Green Flamingo Trip a Success!

Yesterday was Trevor's and my first day volunteering at Green Flamingo in Oak Hill... an extremely positive experience, to say the least! Our hosts, farmers Elizabeth and Mary, were exactly the kind of people that we see ourselves being in a few years. They have done a number of internships and volunteer programs around the country, and have finally re-settled in New Smyrna to run this fabulous, 100% organic operation. The four of us spent a full day shoveling/spreading mulch and compost, installing an irrigation system, planting, and harvesting. Above you'll see some of the yummies they let us bring home... bonus!! Here they are after being cooked into a Thai/American Southern fusion dish...

And YES, okay, fine, you caught us... we DID forget our camera when we went to volunteer. We're totally new at this blogging thing; cut us some slack!! We plan on going out again in a couple weeks, at which point we'll take pictures of tranquil groves, truck-chasing dogs, and flying saucer squash that would make E.B. White sob with jealousy. Also, stay tuned for more on the Paradise saga... I will visit Homestead on Tuesday (camera in hand, I promise) to learn more about their facility and see if I can't lend a hand for the afternoon. Unfortunately as great as it was to meet Elizabeth and Mary, and much as we'd love to be in on the ground floor of their project, it would not be feasible to do a full-time internship at Green Flamingo for the coming season; so Paradise is our "ultimate decision of the moment." It's not without its difficulties. For instance, we will not be able to take our beloved kitty cat :( :( :( due to anticipated disputes with the local guard dogs. But Trevor and I agree that it's a wonderful chance to learn more about growing organic produce, not to mention cooking with slow-food techniques. Plus, there will be opportunities to earn extra money while we're there. So we are very excited :)

That's all for now... If I don't have pics of an actual farm for you by Wednesday, feel free to click "unfollow" (is that even a word?)

What a fantastic dilemma

So how cool is this?

After making our plans to visit Green Flamingo Organics, we get a message from Paradise Farm in Homestead. Seems they are exactly two people short for their season and they could use us starting in September. Our lease ends in Sept., so that is what is commonly known as perfect. They host their interns (sounded like through the productive season, so into spring), meals are provided, and they work a 30-hour week, so we would have time to freelance.

Paradise has been productive for something like six or seven years. They grow avocados, mangos, bananas and other tropical fruits as well as mushrooms and something called "micro-greens," all for high-end restaurants in the area. They also host charity dinners where all the food is prepared in front of the patrons. Lindsay being the chef is particularly interested in this.

I told Gus at Paradise that we had already made plans to check out Green Flamingo, but that if things didn't work out, we'd give him a call.

So we have our first guarantee - a place to stay and work to do. Let the learning begin!

Green Flamingo Organics

So it looks like we're gonna go volunteer at Green Flamingo Organics next Saturday. Here's the basic description:

Green Flamingo Organics is a small organic farm in the midst of 140 acres of citrus groves located in Oak Hill Florida. This is the first year of production and we are working on growing the vegetable garden, keeping a flock of laying hens, and propagating perennials and fruit and nut trees. As the farm develops we are interested in creating more projects in living systems. New projects we are working towards include rain water catchment, alternative energy, green construction, beekeeping, mycology, and really almost anything that sounds fun, interesting, and produces deliciousness. The farm will produce for a CSA and market this year. We are located 30 miles south of Daytona Beach, FL, in very close proximity to Merritt Island Wildlife Refuge, Canaveral National Seashore, and miles of intercoastal waterway.

To Lindsay and I, this is like saying, "Hey, how about you start out in Heaven?" It's located in the most ideal place imaginable for us and it's working on sustainable systems, which is exactly the kind of farming we want to do. If things work out, we might make it our first full-time internship.

Apparently this is their big season. I'm sure they'd welcome extra hands (mainly because they said so). If anybody wants to come along next Saturday, drop me a line.

Giddy giddy giddy giddy!

The Latest Offer

My biggest fear about this whole undertaking is that we are wishing on a star; that we are hoping to get something for nothing.

Take the most recent contact I've gotten:

King County, Duvall

19 acres for long term lease. Land is within the Farmland Preservation Program. In pasture for last 10 years. River water available. Potential for organic certification. Organic cow manure for fertilizer available. Buildings include: 100’x100’, 30’x150’, and 30’x65’ sheds that could be converted to other uses. 2 bed/1bath single dwelling (700 sf) available. Lots of possibilities. Land owner willing to work with you.

All well and good, but once again sounds like somebody would have to come in with some serious startup.

Is it unreasonable to want to go enter a lifestyle so far removed from your own?

No, that's poor phrasing.

Is it unreasonable to say, "Hey, farming happens. People do it. We're people. We can farm."

Bear in mind, Lindsay and I are not asking for anything even kind of resembling ownership right off. We're not saying, "Give us a lease on spec and if it doesn't work out, then we'll just walk away from it." We're saying that we want to learn. We want to work on a farm. Don't people do that? Are we too old?

