Peter Walker was born in 1922. His training began at the end of World War II when the National Agricultural Advisory service recommended that he apply to a Hampshire farmer who took in pupils. He turned out to be a notable arable farmer of 600 acres, and a sound teacher as well. Subsequently he moved on as a pupil or 'an improver' to farms which gave him further knowledge of cattle, a dairy herd, a lambing flock and a subsequent career in farm management. His own observations began to question some of the farming practices then in vogue, promoted by governments seeking to ensure adequate nutrition for a nation still being rationed 10 years after the war had ended. Very high production was the all-out aim. However, there was a cost in the loss of soil structure and soil fertility. We were far too dependent on artificial fertilisers and chemical sprays resulting in the poisonous run-off from the land into rivers and the consequent loss of insect life so necessary for pollination leading to an alarming fall in the population of bird species which has continued to this day. We need to understand that in life everything is dependent on everything else to function properly.