Words and photos: Sharpy

We check in with Bude’s green figured surfer.

A normal day I get up at 5:30am and go check all the veggies to see what’s going on. I do a little bit of work, I don’t do too much in the mornings as I find it hard to properly get going. That and I’m always stressed I’m going to be late for work.
So once I’ve checked the crops and done a bit of graft then I go home and have some porridge. Fuel up for the day. Proper porridge; I’ve given up on the overnight stuff. Then I get to work, lifeguarding at Sandy Mouth, an hour early so I can go for a shred. Sometimes I get a chance during the day as well, but not that often.

I finish at six, head back to the farm, do another hour to make sure everything is ticking over fine. Then go home and go to sleep. That’s a work day. Farm days are different…
Literally get up at 5:30am stay there until one. Go home for lunch, maybe go for a surf, then back to the field until the end of the day. Friday is hell day. The day I die. Every week. Half five in the am to eight in the pm. It’s delivery day. Pretty savage. That’s when I harvest all my leafy greens and sort out the orders for the six restaurants I supply and do the veg boxes for folks. The restaurants take loads; about 20 kilos all told a week. I’m Mr Fresh Local Produce so they take what’s ready when it’s season.
Ella, my girlfriend, helps occasionally when it’s super busy but she’s mega busy with her work most of the time.

So if everything goes to plan a day in my life will be all fruit, veg and some waves when it’s pumping in the future…

This year I had big plans but the weather has murdered us. Two and a half months of no rain has screwed me over real bad. But the plan is in the next two years this will be my main income.
The next step is more poly tunnels, more space, so more produce. Build them and then double production at the field. Assuming it’s not as dry again, the weather has proper f@cked me so hard this season, only the tomatoes love this dry weather. It’s murdered my broccoli. When it’s dry they don’t produce a good head. Irregular broccoli ain’t pleasant.
Given the water there’s nothing that is that hard to grow. It’s all just time and care and making sure the beetles and bugs don’t chomp everything. I don’t use any pesticides so it’s all just management. I’ve learnt so much about bugs in the last few years!
So if everything goes to plan in the future a day in my life will be all fruit, veg and some waves when it’s pumping…