Manure

Well, it's officially winter now, and it's cold! My sister reminded me the other day, though, that we really only have two more months of winter before it begins to warm up in March - woohoo!

The beautiful Seed Savers Exchange catalog that came the other day provided some inspiration to get through the next few months, AND reminded me that I need to get busy planning some vegetables. At least the winter months do allow time for planning.......and dreaming....

In the spirit of garden planning, I've been oogling the horses across the street from our house. Well, more specifically, I've been admiring their manure (which is accumulating quickly on their tiny little pasture). For the non-gardeners, that might sound a little strange, but if you've ever had the luck to add composted horse manure to your gardens you would totally understand.

On Monday afternoon I noticed the owner outside and I shuffled across the busy road to introduce myself and present my proposition for some manure. The guy was super nice and didn't even blink an eye when I asked if I could scoop some of his poop for my compost. We talked a bit about his horses and then he told me that he's lived there for 40 years! The busy road that now divides his property from ours was just a dirt road when he first moved there and his family used to run cows on what is now our neighborhood (our house was built in the mid-80's). It was really interesting to hear him talk about what the area used to look like, albeit a little sad. But the more important thing is that he whole heartily agreed that I could indeed have as much manure as I wanted as long as I picked it up myself.

So, this afternoon I spent about an hour walking through his field with a pitchfork and bucket shuttling manure from field to tub in the back of my truck and over to my compost bin. I'm sure it was quite a sight - me pulling a bucket and too small pitchfork (definitely time to invest in a new one!) around the field with two curious horses following me from field to truck at least a dozen times. Crazy looks and car honks aside, I'm mighty pleased with the new arrangement and will anxiously await adding glorious compost to my vegetable beds this spring.

Now......because I promised more photographs with my posts, and I surely didn't think anyone would be interested in photos of horse poop, a few from my fall "garden" this year and my compost bin built from old deck boards this fall...... I think I have some better pictures of the lettuce on my camera, but the battery is currently dead.....maybe I'll share those later.

It's been a while....

So, I realized tonight it's been a while since I posted on here. I'm not really sure why I stopped, but I did, and now I'm back, so that's that.

I think the 2 people who actually read this already know what's been happening in my life, so I'll just do a quick update (in case I come back and read this in 10 years!).

I'm working for Fayetteville School District as an Energy Corps member. It's an interesting job - I still haven't figured out a short way to explain what I actually do, but suffice it to say I stay busy and work on a bunch of different projects. I've spent the first month and a half mostly meeting with people and making plans. It will be cool if half the stuff I've talked about comes to fruition. Maybe I'll blog about it......

Over the past two months I've also finished 40 hours of ropes course training (two weekends in Tulsa) and am officially an ACCT certified level 1 facilitator - yah! Most of the training was a review, but it was fun to meet some new people, climb some telephone poles, freeze my rear off, and practice rescuing someone from 30 feet in the air (a process that involves cutting a rope while suspended in air - hoorah!) Now I'm looking forward to a canopy tour training at the end of January in Ponca on the Buffalo River and hopefully a position working weekends there when it isn't 20 degrees outside.

Also still working for Southern Sustainable Agriculture Working Group on conference logistics. The conference is in mid-January. Looking forward to meeting all the cool farmers I've talked to through email and on the phone. Oh, and not having to force myself to be so organized.

So that's an update on life - sorry no pictures - I'll try to get back in to that habit.

Now for a recent funny short story.....

I signed up for a "cookie exchange" at work last week. I didn't really know what it was, but I like cookies and I enjoy baking (sometimes) so I thought it sounded good. I don't know why I don't ask more questions before committing to something.....

So, anyway, I learned that each person who signed up was supposed to bake a dozen cookies for each other person. Not so bad. Except 6 other people signed up. That's 6 dozen cookies. I don't like to bake that much.

I also realized I had a meeting the same time as the cookie exchange and couldn't actually be there, but since I was committed I sucked it up and baked for a few hours last night.

