Soils & Weeds: A 3-Day Advanced Farmer-to-Farmer
Workshop for Vegetable Farmers

February 8, 9 & 10, 2006

At the United Methodist Church
Corner Henning & 5th Avenue, Saratoga Springs, NY

Presented by the Sustainable Farmers Network
with support from the Regional Farm & Food Project

CLICK HERE for registration form.

You are invited to join us for three days of presentations and group discussions with three highly experienced and successful vegetable farmers, and the president of a well-known soil-testing lab. The first half of the workshop will focus on soil health, including soil monitoring, interpretation of nutrient analyses, cover crops for soil-building, the use of soil amendments, and alternative tillage and bed systems. The second half of the workshop will focus on weeds, emphasizing the roles of cover crops, rotations, cultivating equipment, and weed ecology. Come and enjoy great food (prepared with lots of local organic ingredients), the company of friends old and new, and a lively engaging learning environment. This workshop is designed for advanced-level farmers.

Presenters

• Jim Kinsel, Honey Brook Organic Farm (formerly Watershed Organic Farm), Pennington, NJ
  Jim, who manages the farm, and his wife, Sherry Dudas, who is the farm planner, produce a remarkable 2,120 CSA shares, which meet the seasonal produce needs of over 2,500 members located throughout New Jersey and the suburban Philadelphia area, making their CSA program the largest in the East.  Honey Brook Farm produces 60 acres of vegetables, herbs, flowers and small fruits on 90 acres of rented land near Princeton, NJ.  Jim’s operation was a focal farm in the NEON Project.  He will describe the rotations, cover crops, and amendments he uses to manage soil quality on the farm, and he’ll describe how his cropping system and cultivating tools help him keep weeds in check.  Honey Brook Farm is one of the oldest certified organic farms in New Jersey, and is the largest organic vegetable and fruit farm in the Garden State.
• Drew Norman, One Straw Farm, White Hall, MD
  Drew and his wife Joan have been growing vegetables for more than twenty years. They produce 70 acres of vegetables, and have another 100 acres of hay. One Straw Farm produces vegetables for a CSA, farmers’ markets, and wholesale outlets, and has become the largest organic farm in Maryland. Drew was also on the NEON Expert Farmer Panel on cover crops and crop rotations, and he will describe for us the equipment and techniques he uses to manage soils and weeds on his farm.
• Brian Caldwell, former farmer and educator with Cornell Cooperative Extension and NOFA-NY
  Brian has over 20 years' experience as an organic vegetable and fruit grower. He and his wife farmed until 1995 when Brian became a full-time educator, first with Cornell Cooperative Extension, and then as NOFA-NY’s first staff educator. Brian has expertise in cover cropping, crop rotations, farm design for crop health, composting, stale seed-bedding, cultivating tools, weed biology, and organic apple growing. Among Brian’s publications are, “Vegetable Crop Health: Helping Nature Control Diseases Organically” and the “Resource Guide for Organic Insect and Disease Management.” Currently, Brian is part of a Cornell research group working on the impacts of various organic vegetable cropping systems on soil health and crop pests.
• Paul Chu, President of A&L Eastern Laboratories, Richmond, VA
  A& L Labs has been in business since 1978. Paul has been with the company for 26 years. He received his PhD in Agronomy from Penn State University and his entire working career has been focused on soil testing, tissue analysis, etc. Paul also has extensive experience presenting at conferences.

Registration - CLICK HERE for registration form

Participants MUST pre-register. Please register early -- space is limited. Registration costs $175 per person, and includes an informative conference binder, morning refreshments, and lunch + dinner during the conference. Early registration (postmarked or booked online by January 15) is $150. A second additional person from the same farm will receive a $25 discount.

EARLY BIRD SPECIAL = COMPLIMENTARY NEW BOOK
“Resource Guide for Organic Insect and Disease Management”
for the FIRST FORTY PAID REGISTRATIONS (one per farm)!