Perennial vegetable growing on Dartmoor
Incredible Vegetables is an experimental vegetable growing project and a research space dedicated to useful perennial edibles and future food crops and a perennial vegetable nursery set up and managed by Mandy Barber and Julien Skinner. The polyculture space includes a biodiverse mixture of perennials, self sowing annuals and plants for pollinators. Over the last ten years it has evolved into a significant botanical reserve of important perennial food crops, protecting them for the future, many of which we will all need to rely on in years to come. We undertake small plant breeding projects, for example with a Hopniss (Apios americana) trial currently underway.
We now have a second site at Baddaford Farm, a few miles from our main site where we raise our nursery plants and produce our seeds, part of the Baddaford farm Collective.
The research we are doing is absolutely essential. Mixed plantings of perennial crops and woody shrubs not only safeguard and enrich soil ecosystems, but help to draw down and store carbon from the atmosphere, a vital function to help combat climate change.
Buy perennial vegetable plants & seeds from our shop
We raise perennial vegetable plants, seeds and edible tubers for sale in our online shop. All of our products are ecologically produced and we are working towards organic certification in the long term. We use no-dig methods and follow organic and permaculture principles. As a team of two people, we are only able to grow limited quantities of plants for sale, but every year we diversify our plant stocks and what we are able to offer. We aim to provide perennial vegetables to gardeners and growers that are difficult to source in the UK that will allow people to start off their own perennial vegetable garden. Currently we are growing many perennials to produce our own seed stock for rare perennial edible plants.
Our customers include agro-forestry projects, keen permaculturists and home gardeners. Income from our plant sales is invested in our perennial crop research which we do without any funding, extending our perennial vegetable nursery as well as sourcing new edible perennial varieties to grow. Your purchase enables us to carry on our vital work and to teach others about what we do.
Our Packaging
We use 100% compostable and recyclable packaging – cardboard, re-purposed newspaper, natureflex plant based bags and paper packing tape. We also use Hadopots which are made from 100% recycled polythene and are re-usable. The taupe colour pots are oxo-biodegradable and re-cyclable.
Proud to be a peat free nursery
We use Klasmann proline organic certified and peat free compost to raise the plants in our nursery.
Talks & Events
We give talks about growing perennial vegetables at permaculture and garden festivals, conferences as well as small groups and transition town networks. We also teach horticulture students about perennial vegetable growing and have links with School Farm CSA and Schumacher College in Dartington, Devon.
Our nursery is registered with Defra and our plant passport number is: GB123657.
Our Place
Incredible Vegetables is based on a 5.5 acre field on the edge of Dartmoor. The land is collectively owned by a small group of growers. Ten years ago it was non-diverse sheep pasture. Today, between us, we have an acre of polyculture vegetable garden, an evolving meadow, 2000 native trees and an acre of forest garden. The field is awash with diverse species of insects, birds and other creatures. We have introduced small areas of water to attract frogs and toads and sown many native wildflowers and plants for pollinators. Many of the edible perennials we grow double up as plants for pollinators and wildlife. It has been amazing to see how a polyculture develops over time, it has been a process of part design, but mostly letting go, allowing the plants to find their own spaces. This creates something quite beautiful and attracts all kinds of life, a big lesson in just letting things be.
‘Incredible Vegetable’s productive paradise on what was previously sheep pasture in the hills of Devon is one of the most inspirational places I’ve visited. Gazing over the surrounding countryside of monotonous fields as far as the eye could see, I remember imagining a future climate friendly polyculture in a place one wouldn’t think it possible!’
Stephen Barstow, Author of ‘Around the World in 80 Plants’
Baddaford Farm Collective
“Making a small part of the world more like the world we want to live in.
Promoting beauty, sustainability and social justice within our economically viable farm”
We are so thrilled to be part of the Baddaford Farm Collective consisting of six independent enterprises; Vital Seeds, Incredible Vegetables, Green Ginger Organics, Red Earth Herbs, Pigment Plants Dyes and Baddaford Farm Partnership. We promote the beauty of small scale farming, sustainability, social justice and community.
While our businesses are separate enterprises, we share knowledge, orders, deliveries, tools, lunch and much more whenever possible. Based at Guy and Geetie Singh-Watson’s organic certified farm in south Devon.