FARMER Tim Deane has been working alongside the land for most of his life and has shared his musings in a new book – Nature Notes.

The book is a collection of articles that appeared in The Organic Grower magazine between 2009 and 2021. The notes are a light-hearted collection of reflections about working in conjunction with nature.

After he left university, Tim decided he wanted a job that meant he could spend most of his time outdoors, and so he went into farming. Soon after he worked in Scotland before moving to his Devon home on the outskirts of Dartmoor with his wife Jan.

Jan and Tim grew vegetables and kept cattle, but now the pair are using Countryside Stewardship schemes to sort fencing and hedging on the land. They still have a large vegetable patch and polytunnels, growing vegetables to feed themselves and their family.

Tim has always grown produce organically, and when the Organic Growers Association merged into the Soil Association, a group of organic growers branched out and created the Organic Growers Alliance. Tim and Phil Sumption founded The Organic Grower as part of the alliance in 2007.

“I have written technical articles for the magazine,” said Tim.

“But the Nature Notes were a light relief. I was inspired by what I saw around me on the farm. As a farmer, you have your nose to the ground, but if you keep your eyes and ears open there is a lot going on. For example, I’d be out in the fields harvesting leeks, which you can do on autopilot, and be finding inspiration.

“I hope the book will give people more insight into what it is like to work on the land. I just love the natural world and being outside. If you are in a lucky position to spend your life outside, the pleasures of it doesn’t cost you anything - it is a good bargain really.”

When asked what he thought about farming today, Tim said there is a lot of conflict. He said with organic farming, there is a set of rules farmers must stick to, whereas terms such as ‘regenerative’ farming are not so strictly defined.

“When I was younger, I worked on conventional farms, but as time went on, I was less and less happy about certain things, hence why I went into organic farming,” Tim added.

“With the younger generation coming into organic growing, they are keen to farm on a smaller scale, but I am not sure this is a valid approach with a growing population who needs feeding.

“But on the other hand, you have farms that are increasing in size with more technology and more machinery – there is conflict between the two.

“The purpose of land is to produce food to help the population, but we need to find a way of doing that that doesn’t cause violence towards the natural world.”

Nature Notes can be found at selected outlets online, or direct from the author by emailing naturenotes2024@gmail.com.