Dunn Creek Organic Farm PEI, Canada

It All Comes Back To Manure

2011-11-22T17:39:00.001-08:00

We need all of our farmers. I firmly believe that. Trial and error and ten years of trying to learn how to manage something resembling a farm has taught me that no one can wave a magic wand and make a professional who can wisely manage natural resources, operate and maintain machines, fix buildings, design and construct infrastructure, supply field labor, deliver lambs at 1 AM, fix a leaky kitchen faucet, push a teenager to get the chores done and drive an 11 year old to hockey. We need all of our farmers because they know something about everything.

When I came back from the ACORN conference in Halifax last week, pumped full of information until it was leaking out of my pores, I called on a young farmer in my neighborhood to share the information I'd learned with him. You see, one of the things I learned at ACORN was that this potent and highly concentrated input needs to be spread around. It's no good just keeping it in a bag in the barn.

So we talked about soil and seeds and fertility for about an hour when this young conventional farmer said, "You know, I've been looking at it. And it all comes back to manure". He'd just this year produced the best corn crop he'd ever had by loading up his soil with manure from his cows instead of buying in chemical fertilizer.

In 1969 an oil well blew out in the Santa Barbra Channel and flooded our beaches with crude oil. It was an environmental disaster that created the first Earth Day. The students of the new environmental sciences, our "alternative" neighbors and people all over the world woke up and saw that we were making a mess and something had to be done about it. Lines were drawn. The politics of the environment were born. Many good things came of that movement but something went wrong.

Santa Barbara County is an agricultural area on the coast of California that also has fishermen and oil production. We have old cowboys from families that go back to the Spanish and Mexican land grants of the colonial era. These families worked to manage grazing and pasture for beef and tended their lands responsibly for generations. They weren't ready for the kind of people promoting Earth Day in 1970. When the lines were drawn around the ecological movement, these "descendientes" excluded themselves and there was no effort made to include them in. That was a mistake on both sides.

When I was 24, I volunteered to help work 350 head of range cattle on a family "brush ranch". I met a rancher who was the descendant of people who had worked that land for 130 years. The owner had been educated at UC Berkeley. This was not the red-neck cowboy I had imagined. And in fact I later learned that our University system had been supported by families like his so that their sons and daughters could get a first class education in their own state and bring that education back home to the farm and their communities. It turned out that that old cowboy was the one who lost the family ranch a few years later. I know for a fact that he later died of a broken heart. I was at his memorial with his stetson, his riata, his work saddle and his family who no longer had the home their grandfathers and grandmothers built.

The young farmer I was visiting last week was interested in the material I brought back from Halifax on soil science. We started talking about biological farming. And we talked about an old man in our neighborhood, recently departed, who farmed naturally all his life. Not because it was the thing to do, but because it was something he'd proven over a lifetime. The young farmer and I talked about bringing up seaweed from the shore for mineral supplement to feed the fields. And we talked about pellet fertilizer. The young farmer thought for a moment. "The old man said, 'You don't need to put that "hail" on the field. Everything you need is right here. We never put that stuff on and we always had a good crop'." The old man put kelp and manure on his fields and rotated his crops. "It all comes back to manure"

We need our farmers. All of them. The young farmer and I have listened to and learned from "Los Viejos" - the old ones. When we lose a farmer we break the chain of generations of knowledge on the land. And as the young farmer and I can tell you - it's a long hard row to hoe getting it back. But the old men still try to tell us, "Don't lose what we worked for. Nature is giving you everything you need right here".

Occupy Soil - A Micro Revolution

2011-11-14T16:27:00.001-08:00

I've just returned from the ACORN conference in Halilfax, Nova Scotia. ACORN is the Atlantic Canadian Organic Regional Network and it represents and embodies organic agriculture in the Maritime Provinces.

First of all I have to thank ACORN for the fine job they did to bring such a diverse group of people together to represent the organic community in our region. I spent three days totally absorbed in seminars collecting valuable information, not only about how I'll work my farm, but to see that more small farmers are putting local agricultural products and farming careers within reach of more families, individuals, partners and local communities.

And I do have to comment on the diversity of participants. We're all aware of Occupiers and Tea Partiers and the social and political differences rabidly promoted by our spectator media. But this gathering included those who defied those definitions and divisions. I met an evangelical Christian, a home schooling mom, a Libertarian, a small business owner, a wealth manager looking for a change in life, a dogged small farmer in pursuit of agricultural profits, a young person interested in shaping their own alternatives, an artist who was engineering his own technology solutions, a "hippie" looking for independence from corporations. These people of diverse ideology were not in opposition to one another, nor were they actively protesting anything. They were embracing the means to take peaceful action with their own hands. It was civil. It was orderly and it was radical. We weren't there to protest the status quo. We're already changing it literally from the ground up.

And speaking of ground. The seminars on soil biology, plant health and permaculture left my eyes wide open. I had previously read Gary F. Zimmer's book, "The Biological Farmer". And this summer I was browsing in Michael Phillips book, The Apple Grower, both of which provide detailed information relating the science of soil biology to plant health. But Av Singh's presentations at ACORN really bridged the gap for me between science and field experience. His description of a holistic approach based on science plus farmer observation and experience made my day. He gave me the scientific keys to unlock what I see in my own fields.

Now. There's more than one way to do just about everything. And I was very interested in the seminars on organic standards and allowable inputs. But the magic happened when a theory I hadn't really understood was explained. Everything your plants need to be healthy can be found in a biologically healthy soil system.
The key - is making everything available to your crop - at the right time. This is master level stuff.

But think of it like this. If you drink too much on Saturday night and your system is out of balance, you won't be at your best on Sunday morning. Which, by the way, is why airline pilots aren't allowed to fly with a hangover. Now, you can treat the symptom by taking a few Tylenol, or you can work on putting your whole system back into balance and decide not to put too much alcohol into your system again. You can imagine what's going on in our soil body when we don't keep it in balance. We're trying to grow plants in soil that has a hangover.

Going for optimal soil biology is probably the hardest way to go about optimal plant health. It's so much easier to dump in some organically allowed inputs imported from who knows where and call it good. But then we're just practicing the same bad medicine that got us in trouble in the first place.

So yes, I learned some things about why our crop yields aren't what they could be. And yes, I 've learned how to apply organic corrections to my soil. But I'm motivated to face this new challenge of growing healthy soil from start to finish because I know that the only "sustainable" agriculture comes from the micro-biological level up.

Tip O'Neil is famously quoted as saying, "All politics is local". I guess the same can be said for soil.
Our land has been farmed for 200 years and I'm now 52 years old. Our short term goal is to take a living from our farm. But our long term goal is to leave good soil for the next farmer.

A Conversation With Coyotes

2011-11-06T19:28:00.000-08:00

I walked the lane from our home, almost a quarter mile to the gate that opens on the pasture closest to the house and peed on the gate posts. Then I walked along the fence line to the gate that leads to the next field above the house and peed some more. I was leaving a statement for the coyote pack that counts our farm as their territory. Don't cross this line. This is mine.

That's what I did as we put our first batch of 50 pastured chickens into pens on the pasture. And we had no trouble from coyotes. But when we put our second batch of 50 on the pasture, we lost them all.

Coyotes aren't native to PEI. Like us, they are CFA's (Come From Away's) who are variously accepted, tolerated, hunted and trapped. We know there is a an active pack in our neighborhood. They make themselves known on a regular basis in an interesting variety of ways. Coyote is a sensible dog. In native lore he is, "The Trickster". He is part fool, part shape-shifter, part devil.

When the pack is in our area, it moves, not in a bunch, but as a picket line through the woods. Rabbits and ground animals beware, if coyote flushes you from cover, the pack will finish you and a wild celebration of howling will mark victory. About 4:00 AM some days ago I heard a scream that sounded like a child in pain in the woods. It was followed by the celebratory yip and howl of a coyote who had just taken down a good sized rabbit. My dog, Annie heard it too. If you've ever heard a rabbit scream, you know what I'm talking about.

In the days that followed all was quiet.

Then, last night there was the sharp yip and howl of a lone voice just behind the house in the woods. It was an announcement. "I Am HERE!" But "here" was a little too close for me. So I walked into the dark and gave a series of deep throated barks at intervals. As I moved up to the tree line I pinpointed it's position. Coyote shouted back. Now not so certain and then giving ground back into the field behind the trees.
We never saw each other. But communication was being made and it was plain enough. I was saying,
"STAY AWAY!" And he backed off.

After quiet was restored, I went back into the house and went to bed. About 20 minutes later, I was paged through the closed windows of my room by a faint high wailing that sounded like a cell phone in my sleepy state. I got up to open the window and heard coyote's latest broadcast now very close to the edge of our field. I barked back which set my dogs into a few minutes of growling and boof-ing at the intruder. Then we all settled down and the night was quiet again.

Last summer, I read Farley Mowat's 1963 book, "Never Cry Wolf". He details his experiences living with and observing a wild wolf pack in the far north. He learned the rules that determine the territory of the hunting wolf packs and observed the disciplined social behavior that guarantees survival of hunting groups and preserves peace between them. It was his book that encouraged me to take the initiative of communicating with my wild canine neighbors by marking my boundries.

I have two dogs. I love dogs. And I understand dogs. The canine in the wild is not the babied simpleton we raise as pets. It is a canny, wild hunter. It belongs to a society that has rules and it understands a lot about its environment. And I'm convinced, after thousands of years of proximity with man, it knows exactly who we are.

This morning I walked the lane from our home almost a quarter mile to the gate that opens on to the pasture closest to the house. I was getting ready to move the horses out to graze when I saw a little green tootsie roll on the ground in the gate way. Right on the line I had peed last summer. It was a message from coyote.

We knew coyote in suburban southern California. He would come out of the fog draped foothills to patrol the empty streets before dawn with a scornful swagger surfing for cats and backyard bowls of free dog food. But here on PEI this local wild dog had left me a note full of animal protein, fur and slim white bones. And the message was, "Chill out man! I know where your boundry is! No need for threats, bro."

We lost our second batch of 50 chickens on the morning we were planning to take them to be processed.
Something tore through the poultry wire and tore up the the backs of the birds between their wings (a relatively small bite mark), leaving them dead and dying on the ground - but none were taken or eaten. We never knew what got them and I didn't find clear tracks. But the holes in the wire, the size of the holes, the size of the bite marks and the fact that the birds weren't killed for food told me it was probably raccoons that did it.

Coyote is a trickster. And he's a hunter. But the message he left me said that he's well fed on wild game. He knows where I've marked my ground. And he assumes that he's free to hunt the wild hare that would destroy my garden if the population was left un-challenged.

I have to agree. Even so, this evening I walked the lane from our home up into the fields and "refreshed" my marks. I offered a howl into the woods that went unanswered. And I went home satisfied that I had answered coyote for tonight.

Small Plot Organic Grains and Local Farming Gains

2011-10-28T18:46:00.000-07:00

While some farmers have "gone big", we've decided to "go small". We're working with small equipment, heirloom seeds and our neighbors to meet our needs on our terms.

Here's a short video I made in September while cutting our barley with an old International Harvester sickle bar mower and our John Deere tractor. (UPDATE: hahaha - blogger and youtube don't like my .mov video! So, think of it as a briefly animated still and imagine a really great video! - JQ)

In north america, grain production has gradually evolved from being part of the small mixed family farm into a major element of industrial agriculture. Farms now produce hundreds or even thousands of acres of grain with huge energy, tilling, spraying, harvesting and storage costs.

It costs a lot of money to operate a modern grain growing operation. We don't have the resources to build the farm infrastructure for industrial grain growing. I'm not sure we would want to. But we were encouraged to believe we could meet our own needs with a book written by Gene Logsdon of Ohio, by making traditional homestead grain farming part of our farm crop rotation. The Book is titled, "Small Scale Grain Raising: An Organic Guide to Growing, Processing and Using Nutritious Whole Grains for Home Gardeners and Local Farmers.

The point is that while most small organic farms focus on niche vegetables or high value produce, small grain plots can create big benefits on small mixed farms. The book opened my eyes to the amazing yield potential of small plot organic grain farming, the market potential of growing grain for our animals and selling good whole grains directly to consumers.

Space Requirements

So how much space do you need to produce a bushel of grain? (Notice that bushel weight varies, though each weight is considered a single bushel measure)

Some examples from the book:

Corn = 10' x 50' = 56 lbs
Oats = 10' x 62' = 32 lbs
Barley = 10' x 87' = 48 lbs
Wheat = 10' x 109' = 60 lbs

I don't know about you, but 56 pounds of dried corn turned into meal would pretty much meet my household needs for a year. Same with 60 pounds of flour.

Tools

We have no grain drills or combines. We broadcast seed, harrow it into the soil and harvest by mowing and then hand thresh on the barn floor and winnow in the barn yard. I've found some good ideas for do it yourself small threshing and cleaning equipment on Youtube. This is not as easy as using heavy equipment...but the yield costs less and the bank doesn't take a cut. Plus we get a hand made, hand graded and selected product.

Milling

There are a wide variety of home mills available for turning whole grains into cracked grain or flour. We aren't there yet. But once we get better at growing and harvesting it would make sense to buy a mill and sell whole or milled grains in household quantities as a value added organic product at the farmers market.

Let's Talk Beer...

So, a guy could grow his own barley and small batch malt the grains for brewing. In our case, we selected a two row barley that grows well in our climate. Two row is easier to grow and this variety serves as a malting barley but can also be used for feed grain. While it is not as good as other barley for animal feed, it will serve as animal or human food and most importantly, the basis for beer. And 48 pounds of barley from a plot the size of a large suburban yard will make a lot of beer.

Working With Neighbors

We bought in our organic chicken feed this year at a about $35.00 for 50 lbs from the local co op. It cost us roughly twice as much to buy organic feed over conventional feed. We broke even on our meat chickens. We've contacted a local organic grain grower and are planning to work directly with the producer to buy what we need. This is important. We'll continue to grow small plots of grain because of the direct farm and eventual market benefit. But we've learned that it's better to go to local people who specialize in a product and support their effort rather than try to carry everything ourselves.

Next up - Using a Home Made Flail on the Threshing Floor

This Shining Moment in the Now

2011-10-16T13:30:00.000-07:00

I've been at a loss for words for many weeks. Susan and I have been harvesting, getting the kids back to school and one started in hockey. We've been cutting and splitting cords of hard wood for the kitchen stove that will warm us in the winter months to come. Susan has been collecting seeds to save and doing the painting chores we've been putting off. One day soon I'll be putting a new roof on the leaky old barn. Every day slips by so quickly in the moment to moment activity of mowing fields, repairing the tractor and hauling in material for compost. I first heard Garrison Keillor read this poem by David Budbill on The Writers Almanac back in 2005. A copy now lives on our refrigerator and it perfectly describes Autumn days here on the farm. I thought you might like it too.

- JQ

This Shining Moment in the Now

When I work outdoors all day, every day, as I do now, in the fall,
getting ready for winter, tearing up the garden, digging potatoes,
gathering the squash, cutting firewood, making kindling, repairing
bridges over the brook, clearing trails in the woods, doing the last of
the fall mowing, pruning apple trees, taking down the screens,
putting up the storm windows, banking the house—all these things,
as preparation for the coming cold...

when I am every day all day all body and no mind, when I am
physically, wholly and completely, in this world with the birds,
the deer, the sky, the wind, the trees...

when day after day I think of nothing but what the next chore is,
when I go from clearing woods roads, to sharpening a chain saw,
to changing the oil in a mower, to stacking wood, when I am
all body and no mind...

when I am only here and now and nowhere else—then, and only
then, do I see the crippling power of mind, the curse of thought,
and I pause and wonder why I so seldom find
this shining moment in the now.

(Listen to Garrison Keillor read this poem on NPR's, "The Writer's Almanac."
- requires Real Audio player)

(Update) Coincidentally IBSPEI is having a Social Forum on Weds., Oct 19.

IBS/Prince Edward Island Social Forum

‘It’s the Poets Who Really Know What Time It Is’

Wednesday October 19, 7:00 p.m.; 114 Upper Prince St.

Pete Seeger said, ‘There is a time for every purpose.’

In the, Dead Poets Society, John Keating said, ‘There's a time for daring and there's a time for caution, and a wise man understands which is called for.’

William Faulkner wrote, ‘It is the poet's duty is to write about things that have not yet begun...... sometimes while there is still time not to do them.’

Jim Munves said, ‘It’s the poets who really know what time it is.’

Tonight (Wednesday, October 19th) we invite you to bring your poetry (an original or an old favorite) to share. Something that reflects what time it really is.

The Institute for Bioregional Studies Ltd. (IBS), invites you to join our Social Forums. Since 1995, IBS programs have engaged concerned citizens to discuss issues and exchange of ideas in the hope that such activities will be a catalyst for community growth, social development, and action.

Each forum begins with a potluck dinner, followed by a presentation and informal discussion.

For more information, visit our www site at: www.ibspei.ca or write to us at ibs_pei@yahoo.com

We Recommend The Sandbar and Grill - Panmure Provincial Park - PEI

2011-07-15T19:16:00.000-07:00

Angela Ryan is the owner of the Sandbar and Grill at Panmure Island Provincial Park, PEI. She's not only a local entrepreneur she is a natural hostess. Anyone invited to sit down at Angela's table knows what I mean. In fact, Angela's island hospitality is one of the reasons I'm here.

Angela hosted the B&B cottage on the shore in PEI where we stayed in spring, 2000. We were trying to decide whether to buy the farm near Poverty Beach in Murray Harbour North. As we returned to our cosy cottage to discuss it, we found a note on the door. Angela invited us to her home for Easter Dinner with her family. Islanders might not find this unusual. But we urban people, a bit shy by nature about strangers, were surprised. What do we do? We accepted of course. And we were treated to a lovely family gathering where we were included as friends and guests. Needless to say we bought the farm. Not sure at all that we were doing the right thing. But trusting everything above that we were indeed welcome in a place where we could make a new start.

Angela has hosted us to many meals and family gatherings since then. Including an informal but lovely 20th anniversary supper for Susan and I where we re-spoke our wedding vows on the shore and Angela had a mini wedding cake, flowers, champagne and dinner for us. It does sound too good to be true, but that's just how she is. She is a romantic and she loves to see people be happy. Susan and I erased a terrible row we'd been having and left knowing we were fated to be together for another 20 years - for better and worse!

So now this excellent cook and supreme hostess has her own restaurant with a fine yet unfussy dine-in and take-out menu licensed to serve cold regional beer and fine wines with personal service. Take it from a man who has lived the good life. I've dined at 5 star California restaurants and eased into beach side haunts from Malibu to Carmel. I've been up and down the West Coast from Mexico to Oregon and across the US from the West Coast to the Gulf Coast and the Carolinas on up to Boston . The Sandbar offers the perfect combination of simple, tasty and well prepared fresh local food served down home style. Just right for a relaxing supper at the beach.

You'll find a seafood chowder that makes New Englanders glad they found out about it. Lobster pot pie, steamed PEI mussels, famous the world over, but fresh from the harvest in local waters and much more. If your young ones are like mine and only a fine grilled cheese sandwich will do, the kitchen will gladly comply to make your family meal delicious and peaceful. A romantic dinner for two can be served inside or out and family style is always welcome.

We're proud to be included on the menu at the Sandbar, and Angela shifts her menu to use our best fresh ingredients. So if you stop in and order chicken, you'll be getting our organic, pasture raised chicken which we delivered fresh to her. She serves our organic salad greens, broccoli, baby carrots and more. Whatever we have, she says "I'll take it" and she works her magic on the daily menu specials.

Angela told me, "I want to do everything fresh and local." And unlike many chefs, she has the skills to work with whatever we bring her to make exceptional fresh meals. If she owns a can opener I think it spends a lot of time at the back of the drawer.

And desserts? She makes her own. You'll want to try the pie. Blueberry of course (her husband, Greg, is one of the island's top blueberry farmers) and butterscotch to name two. When the apples come in this summer - don't hesitate to order apple pie. And of course, you can always pop in on a hot summer day and have an ice cream cone made with pure cream from PEI's local dairy farmers.

A note for those who like to travel. I was once given a tip to drive 1500 miles to the Cozy Corner BBQ restaurant in Memphis, Tenn. I took that tip and was never sorry I made the drive. That's real Memphis BBQ. And that's what makes touring great. Finding local gems. So this is my tip for you. If you're traveling and you want some authentic local flavor on your visit to PEI, the Sandbar and Grill on Panmure Island is the place to stop.

From California to Tennessee to Boston, Mass. and PEI. This is what makes life good. Fresh local ingredients, grown by people who love the land, served up hot by a friendly woman and her staff who know how to cook. They love to make people happy. So no matter where you're from, you'll be down home.

