New Hope Farm, Yass NSW

Business Type

Small/Non-commercial farm

Farming methods

Organic

Short Property Description

Our farm is on a hill with lovely views about 5 minutes outside Yass, NSW; that is three hours south west of Sydney, 7 hours north east of Melbourne and 45 minutes north west of Canberra (the national capital). Yass is on the intersection of the highways between those three cities and on the railway between Sydney and Melbourne.
We are a developing ‘whole’ farm – growing, cooking, bunching, drying and crafting with flowers, fruit and plants of all kinds, and taking bouquets and preserves to local markets and cafes. We follow organic and sustainable practices and are continually improving our soil and planting. We have developed a very attractive property, with beautiful house, gazebos, gardens and landscaped areas, intending to soon welcome the public for tours and workshops.

We look forward to our WWOOFers being able to enjoy learning about our farm life and practices, and helping out while still having lots of free time. Beyond our place you can see livestock on neighbouring properties, kangaroos, the hills of the picturesque Yass River Valley and, in the distance, the Brindabella mountains that lead to the Snowy Mountains, while on our property you can meet our two gentle Maremma sheepdogs, two cats, Babydoll sheep, chickens, ducks and geese, watch all the wild birdlife and use our swimming pool in the warmer months.
We work hard and there’s a lot to do every day- but we tailor the place and hours of work to suit the weather and season. If it is going to be hot we might start very early and rest in middle of the day. If it rains, there are indoor tasks to complete. We can tailor the work to your special interests and competencies, give you lots of free time to relax and help you with sightseeing. We invite you to enjoy home-cooked meals with us (and cook a meal of your own!), have a laugh, and socialise with our family and friends.

We hope to meet enthusiastic, responsible and mature WWOOFers, who enjoy country surroundings, who are keen to learn and help out, and are appreciative and respectful, just like we are.
Send us a message with any questions, and an idea of when you’d like to stay. We normally like volunteers to stay for at least 2 weeks so they can enjoy a wide variety of activities  and after initial messages like to finalise plan by phone. We look forward to hearing from you!

Organic/Biological methods we use

Most of the gardens are no-till and crops are grown in the open. We put poultry and sheep manure on the compost heaps that we then use in the garden and to make our own potting mix.

Activities we may ask wwoofers to help with range from weeding (we will show you the different techniques and targets in different beds), planting, mulching, watering, cutting back plants and making compost to picking fruit, washing up flower buckets, deadheading flowers and the making of preserves. It’s great when wwoofers ask questions as that gives us the confidence that they are learning and to eventually leave them to work more independently while we go on to other chores around the farm.  Wwoofers may also like to help with collecting eggs, and feeding and watering animals.

We ask all woofers to help conserve water and to not flush anything unusual down the toilet that will block our septic.