I dropped my cookies off early this morning and headed off to my meeting. My little chocolate chip, white chocolate chip, walnut cookies were packaged in individual ziploc bags with the recipe copied off the bag messily scribbled on an index card thrown in (the directions were to include the recipe).

Boy was I embarrassed when I came back after the exchange and saw everyone else's elaborate cookies (7 layer bars, Chocolate Nutella cookies, and Christmas Pizzelles among others) neatly wrapped in festive packages with printed recipes (some of the recipes were even festively decorated!). I didn't realize I was exchanging with such a creative group - FAIL. Now I'm glad I wasn't actually at the exchange to present my little homely looking treats.

I mentioned how I felt a little guilty to one of my coworkers - her response - "Oh, yours were great too! I think I tasted just a hint of salt."

A hint of salt?! I don't really know what that means in cookie terms, but it doesn't sound good to me. Epic fail.

At least I still got to bring home 6 dozen cookies :)

More NWA adventures

The weather has finally changed here and it feels like fall! We enjoyed the cool temperatures and sunshine this weekend by exploring some local events.

Bikes, Blues, and BBQ is an annual event in Fayetteville that welcomes over 100,000 motorcycles to the area - whew! We decided to partake in the festivities by attending the BBQ cookoff at the fairgrounds on Friday. For $6 each, we were handed a paper bowl and utensils and set off to try some meat. We tasted several smoked chicken selections, bbq beans, a little pork, and one bite of some yummy sausage.....and saw plenty of bikes and the interesting folks that ride them. We unfortunately spent as much time in line at each station as we did eating (they sold 3500 tickets for the tasting!) and didn't get to try them all before they ran out, but overall it was still an interesting and tasty experience. My vote for the "people's choice" award went to the folks who had this cool fire truck turned smoker (and gave me some sausage!).

Today we went to the Arkansas Apple Festival held in Lincoln, AR - a small agricultural town about 30 minutes southwest of Fayetteville. Apparently, Lincoln historically had a lot of orchards and in the early 1900s apples were a major export. To honor this history, the town started the apple festival 35 years ago. Unfortunately, most of the trees were already gone due to disease, insects, and poor varieties and they don't actually grow many apples anymore. (You can find the longer history of apples in NWA here ). The small town still has the annual festival but it has turned into more of an arts and crafts show than a celebration of the fruit of fall. To honor the roots of the festival they did, however, have free apple cider samples and a sliced apple for all attendees - too bad the apples were from Missouri....

So, not quite the apple festival experience I was expecting, but still a nice way to spend a beautiful Sunday afternoon. We did also get some kettle corn and stopped at a local store to pickup some delicious apple cider on the way home! We also saw some pretty cool old tractors, a nut roaster in action, and the coolest apple slicer ever.....

Lots of arts and crafts booths at the Arkansas Apple Festival...

Old timey nut roaster in action - smelled delicious!

Broom making

Tractor show!

Tractor break light

Notice the old pharmacy in the background - still a viable business in Lincoln

1958 Massey Ferguson

Free sliced apples! I tried to get a better shot, but was holding up the line and you know how people get when they want their apples...

Arkansas

Yesterday marked three weeks from closing on our new house in Fayetteville - whew! In that time I've painted the front door and shutters, purchased a used desk and chair for the living room and refinished it, repainted a bathroom vanity, and enjoyed just generally puttering around the yard. I have grand master plans for some edible landscaping, but we are unfortunately in a drought and I can't even get a shovel in the ground (it hasn't rained significantly since we moved). The temperature has finally dropped and it was an amazing 58 degrees the past two mornings at 6:30am. Hopefully the cooler weather will bring some rain soon so I can put in those blueberry bushes, fruit trees, and start a vegetable bed......

In between house projects, I've still been job hunting. I have a few applications out right now, but the search has been quite challenging. It seems there are plenty of interesting things happening around here and like minded people, but very few employment opportunities. In the meantime, I've been networking and trying to learn about some area projects.