UPDATE: I've added some helpful links in the text to help you find your way.

The Philosophy of Lawn Mowing and the Sweetness of Summer.

2011-07-01T15:09:00.000-07:00

Happy Canada Day! Summer is finally here on the island! Warm temps, gentle breezes, mosquitos and black flies and of course GRASS.

Coming from a place where grass grows in the spring rain of March and April and then goes golden brown for the long, hot, dry, summers (unless irrigated with imported water) I still find it amazing that it grows like crazy here. Acres and acres of the stuff! Big beautiful lawns and well kept yards are a source of local pride and regular mowing on PEI. You'll observe the Provincial flag even features trees and grass. I make note that the lawn tractor is missing from heraldry. Surely an oversight. But the flag does include the Royal Lion of England. So we welcome the Duke and Duchess, William and Kate, to our fair island this week! No doubt there will be a frenzy of mowing to prepare each and every venue for their visit. In fact, there should be a photo-op of the duchess riding a lawn tractor in shorts, a tank top and a big floppy hat.

In the days before mowing machines your yard literally had to be cut by hand with a scythe. So a small yard with a kitchen garden made sense. The rest of the ground was turned over to livestock and cropping. Animals stayed close by and fed on the grass. Easier to manage and watch over. And more productive too. Large expanses of closely cropped grass are an artifact of a time when sheep grazed about the manor home (where your daddy or mine mucked out the barn and mum washed the clothes of His Lordship). It was a sign of wealth. Having good land not planted to the margins with food says, "well mate, you must be doing alright". Perhaps that explains our desire for a suburban lawn watered by a river 300 miles away or 2 or more hours a week driving a mowing machine. We're all just sort of keeping up appearances - at a huge cost. Weird, isn't it?

Our two "hay burners" burned through last years hay harvest over the winter. And they are more than willing to go out on the grass every morning. They really don't care where the grass is, so we've taken to moving the electric fence every few days to where the grass is rich and then turn them loose to do what they do. Which is eat...and excrete. It's a lovely combination of feeding, mowing and fertilization in one step. And as I reported last time, the chickens too are doing their part in the war on grass, bugs and spreading fertilizer as they go. You can't beat mother nature for operating in a closed system.

Even so I just can't seem to stay off the lawn mower. I just can't help noticing how nice things look when they're all trimmed up. But you know, I think I will put sheep on the front lawn around the house this summer - just to try them out on the job. It's funny that the mower works until it's empty and leaves wasted grass and energy behind. The animals work until they're full, taking in energy and leaving behind valuable fertilizer for greener grass. It just seems more sensible to let the animals do the work and earn their keep. Besides,
it's picturesque as hell.

And speaking of picturesque, here are Toby and his buddy Owen making ice cream on the front porch for Canada Day. We bought lobster suppers at the Murray Harbour North Community Hall and then enjoyed home made vanilla ice cream made even sweeter by the hand cranking of children. Making home made ice cream in an old freezer is a ritual passed to us by our parents and grand parents. It now passes to our children as part of the celebration of summer!

Free Range Chicken? Pastured Poultry is Better.

2011-06-26T18:17:00.000-07:00

From Mother Earth News:

What is the true definition of free-range chicken?

The United States Department of Agriculture offers this definition:

FREE RANGE or FREE ROAMING: Producers must demonstrate to the Agency that the poultry has been allowed access to the outside.

But “allowing access” doesn’t mean much. A small door in a barn with thousands of chickens technically gives chickens an opportunity to go outside, but that doesn’t mean that they’ll have access to grass (it may only be a concrete slab). For chickens to produce the most healthful and flavorful eggs and meat, they need to be able to eat a variety of green plants, seeds and bugs. Unfortunately, you can’t tell how the chickens live by reading the package in a store. I’d encourage you to find a local farmer who raises poultry on pasture.

This is a picture of a cornish cross hen who is free ranging - on our pasture! It doesn't take much imagination to see the difference between this and the legal definition of "free range chicken" where birds may leave a barn of thousands of birds to range "freely" on dirt or concrete. To allow our chickens to range like this while protecting them from the local foxes, raccoon and coyotes, takes a special operation and creates unique benefits to our chickens and customers. This is what most people think "free range" means. But often, it isn't. We respectfully leave it to individuals to decide whether or not they eat meat. For some we offer a fine variety of organic produce. For others we offer a method of raising chicken that produces a truly natural product.

The birds arrived a day old from the hatchery in mid May and were kept in our barn under heat lamps and cover until they began to grow, then they were allowed more space to range on the dirt floor. Our cool, wet spring kept them in the barn longer than we'd planned, but we felt the nights were too cold for the young birds to be outside with no heat source. These chicks were given fresh grass cuttings and dandelions (salad) along with certified organic feed and a plate of light sand/gravel from our fresh water creek, along with fresh well water to drink. Annie appointed herself guard dog of the birds and took a genuine interest in their care. (for those who are skeptical, let me just say our dog "mothers" everyone).

So what are the benefits of pasture raising chickens? Well, these birds followed grazing sheep and horses who spent a short time (no more than three days) on each fenced section. When we put the birds out several weeks later, these small grasses were going to seed. So the birds have free choice - prepared organic feed grain or wild grass seeds and greens, bugs, slugs and whatever else comes their way. They are kept in a pen on the pasture day and night and are moved to fresh grass every morning. They leave behind lots of high quality poop....that will grow more grass. And since they don't live on the same ground every day, they always have clean ground on which to graze and rest. We have fewer than fifty birds in a pen that is 12 x 10 so there is no crowding, plenty of roof cover and we even adjust the side covers for wind break or ventilation as needed. There are studies that will explain the naturally low fat/ lower cholesterol and flavorful meat that this method produces. We just think it's better to raise healthy animals naturally for food.

And so, here are our pastured chickens foraging freely as nature intended. We started with a small batch to make sure we could give our best to our chickens and our customers. We're adding a second run this year for the fall. We'll put a few in our freezer and will be selling the rest fresh on the day they are locally processed. If you'd like to place an order on Prince Edward Island, Canada, please visit John Quimby on facebook.

Thanks!

Harvesting a Local M.E.A.L. - It's Time to Farm!

2011-03-30T18:08:00.000-07:00

It's Time to Farm
I planted seeds this week.
Spring is the most optimistic season.
Seeds are faith and hope and life in the future.
Planting made me feel righteous and peaceful and quietly determined to thrive.

A Local M.E.A.L.
Last week, many of us were inspired in Charlottetown by the combination of speaking about and listening to others discuss local food and our commitment to a way of life that serves everyone on this island. A Local M.E.A.L.(Meet Eat And Learn) was a very satisfying serving of networking, tastes of local food and 10 presentations by and for all of us who like to eat locally and live well! Please follow this link for more: http://alocalmeal.wordpress.com/. A video of each presentation will be made available through the link.
Here's mine:

A Local M.E.A.L. - John Quimby from nick battist on Vimeo.

I'm excited to mention as a follow up to "A Local M.E.A.L". that I am working with my son's fifth grade
teacher to create a presentation called "Farming in the Classroom" which will feature 3 hands-on project
demonstrations related to local food production and farming. We will be planting and growing seeds in a local school. We will be integrating the results of these student projects into our spring planting on the farm so students will know that their work is included directly into our farm and will produce food that is available to their families. We want to teach that they aren't just consumers, they can be farmers too! I'll be sharing more details and photos. This is really an exciting opportunity.

Here's a Really Good Find!
I've mentioned before that we are increasing the number of open pollinated varieties that we buy, plant and harvest seed from. Our goal is to always be able to grow non GMO, organic food from our own seed bank.
And I recently found a great resource online. 600 organic/open/heirloom tomato varieties are being offered at: http://www.tomatofest.com/ Our order was filled and returned promptly and I'm pleased now to refer them to you for this spring.

What's So Great About 600 Tomatoes?
As I browsed the choices I realized we could have exactly what we wanted for each of our seasons and customers. I got a small but super early variety (55 days) for our visitor and restaurant customers plus canning for our own needs. A flavourful French slicer for fresh summer eating, An East German cherry for salads, the dusky and smoky Cherokee Purple for exceptional flavor, and a legendary Italian sauce tomato to mate with our garlic, basil and oregano in pasta and pizza sauces. And Gary Ibsen and Dagma Lacey threw in a bonus package of "Black Cherry" tomatoes for us to trial. That's the beauty of bio-diversity friends. You can find a seed for every need.

Local Organic Eggs and Chicken
I also placed orders this week for chicks to raise into laying hens and fresh meat birds this summer. This is new to us and I'm relying on Joel Salatin's, "Pastured Poulty Profits" to guide us through brooding and pasturing our very small flock this year. We are certified organic and so our chicken and eggs are already approved to be the only organic product I know of in our neighborhood. But this is our first attempt! So we'll need your support when the time comes for us to accept orders for organic eggs and chicken. If our customers will help us by investing with us, we'll be a regular supplier of fresh, local, healthy, pasture raised, inspected by ACO and certified organic product. We're working for the gold standard in pasture raised meat birds and eggs.

Our chickens will be the primary customers for the organic pasture we nurture and the organic feed grains that we grow here this year. All of this requires a substantial investment in seed, livestock, machines, time and labor. And we're adding time to teach our children to be part of the work raising chickens for your table. So a new generation will be learning how to grow feed and raise high value food while earning a share of the profits from our neighborhood poultry business. In other words, we're one of several small family owned businesses recreating the small mixed farm model that fed generations of PEI families and trained generations of good PEI farmers.

Your support, through buying our product, means that you are investing in your local food security as we keep and carry a small family farm on PEI into the next generation.

News Links:

Food Inflation Kept Hidden in Tinier Bags

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/29/business/29shrink.html?_r=2&adxnnl=1&ref=business&adxnnlx=1301403749-7DIP1Gd6QRGZ0J9pMxtiLA

JQ's Final Thought:
Demand-Side food security requires that consumers believe someone or something will always be able to deliver a sufficient and uninterrupted supply of food at a price they can afford over their entire life span.
Supply-Side food security means that you know and support a variety of local producers who put healthy, natural food on your table for generations.

Connecting The Dots: Climate, Energy, Global Markets and Food Security

2011-03-05T18:47:00.000-08:00

This spring we'll be tackling some pretty heavy decisions to increase and sustain productivity on our farm.
I'm looking ahead to a lot of work and investment to grow, market and hopefully improve our ability to serve a few more of our neighbors in PEI. It feels good to know we have the chance to add a bit more fresh food to our local supply from our very small farm.

In the mean time I'm reading more and more alarming news from a variety of sources on the current state of affairs in our world. And I wonder again, as I often do, about the disconnect in the media between the dots (and sometimes "dotty") individual news headlines. It's the big picture that should be getting our attention.

This thread started for me when I heard a news item on the radio letting me know that my local fast food restaurant in Eastern Canada would not be able to serve me tomatoes or peppers because of unusual cold weather in California and Mexico. Hmmm.

That item hit the news on the same day that oil prices broke 100 a barrel again. We know that the price of oil will continue to rise through spring and summer (driving season) and we know that this will impact consumers and producers alike. We also know that as long as petroleum prices are high, we simply can't grow our way out of economic trouble by using cheap energy to do most of the work. Hmmmm.

We also now know that the same financial houses that created the mortgage backed securities that caused the recent financial panic (a pox on them all!) have also created long term investment strategies in basic food commodities on a global scale. The result has been rapid increases in the market price for staple grains and cooking oil and these increases have hit consumers in the rear pocket and the stomach.

"Beginning in late 2006, world food prices began rising. A year later, wheat price had gone up 80 percent, maize by 90 percent and rice by 320 percent. Food riots broke out in more than 30 countries, and 200 million people faced malnutrition and starvation. Suddenly, in the spring of 2008, food prices fell to previous levels, as if by magic. Jean Ziegler, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, has called this "a silent mass murder", entirely due to "man-made actions.”

- Johann Hari

Hmmmmmmmmm. Pretty ominous. But we still don't see the whole picture.

Here is how I connect the dots in these three otherwise unrelated stories. First of all, the shortage of tomatoes and peppers. This is the second year in a row that there has been a shortage of tomatoes caused by changes in average climate. Last year (also in the first week in March) it was reportedly caused by frost in Florida. This year, it's frost in California and Mexico. This is a direct result of climate change. Argue all you want about normal variables. Farmers don't like risk and they know what the normals are. The fact is that this year and last saw major climate related impact on food crops in the US, Australia, Russia, and Pakistan. And even though a few peppers on your sandwich or a tomato on your burger might seem trivial it is in fact a climate change food shortage in your face. The farmers who lost crops designed to put a tomato on your Whopper will now be calling in their bankers, their crop insurance and their governments for help to avoid bankruptcy. Some probably won't survive losing their investment.

Today's increasing energy costs are about to make the situation worse during the growing season in this hemisphere. Most people probably don't know that the chief ingredient in our food supply is oil. Our dependence on fertilizers and chemicals, farm equipment, livestock feed milling, water pumping, trucking, air freight, cargo ships, processing, packaging, refrigeration, storage and delivery are all tied directly to the price of oil. This dot in the matrix is a big one. Food prices are going up in North America. Major grocery chains are already announcing a 5% increase here.

But why are food prices going up so fast when market supplies in oil and commodities are sufficient and demand is relatively stable? Let's check in on those wacky, irrational investment markets again:

According to a study by the now-defunct Lehman Brothers, index fund speculation jumped from $13 billion to $260 billion from 2003 to 2008. Not surprisingly, food prices rose in tandem, beginning in 2003. Hedge fund manager Michael Masters estimated that on the regulated exchanges in the U.S., 64 percent of all wheat contracts were held by speculators with no interest whatever in real wheat. They owned it solely in anticipation of price inflation and resale.

So there you have it. Climate change, energy costs and global commodity speculation are now playing havoc with your ability to afford, "what's for dinner". The risk of economic disaster for global food producers is tied directly to wobbles in the global climate. And market speculators in oil and commodities are engaging in risky behavior that would make an Amsterdam sex worker faint. The "invisible hand" of the market is dope slapping us with lower wages, higher food prices, a wobbly climate and general nausea caused by a growing sense of insecurity. It's a combination that is already driving stable governments and solid financial institutions off a cliff.

So what can we do about it? Well I don't think the answer is some crazy Communist agrarian revolution where we move hedge fund managers to the farm and make them eat kale. I believe that there are healthy free market alternatives here and around the world that you can invest in. And your investment will help stabilize the big picture. This is the final dot.

It's time to go and meet your local farmer. Buy into your local commodity market. Stop exchanging a higher portion of your income on low value energy dependent processed and packaged food "products". Live like rich people do. Look to make your profit on the higher quality and higher value food available directly from a wholesale producer. Make an investment in shopping and learning to prepare better meals for yourself. If the current system does not sustain you then don't sustain it. Stop feeding your food dollars into speculation and greed. Start eating healthy meals produced by people you know who will be there when you need them. You'll feel a whole lot better!

Shopping for Food Security - Part 2

2011-03-02T07:25:00.000-08:00

Looking for ways to grow local, sustainable, small farms in PEI

Shopping for Food Security - Part 2

In the last blog post, I explained how organic farmers seek and plant organic seeds grown by other organic farmers and how that has increased the supply and diversity of organic seeds available to farmers and gardeners. I explained that we are also starting to buy, plant and save open pollinated seeds to create our own seed bank at Dunn Creek Farm. And I closed by promising to explain how food shoppers can protect and expand healthy diversity in the market. The simplest explanation is that farmers grow seed for the food you buy. If you choose variety and diversity in your diet, you are supporting biological and genetic diversity in the field and in the market.

Thomas Morrison was kind enough to forward his writing on the topic of food diversity and security. I'm pleased to include him as a contributor.

The Importance of Biodiversity in Farmers Markets

Doug Band and the CGI (Clinton Global Initiative) as well as US Ecologist Gary Nabhan have recently come out as strong proponents for crop diversity. Nabhan’s position is that in order to keep the idea of diversity at the forefront of our society, we must apply it to biology of crop diversification. †His theories of promoting sustainability through grocery shopping have become popular. In a recent interview Nabhan said, “in other environmental issues we tell people to stop something, reduce their impact, reduce their damage.” His article Coming Home to Eat published in 200l can be cited as influencing the popularity of green culture, the local food movement, and the increased appearance of farmers markets all over the country.

A host of other organizations have begun to promote sustainability through the act of conservation. Bill Clinton, Doug Band and the CGI (Clinton Global Initiative) have set their sights on emission reduction projects throughout the country. In order to do this, they have partnered up with Donlen, GreenDriver, and Environmental Defense Fund with the purpose of reducing commercial fleet emissions by 20% in the next five years. †The Earth Day Network has brought together local and national conservationist groups and green enthusiasts to participate in an open forum. This forum serves as a space to incite discussion and dialogue on new ways to create a sustainable planet. Individuals can reduce their carbon footprint, create less waste, and stop the unnecessary wasting of water. Gary Nabhan strongly suggests as members of society we take a larger look at the state of our planet.

The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization produced a study with results indicating that a quarter of crop diversity is left and a dozen species provides 90% of the animal protein consumed around the globe. More over, roughly four crop species supply half of the plant-based calories in the basic human diet. Nabhan theorizes that growing food locally will have a massive impact on our planet’s sustainability. The “eat what you conserve” theory says by eating the produce that we are attempting to conserve, we are simultaneously promoting the granular dissemination of a vast amount of plant types.

Agriculturist Marco Contiero adds to the theory by saying, “biodiversity is an essential characteristic of any sustainable agricultural system, especially in the context of climate change.”
According to Conterio, since individuals raise and harvest our own crops and plants, we should purchase the crops harvested and produced by other local growers. If individuals buy food grown and harvested locally, the large carbon footprint associated with the transnational transportation of food is no longer a problem. Both arguments require an active effort toward conservation and sustainability. As the spring approaches, visit your local farmers market to get all the best in seasonal fruit and vegetables. Visiting your local produce stand is also a great way to promote biodiversity, support your local economy, and experience the delicious regional food varieties.

Shopping for Food Security - Part 1

2011-02-21T09:03:00.000-08:00

The farm sleeps under a blanket of snow as we plan our seed orders.

A Word About Seeds.
The French word for seeds is semences. Yes indeed the French have brought our fundamental need for thriving procreation to the very ground under our feet. Earthy hmmm? Even in the garden, the French are intimate with making food and, of course, making love.

Well then, let's consider what the world would be like if only 5 percent of males were eligible to impregnate all of the women. What would be lost? In fact that is what we're facing in our food supply today. Seed diversity and the basic needs of humanity are overlapping in some interesting ways.

Organic Farmers Cover the Cost of Seed Diversity.

Each year we're obligated by our certification process to buy organic seed whenever possible. Ordering organic seed supports organic farmers. But there's more to it than that. This requirement also drives the market of supply and demand to preserve non GMO and non hybridized varieties. This gives us a larger, wider and more dependable supply of clean seed to buy and plant. Organic farmers are investing in having a bank of seed genetics in the market.

Organic Seed is Harder to Find and Usually More Expensive.
One complaint from consumers of organics is that the product is more costly. This is true in the short term.
We can prove that fresh, clean, nutritious food is more valuable. But higher seed cost is directly related to what it costs to grow, harvest and market that value. As more organic producers enter the market, prices should come down even as food value improves.

Open Pollination and Seed Saving

An open pollinated variety of plant will breed true from it's own seed. So if you plant an open pollinated variety of beans or squash or peas, you can save the seeds from this year and plant more next year.

Open pollinated plants are not owned under patent law, they don't revert to earlier strains and they are proven under specific climate and soil conditions. When we order organic open pollinated seeds, we can grow 2 marketable crops - produce and seed - and have clean seed to plant the following year. There is natural selection in this process. Seeds that are sound and strong thrive. Those that aren't, don't. You should know that not all organic seed is open pollinated. At Dunn Creek Farm we are making a business decision to open a savings account with our own seed bank.

Seed Diversity = 600 Tomato Varieties, Not 5.
When we shopped for tomato seed this year, we found a grower offering 600 hundred varieties of heirloom, organic tomatoes that he and his partner produce themselves. Some had been staples in American seed catalogs a hundred years ago. Some had been locked behind the Iron Curtain for decades. All had been common in market gardens in a variety of regions and conditions. Few are being commercially grown today.

The Hazards of Limited Diversity
When you see tomatoes in the supermarket, you are seeing about 5 varieties now commonly grown for market. They are red. They are firm. But they are not selected for taste or nutrition. There are better tomatoes to be found. But you probably can't find them in your market. And that's not all. Now that most of the people of the world are dependent on a handful of grains, vegetables and plants for survival, it's not hard to imagine that a plant pandemic could detonate like a bomb in the global food supply. We need a viable market to keep the alternatives on hand. And this is where today's consumer comes in. In part two, we'll consider how the grocery shopper decides how much bio diversity there is.

