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Hi, I'm Kees Timmers and I grow organic pumpkins for Nature & More. Our farm is located in the northern part of The Netherlands near the village of Engwierum.  Together with my wife and our two daughters we have been living here since 2002.  The farm however is much older, it dates back to 1791. To go back even further in history, from the local archives we know that people have been farming on our land since 1520 !

At “De Grote Tor” we grow organic pumpkins, onions and a number of other organic vegetables. We alternate the crops based upon a 1 – 7 rotation scheme meaning that in year 1 we grow pumpkins and then in the following six years we use that plot of land for other crops.  This rotation method has numerous advantages, for example it sequesters carbon to the soil, is good for the humus levels and stimulates microorganisms in the soil and allows the soil to “rest”.

On our farm we work with people with a physical or mental handicap or with other special needs.  Basically this makes us a “care farm” where we provide day activities for around 5 – 6 individuals. One of the activities is helping out in our vegetable garden and small greenhouse where we grow over 40 different varieties of organic vegetables ranging from “forgotten veggies” like parsnip, turnip and black salsify to more commonly known products like tomatoes, leeks and salad. The products are sold in our farm store which is open every Wednesday afternoon.