tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-32952540895964127522024-02-19T07:25:09.179-08:00Camp Pleasant, Frankfort KentuckyCamp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.comBlogger23125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-31224461227639549662011-08-14T14:54:00.000-07:002011-08-14T14:57:28.556-07:00announcement<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">APPALACHIAN HERBALISM and TRADITIONAL WESTERN MEDICINE MAKING</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> { with Andrew Alexander Ozinskas at Camp Pleasant Farm}</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">ANNOUNCING TWO MORE WORKSHOPS in the same weekend:</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">FIELD IDENTIFICATION CLASS for BEGINNERS</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> Friday, AUGUST 19th 6-8:30pm</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">*Explore local ecology on field walks in the Peaks Mill area of</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Franklin</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">County</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">*Be introduced to basic plant identification and classification of</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">wild</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">plants</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">*Discuss principles of traditional western medicine</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">*Create a pressed plant specimen to be preserved for reference</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">With interest we can offer this class in several seasons to cultivate</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">year</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">long ability to gather your own medicines in your backyard, as the</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">plants</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">and parts of plants used will vary with timing. The current drought-</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">like</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">midsummer climate will foster an experience closer to winter</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">identification</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">as many plants have matured early or are dormant.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Suggested Cost is $20</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Details:</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Eat your own meal and drink plenty of water before you come, only</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">light</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">refreshments will be provided. Call beforehand with dietary</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">restrictions.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Wear long pants and shoes for hiking in tall brush, on slippery and</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">uneven</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">surfaces, and up and down hills. Call beforehand with physical</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">concerns.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Bring a heavy book with which to press and take home your specimens.</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">BEGINNING A SMALL MEDICINE CHEST</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">WORKSHOP SUNDAY, AUGUST 21, 2-5pm</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">*Description above applies with a longer time frame and a focus on 10</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">plants</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">we have chosen to represent a range of plant families and medicinal</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">actions.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">For those interested in beginning home herbal medicine making. Our</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">goal is</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">to make as many specimen pages as people attend the class and to share</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">the</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">resulting compilation with the group in the following weeks as a</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">lasting</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">reference for your home use. Detailed descriptions of plant medicine</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">for</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">each species identified.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">FOLLOW DETAILS section ABOVE</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Suggested Cost is $25</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">CALL to RSVP to one or both classes: 502-227-1743 Camp Pleasant</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Questions: Andrew (443)695-3057 or Camp Pleasant 502-227-1743(after</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">August</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">16th)</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">ADDRESS: 1143 Camp Pleasant Road Frankfort KY 40601</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">DIRECTIONS: From Frankfort take 127North out of town and check the</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">odometer</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">at Cove Springs Park. 7.6 miles from Cove Springs turn Right onto</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Hwy2919/Indian Gap Road. This road takes you by the Fish Hatchery.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Indian</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Gap dead ends in 3 miles at a stop sign, where you Turn Left onto</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Hwy1707/Camp Pleasant Road. Our driveway is 9 tenths of a mile on the</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Right,</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">mailbox says 1143, and there is a shingle-sided barn right next to the</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">road</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">on your right just before the drive. Mailbox will be marked with</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">something</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">obvious. Allow 20-25 minutes from Frankfort.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">For directions from anywhere other than Frankfort, give us a call at</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">502-227-1743.</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">{Presented by: Andrew Alexander Ozinskas, an herbalist, wildcrafter,</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">medicine maker, alchemist and friend who recently returned to KY to</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">care for</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">his 9th generation family farm in Owen County. This workshop begins a</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">series</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">that will continue as interest builds.</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Hosted by: Camp Pleasant Farm, a certified organic, permaculture-</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">inspired</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">cooperative experiment in northeast Franklin County involving annual</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">and</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">perennial food and medicine growing and now selling at Franklin County</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings. We are currently: melissa</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">calhoun,</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">Brian Geier, and Sean Nitchmann. }</span>
<br />
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">P.S. Several interested could not make the previous workshop on home</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">making</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">of essential oils. Stay tuned for a repeat in October. Also, as we</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">design</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">future offerings we'd love to hear from you about your interests. See</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">contacts above or email </span><a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" href="https://tern.riseup.net/sm/src/compose.php?send_to=andrew.ozinskas%40gmail.com">andrew.ozinskas@gmail.com</a><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> with your desires</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">for</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">herbal knowledge. Please respond to </span><a style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);" href="https://tern.riseup.net/sm/src/compose.php?send_to=lockedmelissa%40yahoo.com">lockedmelissa@yahoo.com</a><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"> to receive</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">email</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">notices of future offerings.</span>
<br /><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">We are open to alternative exchange; we are all creative people.</span>
<br /></div><pre><span style="color: rgb(255, 255, 255);">ENJOY</span>
<br />
<br /></pre>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-35660607965329937222011-07-22T08:14:00.000-07:002011-07-22T09:00:10.635-07:00appalachian herbalism at camp pleasantLast weekend we hosted our first publicized herb workshop here at Camp Pleasant Farm. Admittedly, I did little for this effort, since my head is stuck in pickle, kraut, and farm world, but Melissa, together with our friend Andrew Ozinskas from Henry County, pulled off a wonderful day of working with herbs. We had about 20 people attend a 5 hour day complete with fresh lunch. <br /><br /><br /><div><br /><div>This blog post is just to share a glimpse of this kind of work that is being done here; it is in no way an attempt to pass on knowledge of herbs or how to process and use them. If you are interested in learning and attending gatherings in the future, don't hesitate to get in touch. We think this was a success and we plan to do more of this kind of workshop in the future. That said, enjoy some pics...</div><br /><p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632200867112975330" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNwwpgmogF4i9ImhuvrpdQTb_W36DPUrSGZzHOuEtRJvonrxBdmWNSIMniHUWTWchsUbsV2UzbDxQatq2y72qPRkfXnV-B5QBiqfwoKO3GMg1hyphenhyphenQ7gv6cSwy37KLPp4gLC7ztOFzIj8BI/s320/and1.JPG" /><br />After a little meditation to get us all in the mood, we ventured out into the landscape to look at plants and listen to Andrew. We didn't make it far before we were circled around a plant we all recognize in July, Queen Ann's Lace, which I am sure is known by many herbalists by a more complex and fitting scientific name. If anyone can take a common"weed" and talk for 20 minutes and hold everyone's attention despite a heat index of 100, it is Andrew, who is a young, and frankly brilliant, herbalist. I am honored to have him at Camp Pleasant and I hope we continue to facilitate learning environments with him.</p><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 214px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 320px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632202261519135682" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinNou66SF7l9mUyvidj6Elpt5o4QEEeXt9ca85AfTeY_2VjVww3Zw9Z5HjAIboPcauRXtn4-8JblLFVnK0aZ5EGbYuyZaHFO5hgdHEpzeb145DQBjykbCkGy2w5oaV-IwBXisxfnDgQ9k/s320/cross1.JPG" /> Crossvine, a powerful medicinal which was found and talked about. Each of us in the workshop were encouraged to pick a plant from the landscape and fill a jar with it. Later, when inside, we talked again about each herb and added alcohol to the jar to prepare a simple tincture...so everyone went home with a little something.</div><br /><div><br /></div><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632203177330424034" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGTxZIIE13x4CLPqEGT0kMjKGfPo4o-ScFDxO13E5MgOrBPVMtOI2iG3NEXlhWAWFo9n4-r6qpxny4IXNC9dtv4v5ta3jg92X7xJ4NbrltQGm87koyTLftKQWKKfGI78Su93PoB4ww2KY/s320/work1.JPG" /><br />After working on individual tinctures, we moved onto a larger process of distilling essential oils from plants. Andrew gave us a nice description of what essential oils actually are (chrystalline particles on plants), which I will not attempt to recreate here. Again, I only want to give people a taste of the workshop and encourage you to get in touch if you would like to learn this stuff for yourself. (I'm a farmer and a very amatuer blogger, not an herbalist in any fashion...)<br /><br /><br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632203181865846994" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizoa4wfcegLC_D3zEDIjX9C7L2vtzzaDvW9lemk-s2Pt8a46CH0VQHNKOLS3WFnIVpTvqqnyGE0yG3qW5MxnUx5s3HEEHfB4iy26h1yszpijhktWFsqwV6pbnbmEUihQM0nVTiNNT1KTs/s320/bigstill1.JPG" /><br />The essential oil distillation setup, including a pot of boiling water on the left, feeding steam into the large glass carboy filled with a mugwort-type plant. The steam travels around the plant matter, absorbing, among other things, the essential oils, which then travel to the right and through a condensor, which is being cooled by water being pumped around it via a small fish-tank water pump in the plastic bucket near the carboy. The essential oil and hydrosol exits the condensor at the bottom right of the picture and is deposited into a little funnel-type container where the hydrosol can be drained, leaving behind the essential oils.<br /><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5632203187968085282" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipdNZv5iGbimwkz2lcG8dF8Q4pX3g5bFetq5CCs_zmGtqjPZMz_Mm_zUV_06OxqhpAp3PgvY2rkXBH5Ha1bHnzH-gl3X4riSVEsVcXKgjdnB79D8nBv1in7ylnAID6s3MqcB1_gE9z2P4/s320/still1.JPG" />A chalkboard drawing of a simpler distillation setup, which might be the topic of a future workshop, where participants would be given plans and details of the components of a small essential oil-extraction system for the home. Yes, that is a chalkboard on the wall. Just get a can of chalkboard paint and cover up a part of your wall, and presto, you have a chalkboard in the house. We have two. We love them.Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-90713749036078479092011-07-11T18:18:00.000-07:002011-07-11T19:36:48.114-07:00Summer and Gratitude: There I am with itWell, we're in the thick of it now. Whether watching weeds grow inches every week, or tubing with friends on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Elkhorn</span> creek, it is most definitely summer.<br /><br />I thought I'd just write a bit of my mid-summer thoughts and realizations about farming, on a bit of a personal bit...<br /><br />First off, let me say, I love growing plants. I love farming. That is, I love having my work with plants being the most significant work in my life. It makes me wonder what it is in each of us that drives us to certain passions like working with plants, or with music, or as teachers. What makes me do this? What makes me give up salaries, health insurance, financial stability, climate control, dinners out, and other goodies of the typical work life for constant physical labor, headaches from homework plans involving complex biological, economical, and social conditions, and low pay? Especially when there is already so much food being produced and thrown away by the society around me? Why do this? Why am I not traveling the world in some other passionate pursuit?<br /><br />Of course, these are questions that are easy for me to answer, and that is what I wanted to share.<br /><br />Last Saturday morning, I woke up around 4:30 am to finish washing veggies for market. I walked out into my little produce washing area, set my coffee cup down and watched the steam pour into the stars. I walked to turn on the hose, my rubber boots making a familiar scuffle sound that takes parts of my brain simultaneously to farms of my past. I remember my boots scuffling amongst horse manure in Maine, and in a backyard turned into a veggie patch surrounded by an Indiana cornfield, and I am filled with gratitude for my life. I wash carrots, bent over with a hose, gently rubbing the roots onto the ground to loosen the soil and make them shine a bright, crisp orange. How did something so bright and orange form in the dark, dank soil? I wonder and smile, and take the best carrot and crunch it in my mouth, and for a moment, I need nothing ever again except that sweet carrot, whose flavor is so fresh and alive that I dare not swallow it, but rather chew it endlessly so I can prolong the experience of tasting it. Having worked for several minutes with the carrots, bent over, I stood up to stretch my back and to take another hit of coffee, which was no longer steamy, but was still under stars, which, now that the sun had begun its slow rise, were beginning to fade into the brilliant pinks and purples of dusk. Cue the birdsong, those first few notes of awakening from the trees. And there I am, with it: stars, dusk, birdsong, and muddy carrots. There I am with it. Gratitude filled me like the air in my lungs, touching my blood and all over my body. Gratitude for feeling an intense, intimate experience with the living earth around me. For as long as I can remember, since being a child full of wonder in the woods of Indiana, I have wanted nothing more than to remain intimate with the earth around me. That, ultimately, is what keeps me farming: I want little more in my life than moments of gratitude for and experiences with the life around me. I am there with it; that is why I do this. Honestly, for me, the food and sharing it with my community, and all the vitality that comes with that, is secondary. Its a close second, but it is secondary to such moments.<br /><br />Such a close second is the food!