The spirit at Little M is one of discovery and experimentation, exploring how to live sustainably, balancing cultivation with re-wilding of the property, providing edible produce, a wildlife habitat and a lovely place to live & work.
We inherited an established, albeit neglected, orchard and a small veg patch and polytunnel (nowhere near each other). We have given the old orchard a lot of TLC and planted a second one. Both focus on local West Country apple varieties. Each year we try to make cider and country wines both of which we hope to make available to guests.
The Cottage garden (small overgrown veg patch – pictured above – as was when we arrived in 2013) has been redeveloped from scratch over the last few years using organic no-dig methods and seasonal produce is now on offer to guests. The poly tunnel has been relocated and a couple of freecycle greenhouses and potting shed added. The raised beds have all been build on the original site, over time as we have gained knowledge and confidence. We were able to do this because we have engineered a rain water catching system that uses gravity to ensure there is plentiful water supply on hand for the polytunnel at all times – unless we carelessly leave a tap on 🤫.