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Sat22Feb202510:00 - 15:00Walled Garden, Hardwick Estate
Fermentation workshop with Tolhurst Organic. Seasonal veg, water and salt! Earthy Goodness! Learn the skill with Tamara Schiopu. Event details...
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Sat05Apr202510:00 - 14:00Walled Garden, Hardwick Estate
After the publishing of George Monbiot's Regenesis, where an entire chapter, "Fruitful", is dedicated to our farm as a happy solution to many of the problems presented by the food system, we have received multiple requests for visits.Tolhurst Organic is a working farm, and visits are possible by appointment only, or as part of organised events. Hence this farm walk, dedicated to Stockfree Organic, soil, woodchip and everything else we set up to produce healthy and organic "veganic" food. You can read more details about our farm walks here.
Bring suitable clothes and shoes for a 3.5 hours farm walk, including our two fields and Walled Market Garden. Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy after the walk, at the farm. Tea and coffee will be provided.
We regret that dogs are not allowed on this occasion, for food safety reasons.
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Sat03May20259 am - 1 pmLin's VegShed @ Hardwick Estate
Calling all kitchen gardeners, allotment holdes and Windowsill growers!We will be selling our surplus Vegiie Plants and our farm shop Lin's VegShed. Make sure to get there earlyfor the best choice!
Come alonga nd get inspired to grow fresh veg yourself. All grown in 100% homemade peat-free compost, grown-on slowly and lovinglytended to create happy, robust and healthy plants. Plus w eonly grow the very best, tastiest and most bountiful varieties for ourselves, so why no shre them with you, too?!
We will have
tomatoes
peppers
cucumbers
courgettes
lettuces
celery
parsley
basil
and more vegetables, salads and herbs!
There will be coffee and cakes, hosted by Dave and Zoe at their Organic Coffee Cart, and VegShed will open as usual so you can take home some of the freshes, local, organic veg with you, too!
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Fri16May2025Mon19May2025Tolhurst Organic Agroforestry Field, Hardwick Estate
As part of Agroforestry Open Weekend we welcome you to our farm for a guided or self guided farm tour between 16-19 MayOver Agroforestry Open Weekend 2025 we will be open on:
Friday 16th May – 10:00-12:00 – Guided Farm Tour (by booking ON THIS PAGE)
Saturday 17th May – 9:00-14:00 – Self-guided walk with coffee and cakes (available from the Farm Shop).
Sunday 18th May – 9:00-18:00 – Self-guided farm walk (available from the Farm Shop)
Our farm
Tolhurst Organic is a 20 acre horticultural farm, growing vegetables across two fields, one open and separated by beetle banks, and the other in alley cropped agroforestry, alongside a 500 year old walled garden. It is one of the longest running organic vegetable farms in the country, and the first to be accredited stock-free organic, meaning it has had no animal inputs of any kind for over 20 years. To build fertility, the farm makes use of green manures in the form of a 2 year herbal ley, winter cover crops and intercropping, and produces its own ramial woodchip compost, from the agroforestry and a small willow coppice, to build carbon and feed the soil fungi, flora and fauna.
Our agroforestry
We planted up 7 acres of agroforestry in 2016 with a diverse mix of native trees: fruiting, coppicing and timber varieties, each with a range of rooting profiles, growth habits and ecological benefits. In the understory we grow other perennial fruits and flowers, and in between we grow mixed vegetables.
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Sat31May2025Sun24Aug2025Tolhurst Organic Farm
My Vegan Farm Food: Recipes & Stories CookbookHelp us create a book in our own words, for you to discover plant-based recipes and fascinating stories from the Tolhurst Organic farm. (Full list of REWARDS)
A Living Legacy: From Field to Fork
Be among the first to own this unique collection of stories and plant-based recipes from one of the UK's pioneering organic vegan farms! We at Tolhurst Organic stand as a testament to sustainable agriculture, proudly holding the Soil Association's organic symbol for an impressive 49 years. Our much-loved 17-acre farm, featuring a historic 500-year-old Walled Garden, was the first in the world to receive "Stockfree Organic" certification in 2007. This means no animal inputs whatsoever—creating truly vegan produce from soil to table.
