THE
PLACE
Waddesdon Estate is an historic estate of approximately almost 6000 acres and located 5 miles north-west of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire. The Estate was purchased by Ferdinand de Rothschild in 1874 and successive generations of the family have taken it in turns to enhance and nurture the aesthetics and conservational value of the estate.
WORK DESCRIPTION
The ethos of the modern-day Estate is to combine commercial farming and land management with a strong environmental respect and appreciation of our natural capital – soil, water and air are financial assets. Innovate farming techniques are used to reduce the impact on the environment and the Estate team is focusing on rebuilding the real value of the land, regenerating and fostering natural systems that provide nourishment at every level. Healthy soils are at the core of the Estate’s regenerative farming system: healthy soils mean healthy plants, healthy animals and healthy humans as well as less flooding, cleaner water and cleaner air. These are Waddesdon Estate’s natural assets to be best managed for ecology, profitability and beauty.
LIVING AGRICULTURE
Monitoring soil health has been the Estate’s first step to create a starting point from which to assess and develop its natural assets and regenerate the farming system and land. The objective of Juanfran’s work has been to assist the Estate team to re-activate and enhance the potential of the soil’s fertility, bringing back biology and re-mineralising soils. Juanfran’s current focus, as part of a medium-long term project, is on the production and application of soil amendments and use of biofertilizer in different fields and crops. This is in order to introduce and adjust by phases the new techniques within the holistic context of the estate.
