Thursday Arrive and settle in
- Check in and settle into your room, with garden iced tea waiting
- Farm tour with Mel: the land, the gardens and the sheep
- Welcome dinner with Meg, Dagny and Chef Pete
- Welcome to the Group Chat: our opening circle
Registration is open
The Garden Girls Tea Garden Retreat
Four days of growing, harvesting, blending and sipping with Meg and Dagny on a farm in Maine.
- WhenThursday, August 26 to Sunday, August 29, 2027
- WhereCasa Portal, a farm in Jackson, Maine
- Stay3 nights, 4 days, all meals included
- Group12 places available in this first release
- PriceFrom $2,000 per person, before Maine taxes
A $500 deposit holds your spot. Booking and payment are handled by our host, Casa Portal.
From garden to teacup
Spend a long weekend with us on a beautiful farm in Maine, surrounded by gardens, good food and people who love to grow things as much as you do.
We'll harvest tea herbs straight from the garden and dry them together, can jam with Chef Pete, blend two teas of your very own, plan a tea garden for your home, and bring it all together at a garden tea party set with the flowers we arranged.
It's a small group, so there's real time to talk, ask questions and make friends. Whether you've never grown a thing or you've been gardening for years, there's a seat at the table for you.
You'll take home
- Two tins of tea you blended yourself
- A jar of jam you canned
- The herbs you harvested and dried
- A plan for your own tea garden
- Your Garden Girls welcome bundle
What's included
- 3 nights at Casa Portal in your chosen room type, with linens, towels and toiletries
- All meals from Thursday's welcome dinner to Sunday breakfast, plus snacks, coffee, tea and non-alcoholic drinks
- Every workshop and all the materials
- Cooking and canning with Chef Pete
- The garden tea party
- Small-group time with Meg and Dagny all weekend
- Casa Portal experiences like a sheep fiber workshop, a sound bath and forest bathing, as time allows
- Time on the farm: gardens, sheep, trails and the pond
- A Garden Girls welcome bundle: spiral-bound copies of Dagny's tea garden e-book and Meg's canning e-book, a Garden Girls tote and mug, a tea edition of Meg's garden planner, and tea samples
Not included
- Travel to and from Casa Portal (see getting there)
- Maine taxes, added at checkout
- Travel insurance (we strongly recommend it)
Life at Casa Portal
Meadows, gardens, a swimming pond, forest trails and a flock of heritage sheep, all on more than 100 acres in Midcoast Maine.
Take a tour with Meg
Meg filmed a walk around Casa Portal, gardens, sheep and all, so you can see the farm before you book.
Photos courtesy of Casa Portal.
The weekend
This is a sample schedule and is subject to change. Activities, timing and optional experiences may shift with the weather, the garden and what's in season.
Friday Harvest, flowers and the kitchen
- Coffee, tea and a light breakfast
- Grow, Harvest, Dry: taste the tea plants, learn when and how to cut, harvest together and set herbs on the drying screens
- Farm-to-table brunch
- Tablescapes: cut flowers and build arrangements for Saturday's tea party
- Tea and a fresh snack, then free time to rest, walk the trails or visit the pond, or an optional experience like forest bathing, if available
- Put Up the Harvest with Chef Pete: can jam for the tea party, make a garden syrup and freeze flower ice cubes
- Dinner with garden mocktails
- Fireside Garden Q&A with a pot of evening tea and pressed-flower tag making
Saturday Blend, plan and party
- Coffee, tea and a light breakfast
- Brew and Blend: learn to brew, then blend and label two tins of tea to take home
- Farm-to-table brunch
- Plan Your Tea Garden: sketch a tea garden for your own space, even a few pots
- Tea and a fresh snack, then free time, photos, or an optional experience like a sound bath, if available
- The Garden Tea Party: tea, tea cakes, your homemade jam and the tables we set
- A final dinner together
- Herbs We Inherited: stories, family herb traditions and reflection
Sunday Take it home
- Breakfast
- Closing circle: takeaways, next year's garden plans and staying in touch
- Checkout
Casa Portal experiences
These are included in your ticket, with nothing extra to pay. We'll fit them into the open afternoon blocks as time and availability allow, and share the final plan before the retreat.
- Sound bath A guided sound bath in the barn to rest and reset after a full day in the garden.
- Forest bathing A slow, guided walk on the farm's forest trails, taking in the woods with all your senses.
- Sheep fiber workshop Spend time with Casa Portal's heritage Navajo-Churro sheep and learn about their wool.
Choose your stay
Every ticket includes the full retreat. Your room type is the only difference. Prices are per person for all 3 nights, before Maine taxes. 12 places available in this first release.
Private farmhouse room
$2,450
Your own room in the farmhouse, with fresh linens and a fan. Bathrooms are shared.
Shared farmhouse room
$2,200
Share a farmhouse room with another guest. Each guest has their own bed. Bathrooms are shared.
Two beds under the pine
The composting toilet house
Inside the composting toiletShared A-Frame cabin
$2,000
Share an off-grid A-Frame cabin with another guest, each in their own bed. Solar power and a covered porch, but no Wi-Fi or running water. Shared outdoor bathrooms and solar-heated showers are nearby, and the farmhouse bathrooms are about a five-minute walk.
