Bed Prep Continues with a Little Help from Our Friends
Thanks to a small group of dedicated volunteers, we made great progress this week preparing our beds for what will become a multifunctional riparian buffer on the eastern side of Horn Farm, an area that we call “Regenerative Farmscape East.” An extension of our work on the western side of the farm this year, we are aiming to protect our waterways by planting trees and perennial crops that will help to slow and filter sediment while keeping the stream banks in place. The riparian buffer will be “multifunctional” because we selected a variety of plant species that will also produce food and agroforestry products within the buffer. In addition to producing food, wood, and fodder, we will be creating wildlife habitat, rebuilding our soils, and making our farmscape more resilient.
Last Wednesday marked the first official day of bed prep for the project, which will set the stage for our plans to plant nearly 10,000 trees next spring! This week we continued to build our beds by spreading leaves that will then be tilled and incorporated into the soil. We’ll be back at it next week on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday! We hope to continue this process throughout the month of November and ultimately prepare the entire 6 acres before winter takes hold.
Want to learn more? Come on out to the farm during several volunteer days this month to get your hands dirty and discover how we are redefining agriculture at the Horn Farm! Click here to learn more.
Registration Now Open: 2021 Beekeeping Training Program
Serious about bees? Learn how to become a trained beekeeper at the Horn Farm next year! Program participants learn under the supervision of our beekeeper, Mark Gingrich of Gingrich Apiaries. Over the course of the two year program, participants will work side by side with Mark and other program participants to learn all aspects of keeping bees. At the end of year one, each participant will have the option of receiving a bee colony to be moved to their home property. During the second year, participants will benefit from repetition of some aspects of the program, learn more advanced techniques and troubleshooting while managing their own hive at home. Click here to register and discover what the buzz is all about!
Horn Farm Plant of the Week – Stinging Nettle
Versatile and powerful – it’s hard to ignore the beauty of stinging nettle (urtica dioica) especially if you touch it! Originally native to Europe, nettle has made its way around the world and is best known for its 5 (of 6) “stinging” subspecies that have hollow stinging hairs called trichomes on the leaves and stems. These hypodermic needles inject histamine and other chemicals that produce a stinging sensation upon contact. Besides its bite, stinging nettle is an incredibly versatile plant that is highly nutritious. Rich in vitamins A and C, iron, potassium, manganese, and calcium, young nettles can be eaten by soaking the plant in water or cooking it to remove the stinging chemicals. Nettle stems also contain a bast fiber that has been used historically to make clothing.
Discover more #hornfarmplantoftheweek stories on social media! Follow the Horn Farm Center on facebook and instagram.
Horn Farm Center’s New 2021 Land Steward Training Program
We are pleased to announce a brand new training program from the Horn Farm Center. A holistic hybrid of the Horn Farm Center’s Regenerative Farmer and Woodland Steward Training Programs, this new training program is an immersive learning experience focused on deep ecological literacy and skill-building that will empower students to restore damaged ecosystems and reintegrate into the landscape in a way that supports a healthy human lifestyle.
Using a whole systems approach, students will learn in the Horn Farm’s cultivated, wooded, and wild spaces. Led by Horn Farm Woodland Steward, Wilson Alvarez and Field Manager, Andrew Horn, students will explore a combination of food cultivation and land stewardship practices as result of a deep foundational understanding of ecological systems.
Is 2021 your year for land stewardship? We hope you can join us as we practice hands-on techniques for working to restore the land.
Click here for more information.
Living Landscape
The landscape is alive and we are part of it! Join us for a winter walk through the woodlands and meadows at the Horn Farm Center on Saturday, December 5th at 10am.. This ecological adventure will spark your sense of wonder and teach you about all aspects of the land we call home. We’ll focus on the broad patterns of the landscape as well as dive deep into the details of the micro-ecosystems under rocks, inside dead trees, beneath the soil, and beyond. Click here to register.
A New Way to Support Horn Farm – Become a Patron on Patreon
At the Horn Farm Center for Agricultural Education, we are committed to finding ways for humans to feed themselves while also working in partnership with nature. By restoring ecosystems, cultivating healthy soil, producing abundant yields, protecting our watershed and teaching others to do the same, the Horn Farm Center is redefining agriculture. We hope you will join us and become a part of our growing community of land stewards. Become patron of the Horn Farm Center.
Click here to become a patron on the Horn Farm!
Horn Farm Center is Hiring!
Do you have a wealth of skills and a heart to change the world from the ground up? Consider joining the Horn Farm team! We are now hiring for TWO part-time positions:
- An Executive Assistant who will help to support the mission of the organization by managing our administrative systems and keeping our team activities organized!
- A Community Education & Outreach Coordinator who will help to strengthen the role of the Horn Farm Center as a leader in the field of regenerative agriculture though education and outreach!
YOU might be just the professional we are looking for! Click here to learn more about the latest employment opportunity at the Horn Farm Center.
Upcoming Events:
Saturday, November 7: The Living Landscape
Monday, November 9: Riparian Volunteer Day
Tuesday, November 10: Riparian Volunteer Day
Wednesday, November 11: Riparian Volunteer Day
Monday, November 16: Riparian Volunteer Day
Tuesday, November 17: Riparian Volunteer Day
Wednesday, November 18: Riparian Volunteer Day
Monday, November 30: Riparian Volunteer Day
Tuesday, December 1: Riparian Volunteer Day
Wednesday, December 2: Riparian Volunteer Day
Saturday, December 5: The Living Landscape
January 20, 2021-October 9, 2021: Beekeeper Training Program (Registration Now Open)
March 2021: Land Steward Training Program (Application Deadline: January 31, 2021)
See you at the farm!
York County has moved into the green phase for dealing with COVID-19, so we are resuming some on farm classes with modifications. Classes will be held outside and are limited to 10 participants per class. If more than one class occurs on the same day, start times will be staggered to reduce the number of individuals arriving at the same time. Multiple hand sanitizer stations are available. We will adjust as needed as time passes and things change. Participants are required to bring a mask and wear when proper physical distancing cannot be maintained. Except for family members physical distancing of 6 feet must be maintained.