Volunteering at Laurelbank Farm
We run two types of volunteering sessions at the farm. Both involve real work, real food, and real company. Both are for adults only.
Harvest Mornings
Every Wednesday | 8am, or sunrise if later
These are for morning people. We start early because vegetables are best harvested at peak freshness — and that means getting out before the day warms up.
You'll work alongside Cat and me, picking the week's vegetables for our CSA members.
Once the harvesting is done, we gather round the firepit. In summer we cook soda farls and eat breakfast together. In winter we've started making fresh pasta instead — served with three-cornered leek butter foraged from the farm. Same simple ingredients (pretty much), different season.
It's a Wednesday morning ritual that runs all year round, rain or shine.
Meitheal Mornings
Various days of the week | 10am–1pm
We call these sessions Meitheal mornings — meitheal is an old Irish word for neighbours coming together to work each other's land. That's exactly what this is.
You'll spend the morning doing whatever needs doing — planting, weeding, mulching, composting, building, painting. The work changes with the season.
At 1pm we make a simple lunch and we’d love you to stay and eat with us. Please tell us about any dietary requirements when you book.
What to bring
Sensible shoes — and a spare pair to change into for food is an excellent idea
Gardening gloves if you have them (we have spares if you don't)
Clothes suited to whatever the weather might do — warm layers, sun protection, waterproofs. This is County Down!
Both sessions are for adults only.
We run these sessions because working alongside people who are experiencing the farm for the first time reminds us why we do this. And because nothing tastes better than freshly made food after a few hours in the soil.
