Food for Thought
Thursday, July 1st, 2010
Designed by Mandy Buckland – who gained her BA (Hons) in garden design at the college - F4T looks at the sorts of fruit that were traditionally grown in Kent, what is being grown now – and what the county will be able to grow in the future.
Orchards are as much a symbol of Kent’s stunning scenery as the oasthouse, furthermore, Kent is the UK’s largest producer of top fruit –and it looks as though growers will soon have chance to expand their ranges to include any number of exotic fruits with the onset of warmer weather.
Implicit within F4T are concerns about the vastly expanding global population, and so Mandy also explores some innovative growing techniques. The clever concept for F4T came from Mark Lumsdon-Taylor, Hadlow’s finance director, who is passionate about finding solutions to the challenge posed by climate change.
As one of the UK’s most successful land-based colleges, Hadlow believes its role as a campaigner for the rural sector – in particular for the horticulture and agriculture industries - makes a vital contribution.
In order to further this contribution the college has opened a new Rural Regeneration Centre (RRC) which will be used as a hub for the south-east’s rural business sector. The RRC will facilitate stronger linkage with charitable trusts such as Kent Wildlife and Protect Kent.
Everyone who works in the rural sector is aware of the rural/urban divide and the misconceptions and misunderstandings that arise. A large proportion of those who live in cities and towns regard the countryside as somewhere green in which to spend a day or two at the weekend: rather than a vital producer of our food.
The RRC structure itself is fascinating. One of the most advanced buildings in the UK, there is no requirement for traditional heating or air cooling and consequent energy saving is in the region of 90 per cent by comparison with a conventional building of similar size.
Through the combination of this new building, and the F4T garden, Hadlow College hopes to highlight this divide, and become a unifying catalyst: by introducing the young to worthwhile rural jobs, and highlighting the need for sustainable changes to the way our food is produced.
For information please visit www.hadlow.ac.uk or pop over to the College and enjoy the lovely Broadview
Gardens tearoom.
