This Land is Your Land

An Update on Tregullas Farm – December 2011

admin — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 18:00:26 +0000

It’s been a year now since myself and a number of National Trust volunteers went round Lizard village and delivered leaflets about the future of Tregullas Farm and how the local community could get involved in it. A lot has happened since, so it seemed a timely moment to update everybody about what is currently going on.

‘A working farm at Tregullas’ was the principal outcome of our discussions over the past year and lots of you have told us how much you valued the wildlife, access and great views that this land and the farm provides. We will be advertising for a tenant to work with us to make the most of all this later on this year. In addition, two groups are keen to work with us on different aspects of the farm which would tie in closely with our new tenant.

The Lizard Onions – ‘Britain’s Most Southerly Community Smallholding’ are looking at a Community Supported Agriculure project on a number of fields close to the village. They are gathering support locally and have entered the project into a BBC competition ‘Village SOS’ to help get some funding for start up work.

Tregullas Courtyard – a group of local people are looking to find a new use for the old farm buildings at Tregullas which might include:

Studios and workshops
Meeting places
Space for skills and learning
Offices and information
Space for events

This is potentially a large project, needing significant funding so the group are pursuing opportunities to carry out feasibility studies to draw up plans, see what could work and see whether there are bigger grants out there to get the barns into working units. They are currently waiting to hear back on a couple of possibilites.

Timetable

Because there is an amount of work to do on both these projects to make sure they are viable and ready to go, the National Trust are delaying the advertising of a tenancy for Tregullas to September 2012. This will enable the prospective farmers to know exactly how the farm and farm buildings will be set up. In the meantime we will keep you updated on how the projects are progressing.

Tregullas Farmhouse

Work is almost complete on the building and we will be shortly advertising for a temproary tenant for the farmhouse up until the arrival of the new farm tenant in September 2013.

Contact

Please do get in touch if you need any more information on any of these projects.

Alastair Cameron
Property Manager
The National Trust
December 2011

alastair.cameron@nationaltrust.org.uk

01326 561407

Tregullas Farm Community Forest Garden

admin — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 12:36:57 +0000

First of all, I think it is a great idea to ask both visitors and locals
for ideas about how to use the land most effectively. In my opinion, all
unused land across the Earth present a resource to transform the well
being and economy of the global community, by building community forest
gardens.

With minimal renewable energy inputs, such a garden could produce
abundant and diverse organic food, medicine, wood, biofuel, dyes,
fabrics, paper, oil, soap, wildlife, basketry, cafes, cemetery, flowers,
sap, compost, perfume etc. This offers a place of sanction for a
sustained economy, employment, bio and cultural diversity, reduced
pollution, increased recreation and eco-tourism, interactive education,
natural therapy, creative space and improved community health.

Almost anyone can learn how to design, build and manage a forest garden,
as nature does most of the work. There are a whole host of people I can
think of, including myself who would love the opportunity to implement
this. Please get in touch for any more details or follow ups.

Sandy Bradley

Onions and Art

admin — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 11:29:47 +0000

Tregullas Update September 2011

Things are moving along well now and two local groups have formed to take forward their ideas about what could be done with some of the land and some of the old courtyard of buildings at Tregullas. Find out more about the Courtyard Building Group and the Lizard Onions and come along and meet them at their Information Day on the 30th September at the Lizard Reading Room. Both groups are really keen for your input and help for their exciting projects so please come along and support them on the day.

The Trustees and Executive Board of the National Trust visited Tregullas this week on a glorious sunny day and were really excited about the projects and the enthusiasm of the local groups that they met on the day and they will keep a keen eye on what happens here in the future.

Whilst the two groups are formulating their plans, the National Trust will be looking at the terms of the new tenancy to start in March 2013. We need to tie this in really well with the other projects so that a new farmer coming in knows exactly what else is going on at Tregullas when they put their business plan in and that their business works well alongside the community projects proposed and we are hoping that the farmer will be a key member of both enterprises as they go forward. We’ll publish details of this tenancy when we have it in a draft form later this year and hold a meeting so we can get some feedback on what you think about what is proposed.

