There is a duality on how to care for plants. One one side, they get overwhelmed by rapid change, lose stamina in the heat, and need lots of nutrients to reach peak potential. The other side says, rain, wind, and sun are my playmates-I live outdoors! Farmer Bo takes a middle path. It's a two hour spa journey to get these babies into the ground. First, we establish an irrigation system in the freshly plowed row, and turn it on. The grey sandy soil darkens and covers the row with evenly spaced freckles. We go to the greenhouse and water the seedlings in their plastic trays. Out of three ties as many, only 5 kale trays (72 starts in total) are viable for planting in this heat. The broccoli will have to be restarted. Same thing happened to me at home. I started broccoli at the new moon in August and they all perished in the heat. Second, Farmer Bo pegs the 2 rows with a stick where the plants will go. I follow behind and dump a tablespoon of organic fertilizer in each hole where the soil is darkening at the irrigation drip. It's very efficient, elegant even. Third, the baby kale seedling is popped out of the mother tray and placed into the mother earth. Human hands press lovingly around the wound and seal in a nourishing intention. The water keeps flowing at a trickle Planting days are tops for me. Maybe more so than harvest. My work mantra has been 'Peace for everyone, everywhere', 'I love Syria' ... stuff like that. 'this Plant brings me Peace.' That's what prayer before meals is. Asking the food to forgive and love you. So we must show gratitude to the plant. Baby Kale, I appreciate you!
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Charleston, SC: New Island, New Farm :) New way of life
The warm sun of summer has settled me into the peaceful rhythm of Charleston, South Carolina. The coast is dotted with islands cut into the marshy landscape by rivers, like the Wando, Ashley, Cooper, and Edisto further escaping into the Atlantic Ocean. Sol Haven farm is a small patch of sandy soil on John's Island (which Wikipedia names as the 4th largest on the East Coast) and is run by a young fellow named Bo. Soil nutrition is the greatest concern of this farmer. Nutrient rich soil organically grows better vegetables with less labor. The logic here is mimicking nature for sustainable solutions. So we need to consciously add dead animal by products into the ground to release nitrogen and phosphorous from fish scraps, manure, bones, blood, and feathers--It's pretty raw out there. The farm has only been operating for a year on leased land. Homemade compost is created onsite using free waste from complimentary industry and tractor turning large piles started every week. This smelly method is an economical choice for small scale farming. The compost is used in new bed dressing. To maintain peak conditions, commercially processed organic fertilizer is applied to established plants and contains some of the above mentioned 'leftovers.' Mushroom helpers are also in full representation at Sol Haven. Spent mushroom grow-blocks (typically sawdust and mycelium) from a nearby monastary are added to the compost piles, and Mycorrhizae Innoculation is added to the field. It kind of 'turns on' the brain of the soil. In nature, endomcyorrhizal fungi colonize plant roots and create networks to source and gather nutrients to exchange. Adding animal carcasas and fungi to sand restores a natural balance of soil diversity ie. health. Then, the Farmer plants seeds, et voila! you have dinner :) Sol Haven [ http://www.solhavenfarm.com ] sells produce year round to downtown restaurants and at farmer's markets. I'm excited to be learning and growing with Bo. |
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