Come and help with organic gardening in Ayamonte, Andalucia, Spain

Details

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  Description

  I´m Keir. I grow organic vegetables with my friend Dani in a historic walled garden in Ayamonte. I love working outside, with nature, getting my hands dirty and hearing the birds sing.
  I started growing organic vegetables for myself and my family because they were hard to find in this area and because I wanted to experience having "una huerta". My first huerta had very sandy soil and slightly salty water. Still, I managed to grow some onions, carrots and tomatoes, although very small ones :)
  When I was given the chance to work for new organic veg grower in Ayamonte, I dropped my sandy garden and put all my energy into the new project. I'd never worked as hard or with such commitment in any other job. One of the things I found the hardest was changing my mindset from having a tiny garden and lots of time to a giant garden and not enough time. After four months and a couple of mental breakdowns the project collapsed for multiple reasons. By then I was ready to start my own project, an organic market garden.
  
  La Huerta Compartida
  
  I started in 2014, and after a few months Dani arrived on the scene first as a volunteer and later as my business partner. We have been selling boxes of mixed veg since then. All our produce is sold locally. We don´t use chemical insecticides, all weeds are dealt with mechanically (with tools, by hand or by occultation) and we don´t use chemical fertilisers, just animal manure, compost and seaweed.
  
  Helping in the garden:
  
  The work is quite physically demanding. It often involves bending down to weed or harvest, shoveling or turning compost, pushing wheel barrows etc. We´ll be outside getting dirty and sweaty. The sun is very strong here from May to September.
  
  Work clothes:
  
  Bring some clothes and shoes you don't mind getting dirty. I have some old trousers, t-shirts and shoes I can lend you but can't guarantee I'll have your size.
  
  Life at home:
  
  I live with my partner, Ana, and our 14 year old daughter, Nur, on the other side of town from the garden. We have a mostly vegetarian diet but eat fish once or twice a week. As you can imagine there is no shortage of organic veg in our house. We would like to share our meals with you and hope you will cook a couple of times a week and help to tidy up after meals.
  
  We are a completely bilingual house. So whether you want to speak English or Spanish you'll get an answer. Maybe even in French or Portuguese.
  
  Your room is in the basement (with windows). We´ll share the livingroom and kitchen.
  
  Getting to Ayamonte:
  
  Our nearest airport is in Faro, Portugal. From there you can get a bus to Faro train station then the train to Vila Real do Santo Antonio. From there it´s a 10 min walk to the ferry terminal. The ferry across el Rio Guadiana takes 15 mins.
  
  From Spain: You can catch a bus to Ayamonte from Huelva, Sevilla and even Madrid.

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  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Help with Eco Projects

  Light gardening

  Creative DIY projects

  Animal Care

  Farmstay help

  Creating/ Cooking family meals

  Help around the house

  Light maintenance
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  Interests

  

  Pets

  

  Self development

  

  Farming

  

  Cooking & food

  

  Languages

  

  Yoga / Wellness

  

  Nature

  

  Outdoor activities

  

  Hiking

  

  Cycling
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  UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve

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  What's this?
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  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  You can learn about the local culture in and around Ayamonte. History, cuisine, fiestas...
  Also something about Scotland and the North of Spain, as that is where we're from.

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  Help

  Come and help us grow healthy organic food.
  
  You will mostly be helping us with the normal garden tasks like preparing beds, sowing, planting, weeding and making compost.
  
  On harvest days you will help us to pick and wash the produce. Also, we may need your help to communicate with the customers as we get many nationalities and some don't speak Spanish or English.
  
  August to November is the busiest time in our year. Then we´ll be mostly preparing beds,
  sowing and planting in order to have plenty of veggies to sell throughout the winter. We plant and sow all year round but not as intensively.
  
  We´re keen to share the knowledge and techniques we've learned over the years but are still open to new ideas and are always happy to hear about other ways of growing that our volunteers may have seen and experienced on their travels.

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  Languages

  Languages spoken
  English: Fluent
  Spanish: Fluent
  French: Beginner
  Gaelic (Scottish): Beginner
  Portuguese: Beginner

  This host offers a language exchange
  I'd love to learn some words or phrases of your language. I can help you with English or Spanish.
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  Accommodation

  The spare room in our house in the basement, with windows and on suit bathroom.
  Our house is a 1 minute walk to a beach on the River Guadiana where you can swim at high tide, with views of Portugal to the West and the river mouth to the South.

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  What else ...

  In your free time you can walk, run, cycle or catch the bus to the beach, 3km, explore the town of Ayamonte or catch the ferry across the river to Vila Real in Portugal. We have bicycles that you can use to help you explore the area.
  At the weekend we like to walk in the countryside or visit beautiful villages and beaches in Spain and Portugal. You are welcome to come along. Ayamonte is also a great place to do kite surfing. You can get classes or rent equipment in the summer.

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  A little more information

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    Internet access

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    Limited internet access

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    We have pets

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    We are smokers

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    Can host families

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  Can host digital nomads

  We have a reasonably good internet connection with WiFi that you can use. Also, your room is quiet.

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  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

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  My animals / pets

  Goji (11 years)

  Small female tibetan spaniel cross, sandy beige, black muzzle. Very communicative and intelligent. Lots of character. Barks, howls, makes other noises. Not immediately friendly. Needs a day or two to warm to new people. More suspicious of men.

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