Some of our Seed Sources this year:

Hope Seeds - Organic Vegetable Seeds & Organic Garden Seeds
Vesey's Seeds

Old Year Resolves into New - Useful Plans and Projects for 2011

2011-01-16T10:48:00.000-08:00

It's Sunday.

I like to set aside time on Sunday to be a "book farmer". I try to keep up with the information that comes to me in the books we've collected, the magazines and news letters that come in the mail and the blogs I read for insight and inspiration. Sunday is also the day people here go visiting. I've just set down my reading to put a stick of wood on the fire. And now I'm ready to enjoy a long overdue visit with you.

Have you seen this?

I first read Anne and Eric Nordell's artilce, "Weed the Soil not the Crop" in the Summer, 2006 issue of Small Farmer's Journal (a similar article with the same title, written by the couple, is currently available at: Acres USA).

I started experimenting with their ideas as best I could using my tools and know how (both of which are limited) back in Spring 2007. I was just re-reading that article today and refreshing myself on their approach.
I can say that the parts of this method that we incorporated as directed worked well for us. And I was reminded that we aren't finished mixing these ideas into our work. I've been wondering how to begin writing our farm plan for 2011. This is a great place to start.

You Can Build These Stackable Drying Racks!

Many of the things we harvest in Fall need to be dried before they can be properly stored. Space for drying beer hops or seed corn or baking beans or wild rose hips is at a premium in our house. Could you use some extra space to dry herbs or your own garden produce too? Well, maybe winter might be a good time for you to try (and improve) this project made with hand tools and regular dimensional lumber.

I borrowed several good ideas to make this design work. In particular, I liked the idea of making a rack size that would fit into an oven. They can easily be stacked over or near an air vent too, making double use of your heating or cooling system.

24"x16" Stackable Drying Rack - Materials Per Tray:
2 24" 1x2 for frame
2 14-1/2" 1x2 for frame
4 4-1/2" right triangles (I used 1/2" plywood) as corner braces
4 5" 1x2 for legs
4 2-1/2" 1x2 rack spacers for legs
8 box nails (screws would be good too)
16 shingle nails (or screws)
Staples for fastening screen to frame (I used a staple gun - tacks could work too)
24" x 16" plastic window screen

I started by pre-cutting enough pieces for several trays. Then, using a flat surface and a square I drilled pilot holes and then hammered in two nails in each corner.

After squaring the frame again, I used a blade to cut the 4' screen down to 24" by 16". Since 24" is half of four feet, I could use the nice factory cuts on either edge of the screen. Then I stapled it to the frame.

To give the tray frame strength and help secure the corners, I used the triangle shapes mounted over the screen and nailed them directly to the frame with shingle nails.

I fastened a rack spacer in the exact center of each leg, then mount the legs right tight up to the frame. This is what makes the trays stackable, so be careful how you measure. To make all the legs lineup in the stack I built the first one and then eye-balled all the others to match it. I'm no finish carpenter. This was my attempt to create a simple and inexpensive design that serves a useful purpose. These racks do create a large amount drying area in a small space. And they do look nice enough for Susan to allow them in the kitchen!

Notes and Suggestions
You may want to choose a more natural material than window screen. And be aware that stapled plastic screen will not support the weight of a curious cat plus whatever it is that you are drying!
The bottoms can be strengthened by trussing them with wire, fishing line, string...whatever material you
are comfortable with. A cover might be a good idea too

So Long 'till Next Time!
Thank you for stopping in to visit. I hope we'll be getting together again soon.

Dear Friends: The Blog Christmas Letter

2010-12-12T10:47:00.000-08:00

My mother's family used to make a point of sending out regular news letters to one another. And every few weeks or months we would get an envelope with the latest letters from cousins and uncles forwarded to us. It seemed like a nice idea to me at the time. My parents didn't seem so enthused. In looking back I now realize that it obligated my mother to write back and forward the package along. My father always seemed particularly annoyed that their was no real news in these letters. You knew that Aunt Gertrude wasn't going to write, "Jim started drinking again and wrecked the Studebaker last week." Or, "Our new pastor, Dr. Jones, has been banging the Church secretary like a screen door." They also opened each of us for judgement by the others. Writing a response could require considerable diplomacy.

Particularly at Christmas, the family letters took on the tone of those who are counting their blessings. But those blessings would never include things like, "Thank God Marjorie broke up with that awful hippy she met at college before she got herself pregnant." Even though that would have to rate pretty high on the list of things someone could really be thankful for.

I do love the fact that my mother's family were decent, faithful, conservative, old Protestants. Wire rim spectacled Main Street Republicans since Lincoln. They tried to love and understand why, in mid-life, my parents became Unitarians who supported Ceasar Chavez, Bobby Kennedy and Martin Luther King. And as the older generation faded away, family letters became less frequent. They finally stopped about the same time my parents joined a New Age Church in Santa Monica and sent me to a Catholic High School.

Which brings me to my topic. The Blog Christmas Letter. I sent a family Christmas letter home in a Moosehead Beer box full of canned goods and crafts we produced on the farm this year. In the letter I described what Susan and I grew and harvested for the goodies we sent home to California. And I shared the news about our kids and their efforts. You know, I'm sure my family will enjoy the gifts, the letter and the photos we sent. But after browsing the letter again (a bad habit of mine...geez once it's written and sent...let it go!) I also realized that it reads like a Christmas package from the Waltons. And I was reminded of those long gone relatives of mine who shared their stories and sent Christmas greetings in letters instead of shipping us a Chia Pet. They came from a culture where sharing tame family gossip was how they knew each other. Here in PEI, that culture of being known by your story is still very real. And that really is where the old folks were coming from...and it may be the place that social media is taking us back to.

Does telling who we are really make us who we are?
Maybe. Maybe your family never communicated like that at all. Or maybe communication was all read between the lines. I just thought it would be interesting to write a Christmas letter from the farm to everyone who wants to read one. It's not about the "news" (that will keep for another time) it's about how and why we reach out to each other, especially at this time of year.

The Blog Christmas Letter

Dear Ones -
Thank You.
Thank you for reading my words and sharing your comments. Thank you for your gentle company on a journey that sometimes thrills me and other times scares me into hoping I won't disappoint you, myself or my loved ones.

I'm grateful to you for giving me a reason organize my thoughts from time to time...to be mindful of my daily life and the wonders I'm fortunate to experience. Thanks for the comfort of allowing me to be in touch with you as I move beyond previous experience into the unknown.

Thank you for allowing me to read your blogs and emails, facebook pages and projects so I know we're not alone and foolish for wandering "far from the madding crowd".

Your time and interest are a wonderful gift.

Whatever faith you profess (or lack) I wish you a happy and blessed Christmas Day and at least one Dream Come True in the New Year.

JQ

The Bounty of Organic PEI Produce

2010-11-29T17:22:00.000-08:00

What we Grew In 2010
This is the answer to the question I get most often. I've listed most of what we grew though I did not include things we made from our farm, (pickles, preserved and dried food, catsup, etc) and I left off several trial projects. The rest is presented here so you can get an idea of what we grow and sell and where we find seeds. The research in seed sourcing is a pleasure, but it is time consuming. We source as much as we can from Vesey's seeds in York, PEI. They Have US and Canadian catalogs available for gardeners and growers. I encourage you to start a garden and try these varieties yourself. If you've got an idea for a trial growing project or a seed source to share...please let us know!

Variety Source
Cucumber
Mideast Prolific (smooth skin - salad type) Seeds of Change
Straight 8 Vesey's
Sweet Corn
Lucious Vesey's
Lettuce
Red Iceburg Seeds of Change
Spicy Mesclun Richters
Arugula Seed Savers
Beets
Red Ace Vesey's
Carrots
Napoli Vesey's
Scarlet Nantes Vesey's
Peas
Green Arrow Vesey's
Tomato
Scotia Vesey's
Roma Seeds of Change
Orange Cherry Vesey's
Broccoli
Bellstar Vesey's
Cauliflower
Early Snowball Seed Savers
Dill
Dukat Seeds of Change
Hecules Richters
Fern Leaf Richters
Basil
Genovese Seed Savers
Cilantro
Slow Bolt Seed Savers
Summer Squash
Black Beauty Zucchini Vesey's
Yellow Crookneck Seeds of Change
Winter Squash
Sweet Dumpling Seeds of Change
Waltham Butternut Vesey's
Young's Beauty Pumpkin Seeds of Change
Potatoes
Gold Rush Vesey's
Chieftan Vesey's
Penta Vesey's
Beans
Goldrush Yellow String Beans Vesey's
Kenearly Yellow Eye Baking Beans Seed Savers
Onions
Cortland Vesey's
Peppers
King of the North Seed Savers
Parsley
Italian Flat Leaf
Asparagus
Jersey Giant
Hops
Halertau and Cascade Richters
Sage
Thyme
Oregano
Red Currants
Lavender
Mint
Tarragon
Cherries
Apples
Blueberries
Cranberries
Prescott Homestead Organics
Field Corn
Reid's Yellow Dent Seed Savers
Barley
-- Homestead Organics
Soy Beans
Fiskeby Organic Seed Savers
Field Hay
Livestock Feed
Oat & Barley Straw
Livestock Bedding and Mulch

We grew a large variety in small quantities this year. Most of our work is done by hand in our large market garden. The seed we buy is premium quality carefully sourced from organic and heritage heirloom growers at considerable expense - all so that we may support organic seed growers and provide you with an exceptional product.

We serve our local neighbors and we welcome you to visit our farm. Wherever you may be, you are welcome to share your thoughtful comments and suggestions on the blog.

JQ's Thought For Today:
Maybe we should get over the idea that little boys are the same as little girls with a behavioral disorder.

Fathers and Sons and an Appreciation of Thanksgiving

2010-10-10T21:51:00.000-07:00

A few notes on the blog in tribute to my Dad, Dr. Rollin Walker Quimby, PHD. who was born on this day in 1921. Seems especially fitting to make a note of that fact on 10/10/10. Dad left us after a long struggle with alzheimers. Near the end, when asked what he did, he said he was a carpenter. I Bless him for that thought.

October 10 is also the day before Canadian Thanksgiving which we celebrated a day early on our farm this year, with the return of our son from University and a bounty of delicious food from our farm.

Now, I was raised with American Thanksgiving. In the States this is the big retail and advertising kickoff for the ever redundant and demanding, "Holiday Season". People line up at 5:00 AM to go shopping. On the other hand, in North America, Thanksgiving is Thanksgiving. You know, Starving pioneers thanking God for not being dead and a remembrance of the moment when we had an opportunity to make peace and share with Native people. It is a feast of Thanks which has been transformed into an opportunity to save NOW and consume store bought bounty. Thanks Cool Whip! Thanks Butterball! Thanks Macy's!

Anyway, today was a lot like January in California. Cool, cloudy, rainy and windy. Like a Pacific cold front coming down from Alaska. It felt like Thanksgiving is supposed to. My New England genetics must be speaking to me.

Susan worked on making a Thanksgiving feast from scratch with our farm produce in the kitchen which my So. Cal. son decided to overheat with the wood stove because he was cold. OK, it was 45 degrees, but it wasn't that bad! I wanted to say something...but I didn't. I just repeatedly turned down the damper and opened a couple of upstairs windows so the heat could draft upstairs. But I kept my "critical parent" mouth shut.

I went out to the barn where, for the past few days, I've been cutting 2x4's from the mill in Murray River and framing a horse shed. And that's when my dad came to visit.

My Dad was a PHD who taught, analyzed and wrote about classical and modern rhetoric. He also loved to build things with wood. He gave me a nail apron and taught me to hammer nails when I was 2. But having a serious rhetorical discussion on the theme, "What was I thinking when I left a mess in his workshop and mislaid his ball peen hammer" was dead scary by the time I was 8 years old.

My dad built himself a workshop onto our suburban Santa Barbara home and it was stocked with tools. We had a scrap pile of what I now realize was old growth California Redwood (you can't find it anymore). We had permission to make anything we wanted to in the shop. I spent hours making toy boats, pistols, cars, rifles - anything I could imagine in his shop while I listened to Vin Scully call the LA Dodger games on a transistor radio. All materials were paid for no matter how many nails I used to make guns in the turrets of the dreadnoughts I built. But the mess I left and the tools I misplaced ruined those "mission accomplished" moments we could have shared. His anger so often destroyed my joy.

Not anymore.

I was in the barn today cutting 2x4's. Taking pride in making them come out right. Sketching plans and debating with myself - just as he used to do. I'm doing the best I can, without a set of plans, just a set of imperfect mechanical drawings I've made. He often worked the same way. And when he got stuck, he'd light his pipe full of Sir Walter Raleigh tobacco and "smoke at it" like a professor in the presence of a defiant student..

He would have loved this project - building a horse shed in our corral. So I felt him with me today as I struggled to figure out the cuts, the build order, my frustration over not having any 2x6's on hand, my thrill at finding scrap lumber to solve a problem and my long moments pondering correct roof pitch, snow load and wind shear. (What the hell do I know about snow load and wind shear?)

I relate all this so I can say, on his birthday, and on this, our first, Canadian Thanksgiving: Thanks for being there dad. Thanks for giving me the tools to take on this life. Thanks for helping me today. Part of what you taught me was to let my children make a mess. To admire their work and to keep frustration to myself when the 9/16th socket wrench goes missing. You taught me to give them the tools to make the life they want to build for themselves.

And finally:

My dad went to war in the Pacific in 1943 as a very young man. If you were - or are - being raised by a veteran father, or a man who lost his work hug him when he gets angry with you. He's angry because he's afraid for you.

Flood Damages Quail Springs Permaculture Farm. You Can Help.

2010-10-04T18:40:00.000-07:00

This post came to me from Quail Springs in Cuyama, California today. Please read and help in whatever way you can.

Hello Friends of Quail Springs,

We wanted to share with all of you that we've just come through two days of major flooding that have altered the face of Quail Springs. First of all, we are SO GRATEFUL THAT NO ONE WAS HURT OR LOST. This is a huge blessing for which we are all thankful.

Beginning on Friday, October 1st, we had a storm that dropped a little over 2" of rain in about an hour that caused extreme channel flooding that ripped out our lower gabion, silted up our larger swales and caused damage to about 10% of the garden. We wish that this was the extent of the damage yet mother nature had another story to share with us.

On Saturday, October 2nd, at about 12:30pm, a second and much more ominous thunder storm descended on our valley down from Iwihinmu (Mt. Pinos) beginning with a huge hail storm followed by torrential rains and heavy winds. The lighting and thunder stood right over us for what seemed like a lifetime yet was just a few minutes. In just a half an hour, over 3 inches of rain fell directly on Quail Springs and much more in the canyons that feed the main canyon. Little rivers began to flow down the secondary and tertiary canyons, and then it happened.

A wall of water we could have never imagined in our wildest dreams and ruminations made its own thunder as it careened down the canyon. This wall of water tore at trees, ripped out our largest gabions and breached the walls of our incised stream and created a rushing river that spanned at some points over 1,000 feet across the canyon. It was a sight to behold and an event that made your heart nearly stand still.

There was nothing could stand up to this deluge. Even large cottonwood trees were ripped out and hurled down canyon. Everything in its wake was destroyed. This included our entire garden, half of our new food forest, our pond is gone, all of our water harvesting structures that fed the sweet Quail Springs waters to our entire operation, our well was badly damaged, all of our irrigation systems have been buried, much of our fencing buried or washed away, chicken tractors gone, a trailer now lives down canyon several hundred yards, our settling tanks torn apart, and many tools and countless other parts of our infrastructure are missing or buried. Amazingly, our buildings fared rather well other than some flooding in the main barn that was quickly cleaned up. For this we are also grateful.

All in all we estimate over $40,000 in damage was done and countless hours that were accumulated into years of work.

As the water receded, we were stunned and humbled to see the damage and feel in our hearts the loss that had just occurred. Nearly six years of our work building soil and laying infrastructure was washed away in minutes. Once we realized everyone was safe, we shared tears and a bit of laughter. We are having to remember that we are working on a 200 year plan and that these events will help us redesign and rebuild in a way that is more appropriate for the vagaries of this ancient spring canyon and the place we call home.

Over the next weeks, we will be working to rebuild the water systems and preparing for the upcoming Permaculture Design Course (which is nearly full).

We will undoubtedly ask for help once we settle on a game plan and will put a call out for volunteers.

We will especially need assistance financially and would appreciate any donation you might be able to make to help us with the huge task of rebuilding and remaking the systems that are the very essence of our work out here.

Tax-deductible donations may be made by check or online.

Checks can made out to “Quail Springs” and mailed to: Quail Springs, 35070 Highway 33, Maricopa, CA 93252.

Online donations can be made securely via Donate Now.

Thank you for any assistance you’re able to give, and for your thoughts and wishes.

These are pictures I took at Quail Springs last Spring. You can read about my visit to this permaculture farm.
The blog post includes a podcast.

Here is my letter to the Quail Springs Community:

Susan and I came in from the fields of our fall harvesting and read the message that Quail Springs had sustained this major setback - or should I say - adjustment to it's 200 year plan.

We were shocked and saddened to learn that so much work could be erased in such a short time. And we were glad to read that no one was lost or hurt in the storms. Yes we are sad as I'm sure you are too. And we are reminded ourselves of the nature of working in nature. And perhaps more seriously, the changing nature of our world.

In my visit to your farm I was taken by your vision of sustainable living and your commitment to learning from traditional ways of being in harmony with the earth. I have often thought of you as Susan and I worked our way into farming the land we share here in Prince Edward Island, Canada this summer. Just this week, I thought of you as we harvested our fall crops and joined our farming neighbors for a harvest meal. I thought that we and many people like us are new pioneers. And like the pioneers of the past we are faced with many challenges and events in nature that our "settled" friends do not realize.

Climate events all over the world this year are telling us that this is not the earth our elders knew. Things are happening that are beyond our shared experience. I believe that our role as pioneers on this new earth will require us to learn how to cope with things that no living human has ever seen. Even as we embrace the wisdom of our elders, we must blaze the trail ahead for those who follow us into a changing and unknown world.

My hope is that even as you experience loss and disappointment, that new understanding and insight will be yours in the days and months ahead. I hope that these events will write new knowledge into the journal of Quail Springs so that your losses become a harvest of new learning and development for all the pioneers who share your journey.

Sincerely and with hope,

John Quimby
Susan Frazier
Dunn Creek Farm

Food Fight in the US Senate - S-510 Stalls - to Conservative Oppostion ?

2010-09-18T18:00:00.000-07:00

Lots of notes on this follow up to my last posting.

Preface:

US politics has fragmented in to left/right black/white mudslinging on far too many issues. And my considered opinion is that Canadian Conservatives are trying their wings with US style Conservative flapdoodle on the "Long Gun Registry". When something this minor consumes all the air in the room...hold on to your wallet.
It's a diversion used to provide cover for bigger issues. And there's nothing bigger than food on the daily menu of families across the globe.

Meanwhile, so many of the conversations I have with farmers here on PEI focus on distribution. How do we get our small farm products into the market? Now we have to wonder, will we all have to do whatever global markets require for traceability of local products?

US Senate Bill S- 510

This legislative issue was first brought to my attention by the farmer pirates at "The Small Farmer's Journal".
Independent small farmers have been struggling along only to become more suspicious of the motives of big government and big business. And the warning was dire - a direct threat to small farming.

I read the bill summary and comment and concluded that indeed there are questions unanswered in a political process too often steered toward big business and away from family farm interests. In the US, Ag. policy has been consistently bad for small farms. So let's say I am suspicious. Who stands to gain?

Comments On the Blog:

Stephen Jannise of Software Advice writes for "The Distribution Blog".Stephen contacted me after reading this blog to invite me to read his post on tracking food recalls. I did and added my comment. I encourage you to visit this link for a fascinating look at software and supply chain management of a food recall in the big picture of industrial management.

Friday - S 510 Comes Up For Discussion. Google Gives a Tell?

As I mentioned to Stephen, our political world has been polarized into paralysis. To get a clue I often look into who supports or sponsors a bill. Who sponsors or participates in the debate? In this case, I found the the water getting murky pretty fast. This important legislation isn't as easy as guns, gays and God.

The bill was was proposed by senior Senator Dick Durbin (Democrat) of Illinois. Co-Sponsors include respected senior Democrats and Republicans Including "Liberal Lion" Ted Kennedy and Liberal leader Tom Harkin plus Conservative leaders Orrin Hatch and Michael Enzi. Weirdly enough in our political climate, this is a bi-partisan bill. But when the bill came up for discussion Friday - it was faced with Conservative opposition including Tom Coburn of Oklahoma as reported by "PCT Media ". PCT stands for "Pest Control Technology" and is a website sponsored by, "Dow Agro Services, Bayer, Syngenta, BASF, DuPont and Univar". All are big pesticide makers. Univar is the largest chemical distributor in the US. I found this report through Google.

