Group of people at Return to the Mara workshop about growing your own organic food and flowers

Workshop At tomtit farm

Return to the Māra

A six month seasonal growers journey.

Return to the māra. Return to the soil. Return to the knowledge that has always been within reach.

Return to the Māra is a six month seasonal learning journey for people who feel the pull to grow, whether that means nourishing their household, deepening their understanding of nature, or inspiring change in their wider community.

Guided by Brittany from Tomtit Farm, the programme follows the natural rhythm of the growing season. Each monthly gathering explores practical organic growing skills alongside a deeper understanding of soil biology, ecosystems, and the natural patterns that shape a thriving garden.

Participants learn how to grow abundant vegetables, vibrant flowers, and living soil systems while developing the confidence to work with nature rather than against it.

Whether you’re just beginning your growing journey or ready to deepen your practice, this programme meets you where you are.

Return to the Māra is about more than learning how to garden. It’s about remembering how to live in relationship with the land, building resilience through food growing, and equipping the next generation of growers and kaitiaki with the knowledge to care for their communities and the whenua.

Learn More About Us

Where

At Tomtit Farm, Matangi

After each session, those who wish are invited to stay for a shared lunch in the gardens, a chance to connect, reflect on the morning’s learning, and enjoy time together on the farm.

Limited to 20 spaces per workshop.

WHen

November 2026 – May 2027

Return to the Māra runs monthly from November to May, with sessions held on the second weekend of each month.

Workshops take place from 9.30 am to 12.30 pm, and participants join either the Saturday or Sunday group, depending on their cohort.

The programme begins on 14 November and concludes on 15 May.

Join Us this season

We are now accepting applications for our 2026 season

If you would like to join us next season, fill out the enrolment form and your deposit will secure your spot.

Details

Return to the Māra runs from November to May, walking through the full growing season from the first spring seedlings to the final autumn harvest.

We gather once a month at Tomtit Farm in Matangi, learning together in the gardens as the season unfolds. Each session blends practical garden skills with a deeper understanding of how living soil, plants, insects, and ecosystems work together.

Throughout the season we explore everything from seed sowing, bed preparation, and succession planting to soil biology, compost systems, nutrient-dense growing, pest balance, and seasonal harvests. Sessions include hands-on time in the garden, observing soil life, harvesting crops, saving seeds, and learning how to work in relationship with the whenua and the natural rhythms of the season.

Rooted in organic growing and the values of Hua Parakore, the programme encourages growers to care for the soil, support biodiversity, and grow food in ways that nourish both people and the wider ecosystem.

Each month builds on the last, helping participants develop both the knowledge and seasonal awareness needed to grow with confidence.

By the end of the programme, participants leave with the skills and confidence to grow a thriving māra at home.

We meet as a small group so everyone receives plenty of support, guidance, and space to ask questions. Places are intentionally limited to honour the wairua of learning together on the land.

INVESTMENT

Your place in Return to the Māra includes a full six-month seasonal growing journey, guiding you from the first spring seedlings through to the final autumn harvest.

Over the season you’ll receive:

Seven in-depth seasonal workshops at Tomtit Farm (November to May).
Six months of guidance and support between sessions, including resources and seasonal check-ins.
A personalised 1:1 mentorship garden visit at your home māra.
Organic seedling packs to help establish and grow your garden.
Learning alongside a supportive community of growers walking the same seasonal journey.

Early Bird Investment: $2,500
Full Programme Investment: $3,000

To make the programme accessible, flexible payment options are available:

Pay upfront.
Pay monthly installments.
Pay fortnightly installments.
Pay weekly installments.

Your place in the programme is secured with your first payment, with installments beginning in November.

Whats to expect

Each month we gather at Tomtit Farm in Matangi to explore a key seasonal topic as the garden unfolds.

Sessions combine practical, hands-on learning with time in the gardens, observing living soil, planting, harvesting, and working with the rhythms of the season.

You’ll receive personalised guidance and support to help you apply what you learn in your own space, whether that’s a backyard garden, a lifestyle block, or a few raised beds.

Each gathering builds on the last, giving you the knowledge, confidence, and seasonal awareness to grow a thriving māra at home.