Organic isn't just a label - it's a promise. When you cook with our vegetables, you're guaranteed meals that are chemical-free and nutrient-rich. But organic farming extends far beyond your plate. It safeguards entire ecosystems: the living soil beneath our feet, the industrious insects, the birds soaring overhead, and the water cycling through it all. While conventional agriculture introduces toxic chemicals into our environment, we protect Nature's delicate balance at every level.In today's world, where food is often undervalued and farmers' crucial role is frequently overlooked, we need your support. Your contribution helps us continue our work, while bringing this new culinary venture - a recipe book - to life.
Every food-growing farm eventually needs a cookbook to complement its produce. Amidst our hectic modern lives, this beautiful volume will help you connect with what's grown at Tolhurst Organic and transform it into delicious meals. Seasonal eating requires particular knowledge and skill, and this book delivers exactly that - a perfect match between what’s in season and what we can eat.
When we embarked on this journey, we truly envisioned a simple and practical solution to all customers, friends and visitors who need to know new ways of using seasonal produce from the farm.It has taken us two years to complete the work, because we are growers not publishers. Amidst sawing seeds, transplanting, growing, watering, harvesting and delivering we tailored time to cook multiple meals, enjoy them as a team and get memorable photographs and stories for the book.
And now the work is in the hands of a talented designer and in your trust! We need your help to finish this journey and complete our offer, with an authentic book of recipes and stories.
Where Your Support Goes
Every pound you contribute helps bring this project to life, while supporting the sustainability of our farm. We've chosen to self-publish My Vegan Farm Food - Stories and Recipes from Tolhurst Organic to maintain creative control and ensure all proceeds directly benefit our farm and the dedicated people who fill our farm with soul.
Our first print run will be 1,000 copies, requiring an iminent investment of £7,950.
- Editing and proofreading £500
- Photography £500
- Graphic design £1,320
- Printing £3,200
- Delivery £1,000
- Support and promotion £1,430
By choosing to support our Crowdfunder, you will receive a beautiful book and you will become part of our farm's story, part of sustainable agriculture in the UK.
We hope to raise a minimum of £25,000 from subsequent sales, and all proceeds from this book sales will create an additional income stream alongside our popular veg box scheme, to:
Support our stockfree organic farming practices
Sustain fair wages for our dedicated farm team
Help us continue growing nutritious, planet-friendly produce
This book represents the culmination of our farming philosophy, practical knowledge, and delicious plant-based cuisine—all grown and created on our land.
(Full list of REWARDS)
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Sun01Jun202512pm-3pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
Our strawberry plots are located in the Walled Garden at Hardwick Estate, Whitchurch-on-Thames.
This year’s crop is smaller than usual due to a lack of Year
strawberries, which are typically the most abundant. For this reason, we are not holding a Strawberry Fayre—only Pick Your Own (PYO).
PYO Details:
• The event will run for
hours only, due to limited availability.
• Please come early, as once the crop is picked, we cannot 'restock'. We kindly ask that you help children understand this is part of how Nature works
.
• Bring your own containers, or you can collect
g punnets on-site.
• Entry is free of charge.
Getting Here:
• Parking is available in the Upper Knights field by the farm shop (RG8 7RA). Please follow our signs to find the parking plot. From there, enjoy a picturesque 1-mile walk to the Walled Garden. Comfortable shoes and buggies for little ones are recommended.
• Limited accessible parking is available closer to the garden for disabled and elderly visitors. Drivers will be asked to relocate cars to the designated parking area afterward.
We welcome bikers and walkers and will provide a bicycle rack
Refreshments:
• We’ll be serving vegan-friendly treats: cakes, tea & coffee, spinach pastries, kombucha and strawberry ice cream.
• You’re also welcome to bring your own packed lunch and relax in our Sitting Area.
Dog Policy:
Due to food safety regulations, well-behaved dogs on leads are welcome on the grounds, but may not enter food-growing and strawberry areas. We appreciate your understanding. -
Sat28Jun202510 am - 2 pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
Learn how biodiversity can work within a food producing system, at any scale. A great deal to see, and there is something in for everybody.After the publishing of George Monbiot's Regenesis, where a whole chapter Fruitful is dedicated to our farm, as a happy solution to the problems described, we have received multiple requests for visits.
Tolhurst Organic is a working farm, and visits are possible by appointment only, or as part of organised events. Hence this farm walk, dedicated to Stockfree Organic, soil, woodchip and everything else we set up to produce healthy and organic "veganic" food.
