Great News: We WON the Eli J. Segal Award

The following is an article from the AmeriCorps Alums website outlining a grant we were recently awarded from the Eli J. Segal Foundation. We'll use the funds to build an on-farm poultry processing facility that will be ready to go once our first broilers are ready in the spring of 2011. Currently Elliott and I are focused on reconnaissance--checking out facilities on other farms, scouring the internet for do-it-yourself resources. Look forward to posts about how we put the whole thing together this winter--we'll most likely be building the plucker and scalder ourselves. Elliott's new training in simple electric design will definitely come in handy--thank you Ogeechee Technical College. Here's a picture of us gratuitously basking in the glory of cash to fuel a better local food system. Thanks to everyone who graciously sent in enthusiastic letters of support--we'll build a better tomorrow together.

The recipients of the 2010 Eli Segal Award are Arianne McGinnis and Elliott McGann of Hope Grows. Hope Grows is a modest organic farm located in Sylvania, Georgia. Hope Grows places value on the transparency of farming methods and philosophy, and having the community involved in their sustainability and growth. The relationships that Arianne and Elliott have not only helped the farm grow, but have also brought a new perspective to the community. Unlike many large farms in the area, Hope Grows does not use chemicals, antibiotics, or heavy machinery.

“We produce pasture raised poultry, pork, and organic vegetables, but our business is healing: the land, the food, the economy, the community”

The farmers at Hope Grows sell the products of their hard work at their farm store and local farmers’ markets. Oftentimes these outlets are used as an opportunity to spread the word on ecologically conscious farming. The farm is also open to visits throughout the year, and holds two large on-farm events in the spring and fall. Pictures, commentary, and video of their work is displayed at www.freshfarming.blogspot.com. Here you can learn how to clip a chicken’s wings, start a garden, or even process your own Thanksgiving turkey! Recently a group of students from Georgia Southern University were dubbed the “Pasture Clearing Brigade” by the Fresh Farming blog. A group of students lent a helping hand to the Hope Grows farm by weeding the overgrown pasture. To answer the question “Why not use a tractor and do it in five minutes?”, it is explained that those at Hope Grows are “too averse to debt and mechanically challenged to invest in a tractor.” It also inhibits pasture growth and diversity. Instead the Hope Grows farm made some new friends, and encouraged individuals in the community to participate.

“We view farming as activism for restoring healthy communities, and find it spiritually and economically rewarding to establish direct relationships with our eaters as often as possible”

With their $5,000 grant, Hope Grows hopes to build upon their mission to provide “local food access, education, skills training, and rural community development” through a small-scale poultry processing facility. Off-site processing currently adds considerably to the cost of Hope Grows' products. Therefore, by having their own processing facility, Hope Grows will provide more families access to the healthy products they have to offer.

A Winter Plan and A Party

Happy Thanksgiving, y'all!
Elliott and I are taking some time to rest and be with our families, but we wanted to post a quick note about where you can find us (and our eggs, chicken, and pork) now that the markets have officially ended in both Statesboro and Savannah. The success of our farm is built on personal relationships, so we plan on keeping you updated throughout the winter season on how we can continue to support and nourish each other. Also, we want to invite you to a party!

How to support us in Savannah:
EVERY Saturday, 10:00 a.m. to noon - starting TOMORROW! - we'll be setting up with other vendors at the Corner of Bull and Park, across from Brighter Day. We will have eggs, chicken, and pork available throughout the winter market season. Our eggs are limited due to limited daylight (less daylight = less eggs), so please be flexible if we do not have them when you arrive at the market. Chicken and pork sales help us feed our laying hens in the winter when they're not pulling their weight on the farm, so we encourage you to give them a try if you haven't yet.

How to support us in Statesboro:
We will be marketing our products through http://statesboromainstreetmarket.locallygrown.net/, an online retail space. The ordering and pick-up details for every week are on the website, so take a look and call us if you have any questions at 912-863-6436. We will have eggs, chicken, and pork available throughout the winter market season. Our eggs are limited due to limited daylight (less daylight = less eggs), so please be flexible if we do not have them. Chicken and pork sales help us feed our laying hens in the winter when they're not pulling their weight on the farm, so we encourage you to give them a try if you haven't yet.

You're also more than welcome to come out to the farm to purchase directly from us any day of the week. We'll even let you pick out your eggs directly from the coop, and your chicken directly from the freezer (though that's less fun). Just give us a call at 912-863-6436 so we can expect you.

