Lle Ni | Our Space - Glasbren’s Volunteer Blog - May 2026

After what has felt like a long, wet winter, spring seems to have finally arrived.  The daffodils which brightly trumpeted a welcome to Lord’s Park Farm have given way to cuckoo flower and wild garlic (oh, the smell!), birdsong is abundant, the soil is warming, and we are planting out seedlings ready for the season ahead.   

I (Lottie) have been in the post of volunteer coordinator for three months now, and what a privilege it has been.  A warm and enthusiastic community has welcomed me wholeheartedly onto the land, through rain, wind and, finally, sun (hooray!).  

February’s Seedy Saturday in Sero was a great way to start my role, tending to the stall and meeting veg box members, potential volunteers and old friends of Glasbren.  Volunteer Thursdays have fast become a highlight of my working week, where staff members, volunteers and Earth come together as a productive and positive community.  I’ve already learnt so much from all three. 

Since I started, our wonderful volunteers have gifted over 446 hours of their time.  Diolch yn fawr | thank you all.  The impact is great with many tasks met by willing hands and minds, including seed sowing, plant propagation and harvesting.  We have been preparing beds for the new season, and planted many trees and fruit bushes.  In addition, there have been opportunities for carpentry skills with poly tunnel maintenance, a geodome and three new accessible tables built from pallets.  The Little Stewards area is quickly becoming a transformed space with steps, terraces and even a pond shaping the land and wildlife, ready to welcome the next generation soon.

We also offer opportunities for creativity and wellbeing, providing a place to slow down and re-connect with ourselves, other people and nature.  During cylch cinio, our lunchtime circle, we share seasonal poetry and activities.  These have included ‘Lost’ by David Wagoner, which we read between just-planted trees, knowing that wherever we are can be called ‘Here’. We enjoyed ‘The Seed Kist’ by Hot Poet Iona Lee on Youtube (see above), whereafter we considered how the community and land of Glasbren has helped us to individually and collectively grow: If Glasbren were a seed, what has it planted within me? - ‘Glasbren has planted the hope that anything is possible with community, that when we come together we can achieve the small things, the big things, the important things’. 

At the end of March, and again in May we settled onto the field for sessions of guided meditation and grounding, with participants commenting on how productive they felt following the session.  At Gwanwyn’s Community Saturday at the start of April, I led a writing for wellbeing workshop which culminated in the creation of a community poem, and Chloe, Glasbren’s assistant grower, led a workshop on how to create natural plant dyes from Glasbren’s foraged plants, and made the beautiful dyed ribbons on the maypole for Calon Mai.  We now have a gair yr wythnos board to help us learn Cymraeg words, including vocabulary relating to the seasons, the tasks and the weather.  We celebrated the opening of a new community llyfrgell | library on World Book Day where people may take some time out to rest in a quiet space.

Meet our Volunteers!

With each Lle Ni blog post, I would like to introduce one of our volunteers. 

Today we welcome Serge, who has been volunteering since March.

So Serge, how did you hear about Glasbren?

I found Glasbren when I was hiking around Llansteffan.  It appealed to me because I was looking to find something new, to find a community, explore a new space and connect with nature.

What are your favourite tasks to do here, and why?

I love anything to do with planting, from seeds to trees.  Sowing the seeds feels like an important contribution.  To be able to tend to what I’ve planted later on helps me understand how the plants ‘work’.  If I’m doing these jobs with the growers they are good teachers and I learn a lot from them.

Do you think volunteering at Glasbren has had a positive impact upon your life?

I certainly do!  I’ve only been a volunteer for two months but already I feel a sense of belonging here.  I am learning about the project more and I love being able to tell people about what’s going on at Lord’s Park Farm.  Knowing that projects like this exist has opened my eyes to a world of opportunity for positive work.

What would you say to anyone thinking of volunteering with us?

Give it a chance!  You might be surprised by what you find.  It is a place without judgement or expectation for volunteers to come as they are - I believe there’s something here for everyone.

Diolch yn fawr | Thank you, Serge.  We are glad you are enjoying your time with us and it’ll be exciting to see how the plants you have sown now grow out on the fields, ready for harvesting.

Our volunteers really are the heart of Glasbren.   If you would like to find out more about volunteering with us, and experience the community which Serge has spoken of, please get in touch. We shall also be celebrating Volunteers’ Week on Thursday 4th June, more details to follow!