We have already arrived in the wonder of spring. After an early and mostly grey winter, we could hardly believe that nature was suddenly conjuring up all its colours again in the middle of February.
The first snowdrops sweetened the sometimes still snowy February days before the crocuses in rich yellow, purple or white joined them together with the prettily spotted snowdrops.
It’s an almost magical time, because you discover new life every day as you walk through the gardens.
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Whether it’s on the ground with the early bloomers, in the bushes and trees that are showing the first green tips everywhere or high up in the air where the geese have already returned home – there’s so much to see!
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And: have you seen the first tulips yet? We won’t tell you where, but they’re already blooming here and will soon be joined by many thousands of their friends.
The experience is particularly beautiful when we manage to open ourselves up to the sheer overwhelming beauty of spring nature, to look intensely at its delicate filigree flowers and leaves and to reflect on the miracle that allows them to grow so naturally out of the wintery, dense earth.
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Speaking of gardens…
…about the Garden Horizons network!
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Last month, we became a member of ‹ Gartenhorizonte e.V.›, a project network that is committed to raising public and political awareness of the relevance of parks and gardens with regard to the health of people and nature. A great project that suits us perfectly! We are looking forward to the coming garden year with joint discussions and events. |
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Gartenhorizonte has come up with themed social media weeks that introduce readers to various aspects of healthy parks and gardens.
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For example, the theme: ‘Experiencing the nature with children’ – here at Michaelshof you can do this in a wonderful and playful way! An excursion with the children is definitely worthwhile, because the Michaelshof discovery paradise invites you to marvel at the bright colours of nature.
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Whether on the ark farm with its open stables or in the 6-hectare garden and park with its many winding paths for running, sneaking or simply strolling. There is plenty to explore and explain at any time of year – whether grasses, flowers, bushes, trees, insects, birds or much more.
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Ruth Mandera at the Eichenhof
An exciting visit for an exciting topic
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Last week we had a visit from Ruth Mandera, a passionate biologist and lecturer in Goethean botany, who has been studying all kinds of plants and, above all, the ‘image-creating methods’. We were delighted to welcome her and the team at our medicinal plant manufactory, in Eichenhof, naturally had lots of questions for her.
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They also showed Ruth what we have been working on at Eichenhof over the last few years. Michael K. presented the thesigraphy studies, in which he crystallised and documented the milk from six different cows over a period of months. Marianne showed the chromas, which are mainly used to analyse composts and soils. Sibylle presented the rising pictures, which are used to visualise very different natural substances in their various stages of growth. Ruth Mandera had great tips for us on how to make the image-creating methods really come alive!
On Saturday she gave a very interesting talk about nightshade plants and told us about the differences and similarities between poisonous plants, datura, tomatoes, potatoes and the like. A great visit, thank you!
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Volunteering
meets soccer tournament in Hitzacker
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A fortnight ago on Sunday, we had a very special event in our volunteer diary: the SV Elbufer soccer tournament in Hitzacker. Football hearts beat all over the world, which is why our volunteers are so happy when they can also play their favourite sports in Germany, in the middle of north-eastern Lower Saxony. Every summer, around 5-10 volunteers train with our SV Elbufer and those who stay long enough are even invited to the tournaments.
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For the spring soccer tournament, we quickly put together a team from Germany, Brazil, Colombia, Iran, Chile and Mexico, which had never played together on the pitch in this constellation before. With the help of coach Emmanuel and the many highly motivated fans in the stands, the boys and girls from Michaelshof fought their way through to the semi-finals and ended up in fourth place out of ten after the penalty shoot-out. Well done!
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Construction site power…
…and their characters
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We often tell you about our construction sites in the newsletter – on the Flachsenberg or in other corners of the village. So you should know by now that we love the building trade. But what we rarely talk about is WHO exactly is working on the construction site and how it feels to be part of our construction team.
First of all: we are a pretty diverse construction team and the atmosphere is usually great, even without alcohol. You’ll meet a colourful mix of old hands with lots of experience in their specialist areas, our international team leaders, who have often learnt to build at Michaelshof, now want to stay here for a while and pass on their knowledge to around a hundred volunteers from all over the world every year, many of whom have never held a hammer, let alone a cordless screwdriver, in their hands before. They learn about the various building materials and gradually get an idea of what it takes to build a house. Our concept is to familiarise young people with the craft – our experts accompany them with a lot of patience and fresh motivation every day! Many of our volunteers apply what they have learnt at home or in other volunteering projects and some of them have even found their dream job in construction, which they can continue either with us or elsewhere in the world.
