Join us for our next Volunteer Week at Fforest Barn Retreat!
March 7th to 13th 2025

Here at Fforest Barn Retreat, we connect the dots between growing food organically to optimise nutrition, and revitalising people through connection with nature in this wild and free piece of heaven that groups hire to run retreats.

Today we celebrate the arrival of Winston ‘the Wolf’ Moondance, our fourth alpaca and are planning for a glorious Spring transforming both Texas (a field that looks like Texas) making a path, a temple, a shepherd hut, collecting wood, making woodchip and mulch and, in our Food Fforest, making a pond, a medicine garden and expanding our organic fruit and vegetable garden during the week of 7th to 13th as the moon grows to full.

Would you like to join us? Come for a day if you live nearby, a couple of days or even the whole week. We have both couple and single accommodation and would love a balance of men and women. Patrick is running the “Texas Chainsaw Mulcher” clearing wood and turning it into logs and mulch and making his legendary pancakes. Michael, the Man on the Tractor (a 1980’s Japanese gem), and Ella, the Organic Queen of Growing, will work with groups in the Food Fforest. Ideally, we like people willing to work, quite fit or wanting to get fit, with some gardening or other DIY skills. They’ll be plenty of time for talks, walks, some live music from local musicians (feel free to bring your instruments) and great home grown food. Patrick will talk on the Four Horsemen of the Mental Health Apocalypse.

This is a fantastic opportunity to roll up your sleeves and contribute to the farm’s sustainable future while enjoying the beauty of nature. Whether you’re passionate about growing, environmental stewardship, or eager to learn new skills, volunteering at Fforest Barn is a rewarding experience for all. There will be the opportunity to gain hands-on experience of pond making, starting a no-dig garden, and getting stuck into wood chopping and chipping!

This year, we’re focusing on creating a new central ‘heart’ in our garden, where volunteers will have the chance to help with:

• ⁠Building a beautiful wildlife pond to attract local fauna.
• ⁠Creating no-dig beds and pathways for our new herb and medicine garden.

Other jobs for budding lumberjacks include:

• Clearing branches and overgrown paths around the farm boundary.
• Processing fallen trees into firewood and mulch for future use (or as Patrick would call it the ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ experience!).

In exchange for your time and effort, we will offer delicious food, great company and luxurious board (along with the chance to unwind and relax in the hot tub after a hard day’s work). This is the perfect opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals who share a love for nature, while making a lasting impact on the farm.

Sign up today and be a part of something truly special help us create a beautiful and sustainable space that will be enjoyed by wildlife and people for years to come!

How?

• Fill in the online form Volunteering at Fforest Barn so we know a bit about you, your skills, food preferences and so on.
• Then select your preferred room using the form Fforest Barn Retreat Rooms stating the nights you wish to stay (7th to 13th March 2025). You can see the rooms here – Fforest Barn Rooms. We will then contact you back on 27th Jan.

It will ‘sell out’ so do book your place early and we encourage you to come as a couple, or bring a friend. Those coming for more days will get priorities on room bookings.

We are 10 minutes from Abergavenny station, with trains up to Manchester, or down to London (under 2.5 hours from Paddington) via Newport. It’s a 2.5 hour drive from London. Taxis are available from Abergavenny station and our taxi driver will know if there’s others coming on the same train to split the far. We’ll tell you more details when we receive your online forms above.