Well, Manic May has certainly lived up to its name! The team has been working incredibly hard over the past few weeks to keep everything moving across the farm. From planting out tomatoes, aubergines, cucumbers, beans, peppers, and courgettes, to settling in strawberry plants and establishing a new asparagus bed, things are beginning to take shape. It’s physical work, especially in the heat: clearing old crops, shovelling compost, preparing beds, transplanting young plants, a

The dry weather has been ideal for our earlier crops. We’ve been spreading compost, cultivating the soil, and now have our early potatoes, onions, and beans sown, along with lettuce, beetroot, carrots, chard, and spinach. Where there will be later crops, we’re letting ‘green manures’ grow a little longer. These fast-growing plants—clover, vetch, ryegrass—will eventually be mown down and incorporated into the soil, adding organic matter and boosting fertility. In the meantime,

As the seasons turn and the days become longer, the growing season–our 29th here in North Aston–is hurtling towards us. The glasshouse is filling up with thousands of seedlings. The crops in the polytunnels, many of which have sat there since they were planted last Autumn, are really taking off. Spinach, chard, lettuce, carrots, radish, salad onions, to name a few. Outside, the Hungry Gap kale—one of my favourite vegetables to grow and eat—is coming into its own. Named after

We’ve now reached a familiar tipping point. There’s enough natural light to see each other’s faces when we start work in the morning! This can mean only one thing – the main growing season is just around the corner. A short walk around the farm offers other early clues: the spotted woodpeckers’ drumming has begun, catkins adorn otherwise bare hazel trees, and snowdrops, aconites, crocuses, and daffodils are bringing new colours to neighbouring gardens. But, perhaps most telli

Cold spells like these make us grateful for the frost-hardy leaves that shine at this time of year. We might have to wait until midday before the plants thaw out and we can get harvesting, but the winter salads, spinach, chard, and herbs in our polytunnels provide fresh green leaves through the winter months. Out in the fields, the kalettes (pictured) are having their moment. These hardy ‘flower sprouts' are a traditional cross between kale and Brussel sprouts. They grow on

We are looking for a full-time seasonal worker to join our team from March until October 2026. JOB ADVERT Seasonal Worker at North Aston Organics, Oxfordshire Contract: Fixed-term full time contract (40hrs/week) Dates : March – October 2026 (exact dates by mutual agreement). Wage : £12.71/hour for first three months. £13.45/hour (Real Living Wage) thereafter. PAYE inc. holiday pay, statutory sick pay and pension contributions. Hours : 5 days a week, averaging 40 hours/week

As we enter November, thoughts on the farm inevitably turn to the ‘winter jobs’ that lie ahead. Fencing, hedge coppicing, tool maintenance, equipment servicing, crop planning, alongside the ongoing harvest of winter crops. It’s a fairly long list that grows with each broken fork handle, rip in the polytunnel plastic, hole in the fence. And somewhere at the bottom, there tends to sit a couple of larger-scale, more aspirational jobs. This year, a new store for our tractor and s

On this year's farm walk, we were very lucky to be joined by Jane King, an environmental researcher with 15 years’ experience studying the UK food system and its impacts on people and nature. In this short guest article, Jane explores the case for supporting local organic producers, like North Aston Organics. I’ve been a North Aston Organics customer since 2001. Over that period it’s become evident that supporting diverse, local food production—preferably organic—is one of th

Back in February, I was talking about endless grey skies and lamenting the lack of sunshine. As ever, the phrase 'be careful what you...

I'm not sure if the weather stats will agree, but it feels like it's been a particularly grey winter. I don't resent the cold, as it's to...

I can't believe a whole growing season has passed since my last Ramblings! The recent deluges have brought most outdoor work, other than...

As you might have expected, we were somewhat behind in getting started this year. But the seemingly endless heavy rain relented and we...

Spring has definitely sprung and although I'm sure we'll get some more cold snaps (probably in June) there's no going back now. We have...

As the growing season gradually winds down, it looks like it can be classed as 'a good year'. Due to the vagaries of the British weather,...

Happy Lammas North Aston customers! It’s Rachel here, one of the growing team at North Aston. For those that don’t know me, I’m in my...

I'm sure many of you will be familiar with the old saying 'ne'er cast a clout til May be out', (meaning don't put your winter clothes...

Following on from my last ramblings, spring seems to be more off than on. This feels like the longest winter I can remember. But maybe...