In the meantime, work is carrying on at the farmhouse to replace windows, prevent penetrating damp and upgrading kitchen and bathrooms. When the work is complete, we’ll be letting this on a short let, prior to letting the farm and farmhouse together.

I’m always pleased to hear comments and opinions about Tregullas and what we are doing together here, so please e mail me here or call me on 01326 561407.

Alastair Cameron
Property Manager
September 16 2011

Learning and Training

alastair1490 — Tue, 08 Mar 2011 16:57:07 +0000

I am very keen to develop a community learning hub aimed at young people but also those returning to work or wanting to change career at Tregullas Farm. I am interested in setting up an Apprenticeship Network; it is widely acknowledged that for many small and medium sized businesses, apprenticeships are heavy on administration and can be difficult to set up. I would like to see how young people can access training and employment through the range of small employers on the Lizard through an innovative approach to ‘sharing’ apprentices, helping with the administration and potentially liaising with a College. This would provide apprentices / succession planning etc for the many small businesses locally, help to provide local employment for young people or trainees and be able to meet local, rural needs.

Jenny Blunden

Preserve and Maintain the Natural Beauty

natasha — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 11:49:27 +0000

I am a member of National Trust and I would like to see the whole farm being used as traditional dairy/arable farm. I would not like to see wind farms or solar farms at Tregullas as it would interrupt the views. I would prefer dairy farming to beef farming. I would like all arable farming to be organic to further help the local environment. I enjoy wildlife and views and maintaining these are a high priority. I support long term lets to help benefit tenants and encourage continuity. I would like to encourage the sale of farm produce locally. I enjoy Tregullas Farm as it is, it is part of the community in a sedate and subtle way and provides us with much attractive open land and the cows are a lovely addition to the scenery.

If it isn’t broken …

Carol — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 10:05:19 +0000

As a NT member and a local myself I have a great deal of respect and support for the NT work throughout the UK, but especially on The Lizard. The management and protection of the coastal land owned by the NT has been vital in the return of the chough and this of course includes tenanted farms and the NT have been our guardians. However, I am also a great believer in ‘if it isn’t broken then it doesn’t need fixing’. I agree with the recommendations of the expert reports provided online by the NT, with Alastair’s blog comments (NT) and fellow bloggers, that Tregullas Farm should remain a mixed dairy/arable professional working farm, ideally moving towards organic certification. Tregullas is of course already part of The Lizard Village community, providing employment to local people, feeding money into the community by buying local products/goods and services and maintaining the grazed environment for our choughs and for the fabulous array of wild flowers and plants the Lizard is so blessed with. Perhaps the solution is simply for the NT to provide an affordable attractive long tenancy lease to a professional farmer, with a caveat to moving towards organic farming within a set timescale?

Save Tregullas Farm

andrew — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 08:46:19 +0000

I support Steve. I want to know why the NT has not re-advertised Tregullas Farm to be re-let on a long affordable tenancy? I would prefer to see a dairy herd as opposed to a beef herd. I am concerned that rather than conserve traditional farm buildings and farming that the NT want to turn Tregullas Farm into a theme park rather than a traditional way of life. Even the Land Capability Report commissioned by the NT supports maintaining the status quo, with the exception that there should be a move to organic farming. Such proposals for renewal energy like a solar or wind farm within Tregullas, would ruin an ANOB and SSSI and would negatively impact the wildlife including our recently returned chough.

The Lizard’s own farm

lizard onion — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 14:55:35 +0000

Tregullas Farm is part of the history of the Lizard village and from people in the village the overwhelming feeling seems to be that it should remain as a real, viable working farm. But wouldn’t it be great, as Tregullas becomes part of the future of the village, if at least a part of the farm – if not all of it - could truly belong to and support the community that surrounds it? As we move into times when where food comes from, how it is produced and how far it has travelled are increasing concerns, the opportunity to have a community farm, in which those who live in the village would be able to have a real, hands-on interest and / or where there could be a guaranteed market for a professional farmer seems an opportunity too good to miss. There are many successful community farms in existence across the country now and so although a community farm is still a relatively new idea it would not be treading in unmarked territory and we would be able to follow in the successful footsteps of others. Not only could this possibly provide, as young-farmer-steve suggested, a step on the ladder for someone starting out (with customers committed to buying produce and no need for too many ‘middle men’) but also an opportunity for the village to come together in productive and useful ways, for children in the village to be a part of an exciting project within the community in which they would be able to play an active role, and for those of us (and increasingly there seem to be more coming out of the woodwork!) with a bit of unfulfilled smallholder lurking deep inside to get muddy, have fun, and provide REALLY local food for consumption by really local people!

