tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61310266567038041322012-02-03T06:37:04.239-05:00We are a small market garden in Detroit.. This blog is aimed to share our efforts and experiments in regenerative design. We'll likely share stories andphotos of projects that we visit or spend time at. Enjoy!Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.comBlogger301100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-37703611588765054932012-02-03T06:29:00.002-05:002012-02-03T06:37:04.248-05:00

First the seed catalogs piled up, and then the orders came in the mail. Now we're busy planning out who is going to go where and when. We're writing up a formal business plan after taking a business of farming class. We have 5 interns helping us in the garden this coming year. They will each work around 12 hours per week in exchange a CSA share and a Permaculture Design Certificate. Meanwhile,

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-15722777504238543932012-01-27T23:00:00.001-05:002012-01-27T23:01:17.626-05:00

Think we'll try to use this during the 2012 growing season. Were goig to have extra help, which will be nice!

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-88749566078401365832011-02-13T15:17:00.002-05:002011-02-13T15:38:05.606-05:00

A warm-ish winter day, but I'm sitting inside on the computer. This is mostly because I am not feeling too well. I've placed my Johnny's order and Fedco order and I'm pretty excited for spring. We have a huge year planned at the garden this year. The biggest, is getting married this coming May. As of right now, the plan is to get married in the garden, but we're having all sorts of scheduling

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-40796842140944701012010-08-01T21:09:00.000-04:002010-08-01T21:10:15.039-04:00

I’m posting this to see if there is any interest for a gathering at my house in Brightmoor, Detroit, MI that would be a permaculture intensive for a week and/or for a weekend this coming fall. I have a few projects that I think would make great learning opportunities for people interested. A lot of people have heard of permaculture, but haven’t got a great deal of experience yet. We could spend

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-69000740186247162352010-07-17T17:51:00.002-04:002010-07-17T17:58:27.940-04:00

Jess and I went out today for a little forage. we found a few chanterelles, some wild gooseberries, and some sumac for sumac lemonade. I miss being in the woods. It was great to find chanterreles even though they were a touch buggy and there was only like 5. Hopefully we can get out a bit next weekend too.Chanterelles are a yellow/orange funnel shaped mushroom that grows in association with the

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-40664539965074199532010-07-17T17:36:00.002-04:002010-07-17T17:51:41.113-04:00

summer time in the city. I love summer, but its going by so fast. so much is happening in life, but I like it that way.The garden has been going mostly well. I havent had the energy to put put the time and work I would like to see happen, but its still pretty god for a first year garden. I've done a good chunk of the work myself, though I have had a few very helpful workdays with friends helping

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-85543033396153701652010-05-09T10:07:00.002-04:002010-05-09T10:17:20.118-04:00

Just found at that the title little house on the urban prairie was already taken for a blog...here in Detroit. that simply won't do so I'm going back to the original name of sitten' in the mitten. bummer.We got compost dropped of yesterday and Nate and Ralph came over to help fill beds. We got all the beds that we removed sod from filled. We have 17 of the 28 beds filled with compost. Two of them

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-24977448950213700892010-05-06T23:24:00.004-04:002010-05-06T23:46:10.224-04:00

SO I think I've officially sold out. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing, but it is what it is. I've decided not to do any more zines for the time being, but instead write this blog. Way too much time, money, and thought went into doing the zines. I know a few people did really like it, but most people never really shared if they liked it and the ones. Instead of using money to cut down

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-43800320118021834472010-05-06T23:14:00.002-04:002010-05-06T23:23:42.595-04:00

This is an article that I submitted to conspire for the spring issue about place, but it didn't quite make the cut. I'm not sure if this was the final draft that I submitted or not, just was in my google documents so I figured someone should read it. comment with thoughts if you like. situations are different now then in the winter, but thats ok. enjoy...Looking out my window, I see a blanket of

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-17921660941377693472010-03-12T17:53:00.002-05:002010-03-12T17:55:55.161-05:00

These were good talks. One was with the director of Food Inc and the other was with some of the leaders of the urban ag movement here in detroit among others.

