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Minutes -Meeting of Thursday, June 26, 2008 at home of Fellis Jordan.

Attending:  Jonathan Parizer, Greg Melville, Bob Giddings, Fellis Jordan, Jeff Rapoport and Kimberly Stoner

Meeting called to order at 7:15 PM by President Kimberly Stoner

Fellis passed around an article on CSA about scarcity of local crops and CSA memberships.

Lease:

Kim reported on interactions with Town on the lease agreement.  Ben Alderton and Jill Casertano both had input on the lease agreement.  Questions included:

1)    making and importing of compost

2)    indemnification of the town for all liabilities

3)    Michael Milone will be away until July 6^th

The consensus was that the arrangements were satisfactory.  Kim will clarify start date of July 1 with Arnett Talbot and Suzanne Simone.  Jill and Fellis will be away until July 6^th.

Gov’t Relations:

Kim spoke Elizabeth Esty who said that in the future, open space monies will be available for management of open land as well as acquisition.  She also spoke with Erin O’Hare, Land Use Planner for Wallingford who said that she is interested in our walking tour. Mary Mushinsky, Mary Heffernan and two others from the Environment Commission of Wallingford are interested in a tour of Bob G.’s wildflowers.

Insurance:

Jill is working on this with Farm Family.  The rate will be based total sales and is expected to be about $500.  A liability waiver will need to be signed and filed for all FOBK members and visitors to the physical premises.  We are basing our waiver on Walter Greist’s Mill River CSA.  Ben Suggested contacting Cheshire sports clubs and other organizations to see a copy of their waiver.  Jonathan Parizer was quoted about $5,000 for general liability insurance, board liability and auto insurance.   Jeff will call Soul Friends and Greg will call Jean Garner to see if they have a Liability Waiver that we could see as an example. 

Treasurer’s Report:

2006 & 2007 Connecticut Corporate Tax Returns and Federal Tax Returns have been filed.  No Federal tax was due.  $640 in CT tax was due and paid along with the accountant’s at-cost fee of $76 leaving a balance in the checking account of $7.96.  The balance in the Community Foundation for Greater New Haven is $1,000 and there is one check for $50 that has not yet been deposited.  Kim will speak to Angel Fernandez about details of a fundraising plan for the CFGNH account so that we will be able to draw out funds and keep the account open.

Agriculture:

Soil Amendments:  Marlene McKenzie reported to Kim that Greencycle of Wallingford will deliver 7 yards of certified organic compost to Boulder Knoll at a charge of $320.  Fellis mentioned that she recalled Michael Milone offering the towns assistance with soil amendments.  Kim recalled that this offer was definite for lime only, and the availability of compost was unclear.  Fellis will talk to Arnett about our needs for lime and compost to determine if the Town will be able to help out.  The soil tests indicate a ph of 4.8 and 350 lbs of lime will be needed for the 2,000 square feet that we plan to cultivate.  If we need to purchase lime, Bob G. said that he would pick up some at Greenbackers and that about 7 bags would be needed at approximately $20 per bag. 

Procedures:  Bob G. said that the land should be plowed first then limed and harrowed.  This will keep the lime in the top 12 inches of soil.  Bob is planning to run his tractor and harrow after John Casertano runs a plow on the land.  One acre will be improved with hairy vetch or winter re and one acre will be mowed only.  If we are to use the mowed grasses for mulch, then a sickle bar would be needed to cut rather than a mower which would pulverize and scatter the hay.

Crops:

Kim will supply seed garlic for October planting

Kim will supply 30 basil plants for immediate planting

A strip of perennials will be planted by the road for beauty and PR value.  These plants were donated by Al Mitlehner and are currently healed in at Fellis’ home. 

Jeff will approach potential plant donors including to see what may be acquired.  To include:  Home Depot, Stop & Shop, Tower Farms, Cheshire Nursery, and Zentek Farms

Jill has some cover crop seed.

Kim recommends ordering more cover crop seed as needed from Greenbackers Agway in Meriden, Meriden Feed & Supply, Fedco, or Johnny’s Seed

Rye could be planted in mid September or later, but, Hairy Vetch must be planted by mid September.

