Introducing GROW Place Austria
By Pavlos Georgiadis and Chris Warburton Brown
GROW Places are areas where the GROW Observatory is working with local growers to place concentrations of soil moisture sensors . 9 GROW Places are now unfolding across Europe — the first one we visit here is GROW Place Austria. Each GROW Place is led by local Community Champions.
In Austria we introduce Tatjana, Magda in Lebensgut and Volkmar and Nicole from Hendlberghof (Chook Mountain Farm, below).
Lebensgut
Lebensgut is a Community Living Project in a 60 ha area around an old monastery in the Austrian Alps. Community Champions Tatjana & Magda have been running a Community Supported Agriculture scheme, growing vegetables for the last 4 years. They sell the plants in spring (April-June), including seedlings to other food communities, community gardens and Co-ops.They have their own seminar center, which they will use to organise meet ups with the local GROW Place community. They are also working with kids in the kindergarten. Some small farming enterprises are emerging from the community, ie. a grower of herbs who is distilling essential oils for the production of natural cosmetics and extracts.
“We want to be part of GROW because it helps us to better understand and improve our soil and further develop our growing practices. We are excited about being in contact with other growers and scientists to exchange our knowledge in our region as well on a European level.”
Find Lebensgut on Facebook
Chook Mountain Farm/Hendlberghof
We’re super-excited to introduce two more Austrian Community Champions — Volkmar and Nicole. Volkmar has a background in the film industry and did a 1 year Internship with Josef “Sepp” Holzer, the ‘Rebel Farmer’ and permaculture activist. Nicole’s background is as a Pastry Chef and after her Permaculture Design Course with Bill Mollison and Geoff Lawton, took a 10 week live-in Internship at Zaytuna Farm. Zaytuna farm is the home of the Permaculture Research Institute in Australia.
They are now running the Chook Mountain Farm,situated 800m up in the Austrian Alps growing vegetables which Volkmar sells in the local market. The farm is set on 4.4 hectares (10 acres) of land. There is natural spring water, mixed forest and grassland with an existing 200 year old farmhouse in need of some care. Relatively new to farming and growing, the pair hope to help heal the planet with a smile on their faces.
If you are nearby, join them in this new GROW Place Austria, and be part of the change that is so urgently needed. Find them on Facebook.
What is GROW Observatory? And where did it come from?
