What is Growing Plants?John's Island-Homegrown-Farmer's Market, South Carolina. The stickers on this graph represent individual opinions from new friends I met today. I hosted the Permaculture Guild booth for the first time and came up with this interactive crowd sourcing activity. So much fun! Most people knew instantly how they felt and wanted to participate. The funniest reaction I got was several people asking if I did it for a school project. I answered that it was for fun, and that brought smiles. :)
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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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