You're Invited! Farm Open House/Arianne's Epic 25th Birthday Party On Saturday, December 11th we are throwing an epic party: for you, for us, for the farm. We'll open at 4pm for those who want to come and see in the daylight what we've been up to all season and what we're planning for next year. Dinner is potluck-style at 7ish. We will provide chicken and beer. Please bring a side dish or dessert--and your friends! We will show-and-tell, but mostly we want to say thank you for your continued commitment and friendship. Please RSVP by e-mail or phone: 912-863-6436.

Let's keep in touch...

Friend Hope Grows on Facebook if you haven't already.

For the run-down on what we do and how we do it (including pictures and videos), check out our website: www.hopegrowsfarm.com

For stories and in-depth updates on farm projects that include a bit of wit and ranting, check out our blog: www.freshfarming.blogspot.com

Also, we're still good at communicating the old fashioned way. Call us at 912-863-6436 or stop by 284 Dover Road in Sylvania, GA.

This isn't the kind of relationship you have with your grocery store--we want to be a part of your family, and we want you to be a part of ours.

All the Best,

Arianne and Elliott
Hot. Young. Farmers.

Hope Grows on TV

Look at me, mom, I'm on TV. Listen to our nasally voices here - we are on the Farmers' Market Show which airs on the Northland Cable Channel. Thanks Jake and Suzanne!

Farmers Market Show, ep. 5 from Jake Hallman on Vimeo.

Elliott

Thanks Service Learners!

We had a great group of students out last week helping us de-nail 2x4s, pick pecans, and clean up our orchard, here they are in their power pose!



Elliott

Here comes the Pasture Clearing Brigade

So our back pasture was...well...a bit...well...A LOT...weedy. Pig weed, dill weed, goldenrod. Anything that grows tall and fast in the summer heat--we got it. For a while we fretted, especially around June when things really started taking off. And since we don't own a lawnmower, and the one that we do use is broken more often than not, we were overgrown--past our knees, then hips, then shoulders, then heads. Turns out, however, the problem is sometimes the solution (attention: little golden nugget of permaculture wisdom ahead). Just when we were about to let the weeds get to us--mentally, emotionally--the laying hens rotated into the back pasture. We learned very quickly that without the shade and protection offered by the overgrown foliage, the laying hens would have suffered severe heat and predation. Voila! Let 'em grow we did--realizing that nature is smarter than we are, and if we just watch and listen we can catch up to the connections she already has in mind for us.

But now the temps are cooling and it's time to clear everything anew--to start with a fresh slate for next year's grass growth. Enter the GSU Pasture Clearing Brigade. They descended upon our weedy pasture en masse with good attitudes (only one exception--and we made good fun of him) and work gloves to help with a task that would have taken Elliott and I...well...weeks. Why not use a tractor and do it in five minutes? Why use hand labor? Well, first off Elliott and I are too averse to debt and mechanically challenged to invest in a tractor. Secondly, when you drive repeatedly over pasture with heavy machinery, you inevitably compact the soil, which makes it difficult for roots to sprawl, inhibiting pasture growth and diversity. So we made an event of it--us and 10 new friends from GSU--and cleared over half the overgrowth in a few hours. Many hands make for fast, drastic, yet ecologically sound results. Thanks again, y'all. You're welcome back any time.

We have friends! (Country livin' ain't all that bad...)

So it could be said that for a while we were--well--a bit isolated. Elliott and I, in addition to being aspiring community educators, simply got tired of staring at each other. But with the WWOOFer program, service-learning students, and the farmers' markets combined--things have started to change. Our lives are now filled with fabulous, fearless people we'd like to tell you about...the movement is...moving!



Meet Kyle Huff (far left). A WWOOFer from the St. Louis area, he was with us for a glorious month. Didn't have a problem wrestling pigs or herding turkeys--a can-do sort of guy. He's now entertaining the idea of starting a farm on some family land. Godspeed, Kyle.



Meet our SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design) friends. Introduced through Mike Royer, a co-producer (customer) and friend of ours from the Forsyth Farmers' Market, this picture marks the first time we've ever had so many young people in the house at the same time. They're not all farmers, but each in their own way is connected to sustainable living/design. Everybody looks better when they're laughing...



Meet two truly fearless dudes--David and Brian. They hail from a GSU Environmental Biology course, and before coming to our farm had only seen chickens on TV. About 15 minutes after landing in Dover, GA, they were helping us clip the wings of our 450+ laying hens. (Below: Definitely weren't afraid to get dirty...yeah, that's what you think it is. It happens, man. But look at that smile on his face.)






