Oak Lodge

Oak Lodge is a small holding situated at Holcombe Lane on East Hill just outside Ottery St Mary.

Owned and run by Paul and Carolyn Bellinger, the ethos of the business is to provide good quality seasonal fruit and vegetables that are of the highest quality and delivered and used on the day of picking. Traditional, as well as the more unusual vegetables are grown, including salad leaves and edible flowers, various coloured carrots, both golden and stripped beetroot and black and yellow beans to mention but a few. Carolyn’s family has farmed at Holcombe for over 100 years and large beds of herbs keep chefs supplied with a wonderfully fragrant range of seasonings.

The fruit garden grows the usual strawberries and raspberries with additional varieties including golden raspberries, white, black and red currants, tayberries, loganberries, blackberries and gooseberries. Such a range ensures prolific fruit production throughout the summer and autumn and taste a world away from the supermarket equivalent. The real stars of the show though are definitely ‘Claude and Maurice’, the couple’s two Kuni Kuni pigs whose role is to rotovate and fertilise the ground in between growing. They do this with much enthusiasm, and more than just a little noise when it’s feeding time!

At the bottom of Oak Lodge lies an orchard planted out with traditional varieties of apple, plum and cherries trees, local to the area. Free range chickens roam in the orchard and lay the most fabulous pastel coloured eggs. Summertime is awash with colour as any areas left in between the vegetables and fruit are planted out with masses of cut and edible flowers. Situated just six miles from the Jack, at the beginning of each year Matthew, Paul and Carolyn all sit down and spend time looking at seed catalogues before agreeing what can be grown for the restaurant. This approach means we receive a daily supply of superb produce that's always delivered with a smile.

You can buy Paul and Carolyn’s wonderful fresh produce, along with a range of  preserves and fruit juices direct from the farm. Deliveries can also be arranged.

For more information please telephone 01404 815680.