Subscription Farming Workshop on December 17, 2011

Last night the Local Food Network held one of their periodic strategic planning meetings at the River School. At this meeting interested people (30 of us) identified local food economy trends and needs. Then we determined which aspects are really important and need advocacy. One of the messages we heard from new young farmers is the need for education and training on the business end of farming and how farming works in a high-desert environment. In this regard, Western Nevada College fills a valuable role with educational opportunities for future farmers. Here's the latest, from my mailbox to you.

 Western Nevada College Offers

Subscription Farming Workshop

Subscription services are not limited to magazines and newspapers anymore. Farmers have discovered the popularity of offering weekly subscriptions to consumers for local, seasonal produce.

Area growers can learn more about this trend at an upcoming Western Nevada College Specialty Crop Institute workshop.  “Subscription Farming for the Small Farm” meets Saturday, Dec. 17, 9 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., at WNC Fallon campus, 160 Campus Way. Cost is $35 for registrations by December 9 and $45 afterward. Lunch is included.  

Good for us! Florida's Ag-gag bill fails

Here's a good-news-update on the Take a Farm Picture -- Go to Jail post.  The bill that would have made it illegal to take pictures of agricultural facilities in Florida did not pass.  Minnesota and Iowa still have bills on the table though, and Monsanto is pushing hard for passage in Iowa. 
Read a bit about this development here.

When Slow Food USA called on farm-lovers to become farmarzzi and take pictures of local farms in response to these bills, we went straight to Girl Farm with one of our favorite families and took these shots.  We didn't even get frisked! 

Take a farm picture and go to jail -- Big Ag has plans for us

Imagine you’re a person who cares about people and animals so you take pictures of abuse and negligence. Then you share them with others who care.  Then you’re arrested, pay fines, and possibly spend some time in jail.  This is what Big Ag has planned in Florida, Iowa, and Minnesota.

Kids and gardens at Urban Roots Garden Classrooms Summer Camp 2011

Summer is just around the corner and it’s a great time to start thinking about outdoor activities.  If you’re looking for something unique and fun for the kids this year consider the Urban Roots Garden Classrooms Summer Camp.  Urban Roots is a dynamic non-profit dedicated to developing innovative opportunities for kids and educators to interact with nature, food, and each other.  This year the program has expanded to offer camp for kids of all ages from June through August.   Go to the Urban Roots Garden Classrooms to learn more about the organization, or here for more camp information and sign up.

Master Gardener 2011 annual plant sale

Dust off the little red wagon and grab your checkbook.  The annual Master Gardener plant sale is coming up soon. 

This is a great way to buy garden plants suited to our region, grown by experienced gardeners you might even know.  Here are some details:

When: Saturday May 21^st at 7:30 – 11:00a.  Come early because everyone else does.  Michael Janik reports the line was 60 people long 30 minutes prior to opening last year.

Where:  4955 Energy Way. The UNR Cooperative Extension moved to a new location this year.

Prices and plants: Flowers and veggies in 4 inch pots for $1.50; ½ gallon shrubs, grape vines, and flowers, prices vary but they’re still low. 

We’re not kidding….come early!  Bring a thermos of coffee or tea and be prepared to stand and chat for a while. The line looks daunting but the people are really nice and the early shopper really does get the tomato plant (Michael Janik said this first…I’m copying him!). A couple of tips – bring something to carry your plants in while you browse, and a checkbook or cash.

Are you a backyard farmer? Hungry Mother Organics wants to know!

More and more people are growing their own food.  Some are growing lettuce and tomatoes in containers on their apartment patio, and others are buying acreage and growing for their communities.  It's hard to know how many of us are out there but Hungry Mother Organics is trying to find out how many backyard farmers are active in northern Nevada.  If you want to get on the map, go to 1000 Backyard Farms and sign up.

This event is a great opportunity to meet the people who make local food go in Nevada.  It was hoppin' the first year I attended and has been getting better each year.

From my mailbox to you:

Join us for the 2011 Nevada Small Farm Conference!

Friday & Saturday, March 11-12 • Fallon

$75 Early Bird • $95 after Feb 24 (both days include lunch)

SATURDAY only (Community Education Day) • $40 (includes lunch)

THURSDAY Pre-Conference Workshops • $25 • $30 after Feb. 24

FRIDAY Evening Reception •$30 • $35 after Feb 24

From bees to beef - there's something for everyone at this conference!

Additional information at http://www.wnc.edu/sci

Exhibitor and sponsorship information is available at www.wnc.edu/sci , or call Ann

Louhela, 775-351-2551.

Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food!

Think Wal-Mart will benefit local farmers or eaters? Really?

Recently we've heard that Wal-Mart intends to expand into two new markets, local food and urban neighborhoods. For people who like or need their stuff cheap and plentiful, these sound like really great ideas but on closer examination the long-term consequences have proven otherwise. Normally I wouldn't post anything about Wal-Mart on my blog because it goes against my core philosophy, that people are healthier and happier when they are for something rather than against something. But I can’t let this opportunity pass.

