Farm Indiana | May 2015

MAY 2015

Rural Living & Local Food

Raising Good Kids Goats and students benefit through FFA

ALSO INSIDE

Four Willows Farm Magnificent Mushrooms The Garden Table

Rural Living & Local Food

Contents MAY 2015

38 Continuing Education 40 Farm to Field

14 This Old Farm 18 Abundant

49 Local Food

Mushrooms

Columns by growers

The Garden Table

Harvest Farm

22 Salem Farms 26 McCarthy Farms 30 Owen Valley FFA 36 Farm to School

North Manchester High School

MAY 2015

6

6 Four Willows Farm 10 Magnificent

Rural Living & Local Food

ON THE COVER

A kid from Owen Valley FFA’s goat farm. Read more on page 30.

Photo by Josh Marshall

Raising Good Kids Goats and students benefit through FAA

ALSO INSIDE

Four Willows Farm Magnificent Mushrooms The Garden Table

Good preparation is necessary,

A Great Marketing Plan Completes the Process 6672 East 650 South | Edinburgh, IN 46124 812-526-5574 | 800-284-2676 | kokomograin.com FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 3

EDITOR’S NOTE

The Grass is Always Greener

I

I’ve been watching the grass closely these past few weeks. The pastures where our goats and alpacas roam can barely grow before being eaten down. When we’re able, we let the goats out of the fenced yards to roam the entire property. Once given their freedom, they jump and run, making their ways from the backyard to the front yard to the side yard and back to the backyard again. At the time that I write this, we’ve yet to mow this year, and these untouched grounds offer an all-natural salad bar that’s both tall and velvety green.

If you were to ask the goats I suspect they’d say the grass is, then, definitely more delicious on the other side of the fence.

I can vouch that it’s a more vibrant green.

I’ve also seen a few of those inspirational quotes floating around the Internet lately — the ones about how the grass isn’t always greener on the other side … so long as you water the grass on your side. This makes me think not only about relationships, which is what I think most of those quotes are geared toward, but also of agriculture in Indiana.

The stories that we print in Farm Indiana are regularly focused on hobby farmers-turned-successful-entrepreneurs or on small farm food producers who have big dreams. The farm features that we include within these pages tell stories of hope and success.

These tales are inspiring to me to read. I see hard work that pays off. I see the fruits of labor. I see good stewards of our land and careful caretakers of our earth. I write this Editor’s Note on April 22.

Today is the day we celebrate Earth Day, so it’s only appropriate that my mind is on the green.

I believe it was famous Kentucky farmer and poet Wendell Berry who said the earth is what we all have in common. And it’s true. We have to work together to care for our environment, to feed our soil so that it can feed us. And if we do that well, the grass, I’m sure, will remain a brilliant — and delicious to many — green.

A monthly publication of Home News Enterprises, Farm Indiana offers the local news and views of Indiana’s farming world, including features about local families and their farms, agriculture businesses, equipment and technological advances, educational outreach programs and more. Farm Indiana promotes and celebrates Indiana’s rich history and tradition in farming; serves as a conduit of information among growers, producers, farmers, retailers, farming organizations and local food consumers; educates readers about the nutritional, social and financial importance of local food support and consumption; and highlights Indiana local foods and agritourism.

PUBLISHER Chuck Wells EDITOR Sherri Lynn Dugger CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

Cissy Bowman, Rachel Brandenberg, Liz Brownlee, Katherine Coplen, Katie Glick, Jessica Hoopengardner, Cheryl Carter Jones, Shawndra Miller, Jon Shoulders, Clint Smith, Rebecca Townsend, Ryan Trares, Heidi Unger, Catherine Whittier COPY EDITOR Katharine Smith SENIOR GRAPHIC ARTIST Margo Wininger ADVERTISING ART DIRECTOR Amanda Waltz ADVERTISING DESIGN

Emma Ault, Hollie Brown, Dondra Brown, Tonya Cassidy, John Cole, Julie Daiker, Ben Hill, Phil Manning, Josh Meyer, Desiree Poteete, Tina Ray, Kelsey Ruddell, Robert Wilson PHOTOGRAPHER Josh Marshall IMAGE TECHNICIAN Matt Quebe

©2015 by Home News Enterprises.

All rights reserved. Reproduction of stories, photographs and advertisements without permission is prohibited.

Comments, story ideas, events and suggestions should be sent to Sherri Lynn Dugger, The Republic, 333 Second St., Columbus, IN 47201, call (812) 379-5608 or email farmindiana@hnenewspapers.com.

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4 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

FIELD NOTES

»

Great Clips GREGORY MARLETT of Hard Way Farms in Martinsville says that the tip he most likes to share with his sustainable gardening classes is to mulch with a 4- to 6-inch layer of grass clippings.

Marlett says that worms and critters cause the insulating layer of grass clippings to break down at the rate of approximately an inch a week. The worms eat the clippings, and their droppings then become nutrients available to the plants. “You can’t keep taking from the soil without giving something back,” he says. “This is a quick and easy way to give back.”

A mulch made of grass clippings not only feeds the soil, but it also helps to block weeds and hold valuable moisture. Marlett warns that there is a delicate balance when mulching with grass.

Gregory Marlett

FARM TECH

The thickness of the mulch layer is very important. The layer must be thick enough to insulate the soil from hot summer temperatures but no so thick that it begins to compost and builds too much heat in the soil.

The mulch layer should be replaced approximately one time per month. For large gardens, collecting enough grass clippings to replace each layer on a regular basis may be a challenge. Marlett suggests that if gardeners strike a deal to collect clippings from neighbors, they need to be sure that the grass wasn’t treated with chemicals before being mowed.

BONUS GARDENING TIP: Marlett is also a big fan of square-foot gardening and has constructed a handy template, which can be used over and over again to measure and space plantings in his gardens. Marlett simply spaces two wood stakes one foot apart and then lays two stakes across them, horizontally, and screws them all together. Place each plant in the middle of your template before moving the template to the next space.

— Catherine Whittier

BUZZWORTHY

Website brings beekeeping records from the hive to your hard drive

H

» HIVETRACKS TAKES beekeeping into the digital age. The website allows beekeepers to manage multiple hives. The goal: to help the beekeeper keep healthier hives. A history is kept of all feedings, treatments, inspections, harvests and more.

Greenfield resident Greg Landuyt became interested in beekeeping a couple of years ago and obtained his first bee hives last year. His son-in-law, who also keeps bees, introduced him to HiveTracks as a way to gather information. “I

got on it and started playing with it,” Landuyt says. “It’s real simple, and it’s not hard to use.”

The website, hivetracks. com, offers step-by-step videos about how to use the site. Beekeepers can track the number of yards where they keep bees, as well as the number of hives, the environment in which the bees are living (natural, agricultural or urban), the source of bees and the queen, and the date the hive was created. Then, models of each hive can be built online, with exact placement of pollen traps, feeds, etc.

The next step is where Landuyt says HiveTracks shines. Inspections are important to all beekeeping operations, and HiveTracks puts all that information in one place. “I like to keep track of … what the patterns look like,” he says. “The

big thing is looking for hive beetles and just (monitoring) the general health of the hive.”

The inspection module is comprehensive; it includes inspection dates and times, plus room for notes on temperature, population levels, odors, treatments and honey levels.

Besides detailed records, Landuyt says the biggest benefit of using HiveTracks is the community aspect that can be found online. A feature allows beekeepers to create groups with nearby beekeepers in order to share information and reports. “Since everybody’s in

the same area, it lets you know what’s going on around here locally,” Landuyt says.

—Garrett Kelly

HOG WILD Darby Simpson of Simpson Family Farm in Martinsville has found a better way to load his pigs when it comes time for making the trip to the butcher. He sets up his livestock trailer in the pigs’ grazing area and places the feed at the foot of the loading ramp. He then begins carrying buckets of the feed to be poured into a tub in the back of the trailer. When it’s time to make the trip to the butcher, the pigs have already grown accustomed to finding their food in the back of the trailer.

Simpson is able to simply close the doors behind the feeding pigs. This method, he says, eliminates stress for the animals.

— Catherine Whittier

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 5

trust A MATTER OF

The owners of Four Willows Farm use one horse’s disability to teach riders a basic foundation

By Ryan Trares Photography by Josh Marshall

6 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

T

THE BROWN HORSE trots around the indoor arena at Four Willows Farm, moving in an elliptical path on the rocky dirt. Named Houdini, he moves with ease. He turns, slows to a walk or speeds up, all with simple commands from his rider.

For most trained horses, it’s no great accomplishment to follow basic riding instructions. But Houdini is different. He is completely blind in both eyes, having learned to rely entirely on voice commands and his riders to keep him safe during lessons.

“If you didn’t tell someone he was blind, you’d never know,” says Jennifer Abel, owner and head trainer at Four Willows Farm. “It’s just amazing the amount of trust that’s there.”

Houdini has become a kind of mascot for Four Willows Farm, a Greenwood-area horse barn that has been in operation since 2002. The farm specializes in training American Saddlebred horses, offering lessons, camps and the opportunity to compete throughout the Midwest.

Houdini has been with the farm since the start and is a symbol of the bond that can grow between a horse and its rider.

Houdini, Jen Abel, son Gabe, 13, and Jen’s father, Tony Boxdorfer.

“It was amazing because he was easy,” Abel says. “He knew what we were doing with him, because he knew us so well, and he trusted us.”

Four Willows Farm — named for the trees dotting the horse farm — grew out of the love of horseback riding shared by Abel and her parents, Tony and Linda Boxdorfer. All three of them ride and show, and Abel has been involved with horses most of her life.

She attended William Woods University in Fulton, Missouri, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in equestrian science. She knew her career needed to revolve around horses. “Horseback riding is such a huge stress reliever for me,” she says. “I wouldn’t do well at a desk job; I’m an outdoorsy person who needs to be up and moving. It made me happy since I was a teenager.”

The family’s start-up operation was small. They purchased property in Greenwood, starting with eight horses in a barn with no electricity and no running water. “We built it from the ground up,” Abel says.

The business remains a family venture, with Tony Boxdorfer regularly cleaning stalls on the weekends and Linda Boxdorfer showing horses.

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 7

Abel with Houdini.

“We have so many good memories of riding and showing horses,” Abel says.

“Every family should have this.”

Four Willows Farm now has 24 horses and offers a wide variety of programs for lessons and shows. Abel makes sure each horse gets about 40 minutes of exercise each day. The horses are brushed before and after exercise, and workers clean the stalls every day.

“We’re very particular about keeping things clean and picked up here,” she says.

For the past 13 years, Houdini has been the most popular horse for beginning riders. He has always been a favorite for his gentle demeanor and willingness to be led, even when he could only see out of one eye.

But Houdini went completely blind in 2013 after his retina was injured, robbing him of sight in his only good eye. Veterinarians eventually had to remove the eye.

For most horses, that would signal the end of their riding careers. But Abel credits the trust that had developed between him and the staff at Four Willows as keeping him part of the lesson rotation.