<br /><br />About a week or so ago I was out on a far side of a cabbage patch, admiring the quick summer growth of the plants, looking down to my left, when, out of the corner of my eye, to the right I spotted the first, large, deeply black, ripe blackberry on the vine. I had had a few of the small wild variety, but this was one of those Chester <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Thornless</span> ones, the ones that can be so big that children have to take bites out of them instead of eating them whole. For two weeks I had been watching them turn from green to red to dark red, waiting anxiously for the blacks to appear, for they are the sign of sure sweetness. I paused, took a quick breath of relief at my wait being over, and exhaled in a preparation for this thing that was about to come, and popped it in my mouth. Immediately my head rose, pointing my face toward the sky, my eyes close, my mouth is ecstatic from the sweetness. But most importantly and much to my surprise, my brain is clicked into a more smoothly-running gear than before, like when you plunge into cool water on a hot day, where suddenly everything everywhere that has ever happened makes absolute sense. I am tasting, no, I am <span style="font-style: italic;">experiencing</span>, the blackberries for the first time since last summer. My body is remembering the previous year and it is immensely grateful not only for the return of this cycle and for all that passed during the last year, but for the simple fact that it is here to experience the cycle. It is there with it. I think of what I used to think of when I thought of the meaning of the word taste (that it is simply a sensation that happens in your mouth and brain), or even what I thought of the meaning smell (that it indicates what is in front of your nose and associates it with memories), and I realize that eating food fresh from its ecosystem (especially when you are intimately inside/alongside that ecosystem on a regular basis for many years) becomes a life-enhancing act full of gratitude, wonder, and joy. That blackberry made me laugh, then cry, in <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">ecstasy</span>. That's right, I cried when I ate a blackberry. I'm pretty sure that makes me really cool and not a weirdo or a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">phoo</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">phoo</span> freak. The entire experience was validated when I gave my friend John Rodgers his first blackberry of the season on farm day last week. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Bam</span>! Like he'd been shot with some powerful drug, his eyes shut, his head went back, the world faded, and there he was: in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">blackberryness</span>, the sweet, dark, giving world of the fruit. His eyes opened and he began to try to articulate his feeling when I quickly butted in and asked if it made him think of last year's first berry. Shaking his head in a quiet but sure agreement, he finished his berry tasting with a content smile.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Ahh</span> summer! Here we are with it.Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-13224477609407600532011-05-21T14:17:00.000-07:002011-05-22T21:05:01.627-07:00Saturday at Farmer's Market: Strawberries and Wild (but not "Organic") Oyster Mushrooms<span class="Apple-style-span">Today we setup for our third week at farmer's market. We brought our potted plants, such as blackberry, raspberry, currant, and elderberry, as well as many of Melissa's native, medicinal, and/or tea herbs such as wild columbine, echinacea, and mints. </span><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span">This Saturday was the first day we brought strawberries to the market. We had a modest but significant harvest (about 14 quarts). We priced them at $4 a pint and $6 a quart, which is a dollar above our other vendor-farmers, who get $3 or $5 for conventionally grown berries. At the beginning of market, a fellow farmer admired our berries, and assured me that asking for more for organic was a good thing to try. It worked well, and we were out of berries before market was halfway over. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span">We also brought some wild-harvested oyster mushrooms. It has been so rainy this spring, and there have been many days when it was too wet to do anything in the fields. This is the perfect time to go be in our forests, admiring the spring flushes of fungi, and carefully collecting edibles. I was happy to find a massive sycamore stump that was loaded with oyster mushrooms near the bank of the Kentucky River. The mushrooms were brought to market, and several pounds are bound for the dinner plate tonight in Frankfort and the surrounding area. It feels nice to share the bounty. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span">We had to change one of our signs at market this week, due to the wild-harvested mushrooms. One of our market signs says "Everything's Organic", which has been true until today. The mushrooms are not certified organic, so we had to take down the "Everything's Organic" sign and label the mushrooms as "wild". In order to market mushrooms as organic, a farmer/harvester can abide by the reasonable rules laid out in this document, which I find very interesting:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><a href="http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5090757">http://www.ams.usda.gov/AMSv1.0/getfile?dDocName=STELPRDC5090757</a></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span">As a summary to the article above...in order to say our wild-harvested mushrooms are organic, we must submit a process of harvesting to our certifier, the Kentucky Department of Agriculture, and it must show that we are enhancing the natural system where the mushrooms are found. I'm impressed by this area of the organic standards, and I find it inspiring. It is another reason why I like to participate in the National Organic Program (NOP). I understand that the rules have many limits and sometimes are abused, but in so many cases, they are so entirely useful. Wild harvesting is just the latest area I have discovered where they are useful, because they really do have ecosystem health in mind. </span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span">The NOP is also very useful when it comes to seeds. No genetically engineered seeds are allowed in organic production; the organic seed market is a powerful mode of protecting strains of seeds from genetically modified genes. Another way seed users benefit from the NOP: Seeds that are kept within the evolution of organic farms pass on the traits of thriving within a biodiverse and natural ecosystem, not traits of doing well with generous applications of synthetic chemicals. I'll write more about organic seed production as the season goes on. . .for now, it is Saturday afternoon, I have returned from market, and I slept very little last night. Naptime.</span></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-62520579375371462072011-05-11T05:22:00.001-07:002011-05-11T07:04:51.292-07:002011 at "Camp Pleasant Farm"<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLIsx3_gIcO0XRd_m1ksypoLYZhoQgZCthPWu2EX1w5pM0TjN7V53xvgxkSIjKKuiJIHBrxf06fuB0jccSJg7WoK0kcGgnVxOaVFQk7W7uULqAufxjQCwR9dm5Z9VWUW_xCJrOM09hjsk/s1600/DSC_1853.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 164px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLIsx3_gIcO0XRd_m1ksypoLYZhoQgZCthPWu2EX1w5pM0TjN7V53xvgxkSIjKKuiJIHBrxf06fuB0jccSJg7WoK0kcGgnVxOaVFQk7W7uULqAufxjQCwR9dm5Z9VWUW_xCJrOM09hjsk/s320/DSC_1853.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605448521840185474" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJxlTTbz-DqD8znuCsZiShyphenhyphenkj762nfGaRyKdhyN0RIaBlMw0MMbT3L4PWIbFMmx-8HEVwRuhjzO8EGOpjRz80U7nvu5Mzyk76DgaxhNOxofpBm2sZw-s8srf8qc5SI9akuBPs6OTsKm0o/s1600/DSC_1862.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVLpwd7FtyHw3rkL4JORp0Zt0hcQrZltEIYKyrTX2OIFmFta3x-nPeL2LdUMs2IkZYE5z71mQsX3WEJzsQgkgzNFRpP4oXzUUD_DmUFIpfUHiQUJ2SB5MFeP4K-TPmNdJV4ZHIxQGUVdk/s1600/DSC_1860.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgqEQwa-sbZ8knov7jn_u6ZGG6gV94xTu5wvWoMkCqA4VoeW9Rq2De19OlU8_TU1sXC1Y9qcfDzPWkanQoIRPG7M3yB8ps2FAVswQeWK_4hJ1d1rtzue4FITOBSYf4vnJ1pYmK2QxnRIU/s1600/DSC_1853.jpg" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}"><br /></a>Last Saturday we setup at the Franklin County Farmer's Market in downtown Frankfort. It was our first time, and it was a totally positive experience. We're all looking forward to a season of sharing fresh food with Frankfort! Its still early in the season of produce, so we mostly have potted plants and some garlic from 2010, but we're looking forward to lots of fruits and veggies and krauts and pickles in the near future.<div><br /></div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVLpwd7FtyHw3rkL4JORp0Zt0hcQrZltEIYKyrTX2OIFmFta3x-nPeL2LdUMs2IkZYE5z71mQsX3WEJzsQgkgzNFRpP4oXzUUD_DmUFIpfUHiQUJ2SB5MFeP4K-TPmNdJV4ZHIxQGUVdk/s320/DSC_1860.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605447684363299682" style="float: right; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div>In this second pic here, Sean is exhibiting how we all felt at our first market: tired. We had a party the night before for a few early May birthdays, we barely selpt, and woke early to prepare for market. It was great. I love exhaustion from doing what you love. I also thought that this pic was nice because both Sean and Katie look great, and I am vein. </div><div><br /></div><div>A friend of ours, who we hadn't seen for months, came to our market stand and surprised us by saying that he had been following this blog. I was flattered, of course, but also puzzled. We haven't posted anything in close to a year; can you really follow something that doesn't move? Isn't that just called waiting? Anyway, that was inspiration enough to think about trying once again to share some of our projects and life via the blog. And now that I am house-sitting for some friends who have a good internet connection, I can easily access blog-ville. (Usually I have to use a community computer in town which that isn't reliable.) So, for the next couple weeks anyway, I figure, why not post?</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJxlTTbz-DqD8znuCsZiShyphenhyphenkj762nfGaRyKdhyN0RIaBlMw0MMbT3L4PWIbFMmx-8HEVwRuhjzO8EGOpjRz80U7nvu5Mzyk76DgaxhNOxofpBm2sZw-s8srf8qc5SI9akuBPs6OTsKm0o/s320/DSC_1862.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5605447691463829154" style="float: right; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 127px; " /></span></div><div>Aside from growing things for farmer's market, we are also growing a ton of cabbage (literally, 2-3 tons) and cucumbers for krauts and pickles, as well as some seed crops like tomatoes and cowpeas and valerian for our friends at the Acorn Community who operate Southern Exposure Seed Exchange. (<a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.southernexposure.com">www.southernexposure.com</a>) We are a certified organic farm so that we can participate in distribution of organically raised seeds: those that are non-GMO and raised and selected for their suitability within an organic ecosystem. While we may not need the certification for our local customers, who know us and trust how we farm, the certification is one way to help farmers and gardeners navigate the seed world so they can work with good seed.</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyway, this last pic shows us busy at the farm, weeding one of the cabbage patches. In this pic, you can see that its a small mob of people helping which was GREAT. We have instituted Farm Day on Tuesdays, where Melissa, Sean, and I (Brian) spend the day working together at the farm. And now other people are showing up; yesterday we were graced with the presence of some of our good town friends, Katie French and John Rodgers. And we were super lucky to have run into our new friend Andrew, who we found on Highway 127, on his trusty touring bike, on his way home to Minnesota from Argentinia! Yes, Argentinia...he's been biking since 2009! Later in the day our friend Don, who runs <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.openground.info">Open Ground</a>, <a href="http://www.blogger.com/www.openground.info">www.openground.info</a>, a land-based project for folks who get left out, stopped by with his new WWOOF'er from England. Its becoming clear to me that when a project gets to a certain point, it starts to magnetize people, and it feels like this is starting to happen with our farm and with the season. We're all looking forward to making new connections and strengthening existing ones. We welcome anyone who desires to come out any Tuesday and help us out with our farm day; it is a good time. We work hard but take good breaks for swimming and cooling off, and we have time to work and chat about life, farming, etc. The more the merrier! We also have plenty of space for visitors who wish to stay a little while. . . </div><div><br /></div><div>I was hoping that posting to blogger would be quick and painless, but here I am an hour and a half later, finally finishing the post with pics. I can't promise this blog will be regularly updated; I put little emphasis on this kind of technology because frankly it hurts my brain and usually it just seems like I have better things to do than sit in front of a computer. But we've also made some good connections with the web, and met some great people from near and far with it, so I will try to share what we are doing, because I enjoy the magnetism and attraction that is bringing lovely people together who are working and learning good things. </div><div><br /></div><div>It is warm, the sun in shining, folks are out planting summer crops...summer has begun in my book. Enjoy!</div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><br /></span></div></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-36159739240044807402010-05-28T06:55:00.000-07:002010-05-28T07:41:32.741-07:00Another Chicken Coop: Low Cost and Portable<div style="text-align: center;"><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot.jpg" alt="" /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.jpg" alt="" /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5IGds44M1fpX00d4b-GtRaJrTaTzE7lWIcgzaqyRl1sEF2So5r3XcaGtzao32r1yge4K49f45C_-NKtkeuy40OeJgDlbk52fzedu7CrLeMjbYksI5GDdA_PX05hB3DemYRfM_I7ykJCw/s1600/maychick0.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5IGds44M1fpX00d4b-GtRaJrTaTzE7lWIcgzaqyRl1sEF2So5r3XcaGtzao32r1yge4K49f45C_-NKtkeuy40OeJgDlbk52fzedu7CrLeMjbYksI5GDdA_PX05hB3DemYRfM_I7ykJCw/s320/maychick0.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476322786908851794" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAHAJr7CexNhJI1I5SdEQzl0iN6d77TpooluDLw-URXhUwcCHV-VdBQhrsuETQ_OAbFz6Q8lRAowKwozvlKVCB5uG7tQHZKGiNS3he4fd4jVCRIkHgjrGfStXyhdqfScdu5ASKmlSTyXg/s1600/maychick0.JPG"><br /></a></div>A few weeks ago I was visiting <a href="http://www.foxhollow.com/Home.html">Fox Hollow Farm</a> near Louisville, where I got a good look at this portable chicken house for their laying hens. The CSA farmer there, Pavel, was nice enough to send me some pictures so that I could use some of his design in a coop that I was planning to build. This house was inspiring because it is made from scraps (wood, metal roof, and irrigation line for the skids) and low-cost materials (chicken wire and a few hinges). It was also inspiring because it is movable and contained within an electric fence, which has been an idea I've wanted to bring to our farm for some time now.<br /><br /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-4.jpg" alt="" /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-5.jpg" alt="" /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib6B2-v_8oL1y47ayxjTbXsVktz7wwS3CiHyGkrAUhvExPlEP43YIJgmMgq6tBH0-JBPlDc5jtx4MRxc9rxNtihc3RQWPR0qdGuxODx7RM3QfQezjKhGqDEous0XMIzaEQ_Y_rFUjPp9E/s1600/may+chickens+005.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 171px; height: 239px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib6B2-v_8oL1y47ayxjTbXsVktz7wwS3CiHyGkrAUhvExPlEP43YIJgmMgq6tBH0-JBPlDc5jtx4MRxc9rxNtihc3RQWPR0qdGuxODx7RM3QfQezjKhGqDEous0XMIzaEQ_Y_rFUjPp9E/s320/may+chickens+005.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476324301680342370" border="0" /></a>And here's a pic of the coop a built. It is considerably smaller than the one at Fox Hollow. This one is designed to house around 15 chickens, and is small enough that one strong set of arms can pull it around the farm...although, like most things, its much easier with two people!<br /><br />This design uses cattle panels for the hoop structure. It is made from one panel, cut in half, and fastened onto a simple frame structure made from scrap wood and chicken wire. The cover on top is an old banner from a check-cashing place (Thanks Carly Rio...I used it again!). The banner was a little unsightly, so I covered it with bamboo leaves to make the whole thing blend in with the greenery of the farm.<br /><br />The coop is designed to be moved around the farm. The chickens roost inside the coop and manure is dropped onto the ground. After a little while, the coop is moved to keep the chickens from living above their own manure. With a portable chicken yard, the chickens can be used to clean up bugs, till up garden space, eat rotting fruits or vegetables...all kinds of farm chores. <br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh9sbfv-v5uWwt_9TI7WEunmDRLPtOEHEB-I6i-LF4afGpiqm-W0qxDEbv0s4Rgyxwd0zj4TQYt4lf_IHftqs_BIIMcv65FVPiOmk-bol1KAJ5EzovlMlfvKPUlWs5XNQYUtV27Umw6dM/s1600/maychick1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh9sbfv-v5uWwt_9TI7WEunmDRLPtOEHEB-I6i-LF4afGpiqm-W0qxDEbv0s4Rgyxwd0zj4TQYt4lf_IHftqs_BIIMcv65FVPiOmk-bol1KAJ5EzovlMlfvKPUlWs5XNQYUtV27Umw6dM/s320/maychick1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476325934764697618" border="0" /></a></div>There is a yard outside the coop where the chickens are contained by electric poultry netting. The netting is electrified by the same solar charger that powers the deer fence. The poultry netting is connected to a hot strand on the deer fence with an insulated ground wire, with one end wrapped into the poultry netting and the other wrapped onto a hot strand of the deer fence. So far, this system has worked well and kept predators out. I do not even close the chickens up at night...they are free to come and go into their coop as they please. This is ideal for me because they are now 3 miles away from where I live, and visiting them twice a day to open and close a coop would become quite a chore. I need a setup where I can go away for 24 hours , and sometimes a weekend, and the chickens stay fed, watered, cool, and safe.