Green Fingers: The Complete No-Dig Edibles Course

Book fast! There’s an early bird discount at 15% if you book before the 30th Nov! Use the code ‘WOODCHIP24’ at checkout.

Join us on The Farmer’s Fields for a dynamic new edibles initiative aimed at new gardeners or anyone who’d like to learn easy no-dig growing, hands-on, and from the ground up.

Designed by Karen Guthrie (The Farmer’s Arms Gardening School & Grizedale Arts’ Head Gardener) and Head of Veg Matt Turnbull, this comprehensive new course draws on Karen’s two decades of expertise in growing prize-winning edibles in local conditions and Matt’s experience in market gardening, regenerative horticulture and growing for restaurant kitchens.

Although we strongly recommend enrolling for the full course, we also offer a term-by-term option if that works better for you. Whichever season you enrol in will bring bountiful delicious produce!

Inspired by John Ruskin’s suggestion that a person can support themselves with the produce grown on a 2 square yard plot, you will be assigned your own small plot (3m² in this case) to tend and harvest across the course, learning step by step everything you need to know from creating an easy no-dig bed to seed sowing, pest control, composting, growing on in all weathers, and the all-important harvesting. We’ll teach all about soil health, organic cultivation, how to choose and use plug plants, which are the best varieties to grow locally and when and how to grow everything from potatoes and pumpkins to sweetcorn and spinach. There will be lots of chances to try new and old cultivars, and if there’s one veg you hate and one you love, then of course your plot is adaptable to suit your own taste buds!

With access to our chefs’ expertise, and to the pub’s main veg growing spaces you will be able to see all manner of larger-scale crops in the ground, taste different varieties and learn how to preserve, cook and enjoy your produce. You can also enjoy a 20% discount for yourself and a guest at The Stable Bar’s Weekly Sunday Roasts.

Thinking of gifting a place on our courses for someone special this Christmas? Our new Gift Certificates are now available to purchase!

Course Schedule

Introduction & Bed-Making:
Sunday 25th February

Term 1*:
Sundays March 24 – May 19 (8 weeks)

Term 2:
Sundays June 2 – July 28 (8 weeks)

Term 3:
Sundays August 11 – September 29 (8 weeks)

*All participants in Term 1 must attend the Introductory session
**All sessions run from 10am-12.30pm

FAQ

What do the course fees include?

You will get 20 hours tuition per term (max. group size 12), all the compost, tools, seeds and plants you need, and access to our exclusive Farmer’s Arms Gardening WhatsApp group where we answer questions and swap gardening tips year round. And as the season progresses, you will of course get all the delicious fresh produce you have grown, to take home and enjoy. Although our focus is on vegetables, the techniques you’ll learn are as applicable to growing ornamental plants, trees and shrubs too.

Tell me more about ‘no-dig’ gardening

In a nutshell it means growing through a surface layer of organic matter (called a mulch) which suppresses weeds and locks in moisture. We have grown beautiful produce this way successfully for two years running at the pub, and for a decade at Lawson Park using techniques popularised in the UK by gardeners like Charles Dowding and Stephanie Hafferty (both worth a Google if you don’t know them). A sizable new growing area can be made in less than one hour, as no-dig means no back breaking turf removal or digging over first. Our vegetables, herbs and edible flowers from our pub’s beds have been first rate and supply the pub kitchens year round.

What happens if I miss a few weeks of the course?

Not a problem. We want to teach real-life gardening, and for most of us, things come up! If participants miss a week or 2 the beds will tick over fine. No-dig means way fewer weeds and much less maintenance than you’d expect, and we will help you get back on track with your plot as soon as you return.

What happens to the stuff I grow?

It’s all yours! You get to harvest it during course sessions! You can take it home, give it to friends or family or even to the pub kitchen to use.

About the team

Matt Turnbull is Head of Veg at The Farmer’s Arms and has a decade of experience growing top quality fresh, organic produce for box schemes and restaurants.

Karen Guthrie, Grizedale Arts Head Gardener is an experienced horticulturalist and teacher who has grown vegetables, fruit, herbs and many ornamentals at Lawson Park (where she is a residential warden) for over 20 years. Since 2021 she has led and taught the monthly Farmer’s Arms Gardening School.