Inside the farmhouse
Whichever room you choose, the farmhouse living room, dining room and screened porch are yours to share all weekend.
Living room
Dining room
Screened porch
Porch lounge
$500 due today to reserve your spot. It's non-refundable and goes toward your ticket.
The rest is due 30 days before the retreat (by July 27, 2027). Maine taxes are added at checkout.
Payment plans are available at checkout. Credit card payments have a 2.5% processing fee.
You choose a room type and Casa Portal assigns your specific room or cabin. Shared tickets are per person. The farmhouse has four shared bathrooms with showers, plus Wi-Fi. There are no en-suite bathrooms and no air conditioning.
Your hosts
The Garden Girls Podcast is two friends, two gardens and one group chat. Every week, Meg and Dagny talk seasonal planting, beginner-friendly growing, plant and food history and backyard wildlife, from Meg's garden in North Carolina to Dagny's in Massachusetts.
Meg
@meggrowsplants
Meg Lloyd is a gardener and homesteader in North Carolina with a background in cellular and molecular biology. She teaches people how to grow, preserve and cook their own food, sharing seasonal gardening and garden-to-table recipes on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
Dagny
@thecottagepeach
Dagny Kream grows food, flowers and herbal tea in her cottage garden in Massachusetts. She teaches people how to grow their own food and plant a tea garden of their own, sharing her garden on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. She wrote the tea garden e-book in your welcome bundle.
Chef Pete
Casa Portal
Pete runs the kitchen at Casa Portal and leads our cooking and canning sessions, turning the garden into every meal of the weekend.
Mel and Casa Portal
Our friend Mel's farm in Midcoast Maine: more than 100 acres of meadow, forest and pasture, with a garden, a restored barn, forest trails, a swimming pond and resident sheep. Only one small group stays at a time.
Good to know
- A working farm. Trails are natural and uneven, and there are ticks, so bring sturdy shoes and do tick checks.
- Alcohol-free. Casa Portal is an alcohol-free property. We'll be sipping garden mocktails and lots of tea.
- Fragrance-free. Please skip perfumes and strongly scented products.
- Meet the residents. Shari the farm dog and a flock of heritage Navajo-Churro sheep.
- Quiet evenings. Quiet hours start around 9:30 pm.
- Good water. The well water is tested and great to drink, so bring a refillable bottle.
Questions
How do I book?
Click Reserve your spot. You'll go to Casa Portal's booking page, choose your room type and pay the $500 deposit, which goes toward your ticket. The balance is due by July 27, 2027, and Maine taxes are added at checkout. A confirmation email comes straight from the booking system, and Casa Portal assigns your specific room or cabin.
Do I need gardening experience?
Not at all. Every session works for complete beginners, with extra tips for experienced gardeners.
Can I come with a friend?
Yes! Each of you books your own ticket in the same shared room type, then request each other in the registration form. Coming solo? Your registration answers help Casa Portal match roommates thoughtfully.
What are the bathrooms and rooms like?
Casa Portal is a working farm, so it's cozy rather than hotel-style. The farmhouse has four shared bathrooms with showers. Bedrooms are upstairs, and rooms have fans, but there's no air conditioning and no en-suite bathrooms. If you have mobility needs, please contact Casa Portal before booking.
The A-Frames are off-grid, with solar power for lights, heat and charging, and cell service, but no Wi-Fi and no running water. Cabin guests use shared outdoor bathrooms and solar-heated outdoor showers (hot water is limited), and have full access to the farmhouse bathrooms, showers, Wi-Fi and common spaces. Bring a flashlight or headlamp for walking back at night.
Can you work with dietary needs?
Chef Pete does his best to accommodate needs shared in advance, and vegetarian and vegan options are available. Share your needs when you register. If you have a severe allergy, please email info@casaportalretreats.com before booking. The kitchen is shared and not allergen-free, so cross-contact can't be fully ruled out.
How do I get there?
Casa Portal is at 83 Sullivan Road, Jackson, Maine 04921, with parking on site and one EV charger. Plan to arrive between 3 and 5 pm on Thursday and leave by 11 am on Sunday.
Flying: Bangor International Airport (BGR) is about 40 minutes away. Portland (PWM) is over 2 hours away, so rent a car if you fly there.
Getting from the airport: Rideshare isn't reliable out here, so please arrange your ride ahead of time. Local taxis: Brad's Taxi, 207-659-1704 (text preferred), and ABC Taxi, 207-659-4455 (call or text). Concord Coach Lines buses also run to Bangor and Belfast.
What if I need to cancel?
If you cancel more than 30 days before arrival, everything you've paid is refunded except the $500 deposit. At 30 days or fewer, no refunds are given for any reason, including illness, emergencies or travel delays. We strongly recommend travel insurance. You'll see the full booking terms before you pay.
If the retreat itself is cancelled, you'll get a full refund, including your deposit. Flights and other travel costs can't be reimbursed.
Is the schedule final?
Not yet. The schedule above is a sample and is subject to change based on weather, the garden and what's in season. We'll share the final plan before the retreat.
Who do I ask about booking or payments?
Casa Portal handles bookings and payments: info@casaportalretreats.com. For anything else, email us at gardengirlspod@gmail.com.
Come grow with us
12 places available in this first release. We can't wait to pour you a cup.