We are James and Sukamala, tenants at Wild Geese Acres, Greenham Reach, which is an off-grid, low-impact farming project established in north Devon by the Ecological Land Coop (ELC) – see website. http://ecologicalland.coop.
If you put ‘Wild Geese Acres’ into a Google maps search you will get our exact location; or use this postcode – TA21 0JY.
Our salad leaf business is starting to sell again for the new season as crops have been overwintering in the polytunnel. We now have 5 pigs (Gloucester Old Spot crosses) and 10 sheep (Shetlands) the pigs will be going for meat in around 2 months and the ewes have been with the ram since Christmas so lambs will be due late March early April.
We are looking for someone (friends and couples will work too) to help out on our smallholding for the 2017 season with our established salad and veg business and to help with livestock and practical building and maintenance jobs. Most work/exchange requests will be considered but generally we are looking for weeks at a time or preferably the whole season – March to September. In exchange for 4 days work a week (individuals) or 3 days work (two people) we are offering accommodation in a large static caravan. Utilities are included – there is solar PV electricity and gas for cooking and a wood burner for heating. Water is collected from rainwater tanks and a borehole which is treated with carbon filters and a UV filter. There is a shared compost toilet on site and we have plumbed-in water and showers in the caravans.
You would be responsible for your own needs around food but are welcome to take produce from the garden as needed. The schedule of work could be flexible and negotiable depending on your/our needs/commitments but is likely to follow a regular working week pattern in order to tap into local markets and retail outlets. The larger 6-acre field is under development for livestock and trees.
The kind of work that needs doing is:
- Tending the market garden, picking, packing and selling salad
- Working on farm infrastructure (irrigation, ancillary buildings etc.)
- Tending livestock
- Tree planting
You will get the chance to learn about:
- Innovative food growing techniques (e.g. no-dig agriculture)
- sustainable land management (e.g. mob grazing)
- Low-impact building
- Off-grid energy production
- Organic food marketing and sales
We encourage learning and development in areas that you might be interested in – all ideas can be discussed and considered while you are here.
So, if you are interested in living an off-grid, low-impact lifestyle on the land, rent- and bill-free in a beautiful part of Devon with good transport links to London and the South-West then get in touch for a chat at:
[email protected]
01823 673278
07875729205
Many thanks
James and Sukamala
