Welcome To Our Blog

Final Blog...Moving to Website

2009-09-14T06:59:00.000-07:00

Hey ladies and gents, we've finally got our website up and running and we'd love to have you join us there to see what is going on at the farm. We'll continue to have a blog on the website so that you can read about the projects we're doing. But, this will be our last post on this blog, so be sure to check us out at beardsleyfarm.org from now on.

Seth Bernard Video

2009-07-21T05:45:00.000-07:00

Check out this video of Seth Bernard singing "Talkin CSA Blues."

Seth Bernard's Myspace

“The care of the Earth is our most ancient and most worthy, and after all our most pleasing responsibility. To cherish what remains of it and to foster its renewal is our only hope.”
-Wendell Berry

Can you dig it? We can dig it!

2009-07-10T12:34:00.000-07:00

This summer we have about twenty Workforce Connections Youth working at the farm. Our group of boys is split into five teams with each team spearheading a different project.

Let's dig in with Alix's group to see what kind of work they are doing at the farm. Tory, Alix, Matthew & LaQuan (pictured below) are all working on a vermicompost. If you're like me, then maybe you'd like to know what vermicompost is.

As LaQuan explained it, "Vermicomposting is a form of composting in which red wiggler worms speed up the process of composting by tunneling or eating through the compost and leaving castings that enrich the compost. They ultimately form a soil so rich that it can be used as a sort of natural fertilizer."

Why use this method? According to the boys, vermicomposting is a cheaper organic way of fertilizing the farm. Also, the red wiggler worms quickly reproduce and work fast. The castings that they leave behind contain phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium. Tory pointed out how this can add more diversity the soil that can be used around the farm.

Alix, the supervisor of this team told me that the red wigglers will actually migrate up through the compost as the feed. This is another reason why the red wigglers are unique and beneficial. Most worms will burrow deeper, while these will follow the incoming compost, as it is piled on top.

Want to make your own vermicompost? Here's a few links that might help:

"How to" booklet on composting with worms, from New Mexico State University.

Start worm composting: How to raise worms for compost

Vermicomposting: Composting with Worms, University of Nebraska Lincoln

"Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble up, if thou wilt ever dig."

- Marcus Aurelius

We're on day three at Earth Fare.

2009-06-19T08:57:00.000-07:00

The store has been packed with new customers every day and we're happy to tell them about Beardsley. We're lucky to have had several bands come support us and play at Earth Fare. On Wednesday, Bones in the Museum, Hudson K, Jon Wager and Caber Mostella began the rhythm bonanza at Earth Fare. We had a pretty full schedule on Thursday with Ian Thomas, Daniel Scott, John Wager feat. Adam, Caber Mostellla and Joey English delighting our ears. And today, Chelsea Lynn, Travis Williams and Brent Feito make-up the list of grand musicians playing at Earth Fare.

I'd urge you if you haven't gone already, go out on Saturday. Saturday is the dollar hot dogs day, so you should go! I didn't even know that natural hot dogs existed!

The fun will start at 1pm with hot dogs and Sherri Lynn and Mountain Friends, who will join us to provide some boogie bluegrass tunes. The party will go until the hot dogs run out, so make sure you get there in time to catch the dogs and dancing.

"Never doubt that a small group of committed people can change the world. It is the only thing that ever has."
-Margaret Mead

LB the Newbie

Back that new pea perspective I've gained...

2009-06-19T08:09:00.001-07:00

Our veggie tails have been getting soaking wet for the past two days. We've been rained on both at Earth Fare on Wednesday, and then, again on Thursday, as we were finishing up at Knoxville College . I'm guessing it's Mother Nature's way of forcing us to take a break!

We really did work hard. Our goal is to revitalize the Knoxville College campus, and I'd say we're getting a good start! There were about a dozen of the Workforce members along with other people from the community. We cleared one bed completely, planted herbs and various other plants, and created a whole new bed that's already making the campus look spicy. For all of those wanting to increase your vocabulary: spicy, as I was recently informed, is a slang word for looking good.

"Surely joy is the condition of life."
- Henry David Thoreau

LB the Newbie

Earth Fare Extravaganza

2009-06-18T12:57:00.000-07:00

THESE GUYS ARE BANANAS!

I can honestly say that I never thought I would be viewing the world from a pea's perspective. Okay, so I didn't exactly view the world from a pea's perspective. Unless you count dressing up in one of the veggie costumes that we had at Earth Fare.

Our Workforce members got the pleasure of dressing up in the veggie costumes for most of the Grand Opening Day at Earth Fare. Not only did they entertain and greet the customers dancing in their veggie outfits, but they painted faces and played games with the new customers as well.

