Use BBC.com or the new BBC App to listen to BBC podcasts, Radio 4 and the World Service outside the UK.

Find out how to listen to other BBC stations

Episode details

Radio 4,06 Nov 2022,22 mins

BBC Food & Farming Awards finalist: Overbury Farms

On Your Farm

Available for over a year

When Jake Freestone wants to grow a field of oil seed rape, he doesn't just plant rape seeds - he also plants buckwheat, clover and vetches. For him, the price of these extra seeds is more than made up for by the jobs the extra plants do for him. First, they help hide the young rape plants from pests which could damage them. Then they provide a habitat for predators like spiders, which also help tackle pests. The clover and vetches are nitrogen fixers, so reduce the amount of money Jake has to spend on fertilising the crop. This typifies his regenerative farming approach. Jake's focus is on improving his soil biology. He says, "If we can have healthy soil, we can have healthy plants and ultimately healthy food." Overbury Estate has been chosen by Charlotte Smith as one of her three finalists in the "Farming for the Future" category of this year's BBC Food and Farming Awards. In this programme, Charlotte visits the farm to find out more about its regenerative approach and what that means for yields, carbon sequestration and biodiversity. Presented by Charlotte Smith Produced by Heather Simons

Programme Website
More episodes