Just an idea … but it could work.

Peoples Farm

Goodisplanetearth.org — Mon, 20 Dec 2010 11:05:34 +0000

I have just spent a wonderful weekend in the Lizard village, talking with both locals and the National Trust re Tregullas Farm.

I am PA to the Chairman of Goodisplanetearth.Org, and our vision for the farm would be to see continued use of the land for arable and livestock farming, as well as access for walkers and areas for wildlife. We would like to see a small percentage of the area used as allotments for and by local people, and would like to see the farm achieve Organic status.

We would also like to see the rearing of bees, native fruit tree species and country craft workshops. Our vision would be to have an area that does not intrude on either landscape or farm production, set aside as an area where visitors and locals alike could learn old farming techniques and country skills, such as thatching and heavy horse ploughing. This could be both educational as well as becoming an additional attraction to the many visitors to the area.

In terms of livestock, we would like to see cattle and sheep, preferably native or rare breeds, who would help to maintain the cliff areas for chough breeding programme, as well as aiding the many rare wildflower species we enjoy, such as the bee orchid. (Successfully revived along the Mullion Cove coast path after the reintroduction of grazing.) We would also like to graze heavy horses, which would be used on the farm for ploughing, as well as the possibility of a horse drawn carriage to take visitors across the land to the Lizard Point.

In terms of change, our organisation would like to see subtle, yet beneficial changes to the use of the farm, such as organic and self sufficiency, with bore holes for water, and solar/wind generated power. The areas of change for allotments, a ‘home farm’ housing small animals such as geese, ducks, chickens, country craft workshops, trees and bees, would be allocated nearer to the buildings of the property, the bulk of the land remaining for livestock and arable crops.

We would like to see local people employed to manage certain areas of expertise, such as the livestock and arable farming, as well as employing local people in running the Country Craft Education Centre, to teach and demonstrate skills such as beekeeping, thatching and farrier/blacksmith work. etc. We would like to see a ‘community tool shed’ where shared tools may be used on the allotments.

If any further buildings were required we would like to propose the construction of a small traditional, low impact cob-house and/or a reconstruction of a Celtic Roundhouse, as evidence of these types of buildings are all around us in the archaeological landscape.

The farm could also offer the opportunity for ‘working holidays’ to those from out of the locality. We would like to see a small area set aside for use as a ‘camp site’ for those on working holidays and would propose a small number of holiday dwellings with a difference, in the form of a traditional horse drawn ‘gypsy’ carriages, a yurts, a tipis etc – low impact forms of temporary housing that would not be detrimental to the land.

The possibilities are endless and this is a wonderful opportunity for local people. On behalf of Goodisplanetearth I would like to thank the National Trust for giving us this opportunity.

Keep it farming!!

young farmer steve — Sat, 18 Dec 2010 14:38:54 +0000

Enough is enough for the National Trust turning perfectly good farms into extensively farmed wildlife havens, that are way under in terms of production and stocking rates, and way over, in terms of rent costs and pointlessness. When they could be used to produce food at a suffient output and capacity. And even give young farmers a much needed foot onto the agricultural ladder. Obviously with the high tourism in the Lizard things like footpaths have to be taken into consideration, and maybe with all the people around, a dairy farm in the village will probably be out of the question. But in my opinion over 200 acres is far too much to be taken out of proper agriculural production (well, 400 if you count Chyvarloe and Nanspean. And alot more i expect when other Farm Business Tenancies expire). There are a few fields close to the cliffs that are affected by salt burn, and these would probably be best suited to being left for wildlife to thrive to keep everyone happy. And as the farm is so close to the sea some crops will obiously not be able to be grown successfully as they would take a battering from the winter storms. But as the previous tenants have shown, without the hinderance of the Trusts big ideas, the farm can support working agriculture. Hopefully my views will be listened to.