And the live music at Earth Fare was actually played inside. Who knew that a folk/punk band could play acoustically in a corner of Earth Fare?

That's all for now. We'll keep you updated on what's going on at Earth Fare!

“We see the brightness of a new page where everything yet can happen.”
-Rainer Maria Rilke

LB the Newbie

Bearden Earth Fare Opening!

2009-06-12T07:48:00.000-07:00

Grand Opening Week
June17-19
8am-6pm
Earth Fare will be donating a small portion of the proceeds from June 17th-June 19th to Beardsley. We are thrilled to be partnering with Earth Fare to promote sustainable living, conservation, and community involvement.

Opening week is going to be full of excitement. The Grand Opening for the new Bearden Earth Fare is June 17th at 8am. The first 100 people to come by get a free tote bag full of goodies! To catch some of the activities and music, drop by June 17-19th, 11am-6pm. Come out and make your own mushroom spore prints, homemade bird feeders and butterfly prints. While you're doing all this, you can be listening to live music playing each day.

Bands that will be playing:

On Saturday, June 20th, Earth Fare will host a "dollar dogs" all natural hot dog sale. All of the proceeds from this will also go to the farm.

We hope to see you there!

Earth Fare- Bearden,TN
140 N Forest Park Blvd.
Knoxville, TN 37919

Farm Fest was a Sensation!

2009-06-09T08:44:00.000-07:00

Well, Farm Fest was a big success! We are so thankful to everyone who made this event happen! To all our staff, volunteers and vendors, thank you for your time. To all those who came out to the Farm, thanks for your willingness to learn and be a part of who we are. To all of our donors, thank you for your support and the extra effort that it takes to help us pull off events like Farm Fest.

A Glimpse of Farm Fest

The sun thankfully joined us Saturday morning for Farm Fest. As the Americorps members, Workforce staff and Beardsley staff prepared the farm for our visitors, everyone seemed filled with a bit of excitement. The vendors soon accompanied us to set up their tents. Gypsy Hands, Knoxville Recycling Coalition, The Farmer's Market, Slow Food of Knoxville, Keep Knoxville Beautiful and the Permaculture Guild added to the hustle and bustle of fun provided at Farm Fest. Everything fell in place as our first visitors from the community arrived.

The children had lots of craft activities to take part in; the paper hats were proudly worn. Other crafts included making seed art and bird feeders, which gave kids the opportunity to get their creative juices flowing and get their hands busy making resourceful art.

Stomachs were filled and taste buds were appeased by the delectable menu we had: BBQ, Vegetarian Sloppy Joe's, baked beans, cole slaw, chips and fresh watermelon. Some of our food was donated by local grocery stores in Knoxville. So, thank you to Food City, Kroger, Sam's Club and Three River's Market for all your donations.

Our ears were blessed with the sounds of Kelsey's Woods,The Lone Tones,and Christabel & the Jons feat. Sam Quinn. And we are so grateful for them coming out to join us!

We had several lucky bidders that won items in our Silent Auction; many thanks to everyone who participated in the auction. We're grateful to all that donated items: Gypsy Hands, McKay's, Tomato Head, Knoxville Arts & Fine Crafts Center, Knoxville Visitor's Center, WDVX, Downtown Grill & Brewery & the Mayo Garden Center. Also, the lucky winners from our door prize drawing won a 30 day KAT pass and 2 Knoxville Zoo passes.

I'm so glad that Farm Fest was the conclusion of my first week of working at Beardsley Farm! The event gave me a tangible sense of just how important Beardsley is to the people of Knoxville.

-LB the Newbie

"The pursuit of truth and beauty is a sphere of activity in which we are permitted to remain children all our lives." Albert Einstein

FARM FEST!!!

2009-06-04T06:29:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone!

This Saturday is our Annual Farm Festival and we want you to be there! Come out to Beardsley Farm this Saturday from 10 til 2 and enjoy live music, free food, kids activities, farm tours and much more. There will also be a raffle at the entrance with tons of great prizes. This event is our way of showing you all how much we appreciate all of you and all the support you have given us through the years. Hope to see you there!

Beardsley Farm

If you have any questions about this event give us a call.
Manager Ben Epperson: (865) 556 2299
Farm Phone: (865) 546 8446

FREE ICE CREAM

2009-04-20T11:22:00.000-07:00

Hello Everyone,

Tomorrow is Free Cone Day at Ben and Jerry's in the Shops at Western Plaza (on Kingston Pike).

Ben and Jerry's is sponsoring Beardsley Community Farm this year for this event.

