The Conference on Community and Sustainability Report

The Conference on Community and Sustainability was just slightly larger than last year with 26 people traveling from as far away as Portland. OR and California. That’s a good number of people for us, enough to create a nice bubble or “group head,” but small enough that everyone can really get to know each other.

Saturday night was jam-packed with action on The Farm, starting with The Farm Memorial Weekend Barbecue Potluck under the dome, followed by an open wedding reception, plus several different parties scattered around the community. There was a full moon and it was a gorgeous night.

Here's what some other people had to say: "A great immersion weekend to a very interesting and intriguing way of life. Kudos to The Farm for maintaining all that is good in life and the universe."

"I am impressed by the hospitality of everyone on The Farm! What a wonderful place to visit and feel totally at home. I am truly inspired to share what I have learned and can't wait to come back."

"It all makes me want to do so many things and start so many projects."

The Organic Gardening Intensive Report

The Organic Gardening Intensive was delightful. The science and ecology of gardening was reinforced through direct hands-on experience and we covered a tremendous amount of ground…literally!

We built, filled, and planted a raised bed, made compost, biochar, harvested 3 gallons of honey, weeded, mulched, and planted, planted, planted!

White potatoes, sweet potatoes, green beans, edamame, black beans, pinto, kidney, winter squash, pumpkin, and more. We caged tomatoes, ran soaker hoses, set up insect barriers and went on several field trips to visit other gardens, and Amish Farm and a permaculture homestead.

When the week ended it started raining, perfect for starting our seeds in the ground and the nurturing all of the plants.

Right: Planting Hickory King, a new variety of field corn I am growing for cornmeal.

One of the attendees, a girl named Rhiannon, traveled all the way from England to celebrate her birthday.

She had come full circle on a journey that started 27 years ago at The Farm when her mother came to Tennessee to give birth utilizing the services of The Farm Midwives!

Much to everyone's surprise, my wife Deborah had assisted at the birth and found notes about the event in the little book where she records the names of the all women who's delivery she attends.

Saving the Land: Swan Trust Update
Good News!

In the midst of the Organic Gardening Intensive, we took an evening out to join Swan Trust board members and volunteers in assembling a mailing announcing some great news! The note on the million-dollar land purchase that created Big Swan Headwaters Preserve is now down to only $165,000!

Refinancing through the Farm Credit Bureau lowered our interest rate by three points and reduced our monthly payment down from $4200 to only $1700. This is huge, taking a great load off the shoulders of Swan Trust’s all-volunteer board.

The new low monthly payment now makes it possible for us to not just make our payment, but put more money toward the principal. With the money for our July payment already in place, we are announcing that all donations through the end of July will be applied directly to the principal, potentially saving us thousands in interest. To participate in this effort, simply log onto our website, www.swantrust.org Protect the Land! Save the Trees!

Every July Swan Trust also hots a silent action at The Farm Family Reunion. If you would like to donate any kind of item for the auction and assist with our July fundraising efforts, please contact me Douglas@swantrust.org

This spring, Swan Trust teamed up with The Nashville Hiking Meetup Group, and the number of people joining us for hikes has expanded greatly.

There were more than 50 hikers for our Discover Big Swan Headwaters Day in April and over 20 waited out the rain to hike on the Preserve at the beginning of June.

Buffalo River Canoe Trip July 21

Join us July 21 to canoe the upper Buffalo River, one of the last unspoiled scenic rivers in America. It is the perfect way to beat the summer heat and get away from it all. Take a break from texts, cell phones, and emails to make a deep connection with nature at its finest.

It helps us to know how many people to expect and who is on our list before departing, so please contact us to RSVP at 931-964-4402 or email foreverwild@swantrust.org.

In Land We Trust: The New Farm Land Trust

This month marks a historic achievement, the signing of the new land trust document which preserves the integrity of The Farm’s land base, keeping it whole and undivided in perpetuity.

When the Farm first began, land trusts were virtually unheard of, and so to keep things simple, as was our way, the land was put in the name of a few individuals to hold in trust for the community. Legally, they owned the land, but our trust in them and in each other held strong and this system had remained in place for over 40 years. My wife Deborah has been one of the trustees for the last 25 years.

But times have changed and we realized that it was both important and necessary to create a strong legal document which spelled out in detail the nature of our relationship to the land and the land to the greater tribe. Inspired in part by the Six Nations Iroquois Confederacy, the Trust document expresses the idea that we who are here on the land today are stewards who care for the land, protecting it for future generations.
In land we trust.

Thank you for your time and attention!

Douglas@thefarmcommunity.com