Winter Farm Volunteers | Year-round Opportunities

Join us for a quieter time of year at Spannocchia. Each winter, we accept four volunteers to live and work on the farm from December through February, with a focus on animal care and upkeep of the vineyards and olive groves. Responsibilities also include rotating chores to help maintain the Tenuta.

Volunteers can expect to work between 30 and 40 hours per week, with free time to explore other areas of personal interest as well as the Tuscan countryside. In exchange for this commitment, you will be provided with room and board, and informal, hands-on education. Farm work can be extremely rewarding, as there are opportunities to learn new skills and interact with our Italian staff, who hold a wealth of knowledge about Tuscan farming techniques and cultural traditions. For more information about this opportunity, please click on the "Winter Volunteer Information" button below.

If selected, you must become a member of Friends of Spannocchia ($30 volunteer-level membership) and WWOOF Italia (€35 annual fee).

Winter Farm Volunteer Program 2024-25

Dates: Monday, December 2, 2024 – Friday, February 28, 2025 (88 days)
Application deadline: Monday, September 23, 2024
Notification date: Monday, October 7, 2024

In keeping with our values of community care and awareness, we strongly encourage all farm volunteers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. For more information, please review the COVID-19 section of our Winter Volunteer Information document linked above. Thank you for your understanding!

Spannocchia accepts a limited number of individual volunteers as farm needs and space allow. Volunteers assist with a range of farm work and property maintenance, dictated by current projects, needs, and the season.

Farm work can be extremely rewarding, as there are opportunities to learn new skills and interact with our Italian staff, who can provide a wealth of knowledge about Tuscan farming techniques and cultural traditions. The major areas of the operation are: animal care (working with pigs and cows), vegetable gardens (planting, watering, hoeing, harvesting), vineyards and orchards (weeding, tying, pruning, harvesting), and maintenance (landscaping, stacking wood, pool maintenance, building repairs).

To volunteer at Spannocchia, you must be (or become) a member of WWOOF Italia (€35 annual fee). Please contact our Farm Education Director, Niccolò Merighi at farmprogram@spannocchia.org to learn more and discuss available opportunities. Due to the volume of requests we receive, we are not always able to respond to every inquiry, or may be slow to respond, especially during busy periods on the farm. Thank you for understanding.

In keeping with our values of community care and awareness, we strongly encourage all volunteers to be vaccinated against COVID-19. Thank you for your understanding!

Our volunteers stay in Casa Pulcinelli, a large farmhouse located in the Castello complex. Casa Pulcinelli has seven bedrooms, three shared bathrooms, and a fully-equipped kitchen. Volunteers live in double-occupancy rooms with other volunteers, apprentices, or interns, share meals together, work together, and often spend free time together.

There are a number of recreational opportunities at Spannocchia including hiking trails, dirt roads for running, forests for foraging wild herbs and mushrooms, and a swimming pool when in season. The views of the countryside and surrounding farm inspire painting, drawing, and other forms of artistic expression.