Payback

May was full of disappointment at the Genuine Faux Farm while the farmers fought Covid and found themselves only able to do basic farm and self-care chores and job-related duties.  June was a transitional month where we borrowed some motivation from our farming friends.   Now that we've reached July, we find ourselves with enough energy in the tank that we can actually pay back some of the kindnesses we received when we were down.

Our "gang" of farmers got together at Scattergood Friends School Farm on Sunday and did what we do when our farms get together during the growing season.  We provide our combined expertise at some much needed tasks and then we converse over a meal.  It's good for those who travel to get off of their respective farms for a bit.  It's good for the farm that receives the help.  And, it's good for the souls of all who participate.

We started by helping transplant sweet corn for a late succession.  One of Mark's perennial challenges at Scattergood is to try to grow crops that mature during the school year when there are more people to feed.  Traditional peak for sweet corn in Iowa starts in late July and ends in late August.  So, he has to get creative if he wants to extend the season of certain vegetables so the students and staff can enjoy a wider range of produce.

The Scattergood Friends School Farm is on rolling land, and they do a good job of rotating the growing areas with animals, cover crops and perennial cover.   It's a beautiful place to walk and it is always pleasant to visit.  I appreciate the hard work that goes into making this a worthwhile place in the world.

In addition to planting sweet corn, we weeded the onion patch.  To give you an idea of scale, I would guess that we had rows that were about 300-400 feet long and there were about ten or twelve rows there, if you included the leeks.  I grabbed a wheel hoe and got my steps in for the day while the rest attacked the in-row weeding.

Once that was done, there was a quick foray to plant some late succession summer squash and zucchini.

It felt good to help someone else get something done.  Sometimes payback is a good thing.

Popcorn and Peer Mentorship

There is a bag of Blue Gate popcorn sitting in our kitchen.  I was thinking that maybe I should put it away, but I decided not to because it reminded me of some people who have been "game changers" for us and our farm for some time now.  It made me feel good to know that they care enough about our well-being to listen when we need someone to hear, be there when we need someone to be present, and provide skilled hands when our own are not sufficient to the task.

And the beauty of this arrangement is that we are always willing to do the same for them.

BGF, Scattergood & GFF

The Genuine Faux Farm (our farm) has participated in this group since the beginning, along with Blue Gate Farm and Scattergood Friends School Farm.  Our good friends at the former Grinnell Heritage Farm have since moved to Virginia to manage a farm there, but they are still very much an important part of our group.  And our friend that once ran Wabi Sabi Farm has also moved to another job, but is always welcome too!

Prior to formalizing this group, we periodically ran into each other at Practical Farmers of Iowa conferences or events.  During one of those conferences some of us discussed how isolated we felt most of the year - especially during those moments when our farms required so much of us.  A proposal was made that the entire group would visit each farm once during the growing season (one per month).  We would provide skilled hands for two to three hours and then we would all share a meal.

 

It ended up being the best farming decision we made for the Genuine Faux Farm.

GHF now in VA

 

This past Sunday, our group of friends came to the Genuine Faux Farm to help us try to get a foothold on our 2023 growing season.  Some of our group were there in spirit, but distances were too great to attend physically.  Life changes, but friendships endure.

In any event, the popcorn still sits out where we can see it because it reminds us that our friends were just here.  And that has value, as does the work they did during their brief, but appreciated visit.

While we are still far behind where we wanted to be at this time in our planting, we now  see hope that we can make progress.  We were both unsure that anything could get better at this point, but now we think we might be able to make some things happen.  We needed our friends to ground us a bit and give us a boost.

And they did.

 

A few years ago, I read that some folks call this a "peer mentorship" model.  We entered into the relationship with different strengths and weaknesses, but we all had some commonality in what we were trying to accomplish.  It's been a joy to watch ideas move from one farm to the next, getting manipulated to fit a slightly different operation.  Sometimes the idea takes root and becomes a mainstay.  Other times, it keeps getting altered as situations change.  But it is still evidence of respect and a shared desire to improve.

 

Whether you want to call this peer mentorship or not, it works for us and these farms.  We hope that you, too, can find your trusted peers.

 

Have a good remainder of your day and a fine week to come!

Nota Conference - Seriously

The Nota Conference is on the horizon and the participating farms are gearing up for this important event.  Experts from these farms are feverishly preparing for highly detailed and precise discussions related to technique and practices that will be used in the coming year to make our farms more efficient and profitable.