Last week I started hearing some friends and acquaintances talking about how great it would be to buy their local food from Wal-Mart, and that this market will be good for farmers and eaters. Really? This morning while drinking my coffee and reading the news I came across this article, Wal-Mart and the End of the Local Food Movement. It concisely lays out what really happens to producers who enter into a "partnership" with Wal-Mart. Low paying jobs, family owned business driven out of town, producers enslaved by bullying contract negotiations, huge formerly healthy producers periodically driven into bankruptcy, and ravaged communityscapes when the company abandons a megastore to build a super-mega store 3 miles down the road. Think a small family farm can survive these practices? Not likely.

Scary!  Nooooo....doooon't doooo iiiiit!

Slow Food Reno Fall Potluck - another great meal and chat!

Last night we attended another fantastic Slow Food Reno potluck to eat, visit, and learn along with the usual cohort and many new folks, about 60-70 of us.  Pantagonia again let us use their fantastic facility for the spread...we love them!

Of course the food was fantastic.  There's no pressure to be a culinary star; we just bring what we like to eat.  It's amazing how diverse and colorful the dishes are.  I don't have any pics because I came prepared only to eat and chat, which is exactly what Slow Food is about.

Learn to grow food in Northern Nevada on a community scale

The other night at the Slow Food Reno Fall Potluck Rick Lattin talked about a few of the most important agricultural and local food programs to develop over the last 10 years or so.  Among them is the Western Nevada College Specialty Crop Institute.  This program reaches out to people who want to grow food on a community scale and teaches them how it's done.  Much of the new local food grown in Nevada comes not from existing large commodity crop farms (hay, alfalfa, etc.) converting to specialty crops (tomatoes, fava beans, etc.) but from folks who want to grow food on just a few acres, so these workshops are for anyone who interested in local food production.  The Romanos (see pic) are excellent examples of contemporary farmers.

Here's another fantastic and versatile program for both approaches. When I get to work today I'm going to ask the boss for November 19th off!

From my mailbox to you:

Buy Nevada-grown baby ginger at the Great Basin Community Food Co-op

Ray and Virginia Johnson of Custom Gardens Organic Farm has been growing baby ginger for a couple of years with great success.  The only way to get some was through their CSA , which has been full for years, or drive out to Silver Springs to pick it up.  Now we can get it through the Great Basin Community Food Co-op!

Baby ginger is very different from the fiberous tuber we see in the supermarket.  It is perishable and tender so needs to be used up or stored.  My friend Mackenzie buys a bunch of baby ginger each year and puts it in the freezer. 

Below is a bit of information and some recipe ideas from Ray and Virginia.  From my mailbox to you:

Local ginger is available now!

From my mailbox to you:

Certified Organic Baby-Young Ginger Crop is being dug in October and November, Order now, while supply lasts!

Our regular Sunday On-Farm Market has ended for the season, but seasonable produce is still available by order. Farmers, Ray and Virginia Johnson are growing Certified Organic Ginger in the hoop-house to the left, (hoop house #3 two 50’wide beds) along with future beets, carrots and turnips in the other beds. The other three hoop houses are planted to cold-hardy fall, winter, to spring vegetables, available by orders to be picked up at the farm, starting the second week of November.

Pick some up at 3701 Elm St. Silver Springs, Nevada - 89429


More information? customgardens@att.net  or 775-577-2069

Nevada needs a mobile slaughterhouse unit!

This is so exciting, and so important for Nevada! On Thursday September 9th, from 8:30 to 3:00 (RSVP by September 1st) the USDA will be in Carson City to talk about mobile slaughterhouse units. If we ever want to buy Nevada meat in a market setting we're going to need one of these.

A key component of a responsive local food network is the consumer's ability to buy locally raised meat one cut at a time, that is, from the market. Buying in bulk is an option and ultimately more sustainable because we eat the whole animal rather than just the stylish cuts, but sometimes it would be nice just to pop down to the market and pick up one piece. We don't have that option in Nevada because we lack a USDA inspector to provide the mandatory certification. A Nevada rancher can arrange to have their product individually packaged and USDA approved but they have to transport the cattle out of state and then transport it back as a saleable product. However, the increased cost to the rancher is rarely what a consumer wants to pay. These mobile slaughterhouse units come with USDA inspection certification.
A mobile slaughterhouse unit is exactly what we need to reestablish the link between ranchers and new local food consumers in Nevada.

I’m off work this day so plan to go…maybe I’ll see you there. Woo hoo!

Red Meat Mobile Slaughter Unit Information Session
Thursday, September 9, 8:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.
2621 Northgate Lane, Suite 15, Carson City (UNCE office)
RSVP by Sept. 1 to Clint Koble, 775-784-5411 x117

Nevada raised grass-fed beef and lamb

These guys have been around for a while but I just learned about them last month. Though we haven't eaten Albaugh meat yet I hear good things about them, and they certainly have tons of experience.

From my mailbox to you:

"Albaugh Ranch in Fallon is now offering grass-fed beef and lambs, locally slaughtered and processed.
For details, call Norris Albaugh, 775-423-3361, or visit their website."

