It sems that AGroforestry can be many things to many people. From riparian tre planting to create buffers to nut plantations grazed by cows or cut for hay, to countour plantings for soil conservation and alley cropping cereals and veg crops inbetwen tree rows........
Today we went on a magical mystery tour of Georgia on a bus........First visited Spring Valley Eco-Farms - to look at alley cropping and integrated organic systems. Some interesting work on mulch cover cropping using Amorphea fruticosa (false Indigo) as a N fixing tree crop plus work on organic veg production, composting etc. Liked the 'social' wpork tehy are engaged in in developing media solutions to extension and tech transfer - will corespond with a MSC/PHD student who is developin smart social media tech transfer pathways for information
Second stop was Natures Harmony Farm - A new entrant who is a natural Entrepeneaur. From nothing 4 yrs ago and as new entrants to farming they are now doing everthing imaginable. They started with a pig enetrprise in the woods rearing rare bred pigs, then started a dairy to produce milk and chese for sale - they cant sell unpasturised milk so have a CSA shared owership cow which allows milk distrubution FOC....outside the regs. The whey is fed to the pigs, the cattle are mixed grazed with sheep and donkeys, all of whom graze different things - including donkeys eathing thistles!!!!...must remember the Eyore effect!!!! The cattle/donkeys/shep are padock grazed NZ style and moved daily and followed immediatley with turkeys and chickens, who eat all the grobs and insects that bother the ruminants...clever!. they also have a rabbitt production system rearing rabitts for meat and pelts for fur - all done realy low key and organically. They markt via the web, farm sales and farmers markets. True intergratioin at its best with entrepenuaral excelence in the mix....
We had some navigational issues to contrent with finding the next site with prob an extr 20miles driving and taking wrong turns - I think I saw the sam tow from different directions at least 5 times - but hey a better adventure bacause of it!
Third stop was Grove Creek Farm - Crawford - the farmer and her husband were left a 300ac farm by here father who wanted to set it up as a commercial but educational centre. Nothing much has happened since the land was abandoned from cotton and maize in the 1970's and much has reverted to loblolly pine.....they are ow in the long procss of 'selective' thinning to create an AF system grazed by heritage cattle who ancestory can be traced back to spanish settlers in the 1700's. A huge amount of work in clearing and fencing and establishing feding and watering infrastructure - whilst holding down day jobs....But the USDA are right behind them and supporting with advice through extension and 'share cost 'grants of up to 90% as young farmers.
A quick stop at the UGA campus edge to look at some bluefaced leicester sheep being used to undergraze trees and scrub to renovate an area and for scrub managent - nic to see a Collie working the sheep
Spent the evening with the MU team and went to see a bluegrass band at the 'Melting Pot' - fab music - fab company and had a great time. enjoyed the walk into and back from town chatting all the way - Mike Gold, Irene Unger and I chatted again about deep and meaninfull world isues and organic and ecological production - the ber and the Malt wiskey helped and Trans-altantic co-operation was further cemented......good friends made whom Im sure I will see more of.
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