Homestead, Orchard, Garden, Vegetables, Permaculture, Market / CSA, Vegan friendly, Ranch/Livestock
Indiana
Stay in our adorable 'Sugar Shack'.. its a grain silo! Outdoor shower and outhouse with your own private yard! Needing help with fencing, gardening, building! Soooo much to do and we could really use YOU!! Would you like to learn self sustainability?? Canning, dehydrating, making herbal medicines, self sustainability and so much more! We are a 3 acre non certified organic self sustainable farm. We believe we are to be great steward of the land and the animals through sustainable and regenerative farming practices.. https://www.facebook.com/FreebirdFarmHomestead/?ref=settings
We grow all of our own food and meats. As well as culinary and medicinal herbs. We raise chickens and hogs. We make goat milk soaps, handmade bath and body products and much more to sell and for our self sustainability. We live in a rural area, but close to smaller type cities. Lots of hunting and fishing, walking in the woods. You would learn daily chores, gardening, canning, dehydrating, farmers market, implementing a bigger herb garden, self sustainability, Learn animal husbandry... Open to new ideas to improve, and willingness to let you implement your own ideas and Projects!
Bring your tent or Camper! We converted silo with an outdoor shower and outhouse.
1.. We would ask Wwoofers to respect the land and animals
2.. We are open to campers or tents
3.. Open to couples and children
4.. Willingness to learn and work along side us to improve the efficiency of the farm and expand our gardens.
We believe in ""Working Smarter, Not Harder"" and ""Don't Mow, GROW!! and giving God all of the glory for all He has blessed us with!
5. We will provide the evening supper and encourage you to help prepare and make it a family affair! OR if you need alone time, we will provide you with food to make yourself
6. We are working on making an outdoor offgrid kitchen out at the Sugar Shack!
7. Wi-Fi available
8. Work approx. 5 hours a day and we can negotiate which days you prefer off
9. No illegal drugs please!
Please feel free to call us, ask questions, ask for additional photos
Organic methods: We use only organic on all our plants as well as other non traditional means to eliminate pests
Certifications: We are not certified organic due to the cost of the certification, however we do NOT use chemicals other than organic on all of our plants or animal feeds
Current projects: animal care, gardens, repairing fences, canning, dehydrating and any unexpected happenings on the farm!
Internet access available
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Poultry farming
Pig farming
Sheep or goat farming
Dairy farming
Wild foraging
Aromatic or medicinal plants, teas
Seed saving or production
Meat processing
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Methods or systems
No-till farming
Permaculture
Regenerative agriculture
Mentoring opportunities
Woman-operated
Host type
Self-sufficiency property
1.2
Hectares
|
3
Acres
Melanie
Member since 2017
Languages spoken:
English
Sun
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Response rate: 78%
Response time: typically within 3 days
Indiana
Reviews
Joy
United States
•
August 2024
We really appreciated our time at Melanie's! She prepared supper for us each evening and provided ample food for breakfast and lunch, a large percentage of which was produced on the homestead. Our work was laid back and go-at-your-own-pace. Melanie is very knowledgeable in herbal remedies and has thought through many aspects of making her homestead truly self sustainable.
Kylie
United States
•
June 2024
Very beautiful, rural farm with a charming cottage attached to an herb garden. Melanie was kind and informative and worked with me when I felt I needed to leave early. I enjoyed my stay.
John
United States
•
October 2021
Our visit was six nights/seven days long. Of those nights, 2 nights dinner was not offered or provided. Lunch and breakfast were provided one of those six days.
The bed has been removed, there is no compost toilet, outdoor shower, and the main source of heating the structure (a wood burning stove) has no damper. No materials were provided for the projects we were given. We used a combination of our own materials (which we travel with/had brought with us) and materials gathered from the junkyard next door. We were asked to gather what we needed from there.
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Reply from Melanie
First of all.. I believe our 5 years of a host home and prior reviews speak for themself.. We have never had wwoofers show as much disrespect as these two did.. They never ate breakfast with us because they slept in pas 10am.. Never one single day did they get up and do animal chores and feeding.. We did not have the cottage ready for them because they said they would coming in their own accomodations! The one night supper was not fixed was because I took them out and paid for them!! NEVER EVER was their van hit!! Total lie.. I provided proof of pictures of our vehicles with absolutely NO damage! We were setting up a farm store and when they left, They STOLE MANY MANY of our stores inventory!! They want to go to a farm, and live off of people, not do the work.. They left lots of trash, most of it being their beer cans.. I am a very very hard working farm that is kept immaculate. I have not had any negative reviews and am considering giving up being a host home from this very traumatic experience.
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Inna
United States
•
July 2021
Very good Farm, kind and hospitable family! There are dogs, cat, lambs, pig and chickens. We like to stay and work there.
Manuel
Austria
•
September 2017
The freebird farm was one of the best experiences I have had. Family Shepherd is super nice and caring and I felt very welcome there. Actually, they treated me like being part of the family. Concerning working hours, they are very easy going - you just work when you feel like it and take breaks when you need them. However, for such a nice family you are happy to help anyways. I can't wait to find time to visit again. Thank you very much for everything and all the best.
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Carisa
United States
•
May 2017
Melanie is a very nice lady, and I enjoyed my stay. Freebird Farm is what you would expect from a conservative Christian, hard-working farm.