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And then there’s another great thing that makes our construction site so special: our proportion of women is usually over 50%. Most of them first discovered their love of building at Michaelshof. Not least because they can try things out here – without any prejudices, silly remarks or expectations. They are immediately trusted to do a lot here and are encouraged to realise that women do indeed belong on the building site, and with their fine hands can even complete some tasks more conscientiously than many a male team colleague.
For many young women, this is an incredibly liberating experience in life. For some, working on the construction site even becomes political, as they would not have such an opportunity in their home country.
And so it’s simply a great moment when 5 girls from Turkey suddenly find themselves working together in the demolition team in the summer, with shining eyes and saying: ‘It’s sooo much fun!’
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Michaelshof in small jars…
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Have you heard of our quince jelly? The yellow stone fruit is harvested in late summer and first processed into fine quince juice. The end product: wonderfully fine quince jelly from Michaelshof. Perfect on a butter croissant and a must-have in every fridge!
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And for those who prefer a savoury flavour, we recommend our paprika chutney. From our sun-ripened peppers from the Sammatz Gemüseacker directly into the jar to a sweet and sour accompaniment for breakfast, snacks, raclette and much more. Give it a try!
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Both products are available in our shop next to the Café am Michaelshof, on Wednesdays and Saturdays at the Lüneburg weekly market and very soon in our brand-new online shop! (stay tuned…)
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Michaelshof up to date – all opening hours at a glance!
Ark Farm:
Mon-Sun 9.00 – 19.00
Café:
Mon-Fri closed
Sat 9.30 – 18.00
Sun & holidays 9.30 – 18.00
From friday, 22 March we are open daily again!
We will be there for you every day from 9.30-18.00!
Shop:
Mon-Sun 10.00 – 12.30
14.30 – 19.00
Sat, Sun & holidays 10.00 – 19.00
Der WAGEN in Lüneburg:
Wed & Sat 07.00 – 13.00
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Events & Seminars in March
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Fri., 08 March – 20.00
Talk on International Women’s Day
Welcome to an open discussion about the diverse aspects of being a woman in our time! We would like to create a space for your thoughts, experiences and perspectives. Whether it’s relationships, dependencies, friendship, challenges in the workplace, self-confidence or other topics – we want to reflect, share and learn from each other. There are no taboos – all topics that move us women are allowed on the table.
Free entry, donation welcome!
With Hannah, Claudia and Anna
Registration required
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Sat., 16 March – 11.00-17.00
Crashkurs Anthroposophy 1 – Who was Rudolf Steiner?
Do you only know anthroposophy from sarcastic media reports or Demeter products? In the ‘Crash Course Anthroposophy’ we would like to give you an understanding of what living anthroposophy is really about! We look forward to your questions and are happy to provide you with exciting input.
Today’s focus topic: ‘Who was Rudolf Steiner?’ – Was he a swindler or a brilliant storyteller? Or was he an enlightened man, as there have always been in the past?
Free admission, donation requested! Plus lunch: €10
With Hannah, Nadja H. and Hans Michel
Registration required
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Sat., 23 March – 11.00-17.00
Hands-On: Baking bread with Jakob
At our hands-on seminars, we invite you to get to know the craftsmanship behind Sammatz products! Today: Baking bread with Jakob!
How does sourdough work and why does the baker cherish it like the apple of his eye? What is honey-salt bread and why is it so easily digestible? In addition to the theory, we will of course also get to grips with the craft ourselves, knead dough and bake our own bread!
Admission free, donations requested! Plus lunch: €10
With Jakob
Registration required
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Sat., 30 March – Sun., 31. March
Easter festival at Michaelshof
Do you already have plans for Easter? We invite you to join us at Michaelshof! A day full of exciting activities – with the kids or a bit more thoughtful for the adults:
Sat., 30 March
Conversation before Easter – 20.00
Together we will look at the meaning of Easter in the course of the year. You are cordially invited to join the discussion.
