a monthly digest of
resources, events, and people
in forestry &
agroforestry
May
2016
View
it online: http://news.
Greetings!
Welcome
to the monthly news of Wellspring Forest
Farm and School.
Each
month, we share useful information about methods for improving forest health
and increasing productivity and diversity, along with the happenings of our
farm and educational programs.
The
newsletter will be emailed to you each month. You can read it in your email,
download the attached PDF, or view
it on our website. You are welcome to unsubscribe at any time. Instructions
at the bottom of this email.
For
the trees,
Steve
& Elizabeth
-------------------
In the Woods
-------------------
May
marks a dramatic transition in the forest, where the spring thaw has paved the
way for a remarkable window in time, where many spring ephemeral plants emerge
from hiding. Ephemeral means “lasting a markedly brief time,” which is exactly
what they do.
One of the most desired of these plants are Wild Leeks, or Ramps (Allium tricoccum).
Recently,
interest in this wild edible has led to concerns they are being overharvested. We
wrote an article for the Farming the Woods blog about the issue, which you can
read here.
If
you want to try your hand at cultivating ramps, these videos from the ExtensionForest Farming site will help you get started.
As
you roam the woods, keep an eye out for ephemerals, which are some of the most
unique and beautiful plants in the forest. Here
is a photo essay to help you ID some of them.
------------------
On the Farm
------------------
Mushrooms are starting to pop at the farm! We
had the first of our Cold Weather Shiitake emerge in the past few weeks. These
mushrooms are adapted to the “swing” seasons and fruit in response to the
dramatically changing temperatures in spring and fall.
See
this
article from Field and Forest Products for more information on these
beautiful shrooms.
For
those in the Finger Lakes Region, consider joining our 2016 CSA to receive
a half or full pound of fresh mushrooms each week from mid June - mid
September.
We
grow shiitake, oyster, and lions mane on logs from sustainably managed forests
and oysters on organic straw in our greenhouse. We forage and offer
chanterelles, chicken-of-the woods, and other wild mushrooms in medley shares
as available.
The
CSA runs from the second week in June through the second week in September, for
a total of 14 weeks. You can
choose SHIITAKE ONLY or the MUSHROOM MEDLY as options.
$112
for a half pound ($8/week)
$200
for a full pound ($14/week, 10% discount)
Pick-up locations:
Thursdays at the Westy Bar
in Ithaca
(alongside Plowbreak Farm CSA pick-up)
from 5 - 7pm
Fridays
at Sweetland Farm CSAhttp://www.sweetlandfarm.
Fridays
at our farm in Mecklenburg off Buck Hill Rd South.
------------------------------
Featured Articles, Videos,
etc
------------------------------
This
month, we want to introduce you to Wellspring
Farm & School.
Not so long ago, a vast mosaic of forests and trees
covered the eastern and Midwestern US. These were old forests that stood the
test of time.
These forests were not untouched by human hands;
native first nations peoples tended the land for hundreds and in some places
thousands of years. When European settlers and conquerors arrived, they enacted
as a wholesale destruction of forests, and of culture.
Despite all this, in just the past 60 or 70 years, the
forest has begun to return. Yet in our modern management, we still possess a
mind of degeneration, and we are collectively denuding the forest back as has
been done before. In agriculture, forestland is often considered worthless.
We
began the school with one fundamental question:
What does it look like, to
restore the eastern forest into productive coexistence?
We
are two people (Steve & Elizabeth Gabriel) who steward 10-acres land as a
productive forest farm and teaching site.
We
are also a community of
knowledge-holders, teachers, and stewards, doing the daily work to support
healthy forested lands.
-------------------------
Upcoming Events
-------------------------
The Forest Talks
a series of
guides hikes in heritage forests of the Finger Lakes
4th Tuesdays from May through October
5:30 - 8:00pm
These walks bring participants to some of the
more majestic forests of the finger lakes. Local ecologists & foresters
will be our guides as we learn to read the language of the forest and discuss
how to apply our observations to management. After the hike we will gather at a
nearby pub or coffee shop and continue the conversation.
Farming the Woods: Harness the
Power of Mushrooms to Feed, Heal & Restore
June 10, 2016 – June 12, 2016
June 10, 2016 – June 12, 2016
In this hands-on workshop with Steve, we explore
fungal ecology and the ways we can partner with fungi to help solve global
problems like ecosystem remediation, food access and distribution, and a range
of health issues. Develop the confidence and
curiosity you will need to continue exploring the positive potential of the
fungal world at home.
See all our
events at events.wellspringforestfarm.
------------------------------
Featured Forest Steward
------------------------------
The
steward of the month is Finger Lakes Forester Mike DeMunn. Mike has led a long
career as a caretaker for the woods. He has been practicing ecological forestry
for three decades and has worked for the U.S. Forest Service, National Park
Service and the Soil and Water District, and for industry as head forester for
a large lumber company.
In
his youth, Mike was adopted into the Six Nations Haudenosaunee
(Iroquois) tribe and his Seneca Hawk Clan Mother Da’ Ha’ da’ nyah meaning “he protects the forest.” His
upbringing in a native culture, coupled with his vast experience in the
industry working in both private and public sectors, gives Mike a unique and
valuable perspective on forest ecology and management.
Steve spent semester of college with Mike in
the woods. His
final project included an audio piece featuring Mike’s perspective, listen to
it here.
Mike
is not only an accomplished forester, but also artist and author o two
children’s books, “Places
of Power” and “The
Earth is Good.” Both his painting and writing evokes a contagious
passionate love and reverence for the natural world.
Mike
is one of the elder mentors of our forest school. Spending time with him in the
woods is a special moment. His wisdom flows as he teaches science, history,
culture, and technical skills all at once.
Mike
is leading the first hike this May as part of the “Forest Talks” series, as well as being the main teacher in our five-day Forestry & Agroforestry Short
Course in August. LEARN
MORE
------------------------------
Quote of the
Month:
------------------------------
"Say
that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you did not plant,
that you
will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested,
when
they have rotted into the mold.
Call
that profit."
-
Wendell Berry
------------------------------
“News from the Woods” is
brought to you by:
Wellspring
Forest Farm & School
leaving
forests in our footsteps
Steve & Elizabeth
Gabriel
Mecklenburg, NY
farmers@
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