Thanks to a long enough break in the rain, a good wind from the north,
help from neighbor Nate, and some good planning and prep from Nate
Kemperman, the three of us were able to safely burn all of our tall
grass prairie wednesday evening. It was beautiful and fun.

last year we participated in a couple of on-farm research projects with Practical Farmers of Iowa.
here are links to the nice reports they made. i also want to officially thank our interns for all the help they gave in doing these projects, especially Ethan Evans for the amazing data collection he did for our pollinator strips. Ethan - I am totally sorry that you are not credited in this report.

pollinator strips:
http://www.practicalfarmers.org/farmer-knowledge/research-reports/2016/a...

broccoli variety trial:

The season is warming up and it is almost time to start planting. We have already started planting seeds in trays inside the house and greenhouse, and starting April first, we will begin planting outside. Every week we will get more things in the ground. For me it is an exciting time on the farm - to witness the return of life, light, and warmth after the long winter. i get to be outside as birds return and all our dormant plants start waking up and i get to put little seeds and plants into the ground to begin their life-cycle anew.

Mustard Seed Community Farm FUN-RAISING EXTRAVAGANZA!
Soup supper, swap, craft sale, kids activities, and more.
Sunday March 26, 4:30-6:30pm

dear friends,

it's been a while since you have heard from us! We have hunkering down this winter, trying to get some projects done, and haven't been hosting any events. We do have a few things planned, a few in planning stages, and info to share about other events in the area.

Feb 17-20: National Catholic Worker Farm Gathering in Platteville, WI (carpool with Alice!) Details coming in another email.

Catholic Worker Farm gathering -- February 17th--20th -- All are welcome (not just Catholic Worker Farmers!) -- Hosted by St. Isidore Catholic Worker Farm

Empire Falls: Practical Strategies for Living the Green Revolution

this is a quite miscellaneous email with lots of topics:

1. garlic planting workday this saturday oct 22
2. garlic for sale
3. wfan presentation at todays sustainable ag colloquiem with alice and elena-
4. any ideas where we can donate lots of kale?
5. looking for a chest freezer
6. and thanks for all your help this season

GARLIC PLANTING:

hi everyone,

we are looking for leaves now to mulch next years garden. if you are raking leaves, give us a call and we will schedule a time with you for us to pick them up. we can use a lot of leaves! they aren't trash - they are a treasure trove of nutrients and minerals that can keep back weeds and conserve soil moisture!

for questions, or to schedule a pick-up, call nate:
515-231-2002.

thanks so much
alice and the mustard seed farm team

CIDER PRESSING EVENT: THIS SATURDAY OCT 1:1-4PM
MUSTARD SEED COMMUNITY FARM, AMES, IA

We were given this wonderful old cider press and we want to share it with everyone. in the past people have asked to borrow it, but it is a pain to move and to clean, so we thought we'd just organize a day where everyone can come together and make gallons of cider together.

This saturday, sept 24, there will be 2 events at Mustard Seed Community Farm
2-4pm SEED SAVING Workshop
Alice will teach this basics of seed saving, focusing on vegetables, with a little bit of herbs, flowers, and prairie plants in the mix. The class will be a combination of lecture and hands on. You will go home with some great charts of recommendations for many vegetable varieties and some prairie (and possibly other) seeds you have collected.

5-7pm, potluck and roundtable discussion
dinner at 5, followed by discussion a 6-ish