Blagdon Cross: History

This page was the old web page about the Blagdon Cross site and should provide some background. For the current situation please see the Main Blagdon Cross Page. The Photo Album shows some more of the site and some of the events held there.

The next stage in the Plants For A Future project is the establishment of a major plant research and visitors' centre based around the practice of permaculture and useful plants. We have acquired an 84 acre site (35 hectares) in North Devon in summer '97 and obtained planning permission in June 2000. Work is now focused on developing the site and infrastructure. There is a great need for volunteers to help in the establishment of this pioneering centre. Please ring us first on 01208 872 963/0845 458 4719 before coming as we are very short staffed at the moment and can only accept visitors/volunteers are certain times such as the Plants For A Future Autumn Gathering, 20th-23rd September 2002.

After three years the Alders are shooting up!

The major elements of the site will include:

Visitors' Centre

Illustrating all the ideas behind the PFAF concept:

• The hundreds of plants which can be used to supply our food needs and help us to escape from our reliance on the 20 or so which form the basis of today's food supply.
• The thousands of medicinal plants which are used through out the world.
• The many other uses of plants such as alternative fibres, oils and dyes.
• The benefits of sustainable agriculture and permaculture techniques.
• Alternatives to mono-culture growing techniques such as woodland gardens, permaculture and the use of perennial plants.

Cafe

A place you will be able to try dishes made from more unusual plants.

Shop

Selling plants and other items such as clothing made from plants we grow.

Woodland Garden

Comprising about 3 acres and illustrating how many different plants can be grown in a small area by utilizing the different layers available in a woodland. See Woodland Garden Plants for more information on the concept.

Small Urban Gardens

Illustrating how it's possible to grow lots of foods and other materials in a small area without having to spend all the time weeding. (See the Urban Garden leaflet.)

Special Needs Garden

Gardens for people with disabilities, the blind and small children.

Native Areas

Conservation is a strong theme in the project. Much of the site will consist of native woodlands and rare Culm grassland, helping to attract wildlife. Nature walks will be provided and we hope to construct a lake.

Workshops

Providing spaces for crafts people to work with the plants we grow and experiment with novel plant uses. This will also help the site to move towards self-sufficiency.

Experimental Area

Here we will carry out research into new potentially useful plants. We will also be working to improve yields, nutritional quality and disease resistance of many other plants.

Nursery

Growing plants for sale in the shop and through our Catalogue.

As well as all this the site will provide a space for running courses and workshops.

It is hoped that the village will contain several types of housing including underground, cob and Walter Segal self-build. Other aspects of alternative design will be evident throughout the site.

Current Status

We have had the site since July '97 and gained planning permission in June 2000. The site is already showing its value as an educational centre which several successful courses being run there, including the South West Permaculture Convergence in May 01 and a Buddhist retreat/permaculture workshop in April 01.

We recently heard (Aug 2001) that we have been awarded a 25 thousand pound grant from the Devon and West Somerset Key Fund. This will go to establishing the infrastructure for the Blagdon site and includes money for constructing the car-park and access road, water supply and power supply, equipment for a restroom, an agricultural shed, a computer and projector for doing presentations and lots of tools. There are quite a few conditions that need to be met to fulfil the grant which include the training of 500 people and a short time scale to achieve it all.

Lots of work has already been carried out on the site: 20,000 trees have been planted, many of the trees are pioneer species like Alders which grow very quickly and help build up the soil, some of the trees have already reached head height. These will provide shelter for the other plants. The existing native woodland has also received much needed attention through coppicing. Several temporary structures have been acquired to provide space for volunteers and a temporary visitors centre.

The start of one of the beds at Blagdon

The planning Saga

Initially the site did not have the planning permission we needed, but it did have outline planning permission for 28 'holiday' chalets and 1.7 hectares (4 acres) of lakes. We have also got planning permission for five poly-tunnels. One of the first tasks was to apply for planning permission to allow people to live on site as well as the other essentials for the site such as a car park, camping pitches and a lake.

The original application was submitted to the District Council on '98 which was rejected. The application was reworked and resubmitted in July '99. Again this was rejected and we decided to appeal the decision. A public Inquiry was held in May 2000 which lasted for three days. This appeal was upheld. So we now have temporary planning permission for two mobile homes (one to act as a visitors' centre and one for accommodation for the workers); five camping pitches; a hard core area for visitors and workers parking plus access route, and a lake.

Money: