Crofting experiment brings north-west communities together
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Experts from SAC Consulting, part of Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC), have been helping bring the Highland crofting tradition up to date at an innovative project in the North-West Highlands.
SAC Consulting has been working with the Coigach and Assynt Living Landscape Partnership (CALLP) on a project to improve land management, people’s skills and encourage community engagement in the area’s heritage and natural environment.
Working across a 245 square mile (635 square km) area of some of Scotland’s most dramatic scenery, the Heritage Lottery-funded project involves 14-partner organisations, led by the Scottish Wildlife Trust, also operates a demonstration croft where new and traditional techniques can be tested.
Anne Campbell, CALLP’s crofting and rural projects coordinator, said: “The partnership is made up of charities, private and charitable land owners, community groups and community land-owners, all of who have a desire to retain the heritage of the area, while making it a better place to work, live and visit.
“The demonstration croft has been really helpful in exploring crofting’s potential by improving land with lime and bracken control, as well as supporting crofters to access grants for diversification.”
CALLP has worked with the crofter who owns the demonstration croft to trial growing Bere barley – the "90-day barley" suited for short seasons and low pH soils – as well as kale, commercial barley and turnips.
Siobhan Macdonald from SAC Consulting has worked with CALLP on several of its 28 projects to date, including horticultural training, soil improvement and cropping, and has developed an integrated land management plan for the project.
“A lot has happened in a short period of time, like land improvement which hadn’t been done for 20 years; plus crofters have realised just how much free advice there is via the Farm Advisory Service,” she said.
“The CALLP training is aimed at ‘can do’ skills development, so we deliver some classroom learning, followed by seeing an example and then having a go themselves.
“After one of the courses, one crofter bought a fertiliser spreader and expanded his plant business to support the community’s land improvement.
“The training has been great for the community in this remote part of Scotland, crofters have been very kind at allowing training to take place on their crofts, and in providing venues and refreshments, and of course the crofter from the demonstration croft has been generous in allowing their croft to be taken over with trial crops.”
Training topics have included lambing, vegetable growing, how to make the best of your croft, conservation and woodland creation, rush control and grassland improvement and marketing and branding.
This has continued during the pandemic and includes “very successful” Zoom-based Sheepdog training, organised by Anne Campbell.
With the five-year project now entering its final 18 months, CALLP and SAC Consulting hope to deliver more face-to-face events once circumstances allow, tackling issues such as the response to climate change and new methods of growing.
However, as Anne Campbell pointed out, these sessions have more than just educational value,
“All of the events we’ve held over the last few years has been a great way to build collaboration and to support crofters to come together to see what is possible, as well as meeting socially,” she said.