Supporters and Opponents

Follow the "money trail" and you find that supporters of the bill include:

Grocery Manufacturers Association
National Fisheries Institute
General Mills
National Restaurant Association
Produce Marketing Association
Kraft Foods North America
Consumers Union
American Frozen Food Institute
Center for Science in the Public Interest
Food Marketing Institute
American Public Health Association
Center for Foodborne Illness Research and Prevention
Consumer Federation of America
International Bottled Water Association
United Fresh Produce Association
National Association of Manufacturers
National Confectioners Association
National Consumers League
Pew Charitable Trust
Trust for America's Health
Snack Food Association
Safe Tables Our Priority (STOP)
American Bakers Association
American Beverage Association
International Dairy Foods Association
International Foodservice Distributors Association
National Coffee Association
American Farm Bureau

Meanwhile...

Specific Organizations Opposing S.510

Weston A. Price Foundation
Farm to Consumer Legal Defense Fund
National Independent Consumers and Farmers Association
Raw Milk Association of Colorado
Farm Family Defenders
American Grassfed Association
Small Farms Conservancy
National Family Farm Coalition
Carolina Farm Stewardship Association

(Information provided by Open Congress)

So...why would conservatives line up in opposition, with such groups as, The Raw Milk Association of Colorado? And why would liberals join in support of General Mills and Kraft Foods?

Senator Coburn Presents His Objections

In his detailed objection the Senator outlines the overlap over Federal agencies tasked with food safety and his belief that this bill is not "deficit neutral" - It will cost tax payers more to implement than it takes in. All play to his Conservative principles. But there is little or nothing in his objection that addresses regulation to protect public health and safety. Presumably these would fall under his objection to "burdensome regulations".
This comes even in the face of broad support from liberals, conservatives and business. Opposition comes from independent farmers, small special interests and...chemical manufacturers?

Frankly, I am at a loss to explain the position of either side.

(Update)

Objectivity suggests this excerpt from Sen .Coburn should be included here:

Burdensome New Regulations
There are 225 pages of new regulations, many of which are problematic. While some regulations are potentially onerous, but perhaps reasonable – such as requiring every facility to have a scientifically-based, but very flexible, food safety plan—others give FDA sweeping authority with potentially significant consequences.
While it is hard to pull out just 1 or 2 regulations in the bill that make the entire thing unpalatable, on the whole this bill represents a weighty new regulatory structure on the food industry that will be particularly difficult for small producers and farms to comply with (with little evidence it will make food safer).

I hope we're seeing here from Dr. Coburn a realization that regulation of flawed production models such as factory farming chicken, won't make the product safer or better.

And Finally, Why This Debate Is Not The Real Issue

CBC Radio's, "Quirks and Quarks", the national science radio program in Canada, aired a segment today entitled, "Empires of Food".

"... what caused the downfall of great empires throughout history, from the Mayans to Mesopotamia to Rome. Warfare? Invasions? Political infighting? Well, according to a new book by a Canadian researcher, it was famine. Dr. Evan Fraser makes the case that we are what we eat; and when the crops fail, the fields erode, or the temperature changes, that's when great civilizations fall. He also thinks we just might be headed for such a fall ourselves."

Listen to the segment at 30:35 into the show...

What if the issues and the stakes are much bigger than big politics or big business? What if the question evolves into, "Where does food come from in an era of collapse"?

If this becomes the question, then the answer is to make friends with your farmer.

US Senate Bill S 510 - Food. Safety For Whom?

2010-09-13T18:39:00.000-07:00

We have an old family recipe that directs the cook to use a "slow fire" when preparing the ingredients.

I can only picture my great grandmother starting her work by taking a stick of kindling and warming the back-end of the reluctant child who didn't fetch enough fire wood for her to make her recipe on the wood stove.

I can now take the same recipe to my electric stove and have perfect control over heat, time, sanitation and preparation while my reluctant child watches TV and asks for Kraft Dinner. And I can do both at the same time.

It was just a few generations ago that most of my family farmed in New England and the Mid Western States. Food was the center of farm life. Knowing how to grow, prepare and preserve the bounty of the farm was the business of each family - not the government or private enterprise.

Now we live in a world where huge farms in Wisconsin, North Dakota, Alberta, Uruguay and Brazil can contribute their produce to the same pound of ground beef processed and packaged for sale by a nameless group of sub-contracting slaughter houses, processors, packagers and shippers. Our food passes from hand to hand in country after country under conditions we hope are safe at each step.

But we don't really know.

And that's what makes it so disturbing when one company can sell and distribute a problem to 20 million people and then say, "Sorry". Meanwhile, hundreds of small local producers and packers are forced out.

When so much of our food comes from people and places we can't see and don't know on a scale we can't comprehend we need increased regulations, inspection and safety standards to keep our global food supply safe. Or we need more local alternatives, supported by our communities that must answer directly to neighborhood consumers, their farmers and their concerns. But clearly there are forces opposed to this.

So the question is, where does your concern about food safety really center? Is it your concern to regulate the nameless and invisible stops on the international food chain? Or should new regulations be made to equate your neighbors and individual local producers, with an international giant?

That is what is up for debate in US Senate Bill S 510. And you can read all about it here:
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s111-510

I am not one to rail against conventional farms. We need all of our farmers in North America to have healthy, successful businesses. I simply believe we have to be able to decide for ourselves what food choices we want. All of us have a human right, based on 10,000 years of human agriculture, to grow and consume natural food. But a recent FDA decision in the US declared that manufacturers using Genetically Modified Organisms would not be required to identify their contents. And now a company here in Canada is trying to market a genetically modified fish clone as food. That might be fine, but I want my community to have an open, organic choice. Policy that would make it legal to sell unlabeled clones as food, but illegal to sell heirloom tomatoes threatens more than the integrity of a single species.

It seems to me that the food safety issue and the proposed regulation as presented here is designed to provide safety for the industrial food marketer/manufacturers at the expense of independent farmers across North America. And before you suspect my motivations, please consider that I already pay more and produce more documentation for the organic certification of my farm than would be required of small producers under the proposed US law.

The time may come when the producers of synthetic food products will demand restrictions on the producers of natural food. Conventional growers need to see this for the threat it is and join in support of independent and organic farmers in opposition to this legislation. The time is now.

Is Home Grown Food Subversive?

2010-08-29T18:31:00.000-07:00

We spent the weekend selling fresh vegetables and herbs at the 70th annual Dundas Plowing Match in Eastern Kings County PEI. It's a lovely old time affair celebrating local Agri - Culture and the local traditions and skills of farming. We go there each year to sell a bit of our organic produce, meet the neighbors, watch the horse teams and plowing competitions and generally enjoy a traditional country fair.

Today, at our market table, I was slicing off samples of our just-picked cucumbers, tomatoes and fresh herbs.
I offered a taste of our finest produce followed by a dab of fresh herbs...just to give fair goers a chance to put the taste of fresh, real, whole food on their palates.

A darling young girl of about 8 years came up to the table and looked over our selection. Then she shyly asked if she could have a slice of cucumber. I said, "of course". She picked one up, popped it into her mouth and scampered away.

A Francophone couple from New Brunswick came to the table and I offered them tastes of our lightly flavored Mediteranian cucumbers, our orange cherry tomato, and a bit of fresh basil. The gentleman came back a few minutes later and asked me if he could have another basil top, "Because it smell so good!"

A bit later, a couple with several young children came up. I offered them a taste of a just-picked ripe tomato,
a bit of fresh cilantro and a taste of basil. I joked with the parents that I was "subverting their children". I said,
"Once they learn what fresh food tastes like, they won't want anything else."

I was kidding. Until I thought about it.

Maybe it really is subversive, an act designed to overthrow the establishment, to offer fresh, clean, naturally grown food to people.

Powerful forces in our economy and our governments are continuing to move against small producers. And new legislation is pending in the states that could make it impossible for homestead and market garden producers to supply their neighbors with healthy local food.

The premise of the new regulation is food safety, as though selling a few hand raised tomatoes to a neighbor is as risky as shipping e-coli tainted hamburger to 12 states. It seems to me that the real risk is that we will continue to reduce the number of producers until no small farms are left and government has only a handful of "too big to fail" producers to support as rural communities die. I've met senior farmers who nearly go to tears when they tell me that after 5 generations, they are retiring off the land because the kids don't want the farm. In many places today, its just too hard for our young people to make a go of it.

But that all seems too grim on a day when local people stepped up to buy a few beans, some herbs, a bit of squash and to take a moment to share the news in the Farmers Market at The Dundas Plowing Match.
.

Haying and Shearing - Posts From Our Busiest Farm Day Ever!

2010-08-11T05:47:00.000-07:00

This has been a crazy year. We moved from Southern California with big plans and schemes for success already in motion. I can't tell you how many times Susan and I have looked at each other with no idea how we were going to do it all. We go ahead anyway, wondering how things will work out. I've been told by one of the world's great explorers that this is the basis for any great adventure. If you already knew how everything would turn out - why would you ever leave home? The video posts and photos below will lead you through one of our busiest days in our busiest year...and hopefully show you why we love it all.

Video Post Monday Morning:

We've mowed down this field every year...to keep it cleaned up and to take a bit of loose hay for the horses. In the past few years I began to work a bit harder to understand how to make hay knowing that one day we'd be staying on and we'd need to feed our animals for the winter. Well, "one day" turned out to be Monday. And luckily, I got a lot of haying help from a young Island farmer, Adam King.

I met Adam because I heard he had an old square baler for sale. Square hay bales are relatively easy to store and use on a small farm like ours. Most farms have gone to the big round bales. But smaller works better for us. So I bought Adams' old Massey Ferguson baler and with it - I bought some help. Turns out Adam's uncle Doug knows these old machines about as well as anyone. So I asked for his help to get us ready to work. He came over on Thursday and had the old thing purring in a couple of hours. And I learned that a hay baler, like any boat, machine, or practically any singular noun in the Maritimes is a "she". After Doug finished his work, a fellow might rightly say, "Now that she's got the rust out of her, she'll run just as slick as anythin'!" If you aren't living in the Maritimes - please don't try this phrase at home.

Adam came over Saturday morning with his new John Deere tractor and a New Holland hay mower/conditioner. In about an hour, he'd mowed a bit more than 5 acres. The conditioner cracks the grass stems so the hay will dry faster. Then it's important to get the hay dry, baled and in the barn before it rains. Speed is a valuable asset and we were happy to hire some help.

Saturday afternoon I put our old wheel rake on the tractor and made nice fluffy windrows of hay. These would sit in the sun and wind and be turned again the following mid-day. Around here, keeping the Sabbath still keeps many folks from working on Sunday. I'm not of that tradition but I do make a point of not running machines on Sunday morning out of respect for my neighbors and to help keep the peace and quiet of a Sunday in the country. But by the time church was out on Sunday, I was hitched up and turning the hay to finish drying. And by Sunday afternoon, with clouds gathering and the forecast calling for showers, I knew I had to start baling and loading as fast as possible. We got a head start Sunday evening, but Monday would be the big day.

Baling on Monday Morning - Dark Skies and a Threat of Showers Push us On.

That's our new-old Massey Ferguson Model #10 in the field. After I had learned a few of the tricks of this old machine, I gave Susan a quick lesson and set her off on the windrows to finish the job. The baler missed a few now and then, but Susan did a great job and picked up all the hay. As the bales hit the ground, the rest of the crew loaded an old horse trailer and the Big Yellow Truck to pick them up from the field and deliver them to the barn. We unloaded the hay and bucked the bales up for stacking in the loft.

About now I should mention that we are grateful for a lot of help. Young strong backs are essential so we hired a couple of neighbor kids, Rachel and Logan, and we relied on the help and experience of our mature farming partners, Brian and Lorna, to load and stack in the barn. Their visiting friends, who had come up from the States on vacation pitched in too - working as hard as the rest of us to support the effort. Spencer proved to be the "strapping young son" every farm needs and our ten year old and his buddy came to the field to pick up bales too. Everyone shared the hard work and by 5:30 PM we had 500 bales in the barn. That should be enough for the horses and sheep to make it through the winter.

But we weren't done yet.

Lorna Shears Sheep in a Heap

Sheep Before...

Sheep After.

So the hay was baled, the sheep were shorn, Spencer delivered produce to Angela at the Sand Bar and Grill on Panmure Island and Susan even managed to dig some potatoes and sell some fresh salad greens to customers who came up the lane.

When the work was finally done for the day we had a lovely farm dinner with our friends, drank margaritas and danced to some good old rock and roll in the kitchen. We celebrated our harvest, hard work and good friends and then...we went to bed.

Good Night from Dunn Creek Farm.

Growing Healthy Soil AND Organic PEI Produce

2010-07-18T16:56:00.000-07:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

This week the blog shares a few snapshots from the fields, gets you ready for what's soon to be coming from the farm and a NEW PODCAST takes you on one of our regular walks in the field.

Susan shows off her multi-colored yarrow in the perennial herb garden, a mixture of culinary and beneficial herbs that she tends in our "kitchen garden". Also includes tarragon, mint, oregano, lemon balm, thyme, rosemary and others that we harvest for friends and fine meals.

One of our experiments this year includes growing small plots of grain. We planted heritage organic/non GMO oats, barley and field corn. The harvest of these crops is going to be done "old style" by hand. We're still not sure how this all works, but you see, sometimes you just have to toss your hat over the fence.

Our rows of feed corn are planted much less densely than most for a reason. We used the simple tools we have and took care to keep our plants spread apart to reduce the demand for fertility in the soil. We're doing what we can to learn from the ground up and take it slowly. What we learn this year, will prepare us to take the next step. This is yellow dent corn, a heritage variety from the 1840's. Growing these big corn plants with a long season means we're taking some chances on this old time variety. The payoff is in producing a harvest of open pollinated seed to plant next year.

As I mentioned in the podacst, this is a row of cucumbers planted in a bed row which was planted in green manure last summer. The oats and vetch were mowed down and disc-ed into the soil. The plant material is still breaking down to feed these young plants. If you click and enlarge the picture you'll see mushrooms popping up to help breakdown organic matter and transfer nutrients to the plants and to beneficial organisms in the soil. Behind them is a row of white clover that is also acting as bee pasture - attracting pollinators into our crop rows to ensure each flower produces on these plants. This biological activity is exactly what we're after.

Coming in the next week - we'll be moving from planting, weeding and cultivating to picking and harvesting sweet peas, yellow beans and that delicious, tender summer squash.

Follow the blog for more on what we have for you! If you happen by our farm on Rte. 17 in Murray Harbour North, PEI, look for our roadside sign to tell you you what's fresh and healthy from the farm!

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

You are welcome to add our podcast to your online or broadcast programming. All I ask is that you contact me to let me know your broadcast plans/needs and I will do my best to cross-promote your program on this blog. You support healthy soil and organic farming when you support organic farmers!

The California Dream: Kelly and Regis Come to PEI

2010-07-08T20:02:00.000-07:00

I heard today that some islanders are selling their free tickets to see Regis and Kelly when they broadcast live in PEI. I have to smile. And I want to share something with my island neighbors about what all this California dreamin' means - and remind them of what they already have.

After I left radio, I worked in my own commercial recording studio in Santa Barbara. I wrote and produced radio commercials, voiced audio for film and television and worked in sessions where I recorded projects for blockbuster films, famous actors and models, voice talents, authors, adventurers, Hollywood studios and wanna be's.

About 8 years ago, I had spent the Christmas break on our farm in PEI. It was a magical time with our young sons. We cut our own Christmas tree from our woods (instead of buying it at Big Wave Dave's Tree Lot), and we spent time in the snow exploring our new home. A couple of days after we got back to California, I was scheduled to record a commercial voice session with Dennis Miller. At the time, Mr. Miller had left Saturday Night Live and was working as an announcer on ABC's Monday Night Football. Mr. Miller has a home and family in SB.

Mr. Miller had a bit of a reputation for being gruff and difficult to work with. I never saw that in all the times I worked with him. On this session I came in a bit hung over but ready to make sure the studio was in order. Reputation or not, I knew there would be no excuses for not getting things right; we were connecting to a commercial studio in New York. I was introduced to Mr. Miller as I was setting up the mic booth and he said, " how are you today Johnny? "Delirious" I said. He laughed. And we began the session.

The laugh broke the tension for me and things went well. During a break in recording, while the clients in New York were reviewing the takes, I turned off the mic. "So how was Christmas?" I asked, trying to strike up some mild conversation to pass the time while we waited for New York. There was an unhappy pause.

"I was in Pittsburg"

At that moment, a light went on in my head. I had just spent a glorious and memorable Christmas with my wife and children at home on our farm. He had been in Pittsburg, watching an NFL game and making ludicrous money from ABC. But he missed Christmas. Funny, huh? It was the moment I realized that all these people I saw on TV and sometimes even worked with at the studio were missing out on something my wife and I held more dear than money. Over the years, I found many of these charming, highly paid and talented men and women were working hard to make enough money...to GET OUT. We gave up a good deal of money when we chose to leave all that behind and come here. Now we have what islanders have and what so many well paid celebrities don't...we have our own lives in a beautiful place.

I remembered that today as I was weeding corn and soy beans in the heat. And then I heard on CBC radio that John Corbett would be guesting on Regis and Kelly, here on the island. I laughed out loud. John Corbett and I have worked together over three years in the studio. The last time I saw him, I told him I was leaving Santa Barbara and moving to our farm in PEI. I described it to him and told him how much we love it here.

And now, Mr. Corbett has found his way to the island. Maybe it's just co-incidence. He is promoting a new film he shot in Canada. So probably just a fluke right? He and Bo Derek live on her beautiful horse ranch in Santa Ynez. She is a kind and graceful woman who would sometimes accompany John to the studio (and sometimes did her own work with us.) She is a master horse woman and I think she loves the country and the outdoors. He is a son of Wheeling, West Virginia who has a touring band. He loves to sing and play country music. Could they have chosen to come here? Will they find their way back home to PEI?

Why not?

Take it from me, for some of us, the California dream doesn't end in California.

And if you live here, you don't need tickets to a TV show to find out why Hollywood is coming here.

Will I try to track down John? Well, maybe. He's a great guy and I'd love to show him our little bit of the island...you know...show him what we love. But I think I might just let time and the island work that out.
I've got corn to weed.

UPDATE: 7.13.10

I watched the 15 minutes "Live" posted on line of Monday's show. Really enjoyed it. Regis and Kelly and the Live crew really did a nice job. And compliments to Tourism PEI as well. They are doing a great job of showcasing PEI.

And I did contact John Corbett. He's only making a brief stop for the Thursday show but I offered him our hospitality and a welcome to PEI. After all...it's the island way.

We're Off and Growing!

2010-06-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

Summer has arrived on Prince Edward Island and we are pleased to have just about everything in the ground for the season. For those of you who are not on the island this summer I have a few snapshots to share.

For those at home and those who plan to visit, we have a lot to look forward to as the summer goes on and turns into Fall.

It's still a bit early for most things (and perhaps we were a bit late this year) so the bulk of what we've planted won't be ready for a few weeks yet. Our friends know we have good variety but not huge volume because we do most work by hand. So if you see something you like, it's best to send us a comment or an email. We'd like to be sure you get the best of what we have to offer. I'll keep the blog updated with harvest information and buying opportunities.

We are pleased to announce we will be supplying fresh organic produce to Sand Bar & Grill at Panmure Island, PEI this summer. Stop in for fresh, summer fare from our farm!

Here's Some of What's On The Go:
Asparagus - (Almost Gone!)
Rhubarb - (now available)
Salad Greens - (Coming soon - in limited supply)
Sweet Peas- a favorite with the kids - coming soon
Summer Squash - Yellow Crookneck and Zucchini
Cucumbers
Yellow Beans

Broccoli
Cauliflower
Dill
Basil
Garlic
Onions
Leeks
Carrots
Beets
Potatoes
Tomatoes
Sweet Corn
Bell Pepper
Winter Squash
Pumpkins
Dry Beans
Herbs
...and more!
(We'd love to have it all ready for you now but we gather each harvest in it's own natural time.)

We're interested in making it easy for you to choose our locally grown and certified organic produce. Please contact us here on the blog and let us know what you'd like. If you happen to be touring on the Points East Coastal Drive, you're welcome to stop in and visit the farm.

We've been known to let youngsters help pick something special for supper or discover fresh sweet peas right out of the pod!
We also like to answer your questions about organics, about sustainable agriculture and our work to return one small farm to production in PEI.

