Author Archive: Alyson Earl

Suddenly, the whole farm is tinged with gold—zinnias, sunflowers, golden rod, and sunchokes (Jerusalem Artichokes) are in bloom. The leaves of the Black Walnut trees are turning from green to gold as and the Sumac leaves are drenched in magenta and gold. Fall arrives next week as the Autumnal Equinox falls on September 22. The day and night will be of equal length. Then we will begin the descent into the dark toward the Winter Solstice on December 21 after which the light begins to return.

As the growing season winds down, we’ve spent some time inside preparing for the Forest Garden Design Intensive we’re holding in October. We’ll be hosting students from all over the United States and Canada at our sister organization Heritage Creek Farm Camp. This course is a deep dive into the vision, theory, and practice of designing wholesome, dynamic, and resilient edible ecosystems using temperate deciduous forests as models.  Design projects include designing forest gardens for: urban and suburban homesteads, an educational garden, and farm-scale locations. Participants will leave inspired and empowered to design food forests for themselves, friends, neighbors, and clients. There’s still time to register!

Preparing the Forest Garden Design Intensive Base Maps for the Design Projects

Looking for a more basic introduction to ecological design? Try our Introduction to Permaculture course! Permaculture is a practice that is steeped in deep observation, understanding relationships, and designing systems that meet our needs while simultaneously caring for the Earth and providing for future generations.

Upcoming events:

Foraging – September 18
Tending the Susquehanna Riverlands – September 22/23
Pawpaw Festival _ September 23/24
The Art of Seeing and the Science of Observation – September 24
Wild Lands Immersion -Primitive Skills – September 24 through October 22
Foraging – October 7
Harvest Festival (free to the public) – October 11 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Edible Ecosystems Emerging: Food Forestry for the 21st Century – October 13 – 22
Breadbaking (full day workshop) – October 21
Offal: Tongue & Brains – October 26
Bowmaking – November 4, 5, 11, 12
Foraging – November 4
Making Soup Stock – November 15
Foraging – December 2

See you at the farm!

As the weather cools our thoughts turn to warm food, maybe even food cooked in a wood burning oven…
We are offering three hands-on workshops this season that cover the basics along with some expert techniques:
Roasted Vegetables [Wait List] , Bread Baking, and Making Soup Stock. All three will be held in our historic summer kitchen with squirrel tail oven. The summer kitchen has all the modern conveniences of electric appliances along with a fully functional, wood burning, squirrel tail oven. Class size is limited to ten, so register soon!

Besides roasting, cooking, and baking, there are other ways to play with fire. Consider joining Wild Man Wilson Alvarez for one or all of the the Wildlands Immersion series of five full-day workshops designed to reconnect you to the land and develop essential survival skills.
Sundays, 9:00am-4:00pm, beginning September 24.
Students will gain hands-on experience with basic, pre-industrial, woodland-style survival skills/bushcraft. This includes gathering wild foods and medicine, building debris-huts, animal tracking, fire-making techniques such as hand-drill and bow drill, making basic hunting implements such as a survival bow and simple traps, and much more.

Are you ready to upgrade your yard from a chore to an edible landscape? Check out our Edible Landscapes for the 21st Century Design Intensive. People with all levels of experience are welcome!

Upcoming events:
Roasted Vegetables – September 12
Foraging – September 18
Tending the Susquehanna Riverlands – September 22/23
Pawpaw Festival _ September 23/24
The Art of Seeing and the Science of Observation – September 24
Wild Lands Immersion -Primitive Skills – September 24 through October 22
Foraging – October 7
Harvest Festival (free to the public) – October 11 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Edible Ecosystems Emerging: Food Forestry for the 21st Century – October 13 – 22
Breadbaking (full day workshop) – October 21
Offal: Tongue & Brains – October 26
Bowmaking – November 4, 5, 11, 12
Foraging – November 4
Making Soup Stock – November 15
Foraging – December 2

See you at the farm!

It’s hard to believe that it is September already! The days are a little cooler and we are putting fall crops in the ground. Our CSA share holders still have more than two months of vegetables coming their way. If you’re not a shareholder (or even if you are), you can buy produce grown at the Horn Farm at our farm stand Saturday mornings from 9 to noon. If you want an even bigger selection, order online by Thursday at noon to pick up Saturday morning.

The pawpaws are coming! We will be celebrating by holding a Pawpaw Festival at the Horn Farm on September 23 and 24.

Coming up on the farm:
Hugelkultur – September 9
Roasted Vegetables – September 12
Foraging – September 18
Tending the Susquehanna Riverlands – September 22/23
Pawpaw Festival _ September 23/24
The Art of Seeing and the Science of Observation – September 24
Wild Lands Immersion -Primitive Skills – September 24 through October 22
Foraging – October 7
Harvest Festival (free to the public) – October 11 5:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Edible Ecosystems Emerging: Food Forestry for the 21st Century – October 13 – 22
Breadbaking (full day workshop) – October 21
Offal: Tongue & Brains – October 26
Bowmaking – November 4, 5, 11, 12
Foraging – November 4
Making Soup Stock – November 15
Foraging – December 2

See you at the farm!

Wild Lands Immersion Starts September 24!