<br /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-3.jpg" alt="" /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /><br />Here's another view of the setup. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGZ26isskioQ_bsAq7CumAmBNWNKeLlezLk2W2HBvhzARZA2QeSifjcIgrtOb9CS1UQv24GSOvYxiwuFbAcLXQc7zgvrqCvHE45LbgmpT5WFK5ej30DK3Wh86eSdxE8Sf3zL73PbYTXcc/s1600/maychick5.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGZ26isskioQ_bsAq7CumAmBNWNKeLlezLk2W2HBvhzARZA2QeSifjcIgrtOb9CS1UQv24GSOvYxiwuFbAcLXQc7zgvrqCvHE45LbgmpT5WFK5ej30DK3Wh86eSdxE8Sf3zL73PbYTXcc/s320/maychick5.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476327950957845938" border="0" /></a>Another important thing to think about here was the ability of the chickens to self regulate their temperatures. Chickens like being able to go into the shade, go somewhere cool, go out in the sun, and to dust bathe, as they please. The bamboo that covered up the banner gave them a nice little spot to catch some shade. I'm planning on giving them more bamboo structures to climb on and to find shade in.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGZ26isskioQ_bsAq7CumAmBNWNKeLlezLk2W2HBvhzARZA2QeSifjcIgrtOb9CS1UQv24GSOvYxiwuFbAcLXQc7zgvrqCvHE45LbgmpT5WFK5ej30DK3Wh86eSdxE8Sf3zL73PbYTXcc/s1600/maychick5.JPG"><br /></a><br />A chicken enjoys herself: a dust bath!<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_-g9MHKT5psuLiDvMCZe3veQkaf_NKQccfzSHbTrMqaiR9NJys7bZqCbfveEaGgO2CwzAWEd-UxB9JJAPqrdEkLLGKvPJd5rVx9PDoZNSvftYtb28qQWHx2Szi4Zt5AhJoN42IHVORN8/s1600/maychick2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_-g9MHKT5psuLiDvMCZe3veQkaf_NKQccfzSHbTrMqaiR9NJys7bZqCbfveEaGgO2CwzAWEd-UxB9JJAPqrdEkLLGKvPJd5rVx9PDoZNSvftYtb28qQWHx2Szi4Zt5AhJoN42IHVORN8/s320/maychick2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5476328928102791010" border="0" /></a></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-58323531993335198932010-04-14T17:36:00.001-07:002010-04-14T19:18:29.320-07:00SHITAKE LOGS<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT7DCAVvD2ZeouJwOl2avH2H18TnsAApRgvBsimP9azjr5hH2Mck1ELdZh7CJhcy0Yp7FWJmZI6VmTI_MAty9Z0Hkq_Gv_pAwClGX-UdKhSiZfA0WejMBx2Vz9S_sQ8RRqp0dlv2-sQsQ/s1600/shitakes+soaking+2.jpg"></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokcTW0THG9ohUAEkga5O2h72P2zB_dTf89gLeZowKjXjT-Ggd-8vpTixwjA6kM18y8isMdWBd56PGN9Q5-rV1ePZ-xpjvVvuQbbi1_DJvOpOsqWgx2wkBZTBXw7O6sBgqCQ0iB7I6W3c/s1600/shitake+spot.jpg"></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRpuvW4rp_7WDO7TOLSVx8LqWwqxuR9PqSTHbJ68cFxokO5WqM8NCYFhh50Q_UKqLqlPJWbGrtSYXiLhqxoyf_7rpjmUkHbFt1-GO2K1we2QPVBD9fXl3fLsWRGJDR-p8ZoWkmVtfU56c/s1600/chickway+to+shitakes.jpg"></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU7RTezq1kyCblV3XbuHoCJA9wVmXdLAy4pSMeQcBN6UHw2FlKXPpwgLkrq4S0GwxhdltNGnCwb0tOy1nuJi-wnBkGvDXrW9n0TLdwGdKyVWUNSG6wEgP0k27H3lmGKtbKgpXc7MqG6w/s1600/shitake+logs+soaking.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVU7RTezq1kyCblV3XbuHoCJA9wVmXdLAy4pSMeQcBN6UHw2FlKXPpwgLkrq4S0GwxhdltNGnCwb0tOy1nuJi-wnBkGvDXrW9n0TLdwGdKyVWUNSG6wEgP0k27H3lmGKtbKgpXc7MqG6w/s320/shitake+logs+soaking.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460178702856050770" /></a><br />Hi, this is Berea. Brian usually does the posting, but perhaps others of us will become more active. I am going to show you the shitake mushroom logs that we inoculated at the end of March. <div><br /></div><div>Shitakes are one of those food items that are delicious to eat, expensive to buy, and simple to produce yourself. Take simple with a grain of salt, because I tried once before and failed completely. I inoculated during a drought year, 2005, and didn't soak my logs because I had heard it wasn't necessary. Well, now I'm pretty sure it's necessary, if the rains aren't coming your way. But I'm getting ahead of myself. </div><div><br /></div><div>I first experienced fresh shitake eating at Sequatchie Valley Institute, in Tennessee. This is the place that all of us at Camp Pleasant have in common - I lived there a couple of summers before Adam, Brian, Melissa, and Sean all met there. It is a homestead that educates people about sustainable living systems. They had about 75 shitake logs leaned under some oak trees, next to a creek. In the mornings I would wander down to the shitake forest, cut some fresh shrooms off the logs, and saute up my breakfast with some eggs and greens. It was high class vegetarian eating. I also participated in a shitake log workshop there and inoculated my first logs. I vowed to have them in my life again. They appeal to me because they are low maintenance, last for years, and provide an intermittent supply of food - making them a good fit for a permaculture system. </div><div><br /></div><div>Fast forward to Camp Pleasant. Although I hadn't planned on inoculating logs this spring.....It occurred to me one morning that our neighbor and friend, Mike Larimore, had some woods that might yield a couple of small white oak trees, which is a recommended type. It is also recommended to cut the trees before the leaves come out, so in early March the timing was right. For the exchange of 1/4 of our finished mushroom logs, Mike agreed. He and Sean went to his hill farm and hauled back two small white oaks, cut into 4 ft. lengths. Healthy trees are best because they will not already be colonized with other fungus, and it will take them longer to rot. Thinning out a young forest so that established trees can grow larger is a good reason to use some trees for mushroom logs. </div><div><br /></div><div>Meanwhile, I ordered the mushroom spore and the needed implements from The Mushroom People. This is a small mushroom spore business located at The Farm, in Tennessee. Go to www.mushroompeople.com to check them out. Previously I had used "plug" spore, which are small cylinders of wood impregnated with the spore, that you tap into drilled out holes in the logs with a hammer. This time around I went with a method my neighbors Tim and Trina had been using, "sawdust" spore, which is inserted into the logs with a specialized plunger. It is supposed to be faster and cheaper than the plugs (marginally, I think). From the mushroom people I ordered 1 kg of strain MP510 spawn, which is a wide ranging variety that fruits within 6-9 months of inoculation and within a range of 55-80 degrees F. I also ordered two drill bit stoppers, and two pounds of cheese wax. These will be explained shortly. </div><div><br /></div><div>The Mushroom People recommend inoculating the logs within three weeks of them being cut. After two weeks, on a drizzly late March Sunday, Brian, Melissa, and I set up two work stations and began. One was outside where we could drill the logs and scatter sawdust. The other was in the house close to the stove, to keep the cheese wax consistently melted. The process for inoculating goes like this: your logs should be cut to around four foot lengths, in diameters of 3-6 inches. This is so that you can easily the handle the logs as you move them around. Holes are drilled in the log to insert the spawn. For sawdust spawn, we used a 7/16 drill bit and set the depth of the bit to 1/2 inch, using the bit stopper. This is so you can move quickly and don't have to keep checking the depth of your holes. We drilled the holes beginning 3 inches down on the log, every six inches in a straight row until the end of the log. Then we moved over 2.5 inches and drilled another row of holes every 6 inches, staggering the holes so they were centered in between the holes of the first row. This gives the spawn maximum distance from the other holes. (Note: these specifics are all according to the directions given to us by The Mushroom People, and can be found easily on their website). When holes were drilled all around the log, it was ready to be inoculated. </div><div><br /></div><div>In the kitchen, Brian and Melissa had tunes playing and were deeply concentrated on the inoculation process. When I brought them a log, first they would take the bucket of broken-up spore clumps and stab the plunger tool into it, so that it was packed in. We borrowed the plunger tool from our friends - thanks Tim and Trina! Then the plunger was lined up over a hole and compressed. If there was more spore than hole, we brushed it away so the spore was flush with the log. Then a dab of melted cheese wax was spread over the hole, to seal in the spore and seal out other fungi that might think it was a fine place to enter the log. The wax was kept in two double boiler pots that were always switched out so one could be re-melting. </div><div><br /></div><div>While B and M inoculated, I went down to the spot we had selected for the logs to live and set up a water catchment system to soak them in. Our spot is in between a small storage shed and a steep cedar covered hillside. Evergreens are good to keep logs under because they will be constantly shaded. Melissa had seen mushrooms growing here before so we figured it was a friendly place for them. First I cleaned out the gutter on the roof; it was full of wet half-rotted leaves, which made a nice addition to the compost pile. Then I reconfigured the downspout to drain into a long steel watering trough, about 6 ft. long and 3 ft. deep. My plan for soaking the logs was to only have to carry them about six steps each way. This is important when handling heavy, wet logs. </div><div><br /></div><div>Here is the finished result of our day's labor: 20 shitake logs, a shady place to keep them, and water tub to soak them. It has been two weeks and I have already soaked the second stack. The directions suggested soaking the logs every two weeks during the inoculation period, when the mycelium are taking over the log. This can last up to 9 months so I want soaking the logs to be as easy as possible. I'm already scheming about a larger catchment tank that will feed into the metal tub only when I'm ready to soak.....This way fresh water is always available for the soaking. The "used" soaking water is going on plants in the garden, so it has many uses before being returned to the water cycle. </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRpuvW4rp_7WDO7TOLSVx8LqWwqxuR9PqSTHbJ68cFxokO5WqM8NCYFhh50Q_UKqLqlPJWbGrtSYXiLhqxoyf_7rpjmUkHbFt1-GO2K1we2QPVBD9fXl3fLsWRGJDR-p8ZoWkmVtfU56c/s320/chickway+to+shitakes.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460179857220131090" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>This is the path through our Chickway garden. The shitakes are tucked<span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>between the shed and the hill at the bottom. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgel-f9xirtoreXnmuwvupShIl7b6V7BNzO0Ksc8LQwcTgOTmeFH5j0WnffhC4sqgAe1ppM4aH7QN8sY0QdfPSLwyQwKOB9uK4dkW9j6dCf5LrfDaARVfIiWxIvS1ob0NbySSiiLGcQtcw/s320/stacked+logs.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460180733421597842" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Here the logs are stacked log cabin style, to keep them off the <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>ground and away from other fungi during the inoculation period</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokcTW0THG9ohUAEkga5O2h72P2zB_dTf89gLeZowKjXjT-Ggd-8vpTixwjA6kM18y8isMdWBd56PGN9Q5-rV1ePZ-xpjvVvuQbbi1_DJvOpOsqWgx2wkBZTBXw7O6sBgqCQ0iB7I6W3c/s1600/shitake+spot.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgokcTW0THG9ohUAEkga5O2h72P2zB_dTf89gLeZowKjXjT-Ggd-8vpTixwjA6kM18y8isMdWBd56PGN9Q5-rV1ePZ-xpjvVvuQbbi1_DJvOpOsqWgx2wkBZTBXw7O6sBgqCQ0iB7I6W3c/s320/shitake+spot.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460181791228420898" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></a><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiT7DCAVvD2ZeouJwOl2avH2H18TnsAApRgvBsimP9azjr5hH2Mck1ELdZh7CJhcy0Yp7FWJmZI6VmTI_MAty9Z0Hkq_Gv_pAwClGX-UdKhSiZfA0WejMBx2Vz9S_sQ8RRqp0dlv2-sQsQ/s320/shitakes+soaking+2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5460182541415573922" style="float: right; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 10px; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></span><div style="text-align: center; "><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgel-f9xirtoreXnmuwvupShIl7b6V7BNzO0Ksc8LQwcTgOTmeFH5j0WnffhC4sqgAe1ppM4aH7QN8sY0QdfPSLwyQwKOB9uK4dkW9j6dCf5LrfDaARVfIiWxIvS1ob0NbySSiiLGcQtcw/s1600/stacked+logs.jpg"></a></div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Close up of the log spot and water tank. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Soaking happily. <span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-77714391167303786582010-04-07T08:14:00.000-07:002010-04-07T09:04:13.593-07:00Drama Queens<div style="text-align: center;">This week, our bees arrived! A good friend, Mark Lee, is helping us along the way. He's a bee expert, an experienced tree farmer, and and all around fascinating, good guy. Melissa and Sean are doing a sort of partnership/apprenticeship: teaming up with him to keep bees at our place and our farm, process honey in Mark's certified kitchen, and help sell/trade the honey! Melissa met Mark while doing bee research for the University, and now their relationship has evolved to get us into the "beesniess". Oh, my.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD13nMywMt-eadbz0inSzF7rC-z2VmhLTZ10Av3aC_mLEoFBzBcht-nM8rCC6q4IkoUsR234lJhi7HdPpanKsjOZwtUqV66EjIiWi7cKjcd-06UbHUW-7Yjx8RMe60oWAnVLrfe9-r4Bc/s1600/bees5.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiD13nMywMt-eadbz0inSzF7rC-z2VmhLTZ10Av3aC_mLEoFBzBcht-nM8rCC6q4IkoUsR234lJhi7HdPpanKsjOZwtUqV66EjIiWi7cKjcd-06UbHUW-7Yjx8RMe60oWAnVLrfe9-r4Bc/s320/bees5.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457414726159201314" border="0" /></a><br />Here Mark is helping Sean with the bee delivery. We got 5 hives for our Camp Pleasant land and 5 hives for the farm. They come in the small boxes that Mark has set in front of him, and they are then put into the frame boxes on the left.<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKmdKHhXzZ0jP3IDQ9O6qAQe6RDHO4FIe2y42fBJcAR9lcbUJIKvRUhxqPbZ4FRrrGTmbwtqmflaP5EfFM3VSRgaGg8NouECD9tdWwhCCxBlwSBIyv_LTMWdD4KrBEoyqptvrVdDavixE/s1600/bees4.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKmdKHhXzZ0jP3IDQ9O6qAQe6RDHO4FIe2y42fBJcAR9lcbUJIKvRUhxqPbZ4FRrrGTmbwtqmflaP5EfFM3VSRgaGg8NouECD9tdWwhCCxBlwSBIyv_LTMWdD4KrBEoyqptvrVdDavixE/s320/bees4.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457414731540982274" border="0" /></a><br />Melissa dumps the bees into their new home! Some people might not believe it, but if you are calm and peaceful, the bees have no troubles with you and will not sting you.<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyVZgHeDTDlrbk5LeDsHcWewOZ4AkPY8LacUAgT2RIrSbBd5-FZF_Ls86LO_cXTe9mGiVGqh4oDuueUhOsUu2g7oGK8Oo_jb83YSHSuykCWolgVnw4GvmetwqiFNPPHDLIGPGmvUWme4/s1600/bees1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyVZgHeDTDlrbk5LeDsHcWewOZ4AkPY8LacUAgT2RIrSbBd5-FZF_Ls86LO_cXTe9mGiVGqh4oDuueUhOsUu2g7oGK8Oo_jb83YSHSuykCWolgVnw4GvmetwqiFNPPHDLIGPGmvUWme4/s320/bees1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457414741085646674" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Melissa, whose name literally means "bee", beams as she holds a small box with a queen bee.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf8ZOeyHRVBFK5szAgIImoFvth6NOFvlXom4y8xWLdt4lxFLlsSF3f5FPkYIBlTbzEuVZGjke7Kj6JOCuxA4TROzWxJyVN8EUilnQHHMiynhNnzyuyPQcBCtU2Fm0dQBD-Xl3b2CDvLnc/s1600/bees6.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf8ZOeyHRVBFK5szAgIImoFvth6NOFvlXom4y8xWLdt4lxFLlsSF3f5FPkYIBlTbzEuVZGjke7Kj6JOCuxA4TROzWxJyVN8EUilnQHHMiynhNnzyuyPQcBCtU2Fm0dQBD-Xl3b2CDvLnc/s320/bees6.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457414747836628130" border="0" /></a><br />And Sean shows off his favorite drone.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">The bees at the farm were happily foraging on the fields of dandelion the next day. But some drama insued at Camp Pleasant, where one queen "escaped" from the hive and the swarm followed her! Melissa tries to find the queen, which is just a bit larger than the drones and worker bees:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3joAM2M2ZpvLji8IvUJuW94bzDBfrsGdshI8BMM9S0YEyj7LQn8X1C-ZBCv__e2Oayg_ZFbqcUSL3q_BcyYzM0quN9TdrAVv2QYmFqgFDlNWt3SbnsaUCIimtlZvj2ZPLtYIGS05hOo8/s1600/beesA.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3joAM2M2ZpvLji8IvUJuW94bzDBfrsGdshI8BMM9S0YEyj7LQn8X1C-ZBCv__e2Oayg_ZFbqcUSL3q_BcyYzM0quN9TdrAVv2QYmFqgFDlNWt3SbnsaUCIimtlZvj2ZPLtYIGS05hOo8/s320/beesA.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457420486720345906" border="0" /></a><br />When the queen is nowhere to be found in the box, its assumed that she is nestled on the crate, in a big pile of buzzing bees. Melissa tries to capture the pile of bees:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTgnvI3dwdmUNdIkICymTIXx07wOihlLh834YKb6BJhG7CM2pMOVKskw9Cia-WpkpLEzHjNBQoLUFy1lqbtunHJjFLKMJn8Jl9cg3ny4JnyLtrRAu3WfJwI3T-glKhb8P93CfJdPvruc0/s1600/beesC.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTgnvI3dwdmUNdIkICymTIXx07wOihlLh834YKb6BJhG7CM2pMOVKskw9Cia-WpkpLEzHjNBQoLUFy1lqbtunHJjFLKMJn8Jl9cg3ny4JnyLtrRAu3WfJwI3T-glKhb8P93CfJdPvruc0/s320/beesC.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457420500284324210" border="0" /></a><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">At this point the bees are a bit confused about what is going on, and buzzing wildly all around us. I had never been in anything like it! Its like you are in another world, ruled totally by the buzzing group movement that is the hive. Its really exhilerating.<br />When the attempt to move the queen didn't seem to work, the hive box was set right next to the little swarm, with hopes that the queen would enter the hive again and the drones and workers would follow:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3IOgaAgJ-SMCRZuyj_T2MuOVlVOjaqEVFebi9sEgDt0FLf7MdMk6nvN5XX_uh41SvyqNciPm9g9tSRwTcZ-k-vN6-Td-AxkXGK7-uSw2jWYZxGRTKp4NcKtJn0SeaxqJnK6VZS_kygpU/s1600/BeesB.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3IOgaAgJ-SMCRZuyj_T2MuOVlVOjaqEVFebi9sEgDt0FLf7MdMk6nvN5XX_uh41SvyqNciPm9g9tSRwTcZ-k-vN6-Td-AxkXGK7-uSw2jWYZxGRTKp4NcKtJn0SeaxqJnK6VZS_kygpU/s320/BeesB.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457420492696626706" border="0" /></a>Later in the day, Mark came over and helped move the queen into the hive, by hand. So far, so good: all the queens are home and safe, and the workers are out foraging the spring wildflowers and trees. Never a dull moment. . .!