Plasticities

"Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way."
--Edward de Bono

Sometimes we find solutions to our problems in unexpected places. My love for growing food has evolved alongside my disdain for plastic. Plastic, along with one of its primary components, oil, are at the forefront when considering our impact on the environment on which we depend. The list of problems that are exasperated, if not caused, by our dependence on oil is long. Its not exactly rocket science.

But is that really the fault of oil or plastic? I think not. The problem is with management. When cars became affordable, everyone got one, regardless of actual need. As long as gas prices stay below $3.00, there is little talk of downsizing, regardless of actual need. I suppose it is human nature on some level, but it is far from the human nature of two generations ago (or two generations from now) when conservation was (will be) necessary for survival.

I have often found myself perplexed when confronted with images and stories of organic farming operations that use a product referred to as plastic mulch. It is not exactly mulch in the wood/straw sense, although it does control weeds and conserve moisture. It is really just a sheet of black plastic that is stretched over a raised bed, then buried along the sides so that it doesn't blow away.

Besides the plastic (about 4 sq.ft./linear ft. of bed), there is the diesel fuel that transported it and was used in the 30ish HP tractor that is required to lay it. Oh, and then at the end of the season you have a huge pile of plastic that many farmers choose to burn. Sounds organic to me. And all to save the work that a team of well-trained ten year-olds can pull off in a good twelve hour day.


Growing (and eating) food in Illinois, and many other parts of the world, presents a peculiar issue with regards to oil consumption. We can only grow certain crops for a limited duration, unlike California, for example. Until recently, I didn't think there were any real benefits to be gained by using plastic to grow food, with respect to the ecosystem as a whole.

My discovery of four season growing has changed that. Plastic film is stretched over a metal structure to create a micro-climate that can be used to extend seasons. Hoop-houses, or high tunnels, are not a new idea, but with the increasing focus on fuel conservation, I think it makes sense to take advantage of this technology in our area. I also use a secondary layer of mini-hoops inside for the really cold nights (see the top picture). Operating on a purely experimental basis, we were able to grow lettuce, carrots, beets, onions, spinach, and assorted chois, throughout the winter without any supplemental heat.
On sunny days in January, with six inches of snow on the ground and daytime highs hovering in the mid-twenties, it reached a balmy 55 degrees inside. This heat is trapped by the soil and slowly released overnight, so that the ground never freezes inside.

When considering impact, the amount of fuel saved by not transporting these vegetables across the country is surely more than what it took to manufacture and transport this plastic. As of last month, I can say that I will soon have actual data to back up this assumption. We, along with eight other farmers in Union County, and many more across the country, have been pre-approved to take part in a 3 year USDA study on the benefits of using these systems for season extension, erosion control, and pesticide reduction (synthetic or organic). This program has created a variety of possibilities for farmers interested in producing food to be consumed locally.

The plastic on this year's hoop-house can be used for the mini-hoops inside next year
if it is weakened too much to be the primary protection. It can also be used on small hoops throughout the property to warm the ground and for shorter periods of season extension, though they alone generally won't hold the weight of snow.

In my mind, all of life is an experiment. Slight variations in materials and techniques can lead to wonderful realizations. Sometimes we use things that we once considered useless. The results achieved thus far have given me a whole new outlook on farming, year-round.

Y CSA?

"Whatever you can do or dream you can do--begin it.
Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."
--Goethe

This post, it might be said, is what it's all about for us here at the farm. To me, there is no better marketing approach than one that puts the producer and the buyer together. That is the idea at the root of the CSA movement.

Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) links farmers directly with consumers. CSA “shareholders” purchase part of the season’s produce before it is even grown. This shifts some of the farm’s annual income to the winter and early spring, when the farm incurs most of its costs. The start-up money allows for investments, from seed and tool purchases to equipment repairs and upgrades. These components, and others, are as critical to the survival of the farm as the soil itself. By providing some income during this important time of the year, you help to balance the expenses and workload, which ultimately increases the productivity and sustainability of the farm.

What follows here is the detailed outline of our CSA. My hope is that we have addressed the main issues. There are still some group decisions to be made once our shares have been sold. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to contact me.

