From A Microscope to Mountain Views

As a child, Regina Schwarzenbach spent hours with her eye pressed to a microscope, mesmerized by the intricate world of insects. “Even at a young age, I was deeply impressed by the diversity and beauty of nature,” she recalls. “I could spend hours immersed in small details. Under the microscope, I discovered hidden worlds. These fine and fascinating structures showed me how artful, diverse, and at the same time sensitive nature is.”

Today, her laboratory is Hof Zalpenblick, a farm reaching across the windswept heights of Hirzel, where Zurich's skyline meets the Alps. These 21.5 hectares form a diverse ecosystem where Regina and her team tend to the earth and the local community.

“In one teaspoon of soil, there are more microorganisms than all of the people on the planet," she says. "When we support diversity in nature - even if it is microscopically small - we build a strong and resilient whole.”

This conviction underpins Regina’s approach. For her, farming is about caring for all forms of life, even those we cannot see. From the smallest bacteria and fungi to a bounty of fresh produce and wildlife, Hof Zalpenblick is a rich environment where all life can thrive.

Giving a Farm New Life

20 years ago, Hof Zalpenblick stood empty. It was just one of many Swiss farms abandoned because it was considered too small to survive. Regina and her partner Matthias took it over in 2004 with a determination to bring it back to life.

Today, Hof Zalpenblick grows 50 varieties of vegetables and maintains 30 cows and 3 sheep. Regina and her team follow the principles of regenerative agriculture and are certified with the Bio Suisse label. Their work begins with nourishing the soil.

They cover the ground with plants and ensure diverse plantings so the micro-organisms have many different foods to eat. They avoid the use of tractors that compact the soil, leaving micro-organisms that call it home with no oxygen to breathe. They don’t use methods that disturb or upturn the soil. “That would be like turning your house upside down.” Regina laughs. “We don’t want to disturb their habitat.” The team also tends to what happens above ground, promoting biodiversity and refreshing from using even organic-approved pesticides. Instead, they focus on creating small, spatially closed cycles relying on nature’s genius to solve problems on the farm.

“The conviction that healthy food comes from intact nature and healthy soils has always been my guiding principle,” Regina explains. For her, regenerative agriculture offered the opportunity to fundamentally rethink production methods and create a sustainable alternative that takes into account the well-being of nature and people alike.

For this reason, meadows are cut with insect- and soil-friendly sickle bar mowers, and pastures are grazed by light-footed, traditional Grauvieh cows. The cows are horned and raised with patience and care, their calves stay with their mothers and drink directly from the udder. Even at the end of their lives, the animals remain on the farm and are slaughtered with calm and dignity through on-site processing, a stress-free final path.

“We cannot separate the well-being of nature from the health of ourselves.” Regina emphasizes. “We are part of the web of life and it is our responsibility to maintain its delicate balance.”

Facilitating Connection On Every Level

Hof Zalpenblick has become a place of encounter and learning. The farm welcomes school children and apprentices to learn. They sell their meat and produce as locally as possible including to chefs in the Zurich area who transform their goods into amazing dishes.

Regina is honest about the challenges of running a regenerative business in Switzerland where the market is still young and often misunderstood. “Without proper education for why the pricing is high to account for the environmental benefits, regenerative produce often seems too expensive,” Regina explains. She hopes that Switzerland's political landscape will shift to support these methods and that more consumers will use their purchasing power to support regeneration.

Hof Zalpenblick shows us that the more diverse a network is, the stronger it is. The farm is an interplay of thousands of creatures above and below ground supported by the farm workers and customers who tend to this delicate ecosystem. By nurturing all forms of life, they remind us that we were never separate from nature, rather we are an integral part of the web of life.