Smallholding

Zealand

7 reviews • Updated 2 years ago

The smallholding "Grydehuset" is the home of 2 adults in the fourties and 2 teenagers. For 20 years we have been living a self-sufficient organic life without pesticides and modern fertilisers. We have an orchard with all sorts of fruit trees (about 70-80 trees), we tend a vegetable garden of 1000 m2 and several greenhouses. Partly by the "no dig method" we grow about 250 different varieties of vegetables, which is only possible, because we save almost all our own seeds. We have sheep, pigs, ducks, chickens, cats, bees and rabbits. Thus we are self-sufficient by vegetables, fruits and meat, though, since we do not yet own a cow, we need to buy milk, butter etc. We are working on being self-sufficient with animal feed too, and right now, after years of eksperiments, little by little we are increasing the area with cereals such as rye, wheat, barley and oats (preferably old varieties) to be self-sufficient with that too in order to bake bread of our own wheat and rye. We use very little machinery, and only the most necessary. We prefer old techniques, both by farming, gardening, building and cooking. In order to have time for all these time consuming but environmentally healthy processes only mom have a job. Dad is at home working at the farm, building the house and tending the garden. We try to buy as little as possible. Instead we make things ourselves out of what we have. Thus we do not need to work many hours away from our home and family to sustain a living. In January we rest In February and march (depending on the weather) we build inside the house, making sausages etc, or chop wood, prepare the garden and the greenhouses, repairing the fences, crop trees. In April and May we sow, plant, transplant, prepare the soil, produce all the seedlings needed for the garden In June we plant, water, weed, harvest the hay In July and August we harvest a lot, can a lot, save a lot of seeds In September and Oktober we harvest, plant the winter vegetables, save seeds, prepare the soil for the winter sowings, can. In Oktober and November we prepare for the winter by covering the vegetable garden with compost after having dug up and hid away everything that does not endure the winter outside. In December we finish our tasks outside and prepare for christmas by doing the traditional canning, cooking and baking. Organic methods: No dig-method, surface composting, crop rotation, circuits, no pesticides and fertilisers, Current projects: Daily maintenance, fencing, building sheds, seed saving, harvesting, wood chopping Internet access available

Learning opportunities

Vegetable farming

Fruit or nut farming

Poultry farming

Pig farming

Raising of other farm animals

Beekeeping

Seed saving or production

Vegetable or fruit preservation

Bakery

Food justice / sovereignty

Methods or systems

Holistic management

Host type

Self-sufficiency property

1.6 Hectares | 4 Acres

Accommodation

2 WWOOFers

Camper / RV

Children not accepted

Pets not accepted

Meals

Omnivore

Length of stay

1 day (local)

1-2 weeks

3-4 weeks

Over a month

Henrik

Member since 2018

Languages spoken: Danish, English, German, Swedish Response rate: 100% Response time: typically within 7 days

November 2025

Open

Planned visit

Closed

MapLibre | Protomaps | © OpenStreetMap

Zealand

Reviews

Geraldine

Ireland • September 2025

We spent about 10 days with Henrik and his family and had an amazing time. They were so welcoming and we felt right at home from the beginning. We did a variety of work helping with caring for the animals, harvesting, threshing, and gardening. Henrik was keen to give us work to do that we were interested in and we learned so much from him doing it. Still trying to take it all in a week later! As well as learning about gardening and farming we learned so much about Danish culture and history - not to mention food! We had so many great conservations with the whole family and already miss our time there.

Quentin

Germany • September 2023

Beyond my expectation :-) Working in the garden at the side of a farmer like Henrik was such an inspiring and rewarding experience! His wisdom and knowledge in self-sufficient living goes beyond farming. I believe it can widen your horizon, regardless your experience. I highly recommend anyone who is serious about farming & self-sufficient living to visit Henrik and his family who have been very welcoming, kind and open-minded and hosted me like a family member. And the reward of the day.... delicious food you prepare with them! Tak!

Ivo

Netherlands • August 2022

Henrik and his family have a beautiful place and are very warm and welcoming. I was made to feel fully at home and loved every second of my stay. Henrik is extremely knowledgable, hard working and has a great sense of humour. It’s hard work on the farm but extremely rewarding, especially the little food breaks where I would join Henrik to his fruit and vegetable garden to pick some amazing plums or apples. The food is incredible and almost everything is produced and grown on the farm. Overall it’s fair to say that I couldn’t have wished for a better host and look forward to going again next year.

Aleksander

Denmark • February 2021

Almost forgot to leave af review, although i had quite a memorable experience with Henrik and his family and they definitely deserve a nice review. I visited Grydehuset on and off during fall/winter and learned more than i could ever hope for, from these awesome people. Henriks knowledge about gardening and passion for growing is admirable and i believe he could fill a thick book about any subject related to his smallholding -- I can say for sure, that i learned a lot from all his know-how and knowledge. I very much enjoyed my time here and would recommend it to anyone interested in gardering, farming and self-sufficient living who is willing to put in the time and work. They are very warm and open-hearted people and my time there left a strong impression. 10/10!

Bjørn

Denmark • September 2020

I spent a total of 21 days at grydehuset this summer. Henrik and his family gets my highest recommendations. Kind and welcoming people the whole lot. If you're considering going there but need the review section in order to possibly turn uncertainty into certainty, let me tell you this - just do it! You won't regret it. There is a chance to really learn something about self-sufficient living and gardening at this place. Henrik's head is filled with a seemingly inexhaustible well of knowledge when it comes to plants and vegetables and how to grow them. The work was very varied and I was allowed to co-decide which tasks to do based on my interests. 10/10 WWOOF experience.

Marie

France • September 2019

We strongly recommend that you stay at this place ! We had a wonderful time with Henrik, Stina, Nana and Sigrid. We learn a lot, we enjoyed spending time with them, sharing cooking time, working in their wonderful garden. The whole family was very welcoming, they cooked and baked danish plates for us, they were very willing to share about the danish culture and interested in our culture as well. Our son was very free on the spot, Henrik was very cool with us having to care of him and the girls took care of him as well. We could even sing and dance a bit with the family, which is their hallmark. Henrik is passionate about farming and gardening, we found the time short with him.