Frontwards Farm 2010 CSA

The weekly cost of a Regular Share for the 2010 season is $30.00. The season will run for 22 weeks, totaling $660.00. In return for this early commitment to the farm, you will receive an average of 12-20 lbs. (6-12 different veggies, fruits, & herbs) per week. This is enough for a family of four, or two adults who love “five a day”. At this time, we do not offer half shares, but we encourage you to find someone to split a share with if you feel it will be more than you want.

Everything is grown using bio-intensive methods, without synthetic pesticides or fertilizers, with the long term sustainability of our land in mind. We add new varieties and experiment with new techniques every year. A list of varieties will be available here shortly, as our seed orders have been made,and filled for the most part. Questions and comments regarding specific produce and practices are encouraged, as are farm visits.

Furthermore, you will always have the first opportunity to take advantage of other offerings as new products become available. This is a life-long venture for us, and our hope is for you to stay with us as the farm grows. One of the most exciting parts of this growth is sure to be our focus on season extension structures, as we strive to offer produce year-round.

What is expected of members?
Be Vocal--As mentioned above, feedback is encouraged, as it is vital to the development of the farm. We want to know if you want more or less of a certain item, or a different variety or type of produce all together. We can’t improve if you don’t tell us how.

Be Flexible--Growing food is unpredictable. Every year brings variations in pest and climate pressures. A bad year for tomatoes may mean a bumper crop of peppers. Our search for the best method for growing the best varieties is met with success and failure.

Be Reliable- Timely payment is critical. Pick up your box as scheduled or arrange for a friend or neighbor to pick up your share if you will be unable to. Shares that are not picked up will be donated to a local family.

There are some things to think about when considering participation in CSA.
Among those:
--How do you like surprises? Each week the contents of your box will vary based on
the season. This not only allows us to enjoy the true bounty of our region, but keeps the menu interesting.
--Do you like to cook? There are many items that are best eaten raw, but we would not suggest eating butternut squash this way. Preparing meals presents a great opportunity for family time, and is the final step in bringing the food to your plate.
--Are you a creative cook? Some items may be new to your kitchen. This could lead to variations in favorite recipes or new ones all together. With the internet, a world of ideas and experiences is at your disposal, and if you are like us, experimenting a little will bring out the artist in you.
--Do you support local, sustainable agriculture? Your membership in our farm makes this a reality, and will hopefully be as rewarding for you as it is for us.

What still needs to be determined?
--Delivery location-Deliveries will be made to a central location, most likely in Carbondale. This will be determined as membership fills up, based on convenience for all involved. Farm pick-up is certainly welcome, but this will increase overall fuel consumption, which is always a factor to consider when striving for minimal environmental impact.
--Delivery time-The preferred time would be mid-late afternoon. This would allow same day harvest of all produce, which could be done during the coolest part of the day. With regard to the day of the week, our participation in a farmer’s market will be our deciding factor. Saturday is not an option, and other days may be ruled out as well. Members should consider delivery prior to the main shopping day of the week to allow for meal planning based around available produce.

If you would like to become a member of Frontwards Farm C.S.A. for the 2010 season, please follow the link to our Sign-Up Form.

Any items of concern can be addressed in the comment section at the bottom of the sign-up form, or via email.

Thank you.

Nonfiction

"Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become character.
Watch your character, for it becomes your destiny."
-Patrick Overton

Music, ye have done it again. Inspired me, that is. While searching for a fitting quote from a rocker for my previous music post, it occurred to me that reading/writing has been equally important to me (it was my major) as I follow my path to not only financial, but spiritual & emotional security. As a result, I will lead each post with a meaningful quote.

As you can see if you follow the link to Patrick's website, he is an ordained minister. I prefer not to use labels regarding religion, politics, and other philosophical movements to describe my journey. Rather, I search for the wisdom of someone's experiences, conveyed through their words, as well as actions. In everyone lies a kernel of history, a unique perspective, for no one experiences exactly what someone else has. (Atticus Finch, anyone?)

