Greenhorns Radio

For the past 25 years Kelly has managed and consulted with vineyards, farms and ranches throughout the western USA, Spain, Australia and China. In 2012 he spent two months in Australia and New Zealand giving presentations and workshops on extended-season vineyard grazing. His studies include Ecological Horticulture at UC Santa Cruz (Farm and Garden Program), Viticulture at UC Davis and Holistic Management with The Center for Holistic Management. For the past 15 years his work has focused on combining his experience in farming and viticulture with holistic management in order to create more ecologically, socially and economically sound farming and grape growing practices. This usually involves a considerable amount of help from livestock. This episode has been sponsored by Hearst Ranch.

“One of the reasons I got interested in viticulture is because it was a fairly progressive branch of agriculture.” [10:15] — Kelly Mulville on Greenhorn Radio

Burnt Rock Farm is owned by Justin Rich and Lindsay Lyman-Clarke. Justin runs the day to day operations of the farm, while Lindsay works in town and provides vital labor on nights and weekends. Justin was first introduced to farming as a summer job at a well-established organic vegetable farm. He went on to earn a bachelor’s in environmental geology and then a master’s in horticulture and soil science. He met Lyman-Clarke, originally from Richmond, in graduate school at Cornell and the couple decided to come home to Vermont where she now works for Burton. After purchasing the foreclosed property in 2008, Justin continued working at Full Moon Farm in Burlington gaining experience before moving to Hinesburg.

While Burnt Rock is known for its sweet potatoes, 2013 will see 7 acres of vegetable production and 5 acres of intensively managed cover crops on our glacially terraced soils along and above the banks of the Huntington River. All crops are certified organic by Vermont Organic Farmers (VOF) as they strive to grow the highest quality produce while also stewarding the soil. Burnt Rock makes use of organic amendments such as compost, wood ash, and rock mineral fertilizers, and to keep their soils as biologically healthy as possible though active management of cover crops. Produce is sold at the Burlington Winter Farmers’ Market, The Intervale Food Hub CSA in Burlington, City Market in Burlington, Healthy Living in South Burlington, Joe’s CSA in Montpelier, and through Pakeen Farm CSA in metro Boston. Thanks to our sponsor, Hearst Ranch.

“Farmers’ markets are available, but they might not be what you want for you business in the long term.” [10:20]

— Justin Rich on Greenhorn Radio

Gavin Raders is a co-founder and Executive Director of Planting Justice, a social justice activist, and a permacuture demonstrator/teacher. He dedicates his time to practicing permaculture wherever he can, having gone through extensive training with some of the most inspiring and effective permaculture teachers in the world: Geoff Lawton, Penny Livingston-Stark, Brock Dolman, Darren Dougherty, and Nik Bertulis. Before his stint as an intern at the Regenerative Design Institute, he studied cultural anthropology at UC Berkeley, and organized on a range of anti-war, anti-nuclear, environmental and human rights issues both on campus and off. He has knocked on nearly 30,000 doors in California, New Mexico, Colorado, and Nevada as a community organizer with Peace Action West.
He comes to permaculture and ecological design through a social justice framework which recognizes the right of all people to peace, security, housing, healthy food, clean water, jobs and healthcare, and the rights of future generations to a just and livable world. For this to happen, he believes that Americans need to understand and respect the intimate connection and the shared fate we have with all people and all life on this planet, and organize effectively on the local level to come up with replicable and effective solutions to the range of hardships and oppressions we currently face. When families, communities, bio-regions, and nations work with nature instead of against her to provide their own sustainable food, water, and energy, this not only makes us more resilient, but also makes us less likely to violently take what they need from someone else. He is still riding on the inspiration and jolt of passion he experienced in India, studying and advocating for the right to water and against its privatization by massive water corporations (such as Coca-Cola). Thanks to our sponsor, Hearst Ranch.

“We have a great deal of power to change our environment and the things that serve us.” [8:20] — Gavin Raders on Greenhorn Radio

Born and raised north of Boston, Anne Riordan spent her childhood highly invested in music, horses, and athletics. After her undergraduate experience at Cornell playing lacrosse, Anne spent a year working at the Cornell Veterinary Labs and returned for a Masters in reproductive biology. During that time, she began visiting the farm at Cayuga Pure Organics and fell in love with the outdoor, physical work, involvement with the earth, and like minded peers at CPO. Her commitment to the farm led to her full time employment at CPO and leaving behind the opportunity of Veterinary School for her true calling in agriculture. Anne spent time running the processing station (the beanery) before moving into managing the fields. She feels blessed to have the opportunity to have met the amazing community at Cayuga Pure and loves her job. This program was sponsored by Hearst Ranch

“Anything that gets to be grown I get to decide where we put it and how much we’ll grow.” 01:00

–Ann Riordan of Cayuga Pure Organics on Greenhorn Radio

Answering the call of the Earth, Mary Russ decided one day to leave
college in order to become a farmer. She immediately developed a
passion for growing organic food and animal husbandry. She has worked
on several organic farms and formerly managed a large Certified
Organic CSA farm in Tallahassee, Florida. Currently she has embarked
on a new adventure and is managing Serenity Acres, an artisan goat
dairy and non-profit education center. This program has been brought to you by Hearst Ranch.