“As all of this was happening, we put him on a trailer to take him up to Purdue, put him in a stall that he’d never been in,” she says. “Some horses are stubborn about getting on a trailer or doing anything. Here was a horse that would do anything we asked him to do.”

—Jennifer Abel Veterinarians warned the family not to ride the horse because it wouldn’t be safe for the animal or the riders. But Abel insisted that he had to get out and exercise. She kept riding him, slowly testing to ensure that he was still able to take commands.

“Horses were my savior as a teenager to help me stay out of trouble. We want other kids to get that benefit, too.”

8 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Jamie Springer, 18, with Houdini.

Abel has taught Houdini voice commands, instructing him when to walk, trot and canter. His years of experience with riders mean that he starts following a command as Abel shouts it out, before the riders even try to guide him with the reins and their legs.

Houdini doesn’t travel to shows that Four Willows riders compete in throughout the Midwest. But the farm hosts about five competitions each year, and he does take part in those.

“He’s in the show with other horses and other riders, and no one even knows,” Abel says.

The ease with which Houdini fits into Four Willows Farm’s program is vital to what the owners want to do. They try to lay an educational foundation for their riders, teaching that horses are dependent and delicate animals, despite their strength and power.

Much of the lessons focus on horse care, such as brushing, cleaning and exercising the animals. “The more we can teach them (riders) about horses, how to care for them, the better,” Abel says.

She also helps her teenage and young adult riders see the emotional, social and mental benefits of riding horses. Taking care of a 1,100-pound animal — feeding, cleaning stalls, exercising it — requires a significant time commitment, but can be immensely rewarding.

“Horses were my savior as a teenager to help me stay out of trouble,” Abel says. “We want other kids to get that benefit, too.

Four Willows Farm OWNERS: Jennifer Abel and her parents, Tony and Linda Boxdorfer

1213 N. Franklin Road, Greenwood

WHERE:

A full-service training facility specializing in American Saddlebred training, showing and riding instruction.

WHAT:

HORSES:

24

Available to children as young as 2, up to adults. Trainers teach saddle-seat riding and beginning Western riding.

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INFORMATION:

fourwillowsfarm.com FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 9

A FUN GUY

White oyster mushrooms

10 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

For Eric Osborne, growing mushrooms is about both form and fungus

By Shawndra Miller Photography by Josh Marshall

Eric Osborne

INSIDE A LOW-SLUNG building south of Paoli, Eric Osborne’s 5-year-old mushrooming enterprise teems with fungal life. Each room of Magnificent Mushrooms supports a different phase in the lifespan of a mushroom. The fruiting chambers are set to the exact daytime/nighttime temperatures and humidity levels preferred by the lion’s mane, shiitake, reishi and oyster mushrooms sprouting from blocks shelved there. At the other end of the building, a laboratory equipped with a flow hood keeps contaminants from infecting newly cloned specimens.

But of all the rooms in his indoor mushroom operation, Osborne’s favorite is what comes between the fruiting chambers and the lab. It’s called the “inoculation room.”

Here, resting in plastic bags lined up on metal shelving, grow filaments that will produce the gourmet mushrooms he distributes to area restaurants.

“This is the neural network of the mushroom,” he says, touching one of the plump bags containing a mass of blurry whitish material growing through chocolate-brown grain. The grain will soon be shot through with mushroom mycelium.

Mycelium is the part of fungi that often goes unnoticed in its natural habitat, because it spreads underground or inside the growing medium, such as rotting wood.

But these threads are what precedes and supports the fruiting body or mushroom.

Osborne notes that one cubic inch of myce-

Shiitake mushrooms

lium contains threads that would stretch for three miles if laid end to end.

Because of the way this material can transmit chemical information, mycelium is comparable to a brain. “It’s also the digestive and sensory organs of the mushroom,” he adds. “I feel very close to my babies here.”

“Babies” might sound like an odd choice of words, but it’s no mere metaphor for Osborne, who’s been cultivating mushrooms for 10 years, commercially for the last five.

Cloning his stock allows him to continue working with the same organism over time.

“I’ve been eating and living with this same organism for five years,” he explains. “Mushrooms are more animal than plant. They really become like family.

“I very much hope and feel strongly that these are going to be lifelong companions.”

Osborne didn’t start out as a mushroom aficionado. Raised in Kentucky, in his younger years he had little use for fungi, beyond kicking puffball mushrooms to release their dusty spores. (“Mushrooms: They’re not just for kicking anymore,” quips one of his presentations.)

Those eminently kickable puffballs are among the many edible wild mushrooms he now hunts in the southern Indiana woods he calls home. As a state-designated wild mushroom expert, Osborne is one of the few who can legally take such finds to market.

That is, until now. On this March Saturday, he’s about to pilot a certification class for morel hunters. “As a service to the health department,” he says, “we’re helping people get certified to sell morels, so that we can distribute them nationwide.”

The need for a certification program arose when federal standards for mushroom sales tightened in 2014. Indiana already had a FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 11

The mushroom growing process starts with hardwood substrate (sawdust, wheat bran, cotton seed hulls) that is sterilized.

rule allowing only state-recognized experts to sell wild-gathered mushrooms, but there was no standard for that designation.

So Osborne, together with Hoosier Mushroom Society founder Steve Russell, developed a certification course for morels to fill that gap. Working in partnership with the Indiana State Board of Health and Purdue Extension, they created a course now being offered in several venues statewide. They also will launch a program covering laterseason wild mushrooms, such as oysters, black trumpets and maitake. Certification is valid for a three-year period.

Indiana is a leader in setting up this type of curriculum, according to Russell.

“I wouldn’t say we’re the first, but we’re definitely a progressive state in this area,” he says. “There are very few states that have certification programs.”

The duo’s goal is to facilitate a safe market for wild mushrooms, with potentially farreaching economic benefit.

It’s fitting that Osborne is preparing people to legally sell such wares, because his

Blue oysters

12 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

passion for all things mycological started with a walk through the forest.

“Initially it was just about sourcing wild food — this extremely high-value wild food,” he recalls when asked what started him down this path.

Then he read “Mycelium Running,” a seminal work by renowned mycologist Paul Stamets. Osborne learned that fungi offer much more than a free source of nutrition and deliciousness. The fungal kingdom is said to be capable of boosting both planetary and personal health, though many have been slow to catch on to this idea. Raised on fears of eating something deadly, many people avoid all mushrooms.

But Osborne’s out to change that. He’s positively evangelical when he begins to share the much-maligned mushroom’s power as food and medicine, as environmental remediator and as therapeutic agent.

He reports that several studies are under way at Ivy League universities to explore psychoactive mushrooms’ potential for addressing issues like post-traumatic stress disorder and addiction.

Closer to home, Assumption High School in Kentucky is working with a food service company to place mushroom grow kits in the classroom and then use the harvest in the lunchroom. A former teacher himself, Osborne has developed lesson plans to accompany classroomgeared grow kits.

Then there’s mycoremediation, a relatively new

balance our meat consumption as a culture,” he says.

His mushroom farm now supplies cultivators all over the world with supplies and kits, while also delivering 150 pounds of edible mushrooms each week to restaurants in Bloomington and Louisville. In addition to classes geared toward mushroom hunters, he leads workshops on home cultivation, showing people how to inoculate logs to produce their own crop of shiitakes.

Currently employing one full-time and one part-time helper, Osborne is on the cusp of a major expansion.

Late last year he secured funding from key investors to import high-volume equipment from China.

Doing business internationally, he’s learned, requires mountains of red tape and a lot of patience. “It’s moved much slower than I expected,” he admits. But soon an industrial-sized autoclave, 20-byfield suggesting tremendous environmental 6-feet in size, will allow him to scale up gains. “One of the biggest things to come his operation. He plans to grow gradually, along is environmental rehabilitation with eventually adding enough staff to be able to fungi,” he says. “They’re just far underessell up to a thousand pounds of mushrooms timated in their capacity to detoxify sites, each week. clean up the environment and build soil.”

Already his production rate is high, Many fungi have the capacity to eat pollutconsidering the inputs. Within two weeks of ants, he says, cleaning both soil and water in cloning, the Petri dish the process. specimens are ready to Not only that, but be divided and added to many culinary mushsterilized grain. A short rooms can be raised “I wouldn’t say we’re the time later, these bags of commercially on waste first, but we’re definitely “grain spawn” go into products and byproda progressive state in a second generation of ucts that otherwise this area. There are very grain. So in a very short would need disposal. time, one Petri plate “We’re looking at going few states that have creates a 200 percent around the country and certification programs.” increase in “mycelial locating different waste —STEVE RUSSELL mass,” says Osborne. streams,” he notes.

“Within six weeks of “There’s a huge variety having (the culture) on of agricultural waste in a plate, I can have it on a dinner plate,” he Indiana that could be used for mushroom says, joking that he might inaugurate a new cultivation.” motto: “From plate to plate in six weeks!”

Though he has his hands in many of And harvest doesn’t end at the six-week these endeavors, the primary mission of his mark. Each block of shiitakes produces up to enterprise is to increase appreciation and four “flushes” — yielding about two pounds consumption of edible mushrooms. over the course of two months before the A vegetarian, Osborne is drawn to this material is returned to compost. Osborne food source as a low-impact protein option raises two shiitake varieties: Goliath and Old possessing “umami,” a succulent flavor Faithful. The latter is fuzzy enough to look comparable to meat. “I believe we can help

mammalian. Elegantly branching oysters and shaggy lion’s mane are among his other offerings.

But the farm stretches beyond the walls of this building; Osborne also grows winecaps in wood chips outdoors and keeps neat stacks of logs inoculated with shiitake spawn. Also, expanding his business into a nationwide distribution hub for Indiana’s wild morels and other wild mushrooms is his latest goal.

It’s an objective that fits hand in glove with the new certification program. He envisions regional franchises that would sell morels and other fungal delicacies under a common label.

As attendees of his certification class begin to fill the small front room where folding chairs face a white board, he dims the lights

Scott Monroe, instructor from Purdue Extension, teaches food safety during an Indianapolis morel mushroom certification course.

and revs up his laptop. Though the event wasn’t highly advertised, it’s soon standing room only. A group of 25 or so mushroom pickers settles in as he starts the slide show.

He scrolls through the slides, inviting input and discussion. The material covers morels’ habits and habitat; variants and impostors; and proper cleaning and transport.

One drawback: There’s no field work in this program; assembling everyone in the right place and right time for a morel flush isn’t practical. A written test with photographic identification closes out the

certification process. “I cannot overstate how careful we have to be when picking wild mushrooms,” he tells the group, wrapping up.

Through this endeavor, Osborne hopes to nurture a network of morel hunters who

MUSHROOM RESOURCES Hoosier Mushroom Society, guided walks and identification resources: hoosiermushrooms.org “National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mushrooms,” by Gary Lincoff “The Essential Guide to Cultivating Mushrooms,” by Steve Russell

can rely on his enterprise to market and promote the product. Today’s course is a start.

