A story begins on top of many other stories. A new pea sprout may rejoice at its first sight of sun as the start of its journey. But whether aware or not, a leaf is built upon root and seed and soil. It is built upon centuries of cultivation, death and rebirth, all the way up to the loving hand that placed it in the earth early this April. This is the beginning of a story for ten eager fellows on Allegheny Mountain, yes, but we too are cradled by other stories, other lives and communities. I have realized that it might be hard to share what we have experienced this past week without giving credit to the many supporting forces that have helped us find our way here. But I will do my best.

On April 28 we arrived to a mountain shrouded in pea-soup fog. It felt like an adventure, hiking up the hill, hoping we remembered the way with only a ten foot radius of vision (the last time we all visited, there was snow on the ground). Then, as I should have known to expect, the evening coalesced around a warm welcome meal, mead made by last year’s fellows, shepherd’s pie full of potatoes and root vegetables from the cellar, overwintered kale and beet salad and a settling in of the spirit that told me I had found just the right place to be.

The first week was a flurry of orientation to each other, the farm, the mountain and to Monterey. Though much was new to us, this is where we began to see those other stories unfold. We explored the farm and were introduced to the gardens and the extensive seed-starting operation in Trevor and Kayla’s basement that will become our source of food for the season to come. As we began our work in the garden, I couldn’t help but think about the people who had cultivated that land before us and how such a small piece of earth can nourish so many bodies for so many years.

The week culminated with camping and a cookout down by the rhododendron- fringed pond. In keeping with the theme of honoring the past, we revisited in song the era of the first “Now” CDs with much vigor around the fire. On Saturday and Sunday, we took two incredible day hikes, which helped me to understand the physical surroundings of our farm and village. The first led down the mountain to the East toward Back Creek, through the woods where we stopped to examine each early ephemeral flower in our path. We stepped over the green beginnings of Lady Slipper Orchids, scaled the steep slope to a beautiful rock outcrop garden of columbine and hepatica, found a pure, gushing spring spectated by ramps and twin leaf and harvested rock lettuce for our supper. On Sunday we were sent with a topographic map and directions to find Elleber’s Knob (West Va)- a grassy highlands with an elevation of 4595 feet. The views into West Virginia and back toward our own little Hightown were enough to inspire a certain delirium and giddiness; This is where I am! This is my home for the next six months!

As I sit here now, the rain comes down in sheets, reminding me again how connected to the elements we are when our work depends upon them. Today we learn to organize, to let thoughts and ideas emerge from the clutter, to focus on hot meals and inner warmth and to plan for the next sunny day. The potential is palpable; the farm is waiting to be awoken. These new friends around me have already astounded me with their knowledge and enthusiasm- how will it be when their goals come to fruition? When their ideas and experiments are in full swing? How exciting to know that the next stories to be layered upon this place will be our very own!

Four months into Phase 2 of the Allegheny Mountain School program and it’s already time to start thinking about life after the AMS or as we fellows have affectionately coined it – “Phase 3.” As a group over the last few months, we have spent a lot of time reflecting on the work we are doing in the community, the challenges we face each day and the overall impact we are having.  Last week marked a transition from talking solely about the present to dreaming about our future. We’ve begun to share our loftier ideas and aspirations with each other to make sure that we don’t graduate from AMS with just a job, but that we each continue on a meaningful path and connect with the right people who can help our dreams become a reality.

I was thinking about my own path when I stumbled across this video http://www.springfromthehand.com/ about an artist who inspires people to find their own way.  As a potter, his path has focused on engaging with the earth directly by physically touching it and molding it into art. A few weeks ago, as I was working alongside the Project GROWS team to plant over 3,000 leeks and onions, I thought about how gardening fulfills this same need in me to engage with the earth. Between working on the Project GROWS farm, tending to worm bins at the Boys & Girls Club and planting at my home garden in Staunton, I get to hold soil in my hands almost every day. It’s something I thought I might tire of eventually, but that has not been the case. Gardening is a kind of art, and I know whatever career path I go down will involve growing food in some way, and sharing its bounty with people that I care about.

