Hello, and welcome
You’ll be wondering why we, as a creative media hub specialising mainly in photography and the visual arts, are talking about agriculture and farms… See below for details!
But first up, here about our recent vist to the Groundswell festival about Regenerative Agriculture:
Groundswell: The Regenerative Agriculture Festival
Wed 2 and Thurs 3 July 2025 | https://groundswellag.com
Our work experience students spent a day being journalists and gaining new knowledge about the massively important topic of saving our soils!
Here is their story:
“I went to Groundswell with Julia to explore photography and learn about the importance of soil health. While photographing, I attended several talks that delved into the challenges of implementing alternative farming systems designed to improve soil quality. These discussions were eye-opening, especially since this topic isn’t commonly taught in schools and felt entirely new to me. Initially, I was skeptical, but as I listened, I became increasingly intrigued by how vital soil health is—not just for better crops, but for the sustainability of our entire food system. Hearing farmers share how they could save thousands of pounds annually by adopting more regenerative practices was surprising and made the issue feel even more urgent and practical. It was a powerful reminder that innovation in agriculture isn’t just about technology—it’s about rethinking the foundations of how we grow our food. Overall, the experience broadened my perspective and made me appreciate how deeply connected soil health is to our future.” – Humphrey B (15 years old)
“At first, I was quite dubious about the idea of going to Groundswell. It didn’t really sound like something I’d usually be interested in, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. However, as it turns out, the event was far better than I had imagined. I ended up learning a lot more than I thought I would—especially about the importance of soil. Before going, I hadn’t really considered how important soil is to the farming community, or how much life exists within it. Seeing microorganisms working in a soil sample in real time was incredible. It really opened my eyes to a part of biology that often gets overlooked. The whole experience was both exciting and interesting. There was a real sense of discovery, and it felt good to be learning something new in such a relaxed and engaging setting. Wandering around the different stalls on a warm summer’s day made it all the more enjoyable. Looking back, I’m really glad I went—it changed my perspective completely.” – WJ (15 years old)
Julia’s summary here:
Returning this year to Groundswell with more soil health training under her belt, thanks to the wonderful SoilFoodWeb hosted by Nick Padwick of Wildsoils at the beautiful Wild Ken Hill farm (Nick was also a speaker at Groundswell on stage with Gabe Brown at Groundswell), Julia introduced our work experience students to the concept of regenerative agriculture and the importance of microorganisms in the soil for plant, animal and human health.
The students’ project of the day was to be exposed to new material and gather a journalist’s overview with their cameras to tell the story of the Groundswell festival, its speakers and stands of information, and attendees, around this key subject. The next day the image selection and editing process followed, with upload to media and inserting into the website – a first for our students.
Walks into nearby fields were attended by attendees including livestock farmers (cattle, sheep) wanting to know about biodiversity and management of manure (you’re thinking “yuck” but this is so helpful in increasing biodiversity in the soil – and this is where clever dung beetles come in who, along with their soil companions, process and carry the manure deeper down in the soil, helping to feed plant roots with vital nutrients and aerate soil to prevent waterlogging (and prevent smells), floods and soil erosion.
The identification of the correct sub-species of dung beetle is important for monitoring over time of presence/absence of precise species (60 different dung beetles in the UK!). This talk was run by the excellent https://www.dungbeetlesforfarmers.co.uk/dung-beetles.)
Conversations in food queues, at stands and in speaking with acquaintances and friends at the event, as well as talks, illuminated deeper insights into the subject for our students, with Julia witnessing a lightbulb moment – how incredibly important this subject is and why is it not addressed at school – yet!
Our students are already showing excitment at being able to do microscope photography! Watch this space for upcoming details! Contact us to find out more: info@themangolab.co.uk / 0203 002 4991.
Based on our passion for embracing and nurturing not only the humans but also the world around us, not least in opening students’ eyes to the details, angles, and processes that may get overlooked (changing light, seasonal shadow envelopes, greenery growth), this has branched into an additional focus. With our bases now in West Cornwall as well as London our influences are even more varied and our students gain from cross-pollination of ideas from the rural to the urban and vice versa.
Those of you who have met us will know we are ‘organic’ by nature, flexible with the moment and moving with the flow where possible, catering to our varied groups of students in many different ways. Many of you will have experienced Julia’s passion for nature, running our very popular Wildlife and Macro Photography workshops. She will likely have hinted to you about her fascination in the ability of wormeries and compost – yup, that’s Julia – to change the soil and massively increase the crops of strawberry plants, beans, flowers, the ability to heal ailing plants and lots more.
She is already being asked to diagnose and assist in remedying ailing citrus trees in Spain, problematic compost near London, allotments in various areas of the country, and a farm in Devon, as well as to introduce GCSE students to where their food comes from and why that matters.
In Cornwall as well as elsewhere in the news, we see the precarious situation of spiralling farm costs, failing crops and depletion of biodiversity. And more recently the wildfires in California. (See the “Soil Sponge” information by Walther Jehne (Climate Scientist and Microbiologist) and Didi Pershouse:
if the soil contains healthy microbes and acts as a sponge to water like bread, we would avoid having runoff from over-treated soils, like water beading and running off flour.) So, actually, the solution is so SIMPLE, and right at our feet! But we need to know how to do it.
