Situated in the heart of the Lincolnshire fens – an area renowned for its silt-rich soil - Bryan Blair presides over 400 hectares of salad leaves on land that the Piccaver family has farmed for generations. Fertile earth and dedication to natural, fresh produce has determined lettuce with wonderful texture and shades of colour.
Varieties grown range from sumptuous scarlet Oak Leaf to the dazzling lime green incised frills of Lollo Biondi. Harvesting teams delicately pick each lettuce by hand ready for its journey from field to plate. Specifically trained to check the size, weight, appearance and maturity of the crop, the harvesters ensure each lettuce receives the utmost care.
Once picked, the plants are packed and chilled to less than 5˚C before loading onto a refrigerated lorry for delivery. The whole process from cutting to supplying Pauleys takes less than 24 hours.
Passionate about farming and pro-active towards protecting the environment, 11 hectares of the farm have been dedicated to conservation and are home to a variety of reed birds and wild plants. An equivalent of eight and a half miles of hedgerow has been planted to encourage and enrich natural wildlife, enhance the complex ecosystem and preserve the local area. Public access to viewing hides allows the local community to enjoy the wildlife the wet habitat attracts, and the farm is committed to a ten year scheme to preserve and cultivate the area.
Methodology and procedures are as environmentally friendly as possible and Bryan and his team are always thinking of ways to improve. “That’s one of the best things about my job, the huge amount of variation. We are always learning and looking for new technologies to help us understand and deliver improvements for our customers.” Water is regulated and applied to the farmland using either boom sprinklers or set static sprinklers. EnviroSCANs and MET weather data ensure water is distributed at the correct level, reducing wastage, whilst six reservoirs built on the land guarantee a reliable source of water. A four year rotation between salad crops allows the soil to remain stable and prevents a build up of pests and diseases.
The farm begins to plant in late February through to early September, harvesting the crops from May until the end of October. Bryan explains that experience and monitoring weather, temperature and light levels determines the optimum time in which to plant in order to deliver faultless leaf quality. The UK, in particular, offers a suitable climate for growing lettuce as the majority of leaves grow well in even temperatures.
With so many varieties of salad leaves available, Bryan is particularly partial to Caesar salad, made traditionally with Cos (also known as Romaine) lettuce, “I enjoy a good Caesar salad, nice and crunchy, add a bit of Lollo Rosso to it and I don’t think it can be beaten!”