Ben and Jerry's will be giving away free ice cream from 12 noon to 8 pm.
Stop by and show your support for Beardsley and your love of delicious ice cream.

There will be a long line, but here's the deal:
if you donate to Beardsley, you get a "Go to the Front of the Line" Pass.

Bring your family and friends, eat ice cream and support Knoxville's only Urban Demonstration Farm and Community Garden.

Here is a link to google maps, showing you where to go.

Clay's Garden

2009-03-26T08:33:00.000-07:00

As everyone knows, it is spring, and our community gardeners are beginning to get their seeds in the ground. We have 29 plots available and this year one of these plots is special, being planted as a memorial to Clay, one of the News Sentinel's photographers who passed away on Feb. 3 of this year. The Photographers of the Sentinel have come together to plant a garden for Clay and are keeping a blog about it that you can read at: http://blogs.knoxnews.com/knx/photo/2009/03/introducing-clays-garden.html

Have a wonderful spring!
Kirsten

Best Buddies come to Beardsley!

2009-03-17T10:27:00.000-07:00

It is spring and the farm is starting to bustle! Our bees are happy, we have three new chickens and two ducks, and we are beginning to start tomato and pepper plants in the greenhouse. But some of the most fun we have had has been with the Best Buddies group from Vanderbilt University in Nashville.
The Best Buddies Group joined us for an alternative Spring Break of volunteer service. Everyday from 8-12 the Buddies helped us with projects around the Farm and at the CAC office building. The first day they were here they lent us their muscles to pull up our old chicken fence, move it, and rebuild it. They also were wonderful at weeding our perennial flower beds. After a Disney-movie-song-filled-march up the the CAC building we began the process of weeding and preparing the parking islands in the CAC parking lot for the installation of edible landscaping. Our hope is to provide the clients of CAC and the Ridgebrook neighborhood with landscaping they can browse for herbs and berries to cook with. We worked on the edible landscaping for the rest of the week planting oregano, thyme, blueberries, rosemary, onions, and mint. In addition to helping us at Beardsley Farm the Best Buddies also went to Knox College to help rake the lawns clean of leaves, and assisted the Americorps members of the Emerald Youth Foundation with their after school program. The Best Buddies were amazing helpers and we couldn't have done it without them! We had a wonderful time and made great friends.

If you would like to read more about their trip to Knoxville you can read the Best Buddies Blog.
The News Sentinel also wrote an article about the Best Buddies' visit and our edible landscaping plan.

2009-03-13T08:55:00.000-07:00

Here is a list of all the produce you can begin to plant this month, along with some planting information that I gathered from Rodale's Illustrated Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening put out by DK publishing. My mouth is watering already.

Peas: Well suited for cool weather. Peas are great for the garden becuase they fix nitrogen in to the soil, boosting soil fertility. SEED TO HARVEST: Early cultivars: 11-12 weeks. Main cultivars: 13-14 weeks. It is best to wait to sow peas until the soil is warm. They can be sowed until early June. Sow in a row, every two inches, with rows 24-26 inches apart. Seeds should be planted about 3 inches into the soil. HARVEST: Pick snow peas when they are a convenient size. Continue picking to encourage production. Pick shelling peas when you can feel the peas through the pod but before they get too large. You can also leave the peas on the plant to dry and use them later for seeds or for cooking.

beets: Easy and quick to grow! SEED TO HARVEST: 7-13 weeks. Beet roots can be many colors, and are very good to eat. You can also eat the green tops. You can begin sowing beets in Late Feb and early March until late June. SPACING: Plant seeds every 3 inches or so at 1/2 inch depth. Be sure to water often in hot dry weather or the roots will become woody. HARVESTING: Harvest the roots when they are a size that you like! If you want to store them, twist off the tops and store in a dark humid place such as a box of moist sand.

carrots: carrots can be harvested almost year round. They can be closely spaced. SEED TO HARVEST: early cultivar: 9 weeks. Main cultivar: 20 weeks. Needs medium to light soil. start sowing as soon as soil is warm in February or March. Scatter seed shallow rows 3/4 in deep. Make rows about 6 inches apart. Keep weed free when young and water regularly in dry weather. HARVESTING: You can pull roots when they are young to eat immediately or you can leave them in the ground to store them. You can also then pull them and store the roots somewhere dark and humid.

onion sets: Plant in March. SEED TO HARVEST. Spring planted sets will be ready in 18-20 weeks. Push the sets into the soil with the tips just visible with the ends pointed upwards. For medium bulbs plant 1.5 inches apart. For larger bulbs plant 4 inches apart. HARVESTING: Eat fresh when large enough. To dry, leave them in the ground until the tops turn brown and spread them on a slatted tray or bench in the sun to encourage the skin to dry. Once it is dry, hang the onions and store in a cool airy location.

