GardenShare is a locally led, nonprofit organization with a mission to solve the problem of hunger in St. Lawrence County through policy advocacy work and by strengthening the food system to benefit all County residents.
GardenShare's vision for our community:
Healthy Food – Healthy Farms – Everybody Eats
Three new webinars coming up soon. All of them are free and open to the public, and advance registration is required. They all take place at 2:00 PM. March 30, 2017: Using Biofungicides, Biostimulants and Biofertilizers to Boost Crop Productivity and help Manage Vegetable Diseases<http://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6332950960916838915>
Effectively managing diseases is one of the biggest challenges facing organic vegetable growers. A wide range of biologically based products are now available on the market that claim to boost crop growth and help plants withstand many plant diseases. However, there are few independent, scientifically-based studies to validate the efficacy of some of these products, and instructions detailing how and when to apply these products to achieve the best results are unclear. In this webinar, participants will describe the different types of products available in the marketplace today, provide an overview of recent studies evaluating their efficacy, and discuss strategies for identifying the most effective products and application practices. Presenters: Giuseppe Colla of Tuscia University in Viterbo Italy, MariaTeresa Cardarelli at the Italian Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry in Rome, Italy, and Dan Egel and Lori Hoagland of Purdue University. Register<https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6332950960916838915> April 6, 2017: Taking Stock of Organic Research Investments<http://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6702579283953605122>
This webinar will present the findings from the report by the Organic Farming Research Foundation:Taking Stock: Analyzing and Reporting Organic Research Investments: 2002-2014<http://ofrf.org/sites/ofrf.org/files/staff/WholeTakingStockReport_V5.11_Web.pdf>. This report provides information on the progress USDA funded organic research projects have made in addressing critical research needs. We will describe the types, locations, and impacts of USDA funded research, as well as research gaps and topics that require greater attention. The webinar will conclude with a set of recommendations for strengthening organic research in the US to best support the needs of organic farmers. Presenters are Diana Jerkins, Joanna Ory and Mark Schonbeck. Register<https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6702579283953605122>
Brassica plants, including mustards, contain glucosinolates that, when broken down, produce compounds that can reduce weed pressure, insect pests, populations of parasitic nematodes, and soil-borne pathogens such as Pythium, Rhizoctonia, Sclerotinia, Verticillium, and Phytophthora. In this webinar, we’ll address the use of mustard cover crops that have been bred specifically to have high glucosinolate concentrations and act as a biofumigant in crops like potatoes, peppers, carrots, black beans, and strawberries.Webinar presenters include Heather Darby and Abha Gupta, University of Vermont Extension; and Katie Campbell-Nelson, University of Massachusetts. Register<https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/8878799766349704962> Find all upcoming and archived eOrganic webinars at http://articles.extension.org/pages/25242/webinars-by-eorganic
This week, intern Amanda visits Circle G Farm. Located in Hammond, the farm sells at both the Hammond and the Canton Farmers Markets. This time she shot some video to accompany her report.
To say I feel nervous every time I step out of my car onto a
new farm is an understatement. Here I am, a college intern, being nosey about a
person’s livelihood. Not just any person, but a farmer whose occupation
revolves around the very precious daylight hours that I am taking. Raised on a
farm myself, I understand what that is like. I’m honestly surprised I haven’t been
declined yet!
Nerves aside, when I got out of my car at Circle G Farm in Hammond,
I had the same feeling of comfort that I experience when I return home from
college. Mary-Ellen Blatchley, co-owner, brushed dirt off her hands from
weeding her aesthetically pleasing rows of greens, greeted me, and then
introduced me to her husband, George. Together, they grow about thirty
different vegetables, and they do so because they simply love to garden. George
exclaimed, “Sometimes I like to grow them [the vegetables] more than I like to
eat them!”
Shortly after retiring in 2012, George and Mary-Ellen built
a sugar house where they invite local community groups, like the 4-H club, to
help with the sugaring of 35-40 gallons of syrup a year. George is an active
member of the St. Lawrence County Maple Producers Association. Outside of the
sticky saccharine season, the sugar house is a hub for garden activity.
Their garden began one-eighth of the current size above
their house. As with the Fuller Farm, somehow gardens began sprouting up
wherever there was room. The gardens used to be NOFA Certified Organic;
however, the extensive paperwork, time and cost made the legal process no longer
feasible. After both touring the land and listening to the couple talk, I am
certain George and Mary-Ellen are firm activists in organic practices. They are
against the use of pesticides and fertilizers, and are committed to the NOFA
Farmer’s Pledge. 2016 marks the fourth year marketing their surplus garden at
the farmers markets. I say surplus because George and Mary-Ellen’s bottom line
isn’t profit; rather, the couple promotes the dogma of healthy affordable food.
George and Mary-Ellen, after giving a tour of their land,
invited me into their home. Again, I felt like I knew them both for years by
the way they put me at ease. George mentioned how over coffee that morning he
disturbingly discovered “40% of food is wasted in America alone, yet 35% of
Americans are considered obese.” Mary-Ellen was equally troubled: “One-third of
children [in the US] are hungry, and I find that appalling. We find programs
like WIC and SNAP help alleviate this.” Both George and Mary-Ellen have
undergone WIC training. What is more, they accept SNAP/EBT at their farmers
market stand. Yet, George and Mary-Ellen take the issue of hunger in the North
Country one step closer.