Marketing: of produce was discussed.  Bob suggested that there probably would not be enough of a crop this year to offer CSA memberships at $75, but, maybe a credit could be given on next year’s crop.  Kim said that volunteers could work for a share.  Fellis liked the idea of donating rather than selling the crop. It was agreed that the first year we would donate the crop to a food bank or other non profit and sell some at the Wallingford Farmers Market or to others, such as Jordan Caterers.  Greg said that it would be good to sell the produce in Cheshire.  Everyone felt that we should work towards having a Cheshire Farmers Market, in the long run, but that it is not a project for this year. 

Fundraising was discussed briefly.  Fellis and Jeff agreed to meet to draft a letter to FOBK members requesting renewal of dues.  Kim said that we should plan an event such as a walking education tour in the fall to get people to the farm.  Points of discussion would be organic gardening, composting, and wildlife.  Discussion ensued about making it a Sunday “walk” preceded by a Saturday night dinner.  A ride to the Wallingford property could also be included.  Kim and Jeff said that they would draft a fundraising outline.  Jeff and Fellis said that they would work at revising the mailing list.  Fellis presented a page from a Red Rock Canyon preservation group that included some verbiage that could be useful in our publicity.  Jeff agreed to draft a solicitation deck for corporate membership and sponsorship.  Greg suggested that we send a thank you note to all renewing and new members including a DOAG Farm Map.

Respectfully submitted,

Jeff Rapoport

In Search of Local Produce, but Coming Up ShortBy GERRI HIRSHEYPublished: June 22, 2008  New  York Times

NEW MILFORD

 Wendy Carlson for The New York Times

EARTH MAN Paul Bucciaglia of New Milford’s Fort Hill Farm.

WAIT-LISTED for broccoli rabe? I blinked at my computer screen in disbelief. In fact, it was worse than that. A polite, regretful notice on the Web site for Fort Hill Farm, an organic producer here, informed me that the wait list for a seasonal share in the farm’s C.S.A., or community-supported agriculture program, is now closed until at least 2009. And it’s not sure when the list can be reopened.

Having munched and swooned our way through Fort Hill’s chard, heirloom tomatoes, fingerling potatoes and other dewy fresh produce for a few years at local farmer’s markets, we thought we would look into a C.S.A share: Pay the farmer up front in February and pick up a box of vegetables, herbs and fruit weekly from June to October at the farm or at designated drop spots. C.S.A. shares are generally calculated to provide a week’s worth of fresh, organic, locally grown produce for a family of four. Some farms, like Fort Hill, also offer pick-your-own options that send shareholders into the strawberry and tomato rows.

Paul Bucciaglia, Fort Hill’s proprietor, was in his barn mending wooden display stands for this sold-out season when I showed up bemoaning his success. Tanned, compact and bespectacled, Mr. Bucciaglia offered a hand seamed with the patina of an average day: loam, chlorophyll and a sprinkling of sawdust. “I’m a vegetable grower. Why am I news?” he asked affably. “It’s almost a little sad that we’re talking.”

Nonetheless, he is voluble on the subject of disappearing or unaffordable farmland in Connecticut — a problem that limits how much his business can grow. Most of the state’s veggie consumers still don’t know a C.S.A. from a G.P.S. Yet the demand for buying quality, locally grown food directly from farmers is so great that the area’s organic growers cannot meet the demand; Holcomb Farms in West Granby, the only farm comparable in size to Fort Hill, sold out its 350 shares for this season before last Thanksgiving.

Fort Hill operates on a lovely tract of rich, well-drained soil leased from the Sunny Valley Land Trust, which is mandated to keep some of its land in cultivation. Driving up from the south, the stretch of Route 7 long bordered by cornfields, farm stands and silos is now an unlovely sprawl of condo developments, corrugated-metal big-box stores, a megachurch surrounded by acres of steaming macadam, and several plots of gouged and bulldozed landscape with signs advertising “Topsoil for Sale.” The most fundamental element of the state’s rich agricultural past is being trucked off for gated estates and golf courses.

“The problem is that we’re not saving enough farmland,” Mr. Bucciaglia said as we headed out to his fields. “We’re not getting the people who are trained to do the next generation of farming onto the land. And we’re not supporting those who are.”

He thinks that FarmLink, the state’s year-and-a-half-old Web site designed to connect farm owners with others seeking land, is a good resource, but that preservation efforts are lagging. Mr. Bucciaglia cited a nearby property I had asked about that has been scraped of its topsoil and sits, ugly and forlorn, with a “For Sale” sign.