Registration required!*
Sun., 31 March
Spring walk – 5.00
Pssst…we walk in silence to the ‘Easter spring’ in Schutschur. There we sing to the sunrise. A lovely start to Easter Sunday together.
Registration required!*
Easter-Buffet – 9.30
Sign up for our special Easter buffet! Enjoy the rich buffet with many delicious Michaelshof products – from cheese and sausage platters to jams, chutneys and much more. Yoghurt, fresh fruit, eggs and bacon are also a must. (35€ per person)
Registration required!*
Easter walk for kids – 15.30
We will go on an Easter walk together and find some chocolate eggs hidden along the way. Please register your kids with us by Friday, 29 March. (5€ per child)
Registration required!*
International talk about Easter – 15.30
What does community mean for you? Let’s talk about easter & it’s meaning for us with Michaelshof volunteers, community members and – you!
Just drop by!
Cosy get-together – 20.00
On Easter evening we meet up with the Michaelshof community and enjoy an international buffet & campfire. A cosy atmosphere and delicious food to round off Easter perfectly. (15€ per person)
Registration required!*
*Are you interested? Just send us an email to info@sammatz.de or call us on 05858 970-30.
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Speaking of Easter: it’s Lambing time!
As every year, one of the sweetest events in our life at the Ark Farm will finally start again at the beginning of March – the lambs will be born again. After a few weeks, we will invite you to pet the lambs again, as so many kids loved last year.
Follow our Social Media – we’ll let you know when it starts!
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Living together, moving & home
Today I’m taking you back to everyday community life at Michaelshof. We are often asked by visitors: ‘Where do you actually live? And how?’. It’s understandable, because considering that around 160 people live here permanently within our working and living community, you see surprisingly few houses. The answer: we live all over the village and, above all, we live communally. Some community members and families also have their own smaller or larger flat. However, the vast majority of households at Michaelshof are patchwork households, interesting combinations of people of all ages who share a house or flat. Many of us live on Flachsenberg, our new development area, in 7-plus flat shares with a shared kitchen and dining area – just as colourful as the facades –, in the Blue House, Big International Family Style is the new normal anyway and there are all kinds of other alternative forms of living here too.
But what happens if the flat mates suddenly don’t get on so well, if a couple splits up or individual life situations simply change? No problem at all: then we just move! We love moving houses and the freedom to spontaneously rethink living situations. We think things through together and often come up with solutions that have never been considered before, but work wonderfully. And when the time comes, everyone who can lends a hand. During big moving actions, you can sometimes see our entire fleet of vehicles driving through the town at a snail’s pace.
I always used to find moving actions personally unpleasant, stressful and time-consuming. Today, moving means community to me. Because at Michaelshof the whole village is actually our home and family. You can just choose over and over again with which of your friends you live. And if you want, you can of course stay put in the same flat for a few decades!
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Kennst du schon…
…Malte B.?
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In the end, a lack of interest in the 2008 European Football Championship and subsequently love brought Malte to Michaelshof. At the time, he was self-employed with an advertising and printing company and initially came to visit from time to time. At some point, he got to know Anton and the nursery and went from helping out here and there to wanting to be right in the middle of things. ‘Because it was just great fun!’ At first he said to himself: I can definitely stay here for six months, then we’ll see. He’s never thought about that again…
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In the early days, Malte took over the vegetable nursery with Anton, Daniel, Klara and a few others and was also responsible for the first small farm with a few cows, sheep and pigs – a great time! Then we started with the first design ideas for the gardens and the boys and girls were immediately on fire for the project.
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The time spent building the Waldsee in particular was a challenging and ultra-exciting time for Malte, during which he spent many days on the mini excavator – it was worth it! It was then that he discovered his passion for small and large machines, earthmoving and plants.
At Michaelshof, we value Malte for his absolute versatility and his huge interest in virtually everything, preferably related to nature or technology. He is responsible for energy & infrastructure issues, landscaping, parts of our ark farm, long journeys with large vehicles, coffee machines, advertising spaces and much more.
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If you ask him what’s his favourite thing to do: ‘I don’t know. I like a lot of things: I like the energy & it’s infrastructure, big prints, making hay and digging in general. But give me any one thing and I’ll probably enjoy doing it too. You can find joy in many tasks – sometimes even really shitty jobs can be fun if you tackle them properly. In any case, I think variety is good.