Often “organic” translates in the consumer’s mind (and
wallet) not to the farming practices involved, but rather to a higher price.
Mary-Ellen and George recognize many consumers opt for the cheaper conventional
head of lettuce instead of their six-ounce spring mix as an upshot. To bridge
this gap, Mary-Ellen regularly visits grocery stores like Wal-Mart to match her
prices with shelf prices. Doing so encourages all shoppers to purchase from the market instead of from the
corporate counterpart.
Jeff Bridge, head of Food for Children, recently stated how
people are choosing, “easy food instead of smart food.” Offering organic food at commodity prices is
another way Circle G Farm attempts to alter that mindset, similar to
GardenShare’s mission. Families aside, George said the elderly are too often forgotten
about when discussing food security. Using nutrition assistance programs at
markets is often difficult for the elderly; not many markets sell small
quantities of fresh produce- an important factor when one lives alone, has a
small appetite, or doesn’t want to eat an ear of corn every night for dinner.
Mary and George understand many markets sell items like sweet corn either by
the half or full dozen. “If they want one ear of corn, we sell them one ear. Our
WIC/SNAP people get their money’s worth in checks and tokens, but we always
slip in a little more.”
The side comments like that last line above were what drew
me to Circle G Farm. The humble honesty and willingness to help the community
stuck out as mains principals. Before I left (with three jars of Mary-Ellen’s
famous jam no less), George looked me in the eyes and said, “We are lucky to be
educated. We aren’t struggling. We do this because we like to garden, we like
to grow [our food]. We are fortunate to not be hand to mouth. Growing food is
the right thing to do, but you can only can/freeze so
much.” And thus their surplus is sold to the market with their beliefs and care
in tow.
NOFA-NY's On-Farm Skills Development Guide is a tool for farmers and mentors
to use with employees, beginning farmers or anyone they are teaching to
develop a hands-on farm- based learning plan.
Beginning farmers also can use it as a
self-assessment tool to determine current strengths and weaknesses, and to
identify critical learning needs. Click here for a downloadable PDF or excel
spreadsheet.
In addition to it being National Hunger Action Month, NOFA-NY is celebrating local food, farmers and farm-to-table cookery during September. This is a chance to talk up your love of local food and your support of sustainable farming to your friends and family. It's a great time to share in experiences cooking together, dining at farm-to-table restaurants, taking action to shape policy in support of organic farms, and visiting the farms themselves! From asparagus and apples to wine and wheat, we are fortunate to live in an abundant agricultural state. NOFA-NY's online directory can help you find the most delicious, fresh, healthy food available in your region.
NOFA-NY will be offering resources through their website, sharing experiences on a blog and Facebook, and keeping you informed of Locavore events in New York.
At GardenShare, we are working to make the connections between local food, sustainable agriculture, and the problem of hunger in our midst, so what a great way to start bringing these issues together!
St. Lawrence University is looking for someone with organic farming practices
experience, preferably a local farmer, who could supervise the student workers
and the Sustainability Semester farm on a very part time and temporary basis
this summer and possibly into the fall. The current manager is moving on and SLU needs someone temporarily while they do a search to fill
the position with a permanent hire. More details and how to apply follows:
Duration:
Temporary
Position, 10-14 weeks beginning the week of July 1, 2015
Salary:
$40/hour
Work
Schedule: 6-10
hours per week spread between a minimum of 2 days per week
St. Lawrence University Sustainability
Semester is seeking a temporary farm/site manager for its Sustainability
Semester site. For more and
specific information on the Sustainability Semester, please go to http://www.stlawu.edu/academics/experience/sustainability-semester.
Qualifications:
·Experience managing a vegetable farm employing
organic practices
·Experience raising chickens
·Experience with and ability to use farm equipment
and machinery
·Experience managing/teaching/supervising
undergraduate students
·Must live locally (within one hour drive to the
site)
·Ability to lift at least 50 pounds and engage
in the physical activity of garden maintenance and harvest
Duties:
·Oversee the maintenance and harvest of the
Sustainability Semester gardens/orchard and site including chickens through
supervision of student interns and workers providing assistance (including some
physical labor) as needed. This includes maintaining the summer work plan and
schedule (created by the previous Homesteader-In-Residence) for the summer and
creating a work plan and schedule for fall harvest as needed.
·Must be physically present on site a minimum of
6 hours a week spread between a minimum of 2 days per week
·Supervision of student interns June-August
includes weekly one on one meetings with each student
·Good communication including a minimum of every
other week meetings with the Director of the Sustainability Semester and weekly
check-ins with the student manager
·Willingness to be on call daily in case of a
crop/site/animal emergency
Interested
applicants must apply online at http://employment.stlawu.edu
uploading required materials which are defined in the “special instructions to
applicant” section. Review of applications will begin
immediately and continue until the position is filled. Questions about the position may be directed
to Dr. Cathy Shrady, Director of the Outdoor Program, at cshrady@stlawu.edu.
All offers of employment are contingent
upon the finalist successfully passing a background (including criminal
records) check.
St. Lawrence University is an Equal
Opportunity Employer. For additional
information about St. Lawrence, please visit http://www.stlawu.edu.
