House and garden
Borders
A 1.3 acre garden, with orchard, vegetable and fruit garden, polytunnel, greenhouses, wildflower meadow, 3 ponds - one of them is a natural swimming pond, herbaceous and shrub areas, lawns, mature trees.
The house is a converted farm steading, with ground source heat pump and solar panels. Insulated with sheep's wool. Lovely view to the Eildon hills in the West, and near the Cheviot hills for walking.
We work as artists - ceramics, painting, design, and try to use our creativity in our approach to gardening and developing our surroundings.
Our aim is to be self sufficient in vegetables - we achieve that some years.
We need help in the vegetable garden - weeding, hoeing, cropping, storing.
General maintenance tasks include cutting grass and edges, strimming, lifting and dividing plants in herbaceous borders, mulching. Springtime clearing and soil preparation and autumn harvesting and tidying.
We offer short stays of 1 - 2 weeks.
We prefer wwoofers who are aged 25 and over and some gardening experience if possible, previous wwoofing or a genuine interest in organic gardening and passion for the environment.
Accommodation is in a shepherds hut overlooking the vegetable garden. It’s fully self contained off grid with a shower room, compost toilet , wood burner and small stove. It has USB Charging points and good 4 G reception. It is suitable for a single person or couple but please note it is a small double bed so two wwoofers only means a couple and not two friends☺️
Wwoofers can have breakfast there which we provide of course, but other meals will be with us in the house.
We can collect and return wwoofers to the nearest bus, Kelso or Jedburgh. There is an occasional bus to Morebattle (half mile) some have made it all the way here!
We welcome last minute enquiries from single wwoofers or couples - sorry not from friends travelling together as there is only one bed available.
Organic methods: No dig gardening, crop rotation, compost, green manure, mulching, companion planting, comfrey liquid feeding, ponds and wildlife areas/meadow.
Certifications: we are not certified because we are just a large organic garden & not selling produce
Internet access available
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Flower farming
Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas
Seed saving or production
Bakery
Traditional crafts
Renewable energy production
Food justice / sovereignty
Methods or systems
No-till farming
Permaculture
Host type
Self-sufficiency property
0.5
Hectares
|
1.3
Acres
Helen
Member since 2012
Languages spoken:
English, French, Spanish
Sun
Mon
Tue
Wed
Thu
Fri
Sat
Response rate: 100%
Response time: typically within 3 days
Borders
There is an occasional bus to Morebattle from Kelso , but we can also pick up from Kelso or Jedburgh.
Reviews
Elsa
Sweden
•
May 2026
I have had a wonderful week with Helen and Paul! The big garden, beautiful surroundings (ask to borrow the bike!), FOOD, and the robins joining you to eat the worms while working - everything have been a 10/10 for me. Workwise I have been weeding both big and small, constructed a compost, sown seeds and planted seedlings. I have especially enjoyed the spirited discussions about politics, philosophy and climate/environment with the well read and involved pair + sometimes guests. Communication has been clear, and Helen and Paul are truly one of a kind, in the most warm and wonderful way!
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Chauncey
United States
•
April 2026
My time at [Host] with Helen and Paul was absolutely wonderful! Their home and garden are beautiful and purposeful, and they themselves are kind, caring folks who made me feel incredibly welcome. They are very knowledgeable about the area in general and gave me tips on some of the places I could visit, both on my day off whilst there and once I moved on to other locations. Helen and Paul are both artists and seem to have put that creativity to use in everything they do!
The lodging they provide in the shepherds hut is the perfect size for one person to stay comfortably, near enough to the main house that it is easy to come by for meals and far enough to provide a sense of privacy. It is equipped with running water (hot and cold), a shower, and a compost toilet. It also uses a wonderful wood burning stove that keeps the hut toasty on the cooler days. The inside has been exquisitely hand painted by Helen and her daughter and I found it a delight to wake up to such beautiful artwork every day.
There was plenty of work to be done; weeding, prepping plant beds and seedlings, sowing, etc., and I learned a great deal about the native flora and fauna just by helping maintain the garden areas. It is a brilliant place for those interested in veg gardening and vegan meal practices.
I found [Host] to be a perfect place to spend my first WWOOF experience, and hope to come back in the future!
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Jane
United Kingdom
•
April 2026
I had a delightful time at [Host] with Helen and Paul. Their beautiful home and garden is in a peaceful setting with lovely views across the surrounding countryside. I stayed in the shepherd's hut, overlooking the garden, where the sun streamed in late afternoon. There's a great little wood burner to up the temperature though if the sun isn't playing ball. I found the shepherd's hut (made by Paul) a treat to stay in: it's full of windows, bright, cheerfully decorated (by Helen and her daughter) and very comfy.
I enjoyed a wealth of home cooking and baking (ginger cake, hot cross buns, flapjacks, fresh bread every day), home-grown produce (raspberries, redcurrants, gooseberries, salad leaves, and of course rhubarb!) and I have come away inspired to get a tiny bit more adventurous with my own plant-based cooking.
Helen and Paul are both warm, creative, generous people, keen to live in harmony with nature, and we had plenty of interesting chats during regular breaks and meals.
While I was there, I helped out with weeding veg and wildflower beds and also planting out veg seedlings.
I plan to return in summer and hopefully see those wildflower beds in bloom!
I highly recommend [Host] to anyone interested in growing veggies, gardening with nature in mind and ready to enjoy excellent vegan food and excellent company.
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Leya
France
•
November 2025
Staying at Helen and Paul’s was honestly amazing! Their house is absolutely beautiful, very cozy, there’s many things to do in the garden but the tasks are pretty fun! They both are lovely people and extremely respectful of your needs so you know you’ll be in a safe place! I definitely recommend :)
Lucas
Canada
•
October 2025
Staying at Paul and Helens was a delight! They were generous hosts who shared wonderfully cooked vegan meals. Their garden fresh food was a flavourful treat and it was a joy to learn from and help them in their garden; which was inspirational, and followed permaculture practice so beautifully. The accomodation was artfully considered, clean, and refreshing. Such a creative couple to meet and we're very grateful for their care.
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NING
United Kingdom
•
September 2025
I had such a wonderful stay with Helen and Paul. The work hours were very reasonable, and they were always thoughtful and caring – they truly made me feel at home, just like a member of their family.
The shepherd’s hut is lovely, nicely decorated, and very comfortable to stay in. The meals they provided were excellent, with high-quality organic food, fresh fruits, and vegetables.
You can also try different types of work, which makes the experience interesting and rewarding. Both Helen and Paul are very interesting people to talk with, always happy to share stories about their life and the local neighborhood. I really appreciated the experience and would highly recommend staying with them!
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