact this is just a fraction of Arthur’s legacy and I urge anyone with an interest in this story to find out more.. why not visit the Fordhall Farm site

Story’s such as this are of great inspiration to us at Get-Growing as we try and pioneer our own way towards a relocalised and organic food system. Industrial cultivation has devastated soils and soil life and further fueled our addiction to oil and petro-chemicals. The transition away from fossil fuel addiction is set to be the defining event of the coming generation, as rising prices, wars over resources and climate change from oil use increasingly dominate our news and lives.

We are passionate in our work here at Get-Growing and feel strongly that community led growing initiatives will pay our rapidly increasing part of our own food security. There is much to be learned from Arthur Hollins and Fordhall farm… and we welcome anyone interested to join us on our journey to a strong and invigorated local food economy.

Link to the Telegraph article that helped save the farm

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