Now back to the present: I can’t believe how quickly these four months have gone by, but stepping into the excitement of springtime has been overwhelming, exciting and rewarding. April marked the start of Project GROWS tabling at the North Augusta Farmer’s Market every Wednesday as well as our weekly volunteer nights every Thursday from 2 p.m. to 8 p.m. (come by 862 Berry Farm Road in Verona and get your hands dirty!). This month has really focused on developing partnerships in the community, and introducing individuals to our farm and our mission to connect youth to food by learning how to grow it themselves. I’ve seen people’s faces light up at the farmer’s market when we tell them what we do and some have even come by to the farm the next day to help out. We’ve heard people say they’ve been waiting for something like this to come to Staunton, which tells me that we are filling a deep need in the community. Changing the food system and improving health doesn’t happen overnight – it happens when people come together in the community and build lasting relationships to each other, food and the place in which they live. It’s made me very proud to be a part of this work at Project GROWS and Allegheny Mountain School.

Here are some photos of spring happenings at Project GROWS, with much more to come:

Volunteer day at Project GROWS! Weeding onions & leeks

Lisa, the Project GROWS pea at Earth Day Staunton - she was a hit!

Project GROWS first Farmer's Market table (!) at the North Augusta Farmer's Market in Verona, Virginia

Whew! Between moving dirt and seed starting, April has been a whirlwind of a month!

I’ve been working closely with Highland 4-H/Extension to initiate a small raised bed garden adjacent to the Elementary School, near some already established apple trees. This past Monday, our site for the space got approved by the school board! Woohoo! We are hoping to break ground in early May but until then, I’ve been teaching elementary students how to start seeds. Ideally, we’ll be able to transplant these starts into the raised beds. A few of the teachers at the school have already taken classes about incorporating gardening into their state standards and are really excited about the project. Highland    4-H Council is funding the initial costs and the school grants writer and I are seeking out additional sources of funding to sustain the project.

Planting peas with preschoolers.

Site for the raised beds.

Additionally, for the past three weeks I’ve been teaching a Fundamentals of Ag class at the High School. While I could tell you all about how it’s been going and our future plans, I’d rather share a press release one of my students wrote about the project.

Highland Ag Class Goes Green

Evan Vaus

Some of the Highland Agriculture students have begun a new project. On April 2, Jessa Fowler began teaching a Fundamentals of Agriculture class at Highland High School as a substitute for Mr. Heavner while he is absent recovering from his hip surgery. Ms. Fowler began teaching the class the importance of growing your own garden and knowing how your food was grown. The class began remodeling the greenhouse that has suffered from neglect in the past years. Plans have been drawn up and discussed for how the greenhouse should be rearranged for this coming growing season. So far, trash has been removed, seeds have been planted and the construction of raised beds has begun. The resurrection of the greenhouse is underway. 

About a week ago I went out into the lower garden to sow some cover crop. I knew I wanted to plant it in one of the beds that would have summer vegetables, but I didn’t really care which one. I strolled up to a random bed and started to rake back the mulch and quickly discovered an entire 20 feet of carrots, buried in the ground, in perfect condition! Somehow we had forgotten to harvest them last fall and they had been hiding under the snow all winter. Laurie cam over and together we harvested 8 pounds in total, just in time to serve them at our 2012 Fellows work weekend with the very folks who grew them. This small garden miracle, and the countless others like it, more than make up for the things that go wrong from time to time (like when the chickens eat the peas you just sowed!)

It’s hard to believe that since my last blog, I was just beginning to learn the maple syrup making process. Since then, I’ve received my “official” Highland Hills Farm Syrup School diploma, watched a calf be born, bottle fed baby lambs, and learned how to drive tractor.

Back at The Highland Center, I’ve also just survived my first Maple Festival, an enormous county event that’s been going on for the past 55 years. As part of this, The Highland Center hosts a fundraising dinner and this year, under my leadership, we served over 325 people one of the healthiest, most local meals you can find in Highland County around Maple Festival. (OK, maple donuts and pork rinds are the typical fare, but still…).