I'm thinking we might need more education. So we're looking into internships now. We found this wonderful site that has a list of programs around the country. I'm a big fan of the Central Rocky Mountain Permaculture Institute in Colorado. They're full until Spring, though.

We have written to Green Flamingo Organics and Paradise Farm, both in Florida. We're probably going to write to two or three a day until we start getting favorable responses.

The whole thing is, it looks like we're going to have to shit or get off the pot, though we don't have a pot and we're a little constipated.

Got a call ...

... From another wonderful Virginia woman. She's not really old. She's just alone and has too much acreage to manage herself. She's originally from West Chester, N.Y. Got into this much the same way we would like to (i.e. just picked up and did it).

Here's the specs:

20+ acres
Raises turkeys, rabbits, hogs, and I think I heard cows
Grows everything from high-end peas to high-end artichokes to high-end Asian pears; looking to get into truffles
Building her own house out of old tobacco barns


She wants partners, not employees, but she seemed cool with the fact that we'd be coming into this with no money. I said we'd take a look at her place in October.

I'll keep you all posted.

Piedmont Organics

So Lindsay and I have wanted a farm for several years now. But the impetus behind our sudden drive for one was this article. It's about a program matching young aspiring hicks like us with older people who are looking to retire. It's got some shocking statistics about how the average age of farmers is 57 and 30 percent of them are over 65 and on and on.

Now, we could pretend that this alarmed us and we need to stem the tied of dying, small-scale farmers, but the fact is we just saw our dream life floating in the concept of "farm matchmaking."

It took some doing (you know, googling) to find out what these programs are actually called. FarmLink. Most states seem to have an individual program and they each have their own requirements (and fees). Some only want state residents, some only want experienced farmers.

One of the most accessible programs we found was the Virginia FarmLink. It's all online and we didn't have to pay an enrollment fee. The process is, we hunt down listings we like and contact the owners with our profile. So far it's actually yeilding responses. One woman, who sounds like one of the greatest, craziest firecrackers in the world, really wants us to come out. However, she hasn't worked much of her land yet and doesn't have anyone else and spends most of her time fending off locals who want to use her land for hunting and poisoning her dogs. It's a sad but hopeful tale, and though we would love to join her, we just don't think we have the experience yet. We'll probably talk more about her later because she is an awesome prospect.

Another one we got was an invitation to Piedmont Organics. This place looks absolutely perfect. The land is ready for mixed-use ... use. It's got most of its commercial viability already set up (delivery trucks, website, near D.C., etc.). It's raring to go (seriously, raring).

The problem is that it's for rent. They want $850/mo. for the house. For that, you would get access to all the land, the equipment, and there would be some people around to help train you.

But Lindsay and I have norhing to start with. So we're scheming. Maybe we could host the place like a timeshare, where people pay to have a place for a month or so. Or maybe we could go public just to support ourselves in the beginning and then buyout the shares once we've established our business. Or maybe we just move there and glue ourselves to the furniture and see if no one notices.

We're looking into it.

We could run the artists retreat. We could run it as a community farm or a teaching farm or a resort farm or maybe just grow sorghum (by which I mean hookers; Simpsons reference, look it up).

If anyone has any ideas, please share. Thanks!

Where the hell is Doveland Farm?

Doveland Farm is a small plot of land, between 15 and 250 acres.

Doveland Farm lies on rolling green hills overlooking wide pastures. Or it's on a cliff by the Pacific Ocean. Or sprawling across a plain of wheat with a pond-and-tree oasis about half a mile down the creek from out modest farmhouse. Or our yurt.

On Doveland Farm, we toil under a hot Florida sun among the rows of blossoming orange trees that feed the wild bees from whom we harvest honey. Or we hoe our mandala garden beneath a blue Iowa sky. Or we shepherd our flocks of sheep over the rocky paddocks of Colorado. Or goats. Or alpacas.

Or it's this:

Maybe we just have some horses and a trail-riding business. Maybe we have used permaculture techniques to attract fish to our rivers. We sail out in the morning and collect crabs and then return to our mountaintop, Idaho potato farm.

Fact is, we don't know where Doveland Farm is yet because right now it is a swirling mass of imagination and excitement. But somewhere out there is exactly what we're looking for; the ability to carry on America's agricultural heritage and blend it with new methods of organic, sustainable farming.

Lindsay and I want to farm. We're not picky how. We're not picky what (though we do have a few stipulations that I'm sure will come up here later). We just want to learn, make ourselves capable, and build a place worth living in.

Anyone who's interested in our journey, anybody searching for something else themselves, we want you with us. We'll share what we find. Hopefully, this will help other people find what they're looking for as well.

Thanks for joining us. Wish us luck!