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-22692041717554327722010-02-15T12:48:00.004-05:002010-02-15T13:16:57.269-05:00

Many months ago, a major business man here in Detroit John Hantz announced his plan for a giant commercial urban farm that he pledged $30 million of his own money to create. I was instantly skeptical and mostly against it, but considered that maybe there was space in the city for both the grassroots urban farming movement that I am part of and hantz's plans. I think in the end, the city and

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-45292977226749500252010-01-08T21:39:00.004-05:002010-01-09T15:01:06.229-05:00

I stumbled across this film online, and I felt it worth the watch. Though they point to new scientific innovation as a solution to the "plastic problem", this film certainly made me trust technological innovation less and reaffirmed thoughts about making as much of the things that you need to live as possible. If it only plays half the video...just remember the time it stops at and come back to

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-72661323176275840632010-01-08T20:17:00.006-05:002010-01-12T11:59:33.696-05:00

Well...its 2010. What can I say? 2009 was a very full year. A year full of difficulty and joy, hope and disappointment, confusion and new found clarity. I'm grateful t have made it out alive and well and felling excited, optimistic and energized for the next season of life. We're moving in about 3 weeks. Go to my Flickr page if you'd like to see some of the pictures of this past year. Here's a

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-32038952391041055282010-01-08T20:10:00.002-05:002010-01-08T20:17:00.066-05:00

I've been reading quite a bit of Wendell Berry poetry lately. There are many that I have fallen in love with, but I think that this one may be my favorite. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do. Some Further WordsLet me be plain with you, dear reader.I am an old-fashioned man. I likethe world of nature despite its mortaldangers. I like the domestic worldof humans, so long as it pays its

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-3041678972960226232009-12-10T13:52:00.002-05:002009-12-10T14:07:22.056-05:00

I ordered this a couple weeks ago from the Cathedral Bookstore (I'm trying not to use amazon for brand new books anymore), and it finally came. I started reading it the other night and I really dig it so far. She has a section at the end on the urban agriculture movement here in Detroit, which is pretty sweet. She's trying to fuse the agrarian writers (prophets) of the Hebrew scriptures with the

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-84437659515797157832009-12-10T13:07:00.004-05:002009-12-10T13:50:59.390-05:00

Today was the first time of the year (not counting january-march) that I woke up to snow. As much as I love the seasons and Michigan I can't lie...I'm not excited at all to see snow. I guess mid-December is late for the first real snow of the season if fairly fortunate. I went against my better judgment yesterday, knowing the cold was coming. In the garden I have salad greens, kale, spinach, and

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-37547992592205342182009-12-03T15:34:00.003-05:002009-12-03T15:55:33.727-05:00

Well, I did it again. Way too long between updates. A lot has happened, but I won't bore you.The biggest news is that we're most likely moving soon. We have a lot of logistics to work out and the details are pretty gray. If things go according to our current plan, we'll be moving to Brightmoor, Detroit. We will be renting-to-own to fairly small homes across the street from the brightmoor

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-7499391070914539322009-10-29T14:29:00.002-04:002009-10-29T15:03:20.765-04:00

I always forget to update this thing!Gathering around the unhewn stoneOh to be back in Philly again. Rolling into town was a good feeling, full of butterflies in my belly and the whole nine yards. This was a really great gathering. Good topics. Good speakers. Good friends. I feel like I learned a lot and made a lot of important connections and perhaps more importantly some old re-connections. Its

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-33145422510819049312009-10-08T13:08:00.003-04:002009-10-08T13:39:59.577-04:00

This past week we met some new friends. Nate from Atlanta and Dwight from just outside of Philly came to spend a few days with us exploring Detroit a bit. They came as a time to listen and see what is happening in Detroit. I found it fairly amazing how many people and connections that they made in the short time that they were here. We shared with them some of our feeble attempts of community and

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-3517629125638436712009-10-02T14:01:00.002-04:002009-10-02T14:12:03.430-04:00

After G20, I got to go to the Michigan Mushroom Hunters Club's annual Fungus Fest at Proud Lake. Though tired and feeling a bit under the weather, we still found some good mushroooms. Pictured above is the huge bounty of Maitake (or hen of the woods...or Grifola Frondoa if you really prefer). Its hard to get a sense of size in this photo, but this was enough to completely fill my back pack. We

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-83348664717179077292009-10-02T12:05:00.002-04:002009-10-02T14:00:47.828-04:00