A typical thousand-year-old with a curiosity that not many people have. Thank you for your commitment Malte – and remember your recovery times!
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Open your ears!
Like every month, we’re taking you into our musical world and share a few songs from the community with you: music tips from…
…Asli: ‹Better by Billy Raffoul with his unmistakable smoky voice.›
…Anna: ‹Used to be young by Miley Cyrus – how the time flies!›
…Anton: ‹’Brand new on my music radar thanks to Janosch: the country song by Doc Watson Shady Grove.›
…Sophia: ‹’A few rapped lines by Chefket and Niema Problema. Feel-good-music!›
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New Insta-Accounts…
…from Sara, Gabi and Emmanuel!
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Do you already know our new theme accounts on Instagram? Sara, Gabi and Emmanuel are now taking us into their work areas and you will be able to experience Michaelshof from their very personal perspective in the future.
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farmlife_sammatz – with Sara
Hello friends! I’m Sara and I work on the farm at Michaelshof. Two years ago, I discovered my passion for biodynamic farming and nature. Now I look after our ark animals every day and I’m passionate about compost and biodynamic preparations.
On this channel, I take you into our everyday farm life. I show you the feeding , milking , mucking out , building fences 🛠️, herding animals (sometimes catching them again ) and much more! I work hard in all weathers – there are always new challenges, the most beautiful sunrises or simply magical moments, such as when a newborn calf suddenly lies in the straw in front of me. It never gets boring 🌤️
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Samveggies – with Gabi
Hi, I’m Gabi! Welcome to ‘Farming with Me’, where I take you on the journey of growing biodynamic vegetables. 🥕 Here I’ll show you everything about vegetable gardening: from preparing the soil to sowing, planting, hoeing, watering, harvesting – the whole process from the vegetable field to the kitchen. 🥬
I’m from Brazil, but I’ve been living at Michaelshof for almost 4 years and have found my passion for biodynamic vegetable cultivation here. I particularly enjoy learning about each individual vegetable. About what it takes to grow the different vegetable families, about similarities and differences and the many varieties that grow at different times of the year. 🥦🥒🌶️
So let’s get the season started! 🤩
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Sammatz.Landbauteam
Hey we are the Landbauteam! 🏗️
Welcome to our channel. Here you can expect a variety of informative & funny videos and photos about landscaping, infrastructure, wood processing and much more🪵🏗️
Immerse yourself with us in a world full of machines & hard work – in any weather and 365 days a year. Enjoy the progress of our projects with us and look forward to what’s to come! Let’s Go
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+++ NEWSTICKER +++
Impressions from everyday life in the community…
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…Who’s that driving around?! A normal bookkeeping trip through the rose garden for Imke and Nadja – what goes around comes around…
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…these days the sky over Sammatz is captivating with breathtaking views! Sometimes in red-orange, sometimes with thick fluffy clouds like in the picture above or at night with a great moon or clear starry sky. It’s worth taking a look upwards…
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…thick stones in the water? No! Ducks foraging in the campus garden pond…
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…it’s always a real eye-catcher when the beautiful male peacocks want to impress their surroundings with their splendid plumage…
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…when at least three people are on the trail of the picture of the week at the same time, it definitely has to be recorded in the newsletter!
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Reason Nr. 8: Animal-assisted therapy
Horses and other farm animals are an absolute anchor point for many children. This is also the case, and in a very special way, for our children and young people at Peronnik. The opportunity to simply go to the farm with the carers, grab a horse and head out into nature! It’s wonderful and much appreciated by the kids. We’re happy about your support!
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For our team we are looking for committed and dynamic people who like to take on responsibility and enjoy country life. Is a meaningful job more important to you than a “9 to 5 job”? Then you’ve come to the right place!
We are looking for specialists or interns in the following areas:
Social:
Office:
Hands-on:
- Gardener
- Construction Worker
- Retailer
- Pharmacist
Your qualification is not listed, but you are still
interested? Just give us a try!
Please send your application with photo to claudia.brady@sammatz.de – we’ll be in touch!
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Dear friends, we’ll end this month’s newsletter with Jakob’s favourite joke:
What is a baker’s favorite Beatles song?
“Loaf is all you knead.”
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Best wishes and see you next time from Anna
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