<br /></div></div></div></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-24556143716623303652010-04-07T07:26:00.000-07:002010-04-07T08:12:18.982-07:00Making Compost Tea in a Rain Barrel<div style="text-align: center;">First off, rain barrels. There are many good reasons to catch rain. Water is useful, obviously. It also costs money. Rainwater can be used for many things, and of course, its totally free. Gutters that are currently used to divert water away from things can simply be used to divert water into catchment systems. We have friends that live without city water, living off rain water, caught from roofs and purified with simple countertop water filters. They have water when there's a drought, and they have water when the water line bursts and the rest of us are waiting for the city to fix it! They have fairly developed, clean, reliable systems. Ours is rudimentary.<br /><br />I like to use rainwater in gardens as a substitute for using tap water. (Tap water contains chlorine, which is toxic to many soil microbes.) I also like the idea of building ponds to create places for frogs and fish. The permaculturalists remind us that water is moving through the land, so why not play with it a little as it passes by? Why not use it, store it, purify it, grow things with it, grow things in it. . .<br /><br />Below is a pic of our first, simple rain barrel that Sean and I built last year. Its made from a 55 gallon plastic drum with the top cut off of it. The gutter simply empties into it at the top. At the bottom of the barrel is a fixture that has a garden hose attached, so we can water the garden out of the barrel when it is full. At the top of the barrel, the black tube is fixed and serves as an overflow. When it rains, the barrel fills up quickly, and the overflow is diverted to a pond in the garden and to other barrels for more storage and garden watering. (We have had to attach a screen to filter the debris from the water coming from the roof...)<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0JKsnx8QtO2ZMhJkI4bylPj-c5uGlTb0ZXUb4FL0AGDMvTKKDBniKjkjR-kgwQ2odLo1l8BEbrpe6j-XjnT0tsqG7hUOsigN2T-bBd7bjqzMYqsXbtAzrm6ctLfRNo3V11w1iiaQhunA/s1600/composttea3.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0JKsnx8QtO2ZMhJkI4bylPj-c5uGlTb0ZXUb4FL0AGDMvTKKDBniKjkjR-kgwQ2odLo1l8BEbrpe6j-XjnT0tsqG7hUOsigN2T-bBd7bjqzMYqsXbtAzrm6ctLfRNo3V11w1iiaQhunA/s320/composttea3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457402122402853586" border="0" /></a>It works well in the summer. In the winter, the water freezes and becomes a massive block of ice. Its not a terrible problem, but it could potentially burst some of the fixtures...<br /><br />The overflow pond, just after being installed last year:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0ZsF4LNPGaM7xg7v5G-hd9ooQQ3evz93qTVDwI7u4eLwtT4Py0x6FVzmNWYmld-g4SJ6rsIVU6qwsXS6FSw5zRwhDf11j2WXoxuva_4lxCMwKOsttc1ThOcNBtV8v136TV35JqbZTPNo/s1600/sean'seye2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0ZsF4LNPGaM7xg7v5G-hd9ooQQ3evz93qTVDwI7u4eLwtT4Py0x6FVzmNWYmld-g4SJ6rsIVU6qwsXS6FSw5zRwhDf11j2WXoxuva_4lxCMwKOsttc1ThOcNBtV8v136TV35JqbZTPNo/s320/sean'seye2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457404024887567442" border="0" /></a><br />Secondly: Why compost tea? Compost (and/or manure) tea is a way to fertilize soils and plants. If watered with it, the soil and plant roots are given a good serving of nutrients, and if sprayed on, the leaves of plants can also be feed, called "foliar feeding". If compost tea is allowed to brew for a day or two, the beneficial microbes in composts (fungi and bacteria) can proliferate and then be spread into your gardens. Some people even "feed" compost tea molasses so that the microbes will populate quickly.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYRQTpQUIrA1-G4vHH3XXHUiG982mGLkU0olNRBp-KycjjOlXXJH639VhmbUQQIsJ_6OklabJIbaZExHS-5-LHwl1KaEn3rJGs3piRVhHy3BHn0h0tAtLRspPH7TymYi9L22mHavTwNuY/s1600/composttea1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYRQTpQUIrA1-G4vHH3XXHUiG982mGLkU0olNRBp-KycjjOlXXJH639VhmbUQQIsJ_6OklabJIbaZExHS-5-LHwl1KaEn3rJGs3piRVhHy3BHn0h0tAtLRspPH7TymYi9L22mHavTwNuY/s320/composttea1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457402107163975378" border="0" /></a><br />So here's how we do it: a simple bamboo frame is constructed that sets on top of our rain barrel. An old pillow case is filled with composts and manures, tied at the top and hung from the frame. Its basically like we are making a massive cup of tea, hence the name. It sits like this, brewing, for 1-3 days before we use it. You can do smaller batches in 5 gallon barrels in the same manner.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdh5qVcuuTlz0gSYOiNtwd6BogLktF7n-0APkU7MqV279tLwOjMfhOrg7czNWgXNZHRTT6_M3haFFq-mLTrtXr8uup4XiCStz-JUberxefmKz_R-HSIuzg6HmqB57D7bVFW4ZEad6jgz8/s1600/composttea2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdh5qVcuuTlz0gSYOiNtwd6BogLktF7n-0APkU7MqV279tLwOjMfhOrg7czNWgXNZHRTT6_M3haFFq-mLTrtXr8uup4XiCStz-JUberxefmKz_R-HSIuzg6HmqB57D7bVFW4ZEad6jgz8/s320/composttea2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457402114341139602" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">When I walk by, I like to take an old bamboo pole and stir/swish the water around. It helps mix the compost and tea in with the water as well as introduce oxygen to the brew, which helps good microbes grow. When we are ready to use it, we simply open the garden hose at the bottom of the barrel, and fill up our watering cans. If I am going to spray the tea onto plants or land, in a backpack sprayer, I'll attach a small piece of cloth over the end of the hose to filter out any debris, so the sprayer doesn't get clogged. <br /><br />There's a massive amount of effort that people are putting into developing compost tea brewing and application methods that you can read about. For now, we keep it simple, but you are free, of course, to get crazy with it!<br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-80305763005648407502010-04-07T06:17:00.000-07:002010-04-07T07:22:47.815-07:00Starting Sweet Potato Slips<div style="text-align: center;"><br />We love sweet potatoes. They are nutritious, sweet, versatile, and easy to grow. We are still eating last year's sweet potatoes, which we keep packed in dry hay, in cardboard boxes, in our kitchen. Our favorites are sweet potato hash browns, simple baked sweet potatoes, and sweet potato muffins! The chickens like sweet potatoes, too.<br />Starting your own sweet potato slips is easy. All you need are a few sweet potatoes, a space to keep them warm, and some soil or sand to cover them up with. You can get a LOT of fresh, healthy shoots for transplanting without a lot of effort. Your shoots can be much nicer than the bunched sweet potato slips you often see at garden centers in spring. And besides, they usually sell out before most of us can get any, anyway! So here's how we do it:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWk8uwzR8SrzwzbGLQGxtH_txjc-9zADFYBrf_AR46o6nH7weCs-qgRAy597p7HU1tKvGLGp6sz7zQMTVI7s2sad1tQjgR0W-Jm1mMcqO7qFE8sof8P56741ZttWMUfP661fbW-FCVNzE/s1600/sweetpotato1.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWk8uwzR8SrzwzbGLQGxtH_txjc-9zADFYBrf_AR46o6nH7weCs-qgRAy597p7HU1tKvGLGp6sz7zQMTVI7s2sad1tQjgR0W-Jm1mMcqO7qFE8sof8P56741ZttWMUfP661fbW-FCVNzE/s320/sweetpotato1.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457386150793988594" border="0" /></a><br />Our process starts around late March, about 8-10 weeks before we will be transplanting. We start our sweet potatoes in our hoophouse, a 10X30X6' single-layer plastic tunnel. In the above picture, you can see how we start them; we set a small wooden box frame (just four walls) down into the soil, and set the potatoes in the bottom.<br /><br />These potatoes are two different varieties. One variety is the organic sweet potatoes from our local coop, and the other, called Mahon, is from a friend and heirloom enthusiast, Rodger Winn. According to him, it is "the" sweet potato to grow. You can find more about him at www.rodgersheirlooms.com<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhptP0l76GDoQcFUKmzrBcFbyDpMxpo9Ty1Uoa8nU3dT9wm7C1CgroVG5r0-yCRRMejf5M69x8iyiKMLz5y7wirW0ikAmE-i-njrbH6C_LCQ0XoWQu8f2sZIdMe5OXGmJAP8aXX55FOq0/s1600/sweetpotato2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhptP0l76GDoQcFUKmzrBcFbyDpMxpo9Ty1Uoa8nU3dT9wm7C1CgroVG5r0-yCRRMejf5M69x8iyiKMLz5y7wirW0ikAmE-i-njrbH6C_LCQ0XoWQu8f2sZIdMe5OXGmJAP8aXX55FOq0/s320/sweetpotato2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457384513724873954" border="0" /></a><br />Next we cover the sweet potatoes with about 6-8 inches of sand or soil. For the next few weeks, we just keep the sand (or soil) warm (65-85 degrees is good, but warmer is better), and moist. The sweet potatoes will send shoots up that will emerge out of the sand and put on leaves. When we are ready to transplant into the field, (which is hopefully when the shoots have a good 4-6 inches of leafy growth, we simply dig up the tubers and shoots. Each tuber will have 10-20 sweet potato "slips" that we can plant and that will become their own sweet potato plant! Since the shoots had to emerge through 6-8 inches of sand, they have a long, rooty section that helps them get established in the field. We simply snap off each shoot from its tuber, and transplant it into the field. As always, it is essential to keep the transplants moist for their first few days.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkE8LfrtqkkJKIXJ0ePlhRF3BfOwUAt8UI6UJsf16rRkKt1O4VWJitJ98_uIm8e3Z_pvgGFG1lt5XmKMAXBcYuv9fe4oiQW_iyxw_BI7eFDR9Zmkikj0zC9CaOHYy-qKK4-67Anqoxn9A/s1600/sweetpotato3.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkE8LfrtqkkJKIXJ0ePlhRF3BfOwUAt8UI6UJsf16rRkKt1O4VWJitJ98_uIm8e3Z_pvgGFG1lt5XmKMAXBcYuv9fe4oiQW_iyxw_BI7eFDR9Zmkikj0zC9CaOHYy-qKK4-67Anqoxn9A/s320/sweetpotato3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5457384519830642018" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">An old window provides an extra layer of heat on those cooler spring days. Sweet potatoes need warm temperatures to put on new shoot growth, so don't be afraid to heat them up to 85, even 90 degrees. I tend to keep the window open a bit just so it doesn't get too hot on a sunny day. If the night is going to get too cold, I make sure to cover the window and box with a heavy blanket late in the day, before the sun goes down, to hold in heat through the night.<br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-36236454294348319882010-04-02T19:15:00.001-07:002010-04-02T19:30:58.598-07:00The Organic Association of KentuckyIn January of 2009, some of us who were working at Kentucky State University had an idea to get people together to explore the creation of an organization dedicated to organic agriculture in Kentucky. It came from the University perspective; we thought we needed an organization that could help guide research priorities for research and extension agents.<br /><br />That January, a modest but empowered group of farmers, grocers, nursery people, University workers, and Kentucky Department of Agriculture folks got together and agreed the idea was a good one. A steering committee was formed, and for the next year, the Organic Association of Kentucky, or OAK was crafted.<br /><br />In January of 2010, the first official meeting was held and a board was formed. It was exciting for me. I had just left the University to farm full-time and was asked to serve on the board. I figure its a great opportunity to be a part of an organization that is sure to go somewhere.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4oZfvLzE3AzhXKADkhRdvyv0lO3BnSC4GNPauxFfWny2BybmbWFhZVvHBs4elQIMnQdGBdJPSzmmI9o1PgoqUWCr6DiAtenhcFdx0RAiByLqDQLnzxfb2ISbieO9t2oQbNs7rw5FdnPk/s1600/OAK2010.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 185px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4oZfvLzE3AzhXKADkhRdvyv0lO3BnSC4GNPauxFfWny2BybmbWFhZVvHBs4elQIMnQdGBdJPSzmmI9o1PgoqUWCr6DiAtenhcFdx0RAiByLqDQLnzxfb2ISbieO9t2oQbNs7rw5FdnPk/s320/OAK2010.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455731936255998658" border="0" /></a>OAK Board (clockwise from top left): John Bell, Brian Geier, Jake Schmitz, Tony Powell, Larry Brandenburg, Shayne Wigglesworth, Kim Jordan, Deborah Hill, Molly Stotts.<br /><br />We have had our first few meetings. Right now the priority is to build the membership. We have about 80 members now and hope to grow a lot in 2010. Within the next few weeks we'll be distributing our first newsletter. We hope to use the newsletters, farm tours, and events to build the membership, and to culminate the year in a conference for organics in Kentucky this winter.<br /><br />You can learn more about what OAK is up to at its website: www.oak-ky.org Members can access forums there to chat about issues, ideas, bulk buying, etc. <br /><br />The post below this one is an article I wrote for the OAK Leaf, our newsletter.<br /><br /><br /><img style="width: 1px; height: 1px;" src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/ADMINI%7E1/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-1.jpg" alt="" />Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-51999803949157014412010-04-02T19:03:00.000-07:002010-04-02T19:15:05.083-07:00Thoughts on Soil Fertility<span style="font-family: georgia;font-size:100%;" >What makes soil fertile? How can my soil provide what a plant needs? And</span><span style="font-size:100%;">what can I do to make sure this hap</span>pens this year? These questions fill our house in spring, as winter’s farming ideas start to take shape.<br /><pre style="font-family: georgia;">There’s a tendency these days to take the quick and easy route. If<br />there’s a question or a problem, we want an answer or solution. We want<br />it now, we want it here, we want it cheap, and it helps if we can pick up<br />some soda and dog food while we’re at it. The “conventional” way of going<br />about soil fertility (which isn’t really conventional, given it’s only<br />decades old) is to send a soil sample to the University, get a read-out of<br />nutrient deficiencies, and accept a recommendation for how many pounds of<br />10-10-10 to apply. It’s here, it’s now, and it’s cheap.<br /><br />Many people understand the problems of this kind of thinking when it comes to farming. While lab tests may show<br />certain nutrients are needed, and synthetic fertilizers may make a plant<br />green, we sense there is much more to soil than a read-out of nutrients,<br />and that there is no synthetic substitute for a healthy, living soil.<br /><br />But there are a thousand ways to go from there. Hit the books, and you’ll<br />find hundreds of takes on soil fertility. Talk to farmers, and you’ll<br />hear a different perspective from each one you ask. Surf the internet and<br />find more information than your eyes should handle.<br /><br />A few broad concepts they all seem to agree on: organic matter, cover<br />crops, manure and composts are good. Plants need certain nutrients, and<br />soils need to be balanced. Biodiversity is key, and reduced, careful<br />tillage is essential. But what do these broad concepts mean for me, when<br />it comes time to start making decisions about what to do in 2010?<br /><br />This isn’t a sob story, but ultimately, when making decisions on the farm,<br />we are terribly alone. Sure, there are broad concepts, but no one has<br />faced the decisions I am making, about this farm, right now. The<br />following is a discussion of some of the ideas and experiences that form<br />the basis for my soil fertility decisions, for what it’s worth...<br /><br />This year I “upgraded” from the University soil tests and coughed up the<br />$25 for a “better” soil test that contained things like organic matter<br />content, estimated Nitrogen release, cation exchange capacity, and percent<br />base saturation for Potassium, Magnesium, Calcium, and Sodium. If that<br />sounds a little involved to you, that’s because it is. Trying to figure<br />out the science of your soil given the tests available isn’t the easiest<br />homework assignment there is. I’ve heard tales of farmers who could chew<br />on a tiny bit of soil and tell you what needed to happen based on taste<br />and feel. If you know of one, tell them to call me, by all means.<br /><br />As I tried to interpret these test results, a few things stuck out. There<br />were deficiencies in a few nutrients (Boron, Zinc, Copper, and Magnesium),<br />and the “percent base saturation” of Potassium, Magnesium, Calcium and<br />Sodium were less than ideal. A few weeks earlier I had heard a popular<br />Biodynamic farmer, Jeff Poppen, aka “The Barefoot Farmer” (and author of<br />the book by the same name), mention that you want a certain relationship<br />between levels of Potassium, Magnesium, Calcium, and Sodium. And a book<br />by Gary Zimmer, “The Biological Farmer”, validated this idea. (Both books<br />I highly recommend.) By this point I accepted that my soils are<br />deficient in some nutrients and that the high “base saturation” of Calcium<br />and Potassium may contribute to a Magnesium deficiency.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibutM6lG51ZZ0ZamNl6z5pB3AEDAIJjs3Fh0DEoRJhPOc4opk8SQAHkM388GAQsh0LsvJA8S3EOlpvLPbgXDgDLGw5Z69I-48hN2ReHvWtVvO0UcXHE44iSKbyP8DaFDGkOL3gobA7uEw/s1600/soilappforblogger.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibutM6lG51ZZ0ZamNl6z5pB3AEDAIJjs3Fh0DEoRJhPOc4opk8SQAHkM388GAQsh0LsvJA8S3EOlpvLPbgXDgDLGw5Z69I-48hN2ReHvWtVvO0UcXHE44iSKbyP8DaFDGkOL3gobA7uEw/s320/soilappforblogger.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5455728285012307618" border="0" /></a><br /><br />What do you do when a soil is deficient or imbalanced? The Biological<br />Farmer’s perspective suggests supplying any limiting nutrients, in part,<br />with rock applications based on soil tests. Greenview Farms Coop in Ohio<br />helped me develop a custom mix based on my soil tests. For three acres<br />it contains: 500 lb of a mix of several kinds of rocks (sulphate of<br />potash, magnesium sulphate, boron, zinc, and copper), to supply limiting<br />nutrients, humates (plant deposits that are almost coal) for humic acid<br />to improve soil structure and feed microbes, molasses to feed microbes,<br />kelp (seaweed) for minerals and nutrients, and beneficial bacteria and<br />fungi. All in all, about a $150/acre treatment, for those of you keeping<br />track.