Maria and Tim of Gentle Earth

Tell us a little about yourself!

We are an active family of six! That’s Tim and Maria with our four boys aged between 7 years and 11 months - and all our animals! Our home is called Gentle Earth.

Our parents moved to South Africa over thirty - and Tim’s over forty- years ago so ancestrally we are of German decent. Tim grew up on a small holding in Durbanville and Maria on a small farm in Hout Bay. Tims family were in the pisces culture / in the mechanical and forgery field and Maria’s family in the medical field and recycling industry (and prior a chef!) with both sides being of large scale farming / homesteading. In the here and now we are all that combined and it feels amazing!

We homestead in the heart of the northern suburbs in a tree rich area with beautiful views along the Paarl mountains and into the False Bay. The erfs are fairly large for the fact that we are just 20 minutes away from the city center and we live, love and grow a large amount of our food on our doorstep. We live the principal of permaculture- everything is in symbiosis and brings the purest joy to our hearts to witness the cycle of life over and over again, in awe and in respect and responsibility to nature.

This ranges from creative reuse of materials to build our projects and buying in as little as possible, to caring and harvesting for fruit/veg/medicinal herbs and raising, loving and living with our animals.

We are both passionate chefs. Tim bakes marvellous cakes and breads and Maria ferments all sorts of deliciousness and focuses on making anything from scratch - starts with spreads for sandwiches or syrup for lemonade and ends with medicinal tinctures and body care products!

How did you start doing what you are doing now? 

Coming from the roots we have, we were both exposed to handy work, gardening, alternative medicine, animal keeping and food creation from a young age. We both studied overseas and student life was tough but it made us resilient and creative. Tim’s focus being on money management and handywork whereas Maria always drawn to animals and gardening and saving precious Mother Earth.

It’s difficult to pinpoint the exact time frame as certain things have been there always, but the house we live in now we only bought at the end of 2022 and we’ve built this place up within a really short time! One of our main reasons to buy it was the amazing garden. At the time it was at least 29 years pesticide free and has the most beautifully designed garden with many large trees.

They bring the ornamental beauty along but also fruits, shade, insect food - and - add to the indigenous and natural forest vibe. The little conscious add ons of flowers and herbs and vegetables finish off the companion planting side - while complimenting one another in terms of biochemistry and smells, but also just makes the erf a little oasis in the city for humans and animals and the entire little ecosystem that’s been created in our garden.

What are you most proud of in this process? 

Having four little children makes it difficult sometimes to find time and focus on doing what adults want to do. Tim runs his precision tool business. He is supportive and on board with all the things Maria’s head comes up with for their home. With homeschooling the boys we have combined many of the projects we did with teaching them certain skills. It truly has worked wonderfully to fully integrate them with the ever ongoing projects. This includes animals, creating new spaces, gardening, food growing and harvesting, food preservation, and making them see and feel the symbiosis our home shows them on a daily basis.

Our life feels fulfilling, to ourselves but also of service to the community we live in. It feels so raw and real, so connected to precious Mother Earth and tool-rich to prepare the boys for facing the possible challenges in life and responsibilities awaiting in adulthood.

We’ve built up this incredible home, as a family and together in every step of the way 💙

We have used our space entirely, except for the roof (still looking for a way to include it) every cm is utilised and life is created and nourished and nurtured in a garden that allows an ever growing cycle. We are proud of that, yet also wish it was the norm.

What is the most helpful piece of advice you received when you were just starting out? 

There wasn’t much we spoke about with others. This is not because we don’t want to ask but because the journey has made us focus very much on family time. We mostly decide things within our little family system, research and then do. Books have been a great source on many topics and on specific things here and there, we consulted people we knew that could help on certain topics, asked around until we found the answer we needed or consulted the web. We both feel like it’s a good place to be in once you’ve looked at all aspects of things - also sides that you don’t really like to be confronted with - to get a picture of the WHOLE. (Ie chickens - cycle of life - laying and then retire or becoming a dish?)

Ja, I can say it’s been an isolated journey but not lonely at all - it’s come from within and the inner wisdoms are shining, connected, and brought to reality.

The best short clips and reels on homesteading in a permaculture environment are probably found on Instagram. Some profiles truly are marvellous, encouraging and authentic! We follow an American guy called Matthew Gauger and I’m often so in awe with his journey! Two phrases that really stuck to me are: 1) it doesn’t take acres but action and 2) showing up instead of showing off!!

High five to modern technology at this point - because it makes it so easy to connect to others!

What advice would you like to give to others who are younger/earlier on their journey? 

Practice what you preach in all that you are and live your true self in all that is around you. Everything will align and fall into place and will flourish and nourish - this is the simplest form of explaining energy in a garden, energy in life.

Thinking is good, feeling is better. Learn to see with the eye that doesn’t see, feel with your hands and toes and heart! Cherish Mother Earth in all she is and she will reward you with more than you could ever imagine 💙

Don’t get stuck in self sufficiency in terms of being completely isolated and lonely - community and a supportive surrounding is the future in my opinion! Yes, we can grow our own food - but we don’t need to do it all. We can find alike people who share our values and support those - and they will support us in return! I love the term self-sufficient community.

No one in this current body will ever know it all - especially on gardening. It’s okay to ask questions, it’s okay to not know everything. And people who know more than you are not better than you, neither are you worth less if you know less, we all started at some point. We are all equal, we are all human. I would love to see a world that stops competition and is built on true support and community. What works for the one, doesn’t for the other. Nature in all her glory has no rules - and she differs from garden to garden, person to person. We are all our own experts of our little pieces of nature - and if we truly allow ourselves to tap into feeling her, there are no limits to letting your inner wisdom come to surface.

Where do you see growing going in South Africa? 

With the ever changing world it is sometimes difficult to stay focused and positive- yet the little things that are so wonderfully displayed on our doorsteps are the biggest rewards and encouragements! I love how Cape Town has so many supportive neighbourhood groups. I am surrounded by people who care and who feel with their hearts!

My wish is that every household gets to grow food again, keep chickens, or ducks, or quail! Piggies and goats or no animals at all. My wish is that people see how beautiful a permaculture garden is and not just the beauty of it - but the necessity that actually lies behind it: to create an ecosystem that allows variety and life in abundance. Even if it’s just the random spinach in a shady area of the garden that is fertilised by the neighbours chicken poop. And the next neighbour perhaps discovered baking, the next pickling and the next ferments kombucha…and so on. Step by step. Diversity forms a healthy environment.

The change is here, it’s coming right in this moment and I’m forever grateful to be a part of it. I see the interest and the calling to get back to nature in my direct surrounding. And this can mean many things for many people - but just that little difference in their lives can plant many seeds for them and possibly the generations thereafter. We need to keep pushing for this change and stay and stand strong in our beliefs to save the future for the human species - and with this - the entire ecosystem of our planet.