He foresees the process evolving through continued collaboration. The state mandates solid record-keeping for traceability, which he sees as the trickiest part. Also to be developed are clear guidelines for chefs and other purchasers, describing proper storage and preparation of mushrooms.

Turning wild mushrooms into a statebranded food product is worth this investment of time and care to get it right, he says.

“We’re really talking millions of dollars on the forest floor that rot away every year.”

“Our customers should make more money by dealing with MacAllister than by dealing with our competitors.”

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FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 13

This Old

FARM

J

Food processing facility and food alliance give new life to Indiana’s local market

By Rebecca Townsend | Photography by Josh Marshall

Jessica Smith 14 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Jessica Smith used to be a vegetarian.

Now, she runs This Old Farm Inc., a local meat processing and distribution service for small farmers — essentially, a slaughterhouse. The change in Smith’s beliefs, as well as in her eating habits, occurred over time after she began researching how to feed her family well in 1997.

By 2000, she and her husband, Erick Smith, had begun a small organic farm in Montgomery County.

As she transitioned the once-conventional farmland on her family’s 88-acre property to an organic growing operation, Smith grappled with soil quality and nutrient-deficit issues.

Then one day she had an epiphany. “We needed the animal livestock to be part of our circle of life,” she says.

She added one new animal species per year, starting with lamb, then chicken, then pork and then cows. By adding these species to a managed grazing rotation,

the manure distribution across the fields helped improve the soil’s nutrient profile and organic matter.

A decade later, the Smiths transformed Indiana’s local meat market by creating This Old Farm, based in Colfax, which is both a marketing alliance for locally grown products and a slaughter facility where small farmers can have meats processed and distributed.

Through This Old Farm, Smith and her husband developed high-premium, niche-market alternatives for producers weary of traditional commodity markets.

The business helps to place local food in a variety of outlets — from grocery stores to farmers markets. The enterprise emerged out of Smith’s scientific mind. She tried to answer such questions as: Why was it so hard to find convenient, consistent processing for her pasture-raised livestock? Through her research, she found that the U.S. had shuttered 3 percent to 5 percent of its slaughter facilities per year over a 30-year period.

She toyed with the chicken-or-egg question: Which had died first, Indiana’s small, local processing businesses or its small, local livestock production?

“People were saying local is not realistic; nobody can make it work in Indiana,” Smith recalls. “So we delved into barriers in terms of getting product out to larger groups of people.”

A grant-funded feasibility study led to the purchase of an old slaughter facility.

Her research also indicated that cooperative marketing among many like-minded producers was necessary to achieve sustainable efficiencies of scale, so Smith pursued both slaughter and marketing projects simultaneously.

This Old Farm’s first producer alliance meeting was held with about 30 people in attendance on Nov. 12, 2009. The Smiths signed the papers to purchase the processing facility on Nov. 13, 2009.

FROM THE ASHES It was business as usual during the first year of operation, 2010, for This Old Farm. The Smiths retooled the old facility and upgraded it to meet state inspection regulations. Staff distributed locally grown products through local farmers markets and began building the wholesale side of the business. Then, the facility they had just gotten up and running succumbed to a fire in late December 2010.

The fire started in the building’s old smokehouse, built in 1978. Before the fire, the Smiths had already picked out a new smoker; it was to be delivered from Chicago after the holidays.

To make the business plan work with rebuilding, This Old Farm’s team had to scramble to complete the new facility in

less than six months. Of 10 bids considered, only one — from a 24-year-old Amish contractor — was able to tackle the project within the budget allowed under the insurance settlement.

The business managed to survive crisis mode, reopening in June 2011 and meeting USDA inspection.

Now, the struggles of starting a new business are behind her, and “we’re moving good food,” she says. “Sometimes you jump in, and you don’t know what you don’t know.

We jumped in and did it. There was fear, but you block that out over time. The research justified that it wasn’t insane, that there was a need for someone in the industry to be working on this.”

Grab and go meat at This Old Farm.

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 15

Clockwise from left: Brandon Snyder vacuum sealing pork. Pricing and meat preparation forms. Norm Sill seasoning bacon. Josiah Shirar restocking the front freezer.

She offers an example: “None of the (existing) processors had options (for products) without MSG and preservatives,” she says. “Our customer type wanted a natural product.”

By simply presenting farmers with a choice — if they can raise the product in this manner, This Old Farm can market it to certain groups of people — Smith says she’s seen a lot of change in conventional operations to meet that demand.

“When we first began, 75 percent of our customer base was ill, seeking our food because they were sick,” she says. “Today what’s exciting is (the possibility) to catch people before they have health issues by making it more readily available where people are eating, whether it be a college campus or a local store.”

This Old Farm has found success and profitability by offering consumers a variety of product choices, including pasture-raised and pasture-finished meats. Chicken, turkey, 16 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

pork, lamb and beef are all on the menu.

“Pasture pork is one of the better niche marketplaces because it’s so vastly different from what’s available,” Smith says. “I see the difference on the slaughter side — a vast difference even with internal organs of an animal raised outside. ... The meat is firmer and different in texture (than conventional slaughter meats). It’s not slimy.”

FINDING WAYS TO EXPAND This Old Farm products feature bar coding and traceability with producer information on the label. This kind of transparency is one reason fourth-generation cattle farmer Joe Mills likes processing his beef at This Old Farm and marketing some of it through the producer alliance.

The 36-year-old and his family raise nonGMO corn and soybeans west of Crawfordsville. They take care of about 120 brood cows, raising their offspring from birth to finish in a managed, rotational grazing sys-

tem. He calls them beer cows because part of their finishing mix involves spent brewers’ grains from Triton Brewing Co. in Indianapolis. Mills has worked on the farm his whole life, but just moved to full-time farming two years ago. He began his business by raising freezer beef for his family and a few neighbors, plus selling a few yearling calves.

“As we’ve grown, we see other opportunities, like This Old Farm, so we started finishing our calves,” Mills says. “It’s fun to finish them out, know you did a good job and also know that your name will be on the label and be retailed locally.”

He points to This Old Farm’s efforts to connect more local agricultural products to food service in Indiana schools.

“Some of our meat will wind up on kids’ lunch plates,” Mills says. “It makes me feel good they know where it (the meat) comes from. My daughter’s in fourth grade. I’d like to think she’s getting a good meal. If some of it’s coming from a local producer,

that’s even better.”

To this end, the company has made good inroads with Bon Appetit Management Co. — a business working toward “food service for a sustainable future” at outlets such as Cafe Bon Appetit at Wabash College.

“Over half of our food dollar today goes to food service,” Smith says. “You really reach people by getting food into food service.”

Producer education and services are central to This Old Farm’s mission. Smith estimates that only about 30 percent of the 140 farms marketing through This Old Farm’s producer alliance in the past five years are still in business; she says keeping enough product rolling through the facility is the biggest challenge her business faces.

“We want to make regional food more feasible by bringing down the cost over time,” she says. “We want to feed our communities again. To do that we need people.

We need product. ” The market for local food, organic foods

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and special-attribute foods is still a small category of the overall food market, says economist Chris Hurt, estimating its market percentage at about 5 percent. “But what we’ve seen is it is growing relatively quickly,” he explains. “It’s important that consumers be given a choice. They vote with their pocketbooks.”

Now that the meat business is moving forward, This Old Farm is ready to stoke the local produce market, bolstered by a $75,000 value-added producer feasibility grant to explore how to supply the Indiana Farm-ToSchool Network with local, chopped lettuce.

“It comes down to how much produce can we find growing in Indiana or how much are folks willing to grow?” Smith says.

“We grow very little, yet all the producegrowing states are experiencing water shortages. In Indiana, we have fertile soil, we have water; it just makes sense.”

Many projects remain on This Old Farm’s horizon, but Smith is content to know that

Clockwise from top left: Meat is tagged as it flows through the butchering process at This Old Farm. Kerry Mullendore breaks down beef. Boxes of frozen meat.

her first and most critical mission can be considered a success: She has five “amazing, farm-raised” kids, she says. Her oldest, Conner, 17, is a sophomore at Purdue University, followed by siblings Evan, Jada, Rebekah and Yone, age 13, 11, 9 and 6, respectively, who have their own jobs on the farm.

“They know what to eat and what’s good for them,” Smith says. “If you try to put something else in front of them, they question you. I’ve successfully trained a group of people how to eat, so that’s good.”

For more information, visit thisoldfarminc.com.

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Monday thru Friday 8am to 5pm FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 17

well-nourished Kevin Logan of Abundant Harvest Farm hopes to help those who are hungry for healthy foods

W

By Shawndra Miller Photography by Josh Marshall

WITH THE EARTH buried under snow on a late February day, it’s a little tough to picture, but in just a few short months, Abundant Harvest Farm’s Kevin Logan will enjoy his favorite part of farming. The 7-acre parcel of land where Logan and his partners raise produce and grass-fed beef pulls him like a magnet, though he lives and practices medicine in a completely different county.

“I’d say probably the best memory I have is arriving early in the morning when there’s still a little bit of dew,” he says of the McCordsville farm, which lies just below the highest point in Hancock County.

“There’s almost like a fog, because early in morning there’s a lot of humidity, and the sun’s rising and the humidity’s evaporating, and it’s just very quiet and peaceful.”

An integrative physician with a busy practice in Fishers, his introduction to public health came by way of farming practices.

While serving in the Peace Corps in the Dominican Republic years ago, he worked to improve locals’ health, teaching them how to raise nourishing food while giving back to the soil.

He has been on a mission to share the same thing here at home ever since. Every patient who darkens his door learns about

18 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

the importance of nutrient-dense food. And in true teach-a-man-to-fish style, he periodically holds workshops to showcase home gardening techniques.

“There’s been this resurgence of interest, from a health perspective, a sustainability perspective, a local perspective,” he says.

“We’re just seeing that people are literally hungry to learn how to do this. Every gardening class I’ve ever held is full.”

When the chance came to move from backyard gardening to small-scale farming, he snatched it. And “Abundant Harvest” turned out to be an apt moniker for the fertile land acquired by Logan and his wife, Jacqueline, in partnership with his old friend, Tom Wiles. The farm, now in its fifth year, formerly was part of Apple Family Farm. Mark and Debbie Apple took excellent care of the acreage, resulting in rich soil and terrific yields.

“It’s fantastic land,” Jacqueline says. “You can grow anything.” And they do, raising black Angus steers as well as several kinds of strawberries, fruit trees and annual crops. The Logans’ children, Oscar, 16, Sophia, 13, Emilia, 11, and Ethan, 9, pitch in as well (“some with more interest than others,” according to Kevin). During work parties, volunteers participate in the growing process, and Peruvian-born Manuel Torres regularly works alongside Kevin at the farm.

Two years into farming there, the trio opened INgredients Field to Fork Market in Indianapolis. The natural food market was meant to provide an outlet not just for their goods but for other area farmers and producers.