Quail Springs - Building An Oasis

2010-06-24T11:25:00.000-07:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

According to Merriam Webster:
Oa-sis

1 : a fertile or green area in an arid region (as a desert)
2 : something that provides refuge, relief, or pleasant contrast

You can easily imagine why ancient people in arid lands would know how to find water. What it might be hard to understand if you live in a place where abundant water falls from the sky or clean water flows from a pipe is the effect and wonder of abundant water on a dry land. It changes the desert from ashen sea to a fertile island of life. And that's why ancient people cultivated these life sustaining places. An increasing number of people are becoming aware that the world needs places of refuge, relief and a pleasant contrast from the relentless momentum of our Titanic civilization.

The podcast this week will tell you some of their story and the photos and text will give you some idea of what the Quail Springs project looks like. But it wasn't until I looked up the definition of oasis that I remembered co-founder Warren Brush telling how the first few years of the project on the ground has been "farming water". That's when I understood the links between past and present and that one person's wasteland can become another person's cultivated place of refuge.

When my friend Lorna came to visit Santa Barbara (and help us pack) she said, "No wonder you get so excited by all the water in PEI." Indeed. In much of the world, abundant clean water is an unimaginable luxury. But a project like Quail Springs demonstrates how a community of people can work together to manage scarce resources and create abundance.

Meals are prepared in an open kitchen in a common area. The meal we were served (in early April) primarily included whole food from the farm. It was simple and delicious.

The common room features a bright corner for children and their friends to play and talk. The building is a converted metal hay barn. Walls are now straw bale and earth - semi finished at this point. A finished interior is shown in another picture below. Using natural materials controls cost and eliminates harmful chemicals from the living space.

More than just a pond...this pool is a valuable asset. It collects and holds water from the springs, feeds a newly re-establishing wetland habitat, waters the farm gardens and livestock and holds water in the ground.

Further upstream you see what limited rainfall and years of over-grazing / poor land use looks like. Lot's of erosion, a collapse of the native riparian environment and a stream that floods and then goes dry. The farm is working on ways to slow runoff and to allow water to move laterally into the soil to create a water "bank" that supports re-growth of the stream habitat. In the long term, this kind of planning could actually change the micro-climate of this small canyon.

Using natural earth, stone and local materials, residents have created homes that are simple to live in. By design this home is easy to heat in the winter and relatively cool in the summer and features "built in's" for shelves and seating in this finished interior.

The exterior of this home now being built shows straw bale and cobb construction, the mix of traditional earth and modern structural materials, the mountings for solar panels on the roof and the simple means for collecting rain water from the eave-troughs to water a small garden behind the house.

Pastured poultry starts with pasture. Planting grasses begins the process of creating fertile topsoil in dry sand. Grass nurtures chickens which manure the grass which grows more chickens and deeper soil.

Brenton uses mud and straw to build the wall of a new chicken coop. Inexpensive, easy to add on to and sufficient for securing his charges, this coop will also help moderate extremes of heat and cold.

For more be sure to listen to the podcast. Special thanks to Kolmi and Warren for allowing me to visit and share this story. And thanks to my favorite shepherd, Lorna McMaster, for playing her banjo in the "audio shop" at Dunn Creek Farm.

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

Work 'Till You Can't

2010-06-17T19:52:00.000-07:00

I'm too tired to work anymore today. There's plenty more to do...and it's all mine.

I'm planting and cultivating and weeding as fast as I can. And it's hard work. This city boy is finding his limits and the clock is ticking. We do most of our tilling and some cultivating by small tractor. But now I'm down to hand work in the rows. Transplanting, cultivating, weeding. I just don't have short cuts for that. Partly because we don't have the tools/technique down and partly because we can't spray away our problems.

I walk the ground. I hand weed and cultivate the rows and I learn what's going on in the field. The potato bugs have made an arrival. They are eating leaves and laying their bright orange eggs on the new plants. We beat the bugs last year by moving rows and scattering plantings, then staying on top of their cycle by hand picking them off and squishing the eggs. But they're onto our plants now and I've got to stay on them.

The weeds are coming in too. Cultivating the rows loosens and aerates the soil around plants and tears up the small weeds. It's important to get them before they overtake the corn, beans and greens. I'm on that too.

I walk the farm every day and check the trees and the plants and the ground. I learned to do that from one of our mentors. You see what's really happening that way - with weeds, with plants, with fertility, with soil moisture and texture. And it reminded me of something...about me, about human nature and about machines.

When I was a lot younger I worked on a cattle ranch. I mention that once in a while because I learned a lot from the men who ran cattle on 2400 acres of grass covered hills - the old way. Some days I worked with the experienced men, moving the herd out of the foothills on horse back...just like in the cowboy movies. And I learned that cowboys don't do ground work if they can help it. They trained their horses so they could do almost any task in the saddle. The only ground work we liked was on the dirt in the corral during spring roundup. Branding was done with an iron on a wood fire, with the sorting, and vaccinations. Even then the head man stayed on his cutting horse and sorted the cows and calves at the gate. That's the way it was done for 150 years and it was something to be part of.

I watch the men here drive the big rigs that plant grain and potatoes and spray for bugs and till fields. Big fields. And they know their business. I'm as impressed watching some of these tractor jockeys move through a field as I was watching an old cowman sidle his bridle horse up to a gate to open the fence for the herd, without touching the ground.

So there it is. Cowboys and tractor jockeys don't like to do ground work. And I guess I know why.
But I don't have the luxury of being mounted for my work because I cant afford to skip the lessons I'm learning on the dirt.

There's a retired fellow down the road who puts in a beautiful garden every spring. I watch his work because I like what he does - a clever mixture of traditional farming with a lot of good common sense use of found materials. He's shy about it, but he has a master's touch. And I'm pretty sure that skills like his come from the ground up.

Oh Lord, Stuck In Halifax Again

2010-06-12T12:06:00.000-07:00

This post comes to you from the Halifax, Nova Scotia airport. An airport which has the good sense to offer free wi-fi to passengers who are stuck in airline detention for extended periods of time.

Toby and I left Santa Barbara yesterday after a week of packing, selling cars and cleaning our house. In the past 3 days we scheduled painters, made multiple trips to the dump and learned that our dog has lyme disease. In other words, I was really looking forward to leaving town.

At this point I really need to thank to my brother, Peter and our friends Carole, Kathleen, Lorna, Morgan and Rachel. And a special shout out to the makers of Paxil, which probably prevented my wife Susan from being taken into custody.

So yesterday we literally made a mad dash through 6 lanes of bumper to bumper traffic to leave town. The 101 freeway had been a parking lot most of the day so we took back streets through town and stopped to say goodbye to my mom and the house I grew up in. I was doing pretty well up to that point.

We met the Santa Barbara Airbus and arrived at the Air Canada check-in at LAX with 5 minutes to spare. Toby and I went through security and caught our flight to Toronto. We sailed through customs this morning and made our connection to Halifax. Minutes after arriving here we learned that our flight to PEI was canceled. We were told the plane was broken. A bad rubber band for the propeller perhaps? In any event we were re-booked and here we sit until it's time to depart. So close and yet so far. We were offered ground transportation into Halifax for the day, but we are both too wiped out to enjoy it and I really don't want to miss the next chance to get home. Did I mention my cell phone is dead and the charger is still plugged into a wall in California?

But I am calm. Practically comatose. And any time I think I might miss the days when we jet-setted back and forth, I'll have this to remind me why it's better to stay home and mind your own business.

Toby hasn't uttered even one word of complaint. He's just taking it in stride. And me? I thought I'd post a few words to you with this gift of spare time. Hmmm. And now I see that there is local beer on tap...

The Production Room - New Location & New Contacts

2010-05-29T11:58:00.000-07:00

(Note: The following was originally posted on The Production Room blog, prodroom.blogspot.com)

Greetings from Prince Edward Island, Canada! The new home of John Quimby and The Production Room.

In 1998, my wife, Susan visited the island. We returned together (she'd already told me we were moving) in 1999. We bought a farm in the spring of 2000 and we've been spending part of the year (you know, the WARM part) ever since.

In that time I learned to make the studio portable and continued to work for clients (Toshiba, Chevron, Channel Islands National Park, etc.) even as we were spending our summers in the country.

This year we're moving up to stay year 'round and that has meant a few changes at The Production Room. For example, we no longer offer ISDN or studio services in Santa Barbara. But those whom I've worked for in the past will find it just as easy as it ever was to have scripts voiced and audio delivered for production. And I hope to make new friends and clients in media production here in Atlantic Canada.

So here's the rundown of services and contacts:

I'm now available to you for recording and delivering voiceovers - narrations, web media etc.
You can send me scripts for fast turnaround and you can even direct the session by phone if you wish.
All studio gear is professional industry standard and audio quality is excellent.

Voiceover rates are competitive. I have experience on network TV, Radio, Film, Video and Internet.
I'm an award winning copy writer and producer with thousands of commercial productions to my credit.
I have been and will be continuing to write and produce a podcast series and I am familiar with using podcast media in marketing.

Please contact me for schedules, rates and production information:

record@prodroom.com
(902) 962-3755

Fear is a Learned Behaviour and other Lessons From Earth

2010-05-15T15:52:00.000-07:00

It is Spring at the farm.

This is my second Spring of 2010. The first was in California, where rain stops falling in March or April and the sky is clear almost every day. That means outdoor living is well under way and the under dressed (or undressed) can streak out of the house, cross the breezeway and dash into the garage for that pair of pants (or underpants) that never quite made it from the laundry into the house.

Here, in PEI, in Mid May, spring meant settling into bed last night, and then realizing that I hadn't put on the space heater in the greenhouse and the forecast was calling for a low of 2 (about 34F). I seriously considered nodding off to sleep anyway...then realized this was not an option. I have invested in planting the hundreds of seeds in flats that are just now sprouting with this year's harvest. They are particularly sensitive to cold now - and I was afraid that letting nature take it's course would be crippling to our plans and our investment in time, money and labor. What to do?

I got up, went downstairs and put on a sweatshirt, a hat and a pair of rubber boots and sprinted out the door.
If you had been driving by Dunn Creek Farm at about midnight last night, you would have seen this farmer sprinting up the yard in his tighty whities to flip the switch on the heater and then dash back to the house.
Mission accomplished and this years crops saved!

Yesterday I hitched up my ugly old 3 sod trailing plow and tilled new ground between the peach trees in our little orchard. I have a history with that plow that includes a spooky horse trying to flip it over onto me and some pretty ugly plowing when I didn't know what I was doing. Call it a general lack of operator ability. I was pretty frustrated and afraid I'd never measure up. That awkward experience comes up each time I hitch up the plow.

Yesterday I lined up my plow, set the points and laid out some lovely rows of nice turned earth which will
be planted with dried baking beans and potatoes for this fall and winter. The plow was flawless and this plowman knew how to hitch the plow at the proper angles and set the points for turning the sods together
into the center of the row. Thanks to my neighbor, Glen, who patiently gave me my first instructions a few years ago and by paying attention at the Dundas Plowing Match for the last few Summers, I knew what I was after. And I congratulated myself for this basic graduation.

I'll never forget my first try at plowing with Glen. After looking at my field and then at my plow he said, "That's a tough contract". A few days later he said, "I talked to a few of the lads in the neighborhood and they said you did not too bad a job for your first time plowing". Glen is now about 80 years old now and a lifelong bachelor farmer. I'm so lucky to have had elders like Glen in this community offer their help and a lifetime of experience.

Warren Brush at Quail Springs said, "A community is a place where each person is needed." I like that.
But I'm still trying to figure out how I can be needed in our community. I know I need my neighbors, like Glen. And Nancy, who took my seed orders and planted early starts for me in her greenhouse and my neighbors who continue to offer me their welcome home and suppers at their houses. Like my friends who come to weed asparagus and visit while we work.

A Change is going to come even as the world outside argues and frets.

Many people say,
"We can't change what's wrong".
"We can't choose what is best for us".
"Government is cporrupted"
"Business can't be trusted"

Fear is a learned behaviour and it has become a crippling force. We are afraid to be wrong, afraid to make change, afraid of failure, afraid to be cold, afraid to be ridiculed, afraid to be alone and afraid of being hungry.

But I've learned that our friends will come forward and teach me. They will cheer our success. I will choose to be cold to save our seedlings and our neighbors will put a hot, home cooked meal in front of me. Being wrong teaches me more than being right. When you're right you don't need anybody. When you're wrong you need your friends.

In the past 10 years I've learned to fear less and do more. And I realize now that I have less to fear from the people around me than I do from the big anonymous world that wants everything I have - in exchange for my life.

And I'm so much more impatient now with those who say, "No we can't".

A Few Reasons Why Compost Could Save Us.

2010-05-04T16:35:00.000-07:00

Yes, the news on the environment is really bad this week. We have an estimated 200,000 thousand gallons of crude floating to the surface in the Gulf of Mexico every day for over a week adding to an environmental wipe out that could reach unprecedented proportions and stretch from Louisiana all the way up the east coast..

But even if you are convinced that burning fossil fuel will destroy the planet, you're probably no more prepared to live without it than I am. Lets face it we all need to find some answers and we may not like the answers we find. But obviously the time has come to get serious about alternatives. So how DO we get control of the mess we're in and keep everything from spiraling out of control?

Let's start with compost.

Now, I'll disclaim this post here and now with an admission that I am not loaded with research grants or University degrees but there is such a thing as experiential learning. And I've been working on this for a while, so I hope you'll follow along and add your comments. Even if I put a foot out of step here, I hope you'll see that what I'm saying makes sense on some fundamental levels. So let's check out the basics.

Plants take in Co2 and breathe out oxygen. The carbon taken up by plants create the structure of the plant itself. Stems of grasses, wood, leaves, etc are all rich in carbon.

A lot of this carbon comes from the air - the Co2 in the atmosphere. And we humans put a lot of carbon out there when we burn fuel. There's more there now than there was before we stopped taking a yak to work and drove an Audi instead.

If we park the Audi and take the carbon that plants have soaked up and put it back into the earth, we are sequestering this carbon by taking it out of the air and putting it back where it came from and we're doing something else too. We're creating plant based fertilizer for new pants to use and eliminating the fossil fuel we were using to create synthetic fertilizer like ammonia nitrates. Nitrates make plants grow, but they are produced by burning large amounts of natural gas which enters the atmosphere (more Co2) and the leftover nitrates tend to drift into our drinking water which isn't good for people.

With me so far?

OK, so in our organic system at Dunn Creek Farm we really can't rely on chemical based fertilizers. But without them, we quickly exhaust the fertility of the soil which means that crop yields drop. And they drop fast. Enter compost.

First, we harvest all that collected carbon. Dead plants, horse manure, old hay, cleared brush, wood chips, and we mix it in with other stuff like green waste from the kitchen, green plants that have finished producing, vegetables that aren't good for market, grass clippings and seaweed. Yes, I've been seen on the beach after a big storm scooping up tons of seaweed for compost.

This material gets layered up in big windrows in a field. Each windrow is about 4 feet wide and 20 feet long. In short order it gets all hot and steamy, as an army of bacteria feed on the air, moisture and nutrient dense materials in the pile. The plumes of steam from a working pile look really magnificent on a fall morning.

I cover it up with a tarp to keep weeds from growing on the top and let it work. By the next fall it looks like dark brown earth. It's full of worms and bugs and fungus and bacteria...just the stuff to inoculate the field and feed the plants we'll grow next year. Now some people are saying that hot compost destroys biological benefits like microorganisms and fungus and that a low temp or cold process is actually more beneficial. Hot compost is a means to kill pathogens and weed seeds, so material that is hot composted is thought to be cleaner. The rules for application require a hot composting process in order for the material to be called compost. Otherwise it is regulated as "manure". This kind of thinking can give you a headache. But in order to get the most benefit from the input we make and to comply with regulations that are intended for food safety, we apply our compost/manure in the fall and that way it is never in direct contact with edible food crops.

Now, the fact is that we cannot produce enough compost to meet our fertility needs. So we also rotate our plantings and we plant about a quarter of our production area in "green manure" to increase fertility in place. We are always farming soil by producing biomass to put back in the ground each year. The plants do their job of taking in carbon from the air and fixing nitrogen in the soil and we chop that material up and put it back in the earth.

What we spend on seed and time and labor is spent instead of buying more fertilizer. Our fields test low in organic matter which promotes the biological benefits I mentioned and helps to regulate moisture in the soil. So putting more organic matter and trace minerals from things like seaweed back into the soil improves the health of our plants, the yields we get to market and, we might expect, the nutritional value of the food we grow.

We're doing all this to create a solid system that will continue to produce good yields of healthy food for years to come. But there are other benefits to consider.

You may be someone who doubts the value of organics. But it's hard not to like a system of agriculture that isn't entirely dependent on fossil fuels, doesn't use airborne toxic sprays and eliminates the environmental hazards caused by the runoff of chemical fertilizers and pesticides into the ground water we eat and drink.

You may be someone who believes that climate change is a hoax. But it's hard not to agree that our current choices have made us dependent on buying fossil fuels from people who may not have our interests in mind. And the supplies are limited - which limits our potential to grow our own food, the economy...anything.

If you do think that humans have tilted the balance of our environment into a wobbly and unpredictable scenario, then you might agree that supporting a system that can actually help reduce the carbon footprint of all the humans on the planet is a good thing.

Coming Home - Moving to PEI

2010-05-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

"Welcome Home."

I've heard that from many friends and neighbors since arriving in Eastern PEI. Nice words to hear from islanders and other folks like me who have come home from away. It's a simple and sincere act. One that my dog Annie understands how to perform to a fault. Other than that, coming home has not generally been a celebratory event in my life.

As the move to PEI goes on, Susan and the boys are heading for the home stretch, finishing work and school and packing up the house in Santa Barbara. I'm not sorry to be missing that. My last few weeks there were spent wading through too many things collected over the years and realizing that I can't afford to carry so much stuff around with me. Much too much baggage, you know? So I parted with things and reduced the time capsule of memories preserved in cardboard boxes. They'll have to open my, "Boyhood Home Museum and Gift Shop" without them.

Hours of old radio airchecks and car commercials and assorted nonsense went into the trash. My old orthodontic retainer. (Really. I think because I had to swear I'd never lose it.) The Santa Barbara Mission carved out of a big bar of Ivory Soap (a 5th grade social studies project). Boy Scout stuff, newspaper headlines and high school rally buttons. And I came face to face with all of my old notebooks and writing projects. Hmmm. Seems I've been a writer most of my life. And I wrote a lot of seriously bad stuff too which, thankfully, no one will ever have to read.

Some of the ideas I sketched in words were fun to see again. Vast quantities went to the recycling center. There was a series of "newspapers" I wrote for friends at school, starting in 6th grade and running into high school. Yikes! After stealing shamelessly from Mad Magazine and old TV comedy writers it's a wonder I wasn't arrested for theft...and for being deeply nerdy.

I picked up the thread of a time line begun in my old High School class notes, "Where Are We And How Did We Get There?" which was actually a question on the final exam in my senior religion class at Bishop Diego High School where I spent 4 years as a virtual heathen in a Catholic school. Pleading ignorance on the final got me an "A" and a lesson about confession.

So I've touched all these things one last time. The baseball cards, the pictures of Civil War battlefields, the notes from old girlfriends. And I reviewed a few of those hours spent writing when I really didn't have much to write about. Those hours were awkward. I had to imagine an awful lot about life when I was 16. And much of it reads more like bad science fiction than autobiography. It's really just chewed gum under the table. The past may be prologue but you can't live in it.

Thirty years later I'm at a kitchen table covered with packages of seed. There's a red wing blackbird singing in a poplar near the creek. A partridge is foraging in a brush pile in the yard. Earlier today a nesting pair of Canada geese were checking out the ponds like young marrieds looking for a starter home. And a moment ago a neighbor's son drove up and invited me to come over on Sunday for a chicken dinner. Just another way of saying, "welcome home".

Islanders have a natural outlook that comes from their seafaring culture. Those who seek to build communities would do well to consider the simplicity of their point of view. When you're here, you are home. When you're not, you are away. And so it's the most natural thing for islanders to welcome you home when they see you. It's a simple yet powerful thing to be greeted warmly and welcomed back into the community.

Try it yourself and you'll see what I mean. The next time a loved one comes through the door, stop what you're doing. Hug them close and say, "welcome home".

Organic Farming From Hell

2010-04-19T13:55:00.000-07:00

I'm in a bit of what I call "Blog Clog" at the moment. I have too much material and not enough time to do it justice. So I'm breaking it into smaller pieces and sharing bite size morsels easier for me to produce and for you to consume. I know the pictures take time to load on a dial up. I hope you'll find them worth the wait and do click on them for larger views.