While I may never read Patrick's writing extensively, I can assure you that these words of his will go forward with me. If I were able to remember one quote from everyone who has lived, (or even just those who have written), not only could they fill a library, but they could provide a path through history. If the particular circumstances could be stripped from around those words, if they could be whittled to their root essence, the idea could be molded to inform the reader, regardless of time and place. It is this that draws me to the words in song and prose. There is a mystery in there, and to me it is a personal one. The writer took the thoughts and found the best way to present them. Next, the reader must find the best way to interpret and apply them.

The Music Never Stopped

"I just do what I do. I like to make music."
-Neil Young

A few notes on the role of music in our lives. We'll start with the obvious.

I love music so much that I decided to name every one of my posts here after a song. Most of them are by bands I love. Some (like the upcoming one regarding our CSA) were too obvious to ignore. Some may be unknown to you. Some of these may be by your next favorite band. Perhaps a Google search is in order. The name of our farm also comes from a song title. The lyrics or context may not be fitting for the post (or the farm), but the title is meaningful in what it implies.

Further evidence of my love for music lies in my insistence to include the rather cheesy music player in the sidebar. One of those things that could certainly be improved, I just haven't taken the time.

In addition to searching our favorite record store, Plaza-Wuxtry Records, & the internet for new music on a regular basis, Sarah and I both have the honor of hosting a weekly radio show on WDBX, our community radio station. She hosts "The Jazz Buffet" on Fridays from 12 to 2 pm, and I host "Music & Activists" on Thursdays from 2 to 4 pm. You can stream for free 24 hrs. a day using the link in the sidebar.

We have 100+ volunteer DJ's & thousands of members that provide 30-40% of the financial support for the station, in addition to local underwriters & fundraisers.

Our annual Valentine's Ball takes place on Feb. 13th at the Carbondale Civic Center. Longtime local favorite blues musician Tawl Paul and his band Slappin' Henry Blues will headline, with the SIU Studio Jazz Orchestra opening. Fellow DJ and painter Eileen Doman painted 10 amazing portraits of famous blues musicians that will be available for sale, in addition to lots of local art available in the silent auction. We have a meal catered by C-Infinity in Cobden & cash bar by Tres Hombres. You can get ticket info on the main WDBX site.

And the Bottle Rockets are coming to PK's on the strip this Sunday.
It's gonna be one of those legendary Carbondale nights.

Us

Way back when I first started the blog (last October), I promised, among other things, a proper intro to who "we" are.

The best place to start is who "I" am, aside from the info on my profile page. My name is Jason, and I will be responsible (and to blame) for all of the posts here, though I must immediately credit my wife, Sarah, and our daughters, D & T, for most if not all of the photos.

Sarah & I grew up in central Illinois about 45 minutes apart, but we didn't meet until coming to school at Southern Illinois University - Carbondale in the mid 90's. Her father has been a farmer since college, and mine was a factory worker until they shut down his plant earlier this decade. Both of our mothers are/were (until retirement) educators at the schools we attended.

After graduating with an English degree, I started a landscaping company that is still my main source of income, working mostly in Carbondale, about 15 miles from home.

Sarah graduated with a degree in Fiber Arts, and has been growing her art business since. Her work is currently featured in a dozen or so galleries in the Midwest, and we try to attend 5-8 weekend art festivals a year.

Until recently, however, this was more of a side job for her. She home-schooled our daughters through grades 4 & 1, respectively, until they enrolled in school near our home this past fall. It was a wonderful, if not exhausting, experience for us (especially her, as I was able to "escape" to work.)

For those of you who have considered home-schooling, let me say that it is possible to raise normal, bright, well-adjusted,& inspired (and inspiring) children in this way. We never mastered the challenge of meeting the complete "standard" curriculum, but there were things gained by each of us learning together in this way. The girls are now in 5th and 2nd grades, finding their place in their own worlds.

We love to travel together, and were lucky enough to do so often when our schedules allowed more freedom. The girls favorites have been camping in Door Co., WI, & Land Between The Lakes, KY, as well as a beach trip to Cape San Blas, FL, all with some of our best friends from upstate. (And T would be upset if I didn't mention our annual trip to Holiday World water & amusement park in Indiana.)