Things like:

The relative launch angle needed to get a bad watermelon over the fence and into the goat pasture.

Or...

A demonstration of how termites cause problems for wood structures.

There will be serious discussion and debate over the relative merits of various approaches each farm favors.

I will wear chacos on December 3rd and there is NOTHING you can do about it!

And some of these events may be participatory in nature.

Now, when the music starts... you're the "Sharks" and we're the "Jets."

We are aware of the need for physical exercise and facilities are provided for those who desire a work-out.

Nine thousand, six hundred and thirty-seven.....

Participation is voluntary, there are no mandatory drills.

That drill is completely voluntary - so there!

Children are welcome and age appropriate activities are provided.

The saw is plugged in, right?

Accommodations are cozy.

And safe from coyotes.

There will be good food.

We'll even sit down to eat it.  But, probably not outside.

Nota Conference 2017.  Serious farmers being serious.

Unless they aren't.

This post brought to you by the Gang of Four + Farms.

High Tunnels R Us? (Gang of Four)

Every time I talk about the high tunnels on our farm with someone who is not a grower, I have this little voice in my head saying, "Who named these things 'high tunnels' anyway?  Everyone is thinking it's a hole in the ground and they just can't quite fathom why I would be so happy to be growing produce in one of them."

In any event, it seems as if high tunnel repair and construction have been a thing this Fall with us.  First, we received all kinds of wonderful help to put new plastic on our older building.  Among those helping were some of our Gang of Four friends along with CSA members, Wartburg College students and others interested in our farm.

On September 25, we rolled on down to Blue Gate Farm to help them with their new high tunnel building.  The short story - they had another one, but the wind huffed and it puffed and it blew it down.

the vertical poles were already in place when we arrived

There are always parts to jobs like this where just having enough willing people is what is needed for some success.  The ribs of the building come in three parts that needed to be put together.  Once they were together, we could move them into position so they were lined up with corresponding verticals.

They be strong people!  Nice work Jennie and Jill.

Like many things, it took a bit for us to figure it all out.  But, once we did, things started moving fairly quickly.  Most of us have been involved in building/repairing this sort of thing before, so we aren't clueless.  On the other hand, we don't put these things up EVERY day, so there is always a little bit of a "re-learning/re-discovery" curve that needs to be climbed.

Oh, maybe they aren't so heavy - Rob's helping to carry one.

We put up four ribs first just to get the process down.  After that, we just got the ribs constructed and moved them all into place. 

Put the tall guy on the ladder.  Good idea.

Sometimes, it the rib didn't want to settle into the vertical.  As a result, Tammy was able to get an interesting series of pictures.

Right side is in, now for the left.

Jill is amazed.  Rob's feet are actually OFF the ground.

Mark says, "I bet I can get my feet further off of the ground!"

Hey!  Bending your knees is CHEATING!  No fair!

After struggling a bit with the third rib, things got progressively easier as we figured out tricks to make things go smoother.  If you look closely at the picture above, you can see that Jill is holding a three-pound hammer.  It can be a pretty good persuader.  That, and Rob learned how to throw his weight around with a bit more authority?  Whatever, it worked out pretty well.

Look Jill, I don't think bent knees should count against me.  I clearly got further off the ground.

Hey Sean, did you see Mark?  He cheated to show Rob he could get his feet further off the ground.

Apparently, Sean did not care too much about that drama.

Once the ribs were in place, we needed to start attaching purlins and bracing for the ribs.  Happily, GFF had some scaffolding that they could bring down, which helped at least a little bit as we started work on that. 

The hardest part with all of this is the distance we all have to travel in order to do these projects.  We made excellent headway, but we all wish we could have gotten further on the project.  Nonetheless, we also know from experience that every little bit of help gets you closer to your goal.

The Gang of Four Strikes! (Again!)

Every year, the Gang of Four arranges to spend a day at each farm (Blue Gate Farm, Grinnell Heritage Farm, Scattergood Friends School Farm and Genuine Faux Farm).  Last weekend, we spent some time at Scattergood and we actually managed to take some pictures!  We thought everyone might enjoy seeing some of what we are up to during these gatherings.

Apparently, we make the Dunham children work!

Typically, we try to lend a hand and get a project or two done for the host farm.  Often, weeding is on the agenda.  But, we've done everything from transplanting sweet potatoes to tearing down a building.  Never a dull moment.  This time around, we had more than one project going.