<br /><br />Now I don’t know about you, but I’m constantly striving to reduce inputs<br />and costs, and I’m well aware of the dangers of relying on industrial<br />systems that use a lot of energy. I wrestle with this idea that my farm<br />“needs” to import rocks from Utah, or that it relies on mining and<br />pulverizing that uses massive amounts of energy. Isn’t there an on-farm<br />or local alternative? Maybe in time these answers will come. For now,<br />this is just “where we’re at”: farms that aren’t yet ideal, plenty of good<br />questions, and lots of work to figure them out.<br /><br />To complicate things, I have questions surrounding application techniques.<br />When is it best to apply rocks, humates, and microbes? Before a rain or<br />in the sun? Just before you till or onto a growing cover crop? Waning or<br />waxing moon?!? Members of the Greenview coop suggested, “As soon as<br />possible right onto the cover crop. The cover crop will take up the<br />minerals and if tilled in as a green manure, it will be cycled back into<br />the soil.” Makes sense. But when I started spreading, something didn’t<br />seem right. Leaving the microbes and rocks baking in the direct sun<br />seemed wrong. Fearing a waste of money, I decided to try another method.<br />Philip Lyvers (of Lyvers Farm, a 2,600 acre hog operation in Kentucky<br />integrating Biodynamic practices into a conventional system) suggested<br />that any fertility inputs be “buffered” with compost. My interpretation<br />is this: the ideal farm uses on-farm compost from animals and materials on<br />the farm. This stimulates a build-up of microbes in composts that is well<br />adapted to your soils. By putting mineralizing materials into the<br />compost, you “introduce” the composts to the rocks and increase the rate<br />and potential for the rocks to act on your soils. Considering Philip’s<br />farm hasn’t gone the way of almost every other hog producer in Kentucky<br />(he’s still farming), I figure there’s a good chance his advice is solid.<br />So I will be adding about 1/3 of the rock mix to composts and adding that<br />mixture just before spring tillage.<br /><br />Speaking of compost and microbes, plants need more than just a balanced<br />soil; they need a live soil high in microbial life and organic matter.<br />Sounds simple enough. But again, how do I make decisions that will<br />support soil life and organic matter?<br /><br />For instance, we hear that green manuring is a good idea. By<br />incorporating cover crops into the soil, we can increase soil organic<br />matter and feed soil microbes. And yet we also know that tillage is<br />destructive. With each tilling of the soil, microbial populations<br />drastically drop and some even vanish from our topsoil. A friend asks:<br />“If tillage is bad, then why till in a cover crop? Why not just cut it<br />and allow it to mulch on top of the soil?” Good questions. No-till<br />proponents say to leave the roots undisturbed; if you can kill the cover<br />crop with mowing or crimping and leave the root zone undisturbed, those<br />roots die and leave all their exudates and microbial allies in the soil<br />for your next crop to utilize. Tilling would only wreak havoc on these<br />fragile, important organisms. Other people may point us toward studies<br />that show that incorporation of cover crops increases organic matter and<br />microbial diversity more than no-till strategies. Ultimately the decision<br />to till or not to till depends on many factors, and each of us must weigh<br />those factors independently.<br /><br />Similar questions arise with animal manures. It is well-known that animal<br />manures are a good thing for soils. (Although I’ve read that some vegans<br />have taken up gardening/farming and are working on systems that use no<br />animal manures or confined animals of any kind.) In my mind, the “ideal”<br />farm puts animals and crops together, and fertility needs of the crops are<br />met with the manures of the animals (including people). But let’s look<br />again at “where we’re at”. Many folks just raise animals, and many just<br />raise plants. And human-based compost (“night soil”) has been blacklisted<br />for the moment. Of those of us who raise crops and livestock, few, if any,<br />are providing all their own fertility and feed needs. Luckily, it’s easy<br />to find folks who have a barn they are happy to have cleaned, and I can<br />truck in load after load of horse, sheep, rabbit, cow, chicken...all sorts<br />of great poo. I’ve trucked enough loads of manure that upon arrival, one<br />farmer exclaimed “it’s the Great Poo Guru!” (that’s a compliment to me).<br />Indeed, picking up poo is one of my favourite neighbourly activities. But<br />it takes a lot of time and energy. I truck by cows dropping manure right<br />there on the fields of other farms, and I marvel at the simple efficiency<br />of grazing livestock. At a certain point, trucking manure no longer makes<br />sense. Gas is expensive, pitchforks are small, and an unknown poo can<br />have any number of residual toxins.<br /><br />Another organic option for adding animal manures are “granular” products:<br />composted and pelletized manure, bones, and blood from slaughterhouses,<br />and grease from dumpsters, among other things. They are fairly cheap,<br />easy to handle, and potent. Of course, we are supposed to overlook the<br />inter-dependency we then have with large, industrial slaughterhouses and<br />food chains, as well as any toxins that can pass through their processing.<br />Some suggest we are doing a service by using wastes; others suggest that<br />the horrors of industrial meat production can only exist if organic<br />farmers keep buying those wastes. Whatever floats your boat. I say it’s<br />alright to use such products to build a farm, and while we should strive<br />for an ideal that moves beyond it, we should support evolving farmers<br />wherever they are.<br /><br />When thinking about manures, I always return to that ideal farm, where<br />crop needs are met by animals and animal needs are met by crops. As I<br />haul loads of manure, I am well aware of the path that must be taken;<br />with each passing season it becomes clearer to me that I need to raise<br />more than chickens! If there’s one thing I know, it’s that sometimes<br />you have to stop looking for what you want and just create it.<br /><br />A mixture of manures, composts, and cover crops can increase soil<br />biodiversity and fertility. What seems less utilized is a biodiversity of<br />plants (with the exception of cover cropping and pasturing) in order to<br />build healthy soils. For instance, some say certain plants can root deep<br />into sub-soil, pull up nutrients, and distribute them into topsoil. But<br />how many of us celebrate dandelions and docks, or encourage nettles and<br />comfrey? Perhaps the answer to our reliance on industrial rock mining and<br />slaughterhouses lies, in part, in building relationships to these dynamic,<br />“bio-accumulating” plants.<br /><br />A living soil needs sources (manures and plant residue), and it also needs<br />protection from toxins and tillage. I feel little need to discuss the<br />dangers of using toxins when it comes to soils, but I do want to talk<br />about tillage. In our vegetables, we are establishing semi-permanent<br />pathways of clovers and grasses that are mown instead of cultivated, and<br />can remain undisturbed for several seasons. Even as we till the beds<br />where we plant, we are allowing these strips to (hopefully) become places<br />of respite for beneficial fungi and bacteria, which can then repopulate<br />the beds following tillage. After several seasons the beds and pathways<br />can simply be switched. This semi-permanent pathway system creates a<br />multi-year cover crop before a bed is integrated into a production<br />rotation. I think it is a system for people with limited land (or rent<br />money) to have more cover crop and less tillage. Additionally, to push us<br />to develop new ideas, roughly 1/10 of our production areas are hand-tool<br />based, no-till farming, where we are experimenting with vegetable and<br />grain production without the use of machines. I call this kind of farming<br />“worm-till” farming to differentiate it from large-scale,<br />herbicide-intensive no-till systems. “Earthworms make the best tillers,”<br />Susana Lien once told me. And after seeing her farm (Salamander Springs,<br />near Berea) flourish on mountainous clay, I have to integrate that idea<br />with some sincerity.<br /><br />Farming is simple and complex. Simple in that farmers need only observe<br />and mimic nature as much as possible: be diverse, balance animals and<br />plants, cycle things endlessly, need few/no inputs, and always cover the<br />soil. And yet farming is so complex! No two farms are alike. Each farmer<br />has a different set of resources, every family a different level of needs,<br />and each farm a different relationship to a society that is changing with<br />lightning speed. Farmers are jugglers, integrating broad biological<br />concepts and definitive economic and environmental realities with the<br />humilities of one plot of land. I am convinced that there are no easy<br />answers in farming, only really good questions. It is ultimately up to us<br />to move forward and incorporate the good questions.<br /><br />Ultimately it is time that will bring us to a sustained, thriving farm<br />community. Time farming. Time living with a real dependence on our soil,<br />for income and sustenance. Time walking our fields in meditation and<br />observation; fertilizing with the proverbial “farmer’s footsteps”. Time<br />adapting to the future. In time, we will do our best to pass on our<br />experiences, our questions, and our farms to a generation that can do the<br />same, and all along the way, things will continue to get right.</pre>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-38966223066924533622010-02-05T12:13:00.000-08:002010-02-05T12:32:14.683-08:00Low-Cost Seed Germination House<div style="text-align: center;">If you were to look at all the postings on this blog, at the beginning of each one there is a statement about how long it has been since the last, along with a hopeful declaration that there will be more postings in the near future. This one is no different! A LOT of time has passed, but I remain hopeful that this blog will soon take off with a buzz of springtime activity.<br /><br />A friend of mine, Gary Millwood, sent me a link a few weeks ago with some helpful hints on using a light strand from the hardware store to create the heat needed to get seeds germinating indoors for early transplants. These strands are lights people generally use to stretch along walls, stairs, or other surfaces, and to cast a neat glow indoors. Here's one of the strands, running on top of a piece of cardboard, inside a crate that we're using to start seeds in:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0g-M4SvV2SiaYQc8PPdeUUy4TsOPxsFIeRDcze4edoT8tN77Q7wdJvwiI_EqeuqQWtkn4vGDZl5lmb2dt2EljDuOvo12SYE2eOZYSp_FA-MvY5MAQz4vnlUU3b7pFp6wDa1gPGAjDTH4/s1600-h/seedstarting3.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0g-M4SvV2SiaYQc8PPdeUUy4TsOPxsFIeRDcze4edoT8tN77Q7wdJvwiI_EqeuqQWtkn4vGDZl5lmb2dt2EljDuOvo12SYE2eOZYSp_FA-MvY5MAQz4vnlUU3b7pFp6wDa1gPGAjDTH4/s320/seedstarting3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434856302407114914" border="0" /></a><br />Here is the basic idea: you find a crate or large tupperware container large enough to set a flat of seedlings in. You cut some holes near the bottom that are large enough to thread the light strand into it. Next, find some sand. We are lucky enough to have the Elkhorn creek nearby, which blesses us with sand deposits as it winds its way through the farms and forests of northern Franklin County. Our sand is dark and contains a lot of little creature's shells. (We're taking extra sand to add to our compost piles.) Here's what it looks like:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJolNLCd3oHUcawM5ZgkJg3qF1gJWpe5yD5d3Rw2plvl0pdWSCWBEIgOh8DOueJjOZbnLfUu4jNp6fydQBViNymx0br_ffGgFdqZx4-433u3BPMgZ8pJcCcvkmDT21cU0KDWVglgPbECE/s1600-h/seedstarting5.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJolNLCd3oHUcawM5ZgkJg3qF1gJWpe5yD5d3Rw2plvl0pdWSCWBEIgOh8DOueJjOZbnLfUu4jNp6fydQBViNymx0br_ffGgFdqZx4-433u3BPMgZ8pJcCcvkmDT21cU0KDWVglgPbECE/s320/seedstarting5.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434857636411901730" border="0" /></a>Next step: add a layer of sand about 4-5 inches deep at the bottom of the crate or container, burying the light strand as you go. I use about 4-5 feet of strand for a container that will heat one flat of seedlings. Next, insert your seedling flat into the sand, nestling it down into the sand so that the cells of the flat are somwhat buried. The lights will slowly heat the sand, then the seedling flat, its potting soil, and your seeds. Last night when I set this one up, the sand and soil were a cool 50 degrees, and within an hour the soil had warmed to 65+ degrees...just warm enough to germinate many garden seeds. My hunch is that by using more feet of strand per container you may be able to reach 75 degrees or higher, which would be ideal.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_0cBLvnWFaqCTbWXXzkoY33gm0TPqP79MMYa4ZQIktOHP5ZKA3pMOntfZr16-3PRtIhtjx65BmpB7svcin3_XeIcFfN52C3ArlcFvja3pzjFtft3jU3_oeXGLM6O0rfqsY5yiLFhgh8/s1600-h/seedstarting2.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS_0cBLvnWFaqCTbWXXzkoY33gm0TPqP79MMYa4ZQIktOHP5ZKA3pMOntfZr16-3PRtIhtjx65BmpB7svcin3_XeIcFfN52C3ArlcFvja3pzjFtft3jU3_oeXGLM6O0rfqsY5yiLFhgh8/s320/seedstarting2.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434858794342940194" border="0" /></a><br />You can get these light strands in several different lengths, and they can plug into one another to create any length you desire. I bought a 24 foot strand that was around $30, and am able to use it in three containers simultaneously to germinate three flats of seeds. The crates we have are handy because they can stack on top of one another without stacking INSIDE each other, and so a flat of seedlings can fit in one while another container sits on top of it. This 24 foot strand is stretching into these three containers, and the containers can be stacked so they don't take up too much space in the house!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkx-WjrjCR7XPEWgKOGFtXaeUjA8EvlU3FdB3ZcfE-k8PlTGjvPvadLByAZzg3MRo-h1Hy14J_w8xEhiiMMxNyIKhm2B_exdtrDGSd7BgZh81-S8B5JsbKEnDceg87xLxQyTPci_f_Ts/s1600-h/seedstarting4.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpkx-WjrjCR7XPEWgKOGFtXaeUjA8EvlU3FdB3ZcfE-k8PlTGjvPvadLByAZzg3MRo-h1Hy14J_w8xEhiiMMxNyIKhm2B_exdtrDGSd7BgZh81-S8B5JsbKEnDceg87xLxQyTPci_f_Ts/s320/seedstarting4.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434859309256950994" border="0" /></a>Thanks, Gary!<br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-31033975205477518782009-11-17T09:53:00.000-08:002009-11-17T10:46:59.725-08:00A New Chicken Coop<div style="text-align: center;">Ok, months passed again and no one posted anything on our blog. (Its difficult because our internet connection has limited bandwidth, and uploading pictures takes a lot.)<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />But much has happened.<br /><br />As always!<br /><br />Melissa has setup bees, Berea and Adam are finishing a sweet cabin, Sean built a composting toilet and revived our local buying club food coop, and I just finished a new chicken house and yard. We threw a couple nice parties, hosted some work days, and have gone on night-time bike rides in the country.<br /><br />Here's some pics of the new chicken house:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDpDZBv0VKaL4e2-RcCsZGHlpphuHvAq30zHThOwGfkQ4i3r_eNA8S1-Ae-MXT_aaJi8TbVkCRVIUsM9fjvUBH0UmBIvNMQ3R4ehkCBFCvBscRFYYqurgTt8vEuTDnlnC0Rtw0DcMTwjg/s1600/DSC_0361.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDpDZBv0VKaL4e2-RcCsZGHlpphuHvAq30zHThOwGfkQ4i3r_eNA8S1-Ae-MXT_aaJi8TbVkCRVIUsM9fjvUBH0UmBIvNMQ3R4ehkCBFCvBscRFYYqurgTt8vEuTDnlnC0Rtw0DcMTwjg/s320/DSC_0361.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405134054412089938" border="0" /></a>This is a stationary house with a movable yard. It was important for us to establish a movable yard ("paddock") system. When chickens don't get moved around they get bored and sick. Several of our chickens caught diseases and died before we finally got this new system together.<br /><br />This structure is simpe: it is a small pole-barn, made with four cedar posts, scrap wood, scrap metal roofing, and tarps and plastic for walls. It cost about $10 to make, for 2 tarps and some staples. <br /><br />In the yard, you see the red automatic waterer hanging from a bamboo tripod. The netted fence is electric...it keeps predators out and chickens in. The solar panel charges the fence. The bucket hanging near the solar panel is filled with water, and feeds the red waterer. And inside the tires is a bucket full of feed.<br /><br />Side note: if you are ever looking for advice on how to keep chickens, get "How to Keep Chickens-Naturally" by Alanna Moore. It is THE book to get for naturally-minded, permaculture-minded people. I found that a lot of farmers gave terrible advice when it came to keeping and caring for chickens, and it has taken a couple years and a lot of suffering on the part of my chickens for us to get the ball rolling with a system that (hopefully) keeps them happy.<br /><br />We're starting to feed our chickens a 50/50 mix of pellets and home-made mixed grains. The pellets are from Bagdhad, Kentucky, which is nice. They are not medicated, which is also nice. However, they are conventional and therefore contain genetically modified grains and probably chemical residues. So we are trying to get away from this. <br /><br />Our home-made mix consists of home grown (and home-cracked) corn, sorghum, and wheat, with dried and crushed nettle and comfrey. We'll occasionally add in a different grain or herb to give the chickens some diversity. We'll also hang bouquets of dried herbs for them to free-forage and self-medicate from, and occasionally put tea of garlic, onion, dill/fennel, comfrey, nettle, sage into their water, for prevention of disease and to provide nutrients.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieI7nHcb1yIA2HAF7nWnGZm8rB1Cc17uQpeMebh2Cbawfn-4eDy6Wke0e6egZn51Jx1f3hyphenhyphen8FCoAU16PYV3bOPkN7uV83r8MS-IV26o1hhtyjKpE-MO3ptbF8c8P-Lp4bYcaASsW9Y0N8/s1600/DSC_0370.