Photo by Rachael Brugger The Bluegrass Community and School Garden Network plans to build six hoop houses by the 2010 World Equestrian Games.

When it comes to living sustainably, it’s all about connections—connections to the Earth and connections to the community.  At least that’s how Jim Embry sees it.

Embry is actively involved in the Bluegrass Community and School Garden Network (BGCSGN) in Lexington, Ky., as a way to promote the growth of a more sustainable city and grow more localized food systems. The network’s initiative, Grow Lexington!, focuses on growing green spaces, food spaces and the local economy instead of big industries that contribute to global warming, but aims to involve the community in the process as well.

In November 2009, Embry supervised the construction of Lexington’s first community hoop house. BGCSGN intends to construct at least six hoop houses before the city hosts the World Equestrian Games in the fall of 2010, with the help of a grant provided by a local donor.

Photo by Rachael Brugger Members of a youth group help build compost bins that will be placed inside the hoop houses.

The Lexington hoop houses, from construction to operation, are meant to be a community endeavor.

“When you build something, not only are you building community, but you are building the community’s capacity to build things,” Embry says. “We need things like that to build that sense of community. The hoop house, in a sense, is the urban application of a barn raising.”

People from all walks of life joined in the “hoop house raising,” from a youth group to biomedical engineer university students to long-standing members of the community. 

“We had people helping out who had never used a chainsaw,” Embry says, but it gave him an opportunity to teach about citizenship and sustainability.

Modeled after Will Allen’s Growing Power in Milwaukee, Wis., the hoop houses will include worm composting and aquaculture systems.

According to Mary Wilson, who led a youth group of 32 students from Hope First Church of God in Mt. Sterling, Ky., to help with the project, by learning about the purpose for the hoop houses they were about to build, Embry learned the importance of self-sufficiency and how composting reduces greenhouse gasses.

The hoop houses will also be used to grow seedlings that will be distributed to school and community gardens around Lexington. The food coming from the hoop houses and the gardens will be sent to the area’s food banks and homeless shelters.

“The number of people we are feeding at the shelter has tripled because of the current economic situation,” says Frank Brangers, a community volunteer who donated the supplies to build the first hoop house. “We’ve got to do what we can to offset the people who are marginalized. Lots of [the people we feed] work in the gardens, which gives them a sense of purpose.”

The site of the first hoop house sits on the property of Fresh Approach, a facility that processes foods for local restaurants and employs developmentally challenged adults. Fresh Approach will tend to the hoop houses built on its property, says director Walt Barbour.

Eventually, BGCSGN wants to build a hoop house in every council district as part of urban garden resource centers, where people can have meetings, pick up mulch, compost and grow food year-round. Embry expects to begin construction on the next hoop house in January 2010.

Traveling through the provinces of Cambodia on an old rickety charter bus, I was glued to the window. Cambodia is an agrarian economy; you venture 10 minutes outside the capital city of Phnom Penh and are in the throws of the “countryside.”

In the rainy season, when crops begin their growth, endless waves of green rice paddies stretch as far as the eye can see, with 20-foot palms scattered throughout the fields serving as the horizon’s only interruption. Cattle freely walk the streets, often with a small child following behind to herd. And water buffalo poke their heads and horns out of deep mud puddles.

I loved seeing the water buffalo escaping the tropical heat with a dip in a puddle. It added an unexpected softness to the massive beast. Contrary to what their pointy horns and gigantic snouts imply, Cambodian water buffalo are gentle creatures and a staple to Cambodian farmers, especially for people living and working in the flood plains, where cows are less useful. 

Water buffalo are often regarded as a precious inheritance. In rural areas, where the average income is less than $500 per year, farmers must own a water buffalo or a cow in order to earn a living. Often people will own two water buffalo—owning more indicates that the family is well off. 

During his preschool years, Kimsoeun Seat watched over his grandparents’ water buffalo in the eastern province of Kompong Cham. He recalls the animals being gentle and hardworking and most of all easy to take care of, considering he was doing it at such a young age. 

However, in a country steeped in tradition, the livelihood of Cambodian water buffalo includes more than just hard work. During the country’s festival of the dead, in which the Cambodian Buddhists pay homage to their dead ancestors, people engage their water buffalo in races, among other games.

“Everyone decorates their water buffalo with colored fabric streamers,” Seat says. The water buffalo races add a spark of fun to a rather somber holiday.