On April 11th, I visited Quail Springs permaculture project at the edge of the Cuyama Valley in eastern Ventura County. I'll publish a portfolio of pictures and podcasts for you ASAP and share the good news about building sustainable community in a semi arid region. In the meantime I've got to share some scenery from the trip and some bad news about organic farming run-amok in an out of the way corner of the county.

You Can't Get There From Here

There is no such thing as driving a straight line from the grassy foothills and coastal plain where I live to the semi arid high desert of the inland part of the county. The road runs south and the east through coastal mountians...

I drove south on US Highway 101, to California 150 East to Ojai and then on to California Highway 33.

The route winds through gentrified (and eternally cosmic) Ojai and then runs north. The road runs through tunnels blasted through solid rock (a depression era road project) into Wheeler Gorge.

I snapped these pictures on an overcast Sunday morning where coastal fog was meeting overcast skies and a Pacific Storm on the way in from the north.

The hills were in bloom with spring wildflowers and shrubs like the pale blue ceanothus. I get a little goofy about this stuff but I've spent a lot of time on hiking trails in the mountains.

I had to stop the car several times to snap photos of our wild lupines, growing out the side of bare dirt hills and chaparral at about 2500 feet. It seems so improbable and I wanted to share this picture with my PEI friends, for whom the big friendly and colorful lupine is a summer visitor and even a sometime pest.

It's Spring and the Topsoil is in the Air!

Life is both more fragile and more committed the further east you go from here. On the other side of the next mountain range or two you arrive in the Mojave Desert which stretches all the way to the Colorado River and beyond into Arizona. Here in the Cuyama River Valley, years of farming, cattle grazing and irrigation in this semi arid region (figure less than 12 inches of annual rain fall) has taken their toll. And that leads to the title of this post. In the picture above the roadside flowers pop out of a backdrop of soil blowing in the wind.

This is the view from the highway of land tilled for spring planting. The ground is very sandy and there is hardly any kind of organic matter in it. Low moisture/dry air makes breaking down organic cover or natural soil building take too long for these farmers. So they essentially plant in the dust and irrigate using energy to pump water up from the fossil riverbed beneath valley floor. Overdrafitng this water supply could eventually end all farming in the valley.

Farming here is being done on leased ground and much of the production here is now certified organic. Lot's of those cute little "baby" carrots (which aren't really baby carrots) come from here. And lot's of them carry the USDA organic label.

This picture really tells the whole story of Organic Farming From Hell. The wind is blowing at about 40 mph. The top soil is literally blowing away and there is no cover visible for miles. The foreground shows tilled soil that looks sterile. And the middle distance shows overhead irrigation using fossil energy to pump water into the wind just about an hour before at least half an inch of rain began to fall. Now I can't say for sure that this field is certified organic, but the point is that a lot of the fields here are and they all look identical. They may be organic but they are certainly not sustainable. Calling conventional ag by any other name doesn't make it better for the land.

I won't mention the name of the largest ag company that's currently leasing and farming the majority of this area. I'm thinking they wouldn't appreciate me showing you how they operate. I'm just pointing to this real world example to let you know that organic is not the ending point it's the beginning point. We have much more work to do to make our agriculture and by extension our communities, sustainable places to live.

Eat Your Landscape!

2010-04-14T10:53:00.000-07:00

Our Organic Yard Features Edible Landscape

Over the time that we've lived in our Santa Barbara home we've worked to create beautiful and edible landscape. The climate (and drip irrigation) allow us to grow a variety of plants that produce food and beauty. In this post I'll continue our tour of the edible landscape around our home.

The bench under our avocado tree creates a private space where Susan and I meet at the end of every day.

The fig tree is just outside our kitchen window. It produces sweet figs that fruit eating birds love. We see a variety of birds including western tanagers and hooded orioles.

These are loquats, an Asian fruit distantly related to apples. They were imported here from southeastern China. Local history suggests they may have first have been brought across the pacific by the Spanish during our colonial period.

We have two macadamia nut trees. This particular tree is very healthy and a heavy producer. Imagine - macadamia chocolate chip cookies! Yummmmm.

This dwarf navel orange tree in the front yard is a fine producer of nice large, sweet, eating oranges.
Citrus does well here. We have a blood orange tree, mandarin orange, bearss lime, bearss lemon and...

tangerines! This dwarf tree is a crazy producer. It lives happily near our backyard compost corral and has been the beneficiary of lots of mulch over the years.

Our compost corral is where we put the yard trimming and kitchen waste we generate to work feeding worms and bugs. We water and turn the pile while adding to it. In the winter, when the yard goes dormant and the rain comes, we find the pile works quickly and by spring we're ready to harvest almost a cubic yard of fine compost and worm castings. After years off application in the yard we can really see how the compost corral feeds nutrients and biological benefits into the yard. Compost can create a problem with mice and rats. Our cats do a fine job of eliminating that problem.

We'll be offering our home for long term rental this year and would like to have a family that would enjoy living in the garden and would continue to enjoy the benefits of a yard that's healthy and good enough to eat.

Goodbye God...

2010-04-01T21:49:00.000-07:00

This story comes from the California gold rush and a young girl in San Fransisco. Her family was moving to the eastern slopes of the high Sierra Mountains on the Nevada border and the rough mining town of Bodie.

On the day she left, the little girl walked about her home and said, "Goodbye grass, I'm going to Bodie. Goodbye sky, I'm going to Bodie. Goodbye God, I'm going to Bodie." Well some people say that's not what she said at all. Some people believe she said, "Good, by God, I'm going to Bodie!"

It's spring in California. Our edible landscape lives in a yard of less than a quarter acre. The above photo is of the blossoms on our apricot tree, a 20 year old tree that is surviving an oak root fungus attack with pruning, natural mineral fertilizer and compost.

We've lived here since 1993. And in that time we've replaced the ornamental shrubs and trees with a wide variety of edible and food bearing plants. Our goal was to limit the irrigation and labor required by plants that produce work, but not food.

Here are our "wild" artichokes, which live in a mix of ground cover under a Mexican Fan palm tree that was planted by a scrub bluejay some years ago. We preserved the tree and continued to compost mulch the garden beds. You'll see ginger plants in the foreground mixed with the artichokes that are about to produce edible flower buds.

These are avocados on the tree. If you buy avocados in North America, chances are they are from California, Mexico or Chile during the winter. Imported avocados are pumped full of water and picked early for shipping. These early avocados turn bad as they ripen, and even if you get a "good one" the flesh is hard, watery and bitter.

Our avocados, when ripe, are the texture of warm butter with a mild, nutty flavor. Raccoons will break into our yard this time of year and get fat on these "alligator pears". Not everyone is a fan of guacamole, but I can tell you that fresh guac. is about as good as food gets. You should try adding slices of avocado to your bacon, lettuce and ripe tomato sandwich. Here in California, you can even get bacon and avocado on your cheeseburger...that's something you won't forget!

Now if you are making guacamole, drinking a cold lager beer, or craving a marguerita, you need fresh limes. Most people don't know that ripe limes are yellow. Green limes are bitter. The picture here is of our Bearss lime tree, which provides limes for the foods we love.

This tree is tucked into a bed near our dwarf navel orange and our Jerusalem artichokes.

Every region has it's own special benefits. Our yard in PEI produces pears, cherries and sweet apples that we love to harvest. The point is to use your yard to feed your family the expensive fresh delicacies you love in the climate where you live. These plants are beautiful and nurturing. The idea of decorative shrubbery is a luxury that many of us can't really afford. You'll either spend all your time in the yard trimming shrubs and bushes or you'll harvest supper for your family.

I'll have more photos from our edible yard in Santa Barbara and share how that influenced us to plant our kitchen garden at the farm in PEI, a place where we can walk a few steps out the kitchen door and harvest fresh, organic food for supper.

The Island That Couldn't Feed Itself

2010-03-25T10:20:00.000-07:00

A remarkable thing happened last week and it was detailed in an article by Jonathon M. Katz in the Huffington Post. Bill Clinton is continuing his work in Haiti to help direct the humanitarian assistance following the earthquake and develop plans to improve the perennial "Failed State" status of this troubled country.
Katz Reports:

Decades of inexpensive (food) imports – especially rice from the U.S. – punctuated with abundant aid in various crises have destroyed local agriculture and left impoverished countries such as Haiti unable to feed themselves.

It looks to me like Haiti is the reverse of Cuba. Isolated by trade embargo and the collapse of Communism, Cuba was forced to feed itself - without petroleum based agriculture. Katz Continues:

...world leaders focused on fixing Haiti are admitting for the first time that loosening trade barriers has only exacerbated hunger in Haiti and elsewhere.

They're led by former U.S. President Bill Clinton – now U.N. special envoy to Haiti – who publicly apologized this month for championing policies that destroyed Haiti's rice production. Clinton in the mid-1990s encouraged the impoverished country to dramatically cut tariffs on imported U.S. rice.

This is remarkable since it is a 180 degree reversal of global trade policy that included NAFTA, which Clinton campaigned for and the US, Canada and Mexico signed into law in 1993. Clinton said:

"It may have been good for some of my farmers in Arkansas, but it has not worked. It was a mistake," Clinton told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on March 10. "I had to live everyday with the consequences of the loss of capacity to produce a rice crop in Haiti to feed those people because of what I did; nobody else."

Local farmers were put out of business, told they could not compete. And the island, which had not been dependent on rice or imported food aid before, is now importing 51% of all the food it consumes. Many local farms are gone and the farmers have moved to the cities.

Clinton's goal was to import cheap food to feed a poor population while creating a market for US rice farmers. But now, there is nothing for Haiti to build a sustained economic recovery on. So this week, Clinton will go to the UN to seek millions to invest in rebuilding local agriculture to end reliance on imports.

Even Haiti's most powerful food importers have joined the push for locally produced food.

"I would prefer to buy everything locally and have nothing to import," said businessman Reginald Boulos, who is also president of Haiti's chamber of commerce.

The effort will also be part of a new UN backed initiative to support local agriculture in poor countries. But what about us?
Is our farming economy any better off than Haiti's? How much food do we import now? What has happened to local beef, hog, egg, chicken and dairy producers as cheap imports have flooded our markets? And how much money will it cost to rebuild what we are allowing to die through neglect? Haiti raises those questions. And Bill Clinton, the man who says that he alone is responsible for bringing us to this point, is looking for the answers.

Starting a Garden? Look For Seeds You Can Save

2010-03-16T11:20:00.000-07:00

Hey, I'm not a plant genetics expert and my understanding of the issues around GMO's is limited. I just have some basic concerns about splicing genes from one species into another and hoping that the outcome isn't bad. You know, like a giant fire breathing dinosaur ravaging Charlottetown. That would be bad.

But seriously there are some great reasons to consider your seed sources, even if you're just planting a few tomatoes.

Angus Mellish at Vesey's once asked, "Do you what kind of beans people will be planting this year? The same kind they planted last year." His good natured attitude explains that we all find favorites that we plant year after year. Garden heirlooms become popular again when people re-discover varieties that used to be popular.

A great example of this is the return of the brandywine tomato to commercial seed catalogs.

The brandywine was a commercial variety that was listed in seed catalogs in the 1880's. It came back into the garden in the 1990's, thanks in part to Seed Savers Exchange. These humble seeds were planted every season and saved for over 100 years, then passed to the Seed Savers by an elderly gardener. There are now many sources of this heirloom available, which brings me to where we are in our garden this year.

Part of our challenge every year is meeting the requirement to create a seed search document to prove that we have made an effort to find, purchase and plant organic seeds from approved organic sources. This is much easier than it use to be thanks to the internet and an increase in resources in Canada. But as you'll see, whether you're planting a garden or a few acres, buying quality seed is expensive. Buying certified organic seed is even more expensive. And shipping is...well...not cheap.

So now, here's where GMO, patented seeds, heirlooms and sustainability cross. We have to select organic seeds whenever possible. And we're also investing in seed we can plant, harvest and select for planting next year. It's part of our plan to keep our costs down by producing our own seeds on the farm. And we hope it will be our small contribution to creating a stock of seeds that can help feed PEI into the future.

If you're interested in locating and growing certified organics, heritage and open pollinated varieties, you might want to get on the Seed Savers Exchange website and stock up on some varieties to try this summer.

If you find something you like, you can save seeds and save money.

Spring Planning for Spring Planting

2010-03-09T12:37:00.000-08:00

Looking forward to spring at our house means looking at seed catalogs, planning our farm rotations and planting expectations in our minds. For the past few weeks, the farm blog has been at Fairview Gardens. This time I'll give you a bit of a preview of our gardens and fields for 2010 with the hope that, however they might turn out, you'll keep us in mind at Dunn Creek Farm when you need fresh local produce for a summer supper or fall preserving.

For our friends in SoCal, through the States and around the world, this is my chance to share a bit about what we do and how it works out that we can plant in the spring, harvest in the fall and let the farm sleep for the winter while we work in California. This is our last year for that, because we're moving to the farm full time this summer. But our stories have interested more than a few urban folk who wonder how we do it - and if they can do it too. All I can say is, yes you can. Just be prepared to keep at it for a while. This is our tenth year in PEI.

So, here we are in the front field where we grow veggies. We intercrop white clover and annual rye between rows. We plant in bedrows that I form with a tool bar with shovel and points, so there's no real plowing here and minimal tillage - mostly to incorporate organic material and prepare beds for planting. I'm still learning the timing of cover crop/cash crop rotations. And I'm focusing on learning how to build soil through cover crop and rotation. I haven't flipped planting rows into the intercrop rows yet but if I goof, I have rows ready.

This is how I finished the front field last fall. Some of the rows were green manure cropped for the summer with oats and vetch. When they were ready, I mowed them and disc-ed in the residue. In the crop rows I disc-ed the row and then spread finished manure/compost which I covered with rock-weed (sea weed) from Poverty Beach. Many people ask me about the salt content of the seasweed. I have not had a problem. Old time farmers often used this material and by spreading it in the fall, you have many months of rain and snow rinsing any residual salt out.

These red potatoes were grown from certified organic PEI seed. I buy as much seed from local sources as I can. Vesey's carries these seed potatoes and I buy other seed stock from Vesey's because they have an excellent trial garden program in York, PEI. This means that the seeds I buy have been tested in similar soil and weather conditions and are selected for quality. Local potato growers are creating an organic market that helps keep money working for us at home on the island. And - they really taste great too!

The asparagus arrived in early May last year. Keep us in mind for tender fresh Asparagus along with the lobster for your Mother's Day Supper this year! We'll have a lot of variety planted this year and high hopes to see you stop by the farm for fresh greens, peas, carrots, beets, potatoes and so much more. We'll be selling at the gate as before and hope we'll once again have produce in stock for you at Naburrs Garden Center in Brudenell/Montague. And this year we'll get your orders ready for pickup/delivery too!

If there's something special you'd like this year, please drop a note in the comments section below and tell us about it.

We're eager to get started on our new adventure and I invite you to follow along here on the blog as we move from the city and get the farm up and running this spring!

Driven To Distraction

2010-03-04T15:35:00.000-08:00

I am easily distracted.

This feature makes it terribly difficult to draw a straight line through any task on my to do list. Maybe it's because I don't multi-task well. Mostly I just do parallel processing...and my RAM isn't what it used to be.

If I could only focus!

I'm seeing a lot of bad things happening here. Things I don't want to see but I just can't look away. It's as if I were driving past a series of multiple injury accidents on the freeway.

Anyway, it is usually just because of some distraction or other that I forget to run a load of laundry, or check my cell phone messages or look after one of the many personal chores that are important to me and my family.

This week my friends in Canada are enjoying the glow of Olympic gold. I'd guess they are experiencing an odd feeling they don't often indulge north of the border. Pride and joy must be making some folks a little uncomfortable.

My country? Right now it just seems mad and mean and one beer away from going over the edge.

Back in the days before all children were under house arrest we rode our bikes to our friends houses after school. We knew who's mom would drive us all to the beach and give us some change for a snack. We knew who's dad should be avoided after work.We had a lot of war veterans in my neighborhood.

My country reminds me of that unpredictable dad right now. Handsome and popular images from it's youth are history. Wasted opportunity, squandered fortune and traumatic stress has left it sullen, bloated, resentful and mean. Can't even take a hockey loss without kicking the dog and yelling at the neighbors. My country is angry and potentially violent; sitting alone in the garage listening to Rush Limbaugh and drinking Pabst Blue Ribbon.

A teenage girl was found raped and murdered down south of here this week. She went jogging in the park. Turns out there are animals living among us who hunt our children.

You know, some people are so angry and afraid that they are contemplating violence. People are afraid because they are constantly being told to be afraid. Domestic attacks on our government employees are already happening. And nobody seems to want to talk about it. A dead security guard in Washington DC, a plane crash into the IRS building in Austin, TX, a census worker found strung up in rural Kentucky.

Funding for education will be cut again next year in our town. They're cutting school mental health and school maintenance programs too. Doesn't seem like a good time to cut back on education or mental health to me.

People and businesses I've seen all my life have had enough. Their store fronts are empty and their houses are for sale.

Anyway. What was I saying? I've become so forgetful. But I am trying hard to concentrate on getting things done.

We've ordered our seeds for the farm, our house here must be packed and prepared to rent, my older son is preparing to graduate from High School and my little one needs help with his homework. My business interests here must be managed, my mother needs me to help her shop for groceries, and my list of chores for the farm is already pages long.

I'm leaving home and I'm coming home.
I'm driving through the end of the world as I know it.

And darn it! I forget what I'm supposed to be doing!

Updated on Friday, 7:44AM PDT
More of the steady drip drip drip of violence aimed at government authority. On Thursday, a California man
opened fire on the main entrance to the Pentagon from the Metro Station.

Pentagon Shooting Suspect Dies

Friday, 6:50 AM ET -- Official: Pentagon shooter was well armed. WASHINGTON (Associated Press) - The well-dressed gunman mortally wounded after firing at and injuring two Pentagon police officers was armed with two 9 millimeter semiautomatic weapons and carried several magazines of ammunition, the chief of the Pentagon police said Friday.
Chief Richard Keevill said the shooter, identified as John Patrick Bedell of Hollister, Calif., spent the last several weeks driving from the West Coast.

2nd Update Friday, 4:08 PM PT - From the AP

HOLLISTER, Calif. — The man who opened fire in front of the Pentagon had a history of mental illness and had become so erratic that his parents reached out to local authorities weeks ago with a warning that he was unstable and might have a gun, authorities said Friday.
It's still unclear why John Patrick Bedell opened fire Thursday at the Pentagon entrance, wounding two police officers before he was fatally shot. The two officers were hospitalized briefly with minor injuries.
Bedell was diagnosed as bipolar, or manic depressive, and had been in and out of treatment programs for years. His psychiatrist, J. Michael Nelson, said Bedell tried to self-medicate with marijuana, inadvertently making his symptoms more pronounced.
"Without the stabilizing medication, the symptoms of his disinhibition, agitation and fearfullness complicated the lack of treatment," Nelson said.
His parents reported him missing Jan. 4, a day after a Texas Highway Patrol officer stopped him for speeding in Texarkana. Bedell told the highway patrolman he was heading to the East Coast, and began acting strangely — sitting on his knees by the side of the highway and turning off his cell phone when it would ring.
Bedell said it was his mother calling, prompting the patrolman to answer the phone and talk briefly with her. Family friend Reb Monaco said Kaye Bedell asked the officer to take him to a mental health facility, but that the son refused.

Small Farm Aims To Produce Sustainable Community

2010-02-25T16:01:00.000-08:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

We're concluding the podcast series from Fairview Gardens Organic Farm, near Santa Barbara, CA. I visited the farm on January 25 to conduct interviews and take pictures. If you missed the earlier posts and podcasts, I hope you'll have a look back. Fairview is a 12 acre remnant of farmland in a suburban tract. The farm also works an additional 11 acres on another site.

Suburban tractors do tillage, turn compost and form planting beds (Click to enlarge)

Fairview is on a coastal plain below the Santa Ynez Mountains near Santa Barbara. The area was developed with houses in the 1960's and 70's. In that era, the farm was already organic. It is now one of the oldest organic farm operations in California.

Even in January, the farm greenhouse is active with starts for the next rotation. Year round cropping is a challenge for the crew and the management of production. And there is no freeze to kill weeds or pests.

Jen and Toby in the greenhouse. In the podcast you'll hear Jen talk about her experience on the farm as an aspiring farmer and what she learns from walking the farm. Farm manager Toby talks about working with a crew that has been farming the same small acreage for 20 years. The crew at this farm knows the soil and growing conditions in every "micro zone" of the farm. This intimate connection with the soil is re-enforced in every day, hands-on operation.

Toby McPartland talked to me about his ideas for operating Fairview Gardens as a small farm business. His thinking includes ways to establish an economic niche for small farms in local communities. He's also looking at ways to involve the community in feeding itself.