Contact Us

What Is Included:

Monthly in-person wānanga at Tomtit Farm in Matangi, Waikato;
Mentorship with Brittany Stembridge, organic grower, nutritionist, and founder of Tomtit Farm;
Seasonally appropriate seeds provided each month, so you can sow alongside the programme;
Organic seedling packs throughout the season to help establish your māra;
Biological inoculants and natural growing inputs to trial in your own garden, supporting living soil and plant health;
Practical garden resources and materials to help set your garden up for success, including seed trays, propagation tools, shade cloth, supports for climbing crops, and seed-saving supplies;
Hands-on learning in the gardens, exploring topics such as:
- Seed sowing and propagation;
- Composting and building living soil;
- Garden planning, space design, and seasonal rhythms;
- Plant health, pest balance, and natural inputs;
- Encouraging biodiversity in the backyard garden;
- Seed saving and succession planting;
- Growing in ways that support long-term soil fertility;
Seasonal reflection and integration activities to help embed your learning;
A private support group for questions, guidance, and encouragement between sessions;

This is For You If...

You want to grow an abundant backyard garden that nourishes not only your household, but the soil, insects, birds, and the wider ecosystem;
You’re ready to garden with confidence, knowing what to plant, when to plant it, and why it works;
You want to understand the living soil beneath your garden and the ecosystems that support healthy plants;
You want to work with nature rather than against it, learning the rhythms that shape a thriving garden;
You feel the pull to reconnect with Papatūānuku through the simple act of growing;
You want practical tools and knowledge to grow healthy kai and beautiful flowers at home;
You believe in setting up future generations with the skills and understanding to grow food, care for the land, and live in closer relationship with nature;
You want to be part of rebuilding communities where people have access to nourishing food, thriving gardens, and the knowledge to grow both;

Because growing food and flowers is more than a skill, it’s a relationship with the land.

Why Return to the Māra?

Because there is power in returning to the garden, not just as a place to grow food, but as a place to learn, observe, slow down, and reconnect with the rhythms of the seasons.

At Tomtit Farm, we believe thriving gardens are built on living soil, biodiversity, and care for the wider ecosystem. Return to the Māra is designed to help you grow with that same intention and confidence.

This programme isn’t just about harvesting more tomatoes or flowers. It’s about building the skills to understand your garden as a living system, working with the soil and the seasons, and becoming the kind of grower who trusts the process and finds joy in it.

Because when we return to the māra, we remember how to grow alongside nature.

What You’ll Leave With:

A thriving home māra;
A toolkit of practical seasonal growing skills;
Seeds saved from your own harvest;
Confidence in your ability to grow food and flowers;
A deeper understanding of soil health and how to create abundance from it;
A stronger connection to Papatūānuku and the rhythms of the seasons;
A community of fellow growers walking the journey alongside you;
A sense of sovereignty rooted in soil;

Because growing food is more than a skill, it’s a relationship with the land.

Testamonials

What Return to the Māra workshop participants are saying about the course

Sinead, K

Ive absolutely loved being part of the course, meeting beautiful people and learning so much about caring for our māra. Thank you Brit for sharing your knowledge, your māra, and your kia with us, you have such a nourishing and grounding energy, its been a pleasure to be in your space for the last 6 months.

Lucy, H

The biggest change for me is how I think about the soil, logically Brits core belief is that you grow the soil and the soil will take care of your plants. I hadn't thought about it that way, I was always focused on the plant and what the plant needed and how to grow that the best, but it really makes sense that you need good soils to grow healthy plants. And this has been explained really clearly, the life-force in the soil. How I think of the soil, which is then going to grow healthy plants which grows healthy food which results in healthy people.

Toni, M

I did not come into this to think I would be growing as much food as I've, and how much I'm enjoying it. I expected to learn about the soil and the seeds, and how to move away from fertilisers, but certainly never thought I'd find this interest of growing food, and the processing of it, and the, just the sheer joy I get from being able to go out, pick some lettuce, pick some beans, pick a capsicum, and actually make meals out of it.

It's, it would be my, one of my favorite events of the month because I get to learn, I get to be with like-minded people, and I get to be in the outdoors with flowers and plants.