Birch Cottage has a new website of its own
Visit the Birch Cottage website to bookWelcome to Lackan Cottage Farm
We’re Steve and Claire Golemboski-Byrne, we live here off grid with our daughter, our dog, cats and horses. We make all our own energy using wind and solar, grow as much of our own food as we can (it varies widely) and have used permaculture design principles to help us create a great place to live.
Here on the website you’ll find stories about the projects we’ve undertaken – what works, what doesn’t. You can come stay in our guest cottage – Birch Cottage and we will show you round, or maybe you just want to find out how to do some of this stuff. Either way, welcome.
Custodians of the cottage
It struck me as we work away here that our efforts are incredibly transient - part of a cycle of ebb and flow at Lackan, as occupants appear, make their mark, the place blooms, and then they age, and the place ages with them, falls into disrepair, and is ready for the...
DIY Living – Just Do It
[youtube height="HEIGHT" width="WIDTH"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_LYefajhk4[/youtube] I saw this today and it really moved me. Enjoy. "Their power comes from our obedience. Disobey"
Here we go again
So much has changed in the last year that looking back to this time last year is like peering at another age altogether. We had no beds to grow food in, a solitary little polytunnel, no pond, no paths, no water anywhere we needed it, there was still a huge pile of...
The end of an amazing year.
Well, the winter solstice is here, and as the shortest day comes to a close, its amazing to look back on everything that has happened over the last 12 months, and all the people that it has been our privilege to welcome to the farm. This time last year we had yet to grow a vegetable here, and without the hard work of all the volunteers, from near and far, we wouldn’t have seen the results that we did. The highlight of our year was surely the time we spent with our permaculture course visitors, and the energy that they brought to the farm.
The Landworkers Alliance
We are members of the Landworkers Alliance - a group of people who work the land, campaigning for the rights of small producers and a better food system. It is part of La Via Campesina international and works in solidarity with fellow land workers across the globe....
Come to the South Down GIY Gathering
The South Down GIY Gathering The GIY South Down Gathering is your chance to come together with like-minded people for an afternoon festival of home-grown food. The GIY South Down Gathering will bring people together for talks, debates and Q&A sessions - so...