Bring suitable clothes and shoes for a 3.5 hours farm walk, including our two fields and Walled Market Garden. Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy after the walk, at the farm. Tea and coffee will be provided.
We regret that dogs are not allowed on this occasion, for food safety reasons.
Parking is available.
For bookings, please visit our event shop on MatterPay
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Sat13Sep202510 am - 2 pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
Learn how biodiversity can work within a food producing system, at any scale. A great deal to see, and there is something in for everybody.Tolhurst Organic is a working farm, and visits are possible by appointment only, or as part of organised events. Hence this farm walk, dedicated to Stockfree Organic, soil, woodchip and everything else we set up to produce healthy and organic "veganic" food.
Bring suitable clothes and shoes for a 4- hours farm walk, including our two fields and Walled Market Garden. Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy after the walk, at the farm. Tea and coffee will be provided.
Parking is available. Book here
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Sat20Sep202510 am - 3 pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
Too much in your your veg in weekly boxes? Or maybe you are thinking about storing away some goodness for cold winter days? Come and taste a different way. Learn how to transform essential fruit and veg into vibrant goodies, full of healthy bacteria, flavour and zest!At Tolhurst Organic farm we only grow organic fruit and veg and yesss, autumn may feel a bit too ... full. But not when you make these tasty ferments to take you through winter!
This event is a hands-on workshop learning about food & (non-alcoholic) drink fermentation. Participants will learn about different starters. Will get introduced to the theory of good and bad bacteria and how different home media can support our aims in fermentation. Everyone will be invited to taste various fermented fruit and veg. Practical activity will include harvesting, shredding and chopping seasonal veg, adding herbs and mixing for shared lot, to take home. Please bring 1.5-2 litres containers with firm lids, to avoid spilling on your way back. A sumptuous home-made lunch made with fermented and seasonal veg from the farm is included in the price. Participants are asked to bring their own knives and aprons, but we will supply if needed.
SIGN UP HERE. Discounts apply for repeat customers, Hardwick residents and farm events visitors.
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Sun28Sep202510 am - 1 pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
This is an activity day for the whole family. Participants will enjoy a garden tour and will harvest ingredients for a recipe from our newly published cookbook My Vegan Farm Food: Stories and Recipes from Tolhurst Organic.After harvesting, we will make the recipe together and children will be encouraged to take pictures of the dish, aiming to recreate the book image(s).
Bring a picnic lunch and enjoy a self-guided tour in the fields after the group activity.
We welcome parents with children, dogs are not invited as this is a food-based activity.
Book you family ticket here
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Sun05Oct202511am-4pmTolhurst Organic Walled Garden at Hardwick Estate
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Sat29Nov20257pm - 10pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
Sit-down dinner at the farm, featuring dishes from our recipe book My Vegan Farm Food. Tales about culinary traditions in Eastern Europe.
This is an event offered as a Reward to our recent Crowdfunder in support of the cookbook My Vegan Farm Food.We have extra places available and are offering them to people who want to experience a personal account of the Eastern European cooking, recipes, tips and tales about the culinary traditions of a very special region - Moldova, Romania and Ukraine.
Guests are invited to a sit-down three course meal, including dumplings, spicy sauce Adjika, stuffed cabbage rolls Sarmale and ferments. Sweet drinks such as Kvass and probiotic savoury drinks (Brine, Borsht Acru) will also be on offer.
Bring your friends and your own bottle of alcohol. Ticket price includes a signed copy of the book. Book here
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Sat06Dec202510 am - 2 pmWalled Garden, Hardwick Estate
After the publishing of George Monbiot's book Regenesis, where a whole chapter Fruitful is dedicated to our farm, as a happy solution to the problems described, we have received multiple requests for visits.Tolhurst Organic is a working farm, and visits are possible by appointment only, or as part of organised events. Hence this farm walk, dedicated to Stockfree Organic, soil, woodchip and everything else we set up to produce healthy vegan and organic "veganic" food.
Bring suitable clothes and shoes for a 3.5 hours farm walk. Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy after the walk, at the farm. Tea and coffee will be provided.
Dogs are allowed on lead and under owners' supervision.
Cars can be parked in our Farm Shop car park.
REFUND POLICY Refunds are possible up to 7 days prior to event, minus Eventbrite fees. Eventbrite’s fees are non-refundable, so they won't be returned to the ticket buyer unless the event is cancelled, or if the buyer requests a refund for a duplicate charge within 7 days of purchase.
