Dalefoot Composts near Penrith, turning fell bracken and sheep's wool into compost

Some of the best ideas come from looking hard at what is already around you. At Heltondale, near Penrith, Professor Jane Barker and her husband Simon Bland looked at the bracken on the fells and the wool from hill sheep, and saw the makings of a better compost.

Jane is an environmental scientist, and the couple's composting began with bracken cut during their habitat restoration work. Wool followed later, at a time when sheep farming had become less profitable and fleeces were worth very little to the farmers who produced them.

The result is Dalefoot Composts. Its products use wool from the couple's own flock and from neighbouring hill farms, combined with bracken harvested from Lake District fells. The bracken is a natural source of potash, iron and magnesium, while the wool holds on to moisture, which the company says can cut watering by up to 50 per cent.

It is a range designed for gardeners who want to move away from peat. The Wool Compost range has been approved by the Soil Association for organic gardening, and comfrey was later added to give plants an extra nutrient boost. Seed, bulb and general-purpose blends are now stocked by retailers including Abel and Cole.

Recognition has followed. In 2021 the business won the Sustainability and Environmental Impact Award at the Rural Business Awards. A year later Dalefoot helped create a gold medal-winning display at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show with the Eden Project, highlighting the importance of peatlands to the climate and featuring a small piece of Cumbrian peatland on loan under special licence from Natural England.

Jane has also been honoured personally. She was granted the Freedom of the City of London at a ceremony in Guildhall, and was formally clothed as a member of the Worshipful Company of Woolmen, a fitting link for someone who has found a fresh use for British wool.

The couple's story has reached a wider audience too, with the business featuring in Back to the Land with Kate Humble on BBC Two. It is a quietly inspiring example of farming, science and conservation working side by side in the Cumbrian hills.

Dalefoot's composts can be found through garden centres and online retailers, and the company's website is the best place to explore the range and find a stockist.