Both Saturdays of Maple Festival, we served slow cooked lamb and beef dinners featuring local foods.

Between in-office conversations with our Farmers’ Market Manager and attending a micro-enterprise conference in Richmond the other week, I’ve been thinking a lot about the difference local makes, especially in a small community. I looked at a study the other day that showed that if each Virginia household spent $10 of its weekly food expenditure on locally grown food, it would generate $1.65 billion. Or look at Alleghany Meats, our local meat processing facility that just opened last April. Not only has it created the opportunity for local meat producers to have their meat processed (and potentially sold) here, but it also has created 10 new jobs. That might not seem like a lot, but in a county this small, it means the Alleghany Meats is among the top three largest private employers in the county. This year, because of Alleghany Meats, all of the lamb and beef we used for our Maple Festival Dinners at The Highland Center was born, raised and processed right here in Highland County! Our syrup, eggs, and potatoes also came from right here in Highland, too.

Kayla helps chop carrots while I check on the meat. Lisa, Jenna and Trevor also helped serve.

I want to clarify that I’m not saying that local is the key to everything. As an archaeologist by training, I’m well aware of the importance trade has played for millenia. But I do think there is something to it. The local food movement helps me recognize that growing food is both good and hard work. It helps remind me of where my food is coming from and that how it is grown has major implications about my health and our world.

Out here in Highland, our local produce options are pretty limited this time of year. Everyone’s gardens are still put to bed and the Farmers’ Market is still a couple of months off.  It’s hard to get fresh produce in general without driving an hour this time of year, since we don’t even have a full-service grocery store. What are challenges, though, except the inspiration for change? For me, this means working on the renovations of the school greenhouse, which could potentially provide local produce year-round for the school cafeteria. Stay tuned for more updates!

At times it’s hard for me to believe, but last year at AMS was my very first year growing food. I occasionally find myself wondering… what took me so long? I have not been alive for very long, 24 years and 3 months to be exact, but still…why had I limited my culinary adventures to ingredients that I could only find at the store?

No longer limited to food markets as a source for my cooking ingredients, I am now knee-deep in gardening projects (better than Kayla and Trevor who are knee-deep in snow!!). AMS was a wonderful, intensive program for someone like me that had no experience but, rather, buckets of curiosity. I learned a lot – which is to say, I learned how to grow food.
I am not an expert by any means, but I certainly feel capable of providing food for myself and teaching others to do the same. My work at the Virginia School for Deaf and Blind has been very satisfying, sharing my knowledge with the students and faculty and working on a variety of different projects: the compost bin is done and installed!, garden planning and planting is in full swing, the VSDB CSA is getting started, our CROPS afterschool club meets twice a week, and so much more.

On top of my work at VSDB, I am also co-managing the Transition Staunton’s Newtown Community Garden (just so happened that Charlie and I moved in right across the street). The garden is open for membership (please email me at cwakstein@gmail.com if you want to sign up for a plot this growing season!) and is an organic, fossil-fuel- free operation that we hope will be a productive and educational space for the community. In addition to managing the garden, I will have a plot at the community garden where I will grow “kitchen garden” items. A kitchen garden is a term used to describe a garden that is close to the house and this one certainly fits the bill. It’s right across the street, so it’s perfect for culinary herbs, greens, lettuces, tomatoes and peppers. Ah! Too perfect.
My gardening plans don’t even stop there for my first growing season off the mountain. Charlie (another AMS fellow) and I are planning on growing crops that we want a lot of at his parent’s house in Charlottesville. It’s a little far away, but the space is ideal and the soil is rich so we plan on doing ginger, turmeric, and a three sister’s arrangement with dry beans, corn (for corn meal), and winter squashes. We’ve hopefully chosen some low-maintenance annuals that will have longer windows of opportunity for harvesting and high yields! If not, we’ve recruited some friends in Charlottesville that can help with the maintenance and reap the benefits with us (yay community!).
It took me 24 years and 3 months to discover my passion for seed catalog shopping, garden planning, watering plants, weeding, composting and everything else that comes with growing food, but I did it. I’m found. Now all I need to do is breathe, and sow more seeds…

Compost bin construction completed and installed!

