Sustainability
When we set up Gathered & Grown we wanted to produce our herbs and teas in a way that would have a positive impact on our environment - this means that our growing, drying, harvesting and packaging processes have been consciously designed with sustainability, energy and biodiversity in mind.
Growing
We have adopted a no-dig approach to growing, using a variety of mulching techniques to ensure that the soil is disturbed as little as possible. This maintains soil structure and biodiversity, reduces water run-off, increases fertility and helps the soil to absorb, rather than release carbon. This approach also helps to create strong, healthy plants that do not require artificial fertilisers.
We sow seeds in reusable trays in peat-free compost and plant them out by hand - weeding is also undertaken by hand, creating valuable input for our compost heaps. We use companion planting to attract beneficial insects, like ladybirds, who gobble up pests from our herbs, while we remove and relocate other pests such as slugs and snails by hand - sometimes by torchlight at night!
It is a lot of work but it feels good to work with nature, not against it.
Drying
Over 90% of our herbs are dried in our custom-built drying racks in a polytunnel - the air inside warms up on sunny days and is circulated by fans. These are powered by mains electricity at the moment, but we'll be installing solar panels soon, dramatically reducing our reliance on this.
Each night we insulate our racks and use small heaters to keep the herbs from re-absorbing moisture if the temperature drops too low. We also have some small commercial dehydrators for those herbs that require more specialised drying conditions.
Harvesting
We harvest by hand, meaning we can be very selective and pick only the highest quality herbs. We only do this in good weather and herbs are immediately transferred to the dehydrators - with no travel time everything remains in optimal condition.
Packaging
We have chosen packaging that is sustainable and best for keeping our teas in perfect condition. Our aluminium tins are reusable and recyclable, while we'll soon be releasing refill packs made from 100% recyclable packaging. Our tea can also be composted after use, either in your garden compost or through your food waste collections.
