Breakfast & Beyond - Episode 1:
Becca Stuart of The Garden Gate Flower Company
In Episode 1 of Breakfast & Beyond I share breakfast with Becca Stuart - floral designer, art director and founder of The Garden Gate Flower Company.
Becca’s work is shaped by the seasons; growing flowers and foliage she creates art with nature through her floral designs for weddings and events here in Cornwall, along with teaching a global community of florists through her courses. Texture, colour and a desire to authentically reflect the seasons define Becca’s approach, along with using natural materials and embracing opportunities to celebrate other local artisans.
In this episode Becca discusses the joys of gardening, the journey of The Garden Gate Flower Company, and the shifts she has made through the C-19 era to ensure her business remains sustainable - which have led to fresh opportunities. Oh, and growing cabbages in your flower bed. Do join us …
“My work is about creating art with flowers, embracing seasonality and the ingredients that can be found outside […] I now feel that this year has given me an opportunity – since going it alone with the Garden Gate, for the first time I really feel like I’m not just a florist, not just a gardener .. it’s suddenly way more.”
Listen via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher & Tune-In
The breakfast menu …
A Cornish continental-style breakfast with a combination of seasonal sweet and savoury. On the menu was:
Apple & medlar compote pot topped with Trewithen yogurt (see recipe for apple & medlar compote)
Granola (see recipe)
Seeded loaf & croissants baked by Bellamama Deli
Gouda cheese by Cornish Gouda Co
Milk by Green Cow Dairy
Butter by Trewithen Dairy
Homemade blackcurrant jam (see recipe)
Tamar Valley honey, sourced via Green Cow Dairy
Freda’s peanut butter, sourced via Colwith Farm Shop
Homemade Rhubarb & Vanilla Jam
Chilean guava berries grown in our garden
Earl grey and green teas by Tregothnan
Apple juice by Cornish Orchards
Local link-up …
Businesses that are referenced during Episode 1 include:
Lancaster & Cornish - hand-dyed silk ribbons · John Webb - potter · Boconnoc Estate - wedding & events venue · Emily Scott - restauranteur
Leach Pottery · John Hersey - photographer · Watts Trading - organic emporium · Bellamama Deli · Jo Flowers - Norfolk-based sustainable florist
Thank you for listening!
Thank you for listening to Episode 1 of Breakfast & Beyond: Conversations from Cornwall on Sustainable Living. If you enjoyed this episode I’d love it if you could subscribe to the podcast, rate it, and share episodes with friends and family who you think would enjoy them. You can listen and subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Tune-In or wherever you find your podcasts.
I’d love to know your thoughts - please join the conversation and get in touch by email tia@botelet.com or instagram. Thank you and I look forward to sharing the Episode 2 with you - out at the end of March!
Sustainable Development Goals
The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals are 17 targets representing a universal call to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. ‘Everyone is needed to reach these ambitious targets. The creativity, knowhow, technology and financial resources from all of society is necessary to achieve the SDGs in every context’ (UNDP). Translating these global objectives to tease out their relevance at the individual and small-organisational scale can inspire us to connect with these important global themes and consider what we are doing - and what more we can do - to make a contribution that supports our own work and wellbeing along with benefiting other people and the planet.
In Episode 1 of Breakfast & Beyond our discussion encompassed issues within Goals 8, 12, 13 and 15, for example Becca’s choice to keep the flowers she grows or buys in from others local, reducing their carbon footprint which connects with climate action; making responsible choices regarding the products she uses within her work to reduce waste and aim for longevity of products, support other local businesses, and promote biodiversity and good soil health by growing organically.
The Breakfast & Beyond podcast is hosted at our home Botelet Farm in South East Cornwall, where my husband’s family have lived and farmed for over 150 years, and three generations still share the farmhouse today. Set in a peaceful valley upstream of Fowey, we welcome visitors to stay in historic cottages, and there’s a yurt for those who love to immerse themselves in nature.
Podcast recording: behind the scenes …
Note - this episode was recorded in December between lockdowns two & three