Interns

  • Interns

    Gratitude

    Gratitude is something we all like to feel and sometimes it comes from unexpected sources, one of our apprentices this year gave this to us just before she jumped on the bus to leave. Both Fiona and myself are deeply touched by the sentiment and wanted to both thank Alison for her openness in sharing her gratitude and for all the hard work she has put-in while she has been with us this summer. Much love, respect and gratitude to you Alison may your spread love wherever you go in life, Fiona and Steve.

  • Courses,  Diet,  Food,  Interns

    Saturday Morning Off

    While taking time out at the weekends is incredibly important to Fiona and I we are here trying to hold ourselves to a higher moral standard both for our lives and the lives of the animals we eat, sometimes this means we don’t get that time out. Saturdays and Sundays we normally do the least work we have to do to care for the animals and process the milk from our expanding herd, and then take time out to do things we enjoy. Taking a coffee in the corner of a market square, going to a Brocante (flea market) or taking a walk somewhere beautiful which have no shortage of.…

  • Diet,  Food,  Interns

    Eleven Years of Hand Milking

    We have had dairy cows since 2005 one of which came to us pregnant so we were early to milking once the calf had taken the colostrum. Last year we increase our stock levels of cows buy one to three milking cows, this is in anticipation of milk conversion becoming a commercial operation not just one of self reliance. We have enjoyed an abundance of meat, milk, cream, yogurt and at times even cheese. Now that Fiona my wife no longer works off site in a cheese making factory she is going to restart on farm cheese making both for ourselves, our students and the public. Once the cows have…

  • Compost,  Courses,  Interns

    Compost Showers

    I guess most people wonder what showers and compost have to do with each other, being showered with compost is probably not anyone’s idea of being cleaned. However there is a perfectly valid connection and it’s one we have been exploiting now for four years and to good effect. Most people want to have a warm or even a hot shower most of the time, with the exception of perhaps in really hot weather. A well constructed compost heat can and does produce exceptional amounts of heat. This heat is usually not exploited, and is seldom exploited to good effect outside of hot beds, which are gaining popularity again within…

  • Courses,  Diet,  Food,  Interns,  Land

    A day in our life

    Firstly I should say there is no such thing as a typical day in our lives. Some things have to happen every day as you will see but other are only done once or twice a year. Some things are done every day for weeks then not done again for a year and other are done once a week every week. This is the joy of living a life in tune with the natural forces around us our life is cyclical.   I’m writing this in part to give potential apprentices/interns some idea of what to expect when they come to live and work with us, but it’s also a…

  • Interns

    Stuck on a farm for six months!

    My name is Ellinor, I am 22 years old, and I come from Norway. A few weeks ago I took the train down to France and Permaculture Eden to have my very first “farm-experience”. I will live here for a whole season and learn from Fiona and Steve, who have been on a path towards self-sufficiency for a long time, and who are now harvesting the fruits of their efforts. (Or rather the milk, eggs, meat, vegetables, nuts and fruits of their efforts). I have the opportunity to learn from their experience in gardening, animal keeping, natural building and Permaculture Design, through working at the farm and participating in the courses. I…

  • Interns

    A six month path to reconnecting

    I am 50 years old, female and have been working in the dive industry for about 20 years. My name is Irene and I am in my path to reconnecting to the basics; which for me is food producing by working in a farm. More adventurous people would try for this the hunter gatherer path… don’t trust my potential to develop those skills that much and I don’t think that would fit my ultimate goal that is to go back to my homeland, live close to my lifetime friends and enjoy my beautiful nieces and nephews while they grow up before it is too late. In these coming six month…