Sprouts Society
Media Art at Farms in the Catskills
Category Archives: blogs
have you ever picked a carrot?
corn corn corn
Shannon Hayes, Sap Bush Hollow Farm
22 January 2013
Dear Friends;
As some of you are aware, I trekked out to Wisconsin this past weekend to speak at a farming conference. While there, I had the opportunity to witness first-hand the impact the latest monoculture corn craze is having on farmers who are putting land stewardship and community ahead of profit. It was a tough weekend for me, and I am thankful to be back nestled away in my own hillsides. But while there, I was reminded of the great magnitude of change we are asking of our farmers: to rebuild a sustainable food system and a life serving economy. This week’s blog post, The Price of Corn, tells the story.
It is my hope that, after you read this, you might hug the next farmer you see who is choosing to grow vegetables or grassfed meat, especially when he or she could be making a small fortune tearing up his or her land for corn. Indeed, this entire new life-serving economy we are trying to build will simply not happen without the farmers who are willing to advance the interests of the land, the water and their communities. They will be our foundation.
Thank you for taking the time to read. I deeply appreciate your support as my own mind fills with doubt at the enormousness of what we are asking, and then finds solace in the beautiful responses that unexpectedly come forward.
Fondly,
Shannon Hayes
Sap Bush Hollow Farm, Shannon Hayes.info, and Grassfed Cooking.com
Sap Bush Hollow Farm, Shannon Hayes.info, and Grassfed Cooking.com
a young farmer posse in canada!
in defense of feet
plough and stars
Greenhorns, this is a blog worth following, both for its words (“Pulling a cool dirt blanket over a year’s worth of success and failure feels like shaking up an etch-a-sketch and disappearing that terrible looking stick man you spent all summer trying to draw“) and for its images (see below).
The Plough and Stars Project is a year-long narrative by photojournalist Erik Jacobs, who is chronicling his attempt to become a first generation farmer at The Farm School in Athol, Massachusetts.
It is a weekly story, told in two parts – words and photos – about the challenges of living our values through life on the farm, the inspiration that sustains us and the lessons learned throughout.
nice report back from farmhack
much afoot and apedal in south dakota
http://cyclefarm.wordpress.com/
Cycle Farm, LLC is located in the heart of Spearfish Valley, in the northern Black Hills of South Dakota. The land has been farmed for many years; most recently it has been lovingly cultivated with hops. We grow mixed vegetables for CSA and market (Spearfish Farmer’s Market on Friday evenings). We are enthusiastic about building community and local resiliency through the food system using human-powered and natural farming practices.
Cycle Farm is on Facebook. Let’s be friends.
amazing researcher, with output food history
“History at the Table” aims to serve as a central point of information and discussion about emerging collaborations among working farms, local and regional food networks, and historic sites and organizations, with a particular focus on the American northeast. The blog focuses on the emerging role of historic sites and museums in creating and sharing collective knowledge about both the past and present of farming. We see this as a way to help clarify the complex history of individual and political choices that created industrial agriculture and the equally long history of questioning and resistance that has contributed to a variety of “alternative” models over time, including the many efforts currently underway to build more equitable and sustainable modes of food production and consumption. Continue Reading →
check out the retrofit vernacular of fritz haeg
+ some hip videos – http://www.fritzhaeg.com/garden/initiatives/edibleestates/main.html
cabin porn
inspiration for your quiet place somewhere. http://freecabinporn.com/
edited by the folks at Beaver Brook.
mp in the house
michael pollan does it again, this time with delightful imagery by Maira Kalman to accompany his simple rules to eating well: http://michaelpollan.com/books/food-rules-illustrated-edition/
two blue boots blog
Here’s a note from Brooke Welles, a greenhorn searching for land and keeping a great blog about it.
I’ve been keeping this blog (http://twoblueboots.blogspot.com/) almost every day since I left my comfortable job as a farm manager and embarked on the journey of finding a farm of my own. It still feels every bit as crazy as it did the day that I packed up all of my belongings, said goodbye to my flock of chickens, and headed back home to find a plot of land close to my family. Continue Reading →
a great blog to follow
happy prairie
Life on the Range is an educational project that showcases stories about the ever-changing landscape of ranching, multiple-use management, entrepreneurial spirit, family and stewardship on Idaho’s rangelands.
The heart-warming stories provide a rare glimpse of how our neighbors in rural Idaho work every day to improve the earth and touch people’s lives in positive ways.
Life on the Range is sponsored by the Idaho Rangeland Resource Commission. If you have a story idea that you’d like us to cover or comments about the project, please send us an email.
