2 acre plot with great beginnings for a food forest, near Albuquerque

New Mexico

29 reviews • Updated 3 months ago

We are situated in Los Lunas, in the rural community of Tome. We're about 30 minutes south of Albuquerque. Our farm has a 2 acre plot with 23 fruit and nut trees. We have great beginnings for a food forest, and are in need wwoofers to weed, prune fruit trees, turn compost, prep and plant beds, transplanting, share with preparing meals (but mainly you'll be eating my delicious cooking and helping me do the dishes), and folks with handiwork skills would be great. We ask for 20 hours per week, in exchange for room and board. We are interested in people who want to Wwoof because they love to Wwoof, not people who merely need a place to stay. It is important that our Wwoofers have some sort of transportation, but not absolutely necessary. We can't take on anyone with pets because we have a house full here. One day or several months; as long as things work out, we're happy to host. We have a large, drive-through barn, which is good for cover of your vehicle, and plenty of space if you have a tiny home. MOST IMPORTANTLY - When you first make your inquiry about our farm availability, please include answers to the following questions, otherwise we will likely not respond (this is the first test to see if you've done your research about our farm, and read the directions carefully): 1. Why did you choose our farm? 2. Do you have any special interests? What do you want to learn? 3. What language(s) do you speak? 4. How old are you? 5. What is your profession/field? 6. Did you WWOOF before? How long were your previous stays scheduled and how long did they last? If you left early, please explain. 7. What skills do you have? 8. Are you willing to stay a whole year? 9. Do you need me to pick you up upon your arrival? 10. Do you take initiative and work independently from time to time? 11. Do you have a driving license? 12. Do you smoke? 13. What is your usual diet? 14. Does the proposed housing work for you? 15. Are you vaccinated against tetanus/encephalitis/COVID-19? (Either way, that's fine. ) 16. Do you have any mental health concerns or mental health diagnosis we should know about? 17. Do you have any allergies or other health concerns that we should be aware of? 18. What type of insurance do you have? Health insurance, insurance against accidents, travel insurance, liability insurance? 19. Are you adverse to a background check? Organic methods: We do not till our soil. We compost our "green" food waste to help our soil, and we supplement soil amendment by adding mushroom compost, and goat and chicken manures. Certifications: Our farm has never applied for organic certification. Too many hoops to jump through and we haven't found it to be a necessity. Current projects: We have ongoing planting, year-round. We're watering and harvesting. In summer we'll be weeding daily. We have a wwoofer tiny home! It has a loft bed with a sturdy ladder, a desk/dresser, a chair, and a composting toilet. It has electricity and wifi. Our Nubian goat Scarlet will have her kids in April. Once they are weaned, we'll milk Scarlet daily at the milking station. We make chevre cheese weekly. We have 3 beef cows, 1 is Hereford (Ruby Tuesday) and the other 2 are black angus Betty Moop and Little Marble Ann. Betty is due to calf any day now. We also plan to invest in a Jersey milk cow. We have a metal quonset building and are designing an aquaponic vertical grow inside. We are in the process of setting up 275 gallon fish tanks to create fertilized water to use on our plants. After that, we'll add grow racks above the fish tanks to grow fodder year-round for the chickens, goats, and cattle. The by-product will also be the fish. We added a micro-grid to the quonset which runs an off grid system. In February, excessive wind gusts blew down our greenhouse. As a result, we decided to turn the pole barn into a greenhouse. We are currently in the process of insulating for cold weather, but will soon be shifting to the installation of a water wall. The water wall will be on one end of the greenhouse, and fans (blowing air out) on the other end, for a cooling system. We'll design a rocket mass stove heating system, next year, as well as a cold season ventilation system for hot fall/winter days. All good farmers always have something going on. Our projects always finish, and we start new ones when it's time. And we're always where we're supposed to be, every second of every day, so STAY PRESENT, especially if you're depressed or freaked out. Oh yeah, and study Wim Hof. Starlink internet service provider available. We look forward to potentially hosting you!

