If you want to see the notes from previous meetings click here.
If you have an idea for an event, please let Karen know.
Wednesday 30th July
Yealmpton show (NOT a DASH event)
Look out for the DASH stand at Yealmpton show. www.yealmptonshow.co.uk
Wednesday 6th August
North Devon Show (NOT a DASH event)
Look out for the DASH stand at North Devon Show. northdevonshow.com
Thursday 14th August
Okehampton Show (NOT a DASH event)
Look out for the DASH stand at Okehampton Show. www.okehamptonshow.co.uk
Wednesday 27th August
5.30pm-8.30pm
Barn Owl Trust - Newton Abbot - FULLY BOOKED
This DASH event is only open to members.
In Aug we have arranged a visit to the Barn Owl Trust in Ashburton. The visit will involve a talk on the work that the Trust does to conserve this rare species, but will major on what you can do to help as a landowner.
The plan is then to have a walk through the Barn Owl Trust’s 26 acre reserve, which is managed for Barn Owls and other wildlife, with the intention of having a picnic meal as the sun goes down.
There may even be an opportunity to see or hear wild Barn Owls or Tawny Owls! The picnic meal will be indoors in the event of wet weather. There will be a charge of £10 per head, which will be donated to support the Barn Owl Trust’s conservation work. Numbers will be limited to 25. Children welcome.
Please email training@devonsmallholders.co.uk to book your place
Sunday 7th September
afternoon
Trigon Farm, Holsworthy - Tour and Afternoon Tea
This DASH event is only open to members.
Following on from his talk at the February DASH meeting, Al will give us a guided tour of Trigon Farm where we can see his permaculture principles in practice.
Afternoon Tea will be served.
Cost of tour and tea - £20pp Children welcome - U13 are half price
Minimum of 10 required for the event to run
Please email training@devonsmallholders.co.uk to book a place and for payment details.
Saturday 27th September
11.30am onwards
Farm Walk - Parracombe
This DASH event is only open to members.
Toby and Therese pride themselves on repurposing, recycling and upcycling so that almost nothing leaves their 4 acre smallholding to go to landfill. They grow their own food, milk their goats, ferment kombucha and tan sheepskins - to name a few things! They welcome you to come and share their space and talk all things smallholding.
Please bring a picnic/lunch plate to share.
Children welcome
Email Karen on - training@devonsmallholders.co.uk
if you would like to attend.
Sunday 28th September
Meet 10.30am for 11am start
Dizzy Dairy - Sheep’s Cheese - Tour and Tasting
This DASH event is only open to members.
£5.00 pp
Due to insurance and health and safety regulations, sadly no children allowed.
Rob and Katie are based at Dizzard Farm, Dizzard, Bude, in North Cornwall.
Rob has been a sheep farmer all his life and Katie for 10 years.
In September 2023 they decided to diversify, breeding their milking sheep, so they could milk the sheep and produce Sheep’s Cheese.
They have started to mature their first batch of cheeses and have just released their range of soft, semi-soft and hard Sheep’s Cheeses, available to purchase.
Katie and Rob have kindly offered to give us a tour of the farm in it’s idyllic setting and of their small dairy. We can meet the sheep, see the milking parlour, view the cheese production room where Katie will explain the cheesemaking process, and hear all about their journey.
Due to regulations set by the Food Standards Agency we will not be able to see actual cheese making in progress. There will also be a brief health questionnaire to fill out on arrival.
Cheeses will be available to taste and purchase!
Wednesday 8th October
7pm for 7.30pm
Winter Meeting/Talk - Charter of the Forest and our lost Common Rights - Myc Riggulsford
This DASH event is only open to members.
With 2025 being the 800th anniversary of the re-issue of Magna Carter this is perfect timing -
Your electricity bill may be illegal, and you can dig up clay, feed pigs, or build your own house, according to this fast paced and fun journey through 800 years of Devon history which shows that we may have lost or forgotten rights which entitle us all to a basic and sustainable living from our countryside.
Magna Carta’s first part protected our new ruling class, the Norman barons, from being taxed and imprisoned in 1215. But a second law passed two years later, the Charter of the Forest, returned to ordinary people in Britain rights such as keeping ponies and sheep, or collecting firewood on Dartmoor and Exmoor which are still used by villagers today with ancient links, but which may mean that we should all share this country’s natural wealth.
By knowing more about our lost rights, we can protect our common assets such as ancient woodlands, and make sure that young people have opportunities to explore alternative and more sustainable ways of living. The fascinating knowledge we have lost includes smallholding skills such as pannage, estovers, agistment and other archaic practices from the days before plastic.
Join science and environment journalist Myc Riggulsford for a bit of history, comedy, and some radical thinking in a thought provoking debate about Devon’s past, the rights we have forgotten or allowed to lapse, and how they could help our society today.
Wednesday 12th November
7pm for 7.30pm
Winter Meeting/Talk - Bulworthy Project
This DASH event is only open to members.
Moving on to our land and setting up and running Bulworthy Project has completely transformed our lives and we love to help others to achieve their dreams too. For this reason, where possible, we’ve tried to share the knowledge we’ve gained on our journey.
We offer land management services designed to maximise biodiversity and abundance as well as providing valuable woodland produce and creating beautiful places. We write woodland management plans and if the woodland is over half a hectare (1.25 acres) and is eligible, we can organise a grant to pay for this, so there’s no charge for the woodland owner.
Wednesday 14th January
7pm for 7.30pm
Winter Meeting/Talk - My Journey with Cattle - Jorja Snook-Bevis
This DASH event is only open to members.
My name is Jorja Snook-Bevis , I’m 20 years old and am a Farmer animal vet tech for Pendobe vets. I have kept my own cattle at home for 5 years now and I have been breeding pedigree Herefords for around 2 years. I’m very excited to talk about my journey on getting where I am today, with both the good and the bad aspects.
Wednesday 11th February
7pm for 7.30pm
Winter Meeting/Talk - Two Moors Pine Marten Project
This DASH event is only open to members.
The project is helping restore pine marten populations in the southwest of England as part of a national recovery effort for this Critically Endangered species.
Last Autumn 15 pine martens were translocated to Dartmoor, with a similar translocation planned for Exmoor this Autumn 2025
The project are keen to ensure smallholders across Devon have the opportunity to learn more about:
Living alongside pine martens
How to protect the small population released
Concerns regarding protection of smallholder's livestock.
Wednesday 11th March
7pm for 7.30pm
Winter Meeting/Talk - TBC
This DASH event is only open to members.