Student giving micro greens a drink of water Seedlings thrive in our dining room!

Ginger sprouts after two months of being in the soil

Seed Starting in the greenhouse at VSDB

March Sunset

There is a recurring theme, it seems, every time I sit down to write an AMS  blog.  From heavy rains and fierce winds in July, to an unexpected blizzard that, so conveniently, greeted us in October at season’s end, extreme weather happens to be my blogging muse – and this time, it certainly is no different.

I am sitting in my room up on Allegheny Mountain – the sun is shimmering through my east-facing window (for the first time in days, might I add), a soft bluegrass melody plays in the background, I gaze outside and, as far as I can see, everything is covered in a powdery white.  Upon moving back to Highland County, I have reached a general consensus regarding the weather thus far: January was rough, February entirely unforgiving, and March has come in like a Lion, roaring with ferocious winds and covered in a heavy coat of deep-footed snow.  And while there is an undeniable beauty that comes with winter time –the glittering reflection of the sun hitting the fresh powder blanketing the hills, the surreal nature of rime frost encompassing each individual blade of grass covering the frozen ground, the frosted tips of the hardwoods leaving the ridge line twinkling, as if strung with Christmas lights, even in the height of the day.

Despite all of this, however, it is safe to say that at this       point cabin fever has gotten the best of me; as I sit here in my quaint mountain abode, the chill of the wind whipping through the west wall rattles my bones and all I can do is think Spring.

And it is coming….

Here in Highland County, the Maple Queen Pageant and  buzzing excitement over the annual Maple Festival seem to be what help break the fever around these parts, gearing the county up for Spring.  For me, however, my anticipation comes from something slightly different – come down to the Allegheny House basement, and you will see what I mean.

There is magic happening down there.  While outside the ground is barren, and the only thing growing is the population of Highland County (the Maple Festival attracts thousands of tourists each year – with a population of 2300, it’s a noticeable difference), inside things are sprouting and I am beginning to, once again, be reunited with my favorite color – I am beginning to once again see green (and it’s not just from the reflection of my Irish eyes in the mirror, either).   And when I’m feeling down and out, singing those low-down Highland County winter-time blues, I go downstairs and sing to our onions, our flowers, our peppers, and our herbs.  They listen intently, and respond by growing.  For every seed germinated, new growth and each true leaf that appears, I know that Spring is coming.  I know that planting time is near.  I know that soon I will be walking barefoot, feeling the richness of the soil between my toes.

Pepper Seeds

I know that my fever is about to break and, in the meantime, must continually ask myself, “What does the winter bring.  If not yet another Spring?”

A History Lesson

I may be no Marty McFly, but I wanted to travel back in time to see how we found ourselves in the food system we are in today and to discover how, in 2009, I became a defender of the other food industry.

To delve into these questions, I decided to take a look at the history of food movements in the United States. Ironically, developed countries’ creation of gross agricultural systems necessitated alternative food movements. Thus most of the food movements that have occurred in the US have been shared with and/or have come over from Europe.

Back-to-the-land movements are recurring cycles of urban – suburban – rural that have occurred throughout the centuries. In more modern days, the Industrial Revolution, the Great Depression, and World War II have been motivating factors for people to go back to the land. Some return to the land for a better chance of survival, for a more tangible and meaningful life, or to connect back to the earth. I’ve heard the opinion that the current wave of back-to-landers are different than previous waves as we are focusing our energy to better feed our communities, rather than just our families; we shall have to see if this comes to fruition.

There has always been those wanting to treat the earth and themselves sustainably: a smoldering group of individuals with a higher consciousness. World War II and the Green Revolution are particularly important US events in reigniting the fiery passion within this group to reconnect and protect the land. The necessity of large quantities of military needs (uniforms, weapons, food rations, parts for vehicles, planes, etc.) for the United States and allied forces during the second World War required the nation to pull together as a whole and vamp up our industrial production to pump out these goods quickly and efficiently.