I hope this glimpse into our lives gives you a small idea of who we are.
We welcome you to follow us here, as you will certainly learn as much about us through the experiences and anecdotes posted as you have in these few paragraphs.

Lessons Learned

I will forgo the excuses for my prolonged absence and get to some of the growing mountain of info I want to post here. The most exciting part of the past week was attending the Illinois Specialty Crops, Agritourism, & Organic Conference in Springfield on Jan. 6-8. First of all, a big thanks to Jerry Bradley & Dayna Conner of Food Works for encouraging me to attend, and to Dayna and her family for providing a place to lay our heads and cook some real food, a true pleasure when on the road.

The conference was broken up into two main parts, with pre-conference workshops taking place on Wed. and the conference track sessions on Thur. & Fri. On Wed., I chose to attend a workshop focused on some of the basics of market farming, from insect and pest management techniques to marketing and liability issues.

I spend most of Thur. in one of the organic tracks offered, dealing mainly with integrated vegetable production systems. This was where I met the two most inspiring farmers at the conference.

Pete Johnson of Pete's Greens in Craftsbury,VT gave an amazing presentation, detailing some of the methods that have allowed them to grow from a 1/4 acre greens farm to a 50 acre, $1.4 million enterprise in just 10 years, selling to 375 CSA members & gourmet restaurants as far away as NYC. Even more impressive is the truly local micro-economy that has been created by folks just like Pete in his area, allowing residents to spend more of their money supporting small local businesses, on items as diverse as cheese and furniture.

Next on the agenda was Steve Pincus, of Tipi Produce in Evanston, WI. His experiences selling with a cooperative CSA, as well as through his current personal CSA, provided many insights into the changing marketplace. With a progressive mecca like Madison nearby, it would seem that such business would grow without any problems, but each endeavor presents unique challenges. Most interesting was his discussion of tractor implements and farming methods that reduce the use of organic pesticides and fertilizers while increasing soil fertility.

Friday I spent much of the day learning about organic fruit production and new varieties of vegetables that seem more suited for larger scale production, and talking with some of the folks I met throughout the conference.

There seems to be a promising future for specialty growers in the area, with an increased focus on direct marketing to consumers. It truly is a non-stop effort, from education and outreach, to the actual growing, marketing, and consumption of good food. There is a role for us all.

Birdie Brain (I Will Take Us Home)

I must admit it...three weeks of unseasonable warmth will lead me away from this machine every time. And what an action-packed three weeks it has been (another reason for my prolonged absence.)

The ends of our hoop house have been framed (many thanks to Greg & Jen), the plastic film has been purchased and the cooler temperatures are approaching (though four more days of 60 degree temperatures await), so a post dedicated to that process will soon be up.

This week we were able to expand our electric fencing in preparation for the planting of our apple and asian pear trees that arrived last Friday, as well as some table grape vines and the remaining blueberry bushes. That make two posts that are due.

But the fluffiest, chirpiest, hoppiest new arrivals have taken center stage at the farm. It goes without saying that I missed the first call from the Carbondale P.O. (at 3 a.m.) last Friday, but I was up when the next one came at 5. Our chicks were leaving for our local branch, housed in the quiet valley that we call Makanda. And a quiet valley it is at 7:15 on a November morning, but that silence was soon broken as I followed our postmaster, Laura, into the building. She disappeared through the door, declaring, "I hear you, but I can't find you!" A few moments later she reappeared with a shoebox-sized carton.
Did I mention that they were loud?

Actually, they were more confused than anything, but their panicked chirps calmed relatively quickly considering the bumpy ride through the southern end of Giant City State Park (not a bad first trip). It was probably the heat pouring from my vents more than the scenery (they were in a box), but who knows.

Unfortunately, by the time I got home, the girls only had about ten minutes before they had to leave for school, but that night was a fun one. Our youngest, T, was up at 6 a.m. Saturday, wanting to hold the chicks some more.



Not to be outdone, Wrigley may have been even more interested, with different motives, I assume.

With completion of the coop within site, all we have to wait for are some big girl feathers, and they will really be home.

Ed. Note: We got our chicks from McMurray Hatchery.