leeks: Sow in March-May at 1 inch deep. Eat them whenever you want. You can eat them when they are very small, but they also can stay in the ground successfully for many months and over winter. Water if the weather is especially dry.

radishes: Begin sowing in February-March. Many varieties will be ready to harvest in only 4 weeks. Diakon radishes will be ready in 7-8 weeks. Plant in rows 3/4 to 1 inch deep placing a seed or two every several inches. If you want you can interplant the radishes with carrots. The radishes will break of the soil so the carrot roots will have an easier time growing. You can harvest the radishes and leave the carrots to mature. Plant every 10 days if you want a continuous crop. Harvest as soon as they are the size indicated for the variety you planted. They get woody very easily.

turnips: Sow outside beginning in March. Sow every three weeks if you want a sucessional harvest. To encourage root growth thin to every 3 or 4 inches. Harvest your main crop of turnips when the roots are tennis ball sized. You can also leave them in the ground until around New Years and continue eating the green tops.

potatoes: Potatoes need a fair amount of space but give a good return. Plant in spring for an early and late summer crop. For an autumn crop plant in summer. 13-20 weeks from seed to harvest. Plant in trenches or holes 3-6 inches deep. You can also plant them in a hill. Keep piling soil on top of developing tubers. You can harvest early varieties as early as June and July. Usually you begin harvesting as soon as the foliage begins to die. To store: rub off excess soil on a dry day and store them in a dark cool ( 45 -50 degrees) place.

spinach: fast growing. Mature 5-10 weeks after planting. Sow in thin rows and keep watered in dry weather. As soon as plants are 2 inches tall you can begin to pick single leaves. Pull the whole plant when it is 6-8 inches tall. Use fresh or freeze for storage.

arugula: Fast growing and can be eaten as early as 3 weeks after sowing. Can be grown for most of the year. Likes to stay moist so water well. You can make regular sowing from February to June for a continual crop.

leaf lettuces: Sow in 2-3 week intervals. Sow close to top of soil.

kale: Very hardy. Can be ready to eat in 7 weeks. Sow three or four seeds ever 16-18 inches and thin later to one seedling when needed. Pick leaves as needed from mature or young plants.

chard: Ready in 8-12 weeks. Relative of the beet and grown for the stems and leaves. Sow about 1/2 and inch deep. Plant every 9 inches. Water when dry. You can mulch them for moisture retention. Pick outside leaves as soon as they are big enough ( pretty much however big you want them to be. Probably at least 6 inches tall, but perhaps up to 1.5 feet).

Cilantro:
Put the seeds in the soil and then cover them with about a 1/4 inch layer of soil. Leave the cilantro growing until it is at least 2 inches tall. At this time, thin the cilantro to be about 3-4 inches apart. You want to be growing cilantro in crowded conditions because the leaves will shade the roots and help to keep the plant from bolt (go to seed) in hot weather. From: http://www.gardeningknowhow.com

parsley: Sow seeds thinly. Parsley seeds are so fine, you can sow on top of the soil and just water them in. Germination can take two weeks. Young plants will grow slowly, but steadily.
Parsley can grow in partly shady areas. The soil should be rich. This easy to grow herb, tolerates poor soil and poor drainage. So, you can be put parsley in areas of the garden that other plants do not like.

Begin to pick parsley as soon as the leaves begin to curl and are of sufficient size for your recipe. For best flavor of this mild herb, pick early in the day when the oils are the strongest.

from: http://www.gardenersnet.com/vegetable/parsley.htm

HAPPY PLANTING!

Contemplating economy ecologically

2009-03-11T08:06:00.000-07:00

Here's a blog post from one of our Beardsley "Alumni", Frank Callo.
I am attaching the first part of Frank's discussion here.
For the rest of the bit, check out Frank's blog here.
Frank's an upstanding member of the Knoxville Permaculture Guild.

I told Frank he needed to read Small is Beautiful: Economics as if People Mattered

anywho...

give it up for Frank:

Contemplating economy ecologically

I'd like to talk a bit about the connection between the need to re localize and rescale economies and how this relates to avoiding the kind of economic upheaval we are experiencing right now. As the post title suggests, what I aim at is an economy that functions like an organic system. I will use the example of a bio-region as a model for this.

Broadly speaking, a bio-region, say a forested river valley, is a system involving a material base (soil nutrients and water) which utilizes solar energy to generate and maintain a population of living organisms. Ideally, as the population reaches a certain density, the processing of soil nutrients and solar energy is turned from population growth to maintaining stability in that population.

