La Donaira is a 1,700 hectare holding situated outside Ronda in the Andalusian mountains, some 100km from Malaga. “We bought the land with the aim of creating a biodynamic eco-effective farm and tourism project back in 2005. Rudolf Steiner and William McDonough were both big influences” says owner Manfred Bodner, whose vision for the land also encompassed the creation of an exemplary sanctuary for birds, bees and other wildlife.

Our involvement started with the submission of a five-year proposal for the gradual rewilding of honey bees into La Donaira’s ancient stone oak forest, starting with a stock of 29 layens hives that had been kept commercially on a single apiary area prior to our arrival early in 2017.