Though the financial side of the storefront business didn’t come together as

they’d hoped, and INgredients closed at the end of last year, they have no intention of letting the farm go. “For me,” says Kevin, “the farm is just something I want to continue for the rest of my life.”

He says the partners will continue to explore ways to increase its profitability, such as putting in higher-cash crops like garlic, lavender, bamboo or even ginseng.

Meanwhile they’ll likely acquire more steers this spring, while also growing the annual vegetables that have produced so readily. Their fruit trees, raspberry canes and asparagus beds offer strong yields with minimal input.

Beyond that, the only criterion for crop selection is based on desire: “We grow what we want to eat,” he says.

Wiles says they may step back and approach the farm “less like a business entity and more of a hobby thing for us,” though they plan to have a presence at a few farmers markets.

While not certified organic, the farm practices go beyond the standard of certification, according to Kevin. Reducing tilling and planting cover crops help build the “soil microbiome,” enabling microorganisms and plants to do the essential work of returning nutrients to the soil.

He favors sowing cover crops like oats, buckwheat, clover and daikon radishes between rows after the crop plants get established. Then, after the final harvest, the cover keeps weed seeds from taking hold throughout the winter and early spring.

In the case of the radishes, not only do they aerate the soil and draw up nutrients, they also serve as a tasty food crop in their own right. “It’s being smart about the timing of things,” Kevin says, “and also

Dr. Kevin Logan and his son, Ethan, 9

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 19

Tom Wiles

utilizing the land in the most efficient and productive way.”

That extends to stretching out the harvest, too. He recalls an early yield of giant broccoli heads. “These things were like 18 inches in diameter,” he says. “They were the biggest broccoli I’ve ever seen. We cut the main stalk and left the plants in the ground.

We came back … and we harvested bushels of the little sprouts that came up off the side, these super-compact little sprouts.” Terrifically sweet, the side sprouts continued to grow over the coming weeks and ended up amounting to nearly as much, pound for pound, as the harvest of the main broccoli heads.

“I’m all about efficiency, especially as busy as I am,” he says. “And if you think about the life cycle of a plant, the plant expends so much energy to establish roots and establish leaves to make this one fruit that we harvest, and in commercial farming they would just till (the remaining plant) under.”

But in intensive farming, as at Abundant Harvest, the goal is to capitalize on the plants’ ability to continue to produce long after its initial energy expenditure.

Last fall, such practices led to a bumper crop of not only broccoli, but other cruciferous vegetables. “There wasn’t the market to sell all those,” he says. “I didn’t think of it till later, but what I’d like to do (with) any excess (is) donate to Second Helpings or Gleaners or something like that. Just to help supply … some of those folks that need that that don’t get it.

“I love to grow food for everybody who’ll eat it, because I know it’s good for them.”

Kevin likens human cells to batteries that need to be recharged. “All cellular communication happens via electrical signals,” he explains. Recharging our batteries requires charged ions of food.

Eating food that’s alive, newly harvested from soil brimming with nutrients, offers a much greater energetic charge than processed food. That’s why the body works more efficiently on a diet rich in freshpicked, chemical-free fruits and vegetables.

“People don’t really think about that,” he notes. “These are living organisms that are sustaining our life.”

Torres, who says he continues to learn from Logan about natural agricultural prac-

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Jacqueline, Ethan, 9, Kevin, Sophia, 13, Oscar, 16

tices, echoes this view. “The reason that we eat is to keep us alive and give us the nutrients,” he says, “but it’s not only material, it’s the energy that we get from all these plants and fruits.”

Not only is the consumption of wholesome food a healing practice, working the land itself offers health benefits, such as grounding the human body. “I find such therapeutic value in being in the earth and having my feet on the ground and hands in the soil,” Kevin says. “And yeah, it’s hard

work, but it’s better than going to the gym.”

As he, Torres and Wiles can all attest, something intangible happens in tending to the land, something bordering on the metaphysical.

For Wiles, who lived in northern California for 16 years before moving back to Indianapolis, it was a surprise to find how deep that feeling ran. “I always got my good nature hits out in the dramatic places, the mountains and beaches,” he says. “And I realized, when I was going out to the farm so much in 2012 … how much I loved it. I would get there early, and that became my nature hit. It was just so beautiful out there at 5 in the morning, before it got oppressively hot.”

Solitude is part of the draw for Kevin. “A lot of times when I go to the farm, I’ll just throw my work clothes in the back of my car,” he says, “and I’ll drive from (Fishers) to the farm where I’ll be taking care of the steers and taking care of the vegetables. And it’s just bliss, being out there by myself.”

For more information, visit abundantharvestfarm.net.

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root causes

Kevin and Laura Channell draw on a decade of agricultural experiences in New England while establishing their Zionsville-based farm

BY JON SHOULDERS PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOSH MARSHALL

W

WHILE WALKING AMIDST the 18 acres of Zionsville land that will soon be the location of his family’s produce farm and community supported agriculture (CSA) stand, Kevin Channell envisages his future operation as much more than just rows of crops. He considers it the physical manifestation of a life philosophy that views agriculture not only as a way to tighten family bonds, but also to strengthen community relationships.

After graduating from Indiana University in Bloomington and marrying in 2000, Channell and his wife, Laura, both Greenwood natives and Center Grove High School graduates, were living on Fourth Street in Zionsville when they began casually discussing what a life devoted to agriculture might be like. “We didn’t have any actual experience in farming at that point, and in college I was in psychology and religious studies while my wife studied business,” Kevin Channell recalls. “My grandparents on both sides had dairy and grain farms in Ohio, so I grew up with that connection but not with much practical involvement. We were

22 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Oats grow as cover crop.

attracted at the idea of doing something on a daily basis that can be challenging and bring a family close together.”

In 2004, realizing their shared interest in growing food had blossomed into a strong mutual conviction, the Channells sold their house, packed up their belongings and headed eastward to begin apprenticeships at Pleasant Valley Farm, an organic vegetable farm in Argyle, New York, and at another organic produce farm in Brunswick, Maine. After two years of learning their new trade and attending a number of agriculture workshops, Kevin and Laura purchased 28 acres of land on the Connecticut River in Fairlee, Vermont, and wasted no time cultivating their own organic vegetable farm. For the next seven years, the couple grew more than 100 veggie varieties and established a CSA with more than 300 members, many of whom were located in the Dartmouth College region. The couple chose Your Farm as the name for their operation, reflecting their strong belief in community involvement.

Paul Arnold, co-owner of Pleasant Valley Farm, says New England is an ideal spot for learning how to meet the challenges specific to small-scale farming. “From the Hudson Valley area eastward all the way to Maine,

Kevin Channell

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 23

you pretty much have a homogenized group of farmers that are on small fields and hilly land that doesn’t lend itself to large agriculture,” he says. “The farmers out here are one big group in the sense of sharing anything and everything. It’s not, ‘Hey, I have this technique that I’m going to keep secret because I’ll get ahead if I know more than other farmers around me.’ It’s, ‘Well, if we all do better, we’re going to get more customers, and the overall market’s going to do better.’ It’s a great place to learn, and I think Kevin and Laura picked up that collective work ethic among our community of growers.”

In 2013, upon discovering they were expecting twin boys — Elias and Eliot, turning 2 years old this June — the Channells felt the timing was right to sell Your Farm and return to Zionsville, the town where Laura’s mother had grown up in a house built by Laura’s grandfather in an area known as the Village. “We felt the importance of being closer to family and being in a place where Laura’s family has

some roots, and also with both sets of our parents here we liked the idea of having that family support for the kids,” Channell says. The couple found an 18-acre plot of land for sale in Zionsville’s Traders Point Rural Historic District on which to begin building a home, constructing an equipment barn and readying 10 acres for an extensive variety of organic vegetable crops.

Instead of selling products via farmers markets and delivery services, the Channells will offer produce, herbs and flowers exclusively at their Salem Farms through a CSA pickup program. “We’ll have a youpick area for families that want to get down on their hands and knees and pick beets and things, and a small area near the CSA stand that will serve as a pack house and wash station,” Channell says, adding that while veggies will be the primary products sold at Salem Farms, he and Laura, now in their mid-30s, hope to eventually begin a small livestock operation on their land.

“We’re hoping that when people are here for their pickup or just visiting, once they

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things out. We knew get here it will be he was going to do about more than the OWNERS: Kevin and Laura pretty well.” food. It will be about Channell Channell adds community and a PRODUCTS: Organic that while business full experience. We’re vegetables, including lettuce acumen is important, very excited with this mixes, peppers, potatoes, it is part of a larger being our inaugural turnips, beets, radishes, community awareness year. We started seedtomatoes and more. needed for a small ing in March, and the farm to thrive. “Out plan is to be underLOCATION: 7900 Hunt Club east they really build way by June.”

Road, Zionsville networks between Arnold, a farmer CONTACT: (317) 550-9888, producers and co-ops for 28 years who has salemfarmsonhuntclub.com and chefs,” he says. welcomed appren“That’s something tices like Kevin and that happens slowly Laura on his land over time with the since the mid-1990s, way people think and their affections for says he and his co-owners “really try to a working landscape. That’s what we hope emphasize the business end when we to bring to our area of Zionsville. Out teach people, and Kevin has a really good there, where you’re from — your native business head on him. Small farms have soil — really matters, and for us to come to be very knowledgeable with how they back and be on our native soil again adds do business because retail is crucial when a layer of commitment to not just land, but you’re a small grower. Kevin is very good the people.” with numbers and budgeting and figuring

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 25

A Learning Process At McCarthy Farms crops provide growing lessons

By Heidi Unger Photography by Josh Marshall

26 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

F

FOR HOOSIER GARLIC MAN Tim McCarthy of McCarthy Farms, farming isn’t necessarily about the harvest. It’s about the experience. “I just like to grow things,” he says from the kitchen of his Hancock County home, a brick ranch that sits on about an acre of land nestled between Indiana corn and soybean fields. McCarthy spends his days writing technical materials at an engine manufacturing company in downtown Indianapolis and his evenings and weekends “tinkering,” as he says, on his small hobby farm.

McCarthy, who grew up on the eastside of Indianapolis, has gardened his whole life and was eager to begin planting in 1993 when he and his wife, Letsy, moved into their Greenfield home.

His backyard garden contained the vegetables typically grown in Indiana, until 2011, the year he grew peanuts from plant starts, and 2012, when he experimented with decorative gourds.

Peanut cultivation isn’t common in the Midwest, and the novelty appealed to him.

When McCarthy ran out of space in his backyard, the neighbor who owns the property behind him allowed him to expand his plot into the front yard. Now, 27 chickens live and scratch near the expanded garden.

ON HALLOWED GROUND Three miles away, McCarthy grows two varieties of garlic on a rented plot of land at Our Lady of the Apostles Family Center, a 15-acre retreat that’s affiliated with St. Michael’s Church in Greenfield. Bordered by mature trees, the retreat includes buildings for youth activities and meetings, a small lake, an orchard, an acre of sweet corn and McCarthy’s quarter-acre garlic field.