Such a system will display periodic fluctuations in its sub populations. For example, a particularly wet year might lead to exceptional vegetative growth. This in turn will mean an increase in the herbivore population of the Vally. It could be that the herbivore population will continue to grow until it overwhelms the plant population's ability to sustain it. It might mean that the carnivore population will grow with the availability of food and will eventually overwhelm the herbivore population's ability to sustain it. Despite such fluctuations the density of any sub population will keep close to an average over time. Finally, it is important to understand that the an important part of the material base of such systems is maintained by the corpses of burnt out organisms which are "down cycled" through the process of decomposition.

One of the noteworthy differences between a system like this and most economic systems is that growth is not the system's goal. A healthy ecosystem is one that fills it's niche and then maintains this level with as little fluctuation as possible. It could be said that the system "lives within its means".

An important aspect of this "organic frugality" is that the organisms that benefit from the material base of the system eventually become part of this base. The tree may act as though its whole purpose for living is the nut that will grow into a new tree. Despite this, the leaves that fall from the tree each year, and eventually the tree itself, become part of the material base on which the whole system depends. The system as a whole allows broad opportunity for individual organisms and species to flourish. Never the less there is an under laying law at work, namely, that in the end everyone works for the good of the system as a whole. In spite of, or perhaps because of the ignorance of trees, squirrels and timber wolves to this law, no one tries to transgress the law.

Humans have devised many systems whereby they attempt to transgress the aforementioned law. Our economic systems, like many other institutions, present a temptation to transgress. I will not hesitate to state that this is folly. They also present an opportunity to use this law learned from nature to organize our lives in a way which will be harmonious with nature. The latter is the path of wisdom. I will now turn to specifically economic considerations to illustrate both paths.
Let us consider a certain kind of financial institution that was common in the US until about a half century ago, especially in small towns. Town's folk would deposit their money into savings accounts. These accounts would form a pool of financial resources that could be drawn upon by other town's folk in the form of loans. The interest levied on these loans would, in turn, provide depositors with a small amount of interest on their savings accounts.

Tours and the Work Day

2009-02-23T13:25:00.000-08:00

This weekend, 30 volunteers from All Souls Church and from the community descended upon Beardsley Community Farm to help us gear up for SPRING! Soon we will be planting our cold season crops and starting our peppers, eggplants, and tomatoes in the greenhouse. With the help of all our volunteers we got an amazing amount of work done this Saturday. We started to fence in our community garden plots, we weeded and pruned the Butterfly Garden, we weeded the strawberries and best of all we planted an orchard of 10 apple trees! This summer there will be berries and apples all around the park for the benefit of the people using the park.
Much Thanks to David Johnson, a member of All Souls, for these great photographs!

If you're planting trees or thinking of planting trees, check this website out.
The Urban Forest Ecosystems Institute is a wonderful site. Enter in a tree name or any tree attribute to find the most suitable tree for your planting area.
For more general planting info go here or any equivalent planting site.
Or give us a call. (865) 546-8446

I also had the privilege of visiting the Eco-village at Berea College this weekend. The Eco-village is the college's married student housing. It is a complex of fifty apartments arranged around a common yard space that is used for playing and gardening. All the apartments feature passive solar design, solar water heaters and low flow appliances. One sample apartment is entirely self sufficient. It has solar panels for its power, a passive solar water heater, roof windows to provide natural light during the day, rain water collection, thermal mass heating and cooling techniques, a wood burning stove, a composting toilet and an example wall of straw bale construction. It was fascinating to see that their rain water is collected off the roof and then stored in an underground cistern. The water from the cistern goes through a filter system and then is blasted by UV rays to kill any remaining bacteria. It is then usable as drinking water.

Probably the most impressive part of the tour was was the village "Eco-machine" that processes 10,000 gallons of sewage a day. The black and gray water from all fifty apartments is pumped to a large 10,000 gallon cistern. From this cistern the water is pumped into an anaerobic holding tank where it begins to break down. It is then pumped through a a series of 1500 to 2000 gallon tanks, all with different types of plants that filter the water. Once the water has been purified it goes into one more tank where it is not aerated and any particulate matter remaining in the water settles to the bottom of the tank. The clarified water is then pumped to a covered wetland near the example student house. It was amazing to see that so much sewage could be turned into clean water so quickly. If you would like to know more about it you can go to http://www.berea.edu/sens/ecovillage/.