The end of the war left our nation with vast amounts of large factories and industrial plants set up to produce goods no longer in demand. So our country went about repurposing these plants. The most notable in concerning our food history? The transition from producing non-perishable military rations into, well, TV dinners. (Cue American 50’s housewives cheering).

Simultaneously, the Green Revolution was transforming the United States’ agricultural system. In the early 1950’s, Norman Borlaug’s research in Mexico to find disease resistant cultivars of wheat also resulted in varieties unaffected by photoperiodism. Borlaug received a Nobel Peace Prize for this work as it resulted in an increase in food supply. In addition, new developments of irrigation techniques, synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, and increased distribution of hybridized seeds drastically altered the way farmers cropped their land. Plus, those WWII factories pumping out mechanized parts and equipment? They now could make new tractor parts and aircraft could be used to apply pesticides and fertilizers in quick passovers.

Hindsight is 20-20. Now in 2013, we can look back and see the devastation these technologies have cost us. The end of World War II was effectively a pyrrhic victory. We now know that conventionally grown food does not have equal nutrient density as organic and biological farming methods. We now know a tomato that has traveled from California begins to lose its potency on the trip to the east while using precious fuel and emitting carbon. We now know that soil left bare can easily be picked up by wind or water and dropped into our oceans eroding our farms and messing with the photosynthetics of sea plant life. We are now discovering wheat sensitivities that may be associated with the genetically altered varieties.

Today, we are in a place to stay positive and ask ourselves: what can we do NOW to protect the Earth and future generations? A possible solution is better sustainable farming, and permaculture may be the best tool we currently have available. Homesteading is another way; however a homestead generally only supports the humans living on a particular homestead, while sustainable farming practices and permaculture take into account feeding larger numbers and being good stewards of the Earth.

Allegheny Mountain School is one woman’s solution to address the growing health crisis that has grown out of the above historical events in a way that also protects the Earth and future generations. At AMS, we not only learned sustainable farming methodology and some basic permaculture principles, Phase II is our opportunity to pay that knowledge forward.

The organization I am working with for Phase II, Project Grows, also has developed an agricultural based approach to targeting health issues through reconnecting kids to their food and teaching nutrition from the soil up to the sun.

Noticing a trend? Maybe it is your time to get back-to-the-land for your own health and the health of your grandchildren.

Earlier this week tiny flakes of snow fell from the sky just to remind me that, despite my persistent wishes for warm weather, it is still winter.  I feel it in the weather and the temperature but according to my growing to do list for work at the Project GROWS farm, it is practically spring.  We’re doing our best to get prepped for a new growing season that already promises to be very busy. And although my head is swimming with thoughts of planting vegetables, launching our first CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program and designing our farmer’s market stand, for some reason I can’t get flowers out of my head.

Maybe it’s the empty vases lining my windowsill and my hope that they will soon be full, or maybe it’s the appearance of the first crocuses around Staunton, but I am missing flowers with my whole heart.  When I picture Project GROWS first-ever farmer’s market stand at the North Augusta Farmer’s Market (YAY!), I imagine bouquets of beautiful tulips, peonies, hyacinth and irises surrounding our vegetables and attracting people like bees to our table. Alas, we are not a flower farm, and have our work cut out for us just with growing healthy produce and educating youth. So that’s when it’s time to get creative. Which flowers could we grow that would add more than just beauty to our garden? Which flowers would attract beneficial insects and maybe keep away the not so beneficial ones from our plants? Which flowers could we eat or sell? What is worth our time as a community farm with limited resources?

And that’s when I started doing a little research that backed up what I already knew – flowers are much more than just beautiful – they are absolutely critical to the health of a vegetable garden! Good bugs feed on pests and in the process can even help pollinate fruit and vegetable crops and increase a garden’s yield.  One way to attract these good bugs is by planting “flower borders” using specific varieties that they are attracted to. According to www.organicgardening.com some of the best plants for this purpose are:

Bachelor’s Buttons or Cornflower – the nectar of this flower has a very high sugar content and is attractive to flower flies, ladybugs, lacewings, and beneficial wasps.

