The South Scotland gathering was held at Priestrig Croft, near Hawick in the Scottish Borders during August. The attendees were Sukie and Bill, our hosts for the day, Matt Moodie, South Scotland RHC and WWOOF host, who organised the event, Tigger, host, Jenny and Vita, hosts, and WWOOFers Fabio and Laura. Matt sent us this report.
Sukie and Bill have been at Priestrig Croft for four years and have taken the site from horse paddocks to a productive smallholding with chickens (eggs and meat), ducks, sheep and a polytunnel dripping with tomatoes, beans and raspberries. We took a tour of their latest building venture, built out of local logs and to be clad in larch milled on site, before seeing the newly dug ponds intended to bring more wildlife to the area.
The polytunnel was the highlight of the tour, giving attendees much to talk about. Bill demonstrated his techniques for growing raspberries and brambles/blackberries under cover, and compared notes on tomato varieties with other attendees.
Over a lovely lunch we discussed matters related to hosting WWOOFers, such as selecting the WWOOFers most suited to a host’s needs and WWOOFer accommodation; pop-up farm shops; and poultry-keeping. Thanks to Bill and Sukie for their kind welcome and hospitality.