Glastonbury Farm

2009-02-19T13:23:00.000-08:00

When most people were resting at home this presidents day, Americorps members were out an about serving where we could. Many of our offices were closed for the holiday leaving some of us wondering what to do. Luckily for Beardsley Farm members Betsy at Glastonbury Farm generously invited us to visit her and her goats in excahnge for a little work. We went over for the day to shovel a little goat poo and pick some potatos but mostly just to squeal at all the cute animals. There were around 40 goats, a pig, a llama, chickens, ducks, geese, guinea fowl and several dogs and cats. A few of us were even lucky enough to hold the baby goats! Adorable is the only way to describe the experience. Thanks Betsy!

Check her out at glastonburyfarm.blogspot.com/

Southern SAWG conference blog... dawg

2009-01-28T07:40:00.000-08:00

Here in the office, the farm team is buzzing around. We are attempting to organize the abundance of information we obtained from Southern SAWG's (Sustainable Agriculture Working Group) 18th Annual Practical Tools and Solutions for Sustaining Family Farms Conference. It was held this past weekend at the Chattanooga Convention Center from Wednesday January 22nd to Sunday January 25th. We Beardsley folks attended the conference from Thursday to Sunday and here are some tidbits from our experience; what we learned, who we met, and the different events we attended!

Friday was the first day of the concurrent sessions where we spent the majority of the conference. There were so many classes that sounded interesting it was difficult to choose but overall we were pretty satisfied with our decisions. We went to classes ranging from building community food systems to cultivating mushrooms to stories of a mobile farmers market.

Saturday also hosted several concurrent sessions as well as "meet and greets" for like-minded farmers in categories such as young farmers, mid-scale farmers, flower producers, retiring farmers, etc. The classes this day were just as good, if not better! There were tons of classes offering advice under the new farm bill, classes about livestock, co-op's, leadership, composting and so so much more. To top off a great day of learning we were served a delicious meal of grass-fed beef and homegrown greens, carrots and potatoes and pecan pie for dessert! All this during an amazing key note address by agricultural economist John Ikerd. His speech was truly inspiring. You could feel the intensity in the room as he preached about the importance of sustainable family farms in reference to meeting the ecological and social changes confronting our society. I highly recommend everyone who reads this blog to check him out.

Here are a couple links:
http://web.missouri.edu/ikerdj/
http://homesweetfarm.podomatic.com/entry/2008-08-14T19_25_04-07_00
http://www.salmonnation.com/voices/john_ikerd.html

There was also a grant writing work shop on Sunday that a few of our team members attended. Besides being able to attend classes and workshops the conference was a great opportunity to meet like-minded individuals. On several different occasions myself and others had the opportunity to meet farmers from all over the southeast with great stories, questions and advice. And we were also able to acquire a good deal of info from the conferences trade show by talking to representatives and collecting pamphlets and publications.

Overall the weekend was a great success and I look forward to attending next years conference. I recommend checking out some of the links below to learn more about SAWG and some of the people and places that presented their inspiring stories.

Southern SAWG's website: http://www.ssawg.org/

Crabtree Farms: http://www.crabtreefarms.org/

Twelve Aprils Dairy and Happy Cows Creamery: http://www.happycowcreamery.com/tour.htm

Mushroom Mountain, LLC: http://www.mushroommountain.com/

Rural Resources: http://ruralresources.net/

Jubilee Project: http://www.timesnews.net/article.php?id=9002247?fromrss=1 http://www.apspringcoop.com/

Gaia Farms: http://www.gaiaherbs.com/brochure.php?id=12

Anson Mills: http://www.ansonmills.com/

Waterpenny Farm: http://www.waterpennyfarm.com/

keeping spirits high

2009-01-20T05:55:00.000-08:00

Thanks to The Sunsphere is Not a Wig Shop for their support.
Check it out!

keeping spirits high

SNOWDAY was a success!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-01-12T11:33:00.000-08:00

SNOWDAY, Beardsley Farm's first fund raiser was a smashing success! We had over 800 people come to show their support of Beardsley Community Farm.

Thank you first of all to Barley's Taproom for generously donating their space to us for the night.

Thank you to all of the businesses that supported us through donations to our raffle and silent auction.

Thank you to 91.9 WUOT, 90.3 WUTK, The Metropulse, and The Knoxville Voice and anyone else who donated their time and resources to advertising our event.

Thank you to all the restaurants who donated food for our bands, and soup for our soup contest! They included: Tomato Head, Trio Cafe, The Crown and Goose, La Costa, Sunspot, The Bistro, Fresh Market, Three Rivers Market, and Magpies. Congratulations to The Crown and Goose for winning our Souper Gourd Award!

Thank you to all the volunteers who came to sell raffle tickets and ladle out soup.