“That could have supported a family,” he said. “That’s where things go awry in Connecticut. There’s just so much money flying around. I’m sure somebody in the financial industry would look at this farm and say, ‘What a waste of land.’ I’ve had several people say that to me — that this should be a housing development or an industrial complex. That’s based on the idea that we can keep trucking food from other places indefinitely. I don’t know how long that’s going be true.”

A bluebird flashed across the rows of fennel as Mr. Bucciaglia pointed to a construction site bordering his fields. “We’re getting neighbors. They’re going to put 36 units of condominiums right across the street.”

The most pressing mandate, as he sees it: “We need to move a new generation of farmers onto the land as the older farmers in this area, who generally produce commodity crops like bulk milk or hay, retire. What’s special about market farming is that fresh local produce is in high demand, and a good living can be made from a small acreage.”

When winter winds howl and his venerable fleet of used tractors stands idle, Mr. Bucciaglia does his thinking. And ciphering.

“I crunched the numbers in this state,” he said. “Anybody in the legislature wants to call me, I’ve got the numbers. There should be one of these farms for every 50,000 people — 200 C.S.A.’s the size of Fort Hill Farm — in this state. Now there’s two. Us and Holcomb Farms. There are several with 100 to 150 shareholders, and maybe a dozen that have 25. I can only serve 380 families. Every town should be setting aside a piece of land like this. And they’re not.”

Fort Hill also donates produce weekly to the New Milford food bank. “I do think it’s important that people of all income levels have access to high-quality food,” Mr. Bucciaglia said.

As a pair of chickens began a noisy disagreement, Mr. Bucciaglia said that he had recently found one of their number dead just inside a greenhouse. As he bent over the carcass to determine the means of dispatch, a huge red-tailed hawk sauntered past the farmer, ignoring him, and tucked into his fresh-killed meal.

Raptors, like land developers, get their nourishment by pouncing on the main chance. But for the rest of us arugula eaters, it’s looking like a mighty long wait for a local share.

There will be a meeting of the Board of Directors of the Friends of Boulder Knoll on Thursday, June 26 at 7 pm at the home of Fellis & Hap Jordan. All members of the Friends of Boulder Knoll are also invited.  As we get started on the land, there will be plenty for everyone to help with!

Agenda:

1. Current status of lease with the town on two acres of land at Boulder Knoll

2. Insurance

3. Report from the treasurer (including taxes)

4.  Plans to get started on the land – overall plan, resources and labor available, resources needed, timing

5.  Plans to market produce.  Three suggestions: 1) start a preliminary fall CSA – each shareholder pays a modest fee (maybe $75) and gets part of what we produce, 2) selling produce (including excess produce from our own gardens) at the Wallingford farmers market, 3)  get a stand at the fall festival and other town events and sell produce (maybe supplemented from our own gardens)

6.  Other plans to raise funds

7.  Scheduling and distribution of tasks

See you on Thursday.  If you want to add anything to the agenda, please contact me before Thursday evening.

If the development and preservation rates of the last nine years continue, Connecticut will NEVER meet its preservation goal.
http://www.courant.com/news/local/hc-enviroreport0626.artjun26,0,2172198.story

Banking on Gardening

A great vivid New York Times piece on the rise of gardening to combat rising grocery prices. 

The Cheshire Herald published this article on the recent approval of Friends of Boulder Knoll utilizing two acres of land:  