It's been about a week since we've been back from pittsburgh, and I'm still processing the whole experience. I will say that it was a good experience and that I'm glad that I went. We had a fun crew and we had a good time for sure. Road trips, no matter the destination, always seem to make for good stories, and this trip was no exception. I wanted to share a few of my pics and a few thoughts.As

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-33563360978407915662009-09-15T20:40:00.001-04:002009-10-08T13:07:58.252-04:00

Well, I won't lie...I sorta hate blogging. I mean, maybe I like it but feel like I'm compromising my values a bit. Overall, I've tried to pull the plug from online "networking" sites like myspace and facebook. I've done this in favor of email, letters, phone calls, or best of all: face to face conversations. Perhaps more on that in my next post.Anyway, I recently got this great new internship

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-91953305370891790512008-07-04T16:29:00.000-04:002008-07-04T16:31:30.030-04:00

From Sitten in the Mitten #3. This certainly isn't all of it, but I thought to post the entire thing would be overwhelming. I may post some more another time. Write me if you'd like a hard copy of the zine which is more aestically pleasing than this text and with a lot more articles.

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-7001627066419001092008-07-04T16:27:00.000-04:002008-07-04T16:33:02.797-04:00

This was originally written and posted on MLK Jr. Day of this yearOne of the conclusions made in Darwin's Origin of the Species is the idea of "the survival of the fittest". Essentially, the idea is that the strongest species will prevail against the weaker species and will continue to remain in its natural community, while the other species will cease to exist. As we live out our life in the "

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-57216265764841121772008-07-04T16:26:00.002-04:002008-07-04T16:27:30.296-04:00

About 3 years ago I sold my car. I haven't owned one since. Bicycles have taken the place of cars in my life, which isn't really all that hard when you're living in cities. I've ridden through the past 3 winters; 2 in Minneapolis and 1 in Philly/Camden. I love winter biking! Admittedly, some of my reasons are shallow and vain. I like showing up somewhere on a day with -12 windchill, all bundled

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-90294385551152882812008-07-04T16:26:00.001-04:002008-07-04T16:26:50.544-04:00

Alright, so occasionally my family and a few friends like to tease me about different lifestyle choices I make, or the things that I value. This is especially true with some of my thoughts toward food. This is meant to be a kind of tongue-in-cheek response to that, and not meant to be taken too seriously. If you happened to read issue #2 of this zine, then you probably read my piece on humanure.

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-28491955315688743092008-07-04T16:25:00.001-04:002008-07-04T16:25:44.658-04:00

Institutions and CorporationsJean Jacques-Rousseau says:“Man is naturally good,but institutions make him bad,so let usoverthrow institutions.”I say: Man is partly goodAnd partly bad,But corporations,Not institutions,Make him worse.“An institution,” says Emerson“is the extensionof the soul of a man.”Institutions are foundedTo foster the welfareof the masses,Corporations are orgainizedTo promote

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-14304247012524683942008-07-04T16:20:00.000-04:002008-07-04T16:21:44.816-04:00

The world that we live in is quite an interesting place. We are dependent on an economy that is dependent on exploitation; exploitation of land, exploitation of people's souls, and exploitation of whole nations. Neither socialism, communism, nor consumer capitalism has been able to fix these problems. Is injustice and exploitation inevitable? Surely we have to use natural resources in order to

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-73010092503725836662008-07-04T16:18:00.000-04:002008-07-04T16:20:41.240-04:00

The sun beamed through the curtains and raced across the room, hitting me in the face, telling me that it was time to begin my day. This would be my first full day ever spent at a Catholic Worker. I've been to quite a few CW houses, mostly in the urban setting. I looked out the window, and the landscape was not painted with urban decay. Instead, I saw a pond. I could hear the dogs running around.

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6131026656703804132.post-12084459633837397782008-05-26T16:36:00.001-04:002008-05-26T16:36:46.147-04:00

Memorial Day PoemIts that time of year again when we stop and pause, pause to remember those that died for our freedomWe remember the soldiers that gave all and we remember their commanders that lead themThese are the heros that teach our young men and women to sacrifice their lives and their unwillingness to killWe thank those that hate those that hate freedom and we thank

Nomadic Farmerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01018456011054818300noreply@blogger.com0