Locally Grown Foods

Hello again!

After Dr. Ferrer's talk on Wednesday, I wanted to find out more about local NC Farmers markets and CSA's. I went to a really cool website that is similar to Locallygrownnews.com. It is localharvest.org. On the site, it gives you the option to look fro local farmers markets and CSA's. Here is a picture from the region.

I looked up some of the CSA's because they are something I had never really heard of before this class, and some of the prices are reasonable. Some consider a year membership from April to October, after that I guess you would just go to the market? The prices ranged from $250-$700.

One of the local farms that seem awesome is called Snow Creek Family Organics. I love this farm because when you click on their link on the website they explain their process and how they value being considered organic! What is also interesting about the website is that when you look at specific farms, they offer a diagram of what they grow and when. Here is the Snow Creek Family Organics chart:

I was glad to see they grow organic corn. Corn is among my favorites and I was very upset when I found that it is right behind soy in the leading GM foods in the US.

I hope someone from this area can take advantage of this option. I'm thinking of going and visiting the farm one weekend just to see what it's like.

On another note, I hope everyone replied to their survey sent my Anna Galimore about having a farmers market in Old Salem. I think it is an AWESOME idea! The survey takes about 5 minutes and from what I've heard, Old Salem is really considering having it.

I think that would be such a good opportunity to grow greener and more organic as a community.

Have a great night :)

Sarah

Introducing Organic Gardening to Children

This picture shows my 13 yr old, then 12, planting tomato plants in our first garden. This experience meant show much to me and my family in so many ways. I shared this plot of land with another family who chose to involve their child as well. By introducing this skill to children at this age, they are more prone to continue this practice later in life. I found it very important to not only show her how to grow her own food, but I found it even more important to show her how to do it in a way that is safe for her and her environment. When I asked her how she felt about using grain fed chicken droppings as fertilizer instead of chemical fertilizer she said " At least I know what chicken poop is, I don't know whats in the chemical fertilizer". I think the best part of the experience for my child was to actually see, prepare, and eat the fruits and veggies of her labor. One thing that stood out to her the most was how much better the vegies tasted from our garden as opposed to produce we purchase in a grocery store. I strongly encourage those that enjoy gardening to introduce it to a child. If you don't have kids, try another relative or a neighbor. One way we can ensure that the next generation may choose a more environmentally sustainable way of living is by exposing them to these practices early.