🌱 Finally Grow Your Own Food — in our Southern Climate
A hands-on two-day course in the Serra de Monchique, designed for beginner gardeners in southern Portugal and other warm dry climates.
You'll leave knowing exactly what to do, when to do it, and why it works here — with the confidence to go home and start.
Everything You Need to Start a Vegetables Garden
— in One Weekend —
Get the knowledge and confidence to turn your small patch of land into a productive, manageable garden.
🌱 Why Take This Course?
Maybe you've been thinking about a vegetable garden for a while — but every time you start looking into it, you end up more confused than when you began.
The YouTube videos are for the wrong climate. The books assume a cold spring and a frost date. And nobody seems to be talking about what actually works in a long, dry Algarve summer.
That's exactly the gap this course fills.
In two days you'll go from uncertain to capable — with a clear understanding of this climate, this soil, and the real rhythm of a warm dry growing year. No overwhelm. No guesswork. Just a practical plan you can go home and follow.
🌱 What You'll Learn
Your land & soil
The best spot, how to assess it, and how to prepare your soil.
Sowing & planting
When to sow in a warm dry climate — with a calendar that actually works here.
Keeping it going
Watering, weeding, pest control and simple composting.
Planning
A basic garden plan so you know what to grow, and when, all year round.
And on Day 2
you'll do all of this with your own hands, in a real working garden.
🌟 Why Learn With Us
We moved from the Netherlands to the Serra de Monchique in 2010 and have been growing vegetables in this climate ever since. Today we grow over 30 different vegetables and eat from our garden year-round.
What we teach isn't generic — it's built around the specific rhythms of a warm dry climate. The planting calendar, the watering approach, the soil preparation — everything is designed for the conditions you're actually dealing with.
Our courses are small by design. That means you get real attention, real answers to your specific questions, and a plan that fits your situation — not a one-size-fits-all approach.
🥗 A Taste of Our Garden
And Tom cooks. Every course day includes a proper lunch made from vegetables grown right here — so you can taste exactly what's possible.
⭐ What Our Students Say
"Monique is a fantastic source of local knowledge. So many topics were covered and we feel much more confident in expanding our vegetable garden. It was a really fun day with great people." — Rupe & Sal
"I found Monique to be very knowledgeable and able to answer all our questions. I feel confident to continue with my garden — from composting to knowing the best time to plant seeds and seedlings. Lunch was delicious too." ❤️ — Camilla
📍 Serra de Monchique, Algarve
📅 Next course: 23–24 May | 10:00–17:00
💶 €65 per person
⭐ Ready to Stop Guessing and Start Growing?
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