Last year, with the help of family and friends, McCarthy harvested and sold about a thousand pounds of garlic from his plot, donating the proceeds from sales to a local charity. This year, his plants are expected to yield another thousand pounds.

Longtime friend John Kube and his children assist McCarthy with his garlic farming tasks, in

Tim McCarthy at his home garden

return for McCarthy and his family helping Kube grow sweet corn on the retreat center property.

This year, the McCarthy-Kube partnership is expanding to include some cash crops: hops and sorghum. The pair has ordered 100 hops plants and rented another sunny patch of land on the retreat center’s grounds to plant them. They also will plant more than 3,000 sorghum seeds, both at the retreat center and in McCarthy’s home garden plot.

McCarthy is enthusiastic about growing sorghum for two reasons: its efficient use of nitrogen and water and its utility. “You can grind the seeds

into flour, which is gluten-free,” he explains. “You can use the seed for animal feed, and you can also pop it like popcorn.”

The stalks also can be pressed to release the plant’s sweet green juice, which then can be boiled and reduced to become a natural sweetener. By comparison, sorghum juice yields much more syrup than the same amount of maple sap.

“And you can use the pressed stalks for silage,” McCarthy says. Most of the sorghum he and Kube will plant this year will be used for making syrup, but they also plan to plant a small plot of grain sorghum.

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 27

THE GARLIC MAN It was a supermarket impulse in 2012 — buying 800 cloves of garlic to plant in his backyard garden — that led to a hobby that inspires McCarthy to experiment, learn and embrace new challenges. “I just wanted to see if we could do it,” he says.

After that first day of planting garlic, a back-straining nine-and-a-half hours of shuffling, stooping and tucking garlic into the dirt (cloves are placed about six inches apart), McCarthy realized that he would have to recruit family to help. He and his wife and their daughters, Kara, 25, and Lauren, 23, and son, David, 19, knocked out the rest of the planting in five-and-a-half hours.

The Kube family helped out when it was time to harvest and again when it was time to dry the bulbs. A good sense of humor accompanied the families through the season. “It’s quite a bit of labor,” Kube admits, “but it’s fun when you’re working together, with families and different people.”

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Sam Murphy, 14, John Kube and Tim McCarthy at Our Lady of the Apostles’ Family Center.

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After the curing process, McCarthy and his team of helpers prepared the garlic for sale, removing the stalks and sizing and sorting the bulbs. They sold it in bulk to local restaurants. That’s when McCarthy realized that garlic farming could be a viable business opportunity.

His daughter Kara then built a website for the farm (hoosiergarlicman.com), and McCarthy contacted experienced garlic farmers for advice on how to farm garlic more efficiently. At harvest time, he now removes the garlic plant stalks before digging the garlic up.

With less plant material on the drying racks, the garlic dries faster. He also learned that he should dry the garlic for three weeks at 130 degrees. “We’re getting some heaters for out there (in the barn) this summer, to make sure we can regulate the temperature right,” he says.

Equipment upgrades will also improve efficiency this season. He purchased a sickle bar mower for cutting the garlic stalks and began building a mechanical garlic planter that is a scaled-back version of the machinery that the large garlic farmers use. He

found the plans for the garlic planter online and sought help from a friend and professional welder. At planting time, two people will sit on the planter as the tractor driver pulls it slowly through the field. As metal hillers at the front of the device mound the soil in a row, the assistants drop garlic by hand into the rows. At harvest time, the device lifts the garlic out of the ground, and assistants put the bulbs in buckets.

The garlic isn’t certified organic, but McCarthy doesn’t use chemicals or pesticides. Sustainable practices such as using animal manure and composted kitchen waste for fertilizers are especially important on a small farm like this, where resources are limited. McCarthy credits his chickens and a neighbor’s horses for their contributions to the soil.

After the garlic comes up, “we plant buckwheat as a cover crop and then turn it under as soon as it flowers and before it goes to seed,” McCarthy says.

“This gives us a good biomass for next year’s crop.”

He makes the most of his resources and improves his workflow through online research and talking to other growers, but he admits that much of it is trial and error.

“Live and learn,” he says. “It’s a learning process.” For more information visit hoosiergarlicman.com

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In the Classroom Local FFA chapters

Practical Experience

30 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Owen Valley High School FFA students learn by doing

By Catherine Whittier Photography by Josh Marshall

Katie Grigsby, 17, junior, at the Owen Valley FFA’s self-sustaining goat farm.

Opposite page, an 11-weekold chicken.

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 31

f

FOOD DEHYDRATORS, MEAT GRINDERS, JUICERS and bread makers are arranged in lines on shelves and along the tops of cabinets in the food science classroom at Owen Valley High School (OVHS) in Spencer. The surprising stockpile of equipment serves as evidence that the agriculture department at OVHS is all about hands-on learning. Students not only put their lessons into practice in food science classes, but they also apply their learning in an environmentally controlled, small animal science lab and through a selfsustaining goat farm.

Thomas Wallace, Owen Valley’s FFA adviser and ag science instructor, says that the school has blessed the ag department with a nice budget.

Approximately 250 to 275 of the school’s 850 students are enrolled in agriculture classes at any given time.

“We make the classroom real and relevant to the students’ lives,” Wallace says. “They have more of an interest in pursuing or taking classes; they get experience.”

The Owen Valley FFA chapter, which has 100 members, serves as the foundation for many of the ag department’s activities and programs, which benefit the entire school and ultimately, the community. The chapter has been recognized as one of the top 10 FFA chapters in the state and has been awarded the national FFA three-star

Caitlin Myers, 16, a junior, prepares for an FFA fundraiser.

32 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Megan Poff, 17, a senior, and Grigsby in the food science lab.

rating. “That’s one of the highest rankings you can get from the nationals,” explains Wallace.

The goat farm, which is home to approximately 30 Boer goats, is located about five miles from the school on a 6-acre plot that the school district owns. The farm was started when two students approached Wallace with an idea. “They came to me and said, ‘We want to run a goat farm,’ and I said, ‘Well, I tell you what; you tell me if we can make any money at it — do the projections — and we’ll see,’” he recalls.

The ag business management class took the goat farm on as a project. “They did the proposal, got the approval, interviewed all the vendors and got school board approval to do so (to move forward with the project),” says Wallace. The FFA chapter got a loan from the school corporation to build the facility and is working to pay it back with income earned through FFA fundraisers.

Students are not only responsible for the feeding, parasite control and hoof trimming of the goats on the farm, but they also complete the farm’s profit and loss statements and study the farm’s impact on the watershed. “So we’ve integrated things other than animal science, which is pretty neat,” says Wallace. Students also have the opportunity to understand and observe the kidding process each year.

He says that Boer goats are primarily sold to young people in the community for 4-H projects or to FFA members for use in Supervised

Matthew Campbell, 17, a senior, feeds 11-week-old chickens. Left, a student holds a guinea pig from the small animal science lab.

Left, Matthew Campbell, 17, senior; Katie Grigsby, 17, junior; Caitlin Myers, 16, junior; Eric Kong, 18, senior; Megan Poff, 17, senior. Inset, students at the goat farm.

Agriculture Experiences (SAE). “We have students here that don’t have any resources to do an SAE, and that (working on the goat farm) becomes their SAE,” he says. “So it really fills a niche here. Any student who wants to be involved, whether they do it in the classroom structure or whether they take it outside of the classroom structure, that becomes their SAE,” says Wallace.

FFA members also have the opportunity to do an SAE through the ag department’s small animal lab. In the lab, students keep data and learn to do health checks on rabbits, chickens, guinea pigs and chinchillas. As a result of their experiences in high school, some of OVHS’s former students have enrolled in veterinary medicine programs at the university level and several plan to pursue veterinary medicine in the future.

Caitlin Myers, who is a junior serving as the Owen Valley chapter’s second vice president, had little exposure to agriculture prior to taking the eighthgrade introduction to agriculture course.

It wasn’t long before she began raising and breeding rabbits, which she keeps at home. Myers has also taken home two of the chapter’s baby goats that required bottle feeding. “I want to be a vet of large and small animals,” she says, “or I want to be an agriculture teacher. I’m not really sure yet, but I do know that I want to go to Purdue for either one of those.”

While several classes participate in caring for the goats at the farm, it’s the FFA members who are ultimately responsible for caring for the goats after hours, on weekends and during vacation breaks.

According to Wallace, carrying that level FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 33

of responsibility gives students a competitive edge when applying for internships or scholarships.

Eric Kong, a senior serving as first vice president for the chapter, feels that his participation in FFA has set him up for success in the future. “I think the biggest thing I get from our chapter is probably the leadership aspect, learning teamwork, leadership, communication and organization,” he says. “It just builds your foundation for whenever you go, like for a job or whenever you’re applying somewhere. It’s a really good resume builder.”

In addition to running the goat farm and animal science lab, the FFA chapter completes many community service activities.

In May and June of each year, the chapter hosts a pet vaccination clinic in conjunction with Royer Veterinary Services. The clinics are held in 10 to 12 locations around Owen County and offer greatly reduced rates to pet owners. “That’s probably one of the biggest things we do here in the community,” Wallace says.

Kong at the goat farm.

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Each year, the chapter also hosts an Ag Day for approximately 180 fourth-graders at the Owen Valley Fairgrounds. Children are bused in to participate in a day of agriculture learning and fun. “It’s takes 65 FFA members to plan and run the Ag Day,” Wallace says. “FFA members do all the planning, develop the booth spaces and decide what the agricultural topics are that we’re going to talk about.”

Katie Grigsby, who is a junior serving as chapter president, feels that participation in FFA events and activities has helped her throughout her high school career. “In all the activities we do, we branch out, and we meet new people,” she says. “We talk in the community at the Chamber of Commerce dinners and the Extension dinner. We tell people what we do and why, and we tell people about our activities throughout the year. It’s gotten me to where I can stand up and talk in front of a bunch of people. … I would have never been able to do that. I used to get so nervous”

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FARM TO SCHOOL

FOOD, FARMING AND THE FUTURE North Manchester High School students stage community event

BY RACHEL BRANDENBERG PHOTOS BY JIM POYSER

IT ALL STARTED WITH A SIMPLE IDEA. We should write letters to our grandparents asking them simple questions about the past such as: What was the land like? What did you do for fun? Did you have a garden? Did you use pesticides?

How much did food cost?

The results were beautiful. Not only did they contain meaningful stories from trips down memory lane, but our grandparents also noticed the same changes in the

36 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

environment that we had talked about in class. If our grandparents noticed these changes, then surely the community had, too.

Soon after, we decided to host an event called “Food, Farming and the Future” to honor the past of our grandparents and to bring our community together to talk about the future.

When we were planning for this event, one student thought it would be cool to have author, journalist and environmental ac-

tivist Bill McKibben here, too. He sent McKibben an email about the event, and only a few minutes later McKibben responded. Although he could not make it to the event, McKibben said he would create a video we could show at the event.