Sweet Alyssum – highly attractive to aphid-eating flower flies.

Borage – borage attracts many beneficial insects including the common green lacewings who prefer to lay their eggs on borage. An added bonus is the edible flower that tastes like cucumber! I was first introduced to these tasty edibles at AMS and can’t wait to plant more.

Anise hyssop – perennial and summer-blooming, this plant attracts butterflies and other pest-eating beneficial insects. It’s in the mint family and has the added benefit of being edible – the leaves can be used as a seasoning or tea.

Fennel – also edible (and beautiful), fennel is a host plant for the caterpillars of the anise swallowtail butterfly.

Summer flowers at Allegheny Mountain School

Hope everyone enjoys their last sleepy days of winter and indoor activities. If you’re like me, you are probably already on the lookout for those first, flowery signs of spring around town.

I think that title captures the two themes of my blog. My assignment is to write about root cellars, but I also want to weave in some final words as I write my last AMS blog!

Root cellars are a very easy and energy efficient, yet seemingly underused method of food preservation for the winter. Root cellars are stone or earthen rooms either underground or built into a hillside, that stay around 40 degrees throughout the winter (like a natural refrigerator). Root cellars should be around 85% humidity to properly store your root vegetables: potatoes, carrots, beets, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips, storage radishes, celeriac, etc. Roots other than potatoes can also be packed in damp sand or sawdust to keep them from drying out.

The AMS root cellar stores roots such as carrots and beets, cabbage, celery, and over 300lbs of potatoes.

You can also store celery and cabbages in a root cellar, as well as your fermented products such as sauerkraut and beer. Garlic, onions, shallots, winter squash, and apples can also be stored, but these require some slightly different conditions, which are generally slightly higher temperatures and lower humidity. If you have a large root cellar or one with different rooms, you can try to control the conditions so you are able to store all of your varieties of storage produce. Apples are often stored separately or at least well away from potatoes because apples release ethylene gas which can cause potatoes to sprout prematurely. Another important variable in root cellaring is darkness, which helps keep the roots from sprouting and is especially important for potatoes so that they don’t start to produce solanine and turn green. Solanine is toxic and causes bitterness, so cut the green parts off of potatoes before cooking them.  In summary, root cellars are a way to store raw produce through the winter to supplement your canned, frozen, and dried stores, and use the least amount of time and energy.

December 21 marked the end of my time with Allegheny Mountain School, a very special 18-months my life. So I must say a few words as I leave the best place I’ve ever lived (and folks, I’ve lived in Hawaii!).

Things I’ll never forget about AMS:

• What I learned in the gardens after 2 seasons. It was really exciting for me to harvest the garlic I planted. As I wrote the garden report, I started wishing I were gardening a third season at AMS because it seems it only gets easier.
• All the other stuff I learned. There is way too much to list, but believe me, my brain is much more full than it was 18-months ago and I am fairly confident that I could grow/produce close to all of the food that I need.
• The fighter jets. Picture this: you’re enjoying a peaceful afternoon in the garden on a quiet, remote mountain and all of a sudden, a military jet flies over so low you could hit it with a rock, and it is loud. It’s a pretty wild aspect of Highland County living.
• Tess and Val. Our quirky dairy goats with their unique personalities. The milk they gave us for making delicious cheese. Their awful stand manners (which taught me patience). Tess’s friendly head rubs (anyone who’s met Tess knows what I’m talking about).
• The walks in the woods. The forests are so diverse and magical and peaceful.
• The people. I’ve been lucky to work with two groups of fellows, and therefore have gained many very cool friends. I’ve been able to work with a staff of strong, creative, inspiring women– Laurie, Betty, Ellen, and Sarah! And of course, Pen!

I love Allegheny Mountain School!