We got to dig a hole - YAY!

Scattergood does some work with vermiculture (using red wiggler worms to create quality compost).  The issue is that they need a place for the worms to overwinter.  Our job was to dig a hole a bit deeper and square it off.

Then, we wrapped up the hole so we could present it to Mark as a gift.

Part of the issue is that the worms could travel through the soil and leave captivity.  Hence the reason for some of what you see here.

Has Andy read any Poe recently?

A second project was building raised beds against the side of the high tunnel.  It's an effort to make an area of the building that is largely unusable into a useful addition.

they must be discussing plans...

There were a few issues with the hardware, but these farmers are tough.  No problem too difficult.  No problem beneath them.  And, every problem can become a bigger problem if enough of us work on it at the same time!

Are you sure that's square?

Hey! You're compacting the soil!

Mark says it's A - OK!  Compact away!

There was some drama during this weekend's get together.  Scattergood has a number of "Shelobs" (our name for the neat yellow & black garden spiders).  So, you had to watch for them.  They are not going to hurt a human, but it can be creepy if you back into a web.

Hey.  Um... Sean... There's a spider on your... uh...

Oh, okay.  Perspective thing. 

Some of us also helped to move some sheep to a different pasture and we ALL helped eat food after the work was done.  The hardest part of the day, as always, was leaving to return to our respective farms.

Next stop?  Genuine Faux Farm in September.  Can't wait!

Stream of Consciousness

Any day that starts with one of us saying "It's going to be a weird day" is a day that deserves a blog post that simply follows with whatever I am thinking about at the moment.  The first thing I was thinking was that I need to get a blog post out here so that everyone doesn't forget about us.

On the way in to school today, something one of us said referred to a 'knock off' of something.  But, for some reason, my brain decided to change it to a "mock off."  Then, we were off to the races.

A new musical genre could be "Mock and Roll" or maybe it is a new party game?  The party game version probably requires one person to mock and the other person just rolls with it.  But, the music version made me think of the Tony Orlando and Dawn song.  You know what I'm talking about?  "Mock Three Times on the ceiling....."  We also seem to remember a song lyric about mocking on the window pane, but that would be a different thing altogether.  To mock on a ceiling requires some talent.  Mocking on a window pane seems a bit more doable.  If you lay on the mockery too thick, I suppose you could call it an Amber Mock.  If you don't get it, that's fine.  I told you this was going to be a bit strange.

That's a really pretty romanesco.

Hey!  We had some broccoli, cauliflower and broccoli for a recent meal from some of the veg we froze from this season.  It was good.  Stream of consciousness...  I warned you!

I like to remind myself once in a while of two things.  First, that I have a lot to learn.  And, second, that many things I think are easy or self-evident were not always easy or self-evident to me.  The first thing motivates me to keep learning and to not be too secure in what I think I know.  The second thing motivates me to be patient and to do my best to facilitate learning as best I can.  And now you know one reason we keep this blog going.

November had moments

I have been having some trouble motivating myself to apply myself to farm work in January.  I am not referring so much to active work as much as I am talking about field planning, seed orders and all of that other stuff.  Part of it is the normal process of needing to be lower key for at least one month of the year.  The other part has its roots back in November.  If you'll recall, we had some unseasonably bitter cold weather.  As a result, we were forced to make a number of adjustments on the farm in a very short period of time.  The example above shows where we had to put alot of our late harvest to keep it from freezing.  Numerous root crops are in the trays waiting to be cleaned, etc etc.  And, this only shows a part of what we had to do.  Then we had to move it all again as this building started freezing too.  Ah. Fun times!

Since we're on a farm related topic, one thing that is always on my mind this time of year is getting people to sign up for the CSA farm share program.  It would be wonderful if we simply filled up with no effort each year.  But, the reality is that it takes effort every year to get there.  So, we're realizing it is time to start making that effort.  If you haven't signed up yet, now is the time to say something.  We're working on the web page and sign up form today.  Help us out and get us filled up fast so we can focus on the growing rather than the marketing.

Looking forward to the Nota Conference

 The "Nota" Conference is just over a week away.  We're looking forward to spending some time with some quality people and trying to get motivated for the next growing season.

Hindenburg.. .Hindenburg.... where have I heard that name before?

