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A week of mixed snow and rain brought the pleasant fall weather to a quick end. Although the weather prediction for the weekend is promising - rain but mild.
I have just finishing reading a book that I highly suggest that anyone who is interested in small scale farming read. If you are planning to develop your own food supply whether for market and/or personal consumption, this book will provide inspiration, motivation and information. Barbara Berst Adams' Micro Eco-Farming is an important read. Adams words are informative and inspirational. The reader hears the experiences of those who have started their own micro-farming enterprises. The farmers are as diverse as the crops they raise. I will highlight a few passages so you can get a glimpse of what this treasure has to offer. "The differences among individual micro eco-farms are many, yet that is their strength." P.31 Diversity is essential and goes far beyond the birds, bees and butterflies. Gardeners build soil and so do farmers. They work with the millions of micro-organisms that live in and create fertile soil. The soil that feeds your crops has many helpers and so does the grower. Gardening and farming are cooperative efforts as Berst shows. Micro eco-farmers don't seem to get stuck with any one method and are continually integrating new innovations into their personal system..." p.91 Once again we see how micro eco-farmers are modelling diversity. This is a good strategy that we can learn from observing Nature. Let the landscape be the textbook. Spend time outdoors and pay attention. The epilogue "Growing Children's Souls: Families and Children on the Farm" provides parents with inspirational ideas, which can assist them in allowing Nature to help them teach their children. This does not require acreage; a community garden plot will be perfect. Perhaps you have friends or family who are interested in starting a growing cooperative, either formally or on a less formal level. It is up to the people involved to determine how they will relate. Either way you could create common ground where all can prosper. When we work together we have skills and abilities that reaches far beyond our numbers. Read Bersts' book. Form a reading and discussion group to talk about what you are reading. If you can actually find a time to get together under the same roof, use email or a messenger service. Borrow Micro Eco-farming from the library or ask for an inter-library where possible. Go To Page: 1 2 |
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