Our Green Journey at Knockinaam Lodge
At Knockinaam Lodge, we are passionate about sustainability and continuous improvement.
In recent years, we have adopted numerous eco-friendly practices to minimise our environmental impact while maintaining the luxurious experience our guests have come to cherish here at Knockinaam.
As dedicated supporters of conservation and sustainability, we aim to help our guests forge meaningful connections with nature, the environment, and the vibrant local culture of South West Scotland. Our initiatives encompass waste reduction, sourcing local produce, and promoting energy efficiency across our hotel and restaurant, alongside a variety of other eco-friendly activities.
Proud Supporter of the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNSECO Biosphere
Knockinaam Lodge Hotel and Restaurant is a Proud Supporter of Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere and has recently applied for full accreditation:
- We do everything that we can to help conserve the natural resources of the Biosphere.
- Support the economy to benefit local people and nature.
- Promote cultural heritage and local products.
- Contribute to the health and well-being of the community.
- Develop knowledge, understanding and promote research and raise awareness of the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere.
Encouraging Wildlife and Natural Landscapes
Much of our land has been left in its natural state. We have reduced our lawns by planting wildflower meadows in front of Shingle Lodge and near our Solar Farm. Doing this encourages more insect life and subsequently more birds. This has also helped us to reduce our energy consumption.
The verges of our driveway have also been left to grow wild and have been colonised by some wonderful wildflowers such as native orchids, violets, primroses, and blue bells. The plants chosen include many fruiting plants (blackthorn/sloes, hawthorn, sea buckthorn, wild roses) all of which provide flowers for pollinators and berries for birds.
We have planted native coastal hedging around our vegetable garden to provide protection from the wind and our flower beds are stocked full of plants for pollinators which act as nectar bars for native insect life. Knockinaam Lodge sits on a B-Line and has recently joined B-lines Dumfries & Galloway.
Collaborating with the Soil Association Scotland for Organic Certification
In addition to our ongoing sustainability efforts, we are proudly supporting the 2020 Coasts & Waters initiative. On May 1st, 2024, we applied for Organic Certification from the Soil Association of Scotland. Our goal is to offer guests attending future Gourmet Weekends the unique experience of picking their own vegetables and fruit from our Organically Certified Kitchen Garden.
Introducing Local, Eco-Friendly Amenities and Cleaning Practices
In June we will replace bathroom amenities produced outside of the Galloway and Southern Ayrshire UNESCO Biosphere with products which are 100% vegan; cruelty free & clean and hand poured in Scotland. Apothecally of Gatehouse of Fleet, Castle Douglas only use eco Soy wax and 97% of the ingredients they use are organic. As a result of this change, we will be able to eliminate small single use plastics in guest bedrooms and replace these with refillable 250 ml containers.
All the cleaning chemicals used in the Kitchen and Housekeeping are environmentally friendly.
Supporting Locally Sourced and Homegrown Produce
We grow as much as we can for the hotel, supplying the Kitchen with fresh seasonal produce all year-round. We practice a four-bed rotation system in our kitchen garden- a natural gardening system designed to minimise pests and disease and reduce the need for fertiliser.
The vegetable garden is fertilised during the winter months using seaweed collected from the cove. We also have a productive fruit garden where we grow strawberries, raspberries, blackcurrants, white currants, redcurrants, gooseberries, and rhubarb. Our herb bed supplies a broad range of the freshest herbs to the kitchen.
All the produce grown in our garden is grown on site from seed using UK produced organic compost which also helps to reduce our carbon footprint.Our vegetable crops are protected from rabbits by fencing and insect friendly nets have been erected to prevent pigeons from eating our Brassicas.
Sustainable Flower Sourcing and Eco-Friendly Composting Practices
During the summer Months flowers for the hotel are sourced from the garden. Some of these are from our herbaceous borders and other annual varieties are grown from seed each year. Doing this reduces our carbon footprint as commercial flower production often involves artificial light and heat as well as refrigerated transportation.
We produce a lot of compost on site from the weeds removed from around the garden and from vegetable waste from the kitchen This is used to feed the flower beds and borders around the hotel. We currently purchase Organic compost but, in the future, aspire to become completely self-sufficient and produce all our own compost and plant food on site using nettles, comfrey and seaweed. We have not used any pesticide in the garden for the past five years, instead where necessary we use nematodes against persistent insect pests and grit to deter slugs and snails.
Embracing Quiet and Clean Energy in Our Gardens
We have switched where possible to using electric tools in the garden. Our robot mowers operate in silence preserving the cove’s tranquillity and the electric strimmer, hedge cutter, and chainsaw are quieter than the petrol ones used previously making the grounds a more peaceful setting for guests and wildlife.
Harnessing Solar Energy to Power Our Hotel
We have built a Solar Farm and estimate that the one hundred newly installed solar panels will provide between 50%-70% of the Hotel’s energy needs.
Reducing Packaging and Supporting Local Sustainability
Wherever possible, we buy in bulk to reduce the amount of packaging. Our fencing materials are local wood, British wood, or FSC-certified wood. The hotel supports the local community by purchasing from and promoting local producers as well as employing local contractors wherever possible.
Promoting Sustainable Transportation and Eco-Friendly Travel
We try to minimise the impact of transport and encourage our customers to use sustainable transport. The hotel has seven electric car charging points. We are also a Cycle-friendly business and have plans to build a new covered and secure cycle-shed. Our staff car-share daily.
Protecting Our Beach and Repurposing Plastic Waste
We clean the beach regularly, removing plastic waste which apart from being unsightly can also be dangerous to both birds and sea life. Some of the larger plastic items are also repurposed in the greenhouse to grow vegetables.