After we had encouragement from one of our role models, the event seemed even more official.

The evening started with a reading of two letters we received from grandparents. We wanted to share with our guests what had inspired this event.

Then we gave three presentations that focused on food, farming and the future. At the end of each presentation, questions were projected on a screen to prepare the attendees for discussion. The presentations concluded with the video from McKibben. He expressed how thankful he is for the work of farmers, and he also addressed concerns about our changing world.

“We very much need people doing the most important work in the world,

Above, Cole Isbell read a letter to the group from his grandfather.

Left, after the presentations, students led breakout sessions.

which is feeding each other,” he said in the video. “We need them not only thinking about how to make sure that farming can continue, but also joining their voice with other people ... in various efforts to keep global warming under some kind of control. And, in the meantime, we will remain highly grateful.”

Students who participated in the event: Rachel Brandenberg, Gabbi Wilcox, Zach Shenefield, Sydney Mattern, Makayla Mobley, Jacob Casper

Letters from the grandparents, blown up to poster size.

The evening concluded with a small group discussion. There were five groups with about 12 people in each group. As we moved our chairs into a circle, we noticed the diversity within the groups. That diversity made for interesting conversations. In my group there was a man who works for an electric company; his wife is a volunteer at the fair-trade store in town. Their son, who works at the same electric company, was also there, and his wife, who is a biology teacher at my school.

We started with the question:

“Can we feed 9 billion people?”

Although we had prepared other questions, the conversation flowed organically. We discussed food distribution, the use of pesticides and the relationship between farmers and the market. Something one guest, a farmer, said really stuck with me: “Don’t let farmers become their own culture outside of the city and disconnected,” he warned. “It’s happening way more than people realize. Instead let us know what you want. The market drives what we do. It’s really important that the

community engage farmers. We will produce what you want.”

Although my group’s discussion was relatively calm, others were not so relaxed. One group was composed mostly of local farmers, but their philosophies were diverse. They discussed concentrated animal feeding operations and farm pollution, and a healthy discussion ensued even with varying opinions. Their conversation resulted in more questions than answers, but the group learned to work with each other, even though they couldn’t see eye to eye. I think this spirit of cooperation is a key to community, and therefore, it was meaningful to see that quality brought out in our simple discussion.

Many groups discussed food waste. One particular group analyzed the problems within our own school system and discussed the possibility of participating in Food Rescue (an organization that inspires others to divert food waste from landfills to local charities). Another person thought we should start a compost pile at the school. Finally, someone suggested collecting food scraps to help feed a local farmer’s pigs. Not only would this limit the amount of food we put into landfills that create methane, but it would also

help the community by bridging the gap between farmer and consumer.

The day after the event our class talked about our experiences. We extensively discussed food waste in our school. After the event we talked to Becky Landes (our food service manager), and she agreed to collect food scraps to give to a local farmer. This was an exciting moment. We felt that our conversation at the event produced improvement for our school.

Ultimately, we hope that the discussion made people think. We also hope to see other schools and communities create a local food and farming revolution. Most importantly, we hope relationships were formed between those with differing opinions.

Change begins in unexpected places, and all it takes is an idea.

Rachel Brandenberg is a senior at North Manchester High School.

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 37

CONTINUING EDUCATION

On The Schedule “We are just now wrapping up the winter season, when producers are available for training,” says Kris Medic of Bartholomew County’s Extension Office. “Most are getting ready to plant now, and programming slacks off until summer.”

But classes don’t stop entirely. “Landscape and gardening programs are central in the coming weeks,” Medic says.

Many of Purdue’s Extension programs slow down in May, as producers tackle work on their own land BY KATHERINE COPLEN

Immersive Weaving Weekend

The Not So Simple Act of Planting a Tree

Begin with simple weaving forms, including tapestry, peg and rigid heddle, before moving into weaving simple patterns on four-harness floor looms. Cost: $200. Housing is available.

WHEN: 6 to 9 p.m., May 1; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., May 2.

LOCATION: White Violet Center, a ministry of the Sisters of Providence, 3850 U.S. 150, Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

INFORMATION: (812) 535-2932 or rmorton@spsmw.org.

This free, open-to-the-public tree planting workshop is hands-on, so come prepared to get a little dirty.

WHEN: 10:30 a.m., May 2 LOCATION: Allen County Extension Office, 4001 Crescent Ave., Fort Wayne INFORMATION: (260) 481-6826

11th Annual Garden Celebration Seminars on home vegetable growing for farmers markets and food access for farmers markets will be given; various garden items can be purchased at vendor booths.

Admission is $2 per attendee.

WHEN: 9 a.m., May 2 LOCATION: Johnson County Fairgrounds, 100 Fairgrounds St., Franklin INFORMATION: (317) 736-3724

Wild Vegetable Fermentation & Starter Culture Swap Event hosted by Fermentation on Wheels, a traveling culinary research hub with a mission to harvest and preserve, encourage sustainability and teach fermentation. Cost: Free.

WHEN: Time TBD, May 2 LOCATION: TBD, Indianapolis INFORMATION: (503) 479-5518 or info@fermentationonwheels.com

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Get Cultured Potluck Event hosted by Fermentation on Wheels, a traveling culinary research hub with a mission to harvest and preserve, encourage sustainability and teach fermentation.

COST: Free.

WHEN: Time TBD, May 3 LOCATION: TBD, Indianapolis INFORMATION: (503) 479-5518 or info@fermentationonwheels.com

Pasture Walk Walk the grounds of a pasture with an Extension educator who will identify weeds and how to deal with them.

WHEN: 5:30 p.m., May 7 LOCATION: Floyd County Extension, 3000 Technology Ave., Suite L2110, New Albany INFORMATION: gmanders@purdue.edu

Better Process Control School This intensive four-day program for producers provides certified training requirements for FDA and USDA regulations. This program is for those interested in selling their food products to wholesalers. Lecture topics include the microbiology of canning, food container handling, process room instrumentation, equipment and operation and more. Certification examinations will be given as well.

WHEN: 8 a.m., May 11 to 14 LOCATION: Purdue University, West Lafayette INFORMATION: (765) 494-0823

City Gardener Workshop This workshop covers trees and shrubs; it’s the sixth in a series of sessions, but anyone can join in at any time just for the session they’re interested in.

Registration is required two days in advance via email.

WHEN: 6 p.m., May 11 and 18 LOCATION: Purdue Extension – Marion County, Discovery Hall at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, 1202 E. 38th St., Indianapolis COST: $5 INFORMATION: dschelsk@purdue.edu

Preserving Nature’s Bounty Canning, freezing and drying will be discussed at this preservation workshop.

WHEN: 1 p.m., May 12 LOCATION: Allen County Extension Office, 4001 Crescent Ave., Fort Wayne INFORMATION: (260) 481-6826

Community Gardening with Youths This workshop is geared toward community garden leaders and organizers who want to learn how to incorporate youth participation and learning in their garden spaces.

Registration is required in advance.

COST: TBD. WHEN: Time TBD, May 16 LOCATION: Purdue Extension – Marion County, Discovery Hall at the Indiana State Fairgrounds, 1202 E. 38th St., Indianapolis INFORMATION: eegglest@purdue.edu

595 E. Tracy Rd., Whiteland, IN 46184 (317) 535-3700 www.dreyersouth.com

Wildlife Conflict Program This event tackles wildlife conflicts: how to keep animals out of land and reduce damage to crops.

COST: TBD WHEN: 6:30 p.m., May 19 LOCATION: Heritage Hall, 482 N. Morton St., Franklin INFORMATION: (317) 736-3724

Container Gardening Program Those interested in learning more about container gardening can attend this free, open-to-the-public event.

WHEN: 6:30 p.m., May 19 LOCATION: Knox County Public Library, 502 N. Seventh St., Vincennes INFORMATION: (812) 886-4380

Community Garden Walkabout A Purdue Master Gardener and Extension Agriculture educator will provide a guided tour covering topics like crop success, seasonal progress and pest activity. This event is free and open to all.

WHEN: 6 p.m., May 27 LOCATION: Faith Ministries, 5103 W. State Road 46, Columbus INFORMATION: krismedic@purdue.edu

Farm Indiana highlights classes from the Purdue Extension calendar every month, but there are many more to be found online. Log on to extension.purdue.edu for more information.

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FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 39

FROM THE FIELD

Market Season

BY JESSICA HOOPENGARDNER

MAY STARTS THE summer months for Redbud Farm and Caprini Creamery. The sun shines brighter, we begin to milk the goats again and the farmers markets resume.

This means that every Saturday,

Jessica and her mom, Kristy Kikly, manage a market booth.

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happy, mostly because of the early start time. I thought that standing around for a couple of hours selling cheese would be boring.

I was very wrong. I now love the farmers market because I get to see the product of our toil, not just the cheese, but the happiness of our customers. There will always be someone who will exclaim, “I bought your cheese last summer and have been looking for you everywhere!” They proceed to come back almost every week to get more. We work very hard on the farm, whether it be with the goats or while making cheese. Sometimes I forget the whole point of why we do it. The farmers market reminds me that the farm is actually producing something that people love.

I have also learned to love the farmers market because of the questions people ask. I enjoy answering questions. Not only do I love educating people, but I enjoy hearing the off-the-wall questions that people sometimes ask.

These make me think. I love to send people off with their cheese and with little nuggets of information that they didn’t have before.

Not only do I teach people about the farm, but they teach me things. Last year, I had a woman ask, “My granddaughter is lactose intolerant. Can she eat the cheese?” I honestly had no clue.

I told her that I didn’t know for sure, but I could ask. The woman told me that they would try the harder cheese for the week because

often the hard cheeses don’t aggravate lactose intolerance. And not only was this a hard cheese, but it was made with goat’s milk, which has less lactose anyway. I didn’t have an answer for her, but the next week the granddaughter came running up to the booth, and she was begging for more of the cheese.

Getting off the farm every once in a while and interacting with those who love our cheese feels great. Despite the early start time, the farmers markets have become one of my favorite things to do. I love the atmosphere of the market, I love the people there and I love the experience. I never realized that I would love it so much and am thankful that my parents coerced me into going that first weekend a year ago.

Jessica Hoopengardner, pictured at her family farm, is a senior at Eastern Hancock High School in Hancock County. Very involved in 4-H and FFA, Hoopengardner is the vice president of her 4-H club and the president of her FFA chapter. She plans on going to college outside Indiana and majoring in English and biology.

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FROM THE FIELD

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“The “The Company Company with with the the Boss Boss on on the the Job” Job” hills of Indiana that God didn’t flatten, where you had neighbors but didn’t really see them. Now I live in a part of Indiana where you can actually see people.

After being there for only two days I realized it might not be so bad. I was sitting outside, enjoying the calm of the country and our beautiful, peaceful sunsets when I heard that classic Indiana noise. It was the sound of a basketball hitting the pavement and then the backboard before making its swish through the goal. And then the “Ahhhh … score!” screams of young kids.

