Baraka Blog
Clearing the Land by Hand: How We Reclaimed One Hectare of Abandoned Azores Land
In autumn 2022, my husband Jules and I arrived in the Azores with a mission to look around and see if we like the place to make it our home. Within just one month, we discovered something extraordinary on the north side of São Miguel Island, in the Capelas area — a beautiful one hectare plot that checked all the boxes we had in mind for the place to stay. Except that everything was completely overgrown.
Keep reading or...
Keep reading or...
Battle and Transformation
No Heavy Machinery
Finding the Hidden Treasure – the Soil
My personal nemesis during this process was the Himalayan lily — an ornamental plant from the ginger family that had become an invasive on São Miguel. It’s incredibly aggressive and takes over everything. The only way to eliminate it is to dig out every single piece of rootstock, because even if you slice the roots into one centimeter thick pieces, each one will grow into a new plant.
I took on this challenge myself, slowly working through our entire property wherever gingerly appeared. I would cut and dig out every piece, throwing it all into one massive compost pile. By the end, that pile was twenty meters long, two to three meters wide, and at least three meters tall — enormous! I joked that once I finished, I’d bring a chair and a bottle of champagne to celebrate in front of it. And yes, I actually did.
Our complete land clearing took about three months. Jules actually used (or I’d rather say abused) Stihl lawnmower to shred the bush into small pieces. When we finished, we had transformed one hectare of overgrown, abandoned land into a clean, ready-to-plant canvas. What began as an invisible piece of property with unmarked borders had become a place we truly understood — every meter of it. And beneath all that overgrowth, we had found the perfect soil to begin our syntropic agroforestry journey.
I took on this challenge myself, slowly working through our entire property wherever gingerly appeared. I would cut and dig out every piece, throwing it all into one massive compost pile. By the end, that pile was twenty meters long, two to three meters wide, and at least three meters tall — enormous! I joked that once I finished, I’d bring a chair and a bottle of champagne to celebrate in front of it. And yes, I actually did.
Our complete land clearing took about three months. Jules actually used (or I’d rather say abused) Stihl lawnmower to shred the bush into small pieces. When we finished, we had transformed one hectare of overgrown, abandoned land into a clean, ready-to-plant canvas. What began as an invisible piece of property with unmarked borders had become a place we truly understood — every meter of it. And beneath all that overgrowth, we had found the perfect soil to begin our syntropic agroforestry journey.
When we decided to buy the land and begin clearing, we made an important choice: we would do it entirely by hand, without using any heavy machinery. Why? After ten years of abandonment, everything that had grown and fallen was accumulating into the most incredible biomass and natural compost you could imagine. We didn’t want to compress all that valuable organic matter with heavy equipment. Beyond that, clearing by hand meant we had to walk through every single square meter of our land. It forced us to truly get to know the property — observing where water flows, what plants naturally thrive in different spots, and discovering the microclimates hidden in different corners.
As we cleared, we made wonderful discoveries. Hidden beneath the overgrowth were four beautiful black walnut trees — probably thirty years old — that we hadn’t even noticed at first. They were completely squeezed between patches of bananas, vines, and Spanish flag that had overtaken them like a curtain. We also found four coffee trees, approximately forty years old, that began producing a full harvest just half a year after we cleared them.
As we cleared, we made wonderful discoveries. Hidden beneath the overgrowth were four beautiful black walnut trees — probably thirty years old — that we hadn’t even noticed at first. They were completely squeezed between patches of bananas, vines, and Spanish flag that had overtaken them like a curtain. We also found four coffee trees, approximately forty years old, that began producing a full harvest just half a year after we cleared them.
When we first visited, it was nearly impossible to see where the boundaries even were. The borders were marked only by faded sticks placed by a topographer and retaining stone walls, but everything was completely overgrown with vines, wild berries, and dense bush. You could barely walk through it. The land had been abandoned and neglected for over ten years. But beneath all that overgrowth was something remarkable: exceptionally good soil.
My husband Jules studied agricultural and organic farming at a university in Germany, and he brings fifteen years of farming experience from Switzerland. The moment he put his hands in the soil, he was nearly moved to tears. You see, at university, they teach about a special type of volcanic soil — called Andosols — considered among the best in the world. It’s sandy, incredibly rich, and has a perfect pH level. We tested it multiple times: after heavy rains to observe how quickly water drained, and with a pH meter to confirm the ideal balance. Every test confirmed it — this volcanic soil was extraordinary. The land also had a unique natural shape with three distinct levels or platforms, which gave us perfect opportunities to establish our syntropic agroforestry system.
My husband Jules studied agricultural and organic farming at a university in Germany, and he brings fifteen years of farming experience from Switzerland. The moment he put his hands in the soil, he was nearly moved to tears. You see, at university, they teach about a special type of volcanic soil — called Andosols — considered among the best in the world. It’s sandy, incredibly rich, and has a perfect pH level. We tested it multiple times: after heavy rains to observe how quickly water drained, and with a pH meter to confirm the ideal balance. Every test confirmed it — this volcanic soil was extraordinary. The land also had a unique natural shape with three distinct levels or platforms, which gave us perfect opportunities to establish our syntropic agroforestry system.