Canning tomatoes - get 'em while you can

It's been a really crazy growing season. While I sit here in sipping coffee in my winter fleece, outside the weather is cold and cloudy...and it's August! Usually this time of year I’m giving away tomatoes just to get them out of my house, but not this year. Of the seventeen tomato plants I started with in May six survived and 1.5 are producing ripe tomatoes. The rest just sat there and took up space and nutrients all season. Thank goodness for farmers otherwise my family would have to get through winter eating fewer of my favorite cold weather meals.

Lattin Farms has tomatoes now. Get them while you can!


$15 for a 20 pound box (update - I called today to put in my order and learned that the price is $20 per 20 pound box) or 50¢ a pound for u-pick - all certified organic. Delivery options can be made for Reno. Call the farm at Toll Free: (866) 638-6293 or Local: (775) 867-3750 to order.

How are we doing? Results from informal Nevada farmer survey

It’s been about four years since I discovered that there are still farmers in Nevada and that it is possible to buy locally grown food. In 2006 I didn’t know anyone who purchased food grown in Nevada, or anyone who even knew a farmer. Now there are 20-25 people in my world for whom local farmers provide much of their food and almost daily I meet many who shop at farmers markets and would buy local food if it were easier to get. The market says that where there is demand new sources will develop, so it seems logical that if more Nevadans are eating locally we would eventually see more people farming, an increased number of access points, and new products.

All over the world new farmers are taking over abandoned farmlands and converting them to organic farms. Some farmers who’ve managed to avoid or get out of the Monsanto-cycle that often results in financial ruin are converting to alternative practices. So, I need to know…is Nevada part of this trend?

Nevada grown fruit? Wouldn't that be great!

I love fruit, which is why I spend a big portion of our food budget at the farmers markets this time of year. Each year I fill our pantry and freezer with fruits grown for taste and harvested when they're ripe.  Ahh...if only some of them were grown in Nevada.  Yep, Nevada grown fruit is scarce but here's an opportunity to help fix that.  Learn more about growing fruit on a farm or in your yard.  From my mailbox to you...

 WNC Specialty Crop Institute Small Farm Orchard & Berry Production Workshop


A harvest-time workshop on orchard and berry production could bear fruit for those interested in becoming commercial small farmers, or improving their current farming processes.

Western Nevada College Specialty Crop Institute announces an orchard and berry production workshop on Friday, Sept. 10, 9 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., at WNC Carson City campus, 2201 West College Parkway. Cost is $35 if registered by Monday, Aug. 31, or $45 after August 31. Lunch is included in registration; seating is limited.

Participants will learn about orchard and berry production for the small farm including best varieties to grow in northern Nevada's climate and soils; site selection and planting, fertilization, pruning, pest management, and more. The workshop is intended for experienced and new farmers interested in small-scale commercial production and sales. It includes classroom training and an on-farm tour of Agape Organics, a certified organic apple orchard in Washoe Valley.

Featured speaker is local expert Michael Janik, who has grown and experimented with orchard fruits and berries for more than a decade. He's grown more than 100 apple varieties, as well as currants, grapes, berries and more. Janik is a certified arborist and is accomplished at grafting.

Eat this! First baby squash summer of the season

We bought these beautiful baby summer squash from the California Street Lattin Farm booth this morning.  They're perfect for a recipe we got out of the new Eating Local cookbook mentioned earlier...Summer Squash Carpaccio with Arugula, Pecorino, and Almonds.  We've served it twice and everyone raved!

Summer activity - kids in the garden with art!

Join the Riverschool and Urban Roots Garden Classrooms for a week of fun as we grow our own
food, make sculptures out of nature, harvest fruits and veggies, make fashion out of trash, find garden
critters, turn gourds into art, and MORE!

Who: 5-11 year old students

Where: The Riverschool
7777 White Fir St.
Reno, NV 89523

When: August 9-13 from 9am-3pm

Cost: $125 early bird registration by July 15,

$150 after July 15

Bring: Sack lunch (we provide daily salad), water bottle, sunscreen!

EcoArt + Gardening Day Camp. First come, first serve! Visit us online at http://www.urgc.org/ to secure your spot or contact Lynnae Fischbach at lynnae@urgc.org to register today!

Happy to be a CSA member 'cause the weather is making it tough all over

It's tough year for farming all over the world this year. Floods and tornados in the mid-west, cool weather and water wars in California, drought and political conflict throughout the world.  (Wow...gloomy...shake it off)

Last year the weather was great in Nevada...we actually had an abundant fruit crop. This year it has been far too cold for far too long. The growth in my vegetable garden has come to a complete stop. The greens have gone milky and bitter because the daytime temps are higher, but the warm weather crops are dormant because the air temps have been abnormally low well into the traditional growing season so the soil temps remain too low.   This is a picture of summer squash.  The weather stayed warm long enough to encourage the plant to set blossoms, then a mid-June freeze killed the foliage. 

I look into my backyard and get cranky because my hobby isn't going well and the lack of growth is messing with my dreams of donating huge quantities of fresh food this year. Then I remember that farmers deal with the same issues but on a huge scale....and their livelihoods rely on it. This year I feel really good about being a CSA member because I know that our family's support will help our farmers work through what looks to be a tough year for food. Not just in Nevada, but everywhere.