And this is Ian, Jordan, and Preston--also from Environmental Bio at GSU. They helped us whip the garden into shape: mulching paths, weeding, planting, and watering. Aren't they so helpful and cute?

They keep us fresh. They keep us socialized. They are our sanity and our salvation--couldn't do it without 'em--our neighbors, our friends.

Feeling Grateful,
Arianne

A Community Farm, WE ARE!

Many thanks to the fantastic students from Georgia Southern University that crawled out of their Environmental Biology classroom and into Dover to put in some sweat hours here on the farm. Our mission: Garden Revival. Did we do it? Yes we did! They hand weeded (no chemicals or machinery here) over half the beds, which are now ready for fall planting (greens, broccoli, and carrots--oh my!). Hopefully they'll all become young farmers...or find some to support in their neighborhood.

By the way, I asked them to do their "power stance" for this photo. They really need to work on their power stances...

Gotta love it.
Arianne

Help Arianne get to Italy--go to Field of Greens!

So, I'm going to Italy...soon. Yep. Been a dream I've had for four years now--and finally, thanks to the generosity of: Slow Food Atlanta, the Coastal Organic Growers, and Slow Food USA (whew, that's alotta hyperlinks) it's coming true. If you haven't heard yet, I'm headed to Terra Madre--an international network of food producers, cooks, educators and students from 150 countries who are united by a common goal of global sustainability in food. The "food communities" of Terra Madre come together biennially in Turin, Italy to share innovative solutions and time-honored traditions for keeping small-scale agriculture and sustainable food production alive and well.

Huge honor, right? Right. I still don't believe I'm going. But I'll take pictures and videos and it'll probably all seem real once I get back...

In the meantime, Field of Greens is a farm festival happening this Sunday, October 3rd that brings together locally grown food, live music, and green living education, all in a family-friendly, fun environment. I'm mentioning it here because:

1.) I definitely think you should go if you can--I'll be there volunteering.
2.) Proceeds from Field of Greens benefit Slow Food Atlanta, who will then turn funds over to Terra Madre delegates from Georgia (ahem--yours truly) to help cover travel expenses to the conference.
3.) There's going to be good food, good music, and lots of sexy people (this is unconfirmed at the moment--but entirely possible when you're talking about folks that eat well).
4.) Why wouldn't you go?

Turkey Brooding Lessons

I've asked one of our turkeys to write down his tips and thoughts on brooding for any future turkey farmers. Here goes:

"Hi, I'm turkey #57. Here is my list of tips -

Brooder Safety
Always keep in mind that we will kill ourselves if given half a chance. Look in you brooder and get in the mind of your turkeys, say to yourself 'I'm a suicidal turkey - what can I kill myself on in here?' and then go over every inch of your brooder and remove any questionable situation - nail, spot we can get our legs caught, etc.

Dryness
If there is an area with a drip we will get soaked there even if the rest of your brooder is dry and toasty.

Bedding
Remember - we are NOT CHICKENS - we NEED fresh bedding every day, pine shavings for 2 weeks, hay for 6.

Green Material
We LOVE grass and weeds, start feeding this to us ASAP.

Distraction
You would be bored too if you spent 8 weeks in a brooder so keep us busy with green material, piles of straw, and other novelties or else we'll start pecking each other.

Supervision
If one of us gets a wound we will all turn into Hannibal Lector and peck him to death - so please check us frequently and pull anyone out before its too late!

Brooder Floorplan
If you try to use sides - like this - we will escape.



Better to use an open floor plan so there is no way out.



Feel free to contact me with any further questions."

Thanks Turkey #57! Appreciate you taking the time.

Up next - (once we've got it down) tips and thoughts on pasturing turkeys)

Elliott

Belated Pig Moving Videos

We have been so busy blogging has fallen by the wayside.

If you follow the blog, our first attempt at moving our pigs out to pasture was not very successful - see here.

It was a great learning experience however.

*Make sure your fence is properly grounded, 1 rod per joule. Our charger is 1.5 joules so I used 2 rods this time, instead of 1.

*Pigs do not like walking up steep inclines (i.e. 5 foot plywood up to the bed of the pickup), longer ramp into a trailer is best.

*Give your pigs access to what they will be moved in so they get used to it.

Loading, transporting, and unloading went very smoothly this time, we had one little hiccup once they were unloaded though...



With everyone back in and relaxed, pig bliss ensued.