Under our feet everywhere is soil, or foundations of soil, of varying types. Soil has almost magical properties, or let’s say hidden properties, until you look. Evolution over millions of years created the perfect processes on our planet to produce life – from microscopic, to small to larger animals. When all is in balance the system works to absorb a great deal of carbon, clean the air and produce oxygen, clean the soil, retain and clean water (flooding prevention), and produce fine tasting nutrient-rich foods for animals and humans alike. These foods in turn aid our own health, as well as the planet’s, giving us a wide variety of elements which the soil organisms can extract and deliver to plants when their environment is right.
Julia is currently training to be a soil expert having gathered almost two decades of her own experience and excitment at seeing how incredibly different and healthy the soil becomes when generating and adding compost, including from wormeries, to the soil. She has wanted to back this up with scientific evidence and, thanks to re-connecting with an old school friend (keep in touch with them – your friendships are so valuable! And thanks, Holly!) she has found her perfect self-paced soil-focused science and practical course, and is learning, with scientific backing now, that her instincts have been correct.
Many ideas spin off this, one being landfill waste: working at times early mornings or late evenings at the Mango Lab offices she observed the mounds of restaurant rubbish bags, food waste seemingly going to landfill in leaking rubbish bags. Surely this should be harvested to create nutrient-rich compost, to in turn provide to farmers, who in turn wouldn’t need the expensive and unnecessary fertilisers. In theory, the councils pick up food waste but how does its cycle continue?
Now with her base in West Cornwall, as well as London, she sees evermore the need to support farmers with their productivity, and the local community farm has caught wind of her passion for this wide-ranging subject. Brought in to run Geography GCSE-linked courses, as well as over the years within our wildlife and macro photography courses, her workshops engage students with where food comes from, its processes and links to the environment (global weather patterns, geology and soil, compost, wormeries and organisms, pollinators, companion planting, diverse leys (varied plants), as well as the practical side of how to cater for the very rugged winds and rains on our Atlantic coast(!) with shelter-belts, windbreaks, and cover crops/ground cover – also part of the regenerative agriculture practice.
With the buzz words of permaculture, regenerative farming/regenerative agriculture, and many more, we know we are building, continuing in line with our ethos, a much needed education programme to provide climate optimism in these times of eco-anxiety: start small, create the right environment and the right balance will provide the network to flourish.
Julia and The Mango Lab are excited to be growing a new branch of the Mango ‘tree’: our hub for growing individuals, as parts of a wider connected active network.
And Karl has some linked news, soon to be announced too. Watch this space!
Here some farm pictures of what Julia has been doing with her young students at the farm:
Potato harvesting, chicken husbandry and egg collecting, testing new tastes (nasturtium – ohh peppery!, physallis – mmm!), setting up a wormery, learning to manage the farm shop and how to take payment, identifying (and photographing) the all important (visible to the naked eye) evidence of healthy soils – insects: spider photography!
Links to talks, events, podcasts, and other information covering and linked to this fascinating subject.
PODCASTS – some favourites to start off…
The Soil Health Hub Podcast: Soil Health Hub
24 Feb 2021 – Dr Elain Ingham & Danile Tyrkiel: Bringing Biology & Organic Matter Back in Soil
This is the big reveal behind the incredible properties within the soil. Dr Elaine Ingham has been studying this for 40 years. Illuminating!
From the Menoken Farm: The Soil Health Podcast
Episode 015 – David Montgomery: The Future of Food
Why the quality of our food matters and how things worked in the past compared to now. Fascinating.
The Royal Geographical Society:
Last week a wonderful lady from Indonesia, Denica Readini-Flesch, spoke about her journey supporting rural women to generate a fair wage and to farm, remembering their grandparents’ practices of crop mixing and benefitting the soil and crop production.
Read about her here: https://newsroom.rolex.com/world-of-rolex/perpetual-planet/rolex-awards-for-enterprise/2023/news-04/rae-denica-riadini-flesch
An excerpt from the above article about mixing plants within a crop:
“Kasmini [a 65 year old farmer Denica met] planted chilli next to cotton, so the pests were drawn to the chilli plants. She planted mung beans, helping the soil absorb nitrogen, and tall-growing corn to protect and shade the cotton. In all, she planted 20 different, but complementary crops.
The results were extraordinary. Her cotton yield increased six times compared to previous efforts, and crops with different seasonal harvests ensured a year-round income. Here was living proof of the benefits of a regenerative approach. “When we take care of Mother Earth, we take care of ourselves,” says Ibu Kasmini.”
The pod cast, via the universally accessible Times podcast Planet Hope, is due to go live shortly so follow the series now: https://pod.fo/e/231412
So many sound bites! She’s really excellent.
As a member or fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (an excellent reason to become one!) you get access to past talks, including Denica’s, on-demand and any future lectures in person or online, plus a remarkable set of resources and people). See rgs.org for talks, how to join, what’s on and to explore.
And if you are a school, look at this! Competitions for schools, three awards, deadline 4 October 2024: https://www.rgs.org/about-us/our-work/latest-news/2024-competitions-for-schools-open-for-entries
Worms to track soil health!
They’re making the news…. Read all about it and take part too:
https://apple.news/AH65dQlN6RC6NMiAIX6HpqA
EVENTS
Groundswell: The Regenerative Agriculture Festival
Wed 26 June, and Thurs 27 June 2024
Lannock Manor Farm, Hertfordshire, SG4 7EE, UK (near Hitchin, nearest train station Stevenage or Baldock. Free shuttle mini bus from Stevenage station. Travel and accomodation info is on the Groundswell website.)
Hosting many speakers and exhibitors. So intrigued about what we’ll learn and who we’ll meet.
https://groundswellag.com