elizabeth west

Greetings Deb & folks, is your permaculture land trust nonprofit up & running? I'd love to be in touch to learn from your model as we figure out how to protect our permaculture teaching & learning farm in the future. Many thanks, Lisa of woodland harvest mtn farm

the woodland harvest mountain farm family is seeking folks to join our co-created community oriented permaculture farmstead collective to steward the land and continue offering teaching and learning opportunities in our community and beyond!

we are a unique family with two awesome boys, 12 & 15, two awesome moms, one caretaker/steward and a variety of animals! woodland harvest is a vibrant unique ever-evolving permaculture teaching & learning farmstead that continually grows with the many people who pass through each season from work traders, friends, family, beloveds, community members, college students, to other earth enthusiasts.

our family spends many months each year in North Carolina on our farmstead, and we also travel some each year to further or teaching & learning skills and give our boys a chance to see other lands.  this season, we’re taking our family on the road again to steward land and build community across the country for a couple months, so we're looking for the perfect folks to come try their hands at homesteading, gardening, living on and with the land for the growing season or possibly longer!

we cannot run the farmstead alone, whether were here full-time or not.  we’ve been experimenting with a variety of living situations here & at other farms.  we envision a collaborative situation where five-eight or so eager dedicated somewhat experienced farmer homesteaders live on and work the land to maintain and grow woodland harvest through a permaculture lens.  we would like each person to commit to a minimum 3-12 month stay with possible longer lease opportunities available. we ask for $300 per adult per month, but that is negotiable based on many variables.  there are several options for sleeping indoors or outdoors or parking an RV or tiny house, etc.  we have one full-time steward, Mike who lives in a small hand-tool built cabin, and we hope that perhaps a small group of likeminded folks and/or some partners, friends, etc., will join us soon.

skills required within collective -- we realize that not every person will have skills in every area, and they’ll certainly be better honed or learned while here. which is why we know that it takes a collective to live with such intention.  following is a basic list of essential skills we’ve found necessary to maintain and grow the woodland harvest spaces and visions:

   carpentry (rough & finish)
   alternative energy installation, maintenance & problem solving
   how to use basic tools (ie. shovels, post hole diggers, hammers, chainsaws)
   understanding of radical weather shifts at nearly 4,000 ft. in the mountains (living & working with snow, ice, rain, wind, bitter cold, etc.)
   general homestead problem solving
   organic & biodynamic gardening
   water management (ie. plumbing, graywater, spring maintenance)
   consensus process, group facilitation, conflict resolution, participatory democracy & community building
   open attitudes & social dynamism when interacting with guests and community members
   cooking for and with large groups of folks in a rustic setting
   entrepreneurial mindset & skills (ie. small business management, finances, marketing, planning, etc.)


our basic expectations of the collective:

   maintain infrastructure & further projects in progress
   maintain off-grid electrical system & possible renewable energy installations
   maintain and improve water systems (gravity fed spring water, graywater, etc.)
   harvest & season wood from land for woodstove heat & cooking
   problem solve (ie. frozen pipes, fallen tree, low electricity, leaky windows, loose dogs, etc.)
   take initiative around projects that interest you which further the vision of woodland harvest
   seek donations of time, money, expertise, and resources on an on-going basis & participate in & promote barter/trade
   offer teaching & learning opportunities in line with our permaculture values
   participate in local events & offerings to promote farm products & teaching & learning opportunities
   maintain relationship with WWOOF, Alternative Spring Break & other partner organizations
   maintain cabin rentals for income offsets


disclaimer:  we've hosted thousands of people on the land over the past decade from very short visits to multi-year stays.  we've had probably 98% powerful positive experiences with folks.   however, for this situation, we must ensure that the right folks have a temperament that is concordant with the rhythms of the land, animals, and other humans on the land and the vision of the farmstead.  this is a sacred healing land, and we cannot tolerate abuse of any kind for even a moment from property damage to intimidation of women, children, animals, and never violence.
we are a strong loving family and embrace visitors with open hearts.

for folks who are seriously interested in becoming a part of the woodland harvest family, we prefer an email introduction with details around your desires and goals to live at woodland harvest and some background information about yourself and skills, resources, strengths, weaknesses, etc., that you’d bring to the farm. we hope to have folks join the farmstead this season to have some overlapping time with us on the farm before we depart. we’re so excited to share our magical space with folks in this new creative way and look forward to what and who the future brings!  
check us out at woodlandharvest.org or email to woodlandharvestmtnfarm@gmail.com

blessed be, elizabeth, lisa, landrum & aydan

Woodland Harvest Mountain Farm in the Blue Ridge Mtns of NC is looking for stewards to join us...all terms negotiable. we are an off-grid sixteen acre mostly wooded permaculture farmstead. we host lots of visitors each year via workshops, gatherings, cabin rentals, etc. we'd like to continue sharing and growing with others on our land. we have one full-time caretaker, so he's great for backup, but we'd like to have a couple other full-time stewards/interns/land sharers.
check us out at woodlandharvest.org ; it's an amazing property to visit or live. we have recently had a horrible ordeal with a couple folks joining us who were NOT ready for the day to day lifestyle of homesteaders, but we truly love sharing our land. so...if you are inclined to become easily overwhelmed, violently intimidate humans or animals, or throw lots of negative energy around, don't inquire Otherwise, we are super open, loving, joyful family who welcomes any and all inquiries. we are two moms with two boys, and we look forward to what magic and transformation come next.

thanks for reading. elizabeth, lisa, landrum and aydan of woodland harvest mountain farm

greetings. we have an amazing magical space to share!! please check out our "call" on our website!!