Last week, I connected with the fine folks with Apple Seeds, Inc. - a local nonprofit working on garden and nutrition programming in the public schools. They also collaborate with GroGreen, the University of Arkansas student garden organization. I'm sure you'll be hearing more about them over the next several months...... http://appleseedsinc.org/whoweare.php

I also met the coordinator for the Fayetteville Community Garden Coalition and attended one of their committee meetings. The coordinator is actually a horticulturalist for Parks & Rec. and organizes the committee as a small part of her paid position. They serve as a networking and support group for several newly started community gardens throughout the city. It was really interesting to learn about their model of supporting the community (they recently hosted an a community workshop using asset based community development programming!) and responding to citizen interest in community gardens. Their objective is not to start gardens, but rather to provide the resources to help community members start and sustain gardens. They just started about a year ago and are still figuring out exactly what this looks like, but it sounds like they are on the right track and I look forward to supporting them as well! I think this type of organization is what Charlottesville was missing - some way to network between gardens and provide a consistent contact. Hmmm.....http://www.fayettevillegardens.org/

I also visited a farm :) I thought there may be some temporary employment opportunity with them, but they're tapped out for labor AND they're an hour drive from Fayetteville (including several miles on a very rough dirt road). It was super cool to go visit, though, and learn more about what they're doing. A nice reprieve from this city life too. I didn't take any pictures, but you can see some good ones on their website here - http://www.drippingspringsgarden.com/. They are certified organic and do primarily cut flowers (making for absolutely beautiful fields) and some produce. They've been farming there for almost 25 years and it is very clear they have a well established system and are well respected for the products they produce. I will definitely be supporting them at the farmers market and may volunteer here or there just to soak up some of their overflowing knowledge.

Whew, so between all of that, going to Bee Branch twice to see the family and spending several hours in a kayak on at least three different bodies of water it's been a busy three weeks. Many more adventures ahead! Oh, and there are a few pictures of the house on facebook that most of you probably already saw - I'll try to take some more this weekend - especially the before and after of the new deck we are building :)

Goodbye Twin Springs

I worked my last day at Twin Springs Farm on Friday. It's been a wonderful year and three months learning the ins and outs of small-scale, sustainable agriculture. I had the pleasure to work for amazing people - Gary and Jeanne Scott - and learned a great deal from them. I learned to identify common garden pests; how to grow throughout the year using unheated hoop houses; how to seed, transplant, and harvest a variety of vegetables; and a host of other important skills. I also learned to love cool mornings, afternoon breezes, the changing leaves in the fall, ripe blueberries, and soaking rains. I'm going to miss the early morning drives to Nelson County, the warm welcome from Akira the farm dog, the joy of harvesting (and eating!) fresh produce throughout the year, the cackle of hens laying eggs.......I'm even going to miss the satisfaction of pulling weeds and smashing squash bugs, but most of all, I'm going to miss the farm itself and the joy of growing. Thank you, Twin Springs, for everything.

Below are a few photos of the farm recently - you can see it's the height of the season right now with tomatoes, peppers, cantaloupes, watermelons, lettuce, squash, beets, okra, and raspberries all being harvested. You can also now keep up with the farm throughout the year on the new blog: twinspringsfarmva.wordpress.com (featuring many of my pictures from throughout the year!)

It may be a bit before my next post, but check back for photos of the new house and adventures in my new garden! I'm already planning where to plant the first blueberry bushes.....

Summer Delights

I've decided I love summer. I thought fall was my favorite season with its changing leaves, crisp mornings, and hint of woodsmoke in the evenings; or maybe spring, with fresh rain, muddy boots, and the promise of life returning with the first sprouts of the season. But, alas, I've been converted to a summer girl (at least for the next few weeks until we move to Arkansas where I might die a quick and sweaty death of heat exhaustion). I think it has something to do with the endless days, golden suntan (I once had a friend say even fat looks better when its tan - I totally agree), a cool breeze driving with the windows down, oh, and of course......the food!

