Dear ,

Sending you warm wishes during this solstice time! The land all around is resting. Winter has brought the cold and short days. As the last leaves still cling bravely to the beech trees they bring music to the air on stormy nights. The hawthorn berries this year are abundant, adorning the landscape with splashes of red, a living pantry for many birds through the winter.

All of nature is slowing down as she awaits the return of light and warmth. She invites us to slow down with her, directing our energy inwards. This darkest time of the year, with its long nights and cloudy short days, allows space for our inner worlds to expand... so that we can assimilate our experiences and incubate our personal seeds, dreams, plans, and ideas. As the power of the sun begins to strengthen, these can slowly begin to manifest. 

It’s been a while since we sent a newsletter, and we felt inspired to share some updates from Terranu, including a peek into what we will be doing in 2024. We will be planting our first production crop of Aronia berries in January & we have been busy finishing our cabin rental space.

Celebrating Winter Solstice

At Terranu, we celebrated the winter solstice with an ode to the return of light. We watched the sunset and created a spiral of small lights in the dark, keeping them lit throughout the night. The next morning, we rose before sunrise and witnessed the gradual illumination of the sky in the southeast from a special elevated spot. Magical!

Wood Cabin - Now accepting bookings for 2024 

Throughout the last year we have been busy installing a cosy wooden cabin to create a stream of income to support the land regeneration work that we do. Come visit the farm and book a stay in our newly installed wood cabin, a cosy retreat designed for comfort and connection with nature. The cabin comfortably sleeps 4 people, with the extra option of a double pull out sofa. The cabin is a blend of modern amenities and rustic charm, with a farm-style interior, wooden floors, and woolen blankets. Relax on the large covered deck beneath the starry sky, and experience eco-friendly living with our fancy Swedish design compost toilet. 

As a friend of Terranu, enjoy the privilege of booking before we open it  to the broader public — get in contact to book a stay with us while supporting our regeneration mission. Book your stay for now via our contact form.

Around the farm

We are thrilled to welcome 4 delightful runner ducks to Terranu as slug patrol for our gardens. It’s been a delight in the mornings to meet their jolly quacks as we feed them. The gardens are for the most part resting, though unfortunately the winter crops we managed to cultivate have been grazed bare by deer. Luckily they left our gardens alone most of the year! The disappearing brussel sprouts, kale and rainbow chard have emphasised the need to invest in serious fencing. It brings to light the polarity of wanting to support nature while also growing food, as well as the amount of infrastructure investment that is needed to pursue our dreams to regenerate land.

Aronia Agroforestry

We are excited to announce that we will be planting our first 1.5-acre agroforestry system in the beginning of 2024. Blending together aronia berries with fruit & nut trees, as well as slower growing tree species that in many years will transform into a woodland. The aronia berries will be a cash crop which we can harvest for the next 7-10 years, contributing to financial sustainability for Terranu as a regenerative project. Why aronia you might ask?

Aronia berries pack a nutritional punch, boasting antioxidants and many essential nutrients. In partnership with Aronia Ireland, our berries will be locally cold pressed into juice.

This mixed system of perennial cropping in our upland grass fields is an attempt to combine many of our intentions of land stewardship at Terranu. Perennial crops, combined with animals rotating through, allowing trees to mature and store carbon, while creating edge ecosystems for biodiversity. We also see this as an opportunity to see if aronia works in this setting as a prototype that might inspire others in the broader region. The proven benefits of agroforestry include climate resilience (carbon sequestration, improved water cycle) and increased biodiversity.

Connecting with Children 

Those of you who have followed us from the beginning might know that one of the skills and passions that is deeply alive in Sarah is non-violent communication. We are excited to share that (after an inspiring first round) she will be offering parents and educators the opportunity to learn about connecting with children using Non-violent Communication in her online courses starting in January.There will be both a dutch and an english course. To learn more check out her website connected-being.com (english) and verbindenmetkinderen.nl (Dutch). Sharing this with people that might be interested is very much appreciated!

A glimpse into the past year

With more than a full year living at Terranu there have been ample opportunities to learn, and grow. There were many aspects that we planned for, and many aspects that we missed or didn’t expect. Of course any pioneering project has to start with a burst of enthusiasm, and a good dose of naive trust to dare to take the first steps. Therefore we reflect on our learnings with a compassionate gaze as opportunities for growth and development, rather than things we ‘did wrong’. 

One big underestimation was the importance of warm dry spaces for our families, with enough spaciousness and facilities to have real rest and comfort. Especially in this climate! In the enthusiasm of the start up months it was something we didn’t prioritise early enough. The learning: we all show up better for each other and the complexity of the project if we have a sound basic living situation. The ‘outside kitchen/living spaces’ besides our yurts  are now finished, and we will be enjoying our Christmas dinners there!

For now we’ll sign off and wish you a warm and healthy Christmas time and we look forward to ringing in 2024 with full enthusiasm to continue caring for this land at Terranu.

With love from the Terranu team,

Nakyta, Sarah, Pieter & Merijn