Around 1910 Emilia’s grandfather founded the garden and planted the first apple trees. Since then the place, like all the farms around, played a role supplying our capital Stockholm with vegetables, fruit and berries. In the beginning the products were carried by steamboats but from about 1925 it was possible to use the roads. In 1978 Emilia’s parents opened a small juice factory to take care of fallen apples that could not be sold in the market. Since there is a good tradition around to plant apple trees in the garden when you build a house, it was soon found by other ‘apple owners’ who wanted to make juice from their harvest. Thirsty people came from all around to get the golden drink. When we, by the end of the last century, chose to take care of this place, we decided to turn the gardening into organic. We also found that it was a good idea to concentrate on letting people come here to get good fruit and vegetables, rather than sending these products to the market in town.
To draw more people to us we started a café and began to sell other things. We also found that the garden, due to its relaxed atmosphere, was a very nice meeting place. It was therefore a natural thing to hold parties and arrange other gatherings here.
On the weekends we often have concerts and public parties. The live music played during these varies from jazz to ethnic to rock´n roll and are usually very nice. There is often a private wedding or "external" party on Fridays or Saturdays. Another tradition is to arrange a flea-market (car boot sale) in the parking field every Sunday from May until September.
So, these days we operate as an organic farm and apple orchard, with a beautiful garden that supplies and inspires our seasonal kitchen, creating an enticing café and relaxing, alternative place that many customers return to again and again to experience. We also have a boutique and ‘kitchen-garden-shop’ where we sell our vegetables, fruits, bread, honey, jams, pickles, preserves, cordials etc. (made using the gardens produce). When the apple season arrives at the middle of August, we come into full action with the ‘Musteri’ (juice factory) as well.
For the café, garden, musteri, events and weddings we have a big, ever-evolving family of permanent staff, but as a wwoofer you will work together with us to keep all these elements rolling and spinning, helping out where needed and also driving yourself. It is a very dynamic place, so it is easy to find your own strengths and an area that you thrive in.
If you choose to have a WWOOF period with us, we want you to stay at least 4 weeks, during which you will:
- help with the essential daily maintenance and cleaning of the place, making it welcoming and functioning for customers, and a clean and happy place to live in for all of us.
- prepare food for our communal meals. Breakfast and dinner are always prepared by wwoofers. We take it in turns. It is also often necessary to help ‘set-up’ the lunch table and bring out the lunch and some days prepare it..
- in the garden: planting, weeding, pruning, harvesting ...
- in the café/kitchen: collecting dirty dishes and washing up, serving food, cleaning and preparing vegetables for the kitchen staff, assisting with baking and making food, making jam and other delicacies to sell in the shop.
- in the workshop: carpentry and machinery: there are always things to fix ..
- in the juice factory: making “liquid gold”...
- with the animals: feed and look after...
... and a variety of other projects.
The standard wwoofer working day is from 9 – 17 with nice breaks, but food preparation and events etc. can alter this. Breakfast is at 8 am, followed by the ‘morning meeting’ at 8.30 am, where we discuss and delegate what is to be done during the day. When days are busy we usually receive lunch from the café at around 1.00pm. It can be difficult to all sit together at the same time, but we try our best and often take it in turns. Dinner is on the other hand more often held together as a small feast, at around 7.00pm. We have a small cinema facility for those who like films and there is mostly music played in the main building. If weather is to hot there are paths through the forrest to reach the clean watered lake Mälaren to cool down a little.
Smoking is permitted except in café area, for which we have a specific smoking spot, but littering with cigarette buts is of course forbidden. Any use of illegal drugs and as well abuse of alcohol is absolutely forbidden.
Finally maybe you want to know something about the more permanent crew here. Emilia (inspiration) who was born here isn´t with us anymore but truly lives on in all of the beauty she gave this world. Now Anna & Lars are in charge of the garden and musteri and Sophie & Anders in charge of the café and events. Except for some key persons, like Saga (Lars´s daughter), there are also many seasonal workers returning. Sometimes showing up: some other lovely kids brought up here: Erik 34, Evelin 32.
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Fruit or nut farming
Pig farming
Flower farming
Seed saving or production
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Beer, cider, wine, or juice making
Bakery
Traditional crafts
Renewable energy production
Methods or systems
Biological pest control
No-till farming
Host type
Production farm
Certified organic
3.2
Hectares
|
8
Acres
