““Until we understand what the land is, we are at odds with everything we touch. And to come to that understanding it is necessary, even now, to leave the regions of our conquest
- the cleared fields, the towns and cities, the highways -
and re-enter the woods.”
~Wendell Berry~”
Our Farm
Everything is alive, has soul, and purpose
We see the sacred in everything and honour
the wild within & without
Our farm was born from our deep relationship with Nature and Moon, as well as an inherent desire within both of us to support the health and vibrancy of our community (human and non-human). Beyond providing accessible, nourishing herbal medicine and food-as-medicine, our herb farm provides a sanctuary for community hands-on learning, gathering, and the reclaiming of Earth-based living. We aim to empower folks to take agency over their health of body, mind, and spirit through relationship with the Earth and all the Land generously offers to us.
We are located in upstate, rural New York on unceded Haudenosaunee/Kanien’kehá:ka (Mohawk) territory. We grow primarily medicinal plants, as well as vegetables chosen specifically for food-as-medicine. We have a particular interest in cultivating the ‘forgotten’ medicinal plants of our time — plants of our Ancestors of Bloodline that were once held as panaceas or of high medicinal regard and have now been nearly lost in thought to modern Western Herbalists. We seek to carry forward this ancient medicinal wisdom of our ancestors and learn through them as much as we do the Land.
How We Grow
Kinship in a more-than-human world
Our farming practices here at Witchwood are a reflection of our deep kinship with the animate Earth, a potent respect for Earth's natural cycles, and an honouring of our Ancestors of Bloodline, Land, and Inspiration.
Guided by the lunar cycle, biodynamic principles, and the Land-rituals & farming practices of our Irish and Scottish ancestors, we align our seeding, planting, transplanting, and harvests to be attuned to Nature’s rhythms.
We nurture our soil with homegrown compost, and use regenerative, no-till, permaculture, organic growing methods. The majority of our medicinal herbs are planted in hand built hugelkulture beds which are self-watered, self-composting raised beds with few irrigation needs. This enables us to mindfully tend our forest areas, extend our growing season, and provide homes to a diverse population of wee creatures all while increasing our crop yields.
Our farming is done old-school style with just our hands and hand tools. We do not use machines, gas powered tools or equipment, pesticides/insecticides/herbicides, or chemicals of any kind. We prioritize Land health alongside human health to cultivate nutrient-dense, ecologically grown medicinal herbs and food.
Our Irish and Scottish-ancestors believed the Land Itself was a living thing and the Spirit of the Land was to be honoured as much as breath — the Land dreams us as much as we dream the Land. This is the foundation of our relationship with the Land and our farm. We listen, witness, observe, and always ask permission from the Land. We offer ourselves as Earth stewards. We understand that we are but one infinitesimal part of the larger whole.
Our Mission
Honouring & serving this wide, wild Earth in whose being and becoming we are so profoundly and beautifully entangled
Stewarding the Earth and serving community—be it two legged, four legged, winged, finned, or stemmed—is the beating heart of our work and our life. In this fast modern world, we hope to live as a bridge carrying ancient, traditional ways forward into the present and inspire folks to slow down and connect to their roots of belonging in this natural world.
Through our sustainably minded and ritually focused Land-tending & farming along with our consciously crafted harvest of offerings — be it herbal products, education & ceremony, or holistic health services — we seek to inspire folks to deepen their relationship with the wisdom & magick of the Earth, the magick of what surrounds them, & their own inherent magick. From passing on Earth-based knowledge, awakening awareness, fueling positive perspectives, and encouraging mindful ways of living, we strive to elevate living harmoniously with the Earth, creating food & health security for all, sustainable actions, understanding of environmental impact, deepening relationships with plants as allies, and honouring the teachings of our ancestors.
In the name of the daybreak
and the eyelids of morning
and the wayfaring moon
and the night when it departs,
I swear I will not dishonor
my soul with hatred,
but offer myself humbly
as a guardian of nature,
as a healer of misery,
as a messenger of wonder,
as an architect of peace.
In the name of the sun and its mirrors
and the day that embraces it
and the cloud veils drawn over it
and the uttermost night
and the male and the female
and the plants bursting with seed
and the crowning seasons
of the firefly and the apple,
I will honor all life
—wherever and in whatever form
it may dwell—on Earth my home,
and in the mansions of the stars.
~Diane Ackerman~
