Organic

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Like Farmers, Only Younger

Quivira Coalition New Agrarians Conference

When is the last time you met a farmer? Did you happen to notice how old that farmer was? It's an unfortunate fact that in the United States farmers are generally an old and aging group. Given that without farmers we wouldn't have food it is important that more young folks start working in agriculture. The Quivira Coalition has dedicated their 10th annual conference to these new agrarians. If you would like to meet a young farmer, here is a great opportunity.

What: The Quivira Coalition's 10th Anniversary Conference - New Agrarians

Ballet in the Pasture & Building Local Food Systems

Joel Salatin and Hen

Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms and Tom Delehanty of Pollo Real Ranch discuss local food systems at two public events presented by the Carbon Economy Series.

What: Building Local Food Systems - Talk & Panel Discussion with Joel Salatin and Tom Delehanty
When: Friday, August 26, 7-9pm
Where: NM School for the Deaf, James A. Little Theatre, 1060 Cerrillos Rd., Santa Fe, NM
Tickets: $10 at CarbonEconomySeries.com

Why I Garden #19

Raspberry - Rubus idaeus

We've had an interesting summer so far. With the hot and dry weather some plants have suffered while others have thrived. I've focused so much attention on the plants that needed help I almost forgot to mention the Raspberries. Two years ago we planted raspberry canes from a friend's grandmother's garden. The first year's crop was small as the canes were still establishing. This year we've had a steady stream of raspberries to eat on cereal, with dessert or fresh picked. The fresh raspberry season appears to be coming to an end, so here are my thanks for the last raspberry.

WWOOF Hawaii - Blog from the Big Island

WWOOF Hawaii - Tropical Fruit

Here is the latest post from Sara J, our intrepid WWOOF'er in Hawaii. Enjoy!

    I am now on Big Island and the weather is great! I’m on a small permaculture farm, only about 3 acres. It is a half mile from Kealakekua Bay in south Kona. We are off the grid and the land and animals provide about 90% of the food I eat. I’ve been here a few weeks and am falling in love with the place. Everyday there is beauty and joy in working the land and being with the animals, but there are also challenges and a lot of heavy labor to be done.

Reaping Rewards

Strawberry Rhubarb Pie with lattice crust

With some recent cooking projects, I was again reminded that good things come to those who wait (and preserve).

WWOOF-ing it in Hawai'i

WWOOF Hawaii - Hansen the gorilla and a windmill

 Welcome a new blogger to EcoDaddyo - SaraJ. I met Sara through our shared passion for skiing. Of course, snow skiing is a seasonal pursuit which led Sara to travel for the summer. I'll let her tell you what she's up to.

So I decided to try my luck in Hawaii. It seemed like a cool place I'd never been; and with my love of travel, adventures, gardening, and limited finances it's only natural to WWOOF it.

Oh Poop!

Mule Poop

It takes a little planning and a few barnyard animals, but finding free fertilizer can be easy and cheap. A friend of mine who lives outside of town has mules ... and their byproducts. Mules are great animals, if you have the room for them, and they produce a considerable amount of fertilizer. Local stables can be a good source of livestock manure if you can haul it away and compost the stuff.

Why I Garden #18

French Tarragon, drying

We had the first hard freeze of the season last week. There were no light frosts, the low temps went solidly below zero (Celsius) in one night. The local meteorologist gave us ample warning so we pulled up tomato plants, harvested squash and chile and tender herbs. It was an exciting end to a full year of watering, weeding and tending. Tomatoes and tomatillos are slowly ripening, herbs are hanging to dry in the kitchen and apples are being sauced or fermented.

What is Sustainable Wine?

Grape vines at Talley Vineyards

I drink wine and have noticed a few new words on bottles in the wine shop. Natural, Sustainable, Organic and Biodynamic are appearing on certain wine labels. As I'm learning about wine and grapes I thought I should learn about sustainable wine making. It turns out that viticulture (the science of growing wine grapes) is a complex science and sustainability adds to the complexity. So, I started small by touring a sustainable winery on the central coast of California.

Why I Garden #16

Squash Blossoms and Honey Bee after the rain

The monsoon rains have been coming pretty regularly and everything in the garden is growing with vim and vigor. I expect that the various squash and other vining plants will soon break out of their beds and overwhelm any slow moving bystanders. Of course that includes the weeds, but the fruit and veggies are keeping pace. My only worry is that I might miss pulling any of the insidious Siberian Elm (aka Chinese Elm) seedlings that are sprouting from any and everywhere.

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