Learning opportunities

Vegetable farming

Fruit or nut farming

Poultry farming

Sheep or goat farming

Beekeeping

Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas

Seed saving or production

Vegetable or fruit preservation

Food justice / sovereignty

Methods or systems

Biological pest control

Holistic management

No-till farming

Permaculture

Mentoring opportunities

LGBTQ+-operated

Host type

Self-sufficiency property

0.8 Hectares | 2 Acres

WWOOF-Verified

Accommodation

4+ WWOOFers

Bedroom

Camper / RV

Campsite

Children not accepted

Pets not accepted

Meals

Omnivore

Length of stay

1 day (local)

Weekend

Less than a week

1-2 weeks

3-4 weeks

Over a month

Patrick

Member since 2015

Languages spoken: English Response rate: 100% Response time: typically within 1 day

November 2025

Open

Planned visit

Closed

MapLibre | Protomaps | © OpenStreetMap

New Mexico

Albuquerque

Reviews

Nico

United States • September 2025

My time at Good Choices Farm was fantastic. The meals were exceptional—fresh, hearty, and made with farm-grown ingredients that left me looking forward to every dish. The work hours were very reasonable, striking a perfect balance that allowed plenty of time to rest and enjoy the surroundings. The host was incredibly friendly, welcoming, and supportive, making me feel right at home. The dogs were an absolute highlight—super friendly and full of personality, they added so much joy to the experience. The landscape was breathtaking, with stunning views that made every moment on the farm feel special. I’d highly recommend this farm to any WWOOFer looking for a memorable and rewarding stay.

Jade

United Kingdom • June 2025

We had such a good few days with Patrick on his lovely farm. He was a very considerate host and took good care of us - particularly encouraging us to rest indoors during the hottest parts of the day. He is a fantastic cook and made us some delicious meals too - homemade tacos, pizzas, veggie stew and some amazing 'shrubs' mocktails! We are definitely going to cook with more coconut oil now :) Our main tasks included planting out a new vegetable bed, weeding in the goat field (and feeding the goats!), watering, pruning and of course helping the milk the beautiful goat, Scarlett. We also got to help make some goats' cheese and an inaugural pat of butter in an old manual churn! Patrick also took us out to see the area - we hiked up a local hill where we were looking down upon soaring turkey vultures and there were views for miles around. He was really fun to hang out with - and we got used to his nine dogs who are very friendly around the house! Thanks so much Patrick!

Kate

United States • May 2025

Patrick has an awesome set up! I loved seeing how he is utilizing fish to support his plants. Patrick's goal is to create a food forest and has an eye on how everything works as a system. He taught me how to milk a goat and make cheese from the fresh milk, I really loved my time with him. His dogs are the sweetest AND Patrick is a great cook!

Maya

United States • May 2025

Unfortunately I had to leave early because of a health emergency, so I only stayed with Patrick for a few days. His farm is beautiful, the tiny house is small but very nice, and there are many sweet dogs. I felt like Patrick put a lot of energy towards being polite and a good host, but I honestly didn't feel very comfortable there. Patrick often got irritated with me when I didn't remember small things by the second day like which direction a gate opened or the direction to walk in while feeding the chickens, etc. More importantly, Patrick would complain and joke to me about the developmentally disabled man he takes care of, made comments like "I call my neighbor fat because I don't like him," and yelled at me about how the tortillas I was eating had additives. Many small incidents like this made me feel on edge. I appreciate Patrick hosting me and being flexible when I had to leave early, but this was not a good fit for me.

Reply from Patrick

Yes, I was irritated about the gates and the direction they should be opened because a mistake could cost the lives of chickens or the livestock - it all has to do with the 9 dogs and keeping the chickens and livestock safe. I did complain about my guy's lack of hearing and very poor eyesight because he refuses to get a hearing aid or glasses. Then I must become his ears and eyes. But as you also know, I treat him like a king. You didn't really socialize with us to understand, but he loves being with me and on this farm, and he loves my cooking. I do help him to feel valuable and he's in great shape because I take excellent care of him. I don't like my neighbor because he kept his dog on a 8' chain for three years, and then shot and killed it when a kid got too close and the dog bit the kid. As you know, I love dogs. Dogs only misbehave due to the way they are treated. So I call my neighbor the "fat man" which is a lot nicer than other things I could call him. I did not yell at you for the tortillas - I did raise my voice because I thought it was incredible that you have health issues, yet you pay no attention to what processed foods you eat. And I really enjoy listening to my classical music in the kitchen, but the whole time you were here, there was no music. I was in my own home, but I did not feel comfortable about you. This was not a good fit for either of us. And you moved the furniture in the tiny home, but did not move it back. You also left the compost toilet full.

Shiva

United States • February 2025

This was my first time WWOOFing, and I couldn’t have asked for a better experience! Patrick is an amazing host,his mentorship, hospitality, and kindness made me feel right at home. The food, especially the tacos, was incredible! He truly treated me like family, and I’m grateful for everything I learned throughout the week. Thank you, Patrick, for such a memorable and enriching experience! I highly recommend anyone considering WWOOFing to stay with him.

Zetong

United States • December 2024

It was very fun staying on Patrick’s farm! He has such a lovely home and cute dogs. Patrick is also amazing at cooking!