“One of the benefits of being out on the farm is that I’ve learned so much about making cheese… It’s definitely a farm focused on learning.” [9:30]

“One of the things that I’ve helped with is assisting farmers sell and market their products- either direct to consumers, or to restaurants.” [18:15]

— Mary Russ on Greenhorn Radio

Julia Olmstead is a senior associate in the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy’s Rural Communities Program. She works on domestic biofuel policy, climate change, and Mississippi River navigation policy. For the last decade Julia has worked on issues related to agriculture and biofuels as a researcher and journalist. She serves on the Organizational Council of the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition and was formerly a graduate fellow with the Land Institute in Salina, KS. She holds an M.S. in plant breeding and sustainable agriculture from Iowa State University, an M.J. in journalism from the University of California-Berkeley and a B.A. in botany and Spanish from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Julia hails from St. Paul, MN and is excited to be transitioning to a new position soon with working to create farmer-led watershed councils in western Wisconsin with University of Wisconsin Cooperative Extension. This episode has been sponsored by Hearst Ranch.

“I think that we right now are sort of in a status quo. Corn prices are so high, that I don’t think farmers can think about growing something else.” [16:00] — Julia Olmstead on Greenhorn Radio

Chaya Lipkind holds a B.S. in Liberal Arts from The New School and a Certificate in Sustainable Agriculture from the University of Vermont. A Brooklyn native, Chaya spent 7 years working in a financial company before transitioning into sustainable agriculture. In 2012, she founded Dreamland Harvest, a diversified organic vegetable farm located in Monticello, NY that sells fresh produce to local and New York City residents. Currently the principal farmer at Dreamland Harvest, Chaya is collaborating with friends to secure a larger tract of land in the upstate New York area that will become the new home for an expanded Dreamland Harvest farming operation within a larger healing arts and music community. In her free time, Chaya enjoys creative DIY projects, spending time with friends and family, yoga, snowboarding, and, of course, sharing fresh, hearty food with great company. This episode has been brought to you by White Oak Pastures.

“I’m trying to find out ways to better transport food into the city because I do see this urban-rural link…farmers need it to survive.” [10:30] — Chaya Lipkind on Greenhorn Radio

Sean Dembrosky, 32, owns and operates the ‘Edible Acres’ project just north of Trumansburg NY (www.edibleacres.org). Formally educated in the fine arts, but focused on agriculture for the last decade, Sean has developed a farming system based on permaculture principles and forest farming. Very low tech / no tech approaches to plant propagation, polyculture development, and a focus on long term perennial food and medicine crops has enabled Sean to begin the work of developing a resilient, high calorie out for calorie in food system that requires no external sources of electricity or fuel to function. This episode has been sponsored by Hearst Ranch.

“If you’re 27 years old or younger, you’ve never experienced a colder-than-average month.” [14:30] — Sean Dembrosky on Greenhorn Radio

Solomon is a first generation, beginning farmer in Loyalton, CA. After growing up in the 70s exposed to small scale urban agriculture in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as agricultural communities in Pennsylvania, Solomon attended Feather River College for Equine Studies and Ecosystem management with the intention of entering range management. But because the forest service eliminated the position, Solomon instead fought fire for ten years while maintaining a homestead operation with a variety of animals and 10 acres of cultivation.

Solomon and his family now live and work a 60 acre ranch which they have leased land for the past 3 years with an additional 60 Acres of neighboring land that they graze in exchange for fire control. Seasonal off farm jobs help support the family as they grow their little herd of cattle and flock of sheep, grain, and hay cultivation. Solomon and his partner Bronwyn Olsen also have two daughters Sierra (16 years old) and Mariah (13 Years old). This episode has been sponsored by White Oak Pastures.

“We have more need for our product than we actually have product, so that feels great.” [14:55] — Solomon Sweeting on Greenhorn Radio

Adam Huggins is a collectivist, (im)permaculturalist, herbalist, musician, and analog filmmaker living in the Bay Area, a sweater of the salt of the Great Ocean and a busybody garlic-peeling hand-processing dumpster-diving propagator of plants and emulsions. You can explore his work at http://sunfishmoonlight.wordpress.com. This program has been sponsored by Tabard Inn.

“Why feed the world? The world can feed itself, if given the chance to.” [21:40] — Adam Huggins on Greenhorn Radio