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEieI7nHcb1yIA2HAF7nWnGZm8rB1Cc17uQpeMebh2Cbawfn-4eDy6Wke0e6egZn51Jx1f3hyphenhyphen8FCoAU16PYV3bOPkN7uV83r8MS-IV26o1hhtyjKpE-MO3ptbF8c8P-Lp4bYcaASsW9Y0N8/s320/DSC_0370.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405137499095137106" border="0" /></a>Here's an inside look at the coop. In the back is the roost, which is made from cedar branches. (There's a door at the back so we can switch their entrance from one part of the yard to another while giving the other a "break" from all the chickens' traffic. The back door also allows access to clean out the bedding under the roost.) At the left are the laying boxes, which I moved from the other house.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG-ivFOSNbkKMxdBshFEV2vkdNv96Q2XEkgJ9T6Dr9umNGSVPkch-E5_PXaqISbQzJe993aaWr0FMyKjttX-07vcZCzdpe4ON-RF7y_duck7eCPsawjeOATHt7cune-21JRbDjc0qyRpY/s1600/DSC_0373.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG-ivFOSNbkKMxdBshFEV2vkdNv96Q2XEkgJ9T6Dr9umNGSVPkch-E5_PXaqISbQzJe993aaWr0FMyKjttX-07vcZCzdpe4ON-RF7y_duck7eCPsawjeOATHt7cune-21JRbDjc0qyRpY/s320/DSC_0373.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405137506830761346" border="0" /></a>A view from the outside, showing how we'll access the laying boxes and harvest eggs. Its basically a hole in the wall with a heavy rubber flap that latches down or up. The walls are sheets of tarp (outside) and scrap clear plastic (inside), stapled onto the frame through a piece of used T-tape (irrigation tape), to reduce tearing. This structure is covered much like the hoop house (see last year's hoop house entry...).<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixxQSfL-_148w2s3rElIpkQB2h2Qw7Q599eLFIjtWN974_BJwXi09px-2otEzcIMe9G_b2m9QhJgbPL4jqb2Hjvvu8hE5e1oW6mCIOxGODLnsqfB4r8U4P5O8-PxWIB5euoc5fdlH3-vA/s1600/DSC_0380.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixxQSfL-_148w2s3rElIpkQB2h2Qw7Q599eLFIjtWN974_BJwXi09px-2otEzcIMe9G_b2m9QhJgbPL4jqb2Hjvvu8hE5e1oW6mCIOxGODLnsqfB4r8U4P5O8-PxWIB5euoc5fdlH3-vA/s320/DSC_0380.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405142366721837058" border="0" /></a>Free range! Well, pretty free, anyway. They are enclosed by the electric netting, but the idea is to move them around often enough to keep them happily engaged in scratching and foraging for bugs and greens. Here they are entangled in some thornless blackberries, eating basil seeds, and dining on baby turnip greens.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvA6oQr0oMxSJ4QFNnP_yH2CGUQ39wBCgR-oyvQSdLjD4i4sXH4_cFhCLh6GjhzRQ1TZSKCgscCmdXIVhbWXEDooz6xogrDfMa2QGVMrHJ6uggDa652b4Uub-k3mcqXSOKi_cSXhzo0O8/s1600/mustard+munch.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 244px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvA6oQr0oMxSJ4QFNnP_yH2CGUQ39wBCgR-oyvQSdLjD4i4sXH4_cFhCLh6GjhzRQ1TZSKCgscCmdXIVhbWXEDooz6xogrDfMa2QGVMrHJ6uggDa652b4Uub-k3mcqXSOKi_cSXhzo0O8/s320/mustard+munch.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5405137519408174994" border="0" /></a>Yes!!!<br /><br /><br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-86690141170932838272009-07-25T16:09:00.000-07:002009-07-27T12:45:14.443-07:00A Return to Blogging<div style="text-align: center;">Much time has passed since writing and thinking about the scythe. Camp Pleasant has been busy, fun, and transforming. Adam and Berea threw a work party and broke ground on a cabin. Sean built a sleeping platform out of an old barn, bamboo, and rope. The chickens got moved, gardens continue to be built, and we started catching and drinking rainwater. Last to note, we all joined with friends for a vision retreat to hash out our ideas for land-based community near Frankfort.<br /><br />And for the blog, I take us back around to cabbage and sauerkraut. What can I say? I love it.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhIpXzlMeQtt8tE0NQrwlHnaxr6TaRTU_2W_r0n5W-L4J_cfyb6kKae2kavrKQb8bXyAFUhqNaiDzuz-EldSqFeph9qmYwlanlJ3f3Sce8D7Hlip9sZKudRmsscl5AmBmSjFQuelEjd64/s1600-h/kraut+one.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjhIpXzlMeQtt8tE0NQrwlHnaxr6TaRTU_2W_r0n5W-L4J_cfyb6kKae2kavrKQb8bXyAFUhqNaiDzuz-EldSqFeph9qmYwlanlJ3f3Sce8D7Hlip9sZKudRmsscl5AmBmSjFQuelEjd64/s320/kraut+one.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363223404615581586" border="0" /></a>The cabbage was ready. The pathways of white clover and oats filled in nicely and kept weeds down. Looking back, the cabbage could have used a bit more space between it and the grass/clover mix. At the left side of the above picture you see buckwheat that has flowered and is now setting seed. We harvested the cabbage patch and will use the mature buckwheat to cover crop the beds where the cabbage plants were.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuHK8FUtYlTpjOKqqgNfKGf09wN3e74QI3Z8eHFomIRiWXjBZTu2pFHxKu-p11JnqgTwfWnPhuMfgC6_BO75COt5OWYiZhSUcU3pMDonKOk0Qx-xywrsimWJXYtMzokN-qikckOBoqrfc/s1600-h/kraut+two.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuHK8FUtYlTpjOKqqgNfKGf09wN3e74QI3Z8eHFomIRiWXjBZTu2pFHxKu-p11JnqgTwfWnPhuMfgC6_BO75COt5OWYiZhSUcU3pMDonKOk0Qx-xywrsimWJXYtMzokN-qikckOBoqrfc/s320/kraut+two.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363223412533500178" border="0" /></a>A friend and organic farmer brought us around 500 pounds of cabbage, and all together we had around 900 pounds to process into kraut. In the kitchen, it seemed a little overwhelming.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjniXK1c19N5itWh1hM9Wo8DeYUhCkqdcOeqpiP47iZK8rtYx7f0jRz1GjsY2mbHwoC2j30CIP4srsT4h2AmYL2u-NRrmWL90zOCjrmLPoXV31nEUvr0HWaarWq8tEMLBQq5QGiBdzCVsU/s1600-h/kraut+cut.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 138px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjniXK1c19N5itWh1hM9Wo8DeYUhCkqdcOeqpiP47iZK8rtYx7f0jRz1GjsY2mbHwoC2j30CIP4srsT4h2AmYL2u-NRrmWL90zOCjrmLPoXV31nEUvr0HWaarWq8tEMLBQq5QGiBdzCVsU/s320/kraut+cut.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363223419032718834" border="0" /></a><br />First step: slice the heads and cut out the cores.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisaS41FmlQbLdxRzKOB7ToThlVdT2V_mMLsQ1hpS_XcQApZvH3gbG8jUNIptcD_HR7tmXlcWZAMmU1lXqo7qiPiyjrIT54rFueebEYHGtai2PIlA4YQ9dzxSc6VoiFsFuIRRUBnQvqq8Q/s1600-h/kraut+shred.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 162px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisaS41FmlQbLdxRzKOB7ToThlVdT2V_mMLsQ1hpS_XcQApZvH3gbG8jUNIptcD_HR7tmXlcWZAMmU1lXqo7qiPiyjrIT54rFueebEYHGtai2PIlA4YQ9dzxSc6VoiFsFuIRRUBnQvqq8Q/s320/kraut+shred.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363224993165392338" border="0" /></a><br />Secondly, shred it.<br /><br />This is the workhorse of the operation: a fancy industrial shredder in the University of Kentucky's Bath County Cooperative Extension's processing kitchen. And that is Melissa, who helped the first day of processing, to make 35 gallons of kraut.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCR1mitIJQbmjMIUM0dolHW0dRcJo_jOrGXJkCxMsZ8iFw256k5uLI5tmeUQFd0s-CXasimeuDr084WSWRiHZ2BKqyzwHvPcUYSC1sUoihax3gQo1lMPqqwZgBIfILLoUR6x8G7q5rVvY/s1600-h/kraut+salt.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCR1mitIJQbmjMIUM0dolHW0dRcJo_jOrGXJkCxMsZ8iFw256k5uLI5tmeUQFd0s-CXasimeuDr084WSWRiHZ2BKqyzwHvPcUYSC1sUoihax3gQo1lMPqqwZgBIfILLoUR6x8G7q5rVvY/s320/kraut+salt.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363224999453321266" border="0" /></a><br />Third, add salt and caraway.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-imBV3hqLhJMod-gC0pNuj7BaW9KcTs1flhyphenhyphenUGhKE6WJtmLL4XhDYm-oubouVvxD7bHt7n_7TcDXDBn4CMwuQYm6ANMTDq3vtOHAu2xs__OGAzC1LrqGfGM2zuUazyMQpY-lobKrG90/s1600-h/kraut+pound.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 214px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhN-imBV3hqLhJMod-gC0pNuj7BaW9KcTs1flhyphenhyphenUGhKE6WJtmLL4XhDYm-oubouVvxD7bHt7n_7TcDXDBn4CMwuQYm6ANMTDq3vtOHAu2xs__OGAzC1LrqGfGM2zuUazyMQpY-lobKrG90/s320/kraut+pound.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363226178035583490" border="0" /></a><br />Step four: pound it! Mix it! Pound it! Feel the kraut. Be the kraut. Make the kraut.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYAGbKFhoK7mN8r3_2rPdXu9uR0hZ2Xz-q074yWEylUS4cz7Au7Bx0vArt_mK5u6YancvGLMg-w-01szmsnLNMz2Xbee9ZcWMVQoSPMLvPFoiBn4FbDAopTxJp_1CxBQbd4rsVVtajSSs/s1600-h/kraut+done.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 264px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYAGbKFhoK7mN8r3_2rPdXu9uR0hZ2Xz-q074yWEylUS4cz7Au7Bx0vArt_mK5u6YancvGLMg-w-01szmsnLNMz2Xbee9ZcWMVQoSPMLvPFoiBn4FbDAopTxJp_1CxBQbd4rsVVtajSSs/s320/kraut+done.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363226182420768914" border="0" /></a><br />Step Five: call your friends and tell them you are about to process a bunch of kraut, and that it is a totally exciting thing to do.<br /><br />The Camp Pleasant Kraut Crew: Adam, Sean, Melissa, and Berea. On the second day of processing, we filled that big blue 55 gallon, and felt good for doing it. Here, we are ready to celebrate with pizza and beer. Sean did not take off his apron for the rest of the evening. Being a kitchen worker is probably the coolest thing, next to farming, if you ask me.<br /><img src="file:///Users/sean/Pictures/iPhoto%20Library/Originals/2009/July%206th%20Nikon/DSC_0701.JPG" alt="" /><img src="file:///Users/sean/Library/Caches/TemporaryItems/moz-screenshot.jpg" alt="" /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-26679331474591080152009-05-11T07:11:00.000-07:002009-05-21T05:49:42.045-07:00The Scythe<div style="text-align: center;">This is Brian again. (Note: so far, all these posts have been from me, but soon, you should start seeing posts from other folks who live at Camp Pleasant...Adam, Berea, Sean, or Melissa...)<br /><br />I am absolutely obsessed with farming. Farming, to me, is a lifestyle that strives to live in balance with the ecosystems around you, while at the same time recognizing where excess is and how best to distribute that excess and feed people GOOD FOOD. It is a subtle art of balancing biodiversity and fertility with harvest and consumption.<br />I like to consider that we are humans that live in a specific age. It hasn't always been like this, nor is this current culture one that is likely to stick around for very long. I see our age as one that is entrenched in an industrialization that is eating up its resource base at an astoundingly fast rate, while at the same time, we are awakening to that fact and beginning to call for solutions.<br />Sadly, many of our solutions are just as harmful as the industrialized models we seek to replace. So we must remain vigilant when we activate. We should definitely steer this ship away from its current course, but not any old direction will do.<br /><br />Back to farming. What does all this mean when it comes to producing food on a piece of land? It means a lot. Today I want to share some experiences we are having with trying to find alternatives to using fossil fuels to prepare fields for production agriculture.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAywsuWcAXOjhSbvJf3Ud4BmTZ0eZedsSv0MbJttgjfiG3673Oje9zfPesMw_Do_5PMLZ0YCy1NqCFhuo_xWCcDG5Kbr7chGt_9NdM8HVG7UteGPJGsnz9v3xL2JJcJhB_Q5QPTVXNh5s/s1600-h/notill1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAywsuWcAXOjhSbvJf3Ud4BmTZ0eZedsSv0MbJttgjfiG3673Oje9zfPesMw_Do_5PMLZ0YCy1NqCFhuo_xWCcDG5Kbr7chGt_9NdM8HVG7UteGPJGsnz9v3xL2JJcJhB_Q5QPTVXNh5s/s320/notill1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334574321523330594" border="0" /></a>In the above picture, you can see "hard red winter wheat". It was planted last fall, by the farmer before us, as a cover crop, and now, at the beginning of May, it is beginning to make seeds. It has only just begun, though, and the seed heads are still green and milky.<br />We want to plant vegetables and grains where this winter wheat is. Conventional thinking would tell us to plow and till it. And we have used some small machinery to prep some areas like this. But today we are trying an alternative: the scythe! In this pic, Adam is sharpening his scythe. He has a really nice scythe. A nice scythe makes ALL the difference.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigLgtEoOKGBFdfFPHEb2iZ9lsY1kGvHKh8q4LpYia-KQbdaAqChnb1KsAHiiA2EGFrgjNMEvJZJJbG0OBMj7SHnMEK2z5CNviowGgnkSSBg5qxbI3II3Na9K8AfSAi84YdGFKnACEKWlQ/s1600-h/notill2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigLgtEoOKGBFdfFPHEb2iZ9lsY1kGvHKh8q4LpYia-KQbdaAqChnb1KsAHiiA2EGFrgjNMEvJZJJbG0OBMj7SHnMEK2z5CNviowGgnkSSBg5qxbI3II3Na9K8AfSAi84YdGFKnACEKWlQ/s320/notill2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334574323469510258" border="0" /></a>Here's Sean, helping out. The area we are mowing will get a few different treatments: some will be tilled and planted into corn and sorghum ("conventional route"), some will be mulched and transplanted into (fun, risky alternative), and some areas we will spread seed (buckwheat, dry beans, clover/rye) first, then scythe. We're also leaving some areas so that we can harvest the winter wheat for flour, chicken feed, beer, and, of course, for future seed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfecsSL0NcTQvIsmkCzw8VAsnT15HqDM5L3TkEZ-90MVsnC-DGrmVZE36pdGCDobU9s8OzM_KVf_j0U7fsAis7sMGnUuiFO_V49EoFNYUb1Gq15g00FRRBw8C1OlZPUnKv1aQYt1WPFbw/s1600-h/notill3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfecsSL0NcTQvIsmkCzw8VAsnT15HqDM5L3TkEZ-90MVsnC-DGrmVZE36pdGCDobU9s8OzM_KVf_j0U7fsAis7sMGnUuiFO_V49EoFNYUb1Gq15g00FRRBw8C1OlZPUnKv1aQYt1WPFbw/s320/notill3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334574326096250306" border="0" /></a>This pic shows the wheat stubble after scything. It is 4-12 inches tall. Again, having a good scythe makes all the difference. Having a few people working together is a good way to go, too. Scything is extremely rewarding and it feels amazing for your arms and back.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCX7XQ7XL5KxC3Fn9_OI0tpdo9t1cUTuc5Dw3ME2TSi8YNoOD3egUyIUk0QzGBk5rknajio0TNPv7MXbVzw42iEnmNLsB7zovJaFnDHbdDS1EFnqhl38uArZX5Gfnqb9iwuOSu3L7odA/s1600-h/notill4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKCX7XQ7XL5KxC3Fn9_OI0tpdo9t1cUTuc5Dw3ME2TSi8YNoOD3egUyIUk0QzGBk5rknajio0TNPv7MXbVzw42iEnmNLsB7zovJaFnDHbdDS1EFnqhl38uArZX5Gfnqb9iwuOSu3L7odA/s320/notill4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334574323795367218" border="0" /></a>This is the beginning of Berea's vegetable patch. Berea is planting watermelons mounds here, as well as transplants of several veggies. We've unrolled a roll bale on top of the stubble, so that the area is covered with 6-12 inches of hay (young hay with few seeds in it, hopefully). We're hoping the hay will kill the wheat stubble and any weeds that are in the field. We'll see...!<br /><br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-79398479395723513322009-05-11T06:51:00.000-07:002009-05-11T07:06:00.474-07:00Sunrise at Camp Pleasant<div style="text-align: center;">Some pics from Sean's eye...<br /></div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpFtV63i5lfsN85LVhisigSgi5vavnRouh97Kv-7WWPCec0njL51J-oNsxEj4FBE1UBVHLafGrpZ5SnA-Gvlf8HlJV0HKty_Mnq610bliueU2O8CHWmE7RE1RhlRmzR1WcaxhhfcPu8sY/s1600-h/sean'seye1.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpFtV63i5lfsN85LVhisigSgi5vavnRouh97Kv-7WWPCec0njL51J-oNsxEj4FBE1UBVHLafGrpZ5SnA-Gvlf8HlJV0HKty_Mnq610bliueU2O8CHWmE7RE1RhlRmzR1WcaxhhfcPu8sY/s320/sean'seye1.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566408060606962" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YgiuAedDCEZh9VzEWCLhyKhP3oGrq8nAitRdKVUlENpar39D6iod9SukP4rJSwbvtZ2-zQpVbBtiI8dKNOFgjwv3mZlqDjwDRVhy0Fm5sV2tgoqyI93Vpm6PCavsHTwQHagoiRV8dgI/s1600-h/sean'seye2.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7YgiuAedDCEZh9VzEWCLhyKhP3oGrq8nAitRdKVUlENpar39D6iod9SukP4rJSwbvtZ2-zQpVbBtiI8dKNOFgjwv3mZlqDjwDRVhy0Fm5sV2tgoqyI93Vpm6PCavsHTwQHagoiRV8dgI/s320/sean'seye2.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566410069635266" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix3LzJoBd5bAyb12XBwQG9L1QKwj0RGGDaz6GYupQ6oLASvRlQEepsoAYfMRw5hb_N4Z113qf57eLilDXP4QTZoBG_yiy_qGe7lqrBr3ICUGk6CZx8JhvnPydw7O73H0yupOuh0oHPPjk/s1600-h/seanseye8.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEix3LzJoBd5bAyb12XBwQG9L1QKwj0RGGDaz6GYupQ6oLASvRlQEepsoAYfMRw5hb_N4Z113qf57eLilDXP4QTZoBG_yiy_qGe7lqrBr3ICUGk6CZx8JhvnPydw7O73H0yupOuh0oHPPjk/s320/seanseye8.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566722325612402" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihiaQkxinYzn1PLxpEmyH6nVhnF4ER95XfGkIJ67IL5fXOj_V-L6oUGN5QPItwaivndG4sTlhDXMNlycwVIsPdbIJXSXhWXjewRpET66Rpk8rNqXtrIUmrDyWisfdysMR7hnC4Sqlqznk/s1600-h/seanseye7.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihiaQkxinYzn1PLxpEmyH6nVhnF4ER95XfGkIJ67IL5fXOj_V-L6oUGN5QPItwaivndG4sTlhDXMNlycwVIsPdbIJXSXhWXjewRpET66Rpk8rNqXtrIUmrDyWisfdysMR7hnC4Sqlqznk/s320/seanseye7.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566723307377410" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP0O62zf96tV3n3vk-PhV11pRV2QQgZ_RdP7Wj2NmybqqktYnemHSzKPijx6tfRj49l4GnwU5Y3hkCz-mSYerfSMNFrm9n4MOZB0p2PfSQeXZSsDwiHhaAnX1lZuG52y36r6RrnYJVRF0/s1600-h/seanseye6.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjP0O62zf96tV3n3vk-PhV11pRV2QQgZ_RdP7Wj2NmybqqktYnemHSzKPijx6tfRj49l4GnwU5Y3hkCz-mSYerfSMNFrm9n4MOZB0p2PfSQeXZSsDwiHhaAnX1lZuG52y36r6RrnYJVRF0/s320/seanseye6.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566719139985042" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJioOjkC6JDQov_DYLTv-rPWwcc_s1qT7mQUqBU2jPZGWRi0QqPNyiQsS1wW2MeaS7d6Kd-WanYNNzLhyphenhyphenm8EeBJcsHpAKT66_56HHqxLS4C7EwtsQ81eVFCI0BXW_mcpYaGuTCUhY_Q4I/s1600-h/seanseye5.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJioOjkC6JDQov_DYLTv-rPWwcc_s1qT7mQUqBU2jPZGWRi0QqPNyiQsS1wW2MeaS7d6Kd-WanYNNzLhyphenhyphenm8EeBJcsHpAKT66_56HHqxLS4C7EwtsQ81eVFCI0BXW_mcpYaGuTCUhY_Q4I/s320/seanseye5.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566411453154914" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVeJ4k1ngV9stl_W1eMNCNWlD8Ue4H0Ha0d2LVBuORf8_5mZVR-uP48jgO_7lqEgyHieZULFfnxQLPaRecA9tJPu-z0OUGi99cScLe8jEC2ewXW_TK_810CP8Sg_Sj3mF1f-olkINkWNA/s1600-h/seanseye4.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVeJ4k1ngV9stl_W1eMNCNWlD8Ue4H0Ha0d2LVBuORf8_5mZVR-uP48jgO_7lqEgyHieZULFfnxQLPaRecA9tJPu-z0OUGi99cScLe8jEC2ewXW_TK_810CP8Sg_Sj3mF1f-olkINkWNA/s320/seanseye4.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566414419620722" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTXNhgRyUNwcdeMyf2lwfiqN4-kl49PF1RV1kHXCfs6C4Ola9vek5iwI3Bx0IMf3I_26Ln95ufl-UML1ZakCXgvfD_g968eZJz85mBxHObKLywwT0q_y-hXgiS5BBNe5Y_RcwA22UZIww/s1600-h/sean'seye3.