We are delighted to introduce Paul and James, our market gardeners from Mereworth Market Garden in Kent.
We caught up with the team to find out what they are currently working on, what they have planned for the year ahead and highlights of their Mereworth journey so far.
Q. What is the team currently working on?
A. Propagation for the year ahead has now begun. The team have been busy propagating tomatoes, peppers and aubergines. Come July and August, we will see these delicious tomatoes making their way to our Hungry Guest Food Shops as well as The Angel Inn and E.Street Bar & Grill; full of flavour and ready to be enjoyed in bright summer salads and other delicious seasonal dishes.
As the winter draws to a close and we look forward to spring, the Market Gardeners have been busy pruning and fruit training. Mereworth boasts eight varieties of hybrid berries positioned for fan training. In addition to the berries, the team are also busy fan-training figs, and apricots have also just been planted.
Q. How will things look at Mereworth in Spring?
A. Spring will see full-on planting and planning of the pack house here at Mereworth. The first produce will be spinach, which will be planted in the first few weeks of March. Followed by Broccoli, Tri-Colour Mange Tout and new early potatoes in April to early May.
Q. What have been the highlights of the Mereworth story so far?
A. One of the biggest highlights of the past two years has been the site clearance of the walled garden and subsequent fertility building through green manures. A highlight from the first year was most definitely the building of a propagation facility, allowing all in-house propagation. No plugs will be bought in and all produce will be grown from seed. A notable highlight in our second year was the first plantings on the walled garden and the introduction of wildlife planting including our beautiful pond.
Q. What is your goal at Mereworth?
A. Our mission here at Mereworth is to grow the finest, most flavoursome varieties of fruit and vegetables. Unrivalled in flavour and with traceability and provenance at the heart of all we do. Pictured below is Market Gardener James, who works alongside Paul producing all of Mereworths rich and flavoursome produce.
At The Hungry Guest, we hope to be fully dependent on the work of our wonderful Market Gardeners in the near future. Availability is of course dependent on the season, but so far we have been able to stock our very own home-grown basil, blueberries, cherries, courgettes, cucumbers, garlic, mixed beans, mixed salad leaves, potatoes and strawberries and more.
Keep your eyes peeled for seasonal updates from Paul and James straight into your inbox!
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Experience Mereworth Market Garden, Grown for Flavour at The Hungry Guest Food Shop, Petworth and West Malling.
Petworth:
Middle Street
Petworth
West Sussex
GU28 0BE
West Malling:
65 High Street
West Malling
Kent
ME19 6NA
