The main event this month was Storm Darragh bringing strong winds and heavy rain causing a ‘Red Alert’ in South West Wales. We had no power or phone signal for five days and experienced many fallen trees with one large long needled pine tree actually blocking the driveway which had to be cleared by cutting up with a chainsaw to remove it. In addition many fences were damaged from other fallen trees around the land, along with two gates that were completely blown off their supports and damaged. Structurally we saw damage to one of our buildings where the corrugated roof came flying off exposing everything inside and in turn damaging our chicken run that is along side it as the roofing sheets hit into this.

The polytunnel also saw a lot of damage and saw the plastic panels being ripped open leaving large holes in the structure that will need to be fixed.

On top of all this we unfortunately the food in our freezers was ruined and had to be discarded even though we were strict in not opening them to break the seal. Storm Daragh was the strongest storm we have experienced since moving here 14 years ago. It was a turbulent experience but we are thankful that In the end we were all safe and the damage is all fixable.

Apart from the storm we continued with our winter chores which included pressure washing of the Polytunnel and the plastic covers for the vegetable beds retrieved after being blown around from the storm and securely fixed again. We also finished the pruning in the Orchard of the last trees that were not done on the orchard pruning retreat weekend.

Our office received a clear out and reorganization to make it a more practical and useable space. Cleaning and reorganization of a pinnacle space can really bring new life to an area and this was done right at the end of the month to bring new energy to the New Year.

Unfortunately on New Years Eve we had to deal with a group of armed men and a large pack of dogs that were hunting on our land without our permission. This brought much sadness to us as we do not agree with hunting and we are trying to create a nature reserve / safe haven for wildlife so these men seriously disturbed the ecosystem that we are creating here.

Stuart has now been partnered with a company that designs Geodesic buildings and is now able to offer these to anyone who wants such a building on their premises. His January is already seeing the build of a 7M Geodesic dome for the Unearthed Festival in Pembrokeshire.

December is also a time for the family to get together where we get to enjoy each other’s company and exchange gifts with many being hand made.

The winter Solstice has also passed now meaning that we are moving into having longer days and shorter nights. A symbol of the turning of seasons and moving into the New Year.

As the New Year is about to begin we are excited with what it will bring and to welcoming more volunteers from around the world. We will also be having lots of events that we will be putting into the calendar which we will share with you all in our January Newsletter.

One event that is being held is a Herbal Immersion Retreat for three nights from the 22nd September 2025. See image for details.

The family were also busy making various Christmas gifts in wood, wool and beads.

Car problems continued for Heather who had a long journey back from Cornwall before Christmas waiting for a recovery vehicle. Stuart and Hannah spent a few days in Norfolk with Hannah’s family before driving nine hours to get back home. James, Jenny and family arrived on Boxing Day and eventually on Saturday 28th the whole family were together to celebrate Christmas.