Lizard Folk Farm

Project Type

Project Summary

Create a vibrant farm and social project in rural Poland by building a link between the old and new, the rural and urban, the local and global.

Project Description

Let's start with some basic 'facts'...:

As in many parts of the world modern crops are considered good. Traditional crops are considered smelly and not good. This is a challenge that we are looking to overcome by demonstrating the producitivity and demand for traditional and organically grown crops like spelt, oats, buckwheat and milk thistle.

By exposing farmers to organic methods and permaculture we are looking to encourage them to join a farmers-cooperative and make a transition to organic/harmonious farming methods.

SUBSISTENCE FARMING

Farmers here in Roznowice are mainly subsistence farmers and hardly will you find local produce in stores.

Regarding the Climate and the Soil...

RAIN

July is the hottest and wettest month of the year. The average presipitation is about 600 mm (23.6 in). But this summer of 2013 was quite dry, so we're now looking for ways to harvest and store rain water for irrigation purposes. Yet, with the climate going bonkers, we can only be sure that the weather is going to be warmer and drier, as it has been the case for the last couple of years.

WINTER

Normally, it starts getting pretty damn cold mid November. Winter temperatures can drop to -30 degrees with snow mounting up to your neck (if you are an average 165cm tall human being).

You won't find us here throughout the very cold winter months... but we slowly return with spring at the end of March beginning of April.

SOIL

Most of the land has a very high clay content, which is great for building mud houses but a little challenging for growing fragile vegetable plants. We have created some raised beds and are super excited about next season when we can use the huge mountains of compost and let loose our army of earth worms. We're exploring various ways to make the soil alive and rich, i.e. adding biochar into the soil.

Last but not least in our little summary.

FINANCE

We are searching for all sources on how to secure cashflow or access sustainable funds to run our projects. Part of the land is used as an organic cash crop farm. We have started selling some of the produce here in Poland by building links with food co-ops in cities and through the website. At the moment things are moving but not yet to the rhythm we have set outselves to.

Now more details about the project as such, the different areas we focus on, what we are up to and what you could get involved in if you like to join us.

DETAILS OF PROJECT

The garden

Well, well, well. This is something we can't pad our backs for. We've started a new garden and planted/sowed seeds pretty late this year. Having been busy with plenty of other stuff, we have neglected the vegetables a tiny little bit, didn't put as much love in and in return didn't get much back. The vegetable garden is the first thing on our 2014 list for some TLC (tender, love and care).

Maintaining and expanding the parmaculture garden, what it involves: Sowing seeds in the early spring into the small greenhouse we have yet to build, replanting the seedlings into the garden, making liquid fertiliser, preparing milpa garden, mulching, a little bit of weeding, watering and, hopefully, loads of harvesting. Designing and making new permanent beds and planting according to the allelopatic (the suppression of growth of one plant species by another due to the release of toxic substances) properties of the plants.

The harvest

We use combain harvesters to harvest our fields. The produce we harvest are further cleaned by us, using traditional farming equipment we've collected in the last few years. Some of the produce does not require further processing (i.e. milk thistle). Some of it we take to the organically certified mill, where it is dehusked and milled into groats or flour (buckwheat, spelt, einkorn). Some we mill ourselves in our small mill, producing flour (rye, oat, buckwheat). We prefer to mill the flour ourselves as we love fresh flour in ready to bake bread. The freshness is the l'un et l'o when it comes to making sourdough from rye.

Restoration of traditional grain cleaning equipment.

The equipments is really old (50+ years) and needs regular check ups and fixing. Yet, it is the best solution we could find for a small scale farm. More so, our grain cleaning machine, being the oldest around, is the one that gets the best results.

Earth building and carpentry

Have you ever worked with mud and straw? Wether you have or not, we give you the opportunity to toss and turn in precious 'dirt' by taking part in building a 30 square meter chamber with an eco toilet and a kitchen garden. For more info... just send us an e-mail [email protected].

Workshops

We are setting out to start running regular workshops with people from urban areas, who want to connect with the rural horizon, grow their own veggies and spend weekends with people who like to make bread and jam. Workshops will be around gardening, earth building, cooking, movement improvisation and yoga.

If that sounds like something you would like to join, you could help with the background work, the project execution and take part in the workshops. Just give us a dong and we'll get back to you with more info.

Experiments

There is always something up and coming that needs to be explored.

Right now it's our smokehouse.  We've collected some old burned bricks and want to build the s'house to produce terra preta!! to help grow happy and yummi hopi maize (blue corn)....

General maintenance---theboringstuff--

• We have created a stone wall on which we grow various herbs. The stone wall needs every now and then weeding and expansion. We harvest the herbs and occasionally dry them for garnish, infusions or just to refresh our living space.

• Decorative painting. Now that's fun... You don't have to be an artist, the paint is yours as long as know your green from red :)

If you have any questions or comments or would like to join us...feel free to email me Monica or Franek on [email protected]

If we don't get back to you the same day we will do so within 3 days..promise.

Send us an email [email protected]

or connect with us via skype: benduca1

Speak to you soon!

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