Thank you to all the bands who played for this event! They were, Jonathan Sexton and the Big Love Community Choir, Joseph and his Brothers, Cold Hands, Tommy Bateman and the Thundertheives, The BBC Trio, The Invisible Giants, Jamie Cook, and Kelsey's Woods .

Last but not least, thank you to everyone who came to show their support for Beardsley Community Farm!

Snow Days Raffle and Auction Items!!

2008-12-22T06:09:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone, look at all the great prizes and auction items that could soon be yours!!! And thanks again to everyone who donated.

A $50 gift certificate from Three Rivers Market, Knoxville's food co-op!
A $200 value weekend at Hot Springs Chalet
Bonnaroo tickets from ACEntertainment
A $400 Kona bike from TVB
3 $25 gift certificates from The Bistro
A $150 value of apparel and Kayak rentals from River Sports
A $75 gift certificate from La Costa
A $50 gift certificate from McKay
A $30 gift certificate from Disc Exchange
A $400 value 6 month membership to the YMCA
A $50 gift certificate from Fresh Market
A $100 value edible berry bushes from Overhill Gardens
Two massages from Gypsy Hands
2 lbs. of coffee from Golden Roast
A $60 gift certificate for 3 art classes at Knoxville Arts & Fine Crafts
A $50 value of apparel and gift certificates from Glowing Body
A $70 camelback from Mast General Store
A $20 gift certificate from Bliss
An $85 value massage from licensed masseuse Gina Baker
$40 value on alcohol from Downtown Wine and Spirits
A Brand new New Belgium Brewing Company Fat Tire bicycle!!

Don't miss your chance to buy raffle tickets or bid on any of these great prizes!! Friday January 9th, 2009 at Barleys.

party time. excellent.
SEE BELOW!

SNOWDAY: A Beardsley Benefit

2008-12-16T18:45:00.000-08:00

Jonathan Sexton and the Big Love Community Choir,

Joseph and His Brothers,

Cold Hands,

Tommy Bateman and the Thunderthieves,

The BBC Trio,

The Invisible Giants,

Jamie Cook

Soup Contest
between some of Knoxville's finest:

The Tomato Head

Sunspot

Trios Cafe

Three Rivers Market

The Bistro

Pasta Trio
Crown and Goose

Hugelkultur

2008-12-01T14:56:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Food production on Beardsley Farm has been slowing down as the weather gets colder, but we have been digging into new projects nonetheless. We are building new beds, cleaning out the community gardens, transferring rainwater from our cachement system to our storage tanks, processing compost, feeding our worm compost bin, and being active with our school groups. And we are trying new things.

Our most recent venture was to build a Hugelkultur vegetable bed. Hugelkultur? What is that? While reading the book Gaia's Garden by Toby Hemenway I found a few paragraphs in a small insert about a way of building beds called Hugelkultur. The word is german and means "magic mound" and the more I read about it the more I believed it to be true! After reading all I could about Hugelkultur I decided to bring it up to the rest of the farm team to figure out where we might build such a bed.

After walking around the farm for a few minutes we decided to build it near our other C-beds, creating a clover shaped series of beds. We thought it would be aesthetically pleasing and at the same time get rid of one more area of grass to mow!

To begin the bed we laid down cardboard we scavanged from CAC's recycling to act as a barrier to weeds, then we mulched the area heavily with wood chips. The main ingredient of a hugelkulture bed, or HK as we like to say, is brush, something we have plenty of at the moment! With the help of several volunteers we began pulling brush from our longterm compost pile and mounding it on our bed site. After we had a significant amount of woody material piled we heaped it with many layers of organic matter. One of our first layers was mushroom compost which is made of straw and woodchips that have been fully decomposed by mushrooms growing on them. The result is a spongy dense nutrient rich compost. The next layer was some kitchen scraps (no meat), followed by leaves raked from the park. Then we layered some of our finished compost with horse manure. Finally, we planted a cover crop of winter rye which we will cut in the spring and chop it into the soil further adding nutrients to the bed. The final result was a C shaped mound of organic matter about 3 ft high with an occasional stick poking through.

What is so special about HK you ask? How is it different than any other bed? The special ingredient is the bottom layer of brush. There are several benefits to it. The wood decomposes slowly over years releasing a steady supply of nutrients to the soil. The process of decomposition also creates a steady heat making the HK bed slightly warmer than the surrounding soil. One can actually plant an HK bed as much as one month earlier than a regular in ground bed. Have you ever picked up a piece of decomposing wood and found that it was sponge like, holding copious amounts of water? This is the 3rd principal behind an HK bed. The decomposing wood at the bottom of the pile acts as a sponge holding large amounts of water that would normally filter though the soil or evaporate. As a result HK beds do not need to be watered as often as other beds might. This is useful if you have an area that pools water in your yard. You can put an HK bed there to soak up the standing water, then in the summer you will not have to water that bed very often because it will be holding all of that water.