As an outsider in a foreign country, I was taken by the way water buffalo are a part of society. They eat, sleep and work alongside their human counterparts. They are not cast off in a field with the other livestock. The relationship between water buffalo and humans in Cambodia is integral to continuing their agricultural way of life.

Life on your small farm can get busy with various projects, but having a tractor that can assist you in your daily chores can save you lots of time and energy. However, finding the right tractor that works well with you and the unique needs of your farm is key.

The search for the perfect tractor can be overwhelming. Regardless of your level of experience operating a tractor, a good dealer should give you the help you need in choosing the right model and set you up to test drive the tractor.
Roger Harrod, a Massey Ferguson dealer in Roopville, Ga., who sells a number of compact tractors, encourages customers to test-drive the tractors they are considering buying.

“A consumer shouldn’t make that investment without getting a feel for its maneuverability, ease of operation, comfort and power,” Harrod says.

He recommends that before purchasing a new tractor (or beginning a test drive), customers should ask their dealer for a full explanation of the tractor and the controls on the model they are interested in purchasing.

“Ask the dealer to review tractor safety features prior to the demo drive. After you are comfortable with operating the machine, it is perfectly acceptable to request that you explore the tractor on your own,” Harrod says. “Most people enjoy privacy while test driving, although we are always on hand to provide tips on how best to operate the tractor.”

Harrod says customers who do their homework before visiting the dealership are more comfortable completing a test drive and have a better idea of what they need and want in a tractor.

Harrod first points them to TractorAdvisor.com, a website operated by AGCO, to learn about tractors that will work for their specific jobs and property type, whether it be a perfect sub-compact, compact or economical utility tractor with less than 65 horsepower. The site offers a printable tractor test-drive checklist that prospective buyers can use to set their priorities and rank the models for easy comparison.

He also offers this list of things to look for during a test drive:

• Is the tractor easy to operate? The tractor controls should be within close reach and should limit obstruction during operation. During your test drive, be sure the pedals, handles and controls are easily accessible and feel comfortable to use.

• Do you feel comfortable on the tractor? You will be spending a lot of time around your hobby farm performing various jobs, so it’s important that your tractor is comfortable. Make sure the seat is adjusted correctly and cushioned to your liking. Also, be sure there is enough leg and hip room while still being able to reach levers, handles and pedals. Finally, pay attention to how easily you can enter and exit the tractor platform.

• Is the tractor’s maneuverability and responsiveness in line with how you plan to use it? Turn in tight circles with and without the turning brakes (if available). For tasks like loader work where you are making a lot of directional changes, test for smooth forward and backward changes.

• How easy is the tractor to service? Note the essential service points: oil, oil filter, air filter, battery, radiator and fuel.

• Does the tractor meet your specific needs? If you are going to use the tractor in the winter for snow removal and other chores, you may want to ask the dealer if the specific model requires an engine heater. Also, consider lighting. For example, you may need extra lights if you are going to be using your tractor in heavily wooded areas or other dark areas.

• What implements do you need? Ask questions about operating implements and attachments for your tractor such as a loader, mower or backhoe. Try raising the loader up, and dump and curl the bucket. Cycle through the loader hydraulics to test the comfort and responsiveness of the joystick. Test the loader’s cycle speeds, which correlate to productivity.

Choosing the right tractor should be fun, easy and satisfying. When you find the right tractor, it becomes an invaluable and reliable tool that allows you to enjoy the work on your hobby farm.

Five vacancies need to be filled on the sustainable agriculture standards committee.

The Leonardo Academy is looking for candidates to fill five vacant positions on its standards committee to take part in developing the first national standard for sustainable agriculture.

The committee began developing the sustainable agriculture standard in July 2009 and will focus on crop production within the farm gate during its first phase of development. It will eventually expand the standard to include livestock, aquaculture, agricultural handling and processing, and more.

Because the committee intends to represent a broad range of agricultural interests, it invites all types of producers, including small-scale farmers, to apply for committee membership. The ideal candidate has:

• Interest and experience in sustainable agriculture and its technical issues
• Standards-writing experience
• Experience working on multi-stakeholder committees
• Involvement in sustainable-agriculture issues
• Affiliation with companies or organizations affected by the sustainable-agriculture standard

The Leonardo Academy is a nonprofit organization that develops sustainability innovations and is accredited by the American National Standards Institute.

Small farmers and others interested in applying for standards committee membership should do so by 12 p.m. CST on December 28, 2009. For more information and to download an application, visit the Leonardo Academy website or contact Amanda Raster at amanda@leonardoacademy.org or 608-280-0255.