January is a time where I get to spend time on my hobby (postal history) and I've enjoyed spending some evenings doing a little research on some items I have in my collection.  The item above is some mail that was flown on the airship Hindenburg in 1936.  Yes, this is the same Hindenburg that went down in flames in 1937.  To send some mail to Europe from the US via an airship, you needed 40 cents in postage.  It may seem like a lot, but the crossing was made in a few days.  Not bad.

Music is also a pretty big thing for me.  I do like listening to it while I work and always have.  At present, I have been enjoying music by the Classic Crime, House of Heroes, Evanescence, Apocalyptica, 2Cellos and a live set by the Choir.  Did you need to know this?  No.  But, there you are anyway.

I've had the opportunity to speak at the PFI conference and at a couple of classes at Wartburg in the last month.  I appreciate the chances to share and hopeful encourage learning and discussion.  Sometimes, I wonder if I get too preachy about some topics and other times I wonder if I don't take a position on some topics with enough conviction.  In the end, I have to conclude that if I wonder about both directions, I'm probably doing ok.

Part of January's job is to look back and see if we have moved the right direction over the past several years.  One interesting thing is to look at our old truck (Grover) and how we had to pack it for CSA distributions.  One issue was the lack of an operating back window.  Another was the height of the topper.  I do not miss having to be hunched over while trying to lift 60 pound tubs of cucumbers onto another tub.  It's a good reminder that investments in proper tools are not a luxury, they are a necessity if you wish to continue to improve.

Have a good day everyone!

Fright Night

Halloween is on everyone's mind - or so it seems.  Apparently, one of the things people focus on is things that frighten us.

I appreciate the desire to have some fun and celebrate, but I have a harder time working from the 'scare' side.  If you want to know one thing that scares me, just look below.  One of my recurring stress dreams is being surrounded by tornadoes.  I've now seen enough footage, including some of the Parkersburg tornado, that these dreams have gotten too realistic for my own good.

Parkersburg tornado (AP story pic)

Now *that* is/was scary.  But, perhaps this is the wrong kind of scary.  Maybe I should be looking elsewhere?   So, try this:

I was told by someone that part of the roots of the tradition of carving faces into pumpkins was to create an object that scared bad spirits away.  I'm not doing fact checking on this - it doesn't really matter to me for the purposes of this post.  The last time I was involved in a pumpkin carving party, I was the guy who carved a pumpkin into the pumpkin (middle pumpkin, third row from the top).

So, if it qualifies as a 'scary' rendering of a pumpkin, will it frighten the 'Great Pumpkin' away?  It was, at least, a sincere attempt.

Only a farmer would carve a pumpkin on a pumpkin.

 So, which would be more frightening to you?  To see someone like this emerging from behind a pallet of walk-in cooler walls?

A not so sneeky pallet monster

 Or, seeing a reciprocating saw in the hands of this farmer?

If a saw in the farmer's hands isn't scary enough, nothing will scare you.

Look - Tammy made a promise that you would see actual pictures of the farmer if you all voted for us in the Dream Big/Grow Here contest.  We were only four votes short of first.  That deserves at least these pictures.
 
 Not too long after we had an aerial sprayer hit the West half of our farm, I received this picture of Mo Farah running away from a crop duster.  It was some much needed levity at the time.  But, I will say that chemicals and their pervasive use are a pretty scary thing.  In fact, this past Spring, when things were feeling overwhelming, I actually had a stress dream that featured tornadoes that spawned a crop duster.  It's enough to make me think I had a boggart in the dream.  This picture provides me with a humorous image - maybe I'll use it in my next stress dream. (ed. note: Harry Potter reference, sorry)

Ridikkulus!

And, last year at about this time, another CSA member sent us this picture.  It's another one of those images that has floated around the internet so much that it may be impossible to find the original source.  I don't get into the 'zombie' thing that so many other people do - and that's fine.  But, even if you don't get into it, you still have admit there is plenty of humor here.

Most farmers on tractors that old would be looking over their shoulder.

With all of the hype about zombies, it was a bit surprising to see how quickly a post by us of this particular picture on Facebook went completely batty.  The sad thing about this?  We have never had any post of picture do as well as this one did for number of people who viewed or 'liked' one of our posts.

But, we've decided that a clever grower of local foods that drives old tractors would grow cauliflower and throw it to the zombies.

Food choice of vegetarian zombies

 Have a safe Halloween.