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“Polyface Farm”
"TURNING DIRT INTO TOPSOIL"
"EARTHWORMS, MANURE, AND OTHER PRECIOUS ASSETS"
Soil is alive, teeming with an interconnected web of life that must be fed properly. At the apex of this web sits the earthworm, which incidentally likes to be fed on top of its head. Nature's pattern for soil building centers around lignified carbon falling onto the soil surface. Tillage is the number one soil destroyer, and should only be used when necessary, and always in a multi-year rotation or with mulch.
A Conversation with Joel Salatin of
Polyface Farm in Staunton, Virginia
"....Disregarding conventional wisdom, the Salatins planted trees, built huge compost piles, dug ponds, moved cows daily with portable electric fencing, and invented portable sheltering systems to produce all their animals on perennial prairie polycultures.
"Today the farm arguably represents America’s premier non-industrial food production oasis. Believing that the Creator’s design is still the best pattern for the biological world, the Salatin family invites like-minded folks to join in the farm’s mission: to develop emotionally, economically, environmentally enhancing agricultural enterprises and facilitate their duplication throughout the world.
"The Salatins continue to refine their models to push environmentally-friendly farming practices. POLYFACE FARM is
"GRASS-BASED: Pastured livestock and poultry, moved frequently to new "salad bars," offer landscape healing and nutritional superiority.
"INDIVIDUALITY: Plants and animals should be provided a habitat that allows them to express their physiological distinctiveness. Respecting and honoring the pigness of the pig is a foundation for societal health. Mimicking natural patterns... Cows are herbivores, not omnivores....
"EARTHWORMS: We're really in the earthworm enhancement business. Stimulating soil biota is our first priority. Soil health creates healthy food.
Come listen, come learn, .... come to enjoy!
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The Ballyshannon Fund Forum
is a quarterly series of lectures at the
Piedmont Virginia Community College in central Virginia.
All are open to the public, with no charge for attendance.
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