Former doctor helps people reconnect with nature
BBCThe BBC's Farmwatch is exploring the people, places and challenges shaping modern farming. A retired radiologist turned fruit farmer explains why she is on a mission to inspire younger generations to grow their own food and appreciate nature.
"Nature connectedness is really a key to us being well and healthy," says Jenny Connor, who owns Dalton Moor Farm, near Murton in County Durham, with her husband Tom Mackenzie.
Since taking on the former arable farm in 2011, they have rewilded and regenerated the land into a vegan fruit farm.
Connor said she has had a "complete shift" in her approach to farming.
Instead of trying to control the landscape, she said she had "learned to work alongside it".
They follow a wild food forest model, with fruit growing naturally among hedgerows, grasses and wildflowers, rather than in tightly managed rows.
They also operate using veganic principles, avoiding animal-derived fertilisers and pesticides and relying instead on natural, plant-based methods.
After 40 years working in medicine, Connor retired in 2019 to focus on their 24-acre farm.
She now runs the School of Sustainable Living and Wellbeing, using food growing, nature and education to encourage healthier, more sustainable lifestyles.
Rather than operating as a traditional visitor attraction, the farm welcomes schools and community groups for hands-on sessions exploring food growing, nutrition, sustainability and traditional countryside skills including willow weaving and scything.
Connor said: "I've always viewed knowledge as a gift which is not mine to own and keep to myself.
"Knowledge is something that we should share - I hope that visitors then go on and share that knowledge with others."
Connor said her approach to farming had changed over the years.
"Where a conventional farmer would find a weed they'd want to remove it," she said.
"Now I think, nature's put that there for a reason. I need to understand why it's there, appreciate that it's there for a purpose."
Among those benefiting from the farm are local primary school children who visit to learn how food is grown through the seasons.
The farm also offers work experience and apprenticeships for young people interested in horticulture and sustainable food production.
Mackenzie says encouraging the next generation is just as important as growing fruit.
'Awe and wonder'
"We've had a succession of youngsters come along for experience and learning," he said.
"We want to create opportunities for young people to channel their enthusiasm and their interests into working in the outdoors, learning about plants, learning about fruits."
The couple hope visitors leave with a greater appreciation of nature, a better understanding of where their food comes from and the confidence to make healthier, more sustainable choices in their own lives.
Connor believes children who visit them see something many adults have forgotten.
"The younger the children, the more awesome and interesting they find the world, a world full of awe and wonder is where we adults need to get back to."
