Alfoxton Park - Land & Heart: Tree Care

Land & Heart: Tree Care
Nature restoration

1st - 4th March 2027

This is the first in our Land & Heart series of work retreats. These retreats offer an opportunity to integrate work and practice by means of nature connection, Buddhist practices of meditation, ritual and friendship.

Spend time in nature and directly help restore the ecology of the SSSI land of Alfoxton Park by helping us maintain the trees we have planted over the last 6 years and protecting them from the large herd of deer that wander the land. This retreat offers a chance to be immersed in a wild landscape and switch off from the busyness of life, thus developing a wider awareness of your place in the world as part of-not separate from.

Enjoy physical activity and being outside, whilst absorbing knowledge about native trees, plants & nature restoration. This retreat offers the chance to integrate into the Alfoxton community meeting, working and practicing alongside the core community. The land of Alfoxton Park is wildly beautiful and offers a unique opportunity to find intimacy with ancient woodland and the beings that inhabit it.

“Beautiful people. Beautiful trees. One need say no more. "

- Adam

What to Expect?

Morning meditation and community check-in.
Maintenance and care of our newly planted trees, with other land- based work.
Buddhist ritual (open to all levels of experience) throughout the day, both in the shrine room and on the land.
Meet the ancient trees on the land.
Periods of silence to give space for reflection as well as plenty of time for connection with others.
Excellent organic food and good company.

Facilitation Team

Jayaraja

Jayaraja has been teaching meditation and mindfulness for over 25 years. He has been a member of the Triratna Buddhist Order since 1993, and is now the chair of Alfoxton. He has a deep love of the land and loves to be out working whenever he gets the chance.

Due to the terrain you will need to be able to walk up and down hills. We will spend 4-5 hours working on the land each day. Please contact us before booking with any information or queries regarding accessibility, to ensure that this retreat can meet your needs.

Timings & Travel

Timings

Please arrive between 3pm and 5pm on the first day. Dinner is served at 6pm. The retreat will finish by 1pm on the last day.

Travel

The nearest railway stations are Bridgwater and Taunton. We are about 1h 15min from Bristol by car.

The 15 bus leaves Bridgwater at 16:50 during college term dates and stops at the Plough Inn in Holford. We are a 15min walk from there.

Please get in touch for further advice with public transport, or for help arranging lifts / carpools.

Make sure to put "Coach House 2, Alfoxton Park" into Google Maps. Other variations will take you to Alfoxton House nearby which is not us. Otherwise use grid reference 51.165187, -3.220080.

The What3Words for our car park are ///soup.candy.huddling

Accommodation & Food

Accommodation

This is a camping retreat - bring a tent or live-in vehicle. Toilets, showers and a sauna are available. Warm and waterproof clothing are advisable, along with gloves and boots or wellies. You may also wish to bring a torch and hot water bottle.

We have limited accommodation indoors for those with specific needs. Please let us know when you book if this is the case for you.

Food

We serve a vegan menu using mostly organic fruit and vegetables, from Riverford and our own walled garden. We are able to cater for most general food intolerances, such as gluten free, but not for all diets. See 'Accessibility and Special Diets' below.

Accessibility & Diets

We are committed to Alfoxton being a fully accessible venue and are working hard to achieve this. However, while the renovation work continues, visitors with specific mobility or accommodation needs may experience barriers to accessing all areas of the building and land. Please get in touch about any significant accessiblity requirements.

It is not possible to cook for people with highly sensitive allergies: if you are a coeliac or have any other medical condition which could seriously jeopardise your health or your experience then please get in touch to discuss a potential self-catering plan with our Kitchen manager.

Please contact us about either of these before submitting your booking request.

Costs

Alfoxton Park is a charity and works on the principle of Dana or a 'gift economy'. Read more about Dana here.

A £57 deposit will secure your place on this event. You will be invited to make a donation to Alfoxton when you attend.

If you are an Triratna Order member and need financial support to pay a retreat deposit, you can apply for a grant from the Abhayaratna Trust.

Technology, alcohol and drugs

All of our events are alcohol and drug free.

During the meditation retreats we ask you to turn off your mobile phones and other devices and not contact people outside of the retreat.

For all other events and workshops we ask you to be mindful of the use of devices and stay present, in order to make the most of your time here.

Any Questions?

Send please send any questions to events@alfoxtonpark.org.uk

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