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTXNhgRyUNwcdeMyf2lwfiqN4-kl49PF1RV1kHXCfs6C4Ola9vek5iwI3Bx0IMf3I_26Ln95ufl-UML1ZakCXgvfD_g968eZJz85mBxHObKLywwT0q_y-hXgiS5BBNe5Y_RcwA22UZIww/s320/sean'seye3.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566414656756578" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgztkMihsYP8IFK2EbqSZA4cecmjS_EG7Fxr5Yy_o2lTPb7MBVQb9TQqVSCvud-rZi-bV0VYFzdy03_c7OTq5r8wXQpsYR5f9PowmsLD1H6khOq2ollRc72_qUWBbUiLTezC6MPaBTmLVg/s1600-h/seanseye10.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgztkMihsYP8IFK2EbqSZA4cecmjS_EG7Fxr5Yy_o2lTPb7MBVQb9TQqVSCvud-rZi-bV0VYFzdy03_c7OTq5r8wXQpsYR5f9PowmsLD1H6khOq2ollRc72_qUWBbUiLTezC6MPaBTmLVg/s320/seanseye10.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566730917770034" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjjfFKmylWao7KzLlQoWhyphenhyphenT7hSCX8ojfCwx2ZJysSVZR4OvAucKEcGUwpVOAdBY-D7tMPwTkzw1EVmsALqMB07WnbHg0ivKObgD4Pv16C5w0DpTDdNNw6A3MW0qStnM1zrw0GyqlMy_Jg/s1600-h/seanseye9.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjjfFKmylWao7KzLlQoWhyphenhyphenT7hSCX8ojfCwx2ZJysSVZR4OvAucKEcGUwpVOAdBY-D7tMPwTkzw1EVmsALqMB07WnbHg0ivKObgD4Pv16C5w0DpTDdNNw6A3MW0qStnM1zrw0GyqlMy_Jg/s320/seanseye9.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334566726663480978" border="0" /></a>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-62625510971636469412009-05-11T05:58:00.000-07:002009-05-11T06:48:31.307-07:00KENTUCKY FRIED CHICKEN<div style="text-align: center;">We have been keeping chickens at Camp Pleasant for about a year and a half. We started with about a dozen beautiful hens, who grew up happy. When full size, we realized our coop seemed a bit small (even though <span style="font-style: italic;">most</span> chicks are probably given much <span style="font-style: italic;">less </span>space). So, we started to simply open the door and let them roam free, during the day.<br />There were a couple of problems with this "wild and free" range practice. One, they don't give a rats ass about wildflowers, and will dig up a perfectly good, rare wildflower to get at a bug. And two, they get picked off by racoons, and foxes.<br />Racoons turned out to be some special predators. Even when we stopped letting the chickens out, the racoon returned, and figured out how to climb a fence, pry netting from fence, and open a latched door. By the time we got our chickens secured again, and caught the racoon, we had lost 5 chickens.<br />So, last year, when a friend had some extra "pullets" (teenage chickens), I brought some home to join our flock. I made the assumption that all the chickens would be laying hens... But we ended up with 5 roosters. Five roosters is way too much for a confined coop, and they soon started to terrorize the hens. Our beloved laying hens became victims of an onslaught of abuse and straight up gang rape. We could take it no longer.<br /><br /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/BRIAN%7E1.GEI/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-2.jpg" alt="" /><img src="file:///C:/DOCUME%7E1/BRIAN%7E1.GEI/LOCALS%7E1/Temp/moz-screenshot-3.jpg" alt="" /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3j5eNnEAi0voOkI0p9F0i4hmGabz-xKjeVT95gWnVbrY_mbp7yx-259u1woWQBgEODLYkft-dZcfuiWkXGcpR8GiTPOA6adPB-4BN9svmVjkqZl9sRi1ifRsw8BoYCpfwD3hFK80g6U/s1600-h/chicken+one.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZ3j5eNnEAi0voOkI0p9F0i4hmGabz-xKjeVT95gWnVbrY_mbp7yx-259u1woWQBgEODLYkft-dZcfuiWkXGcpR8GiTPOA6adPB-4BN9svmVjkqZl9sRi1ifRsw8BoYCpfwD3hFK80g6U/s320/chicken+one.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334554230690867634" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">That's me, Brian, on the left, holding the first chicken that we killed. It was the most aggressive...a fact that I thought might make me feel better about killing it. We tried to keep the "best chicken", but when it came down to it, deciding who gets to live and who has to die transcends reason. Fact is, you are killing something that doesn't deserve it.<br />It helps to have someone like Rob (at right) around, who has some experience, who grew up eating fresh chicken, and who can help keep people cheery, even when their hands are covered with blood.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaCIMiFLlYDNZahN-h4j40BwhNElMcrZyTDCDFbaFM0g32ad0bXn8JKrpSqbUg9mNjzElJfCeZFFRklwn5-yAqQvFWruxvy2ZFIs1APXxGCmxC8bNMNoi-eSCos0ARbjgWwXWqGoeogKE/s1600-h/chicken+three.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaCIMiFLlYDNZahN-h4j40BwhNElMcrZyTDCDFbaFM0g32ad0bXn8JKrpSqbUg9mNjzElJfCeZFFRklwn5-yAqQvFWruxvy2ZFIs1APXxGCmxC8bNMNoi-eSCos0ARbjgWwXWqGoeogKE/s320/chicken+three.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334557010147727938" border="0" /></a>I'll spare you all the bloody pictures taken during the kills, but share this picture because I think it does a good job of showing the reality of slaughter...not only do you kill a living thing, but you immediately "process" it into something you can eat. Here we are busy cutting, plucking, soaking, and gutting two roosters.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVErASwlSMbhNo6cRo54Cr6XVoR97r4IQZQSlEIpy0CPpzEOagHB54Y_eJ3grRfcoOzWmvpSK_Qt1KTb1TyYEFLQpsLY0sJdv7J5C6y8vE_qgaQTUtU2nQGq8MreyiW5cvlX8KiOhiSfQ/s1600-h/chicken+tasting.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVErASwlSMbhNo6cRo54Cr6XVoR97r4IQZQSlEIpy0CPpzEOagHB54Y_eJ3grRfcoOzWmvpSK_Qt1KTb1TyYEFLQpsLY0sJdv7J5C6y8vE_qgaQTUtU2nQGq8MreyiW5cvlX8KiOhiSfQ/s320/chicken+tasting.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5334557914122176994" border="0" /></a>Several hours later, we have fried chicken, and Sean takes his best shot at gnawing through the tough skin of a year-old rooster. The meat tasted amazingly GOOD, although it was very chewy. We had fried chicken for several days. It was an interesting feeling, to go to work with lunches of meat that I grew and killed.<br /><br />I've been everything in terms of eating: vegetarian, vegan, raw (ok, for only a couple weeks), freegan, and localvore. Now, I'm somewhere in between localvore and freegan...although we all buy more crap than we'd like to admit. This experience definitely made me question meat eating. But more to the point, it made me question my domestication of chickens altogether.<br />We like things to be replinishable and sustainable, and we LOVE eggs and chicken manure. (Chickens are undoubtedly some of the most helpful creatures for the small farm/homestead.) To keep the chicken flock alive and going, we need at least one rooster to fertilize the eggs, and when those eggs hatch, we get a mix of sexes, and end up with too many boys to maintain a healthy population of laying hens. I cannot see a way around the death of the young boys to keep the girls happy. Of course, this is an insane line of logic, and so I am led to question the entire paradigm of domestication of this species. Is there a way to keep laying hens, and to hatch your own chicks, without killing roosters? Or is domestication problematic from the get-go, and something we should steer away from? Or does the consumption of these animals make sense? <br /><br />I certainly don't have the answers to these questions, but I am glad that I am surrounded by people who pose and consider them, together. <br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-58223621832613896302009-04-21T11:12:00.000-07:002009-04-22T05:40:29.517-07:00The Farm: a Cabbage Patch<div style="text-align: center;">This is "the farm". Its an acre that we are renting from a friend. Last year, it was filled with sunflowers for the summer, then planted into hard winter wheat in the late fall. That is the green that you see.<br />The big inspiration for fencing and irrigating and farming an entire acre was the idea of growing cabbage for making live sauerkraut. But that is only taking up 1/5 of the acre. Another 1/5 will be mixed veggies, another 1/5 will be grains, and the other 2/5 will be cover cropped.<br />The tilled area in this picture is the 1/5 acre cabbage patch. I would like to develop a long-term, no-till rotation that includes cabbage production, but for this spring planting, we used a walk-behind tractor. We got the tractor from Earth Tools, which let us borrow it for the weekend. They also let Sellus borrow it to till another community garden in south Frankfort. I heard he was up til 2 am tilling that community garden. Now that's just simply legendary, if you ask me.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_uqMdkEBE8eF1MJog56RguSlr-UKGVP34eGM1IfZDi8oNTdxm_AYe3WxbmAjDzLogUP275K02cigoLQoj6xGeLELjuXfOokxhkh9JTsFat0WQQswCxJed56014PD3pWHnOAeL3qSaEiw/s1600-h/two.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 130px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_uqMdkEBE8eF1MJog56RguSlr-UKGVP34eGM1IfZDi8oNTdxm_AYe3WxbmAjDzLogUP275K02cigoLQoj6xGeLELjuXfOokxhkh9JTsFat0WQQswCxJed56014PD3pWHnOAeL3qSaEiw/s320/two.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327212573579100610" border="0" /></a><br />I mentioned the desire to get away from tillage. Tillage is destructive. I compare it to surgery. The earth is opened up, and all kinds of micro organisms are killed. Tens of thousands in each tiny teaspoon. Its a micro genocide. As farms move away from artificial fertilizers, we need to take care of microbes, because they are nature's way of releasing nutrients so that plants can use them. To be honest, I really dislike it. But I'm still doing it. We live in a crazy age, don't we?<br />Anyway, I am trying to develop a farming system that reduces or eliminates tillage altogether. I really like the idea of permanent rows and permanent beds. In the beds, crops will be rotated by family (Cruciferous crops, Cucurbits, Solanaceous, Grasses, Allims, Legumes, etc), while the rows will remain in some kind of mowable mixture (I'll be experimenting with a few mixes for this). Permanent rows allow us to keep some soil undisturbed for long periods of time. I think of it as a microbe safe haven.<br />For the cabbage patch, I'm trying a mixture that a seed distributor in southern Ohio made for me. It contains "Green Spirit" rye grass and "Alice" white clover.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu75b5moZ4o4h1gSoh3x7JYf1UQX9y87k5VfljVK958Ctqh7EAujwOZC-Eq_a9WaXuHXuZn4jamgNQMTIPFoh6LZp_GYgXQkEYLWOEmmIrq4DKNH-ihYVCGXNP5DBC6UzGAnofWvCoElY/s1600-h/three.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 243px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu75b5moZ4o4h1gSoh3x7JYf1UQX9y87k5VfljVK958Ctqh7EAujwOZC-Eq_a9WaXuHXuZn4jamgNQMTIPFoh6LZp_GYgXQkEYLWOEmmIrq4DKNH-ihYVCGXNP5DBC6UzGAnofWvCoElY/s320/three.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327212584138618610" border="0" /></a><br />We spread it by hand, at a rate that looks like this:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSzXtWhbAzKOPxlY2KUSyJSSxJLogabLoBwdbetWbwpj8ti3VkJD9nBsHS8YxMNykSyBVM448gUf7e3DdmilmADhtrp5NZA0I7V2jB-WL9nRjlnspgCxrXUhTIM2dz3rhyfX6hBO9CISE/s1600-h/four.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 237px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSzXtWhbAzKOPxlY2KUSyJSSxJLogabLoBwdbetWbwpj8ti3VkJD9nBsHS8YxMNykSyBVM448gUf7e3DdmilmADhtrp5NZA0I7V2jB-WL9nRjlnspgCxrXUhTIM2dz3rhyfX6hBO9CISE/s320/four.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327217934856476738" border="0" /></a><br />Then we raked over it, so that the seeds get better soil contact and have an easier time holding water during germination. This is my dad, raking it all in. I convinced him to take a day off of construction work to come help with my cabbage plants. So it really is becoming a family affair (at least for the weekend) which is totally the dream. We had a very good time.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAXuzPaDZMytKT04PpG4fh3G1ccYvssBkgoYH_7GM5Pzd8sjc_McAvOerFc4ddG8p3cIScyAPxeps6yuhwn5ol8Nct4V2n7SRkWuM3-UW7qXBSCczGG-WfG_6Yf2UUT8k_4fF7XTTt5Ow/s1600-h/five.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 289px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAXuzPaDZMytKT04PpG4fh3G1ccYvssBkgoYH_7GM5Pzd8sjc_McAvOerFc4ddG8p3cIScyAPxeps6yuhwn5ol8Nct4V2n7SRkWuM3-UW7qXBSCczGG-WfG_6Yf2UUT8k_4fF7XTTt5Ow/s320/five.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327212593101492738" border="0" /></a><br />Then came the cabbage plants. Luckily, I got the support of the farmers at Elmwood Stock Farm, a nice, large organic farm in Georgetown, Kentucky. They are a family farm that has transitioned from conventional tobacco to organic vegetables (30+ acres!), organic tobacco, fruits, herbs, and animals. The farm is an impressive work that has obviously been lovingly tended to for more than a generation. They took my seeds and started these plants for me, then sold them back to me at an affordable price. We got about 1,400 plants!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfbI1Yjltwi8Anot5dg8PNGZ-GZRQvG3p52TL6a65rPx9g9iODeqcEkQAF-VC9hOQwTFLL9QpjHcDCOXPwMKUdFnENJUgQXv8sBVcyGLnmNPGiuKQe5b-xPTNrrStZ0nNz5R-0p12B0ic/s1600-h/one.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 151px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfbI1Yjltwi8Anot5dg8PNGZ-GZRQvG3p52TL6a65rPx9g9iODeqcEkQAF-VC9hOQwTFLL9QpjHcDCOXPwMKUdFnENJUgQXv8sBVcyGLnmNPGiuKQe5b-xPTNrrStZ0nNz5R-0p12B0ic/s320/one.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327212571183865346" border="0" /></a><br />And finally, the transplanting. <br />Want to know how to get a truly insane leg workout? Transplant a thousand plants into the soil. You will melt into sweet soreness for two days.<br />We got this planting done just before a nice rain, and with some good weather, we should have a LOT of sauerkraut to make...and EAT!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIHNIVtK895_f6PfUNArOXxo5WCl3TSe3R5cKsjsmlZg7Qmol7NoRZ1VHlM10yBcXTpnki6S2shBO1G_2WgztjBG3ttTkxPJ-cd2Td3Klo7CViY4Bxt_-DOUg0hDeWc7iq4_dK9fGgbys/s1600-h/six.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 155px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIHNIVtK895_f6PfUNArOXxo5WCl3TSe3R5cKsjsmlZg7Qmol7NoRZ1VHlM10yBcXTpnki6S2shBO1G_2WgztjBG3ttTkxPJ-cd2Td3Klo7CViY4Bxt_-DOUg0hDeWc7iq4_dK9fGgbys/s320/six.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5327212788471181346" border="0" /></a>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-40294349160912839392009-03-31T05:35:00.000-07:002009-03-31T06:12:10.182-07:00Late Afternoon, Early Spring<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4P3arSOCVnwVJGfNkJInptiaYqRQpu9nerOcI7jPSuAPcRZqObx-JHXL-ZwRA8PAzgxq-OGQTKgfu6iFIdnmwzs6N0NLITt5fPOJhFO4uEewXBsy9YqXbgjZ6rNJLSGEKim_G51lLzfk/s1600-h/DSC08746.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4P3arSOCVnwVJGfNkJInptiaYqRQpu9nerOcI7jPSuAPcRZqObx-JHXL-ZwRA8PAzgxq-OGQTKgfu6iFIdnmwzs6N0NLITt5fPOJhFO4uEewXBsy9YqXbgjZ6rNJLSGEKim_G51lLzfk/s320/DSC08746.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319338016513762466" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Spring has sprung, and things are waking up. It is amazing to watch the emergence of last year's plants. It never ceases to amaze me when a plant goes dormant in the soil and sits all winter, only to grow tender green shoots again in the spring.<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />In the picture above, we have black currants, comfrey, strawberries, and valerian (freshly divided into 8 plants, and very wilty).<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqCcSawBl6DzVNZ48LL1VCA4hS42xOe4sXqs5Fkqh5e3q1KzPDG6oOpbRcQvjSopRK0qwJ2IEIGCh6_rhFJ9D5gFO7a6JRQzQPL_KdkzLg25WNlZd9plXcJ73Gb_ZerVvVc_cmdWsTwfE/s1600-h/DSC08751.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 229px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqCcSawBl6DzVNZ48LL1VCA4hS42xOe4sXqs5Fkqh5e3q1KzPDG6oOpbRcQvjSopRK0qwJ2IEIGCh6_rhFJ9D5gFO7a6JRQzQPL_KdkzLg25WNlZd9plXcJ73Gb_ZerVvVc_cmdWsTwfE/s320/DSC08751.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319331119229560578" border="0" /></a><br />Things inside the hoophouse are holding up well. This is Melissa, watering some little seedlings with a misting wand. We made a shelf out of bamboo, and have flats of leeks, greens, wildflowers and medicinal herbs.<br /><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNXP6kCNPZfGEbLRlJPvvQGDvna8Xs4cEE2l2xhKcV5D1idLdkivB5ObYOK3dHKwIUG_eF3h1MIXNqsFIgGPUFwsefdNthkFTB4OH10VMLaSqjobdCobn3b-mtIAlj6bEqFDxz_oVXPaw/s1600-h/DSC08753.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNXP6kCNPZfGEbLRlJPvvQGDvna8Xs4cEE2l2xhKcV5D1idLdkivB5ObYOK3dHKwIUG_eF3h1MIXNqsFIgGPUFwsefdNthkFTB4OH10VMLaSqjobdCobn3b-mtIAlj6bEqFDxz_oVXPaw/s320/DSC08753.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319331127694631762" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Here, we planted leeks directly in the ground. So we have leeks in the ground, and leeks in flats. We're trying a few different things as we develop a little production system for leeks. I envision a couple truck loads of leeks in the future!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Pj5rvJUm57zRwuZmwKrk0zYg4P2TZZXI15mgPdJgaWHuHZZNtV4j0U2c830v4LnmfBaiKOsk_wZSOSu-_4Xhn_coBua6o48HMKTYGXDkyKLt9aYtdRpj7T7qU-QTZ7OmPhCTCOIn8e4/s1600-h/P4040041.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 274px; height: 204px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9Pj5rvJUm57zRwuZmwKrk0zYg4P2TZZXI15mgPdJgaWHuHZZNtV4j0U2c830v4LnmfBaiKOsk_wZSOSu-_4Xhn_coBua6o48HMKTYGXDkyKLt9aYtdRpj7T7qU-QTZ7OmPhCTCOIn8e4/s320/P4040041.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319334171312298674" border="0" /></a>Above is a work party in April of 2008. We laid out pathways on contour of a gentle slope, dug paths along the contour, and built garden beds right on top of grass.<br /></div></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTT7i_tua-i4-NxeD5W6A4kZSat0L2Hp2XlcGmyEezfvYPXCXvDJyhuCFvcGFQFX2zaEQXz50-l24RBaY7FwI5AfIXAgr2mG3OZbpwwpoQJL2uWJ3hI0qNFw_PdZ1ZVYrZ1-fC_KZbuNU/s1600-h/P4040058.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTT7i_tua-i4-NxeD5W6A4kZSat0L2Hp2XlcGmyEezfvYPXCXvDJyhuCFvcGFQFX2zaEQXz50-l24RBaY7FwI5AfIXAgr2mG3OZbpwwpoQJL2uWJ3hI0qNFw_PdZ1ZVYrZ1-fC_KZbuNU/s320/P4040058.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333962623699938" border="0" /></a><br />By the end of the work day, in April '08, we had pathways mulched with wood chips and garden beds made of cardboard and manure. This whole area was grass just a few hours earlier!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisS4XkdTnkeOXeIeWqZeDSkR4bn2ozIW08_cPKWaA1Hu1XOCIzjg-wmCZnOHTkXP7hMTQShL5Vl1c6lqpXcWEAr77nMor_EVj72t9_o4TsfuK0-LUpxZxo63-R4SnrBfXwj_jzOQaG4MY/s1600-h/DSC08747.