After recent events in our state and in our community, I have had to stop and remind myself to make sure to act like a good neighbor and to share the love of being a good neighbor. We need to live more by the golden rule and love and treat our neighbors as we would want to be loved and treated. I try to remind myself that we need to appreciate each other for our differences. We all, each of us, have a different outlook on life and how we should live it. We can all live, work, eat, raise our children and animals, and dress a different way while respecting

and appreciating each other.

I have always said it takes all kinds of kinds to make the world go ’round. We need to stop and remind ourselves that we are all neighbors. We all live in a community that needs each one of us.

Someone in the community needs my family to raise corn, soybeans, wheat and cattle, and I need someone in the community to run the bank, grocery store and pharmacy that I use on a regular basis.

So now that we have close neighbors, I plan on being a good neighbor. My first task is to try to convince my husband to buy me a bike with a cute basket. Why the basket, you ask? I want to call the neighbors to borrow those eggs I forgot at the grocery or to drop off my experimental desserts. I want to visit my neighbors and learn something new from them and hear their stories.

And I want my neighbors to visit me when I am outside enjoying the sounds and smells of Indiana. I want my neighbors to have different stories, opinions and backgrounds to share with me as we watch the sunset because it’s the same view no matter what our differences.

Katie Glick grew up on her family farm in Martinsville and now lives with her husband on their family farm near Columbus. She is a graduate of Purdue University and has worked in Indiana politics. She now works in the agriculture industry. She shares her personal, work, travel and farm life stories on her blog, Fancy in the Country.

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FROM THE FIELD

MONEY MATTERS There are many ongoing funding opportunities for farmers and food producers. Here are several that allow application submissions throughout the year.

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Cedar Tree Foundation

Fruit Tree Planting Foundation

The Cedar Tree Foundation is a small family fund that focuses on sustainable agriculture, environmental education and environmental health. The foundation does not accept unsolicited proposals, but welcomes letters of inquiry for U.S.-based work from nonprofit organizations working within its program areas. Letters of inquiry are accepted at any time. For more information, visit cedartreefound.org.

The “Fruit Tree 101” program creates edible orchard classrooms at schools to provide environmental education and organic fruit for improved school lunch nutrition.

For more information, visit ftpf.org/resources.htm.

CHS Foundation Grants of up to $1,000 to innovative leadership and professional development programs with an agriculture focus are available. Examples include leadership training opportunities, mentorship programs, professional development experiences and student fundraising efforts. Applicants must be a campussanctioned club/organization and have an ag-related focus.

No submission deadline. For more information, visit chsinc. com/stewardship/leadership-development#minigrants.

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Micro-Grants/Karma for Cara Foundation These grants are awarded to children 18 and younger to fund service projects in their communities, with ideas including rebuilding a playground or turning a vacant lot into a community garden. The micro-grant program encourages kids to apply for funds between $250 and $1,000 to complete service projects in their communities. Applications should be submitted to info@ karmaforcara.org. Applicants will be accepted on an ongoing basis.

Natural Resources Conservation Service Provides financial assistance and grants to implement conservation practices, establish conservation easements or promote conservation technologies. Deadlines vary. For more information, visit nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs.

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Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program The USDA recently announced that greater protection is now available from the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program for crops that traditionally have been ineligible for federal crop insurance. New options provide greater coverage when natural disasters affect vegetables, fruits, mushrooms, floriculture, ornamental nursery, aquaculture, turf grass, ginseng, honey, syrup and energy crops. An online resource is available at fsa.usda.gov/nap.

Organic Certification Cost Share Program Organic cost share programs reimburse individual organic operators up to 75 percent of their certification costs up to a maximum of $750 per category of certification. Operations must possess current USDA organic certification to be eligible to receive reimbursements. This means operations must either have successfully received their initial USDA organic certification from a USDA-accredited certifying agent or must have incurred expenses related to the renewal of their USDA organic certification from a USDA-accredited certifying agent between Oct. 1, 2014, and Sept. 30, 2015. Operations with suspended or revoked certifications are ineligible for reimbursement. For more information, visit in.gov/isda/files/OCCS_Application.pdf.

Pollination Project This nonprofit organization provides $1,000 seed grants to individual change-makers. The project also has granted numerous awards to various small agriculture-related operations that bring change into a community. New grants are awarded daily. For more information, visit thepollinationproject.org.

Rural Economic Development The USDA is now accepting applications to support community development projects, business expansion and job creation. No deadline. For more information, visit rurdev.usda.gov/StateOfficeAddresses.html.

Seasonal High Tunnel Initiative This voluntary program provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers. The goal of the initiative is to assist producers to extend the growing season for highvalue crops in an environmentally safe manner. Deadlines vary.

For more information, visit nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs.

The founder and program director of Hoosier Organic Marketing Education, Cissy Bowman has been growing food organically since 1973 and on her current farm, Center Valley Organic Farm, since 1983. For more information on Hoosier Organic Marketing Education, email cvof@earthlink.net or call (317) 539-2753.

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FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 45

FROM THE FIELD

Digging In How to plant and care for a fruit tree

BY CHERYL CARTER JONES

Each time I prepare to plant, I have an automatic checklist that starts running through my mind.

Shovel, wheelbarrow, water, soil amendments.

Soil amendments, right? That is where I get hung up. I have to talk myself through that one. Soil amendments are so entrenched in our brains that we feel guilty if they are not at the forefront of our thinking as we prepare for all of our plantings. But using them is not always the right decision, as in the case of planting fruit trees.

As roots begin to grow, they seek nutrients in the soil. If you dig a large hole and fill it with soil amendments, your tree roots will begin growing in a circle in that hole over time in order to get the most of those amendments. What you want instead, however, is for your tree’s lateral roots to grow horizontally in all directions while still remaining close to the soil surface.

Cheryl Carter Jones is an Indiana farmer and a board member of the Local Growers’ Guild, a cooperative of farmers, retailers and community members dedicated to strengthening the local food economy in central and southern Indiana through education, direct support and market connections. For more information on the guild, visit localgrowers.org.

46 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Following a few basic steps will ensure you get your trees off to a good start: SELECT A SITE If you are only planting one or two fruit trees, plant them where you will see them. That way, you will not forget to care for them, and any issues will come to light sooner.

Consider the elements, such as wind, sun and shade. Make sure the location is appropriate for your particular fruit tree. You also do not want to plant in an area that often has standing water. Good drainage is important to fruit trees.

Deer and rabbits can be a problem when you are establishing trees. Both may eat the bark of a new tree, which can prove fatal to the tree. Keep a tree guard on it until the tree is established and is a few years old.

If possible, plant your trees in close proximity to a water source.

It is both a time and a back saver.

Try to plant on a dry day and do not plant if the ground is frozen or water-logged.

GATHERING YOUR TOOLS I always put my tools in a wheelbarrow. I use the wheelbarrow to place my dirt in when I am digging the hole. Before returning the soil to the ground, I break up any clumps and check through

the dirt for grass or weeds.

You will want a tool for digging: a fork, shovel or spade.

You will want to have a tree post, either wood or metal, to support the tree and also a hammer or post driver to make sure it is firmly in the ground. Tree ties are also needed.

Most garden shops sell labels so you can identify the kind and variety of fruit tree. You may also want to include the name of the company you purchased it from in the event you have a guarantee and the plant dies. Most companies will guarantee the plant for a year.

DIGGING THE HOLE It is best not to dig your hole in advance. Fruit trees do not like to be planted in standing water.

Digging ahead of time is just an invitation for the hole to fill with rain water before you plant.

Dig the hole 2 feet deep if a bare-root plant or about three times larger than the diameter of its container. The hole should be both wider and deeper than the roots. Break up the soil inside the hole to make it easier for the roots to grow through it.

Do not amend your soil with compost or fertilizer. If you feel your soil is bad enough that amend-

ing it is vital, consider breaking up the soil in a large area ahead of time and adding either quality top soil or compost.

PLANTING THE TREE Soak your tree well ahead of time.

If planting a tree that is in a container, add extra water and let soak for an hour prior to planting. If a bare-root tree, remove the materials used to keep the roots damp during shipping (if applicable) and soak the roots in a bucket for two to three hours.

In order to ensure your tree is planted at the same depth it was at the nursery or in the container, lay a yardstick across the hole you dig. Hold the tree up in the center of the hole with the soil line, or discoloring on the trunk made from its previous depth, even with the yardstick. Hold the tree at that level while someone assists you in filling in dirt around the tree. If you are planting by yourself, I suggest you have your soil ready in buckets strategically placed near your hole.

Apply a bucket of water slowly after planting and firm the dirt around the tree to remove any air pockets. Be careful not to compact the soil.

I suggest laying cardboard around the base of the tree prior to adding mulch. It helps to suppress weeds and grass, which can compete with fruit trees for nutrients. Then, mulch around the base of the tree after planting, leaving about a one inch clearance from the tree trunk. The mulch

should be thicker at the outside edge and thinner as it nears the tree. This encourages the flow of water to the base of the tree.

If using a temporary tree support, this is the time to add it.

To encourage the tree roots to grow outward, consider digging one or more auxiliary holes a few inches out from the edge of the hole for the tree. Fill the holes with shredded paper (see picture) or mulch. This will keep the area moist, and the roots will grow toward them.

ESTABLISHING THE TREE The day after planting, slowly water the tree with another full bucket of water.

Make sure to keep the area surrounding your fruit tree free of weeds and grass.

Add a general fertilizer, appropriate for your tree, in spring before the tree starts to produce shoots, following the application instructions.

If the weather is very dry and hot, check the mulch regularly to make sure it does not become a haven for undesirable insects.

Do not overwater. Most fruit trees can’t survive flooded soil.

Chickens can help keep the area around the tree free of undesirable insect pests.

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FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 47

FROM THE FIELD

THE VIEW AT NIGHTFALL

CommunitySupported Agriculture

O

BY LIZ BROWNLEE

OUR CHALKBOARD SIGN sits beside the farmers market tent, tempting marketgoers with four simple words: “Monthly Meat Shares Available.” Lots of folks stop and inquire, and we explain why our community-supported agriculture, or CSA, program is the backbone of our farm.

We thought it was high time to share with Farm Indiana readers why our CSA works so well for our farm and the 12,500 other farms that have CSAs around the country.

What’s a CSA?

Simply put, CSAs work because they offer clear benefits for farmers and customers.

Customers join, becoming “members” of the farm. Members pay up front, and farmers deliver meat (or eggs, fruit, produce, bread, soup, etc.) each week or month for each member to pick up at a convenient location.

We try to make our CSA straightforward. Members can join at any time and choose from several convenient pickup sites in southern Indiana. We bring meat to these pickup sites each month.

