We are most fortunate to live on and run an 8-acre smallholding. Some years ago we enthusiastically planted trees over most of it: on 4 acres we created a native woodland which is now well grown and providing firewood to heat our home as well as a valuable wildlife habitat; and on 3 acres we planted orchards of standard fruit trees of old and local varieties. We have a half acre wildflower meadow and half an acre of out-of-control garden. Almost everything we do is for the benefit of nature: bird life is abundant and we have hedgehogs, hares, great crested newts and dormice as well as a muntjac deer - all this has been created over the past 30 years out of arable farmland. We also have a handful of chickens which roam the woodland. We are members of the Wildlife Trust and of local Meadows Groups and have a particular interest in the re-establishment of wildflower meadows.
We do try to live as ecologically as we can. Our home is a small barn converted by us in the early 1990s using as much local and reclaimed material as possible. It is heated by burning wood from our woodland and a thermal panel heats our water for much of the year. Solar PVs contribute to our electricity needs, and we also have a built in compost toilet which reduces our water consumption. There’s Wi-Fi in the house.
We run probably Herefordshire’s smallest award-winning commercial cidery! We use the fruit from the orchards to make juice, cider and perry. We are not registered organic but our trees are unsprayed and our ciders and perries are 100% juice and bottle conditioned using wild ferment. We also pick other people’s orchards where the fruit would otherwise go to waste. It is especially during the busy harvest months of September to November that we need help. Although the work can at times be repetitive and cold, you would learn the process and gain experience of picking, pressing, pasteurising and bottling. We welcome offers of help at other times of the year with orchard pruning, woodland coppicing and gardening.
Your accommodation would be in one of two shepherd huts which are used for holiday lets so you would have some independence. Your hut is situated in the orchard and the other one is in the woodland. You would share a shower and compost toilet with at most two others, and if you came in November you would have exclusive use as the holiday season finishes at the end of October.
We are very flexible when it comes to meals - you can join us for simple and wholesome food or you can enjoy cooking outdoors at your shepherd’s hut! We can cater for all tastes and if you are vegan we are happy to learn new ways of cooking from you! We are both retired from working in education, and whilst we work hard on our smallholding we do enjoy plenty of tea breaks and enjoy talking with our guests.
Our smallholding is situated on the edge of a peaceful village with fantastic views of the Black Mountains over the border in Wales. The village has a petrol station with a small shop and there is a pub in the neighbouring village two miles away.
Organic methods: No chemicals are used in the orchards or garden. Everything is done with wildlife in mind.
Certifications: We are not large enough to warrant certification.
Current projects: Apple harvest and juicing (September - November).
Garden maintenance
Firewood processing (January-February)
Orchard pruning (March)
Internet access available: Yes
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Learning opportunities
Fruit or nut farming
Forestry
Beer, cider, wine, or juice making
Host type
Production farm
3.2
Hectares
|
8
Acres