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisS4XkdTnkeOXeIeWqZeDSkR4bn2ozIW08_cPKWaA1Hu1XOCIzjg-wmCZnOHTkXP7hMTQShL5Vl1c6lqpXcWEAr77nMor_EVj72t9_o4TsfuK0-LUpxZxo63-R4SnrBfXwj_jzOQaG4MY/s320/DSC08747.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333971955223426" border="0" /></a>The same area, in March '09. The small retaining walls be built at the work party are holding up wonderfully. After a year of adding grass clippings and cover cropping with cowpeas, sunflowers, and a crop of cabbage, we are ready for another summer.<br />Right now, we have some happy garlic, comfrey, black currants, paw paws, mustard greens, radishes, and peas...and this is only the beginning!<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Wcy9zZbt9Rckcu2nGscItmQCZO_DT36E_HoXcC5b1dT_sehdZLgWIW5ZArVIdvlNVgMgN9yq3Pssrd3hdbsyTQ1j9axYhXOB71X7jUWPiKZ0w9w4ftAhmiS0Vi99V47GGq4yxVfNuo4/s1600-h/DSC08749.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5Wcy9zZbt9Rckcu2nGscItmQCZO_DT36E_HoXcC5b1dT_sehdZLgWIW5ZArVIdvlNVgMgN9yq3Pssrd3hdbsyTQ1j9axYhXOB71X7jUWPiKZ0w9w4ftAhmiS0Vi99V47GGq4yxVfNuo4/s320/DSC08749.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5319333979590249554" border="0" /></a>Closeup of the peas, with a trellis ready to support their climb. On the left, we have comfrey planted as a border between the garden area and the grassy hill. Comfrey is one of our most useful plants. We use it with oils and beeswax to make salves for sunburns, wounds, and dry skin. The leaves are dried and used for teas that we drink as well as teas that we spray on gardens. It grows so well, we scythe it 3-4 times in the summer, and use the leaves to mulch the garden below. We try to allow some plants to always be flowering, though, because bees love the purple/blue blossoms.<br /></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-75038233317392738342009-03-27T13:09:00.000-07:002009-03-27T13:47:29.073-07:00The Farm: Building a Deer Fence<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxh0P2ujBdbu_Gt1qnOTXrt5wj8HnBapU0EBfARNDeqomqcBh9Fl5tg4oJH4XPrXxpvgwS2O5_UucGHiEjLWQqADu_uVBYCBmiJvh-qDXIGYw4WbAEjcnpSqs9oTwsToatP74cRBBXJfk/s1600-h/SDC11359.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxh0P2ujBdbu_Gt1qnOTXrt5wj8HnBapU0EBfARNDeqomqcBh9Fl5tg4oJH4XPrXxpvgwS2O5_UucGHiEjLWQqADu_uVBYCBmiJvh-qDXIGYw4WbAEjcnpSqs9oTwsToatP74cRBBXJfk/s320/SDC11359.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317962529958751858" border="0" /></a><br />Just down the road from our hilly homestead, we've rented one acre of nice Elkhorn Creek bottomland from a friend and neighbor. I feel blessed to have access to such a beautiful, flat, and fertile piece of land. This picture shows the beginnings of a deer fence. We're using bamboo instead of buying stakes. There is a large bamboo grove on this farm which the farm owner is coppicing (cutting at ground level) each year.<br />What will we plant? Lots of cabbage for sauerkraut ("Geier Krauts, LLC"), grains to feed our chickens in the winter, and all the veggies we can plant, weed, water, and harvest.<br />In this picture, I'm (Brian) talking with Sellus, our newest city commisioner. Sellus is heavily involved in creating community gardens all over downtown Frankfort, and we like to consider our acre a large, country community garden. You can check out the commissioner's <a style="color: rgb(255, 204, 0); font-weight: bold;" href="http://www.selluswilder.com/">website</a> to learn about what's going on in Frankfort, and where Frankfort is headed.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCht_eQaedeUMdbUZe6SbeuF_zyn7yb4KMQ_vhNYw0coRpLkrmjQJrGQgj9AckuyjQbegZG-e8LR_jLm3qPdF4SHOEHjRlaYuupHhgXQfYIMbN8aO0EXR_43nm1CGFxtlMFH2vfTRBXKs/s1600-h/SDC11367.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCht_eQaedeUMdbUZe6SbeuF_zyn7yb4KMQ_vhNYw0coRpLkrmjQJrGQgj9AckuyjQbegZG-e8LR_jLm3qPdF4SHOEHjRlaYuupHhgXQfYIMbN8aO0EXR_43nm1CGFxtlMFH2vfTRBXKs/s320/SDC11367.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317966720096983218" border="0" /></a>...close-up of a corner post. The farm owner loaned us these great poles to put at the corners of our fence. We'll attach some gates to these as well, so we can open them and drive a truck by the garden to haul in compost or haul out produce. Sellus is keeping his cool with the sunglasses, but he was really bummed that he forgot it was Sunday, and couldn't get beer for us on his way out. As long as we learn from our mistakes...<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbZ2gIBnwyKShY6OmzmdNePLVc49z9gDC9DJ800MmKCRnJC3Vyu-J6MTGtX2aVP4lTSvL1rgHnBPFJWsKMi7yst7b1jRk5Itlm-HP5NBkveECdQ-K56B85gOyfaHoiZRdPFIMQS_wvwg/s1600-h/SDC11365.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgUbZ2gIBnwyKShY6OmzmdNePLVc49z9gDC9DJ800MmKCRnJC3Vyu-J6MTGtX2aVP4lTSvL1rgHnBPFJWsKMi7yst7b1jRk5Itlm-HP5NBkveECdQ-K56B85gOyfaHoiZRdPFIMQS_wvwg/s320/SDC11365.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317964410705145202" border="0" /></a>John and Nathan worked on tying 8 ft. poles to small, stout bamboo poles which we had pounded into the ground with a post driver. Later we'll attach a 7 ft. mesh deer fence.<br />John is nursing 70 or so strawberry plants at his house that he is going to transplant into this garden. With a small loan from his brother, he will get a taste of what its like to invest, plant, and produce. I hope this garden can be a way for a few of us to get our feet wet with farming that's a lifestyle AND a paying job.<br /><br />I cannot promise that I will not eat ripe strawberries before John can pick, pack, and sell them. Who could resist?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoqi9m8f1c0gVpshNfiL4W_8n8t2pz7jDZbCp-SedTvA51XBTexe5TTfCS8lBfQ7tlDd2nzj0tabg_Chft5yyY0O-WYi6_ODqiVjz0zlLtinApozOPg37i9MjWkmMnbmsRbHFgNCahjno/s1600-h/SDC11371.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoqi9m8f1c0gVpshNfiL4W_8n8t2pz7jDZbCp-SedTvA51XBTexe5TTfCS8lBfQ7tlDd2nzj0tabg_Chft5yyY0O-WYi6_ODqiVjz0zlLtinApozOPg37i9MjWkmMnbmsRbHFgNCahjno/s320/SDC11371.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5317965381268912690" border="0" /></a><br />Kierston and Mike's family came over to help for the day, and Liam had to test the water at the creek. Still a bit too cold for swimming, but it won't be long!<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCht_eQaedeUMdbUZe6SbeuF_zyn7yb4KMQ_vhNYw0coRpLkrmjQJrGQgj9AckuyjQbegZG-e8LR_jLm3qPdF4SHOEHjRlaYuupHhgXQfYIMbN8aO0EXR_43nm1CGFxtlMFH2vfTRBXKs/s1600-h/SDC11367.JPG"><br /></a></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-5126495833250493022009-02-24T06:29:00.000-08:002009-03-16T06:13:10.282-07:00At Work: Fresh Harvest in FebruaryI live on Camp Pleasant Road, but on most days, I'm in Frankfort working for Kentucky State University as a research assistant in Organic/Sustainable Vegetable Production. We do a lot of interesting work there, and I can't help but share some of it on this blog. This may not have happened at Camp Pleasant, but some things are related. . .<br /><br />Last November, as winter was setting in, we took a large portion of our sweet potato harvest and buried it deep in the ground. We had a bit of help from John Clay, a working farmer in his eighties, who claims to be the last colored farmer in Franklin County. (I'm sure that the inevitable BOOM that farming is about to have will change that!) John told us about vegetable storage pits that his parents used to use when he was growing up. Large parts of Kentucky didn't get electricity until the 1950's or so, so many people grew and stored their own food without refrigeration. You can see a video of the construction of our pit on our Kentucky State University <a href="http://organic.kysu.edu">Organic Agriculture Working Group website</a>:<br /><br /><a href="http://organic.kysu.edu/FoodStorage.shtml">http://organic.kysu.edu/FoodStorage.shtml</a><br /><br />Just a few days ago, I dug into the soil and found our pit of potatoes and straw. I was amazed. While winter froze and thawed, and dropped inches of snow and ice through December and January, the soil had insulated our pit and preserved a large percentage of our harvest. Below are some pictures.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ODiLCYH2wdRsYYeTpiQOn7Ztc9mfiXCJPSOxpM1_BobsRY3JN2EPPyJhnx3zxPZ4lOLAIRGDmynNdZMJgwbPu4K8-FjHOceNh5dBvDqT48ivSn0Wro-FdSEHJm68UD9RyTm99xfGus0/s1600-h/sweetpotatopit+002.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_ODiLCYH2wdRsYYeTpiQOn7Ztc9mfiXCJPSOxpM1_BobsRY3JN2EPPyJhnx3zxPZ4lOLAIRGDmynNdZMJgwbPu4K8-FjHOceNh5dBvDqT48ivSn0Wro-FdSEHJm68UD9RyTm99xfGus0/s320/sweetpotatopit+002.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306373652104963618" border="0" /></a><br />This is the pit. The blue tarp covered the pit from November to February, and helped keep moisture from getting into the sweet potatoes. The pit is designed to insulate vegetables from freezing, and to keep them in a dry bed of straw or sand.<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBK3lIdA5mHckPQBuSGq54OCMPGkyXkAqEih2AR930diTUBtSosuzzw39L7ePt0Er_Ujtfi7t07PoxSjtD07ai7F_EpGSK2OFpk9GXOiEigV11M9Jnt7EXYec5CoDeEc3zSomUg-__OqQ/s1600-h/sweetpotatopit+003.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgBK3lIdA5mHckPQBuSGq54OCMPGkyXkAqEih2AR930diTUBtSosuzzw39L7ePt0Er_Ujtfi7t07PoxSjtD07ai7F_EpGSK2OFpk9GXOiEigV11M9Jnt7EXYec5CoDeEc3zSomUg-__OqQ/s320/sweetpotatopit+003.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306373648497523394" border="0" /></a>As you can see, our pit was covered with about 2.5 feet of soil. It is a lot of work to dig into a pit like this...but it is rewarding. Digging into a pit like this is an amazing experience, and it makes it clear why people built root cellars...you only have to dig once!<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2F2sGohby3gF2aJgNs68Amz8rkQ2g-NWeOA2BgPKxrt1kk1B-RjnAEHhIMKCFDpJcH1C-cwghcjmR7b0ut1Mr_8clKYC3qwunu3sJ796AYZ_PN1tvpNfH8LBNsxT4z7OBbvsUeL6cIuE/s1600-h/sweetpotatopit+006.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2F2sGohby3gF2aJgNs68Amz8rkQ2g-NWeOA2BgPKxrt1kk1B-RjnAEHhIMKCFDpJcH1C-cwghcjmR7b0ut1Mr_8clKYC3qwunu3sJ796AYZ_PN1tvpNfH8LBNsxT4z7OBbvsUeL6cIuE/s320/sweetpotatopit+006.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306373650397493826" border="0" /></a>Clean, dry, live sweet potatoes...<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1OJac52yWQFVytIpHH1X2Ljd2zadJYPi6tpe9JLJxCWaBMgvPeZ5R0GV31aK_Tk2Q1wlGrShOwsQOg0OGyN4cOCcz1sqW5Rvm2B4WC3y4id6NrkMOz3RbyfcXkr5OucFeFIjkHQNWVQA/s1600-h/sweetpotatopit+008.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1OJac52yWQFVytIpHH1X2Ljd2zadJYPi6tpe9JLJxCWaBMgvPeZ5R0GV31aK_Tk2Q1wlGrShOwsQOg0OGyN4cOCcz1sqW5Rvm2B4WC3y4id6NrkMOz3RbyfcXkr5OucFeFIjkHQNWVQA/s320/sweetpotatopit+008.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306373652905091570" border="0" /></a><br />This picture shows the amount of good potatoes and the amount of rotten potatoes. Not bad, if you ask me. Many of the good potatoes had bruises that we had to cut out before cooking. But the taste was everything you'd expect from a sweet potato.<br />We have about 10X as much as this buried in our pit, and we hope to keep many of them alive until time for replanting in spring!<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">We also buried temperature-taking probes inside the pit, and we will publish the winter temperatures at different levels in the pit, alongside outside air and soil temperatures, on the KSU Organic Working Group's website.<br /></div></div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3295254089596412752.post-47371711950629531312009-02-18T16:58:00.000-08:002009-02-20T19:28:51.757-08:00Garden/Farm: The Hoop House is Ready!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjT6vN1NSVlS8-fuc7etKRHQRwU2RxNZ2RdXGyHlsYCbZVhliFHm_0v18jYCuXvz012Lz8RTQwjhYMGdP43DOmtFiZEUj7EESo7esnvbQUY2008qqDaLu1Dibo9C7J2sXZmz6lzcaUPB8/s1600-h/Establish.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304307121813268274" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjT6vN1NSVlS8-fuc7etKRHQRwU2RxNZ2RdXGyHlsYCbZVhliFHm_0v18jYCuXvz012Lz8RTQwjhYMGdP43DOmtFiZEUj7EESo7esnvbQUY2008qqDaLu1Dibo9C7J2sXZmz6lzcaUPB8/s320/Establish.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>Yesterday, I put the finishing touches on our little hoop house. It is made of used lumber from our land, wood from dumpsters, new cattle panel fencing (for the structure), used irrigation tape and hoses, and new plastic. <div>With this tunnel, we can start seedlings, and extend the season by planting early or planting late. A hoop house collects and traps solar heat. There is nothing heating this house but the sun. </div><div><br /></div><div>Below are some detailed images for those interested. This entire 10 x 30 tunnel was constructed for about $250.<br /><br /><br /></div></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304309083969657090" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRxpgpiRewlw2GdqLGrgyFy_xlLSBXRiLQjMdcvkC_rcdHXyLbsHOmkzeKyA_nx4M0-z-BFie-H9fJ3fhffQdVmN-ClnPkxKFFsXKdw-NcPa-_lEouccDe2KzSdZBWGJMDFL4ipBs2Pls/s320/Inside+%28cattle+panels+and+compost.jpg" border="0" />Inside the house, we've put down a mulch path and a nice layer of compost. The mulch was given to us by the utility company, who dumped huge loads of it on our land when they were trimming trees on our road. The compost is from a company that blends yard "waste" from Lexington with horse manure and straw from thoroughbred farms.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is a good view of the cattle panels. We used eight of these fence-building panels to build the structure of our tunnel. They were easy to bend, and we simply attached them to large boards that are anchored in the ground a bit by wooden stakes.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br />We used one large piece of plastic to cover almost all the tunnel. It wraps around the end of the tunnel, where we attached some used irrigation line to the cattle panels to keep the plastic from rubbing on the rough edges of the panels.</div><div><br />Here, you can also see that the plastic is attached by a black line of T-tape...another piece of used irrigation. T-tape is excellent for this. We simply stapled through the T-tape and plastic, and into the wood. <img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304309086700848898" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCHx0rTaoSok5Pjp5Ea4SegUqIXgSTs1kj2HX0V0DR4eybwRzEUrAP0pAkMelI_biIZUygFHSsgjapYJ9-5Ac87Pvz4bNZfricNrXwt0VsFd5ExkFUlSgxI434rfwL0DwoC_aebglY-Gk/s320/T-tape+and+Door.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304309095263671250" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK_fQk8YsA0gm3O6UGlT8npVl_Q4d5GRqjU884bqlVIHhp0s_9gm5hKlb3F12gSfMJ56Aft7HAgM9tFMDsdQ1NqZokm8lWxFBZm1N3ZCaKU8Ki08m0SET04xRC1sO6oZW4ArcCt0BHQFw/s320/Fencing+Wire.jpg" border="0" /></div><div><div><br />Here's a picture of the wire we used to keep things together. It is super useful<br /></div><div>and with a fence tool, you can twist the wire up<br /></div>and connect just about anything.</div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304309097713989122" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxUuzZ7l3M92a2hDYPudWGPbIku9U_cQ3OHml-MG-d-WRsWNc5hVpNrgG4sL0-WUCCht2gxFD8u6x10NFEi0-HtOdyjazsvVpE1t_SqNjBWiNhOAkB23M7GvVyGRME47OjNEkqOt25ncE/s320/Door+Insulation.jpg" border="0" />This is my favorite part. I had a hard time making the door flush with this design. And any crack lets in a lot of cold air, cooling the tunnel very quickly. With a hoop house, we want to TRAP heat. </div><div><br /></div><div>Instead of heading to the hardware store, we go to the old barn and hunt for things to use. For this, we found an old hose.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></div><div><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304314079202305202" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiiKev2NJam6sdloT1rArVQWJSwzd-TJ9Mc8xlw2ES-2n5EdYfM1z75Lb7s4vXjwxA5jeV7sHCf2qT37LCdU2dxbR3Jf8B3UJzqOgnlWpEbmKmCYBTd4HMEeMe8TWtf7V6h9L05Ftq0h54/s320/wiggle+wire.jpg" border="0" />This is a corner of the tunnel. If you look closely, you'll see a little piece of "wiggle wire", which is something used on "real" high tunnels. These pieces were salvaged from a tunnel that was destroyed in a storm.</div><div><br /></div><div>Wiggle wire allows you to fasten plastic with a wiggly wire into a track. Here, we are using it to secure our roll-up sides. We can remove the wire, making the roll-up side loose, and we can roll it up to the level of the black T-tape to ventilate the tunnel.</div><div><br /></div><div><br />See...roll up sides...Inside the plastic is a long pole made from pieces of bamboo tied together with fencing wire. We can roll these sides up and attach them from the inside with little ties.<br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304314084113428434" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 320px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglDUO6Zbz6v9oToV029cF-zLwLxIIZr2UtFwRw-GJmGixil6V-Lem_OpMKb2VZzSY8rUYl8L9KIofuH4aqeNrbpCiH95O2aYlL8VDQr9MJBP-xNtAVRVlOmNWUcU75FfjGvQGdejyVPDg/s320/Roll+Up+Sides.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />Trouble shooting...inside the tunnel, we had some gaps where the bamboo poles didn't quite touch the ground. So I plugged these holes with a fun-noodle. Fun noodles were never really that much fun, anyway. Around here, we prefer inner tubes for floating in the river.<img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5304314086439268930" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: pointer; HEIGHT: 240px" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgvFov1KKv2m5SnQE8sUnOh7LQsKTVQ-qvBwJp74sGLdwYjqILLWAWnKFcyNaEMHEcdZvxEThrVpo1xtywu5chzH1U7neDlpNdvdi776LuduWYxQnM3aCNAnutvs_6PtLqzp2ULMuCP9vM/s320/Filling+Gaps+with+Noodle.jpg" border="0" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />...Looking forward to planting leeks, broccoli, and greens!</div><div><br /></div><div>Please don't hesitate to contact me if you want to chat about this design...<br /><br />As for high tunnels in general, you can also see a USDA website at:<br />http://hightunnels.org/<br /><br />Or the website for Au Naturel Farm at:<br />http://aunaturelfarm.homestead.com/<br />Paul and Allison are excellent high tunnel growers in western Kentucky.<br /><br />Good Foods Coop, in Lexington, are currently looking for a farmer or two to provide lettuce mixes through the winter. "We could sell tons of the stuff...all you could grow..." </div>Camp Pleasanthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17981397670935570240noreply@blogger.com3