Avocado Farm
Organic Avocado Farm & Boutique Resort
Welcome to Earth Lodge, not just a beautiful eco resort consisting of dreamy cabins, a spa, yoga studio, and restaurant, but also a working organic avocado farm! Our massive property is located on a steep mountain on the north side of the Panchoy Valley. Believers in practicing conservation and caring for mother earth the best we can, our property remains relatively undeveloped, consisting mainly of untouched tropical mountain forests and our avocado finca!
Finca History
Many years ago, a large fruit finca owned the entirety of this mountain, with on-site housing for all the families who worked on the finca. After the finca dispersed and divided the land, the employee housing area became what is today the village of El Hato. Earth Lodge was one of the parcels of land sold, and was the first new commercial property to be built on this mountain, starting with one cabin, an outhouse, and 850 organic Hass avocado trees.
Conscientious Farming Practices
Our organic Hass avocado farm is cared for by local village men who have ancestral farming practices and knowledge passed down through the generations. We use compost from our restaurant to feed the trees, use water conservation and land tiering methods to prevent landslides and preserve water, and use bio-friendly pest control methods such as sugar water. The trees are pollinated by local Melipona bees as well as honeybees from the neighboring honey farm. Our friends the ants are also a big help with pest control!
Finca Tours
There are two harvest seasons for avocado trees in this climate zone of Guatemala: a minor harvest usually in July, and the major harvest from December through January, depending on the weather. On an average year we harvest 12 tons of avocado from our farm. Visitors can sign up with Reception to take a tour of the farm at any time of the year: what you learn and see on the tour will vary based on the time of year. Bring your hiking shoes, you’ll be walking on a steep mountainside during the tour, which lasts approximately 30 minutes.
Antigueños (Antigua locals) are lovingly referred to as Panza Verdes or “Green Bellies” for their love of avocados and their reliance upon them (and other native green foods) when the ancient city of Antigua was barricaded and isolated from the outside world by the government after a massive natural disaster, far back in our history. Even if you’re not an Antigua Local, you can definitely earn the title “green belly” while at Earth Lodge by indulging in all the delicious avocado items on our year-round menu. We also feature a special harvest season menu with 20+ avocado dishes and drinks during the harvest!
We use as many of our fresh avocados as we can in our own restaurant, and with the excess avocados, we make delicious avocado ice cream (dairy ice cream and a vegan macadamia ice cream) which you can enjoy long after the harvest is complete. Our ice cream is made with over 70% avocado for a creamy and healthy delight! Earth Lodge is also home to Antigua’s original Fried Avocados (they’re gluten-free) – a MUST TRY item from our farm-to-table menu! You can also find organic cold-pressed avocado oil and infused avocado oils for sale at Earth Lodge. We use the rest of our excess avocados to create artisan avocado oil, which is available seasonally.