”Friends of Boulder Knoll Prepare to Farm a Two-Acre ‘Starter’ Parcel 

by Josh Morgan

Herald Staff  

More than 18 months after its original proposal, the Friends of Boulder Knoll will finally get a chance to bring farming back to Boulder Knoll.
Since the fall of 2006, the volunteer group has been trying to get town approval to farm on a piece of the property known as Boulder Knoll Farm. Although the original proposal —presented to the town in September 2006 — was much different than the version Town Council approved on May 13, Kim Stoner, president of the Friends of Boulder Knoll, said it was “absolutely” a step in the right direction. 
“This should work out really well for both us and the town,” Stoner explained. “It gives us the opportunity to get started and do real stuff on the land.” 
The proposal that was approved unanimously by the Council allows the Friends of Boulder Knoll to work on a two-acre portion of the town-owned property. The group plans to grow herbs and vegetables, but most importantly, the group will prepare the land for a harvest next year.
Laura DeCaprio, a town councilor and chairman of the Planning Committee, said there was “some concern” because a proposal like this has not been previously implemented. By working with the group and listening to concerns, DeCaprio said a well-crafted proposal was created.
“The land is ready,” DeCaprio stated about the property. “This is a great chance for them to start working.”
The original proposal requested permission for the group to work on the whole 88-acre farm, which is under a conservation easement. Through donated money and fundraisers, the group planned to hire a farmer and purchase farm equipment so the land could be cultivated. That proposal was somewhat of a pipe dream, and Stoner explained that the plan was the “ultimate vision of what can be done on the property.” However, with so many resources on the land, Stoner said she was “not disappointed at all” to start with two acres.
“For our group, it will be plenty with which to start,” she said. “What we need to do is just get started and work on raising money.”
The contract with the town still needs to be officially signed, but Stoner expected work to occur on the land “fairly soon.” 
“We need to do some initial things with the soil,” Stoner said, “So it will probably be a few weeks before we start planting things.” 
Stoner explained that the “initial plan” is to prepare a small piece of the land, perhaps “a couple thousand square feet” as the group gradually grooms the land for 2009. 
“A lot of our efforts will be preparation of the land,” Stoner said. 
The group is somewhat limited in what it can do on the property because there are still some hurdles that need to be cleared. First and foremost is the lack of potable water, which restricts the possibility of intense farming. Also, invasive plant species are still prevalent on Boulder Knoll, a problem that the town hopes to remedy in the near future.
DeCaprio explained that a flora and fauna inventory is being conducted to identify any and all species on the property.
“A year or so down the line, a new plan could be possible,” suggested DeCaprio.
The agreement between the town and the Friends of Boulder Knoll would be limited to one year so the status and progress of the group’s efforts can be reviewed. For now though, DeCaprio is supportive of the grassroots group hitting the ground running to start cultivating the stagnant land. 

“They are a dedicated and enthusiastic group,” DeCaprio said. “I’ve been very impressed with their efforts.” ”

 Friends,

As you may know, the Town Council approved an agreement with Friends of Boulder Knoll allowing us to start farming on two acres — the area that has been regularly mowed between the barn and Bob Giddings’s house — at the Boulder Knoll property.

So, we can finally start doing something on the land!  

We will keep you posted as the situation develops.  Our next regular Board meeting will be June 26 at 7 pm at Fellis Jordan’s house, 72 Broadview.  But, I am hoping that we will be having some work days out at the farm before that!  

We will try to get moving on a farming project for this year. That would mean plowing, application of lime, compost, and other organic fertilizers, planting and mulching.  Our first priority will be to get started on a small fraction of the available land – we had discussed a large garden of about 2000 sq. ft. along Boulder Road.  Once that part is going well, we can move on to consider preparing another piece of land for use next year.

Start sharpening your tools!

Thanks for your help!

Friends of Boulder Knoll 

Local Food Is In, And State Farmers Reap The Bounty

“Chefs and shoppers, schools and supermarkets are all clamoring for locally grown food.”

Although Mark Winne now lives in New Mexico, he was a leader in Connecticut for many years on issues of food and farmland.  He started the Hartford Food System, and as the long-time director of that organization was involved in starting lots of other organizations:  the Working Lands Alliance, the Connecticut Farmland Trust, the Holcomb Farm CSA, etc.  He is also a very entertaining as well as informative speaker.

Dear Connecticut Friends:

I want you all to know that I will be speaking at RJ Julia in Madison on April 17th at 7:00 pm. The topic, as you might imagine is my book “Closing the Food Gap: Resetting the Table in the Land of Plenty.” The link takes you to the Courant notice and more information. 

Feel free to share the news with your respective network.

All the best and hope to see you there.

Mark Winne

http://www.courant.com/features/food/hc-fnotes0403.artapr03,0,6075481.story

Building a Horse Farm Barn by Barn

 An article from this morning’s NY Times on one man’s plan to turn a piece of open space property in Connecticut “quiet corner” into a working farm.

 “To keep saying ‘open space’ as a term is maddeningly meaningless,” he said. “People in their woozy way repeat like a mantra: ‘We’ve got to preserve open space.’  Instead of buying up open space, towns should be figuring out how to turn land into real working land that’s in use every day.”