Hola viajeros, I’ve been living in the mountains of Turrialba in Costa Rica for seven years. My journey began in 2015 with visits to indigenous communities across the country. In 2019, I travelled to the Peruvian Amazon to learn about sacred plants and natural medicine.
The farm has evolved through various stages of learning and adventure. The world is shifting fast, and the challenge is to stay balanced through the changes of this technological era — moving forward hand in hand with nature and with the teachings our ancestors left us about life.
I’ve currently designed a start-up combining traditional and modern medicine, based on my experience over the years and people's need to access alternative medicines. I believe that opening the farm through a site like WWOOF can attract people with the right skills and intentions to support the farm, while also embracing technology and making richer discoveries connected to the land.
These days a good part of my focus goes into the medicinal-plants start-up I'm building, so the farm is in a calmer maintenance season, cared for with the help of locals. For now, I am performing basic maintenance on the food garden and trees with the help of locals. I would love to start again with a new season of medicinal plants using all the seeds in our collection.
Accessible medicine
We have been sharing plant remedies and preparations with family, friends, farm visitors and the local community. We do this empirically; for some plants, there is already enough scientific research, but for others, there is little or no knowledge. We want to start documenting which plants are traditionally used for common, everyday ailments that can be used in other regions, or identify similarities that could lead to a global approach.
We intend to share more accessible natural medicines and find ways to link not only plants, but also recipes, rituals and the mystical wisdom that indigenous communities have used for ages.
The farm
I currently live with three dogs (Kuba, Lua and Chimu), one cat (Lino) and one horse (Houdini). I also have chickens and fish.
• The farm has beautiful fruit forests that are growing well, as well as some that are producing fruit. We have passion fruit plants, medicinal plants and lots of seeds to be replanted.
• Some of the crops growing right now are: bananas, plantains, sweet potatoes, yuca, arracache, tiquisque, turmeric and pineapple.
• Some of the fruit trees growing are: Lemons, mecinillo lemons, oranges, apples, guanábana, Chinese papaya, avocado, cacao, starfruit, pitaya, cashews, guava, jocote and peaches.
• We always have a garden of leafy greens for salads.
• There is one house with two rooms. Each room has two bunk beds.
• One house is under renovation and has four rooms available if someone wants more privacy, subject to availability and coordination.
• There are 4 showers and 3 toilets.
Practices
Over the years, we have learned from a variety of methods. Various teachers have come to the farm to share their agricultural expertise. The farm now incorporates a blend of permaculture, biodynamic and ancient indigenous practices.
We have a forest of fruit trees with around 50 species, which we have mixed with root crops and medicinal plants. In the rows, we grow intermediate-term crops.
Currently, we have a lot of oregano that needs to be processed for use in cooking or medicine.
Activities
The WWOOFers' main role would be to maintain what we have. They would help around five hours per day, Monday to Friday. This time could also be dedicated to research and digital collaborations. In the past, people offered their skills on organizing documents, social media, researching plants, and so on. I will give everyone an introduction to organic agriculture and medicinal plants so that, by the time you leave the farm, you will know how to put these skills into practice.
Then, you will choose a project or area to develop, normally to give life to a bed and plant new species, or weeding and pruning medicinal plants. Around the farm we provide opportunities to locals to make an income, so you will be seeing indigenous people as well sometimes collaborating, where the mix of cultures becomes something special.
You don’t need experience, but you do need an attitude to learn and the independence to carry your own project.
We have a classroom with proper tools and a greenhouse, which is currently just missing pots for new medicinal plant seeds.
Meals
We provide a vegetarian meal plan. We advise people with specific dietary requirements, such as those who eat meat, to bring extra food.
Meals are generous and made with high-quality ingredients, and we serve one full plate per person. If you tend to eat more, or have specific dietary needs (for example if you eat meat), we kindly ask you to bring some extra provisions. Good ingredients are costly here, and this keeps the farm sustainable.
Surroundings
We have trails, two waterfalls, viewpoints and a training area.
You can walk into town from the farm or take a bus to Turrialba. There are also opportunities for rafting, visiting a botanical garden and going on other organised trips.
The Caribbean coast is the closest beach.
Weekends are free to explore.
We are interested in meeting people who enjoy cooking and are independent.
We love music at the farm, but also appreciate silence. We hope you enjoy conversations about topics such as spirituality, consciousness, psychology, plants, indigenous cultures, natural medicine and technology.
We are also looking for people who have skills or are studying in fields such as marketing, environmental studies, renewable energies, software development and alternative medicines.
The farm is a place to delve deeper. We have internet access, but please use this time to reflect, slow down, connect with nature and leave feeling refreshed, lighter and excited about your next steps in life.
Pura vida!
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Poultry farming
Raising of other farm animals
Forestry
Aquaculture
Flower farming
Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas
Seed saving or production
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Mechanics / tools / technology
Methods or systems
Biological pest control
Biodynamic agriculture
Fukuoka farming
Holistic management
Permaculture
Regenerative agriculture
Rotational grazing
Host type
Self-sufficiency property
Former WWOOFer
16
Hectares
|
39.5
Acres
