1st November 2025

FERMENTATION - THE CULTURE OF CULTURES

In November we welcomed Fermentation guru Paula Neubauer of Get Pickled Somerset, whose mission is to empower people by teaching them how to make fermented food in a sustainable way that reduces food waste, limits harm to the environment, and benefits British farmers. She does this through education – both private classes and group workshops – advocacy, and by creating food products from surplus supply.

Paula talked about how she marries her passion for hyper-local and seasonal produce with the ancient traditions of fermentation, many of which have far more international roots. This includes her research with communities in South America and connecting to her own Brazilian heritage.

4th October 2025

THE CHALKE VALLEY ROMAN VILLA: A COMMUNITY ARCHAEOLOGY PROJECT

October's speakers were Dr Denise Wilding and Dr David Roberts, co-founders of Teffont Archeology which began in 2008 as a research project collaborating with the local community in Teffont and has grown into a major archaeological research effort. In recent years their scope has expanded to cover Roman sites across South-West Wiltshire, including widespread geophysical surveys, recording legacy metal-detected finds collections, and the excavation of Iron Age and Roman settlements at Coombe Bissett, and a Roman villa in the Chalke Valley.  

Denise and David talked to us about the Chalke Valley Roman Villa, their most recent project in which their excavation - conducted with the support of community volunteers - uncovered the remains of an amazing main villa, a bath house and a large barn. We heard about the history of the site, the amazing luxury that the villa and bath house afforded its Roman residents, with painted plaster on the walls and a mosaic on the villa floor and they also talked about the process of working on a community dig! 

6th September 2025

A YEAR FOLLOWING THE WILDLIFE ON LONGLEAT ESTATE

After arriving at Longleat at the end of 2023 Tom spent 2024 getting to know the wildlife found all over the estate. From following a family of beavers as they create a biodiversity oasis around their incredible system of dams and pools, to surveying the estate for bats and getting familar with the birds and other animals that call the farmland, woods and parkland home it was a fascinating year. Tom took us on a tour of all things, large and small, showing us some of the incredible wildlife that call the estate home but also some of the wildlife we are missing.

5th July 2025

EXTRAORDINARY FOOD - FROM ‘FARM TO TABLE’

Chef and owner of Michelin-starred restaurant Osip (Bruton), Merlin Labron Johnson joined us in conversation with food artist Cherry Truluck. The discussion focused on locally sourced food and the 'farm-to-table' ethos that Merlin brings to his work at Osip and sister restaurant the Old Pharmacy.

31st May 2025

A FARMER AND AN ARTIST: DRAWING ON THE LAND

Kate Genever, an artist and farmer based in South Lincolnshire but with family roots in Frome and Longleat. As a farmer, alongside her family, she runs a traditional mixed farm of suckler cows, sheep and combinable crops.

For Rural Voices, Kate invites you to join her in a conversation about how drawing can be central to both art and farming. Kate uses drawing to try to make sense of the world. She sees it as more than a technique – rather a way of revealing our deep connections with the world of materials, nature and each other. With rural and coastal communities, Kate has used drawing and creativity as a way of envisioning responses to immediate problems, supporting people, communities and organisations to imagine and shape the future

11th May 2025

THE RICE WARRIOR OF ODISHA

At this special one-off 'Rural Voices International’ event we were joined by Indian seed warrior Dr Debal Deb. Instead of the normal breakfast, Horningsham's own Swedish baker "Bun in the Oven” served ‘fika' (a Swedish tradition of gathering for coffee and sweet treats) in a marquee the Village Hall field, followed by a talk from our guest speaker about his incredible mission to save 1400 indigenous rice varieties, all of which he grows in a living seed bank on his farm in Odisha, India. Many of the varieties Debal has preserved were believed to have gone extinct until, through journeys into some of the most remote areas of India, he found them and reintroduced them to India’s agricultural and culinary community. This event was a partnership with the Gaia Foundation following their wonderful talk at Rural Voices in April. 

5th April

SEED SOVEREIGNTY AND THE WELSH GRAIN REBELS

In April, we were joined by Katie Hastings and Rowan Phillimore of the Gaia Foundation - hot on the heels of opening an incredible exhibition about food and farming in Bristol as part of their We Feed the UK project. Heading up the talk was the Wales Seed Sovereignty coordinator Katie, who has been working with her rebel grain network Llafur Ni over several years, to rediscover and grow rare oat seeds across a patchwork of Welsh farms.  This project connects modern farmers to ancient grains, in collaborations that include herbalists, chefs, musicians and more, all committed to preserving and nurturing biological and cultural (bio-cultural) diversity which is one of the core aims of the Gaia Foundation.

1st March 2025

THE WITCHES OF SELWOOD FOREST

Our speaker for March was historian Dr Andrew Pickering who has lived in Selwood Forest for over 30 years, initially in Frome and more recently in Bruton. He is a University of Plymouth associate lecturer and the author of a wide range of papers and books including The Witches of Selwood: Witchcraft Belief and Accusation in Seventeenth-Century Somerset (The Hobnob Press, 2023). He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and the Chairman of the Bruton Museum Society. 

1st February 2025

THE HEALING POWER OF GARDENS

This month’s speaker is the High Sheriff of Wiltshire, Dr Olivia Chapple. Olivia is the founder of Horatio’s Garden, an incredible charity which nurtures the wellbeing of people after spinal injury in beautiful, vibrant sanctuaries within the heart of NHS spinal injury centres. Leading designers create the accessible gardens where the charity’s team, alongside volunteers and creatives, care for people and plants alike. At this talk, Olivia will talk about the importance of the link between nature and wellbeing, how it has driven her work with Horatio’s Garden and how it guides her activities as High Sheriff of Wiltshire.

18th January 2025

THE ANCIENT TREES OF SELWOOD FOREST + LONGLEAT
HISTORY, LEGACY & LORE 

Just what was the mythical Selwood Forest and what exactly remains of it?  Local author and heritage tree specialist In January, Julian Hight shared the story of Selwood Forest and the Longleat Estate through some of its majestic ancient trees – living links to the ancient forest – and discover its legacy and lore.

Julian’s interest in trees started at a young age – growing up next to woodland which had a profound effect on him. He has travelled widely, camera in hand, to document historic ancient trees, which resulting in his books; Britain’s Tree Story, World Tree Story, Britain’s Ancient Forest and the soon to be released Windsor – A Royal Treescape.

www.worldtreestory.co.uk

4th November 2024

COMPOST

This month we are joined by renowned horticulturalist and author Charles Dowding. Charles has pioneered modern no dig and organic soil management in the UK since the 1980s and is a passionate advocate of the joy of growing your own healthy and delicious food. He is absolutely committed to sharing his research and knowledge and runs popular no-dig growing courses from his own garden near Castle Cary. His ethos is “Grow more, from fewer resources, in less time.”
Charles’ brand new book COMPOST is on sale from 5th September and we are so lucky to be hearing from him on this subject. Including practical guidance and linking composting techniques to his now famous no-dig methods, this will be a fascinating and enriching talk.

“When teaching on courses at Homeacres, I am often struck by how participants’ eyes light up when they approach the compost heaps. There is something about the composting process that touches us in a deep and meaningful way. Invisible qualities of compost bring health and flavour to plants, especially when compost is used in the no dig way, on the surface. This is radically different to the traditional approach of incorporating compost into cultivated soil. No dig increases the ways we can use compost and enables it to bring more food to soil organisms, from which more health to plants. There is much more yet to learn because it's a relatively recent approach, and I believe in ‘myth busting’ so you always learn new things.” Charles Dowding