Suffolk's first organic lentils
| STOP PRESS! Our first trial crop of British lentils is now available to order... |
Lentil trial at Wakelyns Agroforestry
Four or five years ago, when Nick, William and I were all working for East Anglia Food Link and developing the Norwich Resilient Food Project with Transition City Norwich, we talked a lot about lentils. We were thinking about what a more sustainable diet might look like for the city of Norwich; what would people eat if they were more reliant on local production? How would farming have to change?
It seemed to us that lentils could be part of the answer. It goes without saying that lentils are delicious and extremely nutritious, but they're also a useful low-input crop for less intensive farming systems - they fix their own nitrogen and suffer few pests and diseases (certainly fewer than beans and peas). They're also less water intensive, something we think will be increasingly important in East Anglian crop selection.
A wonder crop!
Well, not quite. The catch is that they're rather tricky to grow because they don't compete well with weeds (they're low growing and not especially vigourous), need a warm, dry autumn to ripen for harvest and - even if all that goes well - are not very high yielding. We decided it'd be unreasonable to ask a farmer to risk growing them for us (and they'd have to be daft to say yes!).
And yet historically there's lots of evidence for lentils being grown all over Britain - even as far north as Scotland - so the idea never quite went away. Then last autumn I visited Sweden to meet farmers growing bean varieties we're interested in trying here. Whilst there I saw their successful lentil trials and heard about a continuing tradition of lentil growing on the island of Gotland. Surely if they can do it in Sweden we can do it too - I came back with lots of notes.
We're extremely fortunate to have Professor Martin Wolfe just down the road and he was as excited about the prospect of lentils as we were. Not least because my Swedish friends had suggested that a technique called intercropping - in this case growing lentils mixed with cereals - overcame many of the production problems; it's an approach Martin is particularly passionate and knowledgeable about.
Martin's pioneering farm, Wakelyns Agroforestry, is part of the Organic Research Centre and as such is well placed to carry out trials. Three kilos of seed were sent from Sweden and plots planted in early May - the picture above clearly shows the different cereals (oat, wheat and barley varieties) as well as some plots where the lentils are grown alone.
We won't know whether the trial is worth expanding until the autumn, the lentils are growing fantastically well at the moment and visually the intercropping seems to be working; but the key will be whether we get a useful harvest and a lot will depend on the weather this September.
Fingers crossed!
Lentils growing in a plot without a cereal
6 Responses
rob
Hi there, I’m growing some lentils in Lancashire. I’ve planted some from tescos in a polytunnel (because I’m worried they won’t seed in the UK climate. Didn’t know they were grown in Scotland. Do I need a specific variety over here if I want to plant them outside? I’m growing oats too, would you recommend mixing them in with the lentils? Thanks :)
Rose Harris
Many thanks for the interesting talk you gave at River Cottage’s Park Farm in Dorset on 4th April 2016.
Your pioneering work goes alongside the folks in Scottish borders such as Andrew Whitely ( Bread Matters) bringing back heritage wheat grains.
So glad you guys are here and batting for a healthier diet for us all. The Badger bean stew, using your beans, at River Cottage was absolutely delicious at lunchtime and totally vegan. Perhaps the recipe could be on your website.
Many thanks for your contribution to a very informative, relaxed and happy day.
david
Organic Lentils from England!! I’ll be following this with some interest. Certainly on my shortlist for a large order.
Only discovered Hodmedods today, what a cracking company. My first order is underway (to France).
Daniel Coffey
It will be fantastic if you can add lentils to the web shop in the future. My wife and I go through a large amount of them in the winter… although we tend to eat more chickpeas and white beans in the summer.
Josiah
Thanks Frances – good question too. In this case the lentils and cereals are grown together in the same rows and harvested at the same time. The cereals provide some support for the lentils, help compete with the weeds and provide a microclimate that suits them well. I’ll post a more detailed overview of the harvest – including results – when we harvest.
Josiah
frances
How do they intercrop with cereals? One bed lentils and the next cereal? Thanks, this is interesting stuff!
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