Now all we have to do it wait and see how well our new HK bed grows!
~Kirsten

Support your local farmers!

2008-11-17T12:45:00.000-08:00

On November , I made a visit Green Man Farm in Washburn, TN, with a group of my friends. Kirsten, Khann, Monika and I drove about an hour to visit Eric Gibian and his family on their farm. Saturday afternoon was cold and gray, the rain came and went, but the wind never stopped. Over 20 other folks made it out to visit the farm, and follow Eric around as he showed us his gardens, as well as introducing us to all of his lovely animals.
Eric shared with us many of the different organic methods he uses to keep his soil heathy which in turn produces healthy plants whose fruits he sells at the Market Square Farmers Market. The majority of his organic produce is organized into baskets which are ready and waiting for his Community Supported Agriculture members to pick up at the Market. Many of the visitors to the farm tour had come to meet Eric and see where and how he grows his food, to decide if they wanted to make the first deposit on their 2009 CSA share.

Solar Food Dehydrator

2008-10-28T11:40:00.000-07:00

It has been about a month since we finished our Solar Food Dehydrator! In that time we have dried quite a bit of basil, oregano, and thyme. The Dehydrator is in great working order and we wanted to include some instructions and a supply list so you can make your own!
To make a 3 by 3 dehydrator you will need:

12, 36" X 2" X2" pieces of wood
a 36" X 36" piece of fiberglass greenhouse material, or a 36" by 36" Plexiglass piece
a 36" X 36" piece of aluminum flashing
a 36" X 36" piece of corrugated aluminum roofing material
a 36" X 36" food grade steel screen. This can be found online. We improvised and used instead some stainless steel grill screens. These come in 12" by 24" pieces. Instead of having one large screen food we had three smaller ones that fit into a 36"by 36" square.
4, 36" X 2" X 4" pieces of wood as well as a few more pieces to make the legs of the stand.
2, 4 " pieces of scrap wood.
2, 6" T hinges
1.5 " screws and corresponding washers

Begin by making a 36" by 36" frame with the 2" by 4" boards. This frame needs to be tilted to a 15 degree angle. Then screw the corrugated roofing to this frame with the grooves going vertically. On the downward end of the slope screw in two pieces of 4" scrap wood with two inches sticking up above the corrugated roofing. This stops the food screens from sliding down the roofing.

Next, assemble 4 of the 36" 2" by 2" into a square. Onto this frame you will screw first the plexiglass on one side and the aluminum flashing to the opposite side. Be sure to pre-drill the screw holes and use the washers or else the fiberglass or plexiglass will crack.

The next step is to make the food screens. If you find food grade stainless steel screen you can use 4, 36" 2"by2" pieces of wood to make one screen. Or, if you do as we did and use the stainless steel grill material to make your screens you will have to make several oddly shaped screens. Just make sure they fit into a 36" by 36" square.

The last step is to attach the two T hinges to connect the bottom frame with the top of the dehydrator. Then you are ready to dry food!

We adapted these directions from the Solar Food Dehydrator directions we found on the website: geopathfinder.com

Good luck! ~ Kirsten

Bob Due Farm Tour

2008-10-28T11:16:00.000-07:00

Things are slowly winding down at the Farm as it gets colder and darker. We have pulled out all of our okra, eggplant, and most of our tomatoes. Our turnips, lettuce, collards, kale, radishes, and carrots, however, are doing quite fine in the frosty mornings! Despite the steady approach of winter, we are still active and finding new things to learn.
Last weekend, Jeff and Shelagh organized an Americorps trip to tour Bob Due's farm. We met Bob Due at a local Farmer's Market and jumped at the chance to learn more about his farming techniques. We drove north out of Knoxville for about an hour, passing fields and hills, then finally negotiating many small windy roads we arrived at Mr. Due's hilly farm. He began by talking to us about the importance of balancing micro-nutrients in soil in order grow healthy disease resistant plants. He uses the "Albrecht System" which employs soil testing and amendments to bring micronutrient rations into balance.
Mr. Due's farm is in a very hilly part of TN so he plants all his crops on terraced hills in order to prevent erosion. The highlight of the trip was towards the end when he offered to let us taste his turnips! They were crunchy, sweet, buttery and amazing! If they couldn't convince one of the impact of healthy soil on the taste of a vegetable, nothing could! If you would like to know more about Bob Due's terraced gardens and the "Albrecht Technique" you can go to his website: http://www.terraced-gardens-farm.com.