Members choose a chicken share (one whole chicken per month), a poultry share (one chicken per month, plus a Thanksgiving turkey), a pork share (4 to 5 pounds of assorted pork cuts per month, totaling 50 pounds over the course of a year) or a meat lover’s share (all of the above). Members can join for six or 12 months at a time.

Now, this is a pretty different model than going to the grocery to grab what you need. But we (and our members) think the CSA is worth it.

Why? Here’s our take on why a CSA is a great fit for a small farm.

BENEFITS FOR MEMBERS Most CSA benefits for members include:

BENEFITS FOR FARMS The benefits to us are clear:

» DISCOUNTS Price is compelling. The first and most obvious benefit to our customers is the 10 percent to 15 percent discount below farmers market prices that they get on their purchases.

» OPERATING CAPITAL Normally, farmers have to pay bills (feed, fencing, processing, etc.) and then recoup some or all of the costs when they sell meat at the farmers market or auction.

Cash flow can be a hurdle in this scenario.

» STEADY SUPPLY “Sorry, we don’t have any more bacon.” This is not a statement you want to utter at the farmers market. We like that we can guarantee our CSA members a steady supply of the meat they want, because the meat they want is set aside for them from the time they join.

CSAs offer an alternative. CSA members pay up front, ideally at the start of the growing season. This timing is perfect for a farm because income from CSA shares helps pay bills as we work through the season.

» NO STORAGE NECESSARY While some folks like having a big freezer full of beef, many people don’t have the storage space. Because members buy in advance and in bulk, we essentially offer a freezer service for our customers, delivering only 4 to 10 pounds of meat at a time. » VOTING DOLLARS Members can vote with their food dollars and support farming practices that build soil health, sequester carbon, protect water quality, treat animals humanely and benefit the local economy.

» KNOWN CUSTOMER BASE Last December, we sat at the dining room table, hunched over our computer trying to decide how many chicks to raise in 2015.

Our original plan was to go from raising 300 (our total in 2014) to 800 chickens.

But CSA sales had gone so well that we thought we could raise more chickens.

We will still raise a modest number, but we wouldn’t have had the confidence to grow without our CSA member base. CSAs around the country report that the majority of their members renew their membership from year to year. We know some members won’t sign up again, but we also have new members regularly joining. Having a relatively known customer base is a very important benefit to our growing farm, and it makes those planning decisions much easier. » COMMUNITY Everyone wins here. We try to provide benefits to members, from recipe books to farm open houses. In return, we get a huge amount of satisfaction. We’ll overhear a member talking with a friend, saying, “Our farm raises animals on pasture, which makes the meat taste so juicy.” These conversations can be good for sales (a benefit to us).

But hearing the pride our members take in the farm also just makes us happy. When CSA members take ownership, it shows us that the farm matters to their lives.

Mutual benefit for farmers and members — that’s the standard for CSAs. We’re proud to be one of the many CSAs in Indiana. If you’re looking to join a CSA, try looking at the Local Growers Guild’s Local Food Guide, which highlights CSAs in Indiana, or search online at localharvest. org, where you can find CSAs by location.

After years of gaining experience on other farms, Liz Brownlee and her husband, Nate, recently moved back to Indiana to start their own family farm, which they named Nightfall Farm. Here, they will share stories of the many trials, tribulations, successes and failures in running a new family business.

For more on Nightfall Farm, visit nightfallfarm.com.

48 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

LOCAL FOOD

By Clint Smith

At the

TABLE Local proprietors bring fresh juice and seasonally influenced food to Indy’s dining scene

THE ORIGINAL IDEA for The Garden Table centered on juice, not food, co-owner Jessie Kelley says. When drawing up a business plan in 2013, she and co-owners Sarah Simons and Greg Harden started with just a “juicery” concept “after traveling a lot together … and seeing juiceries on every corner in big cities,” Kelley explains.

But as they fleshed out the concept more, they felt a juicery was still too new in the Indianapolis market. “We needed to also have food, to bring in more people who would then try the juice,” Kelley explains. “We are big brunch people, so we started writing a menu that was simple, but thoughtful.”

Now, the eatery, which opened in 2014, offers breakfast, brunch and lunch, as well as the freshly squeezed juices that got the business rolling. While the food menu is divided into “Morning Plates” and “Afternoon Plates,” all items are available throughout service hours. The restaurant’s most popular dishes, says Kelley, are the Garden Benedict (mashed avocado toast, poached eggs and basil hollandaise), the BLT Smash (choice of bacon, romaine, tomato, smashed avocado and a Sriracha aioli) and the Chorizo Hash Bowl (sweet potato, Brussels sprout hash, onion, chorizo and a poached egg). Kelley also gives a nod to the granola, made in-house from raw cashews, organic steel-cut oats, raw chia seeds, ginger, turmeric and pink sea salt. “It has this amazing sweet and salty taste and is so nourishing,” she says.

As the trio decided on the menu, the owners began seeking local vendors to supply them with food. “To me, the success story (here) is seeing an Indiana farmer pull up in our lot, unload produce from his farm and leave us with a handwritten invoice,” she says. “The boxes he drops are full of freshly (harvested) heads of lettuce in the most vivid shades of green, and it (the produce) goes into

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LOCAL FOOD

Above, cold-pressed juices. Left, granola.

a sink for washing, and soon after onto a plate that we serve a customer.”

Simply witnessing this process, says Kelley, gives the phrase “farm-to-table” a whole new meaning for her, but it’s the juicery, she says, that infuses The Garden Table with vitality. Eight cold-pressed juice beverages are available, all a mixture of raw fruits, vegetables, herbs and “superfoods” free of GMOs, soy, dairy, gluten and any artificial ingredients.

The biggest sellers are the Lush Love, the Cashew Concoction and the Emerald Elixir, but “we always like to introduce people to the Detox Dream, which tastes like a spicy lemonade but is black,” Kelley says. “A black juice freaks people out. We have to explain the activated charcoal is what makes it black.”

Charcoal is said to be a detoxifying agent. “Once people try it, they really love it,” she says.

The atmosphere at the Broad Ripplebased shop is, according to Kelley, precisely as it was intended: “bright, busy and beautiful.” The diminutive kitchen maintains a bustling, high-energy tempo throughout the morning and early afternoon, while the neat, white-walled dining room allows in abundant natural light. “There are all types of customers at any given time,” Kelley says, “a few runners from the Monon (Trail), a mom with her children, people

(sitting at the counters) in the windows working on their laptops. We … truly encourage people to pop in to quickly grab a juice or stay all day and work.”

“I think we are a niche concept,” says Kelley, “but we have something for everyone.

We don’t like to put ourselves in a box; we just like to make and serve what feels right, and what we ourselves like and want. I think people crave that authenticity.” For more information, visit thegardentable.com.

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EXPERT TIP

STRAWBERRY FIELDS The earliest harvested crops to become available each year at Waterman’s Farm Market in Indianapolis are strawberries and peas, “both sugar snap and English peas,” Bruce Waterman says.

Normally available June 1 at the East Raymond Street farm market, as well as area farmers markets, the produce is picked several times per day to fill the market shelves.

“When purchasing or picking local strawberries,” Waterman suggests, “select strawberries that are fully ripe or completely red with the stems attached to the strawberry. A fully red strawberry has more flavor and juice.”

Waterman adds that local strawberries are usually different than either Florida or California varieties, in that they “usually are smaller and have much more flavor and a shorter shelf life because of the higher sugar content.”

For more information, visit watermansfamilyfarm.com.

FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015 // 51

LOCAL FOOD

RECIPE

Strawberry Asparagus Salad From the Kitchen of Cheryl Carter Jones

START TO FINISH SERVINGS 4

25 minutes

3 cups asparagus spears, cut into 1 inch pieces 1 tablespoon salt 3 cups strawberries, sliced ½ cup toasted pecans or almonds, broken into small pieces L cup lemon juice

RECIPE

3 tablespoons vegetable oil 3 tablespoons honey

Sausage, Morel and Caramelized Onion Galette

In a large saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil.

While waiting for the water to boil, prepare asparagus spears. With a knife, trim off dry ends. With a peeler, peel bottom 2 to 3 inches of each asparagus spear. Cut spears into 1-inch pieces.

Fill a large bowl M full with cold water. Add 6 to 10 pieces of ice, creating an ice bath.

START TO FINISH

2½ hours

Add salt to boiling water. Return water to a boil. Blanch the asparagus by adding the cut asparagus pieces carefully to the boiling water. Return the water to a boil and let the asparagus cook for approximately 2 to 3 minutes until it turns bright green but is still tender crisp.

SERVINGS

8-10

3 medium onions, julienned

Preheat oven to 350 F.

1 cup pork sausage

Heat a medium-sized iron skillet. Once skillet is heated, drizzle in two tablespoons olive oil and turn down to low, adding julienned onions. Let onions cook down until they are a golden brown and soft. Set aside to cool.

1 cup Swiss chard, chopped 1 clove garlic 1 cup foraged morels or other mushrooms, halved 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided 5 leaves fresh sage or ½ teaspoon dried 1 teaspoon sea salt ¼ cup all-purpose flour 1 egg for egg wash 1 tablespoon water

While onions are cooking, saute ground sausage in another iron skillet. Once sausage is almost cooked, push to side and add diced garlic and Swiss chard.

Cook until tender and garlic is transparent. Set aside to cool. Do not drain.

Gently mix together caramelized onions, sausage, garlic and Swiss chard in a large bowl. Add sea salt. Add sliced morels and tear sage leaves or sprinkle in dried sage. Toss two or three times, then toss everything in the flour.

Roll out a pie crust into a large circle, about V of an inch thick and 18 inches across. Place onto parchment-lined baking sheet.

Crack egg into a small bowl and add one tablespoon of room temperature water. Whisk lightly to make egg wash. Brush pie dough all over with egg wash. Scoop the sausage and onion mixture into the middle of the dough.

Make sure to leave an approximate 3-inch gap of dough around filling.

Carefully fold pastry around your ingredients, creating a loose, rustic feel.

Brush pastry edges with egg wash liberally and sprinkle lightly with sea salt. Place in preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes or until pastry is golden brown. Remove from oven and let rest for 15 minutes before serving.

Drizzle remaining olive oil over the top of the galette, slice and serve.

52 // FARM INDIANA // MAY 2015

Using a mesh sieve or slotted spoon, immediately remove asparagus from boiling water. Add asparagus pieces to ice water bath to stop the cooking process.

Allow asparagus to completely cool in the ice water bath. When cool, with a mesh sieve or slotted spoon remove asparagus pieces from the ice water bath. Spread asparagus onto a clean towel (cloth or paper) and pat dry.

In a medium bowl, combine the asparagus and strawberries. Stir with a fork to combine.

In a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, oil and honey.

Pour the dressing over the salad and toss with large serving spoons. Sprinkle toasted pecans on top of salad and chill until serving time.

The recipes on this page can be found in the Hoosier Harvest cookbook, a publication of Farm Indiana. It can be purchased for $24.99 by calling (800) 876-7811 or visiting therepublic.com/cookbook.

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