UK Berry Farmning- Blueberries
Organic Farmming

Organic farming at Tuesley Farm

Seventy of the 469 acres at Tuesley Farm are converted to organic farming of soft fruits. 2005 was our first season and by the end of July 2005 we achieved yields of 45 tonnes of class 1 strawberries.

The aim for organic fresh produce producers is to develop a bio-system that provides a balanced habitat for beneficial insects and soil pathogens to create the best possible environment for a plant to grow strongly and have the ability to protect itself against pest and disease.

Soil conditioning

The foundation for good organic farming is to develop a soil which has good cation exchange capacity, has good water retention abilities and is well aerated.

We achieve this by growing green manure crops such as vetch, clover and mustard that provide nutrients and organic matter to the soil to enhance the soil structure and improve aeration. The soft fruit crop is introduced after the green manure.

We incorporate farmyard manures and compost into the top six inches of the soil to again add nutrients and improve soil structure, aeration and cation exchange.

We cultivate the soils with deep sub-soils to ensure free draining soils and use power secondary cultivation machines to give a fine tilth and again, increased aeration.

Soil health

Soils can contain pathogens and nematodes that are harmful to soft fruit crops. To help control harmful pathogens, we grow a bio-fumigant crop such as mustard or Sudan grass, while using marigolds another natural way to help control nematodes.

Beneficial insects

There are a number of pests that damage soft fruit and we are able to control these with other predators in the wild, called “Beneficials”.

Examples of these are:

  • Parasitic wasps, ladybirds, hover flies and lacewings control aphids
  • Orius species help control thrips
  • Phytoseiulus control red spider and two-spotted mite
  • Amblyseius to control tarsonemid mite and thrips

It is important to grow a habitat that encourages these species to colonise in and around the soft fruit crop. We do this by growing wild flower mixes and, believe it or not, nettles!

The fields are surrounded by beetle banks for this reason but also to encourage beetles which feed on vine weevil, a very problematic pest for strawberries.

Organic Varieties

Strawberries
We have been able in recent years, through trial and error, to grow Elsanta – the main variety grown on conventional soft fruit farms. In addition we grow Florence and Everest.

Raspberries
We grow mainly Autumn Bliss

Protection

It is essential that we cover our soft fruit crops to ensure they are not lost to grey moulds and rain damage. Tunnels have been the single most important tools used in the successful production of organic soft fruit.

Market

All our organic soft fruit is supplied to Waitrose.