News
DAIRY FARMER SCOOPS TOP AWARD AT FLOWER SHOW
An East Sussex dairy farmer and first time exhibitor at Hampton Court Palace Flower Show has scooped a top accolade. Gillian van der Meer, who has a dairy farm at Ashburnham, near Battle, has devoted the past five months of her life to growing crops and vegetables for School’s In – School’s Out, a large educational exhibit in the Growing Tastes marquee (GT2) at the 2008 show. So a Silver Gilt medal was a fitting reward for all her hard work – especially as she is not a grower by trade.
School’s In – School’s Out celebrates the achievements of young people during the Year of Food and Farming, a campaign that has given young people an insight into the origins of their food and the workings of our farmed countryside. Gillian has been well placed to sum up the legacy of the Year, as she is the Year of Food and Farming events manager for the region, and is supported by the development agency, SEEDA.
Taking centre stage is a school garden, a Victorian market porter’s cart laden with local produce, plus a cropped field with a species-rich hedgerow and wild-flower margin. Gillian cultivated the arable crops – wheat, barley, oats, oilseed rape and triticale – with many vegetables herself from seed, starting in early spring, using only a small greenhouse.
She said: ‘I’m delighted that School’s In – School’s Out struck a chord with the judges. The exhibit was very well received by visiting children and teachers at the Show preview, but winning a Silver Gilt was beyond my wildest dreams as a first timer at RHS flower shows!’
Mrs van der Meer added: ‘The Year of Food and Farming in the South East has given young people opportunities to experience farming for real and to grow, cook and eat healthy food. Many of them have learned life-skills that they would not have acquired in any normal school year. The display showcases the finest local produce, demonstrating what can be grown in a small school garden plot and replicating a field studies experience in miniature. The raised bed we have on show here is the right height for children with special physical needs, such as as wheelchair users – making the garden accessible to all children.”
Martin Lowry, chairman of the Year of Food and Farming in the South East, paid tribute to Mrs van der Meer’s determination and enthusiasm. He added that the Year would undoubtedly leave a positive legacy as it had enabled more than 10,000 young people from the South East to visit farms and the open countryside.