I really appreciated having a talk with this young farmer who is finding innovative ways to re-integrate small agriculture into our community.

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

PEI Eggs: Part of a Regional Game of Chicken

2010-02-16T10:43:00.000-08:00

I have been trying to understand the decision taken by PEI egg producers to lobby for a severe restriction on the number of hens which can be kept in production on small farms like ours in eastern PEI. I've noticed that the issue has stirred serious conversations across the province. And in fact, this is part of a larger conversation about food production which is now taking place across the continent.

As I posted on Rob Paterson's blog, voters in the State of California passed Proposition 2 over the objection of California's Egg Producers, which hold 20 million hens producing 5 billion eggs per year.

From Wikipedia:

Proposition 2 was a California ballot proposition in that state's general election on November 4, 2008. It passed with 63% of the votes in favor and 37% against. Submitted to the Secretary of State as the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act, the initiative's name (as with others such as Proposition 8) was amended to officially be known as the Standards for Confining Farm Animals initiative. The official title of the statute enacted by the proposition is the Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act.

I learned today that Canada has managed to stave off a cross border flood of cheap eggs in part by using regional quotas to ensure Canadian production. So it seems to me that the issue in PEI isn't really about dangerous organic eggs or nightmare factory farms. It's about the current supply management system and the possibility that it may no longer support "small" commercial operations in the province.

I reached that conclusion when I looked beyond PEI. There is a regional chicken war in eastern Canada. Read more in The New Brunswick Business Journal article titled:

The Trouble With Processing Chicken

Industry: The feud between New Brunswick supplier and processor is threatening the stability of the supply-management system for poultry in Central and Eastern Canada

The Canadian Competition Tribunal, in ruling on the Nadeau case last year, examined the chicken industry's supply management system and declared "the poultry sector is likely the most highly regulated industry in the Canadian economy."

Under the supply-management system, provinces are assigned quotas by a national body and then provincial marketing boards set quotas for individual producers in their boundaries. The provincial boards also set minimum prices within each province.

Quotas can be expensive. The quota cost for an average-size chicken farm in Canada in 2007 climbed to $2.25 million, according to the competition tribunal.

The quotas are enforced by provincial marketing board bureaucrats, or "the chicken police," to employ the term used by people such as Patrick Langston, a small chicken producer near Navan, Ont.

There is so much paperwork involved in the whole process that processors are sometimes reluctant to deal with small producers, says Langston. Only deals with the big guys, apparently, make the onerous paperwork worthwhile. The squeeze on small producers gets even tighter as companies, such as Westco, become more vertically integrated, aiming to control every aspect of the industry from hatcheries to processing or, in the industry parlance, from egg-to-plate.

In the big picture, the PEI Egg Board represents "small producers" who are caught in the squeeze. The big producers would be happy to see them pushed out. Sound familiar? It looks to me as though the system designed to support local production is failing.

It's A Good Business - Fairview Gardens Tour Part 3

2010-02-12T10:44:00.000-08:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

The blog continues with our visit to Fairview Gardens Farm in Goleta, California, just a few minutes away from our home in Santa Barbara.

I visited the farm several weeks ago, so yes, these are pictures of the farm in the current season. These strawberries were threatened by heavy rain and hail last week, but careful harvesting and good luck saved the farm from losing much of this valuable crop.

For this podcast I interviewed farm manager Toby McPartland. Don't miss it if you are pondering small farming on your own. Toby explains that he plans for profit. Value added products and business links in the community are ways in which he is growing the farm as a small business.

These honey bees are at work on the farm in this very informal hive set up. The bees work in a grove of avocado trees, adjacent to a fruit orchard.

We use Fairview Gardens as a way to see farming differently. A lot of current organic methods are in practice here and this was an opportunity to learn on a farm which stays in production year round. In fact, the challenge here is that there is no significant period of down time for farmers, managers and marketing workers on this farm.

But they are imagining new possibilities. Even as North America continues to produce massive amounts of food for processing and export, kids in farm country don't get fresh local food in their school lunch meals. In many places, local food culture and traditions are disappearing under a wave of yogurt in plastic tubes and mass produced pizza. In another generation, grandmother's home made mustard pickles could be a delicacy that their children don't even recognize.

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

Before I wanted to be a Farmer...

2010-02-07T21:33:00.000-08:00

CLICK - HEAR KUHL RADIO, JULY 1981

I turned 50 in July. When I was a teenager that seemed impossibly old. When I was 5 years old I used to swipe a hair curler from my mom and use it the way an announcer uses a microphone. So it was that I followed my ambition and became a radio disc jockey when I was 20.

In 1980, I left Santa Barbara and moved to Hollywood, California. I went to the KiiS Broadcast workshop. And in the spring of '81 I used the aircheck tape I made at the workshop to land a job in radio. I was a part-time DJ. I worked overnight on Sunday and Monday mornings at 1440 KUHL AM, in Santa Maria, Ca. That job was everything to me but eventually I got fired by the program director for breaking format. I was re-hired to work full time as an FM DJ at the "album rock" station owned by the same company - 99 KXFM. I eventually became a program director for a group of stations in Santa Barbara. When AT&T took over as corporate owners, I quit radio in 1995 and went to work in my own studio/production business.

Since then, I've worked for big Hollywood stars, major studios, cable networks, important films, and national advertising campaigns. I'm proud of that. But what you don't know is that all those projects involve lots of ordinary people like me doing unglamorous work for little pay. The star talents work hard and make a fortune but people like me carry the burden of making sure our tiny fraction of a multi-million dollar project works perfectly. And at age 50 I really don't care to serve what Joni Mitchell called "The Star Maker Machinery" any more.

And I never wanted to be a studio engineer anyway. I always wanted to be a creative talent. Maybe that's why I'm so attracted to farming. Sound weird? Well, you'll just have to keep visiting this blog and see if you can understand how that works.

For now I'm sorting and packing the relics of a lifetime, preparing to leave the past behind and move to PEI. Among my relics are boxes of cassettes and reel to reel tapes of a life gone by. I've forgotten most of the details of my past, but unlike most people, I have many hours of my life backed up on tape and digital media. And recently, I put a tape on the deck and heard a few minutes of my life from July of 1981. It's a recording of a live broadcast on KUHL, just 3 weeks after my 21st birthday and just a few weeks after my first time on the air.

So before I share more about our move ahead, I invite you to hear a few minutes from the past I leave behind:
CLICK - HEAR KUHL RADIO, JULY 1981

UPDATE / PHOTO 02.08.10
That's me on the right in June of '82 - Mr. open shirt. Thank God I didn't have disco chains.

Visit to an Urban Farm - The Fairview Gardens Story Part II

2010-02-02T22:07:00.000-08:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

We are continuing our tour of Fairview Gardens Farm and the Center for Urban Agriculture just north of Santa Barbara - which is about 90 miles (about 145 km) north of Los Angeles, California.

We live on a semi-desert coastal plain below mountains that reach about 3,000 feet. In the winter, we get a dusting of snow on the mountain tops and seasonal rain in the rocky canyons. Over time, the result has been that our heavy clay topsoil is up to 20 feet deep!

So this is January in Santa Barbara. At the top you see see Broccoli plants and below are fruit trees. In the centers between rows, the farmers plant crops that create a market profit, keep the soil biologically active, conserve irrigation water and fix beneficial nutrients for the fruit crops on the trees and the row crops to come. They work to produce as much as they can from every square yard of this farm, saving soil, labor, fuel and water.

The farmers on the crew work in the greenhouse to start the next rotations of cash crops. High yields on small acreage requires lots of hand work in tight rotations. Though temperatures only dip below freezing for a few nights at a time each winter, concentrating light, water, heat and hand planting keeps crops ready for rotation in all seasons. We are studying this intensive method for our farm in PEI. We think that concentrating production, even in our shallower soil and shorter season, should allow us to get higher than conventional yields. We think we can benefit from concentrating our inputs and relying on biological soil activity, moderation of water needs, managing weed pressure and focusing labor and machines in a smaller area to give greater returns over time.

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

Visit to an Urban Farm - The Fairview Gardens Story

2010-01-27T12:21:00.000-08:00

CLICK - TO HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

Jen Emiko Higa Corey met me at the Fairview Gardens Farm Stand on Monday morning to take me on a tour of this Goleta, California farm and to answer my questions about the operation of this highly productive organic business.

This valuable land was preserved for agriculture in an urban landscape. I came to see if the techniques, marketing and production ideas that make this farm business work on so many different levels could be used in rural communities like ours in PEI.

Using a land trust to preserve farmland is something

many people might want to know more about. In many areas of North America, valuable farm land is being lost to development. A private owner agreed to put this land in a Trust managed by a non profit corporation that agrees to run the land as an organic farm. On our walk, Jen explained how the farm manages crop production in this front field and how it even values it's "view-scape" by being aware of what the public sees as they drive by. And by the way it IS January and Fairview Gardens is actively growing.

The strawberries are coming early, thanks to rain and warm weather. Although the berry crop is always welcome for the cash it brings, the concern is that a sudden cold snap could be a major setback for these "seascape" plants. Jen explained the difference between the slower organic cropping technique at Fairview and how it differs from other commercial growers in the region. (In 2007, there were 6,414 acres of strawberries harvested in our county at a value of $312,754,997). At Fairview Gardens this is a high value AND a high quality crop.

This Series will continue in the following post. Be sure to check back in the next few days for more. Better yet, become a subscriber or follower of the blog by using the links provided on the right hand side of the page. And you can share this blog with your friends too by emailing a link.

You can contact Jen Emiko Higa Corey at Fairview Gardens and visit their website for more information.

Finally, please add your questions and comments to the blog so that I get your feedback and we can share your information with those interested in this topic.

CLICK - TO HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

Visit to an Urban Farm

2010-01-25T13:30:00.000-08:00

Fairview Gardens Farm (click to enlarge)

I visited Fairview Gardens this morning. I took a tour of the Farm and got a few pictures and interviews with several people on the management team who run the farm. I have wonderful interviews, pictures and information to share about the farm and it's Community Supported Agriculture program. I'll be posting podcasts, pictures and photos in the next few days.

For our readers in SoCal it's a great chance to learn about the Center for Urban Agriculture and this valuable food and farming resource in our area.

For our friends in northern climes, especially in PEI, it's a way to pass some time during the season when your farm sleeps and look in on a working farm that operates year 'round. I learned a few things that I'm really excited to pass along to you.

So keep checking in this week, or subscribe to the blog so you don't miss anything!

Surfing at Campus Point - UCSB

2010-01-17T16:05:00.000-08:00

Surfing Campus Point on Saturday, January 16.

If you're working or learning at UCSB, you are a short walk from one of the most popular surf spots in the county. In fact, the beach is right across the street from some of the student residence halls. Susan and I took the ten minute drive from our house to Campus Point with her brother Tom and his wife,Susan, on a beautiful day when the sun was out and the surf was up. The UCSB Marine Lab is in the background.

When we arrived we scanned the water, looking for my brother, Peter and my 10 year old son, Toby. For months, Peter has been teaching Toby to surf. They started on boogie boards and Toby has gradually worked up to a regular surfboard. And for Christmas, the family chipped in on a winter wetsuit. We all went out to the beach to see how they were doing. At The Point there were several dozen surfers bobbing in the water.

Four to six foot waxes were coming in ahead of a Pacific Storm (it's raining today) and the 4 to 6 foot waves were steady all afternoon.

The scene included young guys shredding and a group of old school guys like this one with a woody - a classic hand built all wood long board! Dude! Your board is gnarly!

We spotted Toby in The Cove waiting for a set to come in.

Toby and Uncle Peter turn around and get ready to ride! Peter was a student at UCSB and has been surfing since the early 70's. Now he teaches US History to UC students and surfing to his nephew. Maybe this is why some people say that UCSB stands for UC-Surf-Board

Toby rides in on his knees. He's just about ready for

his first stand up ride!

We were there as Toby went from knee boarding to standing up to get his first ride the shore without a wipe-out. And so cool to see him learn to ride the waves with his uncle - a genuine old-school surf dude.

STREET PARKED CLASSICS - Now With Surf Racks!

A 1963 Studebaker Lark - With Owner! He said his family bought the car used in 1964 and he restored it when he was 16. Yesterday he took it to the beach and went for a kayak ride (click to enlarge).

Two classics from the same year on the same day! This 1963 Chevy Bel Air lowrider was in the parking lot while the owner was presumed out in the surf. Liked the "Praise the Lowered" sign in the window and the hand pinstriping. "Charp!" (click to enlarge)

Fears and Dreams

2010-01-13T09:10:00.000-08:00

I used to know an old cowboy who was also a Deputy Sheriff. He was big man who sometimes did law enforcement the old way - with a gunbelt and a Steston on horse back. Picture a quieter, low key version of John Wayne. He'd stop in to visit the ranch I was working on, sometimes to hunt quail or just shoot the breeze. When it was time to go he'd say, "I'm done bein' here". I was always struck by the good humor and the clarity of that statement.

After months of debate and delay Susan and I have decided that we're "done bein' here" in Santa Barbara. And in that decision, all things become clear and we're dashing away from the starting line as if the starter fired a pistol.

But last night I was visited by ghosts. A series of mental knocks and dragging chains that woke me and tormented me at 3:00 AM. What about the career success I promised myself but never achieved here? What about the business I started and built in Santa Barbara, only to watch it deflate in the current economic calamity? What about this new venture of farming? The ghosts were swirling and stirring up my fears of failure. Feelings of remorse arrived with each review of my past. The ghosts said, "Look at all the ways you have failed!" What about the time I wasted instead of building success? What makes me think I can DO this?

The intention to move has been ours for years. The physical move is now beginning. I've just discovered that I'm not quite ready yet to saddle up. I've got a lot of work to do and a long way to go before I can face the spirits of fear and doubt and confidently say to myself, "I'm done bein' here."

TODAY'S STREET PARKED CLASSIC

I stopped in for a dentist appointment and saw this nicely kept '66 Mustang in the parking lot.

The Wishbone

2010-01-09T17:44:00.000-08:00

My wish is that you are beginning the New Year as I am; full of hope and optimism even as we slog through the season of economic blizzard.

Here at our little old farm house in Santa Barbara, we enjoyed a Christmas turkey dinner with my whole family - maybe for the last time. My mother and brothers, our wives and all of the cousins were here. My nephew Robert announced that he and his wife Mika are expecting a baby. The first child of the next generation is coming this year.

The turkey was a big, beautiful free-range bird and we enjoyed sharing it at the kitchen table. It was full of natural flavor (not injected with salt and butter flavoring) and the meat had real color. The next day I trimmed it up and put the rest into the boiler. I made soup stock and cleaned the meat off the carcass. As I was processing I set aside the wishbone. Susan and I used her Christmas present to make egg noodles for the soup and we ground up some of the turkey meat for sandwich spread. We made multiple meals from that bird with very little waste. That made us feel particularly wise and virtuous. (It doesn't take much.).

On New Years day, Susan and I sat at the kitchen table and planned a major new project for the farm. We're going to grow enough organic feed to support our own flock of organic chickens. We will finally be putting one of our front fields into production after years of experimenting with plowing, cover cropping and weed control. We're ready to expand the farm into grain and poultry this year.

The wishbone. The decorated tree. The old customs and superstitions flow from ancient roots that sprout green hopes in this season. We have a New Year tradition that Susan brought from Wisconsin. We eat a bit of pickled herring on New Years Eve to ensure good fortune in the coming year. It is a fragment perhaps of some old norse tradition this wish with fish that somehow arrived in the upper mid-west and is now grafted onto our family tree.

What a year this will be.

We will be moving to Prince Edward Island. We are preparing to launch our oldest son into University. Susan is retiring. We are taking up farming for a living. We'll be welcoming the new generation. Perhaps you'll forgive us if we reach out to reassure ourselves with a few of the old and warn talismans and touch-stones of good fortune.

Pass the pickled herring. Pull the wishbone Cross your fingers and say a prayer for us.

What a year this is going to be!

(Pictures: Christmas tree in the foreground with a blood orange tree outside the window - already decorated with its own ornaments and "The Cousins".)

Pathways To Healing - Dunn Creek Podcast Interviews Joel Salatin

2009-12-14T15:27:00.000-08:00

Dunn Creek Farm Podcast SB0903

Joel Salatin is in a state of grace and he gives it all he's got for two full days of talking to a very diverse crowd. We've come to a big camp meeting to see what this farmer, author and bio-evangelist has to say.

I felt a pang or two during his presentation as he said things like, "I don't want to see any part time farmers." I'm sitting here in California while my farm sleeps in Prince Edward Island. So I feel like a bit of a fraud in a farmer costume, still putting off the last step to a full-time commitment.

Joel has energy and conviction to burn and we all felt the heat, even in the cold and drafty confines of our classroom at El Capitan Canyon Campground. The winter Pacific storm that passed overhead during the day made mother nature herself present in the conversation, nearly drowning out the man. He carried on, his voice breaking as he shouted his words over the static of rain on the canvas roof. It was a remarkable confluence of events. As I said to him later, "Twelve inches of rain a year and you got to be here for 20 percent of it."

My time was well spent for the opportunity to meet such a diverse group of people. I got re-energized and re-excited about farming. In this season, at this time, in this era, we can all use the hope and enthusiasm Joel Salatin brought to us. Will the event have an effect on me? It already has. It's time for me to order seed and planting stock and to review our farm plan for 2010. From fencing and utility infrastructure to multi-tasking livestock and buildings, it's all on the table and I'm already working on the farm .

CLICK-HEAR! LISTEN TO THE PODCAST INTERVIEW WITH JOEL SALATIN
* This podcast contains audio from post-film discussion of Fresh - The Movie. Please look at the clip and work with us to help bring fresh to Eastern PEI this July!

Special thanks and please follow the links to:
Quail Springs Permaculture Farm and Orella Ranch

Pathways to Relocalization

2009-12-02T15:00:00.000-08:00

Michael Pollan's book, "The Omnivore's Dilemma" features Joel Salatin and Polyface Farms. Joel is an example for those of us interested in sustainable agriculture, healthy land and healthful food.

The Orella Ranch and Quail Springs Permaculture Farm are hosting this program in the Carbon Economy Series called, "Pathways to Localization". I'll be attending this workshop with an eye toward our operation of Dunn Creek Farm.

What interests me most going into this is Mr. Salatin's work as a modern "grass farmer". For those who may not understand this term, it is a method of farming which uses naturally growing pasture in rotation with other crops to raise grazing animals on grass - instead of grain feeding or relying on processed food in a stall or on a feed lot. Our farming forbearers in PEI knew all about this kind of operation.

This is a comprehensive, two day training. I'll be interested in taking away practical information that will help us manage livestock and pasture rotations on our mixed farm.

You might want to read this article Joel wrote, "Everything I Want to do Is Illegal".

Sustainable Farming is Local Farming

2009-11-30T21:00:00.000-08:00

I wasn't a farmer when Earl Butts said,"Get Big or Get Out". He was President Nixon's secretary of agriculture in the early 70's and the USDA made sure that America's farmers answered the call to flood the global market with American commodities.

In 1974 I was a witness to this policy. My dad and I drove east from California. And as we drove for days from the eastern slopes of the Rockies in Colorado, through Nebraska and all the way to the eastern seaboard, we passed through the biggest corn crop America had ever produced. I wonder now how many farms went bust trying to sell 100 acres of corn that year.

Now that a generation has passed, a new generation of farmers and ordinary consumers, environmentalists and foodies are looking for ways to revive and support what was lost in the heady days of the "Green Revolution". Local food, Slow food, Organic Food, Sustainable Food, Clean Food, Safe Food. It's all in the same basket and a new revolution is under way.

When we bought Willie Dunn's farm in 2000, we had no idea what we were doing. But we had an inspiration. We would begin with an organic certification of the land. Organic pioneer Michael Abelman had told us to jump in. But when we asked him what to do and how we would do it, he said, "You'll just do it. You'll figure it out." It wasn't too comforting. But what I've learned from Michael and from my own experience is that each morning you go out on the land. You walk. You look. You feel. You taste. You touch the soil and you read the weather. You wait. And nature speaks.

After 10 years I feel we are just beginning our farm. We're just now gaining the confidence and the skill to get bigger. And we're looking for knowledge that will help us to continue to grow in the right directions. I already know that for us, "MORE CORN!" or "MORE POTATOES!" is not the answer.

As I've shared with you before, my goal in California this winter is to harvest as much "input" as I can to fertilize our dreams at the farm. I've been searching out technology and business ideas and I've reviewed our farm plans and improved our prospects. And I've found a great resource to help water our dreams.