http://www.woodlandharvestmountainfarm.org/the-call.html

greetings all, please feel free to forward or share with others you know who may be interested in the following call:

the woodland harvest mountain farm family is seeking folks to co-create a community oriented permaculture collective to steward the land and continue offering teaching and learning opportunities and outreach efforts in our community and beyond!

we are a unique family of four with two boys, 10 & 14 and two awesome moms! woodland harvest is a vibrant colorful ever-evolving permaculture homestead that continually learns, loves, and grows from and through the many people who pass through each season like work traders, friends, beloveds, community members, college students, and other earth enthusiasts. learn more about the farm and our history through our website at woodlandharvestmountainfarm.org.

we plan to spend our later years at woodland harvest & some months each year, but have decided while our kids are still young we’re taking our family on the road for more traveling adventures! over the next few years we envision a collaborative situation where two to six or so eager dedicated somewhat experienced permaculturists live on and work the land to maintain and grow woodland harvest through a permaculture lense. we would like each person to commit to a minimum 9-12 month stay. we ask for a sliding scale dollar commitment of $300-$500 per adult per month. we’re willing to host folks with children and will negotiate additional dollar commitments. there are several options for sleeping which are negotiable based on who wants to stay where & for how long, etc.

skills required within collective -- we realize that not every person will have skills in every area, and they’ll certainly be better honed while here, but this is a basic list of essential skills we’ve found necessary to maintain and grow woodland harvest:
♥ carpentry (rough & finish)
♥ alternative energy installation, maintenance & problem solving
♥ how to use basic tools (ie. shovels, post hole diggers, hammers, chainsaws)
♥ understanding of radical weather shifts at nearly 4,000 ft. in the mountains (living & working with snow, ice, rain, wind, bitter cold, etc.)
♥ general homestead problem solving
♥ organic & biodynamic gardening
♥ water management (ie. plumbing, graywater, spring maintenance)
♥ consensus process, group facilitation, conflict resolution, participatory democracy & community building
♥ open attitudes & social dynamism when interacting with guests and community members
♥ cooking for and with large groups of folks in a rustic setting
♥ entrepreneurial mindset & skills (ie. small business management, finances, marketing, planning, etc.)

our basic expectations of the collective:
♥ maintain infrastructure & further projects in progress
♥ maintain off-grid electrical system & possible renewable energy installations
♥ maintain and improve water systems (gravity fed spring water, graywater, etc.)
♥ harvest & season wood from land for woodstove heat & cooking
♥ problem solve (ie. frozen pipes, fallen tree, low electricity, leaky windows, loose dogs, etc.)
♥ take initiative around projects that interest you which further the vision of woodland harvest
♥ seek donations of time, money, expertise, and resources on an on-going basis & participate in & promote barter/trade
♥ offer teaching & learning opportunities in line with our permaculture values
♥ participate in local events & offerings to promote farm products & teaching & learning opportunities
♥ maintain relationship with WWOOF, Alternative Spring Break & other partner organizations
♥ maintain cabin rentals for income offsets

farm assets to share with collective:
♥ 16 acres at the end of the end of the road, bordered by 4000 protected Nature Conservancy & Bird Sanctuary acres
♥ 1000 square foot off-grid farmhouse
♥ 24 volt (two battery banks), 4000 watt Xantrex inverter, Morningstar charge controller, custom micro-hydro system & 240 watt solar PVC electricity
♥ male & female Great Pyrennes guard dogs & mixed-breed little hound mutt & several barn mouser cats will remain on site
♥ 12 laying hens & 1 rooster, 4 ducks
♥ graywater drainage systems
♥ humanure composting systems
♥ multiple out-buildings
♥ two creeks, multiple springs, abundant water for now
♥ gravity fed spring water 24/7/365
♥ 1/3 acre gravity fed pond with catfish, bass, trout & too many bluegills
♥ approximately 3 acres fenced for dogs, children, privacy, etc.
♥ 1/3 acre fenced vegetable/herb garden space
♥ thriving 70-100 year old apple orchard with new permaculture design food forest additions over last 5 years
♥ new plantings include: persimmon, plum, peach, juneberries, pear, hardy kiwi, grapes, blueberries, black raspberries, strawberry living roof, herb spiral, arbors, elderberries, etc.
♥ approximately 12-14 acres of hardwood forest with diverse flora & fauna including dozens of medicinal & culinary woodland plants & mushrooms for wildcrafting
♥ small trail system throughout forest
♥ amazing views at upper sections of the land
♥ regular wildlife & bird sightings.-
♥ abundant supply of locust for posts, building support, firewood, etc.
♥ numerous hand tools & primitive logging & agroforestry tools
♥ Husquavarna 455 Rancher chainsaw
♥ Poulan 5hp tiller
♥ snow blower
♥ 1995 F250 Ford farm truck that often needs tlc
♥ biodiesel processor with all components
♥ mechanics wrenches & tools
♥ plumbing tools for copper & PEX
♥ thriving WWOOF relationship
♥ members of Appalachian Sustainable Agriculture Partnership, CFSA, & Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture & annual Farm Tour participants
♥ good local relationships for barter & trade & some small opportunities in place for product sales in Boone & Ashe county
♥ potential for onsite farm sales or road side stand at top of driveway, maple tapping, mushroom cultivation, wildcrafting, etc.

for folks who are seriously interested in becoming a part of the woodland harvest family, we prefer an email introduction with details around your desires and goals to live at woodland harvest and some background information about yourself and skills, resources, strengths, weaknesses, etc., that you’d bring to the farm. we hope to have folks join the farmstead by may and june to have some overlapping time with us on the farm before we depart. we’re so excited to share our magical space with folks in this new creative way and look forward to what and who the future brings!

blessed be, elizabeth, lisa, landrum & aydan
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woodlandharvest@riseup.net
woodlandharvestmountainfarm.org