The past few weeks have been exceptionally good for fresh food forays. Between the farm, garden, and other adventures - I've had plenty of deliciousness. I apologize in advance for these photos that will undoubtedly make you hungry, but, alas, this will have to suffice until someone invents edible film........

Blackberry picking on the 4th of July, turned into........

.......the most delicious dessert I may have ever eaten.

The other food was pretty tasty as well (everything homemade with mostly local ingredients): potato salad, coleslaw, corn salad/salsa, pasta salad, refrigerator pickles, watermelon, sausage, and berry mojitos! (I neglected to take a picture of them - I think I was too busy slurping mine down)

And a sampling from the UVa Community Garden.......

Purple hull peas and "sun gold" cherry tomatoes

Peppers, patty pan squash and more tomatoes (these all went into omelets with eggs from the farm for dinner the other night)

Garlic drying on the patio

Freshly dug Yukon Gold and All Blue Potatoes......before.....

........and after.

Cucumbers and garlic from the garden, dill from the farm........before.....

......during......

......and after. (I'll let you know how they taste in about a week)

Truck Farming?

"Truck farming" used to be a common term in most rural areas referring to people who grew vegetables and took them to markets. The terminology has faded away (as well as many truck farmers) as our food system has mostly large scale industrial agriculture with products transported by train and tractor trailers. The "modern" truck farm now often takes the CSA model (community supported agriculture) in which families pay a lump sum of money at the beginning of the season to a small local farm in exchange for weekly "shares" of produce throughout the season. This model helps provide farmers essential funds at the beginning of the season when expenses are especially high. Many small scale farmers also still rely on weekly farmer's markets and wholesale to restaurants and grocery stores to distribute produce.

While I find the changes in terminology fairly fascinating, the most important thing is that small scale farmers DO still exist and are slowly increasing in numbers. I'm not sure we will ever return to the number of true truck farmers there once were (or that this even makes sense anymore), but diversifying production methods is definitely a step toward strengthening our local food systems, communities, and economies.

So.....in the spirit of truck farming.....a few pictures from the farm. All of this talk of truck farms was inspired by the old flat bed Ford on the farm. While it isn't actually used for transporting produce to market, it does come in handy around the farm for many uses.........and leaves me wondering - is this a new definition for "truck farming"?

Amherst Milling Company

I went to Amherst Milling Company (and farm supply store) last week to pick up a few things for the farm with Gary. It was like stepping back in time. Amazing old building right on the railroad tracks (formerly used for delivering supplies) that still has an active mill. The inside of the building is stacked wall to wall, ceiling to floor with every farm supply you didn't know you needed until you saw it there.

I didn't take any pictures inside because it was pretty dark (and that would be a little awkward), but below are a few of the building and the mishmash of stuff around it. There were also chickens, guinea hens, ducks, a peacock, and rabbits, but the ducks were hissing at me so I didn't think they really wanted their picture taken.

Favorite part of the experience - seeing the owner weigh out black eyed pea seeds on a scale that may or may not have been there since the store opened in the late 1800s. Oh, it was also pretty great to see so many other people there making purchases. Amherst Mill is clearly no tourist stop - it's a vital part of a rural community that still has backyard gardens at every house and old men in overalls who swap stories and catch up on the local news at the feed store.

Broccoli and more

It's broccoli time on the farm again! With a few days of cool weather and plenty of rain followed by an abundance of sunshine and warm temperatures, the broccoli has come on full force. We've already harvested a few hundred pounds and there's more to go.......

The strawberries are just finishing up and the early blueberries coming on - the perfect overlap to enjoy them together - yummy!!! Still picking sugar snap peas, carrots, onions, and lettuce. Cucumbers, squash, and peppers just coming on, tomatoes coming soon......

Definitely back in the swing again working 3 days a week at the farm and accumulating a good mix of dirt, sweat, sunscreen, bug spray, and miscellaneous vegetable scraps on everything I own - oh, summer time :)