In December, I'll be staying on the Orella Ranch which has been hosting a series of educational programs on sustainability. I'll be attending a workshop there with farmer and author Joel Salatin. His workshop is entitled, "Pathways to Localization".

I'm lucky to be in Santa Barbara now, to attend this workshop. I've been lucky to have mentors like Michael Abelman and the inspiration of his friend, Alice Waters. I feel I'm in the right place at the right time. And I can't wait to share more with you.

California Dreamin'

2009-11-18T21:15:00.001-08:00

CLICK - HEAR - Today's Podcast

November in California is my favorite time of year. The days are clear and warm, the nights are cool and the tourist traffic is at a minimum.

I was invited by Westlake Audio to come down to Hollywood for a presentation on the newest Source Connect software from Source Elements. It took advantage of the opportunity to drive down the coast and catch up on some of the latest in audio technology.

Along the way, I stopped in at Emma Wood State Beach to check the surf.

A small day at Emma Wood - On the Way to Hollywood.
(click to enlarge)

The Rincon, Ventura County, CA., from Emma Wood.
(click to enlarge)

Westlake Audio. Jeri Palumbo, Rebekah Wilson, John Quimby, Ryan Kahler
(click to enlarge)

I got a personal tour of the software from Rebekah Wilson. The New Zealand native is the architect of the software that allows studios to connect and record or send high quality audio over the internet. Fascinating stuff and part of the learning I intend to bring back to PEI this spring.

Working on the farm isn't just about growing organic vegetables. It's about growing a business and connecting to the outside world as a professional media producer.

Farmville Goes to Town

2009-11-14T21:04:00.000-08:00

I heard on the radio today that some 65 million people are regular players of the game "Farmville" on Facebook. It's a simulation game that allows people to pretend to live on a farm.

It seems there are a lot of people, tens of millions of them, who yearn for a chance to escape their complex daily lives for a few minutes or hours a week on their virtual farm.

People who live in the country know that the hours are long, money is always in short supply, that neighbors are nosy and that the work is hard and sometimes dangerous. It's not nearly as easy or simple as the "farm dream" that propels others into a virtual farm. We too find that the distance between our farm in Prince Edward Island, Canada and our suburban home in Santa Barbara, California is greater than mere miles as the jet flies.

Part of my effort on the Dunn Creek Farm blog this winter is to share with our country friends what it's like to live in the city. Just as there are those who yearn for the life they imagine they'd find on a farm, there are those who wonder what it must be like to live in a coastal resort city.
Well here are a few notes just for you.

I heard an interview with a woman on CBC Radio 1 last year. She was talking about raising kids in Urban North America and said, "We keep our children under virtual house arrest." She was talking about the piles of homework schools send home and the supervised play and activity and the restrictions we place on our kids because of fear. I immediately added to that the hours logged onto video games and TV. Her words have stayed with me.

In the country, we send our kids to the beach, or to the neighbors to play and they walk or bike most places around us. We know they can find their way home. We know that everyone knows who they are and where they belong. And they know that we'll hear about any mischief they get into.

But here, we city people tend to pack our kids into a van and shuttle them off to school and afternoon play dates. We create and schedule organized activities. We have eliminated unsupervised play time and yes, the rest of the time our children are under virtual house arrest. There is very little real freedom for kids here. That thought has troubled me lately. If we want to raise kids to appreciate and value living in a free society, this hardly seems to be the way to go about it. Especially since what we model for them says, "be afraid of your surroundings and don't trust others." It's an extension of the same thinking that keeps us disconnected from nature and willingly ignorant about what sustains and gives us life. It also explains why a lot of kids are overweight and listless. And so today I went on a mission.

My nine year old has a friend who lives about three miles away. When the boys want to get together it's an effort to arrange parent pickup and dropoff, scheduled arrival and departure and of course we must work around all those scheduled activities.

Today I said to him, "We could ride our bikes over to your friends house. And then he could ride back here with us. I can show you boys the shortcuts where cars don't go and we can stay off of the busy streets." He paused and seemed doubtful. So I persisted. "It'll only take us about 15 minutes to get there." He brightened up, put on his shoes and got out his bike.

The ride is almost the same as the route I took to and from high school every day for four years. We had no school bus then and almost nobody thought they had to give their kid a ride to school every day. We all biked or walked in our year 'round climate.

It was beautiful and sunny today as we left our house and crossed past my boy's school heading up through the rolling hills of our San Roque neighborhood. The route took us past my old home street and we stopped near the top of the hill to rest. Then, like Radar on MASH, my ears picked up a familiar sound from 40 years ago. An ice cream truck!

My son didn't hear it. When he did, I had to explain to him what it was. "It's ice cream!" Again my boy looked dubious. The beat-up old truck came chugging toward us with it's merry music blaring and I waved it to a stop. We got a couple of Life Saver flavored popcicles. And there, on the same street where I once ran for the ice cream truck with a shiny dime in my hand, I caught up with it and felt like a 9 year old again. Until that moment my 9 year old never even knew such a thing ever existed.

We met our friend and took off again for home. After a short stop to visit grandma (and the house I grew up in) I told the boys they'd have to navigate on the way back. "Which Way?" they'd say. "Pick a direction" I'd answer. And off we'd go. With a little help they managed to find the way.

As we flew down the streets they learned to dodge cars, play chase and had a running pretend shootout that lasted for a mile. It was fast and it was spontaneous. It was full of laughs and a taste of adventure. It was freedom.

Today's Streetparked Classic

1939 Ford Truck (click to enlarge)

Cougar in a Devil Suit

2009-11-02T16:09:00.000-08:00

Halloween in Santa Barbara.

Friday evening the boys were on the back deck carving pumpkins with friends.
You'll note that they are in t-shirts and shorts...it's been very warm here.

Pumpkin Carvers

What could be scarier than a group of teenagers?
Perhaps an overweight mom dressed as a slut.

My buddy Ray and I walked our two 9-year-olds through the hottest trick or treat neighborhood in our area. Lots of great displays of Halloween spirit and hundreds of kids with parents roaming sidewalks and streets. All in all it was very neighborly and family friendly. But after a while we began to count the number of cougars in devil suits. Which leads me to:

Today's Street Parked Classic

The old gal is showing her age and some poor treatment at the hands of a careless world, but this Cougar still has classic lines and a certain grace that can make a man's heart race.

1968 Mercury Cougar (Click to Enlarge)

Another Ground Beef Alert In New England States

2009-11-02T08:11:00.001-08:00

Reuters reports on a new ground beef borne e-coli outbreak in New England:

http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE5A132020091102

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A New Hampshire resident died and two others were hospitalized after consuming ground beef that may have been tainted by bacteria that can cause diarrhea, dehydration and kidney failure.

Tomatillos on PEI? Yes You CAN

2009-10-30T15:55:00.000-07:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAYS PODCAST!

Please enjoy this recipe for authentic Mexican Salsa Verde!

Jane Dunphy prompted this post because she grew tomatillos in her PEI garden this year and has been searching for information about how to use them. Turns out you can freeze them or can them and of course, they make wonderful salsa verde, one of the most popular condiments in Mexico. But all of the ingredients can be grown and used in PEI!

You can simmer your salsa verde with pork to make chile verde or you can bake chicken, shred the meat, cover it with salsa verde and serve with beans and rice. Salsa verde It's spicy but not too hot and the tangy fresh flavor is a delicious change of pace.

Please enjoy!

Ingredients

3 pounds tomatillos, husked, rinsed
2 large jalapeño chiles, stems removed
5 small garlic cloves, peeled

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 bunches fresh cilantro, thick bottom stems trimmed
1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Preparation

Mix first 2 ingredients in large saucepan. Cover with water. Bring to boil. Reduce heat; simmer until soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat; let stand 15 minutes. Drain.

Coarsely chop tomatillo mixture, garlic, and cumin in processor using on/off turns. Add next ingredients; blend until herbs are chopped and salsa is chunky.

Heat oil in heavy large saucepan over medium heat. Add salsa and simmer until slightly thickened and reduced to 4 cups, about 10 minutes. Stir in salt.

NOTES: This is a recipe from the web that most closely resembles Monica's description and technique with measures to help you.

You can add other herbs (mint, etc) and lime juice is a common addition too.

A Visit to Colonial California...and a Classic Car.

2009-10-25T15:20:00.000-07:00

This year, Fourth Grader is engaged in a rite of passage. He is studying the Spanish Colonial / Mission Period in California. Part of this experience inevitably includes a craft project in which students create representations of the missions. I remember that mine was a replica of Mission Santa Barbara carved out of a large bar of Ivory Soap.

We live in what was a Spanish colonial city. El Presidio de Santa Barbara was built in 1782. And Toby has contracted to build a replica of the Presidio Chapel out of sugar cubes for his 4th grade project. To facilitate the design and plan, I twisted Toby's arm and we drove downtown to look at the chapel and begin our flurry of sugar enhanced historical learning.

Chapel - El Presidio de Santa Barbara

Presidio Chapel Bells

I hope this photo story interests our friends in PEI who might enjoy a window seat in the unfamiliar SoCal landscape. And those of us who live here don't often find time to stop and wander the grounds of this historic state park.

Walking the Presidio on a gorgeous Sunday morning, I found myself thinking of the Spaniards who found themselves essentially marooned here, in a far flung frontier outpost.

Presidio Chapel Altar (click to enlarge)

The original chapel, like most of the old Presidio had fallen into decay, was damaged by repeated earthquakes and the arrival of new settlers after the Califonrnia gold rush brought Statehood.
Nothing was left but the stone foundations. The chapel we visited today has been painstakingly rebuilt overt the past 30 years.

Canedo Adobe (click to enlarge)

This adobe structure was added to the original Presidio walls and became a residence granted to a Presidio soldier. These original buildings serve as the inspiration for tacky apartment buildings and restaurants all over the southwest.

Toby and I will be working on our chapel project this week. We'll post our results and let you compare.

Santa Barbara is full of beautiful trees and interesting plants from all over the world. But there weren't many trees on this coastal plain in the 1700's. Native plants were adapted to long dry seasons...like the cactus flowering below...

Cactus Blooms

Street Parked Classic (click to enlarge)

When I drove the Big Yellow Truck around PEI I talked to lots of guys who asked me about the drive up to the island. Wistfully, they'd say, "You must have a lot of classic old cars out there..." So I thought I'd start posting a series of photos called, "Street Parked Classics".
I spotted this 1970 Camaro about 4 blocks from home.

And We're Back...

2009-10-22T13:11:00.000-07:00

Happy to say that the website is repaired and the links to the podcasts are working.
Please do visit and enjoy the pictures and the weekly podcasts from PEI.

I'm continuing to use our urban exposure in Santa Barbara to harvest more knowledge and technique in communications technology.

In the next two weeks I'll be "planting" seeds for new business based in part on what I learned from producing content for this blog. One project, based on our summer podcasts, has already become a commercial radio campaign.

But most interesting will be the opportunity to take you on podcast tours of our edible landscape at home and wanderings in Santa Barbara and Southern California.

So, now I have to get to work on all that!

AAAARRRGH!

2009-10-16T08:09:00.000-07:00

Just a quick note to let you know that there is a problem with the website that hosts elements of this blog. It appears that my home page may have been hacked.

That means you could see a warning from your browser if you attempt to open one of our links.

I'm working on the problem and will let you know when it's clear.

Thanks -

JQ

Getting Up To Speed

2009-10-10T19:20:00.000-07:00

Well, I promised you I'd deliver a harvest from this urban environment. But the crops are different here.

I published the link to the New York Times about hamburger to help you make smarter food choices and on Thursday, I went to a communications technology seminar at the University of California at Santa Barbara.

Kevin Barron invited members of the local, independent media community to come to campus for a seminar at the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics. Three representatives from Apple Computers put on a demonstration of their new Podcast Producer 2 software on the Snow Leopard server system. It was very impressive. And being a podcaster, I captured audio I hope to share with you in the next few days on this blog.

There are great things happening in communications technology that are already changing the ways that we live and work. The fact is that I can now be a remote farmer on Prince Edward Island and still be connected to multiple markets by internet technology. And that is only one aspect.

Another aspect is the grass roots nature of this technology. As the means to communicate spreads downward and puts the means to communicate into the hands of ordinary people,
the value of communication itself changes from the broadcast model of hitting millions of people everywhere, to local producers communicating directly with local people and addressing the needs of consumers where they live.

Apple's technology development is wonderful. But my take away this week is that the techs don't really understand how this technology will actually be used in local commercial markets.

My friend and independent producer, Patrick Gregston and I, intend to contact Apple and offer some insight into the changes this technology represents beyond their current design.

The brilliant Apple talent in Cupertino, Ca, have developed a wonderful new tool that will allow multiple sources of audio and video to be captured and streamed by a single user on a laptop to an online server. But until they learn that this tool represents the reality of live, local, streaming TV quality production on the internet - they're missing the real point and the potential of this program.

Stay Tuned!

Going to the Superstore? Don't Buy the Burger!

2009-10-06T17:56:00.000-07:00

I can tell you from experience that it's hard to have conversations about local organic food. Right now organic producers spend a lot of time trying to declare what it is - by defining what it's not.
Here's an article that should help you understand how important that distinction can be.

There are a lot of people in conventional agriculture who are no longer amused by the small organic farmer, even though we've been easy to dismiss with a roll of the eyes and a laugh for the past 30 years.

That's changing. The consumer herd is getting nervous. They're starting find reasons to wonder where their next meal is coming from and the answer is - sometimes scary.

This week, the New York Times published a piece of investigative journalism the likes of which we haven't seen in a hundred years. It features the story of a 22 year old American woman who is now paralyzed from the waist down because she ate processed hamburgers her mother bought at the grocery store. The meat was tainted with E. Coli. And just like thousands of other people this year, she was poisoned by a food supply she trusted to be safe.

From the article:

Stephanie Smith, a children’s dance instructor, thought she had a stomach virus. The aches and cramping were tolerable that first day, and she finished her classes.
Then her diarrhea turned bloody. Her kidneys shut down. Seizures knocked her unconscious. The convulsions grew so relentless that doctors had to put her in a coma for nine weeks. When she emerged, she could no longer walk. The affliction had ravaged her nervous system and left her paralyzed.

Sad enough, but was this an isolated case? You might think so. But read on.

The frozen hamburgers that the Smiths ate, which were made by the food giant Cargill, were labeled “American Chef’s Selection Angus Beef Patties.” Yet confidential grinding logs and other Cargill records show that the hamburgers were made from a mix of slaughterhouse trimmings and a mash-like product derived from scraps that were ground together at a plant in Wisconsin. The ingredients came from slaughterhouses in Nebraska, Texas and Uruguay, and from a South Dakota company that processes fatty trimmings and treats them with ammonia to kill bacteria.

It seems that even with the huge numbers of food poisonings and product recalls, the standards for commercial processing of beef allow the problem to go on and go undetected. Because of this, a 22 year old dance teacher is no longer dancing. She's no longer walking either.

And in case you're wondering:

Food scientists have registered increasing concern about the virulence of this pathogen since only a few stray cells can make someone sick, and they warn that federal guidance to cook meat thoroughly and to wash up afterward is not sufficient. A test by The Times found that the safe handling instructions are not enough to prevent the bacteria from spreading in the kitchen.

(To read the rest of the story, please link to: E.Coli Path Shows Flaw in Beef Inspection by Michael Moss, published in the New York Times, October 3, 2009.)

Don't look for me to suggest that you stop eating beef. As a former cow hand on a family owned California ranch, I can tell you something. We used to know who grew, slaughtered, inspected and butchered the beef we ate. An unscrupulous beef buyer in this area was once found hanging upside down from a ranch gate - howling for help after local cowboys strung him up for trying to rip off local producers.

That's what happens when the public gets fed up. I suggest we all need to be fedup with this kind of food processing. It not only poisons people, it destroys the high standards and honest hard work of farmers and ranchers, local processors and butchers.

Protect your food supply. Buy from local farmers and ranchers who still have a personal stake in the food you eat. Buy from local processors and butchers who personally inspect the meat they cut and sell.

When you see packages of insanely cheap, pre-formed and pre-seasoned beef patties in the grocery freezer - walk on by - while you still can.

Harvest From An Urban Farm

2009-10-03T11:31:00.000-07:00

Greetings From Santa Barbara

Well we've made the jump back to Santa Barbara. Here's our home away from PEI.
Might be hard to tell, but this is an original farmhouse from the 1910's, before the area
was subdivided into housing back in the 1930's.

We live in the county, right across the street from the city and a short walk from the Junior High where I went to school.

Susan has been working as a volunteer accountant with Fairview Gardens Farm in Goleta. In exchange we get a small share from their CSA Program (Community Supported Agriculture). CSA programs are great and we're looking at the potential of a CSA for Dunn Creek Farm.

This week our share from the 12 acre farm at Fairview included pomegranates, yellow summer squash, heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, strawberries and anaheim chiles (which will be turned into chile rellenos tonight!)

Our farm shares on PEI would be quite different to suit local climate and tastes. But they could include fresh herbs and garlic, staples like sweet corn and beans and even ground whole wheat flour! A CSA could support fresh, local, minimally processed, sustainable and organic products for people in eastern PEI.

These sunflowers looked so bright against the barn. If you look at the top picture, you'll see that our environment in California is often muted tans and brown. The fall light in PEI makes primary colors POP.

A busy honey bee pollinates a sunflower. We had an active bee yard. Thanks to Island Gold Honey (and John Burhoe) for keeping bees in our certified fields. At a time when honeybees are under stress, we're glad to provide safe organic pasture to our local bee keeper. And we more than enjoy the natural honey from our variety of clovers, buckwheat and wild flowers.

We also benefit from working bees in our inter-cropped rows of vegetables. They increase the yields from our plants.

Never trust a sheepdog with a kitten.

We're in transition back to our urban life and I'm using this opportunity to harvest new knowledge to take back to the farm. We've made a farm plan for 2010 and I'm working on learning some new media skills to continue our efforts at communicating with our friends, supporters and customers. And I'm hoping to learn more about the operation of the CSA at one of California's oldest organic farms.

Our friends Laura-Jane and Cameron at Whimfield are working on the Growing Circle project and we intend to support that effort and use it to reach out to the community of on-line users on PEI.

Our summer series of audio podcasts was well received and provided me with a lot of learning and inspiration. I'm collecting new material to continue our story from the West Coast.

And tonight I'm going to make an organic Mexican dinner!

Saying Farewell to Summer

2009-09-11T18:52:00.001-07:00

CLICK - HEAR - New Farm Podcast

In the north, the seasons give way without doubt. This time of year you see the light change and the days shorten. So even as we enjoy fair fall weather it's time to make way for winter and prepare for the next spring.

Spreading manure/compost and seaweed for the next crop.

Green Manure is compost that grows in the field. This is oats and vetch.

That's a good yield of organic potatoes!

Blog Clog - Getting Caught Up!

2009-09-10T06:46:00.000-07:00

CLICK - HEAR for Farm Podcast 17

I've been late getting things posted this week as the pace of farm work has picked up and the weather has been fair and warm. I'm outside most days and falling into bed at night.

Some more highlights from the Dundas Plowing Match -

Draft Horse Pull

The Lovely Heather MacDonald - Queen of the Furrows 2009! Be sure to listen to the podcast for an EXCLUSIVE interview with Heather.

A Family Pack of produce, picked, cleaned and packed was delivered to the winning bidder of our silent auction item. We donated a gift certificate to support local 4-H kids.

Grubby Farmer John gets a kiss.

Hurricanes and Harvesting

2009-08-28T15:04:00.000-07:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

Hurricane Bill blasts the sunflowers in the front field

Sunflowers do impression of Marcel Marceau - mime walking in the wind

Harvest packed for the farmers market in Dundas. Beans, 2 types of cucumbers, scarlet nantes carrots, red and white new potatoes, zucchini and yellow summer squash. Also beets and lettuce (not shown).

The plowing match includes competition with horse drawn plows. Each contestant is given a measured plot to plow. They are judged on how straight and even they make the sods and how
square they make their lines. Difficult to do with a tractor, but even more challenging with horses pulling a single sod plow over unfamiliar ground. Skills include controlling the depth of the sod cut and the angle of the plow, plus driving a team.

Old school rigs like this riding plow and hand plows were seen during today's competition.
Antique tractors and other horse drawn equipment are also seen working in the field.
Now that's plowing!

We did OK at the farm table but attendance seemed down from last year and demand for produce was off. A lot of people planted big gardens this year. Everybody feels that cash is a bit scarce this summer. It's a a sure sign of the times.

Hurricane Bill is Knockin' at the Door

2009-08-21T11:15:00.000-07:00

CLICK - HEAR TODAY'S PODCAST

The shore of Murray Harbour.

Hop flowers are nearly ready. They smell like really fresh beer!