Updates

• March 6, 2023

A day in the life of.... the South Devon Chilli Farm Shop Manager!

No two days are the same here in the farm shop at South Devon Chilli Farm.

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• February 27, 2023
• chilli
• growing
• polytunnel

The 2023 Growing Season: An update from our Growers...

We thought it was high time the growers shared their growing season with you and gave an insight on how we get from seed to sauce! As it is the start of the growing season it’s a perfect time to begin this blog and pass on some of the chilli related things we get up to. You may have noticed we are experiencing some exciting times at the Farm with two new tunnels built just in time for the season ahead. We have a new nursery with a double skin for extra insulation in the colder months and a massive crop Tunnel (Tunnel 8). This is large increase in capacity for us and with it are a whole bunch of horticultural headaches, of the nice kind though I would like to add. We have been busy fitting out the new tunnels with the required irrigation and equipment, in the case of the new nursery it’s being filled with plants already and still being constructed!!!   A new nursery means more germinating. We have around 25,000 seedlings on our heated benches at the moment, with more to come. Sally has demonstrated superhuman abilities with the pricking out of those seedlings. Here she is, installing the next bunch in their new homes…    An often-overlooked part of our nursery was the floor that until recently was coarse gravel. Whilst functional it still caused a few issues and needed revision. So just prior to the start of germination we stripped the entire old nursery out, re-levelled, compacted the floor and laid membrane. This has already improved the old nursery enabling improved conditions to propagate our seedlings.   Whilst the seedlings are doing their thing the preparation of the crop tunnels is underway. We have already worked the soil in preparation for the raised beds, more details on the crop tunnels to come in the next update! Any questions/queries contact the Growers direct at growing@sdcf.co.uk   Phil Horticultural Manager 

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• February 1, 2023

What’s in store for the South Devon Chilli Farm in 2023…

Since Amrit and I took on the running of the chilli farm in June 2022, its been a busy 6 months! We’ve been learning the ropes, getting to know the fabulous team of staff, wrestling with inflation price increases, and planning and plotting our ideas for what else to introduce to the farm in the future!   Now we feel like we’re getting our feet well and truly under the table, in 2023 its time for us to start bringing some of these ideas to life!   NEW TUNNELS   The first, and probably the biggest, introduction for 2023 is our two brand-spanking new polytunnels!  One of these will be a second dedicated nursery space for nurturing our chilli seedlings, and preparing our lovely pot plants for you to grow on at home. We’ll be installing heating and irrigation systems here to keep our plants happy and in tip top condition at all times.   The second tunnel is a beast at around 50m long! This will be used to make more crop space – it’ll be home to a combination of seed collecting specimens, crops for selling our fresh chillies, and for cooking into our award winning range of chilli sauces, happening a few hundred metres away from the tunnels in our kitchen.   As I write, the tunnels are on the back of a wagon on their way to be delivered to us in Loddiswell and we at the farm are all extremely excited for their arrival!   We hope that these 2 tunnels will be ready to support us with extra capacity during the 2023 growing season, watch this space for videos and updates once they’re in place!   SHOW TUNNEL REVAMP   Next up we are revamping our famous Show Tunnel for 2023! Over time, the Show Tunnel had been encroached on to provide extra crop space, and the layout needed a bit of a spruce-up. So, this Winter we’ve been hard at work digging up the space and using pegs and string to mark out our new paths and beds. We’re aiming for the Tunnel to be planted up in April.   I hope you’re all ready for a big WOW factor when you come down to the Show Tunnel this summer, with well over 100 chilli varieties as well as some other specimen plants on display!  NEW WEBSITE   One important upgrade for the chilli farm this year is to our website. Website activity and online sales are a key part of our business at the farm, and the website hasn’t had a refresh for a few years now.   You’ll notice by the very fact you’re reading this blog post that we have introduced some new pages to our website, as well as simplifying and streamlining the online shopping experience for you!  Over the course of the year we will continue to add to the new website, as we want it to become your one-stop shop for all things chilli – buying, growing, eating, visiting – you name it!   CHILLI FARM ON THE ROAD   Following a COVID-hiatus, the South Devon Chilli Farm will be well and truly back on the road this year!   We have a range of events booked in this year all around England which we hope to see you at. Currently booked in are:  Salcombe Crabfest – 30th April Flavourfest, Plymouth – 26-28th May   Foodie Fest, Exeter – 16-18th June  Cheese & Chilli Fest, Guildford – 15-16th July   RHS Hyde Hall Flower Show, Essex – 2-6th August  RHS Rosemoor Flower Show, Devon - 18-20th August Dartmouth Food Festival – 20-22nd October   Christmas markets TBC!   With all of the above, and more, in the pipeline for this year, the SDCF team are all so excited to see what 2023 brings and look forward to welcoming you all to the farm, whether that be via our website or coming down to see us in sunny South Devon!   Jenny  

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