Small self-sufficient farm near Järna. Help with berry harvest, fermentation and forest garden

Stockholm

28 reviews • Updated 2 months ago

We need a wwoofer in August. Our farm is a clearing in the forest with a small house and some small farm buildings - no neighbours in sight. There is about 2 hectares of open land and we are slowly building up subsistance farming with a little surplus for sale. The garden is growing year by year and we generally grow a little more than we can eat. It will probably remain this way and we experiment with small scale food processing - especially lactic acid fermentation and fruit leathers. We can sometimes take a wwoofer for one or two weeks in may to get the garden started and occational wwoofers in September, but the main wwoof season is June, July and August with the peak season second half of July and first half of August, when berries ripe. In july there are different types of work including berry picking and august and september is harvesting and conserving season. The main crop is black currant and the season for that is last week in july. Work with wood goes on all the time a little. We are engaged with international development work with BERAS (Building Ecological Regenerative Agriculture and Society) and Hans has worked in the biodynamic movement (on request we can answer questions about anthroposophy also), with agriculture advice, and with development of organic agriculture in Sweden and in Belarus. Birgitta left her former work in social pedagogics to give more time to the farm. The nearest village is Järna (9 km), where there is an anthroposophic center nearby (16 km). Stockholm is 60 km away. It is possible to lend a bicycle and get to Järna train station with or making excursions. Organic methods: Almost no machines Certifications: We are only subsistence farm - very little to sell. Certification will not pay its cost. Current projects: We started building a forrest garden from May 2025. Harvest of black and red currant, gooseberry, apples, plums and blueberries and lingonberries in the forrest and making jam and fruit leathers goes on in July and August. We start working days with breakfast together for all at 07.00, fika at 10.00 and lunch around 12-13. Afternoons and evenings we are more free - and wwoofers will make their own food with whatever is available in the garden, refrigerator and stores. The same for free days. We make sure there is enough food in our storages - but wwoofers will make for themselves. We follow the seasons with food and take as much as we can from our garden. Internet access available

Learning opportunities

Vegetable farming

Fruit or nut farming

Forestry

Wild foraging

Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas

Vegetable or fruit preservation

Renewable energy production

Food justice / sovereignty

Methods or systems

Biodynamic agriculture

Permaculture

Regenerative agriculture

Host type

Self-sufficiency property

0.8 Hectares | 2 Acres

Accommodation

3 WWOOFers

Bedroom

Camper / RV

Children not accepted

Pets not accepted

Meals

Omnivore

Vegetarian

Length of stay

1-2 weeks

3-4 weeks

Over a month

Hans von

Member since 2009

Languages spoken: English, German, Russian, Swedish

Sun

Mon

Tue

Wed

Thu

Fri

Sat

Response rate: 100% Response time: typically within 1 day

MapLibre | Protomaps | © OpenStreetMap

Stockholm

For travellers without car. Take commuter train from Södertälje to Järna station and appoint a time so we pick you up. If you come by car, bicycle or hiking we will give you directions when we agree on exact arrival. You will do work according to what y

Reviews

Clement

France • October 2025

This was my very first woofing experience, and I had the chance to spend 3 months here. I truly enjoyed every moment from start to finish: the wide variety of activities allowed me to learn so much and to live enriching daily experiences. The days off were also a great opportunity to discover this beautiful country. Hans and Birgitta are both very kind and welcoming, which made the stay even more special. Thank you again for this memorable experience ! :)

Lotta

Germany • August 2025

My two weeks on Hans and Birgitta's farm were fantastic! I immediately felt very welcome and was reluctant to leave at the end. I was able to try out many different things, especially harvesting a lot, picking blueberries and mushrooms in the forest and processing various fruits. Thank you for this wonderful experience in your paradise and for welcoming me with open arms! Also thanks for the best fika breaks! I really hope to come back one day!

Mai

Germany • September 2024

I had an absolutely wonderful 10 days at Löwensberg! Hans and Birgitta welcomed me with such warmth and treated both me and the other WWOOFers like family the entire time. The tasks were diverse and engaging, from making grape juice and cooking to weeding, chopping wood, and picking berries in the forest. The two daily fikas were definitely a highlight—taking breaks to enjoy coffee and crumbles while chatting about anything and everything was so special. Hans and Birgitta are incredibly knowledgeable, kind, and open-minded, making the experience even more enriching. I can only recommend this place! The location itself is a haven, nestled in the middle of a forest with no car noise, and swimming in the beautiful nearby lake is a must! Thank you so much, Hans and Birgitta, for sharing such wonderful experiences with me. I hope to see you both again soon!

Sophia

Germany • August 2024

I spent my first wwoofing experience here and I couldn’t have asked for a better time. Hans and Birgitta are some of the most warmhearted people I know and they welcomed me into their home and into their life with open arms. I gradually got introduced to new tasks, so no day was the same. At the beginning Hans will ask you for your interests and those are respected & considered during your stay, but depending on priorities for the farm you might also have to do some other things. I was there end of august and I did a lot of weeding, cutting back grapes/flowers/blackberries, harvesting and I also got to learn lactic acid fermentation. You will take turns cooking for lunch and the hosts are very interested to know more about your home country and your culture. Both Hans and Birgitta are very wise, well educated and intelligent, so we had some very interesting deep and philosophical talks over lunch/fika. They also took me on a walk in town, a music festival close by, introduced me to their family and gave me a couple of lifts to the train station when I went to stockholm on my free days. Löwensberg is a great farm for wwoofing because you learn a lot about ecological & biodynamic agriculture as well as Swedish culture and history without any pressure. Tho, be aware that you should be comfortable with sometimes just being quiet and having a decent amount of alone time. If you’re fine with that, you will have an amazing time here! Thank you, Hans & Birgitta!

Matilda

France • August 2024

This farm was the best first wwoofing experience I could have asked for! I did a lot of different things (from berry picking to making apple pie to chopping wood with an axe). I gradually got introduced to everything and learned something new every day and I will also be able to remake the things in my everyday life. Coming from a stressful city, here it’s the complete opposite and allowed me to completely relax and get in touch with the basic needs of a human being that we often forget. My hosts let me into their relaxing and healthy lifestyle and I really felt in the right place. They are both very interesting people and during the meals or excursions you will get to know them better and they will also be interested in you. On top of that I learned a lot of things about the swedish culture and history, which was very interesting. The really close by Ogan lake is a great place to swim, or just read and relax in the sun and if you take a day to go hiking you will pass numerous other beautiful lakes. Thanks a lot for these amazing two weeks !

Célia

France • August 2024

I worked for a month with two other friends on this small farm. This was our first experience wwoofing. Thanks to our hosts we had a great time learning to take care of different aspects of the farm. The tasks are quite varied as there are different areas to work on. So you won't solely pick berries (even though it is quite nice !). We got to lay the first stones of the little wall Hans wanted to build in the Old House area and receive a course on how to properly cut a tree with a chainsaw. The lunches and fikas we had with Hans and Birgitta were a time where everyone shared a bit about their culture and their opinion on various subject (society, politics, culture, food, ...). We also got to learn about our hosts. They were quite enjoyable moments ! We often went to visit Stockholm on our days off and Birgitta kindly dropped us off at the train station. We also got to visit Järna by bike and take a swim in the lake Ogan. Don't hesitate to go on a hike, the woods are beautiful. But beware of the many mosquitoes. Bonus : there are two amazingly kind cats who like to come and check on your work !