Market Garden
Established in March 2022, growers Signe and Rosanna transformed a 3-acre horse pasture into a productive, organic market garden. The market garden team harvest fresh produce for the Wilding Kitchen & Shop supplying a diverse range throughout the seasons.
Growing regeneratively means we’re always aiming to have living roots in the soil, keeping the surface covered with a wide range of plants to help build topsoil and protect it from the drying sun, wind, and excessive rain. Restoring the soil also increases biodiversity – from soil biota to the insects that act as pollinators and pest control. We disturb the soil as little as possible, planting directly into it without digging and overturning, allowing the soil biome to thrive.
Knepp Market Garden is based on a six-block crop rotation, filled with the vegetables that we love to cook with. We have fruiting crops (tomatoes, courgettes, legumes etc), brassicas (kales etc), alliums (leeks, onions etc), roots (carrots, beetroot, celeriac etc) and leaves (salad crops etc). The sixth block is a cover crop, establishing a mixture of roots in the ground, building soil out of our tough Wealden clay and providing food for pollinators. Woven into the layout are beetle-banks (mixed vegetation providing habitat for insects) and beds for growing cut flowers. Sussex heritage apple trees and a wildflower meadow surround the main growing area. We have 820m2 protected cropping space to grow a summer abundance of tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and aubergines, as well as extending our season to offer hardy greens through the winter and early spring.
Compost from Knepp’s Regenerative Farm feeds the Market Garden, minimising the need for external inputs. Our overriding aim is always to boost life in the soil. This creates a balanced and resilient ecosystem in which we can grow the most nutritious and delicious produce possible. Meet our growers: Rosanna & Signe
From May through to October our team run tours in the Market Garden every Saturday – to book on to a tour follow this link.
Book a table at the restaurant here to try their produce cooked by our chefs, or visit our shop to buy some of their produce.
