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[Livingontheland] Fw: [soilandhealth] Beginning Farmers (x-over post)

From: "E. E. Mitchamore Jr" <emitch@att.net>
To: "Living on the Land" <livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: [Livingontheland] Fw: [soilandhealth] Beginning Farmers (x-over post)
Date: Tue, 27 Nov 2007 17:02:55 -0600

Here's a good example from another list.

I, too, am not a farmer, and sympathize with the difficulties of becoming one, including the land cost mentioned earlier. However, I think the best advice (mentioned often), is to start where you are, with what you CAN do. My food gardening is limited to 400 sq ft, right now, but at least I'm learning how to do it. Maybe I'll never expand or grow food for others, but I can be less of a burden on those who do.

E. E. "Mitch" Mitchamore
www.hillcountrynatives.biz

----- Original Message -----

From: dylanford@optonline.net

To: soilandhealth@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2007 4:45 PM

Subject: [soilandhealth] Beginning Farmers (x-over post)

Folks -
From time to time people will write to the various agriculture discussion lists to which I subscribe, stating their intent or at least desire to begin farming, people seeking advice and direction. I have gardened for nearly forty years and worked in nurseries and at grounds-keeping from time to time, but do not know the nuts and bolts involved in farming firsthand to offer any advice.
But I would like to make one modest suggestion that I think would be of value to any would-be farmers - I recently had the good fortune of watching a documentary film called "How To Save The World: One Man, One Cow, One Planet," which details and discusses the work of 80 year old Biodynamic farmer Peter Proctor (of New Zealand) enticed out of retirement by the request that he come and share his wealth of knowledge and gentle wisdom with farmers in India. The film follows him as he travels around the Indian countryside visiting farms and teaching the farmers simple, inexpensive methods of revitalizing their soils and crops and recreating a sustainable and restorative agriculture in the devastating aftermath of the ruinous "Green Revolution", a western-imposed, corporate-driven model of chemical 'commodity' farming which to date is responsible for the suicides of around 150,000 bankrupted and poisoned Indian farmers and uncountable acres of chemically scorched earth.
I have been studying Biodynamic growing for a few years now, and this movie will not teach a farmer how to do it - but it does offer an introduction to a few of the methods which came out of a series of lectures given by the Austrian educator and 'Renaissance Man', Rudolf Steiner in 1924 and which were elaborated upon by many practioners in the four score and three years since. The movie gives a very good impression of the reverence for life and cooperation with the natural world that is at the heart of Biodynamics. The elderly Mr. Proctor, with his physical energy and engaging personality and sweet spirit is perhaps the best advertisement one could hope for to show the effects of eating properly raised food throughout one's life. This robust healthiness and happiness is also reflected in the members of the Indian farm families who have been practicing biodynamic for some time.
Biodynamic farming and gardening methods are a bit of a tough-sell in the west since they cannot be easily reduced to the sort of parched scientific analysis that the western mind has been trained to expect and demand, but as the professional agronomist commenting throughout the film admits, biodynamic methods get consistently superior results with far less expense and danger to the farm family, the animals, the soil, the environment and the consumer.
I would suggest this film to anyone interested in agricultural pursuits, or even anyone wanting to see a hopeful, positive initiative underway in a time when it seems all we ever get is more bad news, more doom and gloom. Do yourself a nice favor; pester your local library or video shop to get this good movie, or buy it online.
If one is (or becomes) interested in learning more about biodynamics (and farming in general), I would suggest joining the lively and eclectic talk at BDNow! (Biodynamic Food and Farming Discussion) - you can join at:
http://lists.envirolink.org/mailman/listinfo/bdnow
and to begin reading the online materials at:
http://oregonbd.org/
http://www.biodynamic.org.nz/
http:/www.jpibiodynamics.org/
Sincerely, dylan

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

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[Livingontheland] Fw: [soilandhealth] Beginning Farmers (x-over post), E. E. Mitchamore Jr, 11/27/2007
- Re: [Livingontheland] Fw: [soilandhealth] Beginning Farmers (x-over post), Tradingpost, 11/27/2007
  - Re: [Livingontheland] Fw: [soilandhealth] Beginning Farmers (x-over post), Russell Bryant, 11/28/2007