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The Barefoot Farmer (Jeff Poppen) uses his farm (Long Hungry Creek Farm) as an example in demonstrating good farming principles. The landscape and atmosphere of the 21st century is leaning away from a small farm economy, bucolic scenery, sustainable agriculture and homegrown meals. The health of ourselves and our environment can only be enhanced by a reliance on local small farms for our needs. To learn more about these principle join Jeff Poppen with his weekly column - Barefoot Farmer. To e-Mail Jeff -
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Use the Land Entrusted to Us . . |
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Friday, October 23, 2009 |
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One of the offers I have is at a farm in Nashville. A hundred years ago this land grew a large garden and supplied vegetables to hotels downtown. We would like to recreate gardens here, raising food and public awareness about biodynamic gardening. |
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Friday, October 23, 2009 |
It’s no secret that I love farming. The whole question of land use intrigues me, from forestry and pasture management to the various horticulture techniques for different crops. These days it’s the middle part, making compost and soil preparation that I enjoy focusing on.
Owning land is a responsibility. Tennessee was woodland until we cleared the forest for our crops and animals. This was done without machines; our grand fathers used crosscut saws and grubbing hoes to make field. If we aren’t going to tend the fields they ought to be left to grow back into woods.
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Tuesday, September 22, 2009 |
As an effort to understand more about what’s under the ground we stand on, I took a three day course in microbiology. It’s a fascinating subject. The professor dispelled many myths and inspired a desire to learn more. I have a long way to go.
Soils have lots of nutrients, but they are in a form that is unavailable to plants. A soil test tells us what’s available, and gives recommendations for how much fertilizer to add. The water soluble fertilizer helps t he plants to grow, but it destroys the soils microorganisms. Once we learn their role, we don’t want to hurt them. There are a thousand times more unavailable nutrients in the soil than available ones, and microbes can make them available.
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Tuesday, September 15, 2009 |
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We don’t want to sell vegetables, but we grew too much winter squash for the members of our coop. so I called a few other community supported agriculture farms to see if they needed any, and they did. Some potatoes were asked for, too, and a count in the cave determined extra. |
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Bare Ground won’t Stay Bare for Long |
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Tuesday, September 8, 2009 |
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Bare ground won’t stay bare for long. We dress her up in cover crops. This is one of the best ways to build soil humus. Most of our vegetables are in and out within three months, so there’s plenty of time for growing crops just for the soil. Since I don’t want weeds, I plant cover crops. |
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