~News from Sonoma County Farm Trails

NEWS | LOCAL EVENTS | LOCAVORES GUIDE | FARM MARKETS

July 2009

The Pollinator

The monthly newsletter of Sonoma County Farm Trails

Dear Farm Trails Members and Friends:

Welcome to the July edition of the Pollinator. It's starting to feel like summer here, as the temperatures stretch higher and our big summer events -- Gravenstein Apple Fair (August 15-16) and Weekend Along the Farm Trails (September 26-27) -- draw nearer. This month, we'll be starting our summer visits to farms, so if you're interested in having your own personal photo shoot, interview, and article write-up, drop us a line or give us a call.

See you out in the fields,

The staff at Sonoma County Farm Trails

President's Message

The sun is shining, produce is ripening and the gardens are moving into full swing. Tomatoes are just about ready for market. The summer squashes will have to scoot down the table and make room for them. Figs have had their first shot of glory and will return again in late August or early September. The stone fruits started with cherries, now a distant memory, and are continuing with early peaches.

Behind the scenes we have our pumpkin farmers weeding the baby pumpkin patches in preparation of the fall harvest. The Christmas tree growers are carefully trimming and feeding their trees and the beekeepers are watching for strong honey production!

Also behind the scenes are the preparations for Farm Trails' Gravenstein Apple Fair. Hundreds of hours are donated by dedicated friends of the Apple Fair. If it has been a while since you have been to the fair, please come to the Fair. You can buy your tickets online at: http://gravensteinapplefair.com/. This is a new feature and one designed to make your life easier. It will also let us know how many folks to expect!

As if that weren't enough, Weekend Along the Farm Trails takes place on September 26th and 27th, 2009. We, as members, are so excited to share life on our farms with visitors from Sonoma County and beyond. Folks are excited to be a part of what we as farmers take for granted such as chickens, or bee hives, or rows of vegetables and loaded fruit trees!

Living life on a farm is something I once dreamt of, never thinking it could ever be a reality. Now I have chickens and bees and my own rows of vegetables, and am the envy of almost everyone I know. Who knew so much work could be so rewarding?

Have a great summer and be sure to stock up on produce at your local farmers' market!

Kind regards,

Susan Mall

President, Sonoma County Farm Trails

Owner, Eastside Farm

July Early Bird Breakfast Club

Four-Legged Lawnmowers

Weeds got you down? Tired of breathing in chopped grass while pushing a noisy machine through hundred-degree heat?

Well, you just might want to replace that worn-out lawnmower with a fuzzy-faced furry friend -- one who could provide you with weed control plus wool, cashmere, or milk. Interested? In the spirit of backyard livestock and sustainability, our July Early Bird Breakfast Club will focus on how and why to keep sheep and goats.

Our featured speaker, Deborah Walton of Canvas Ranch, has a breeding flock of Babydoll Southdown Sheep and a herd of cashmere goats. This inspiring farmer has presented at the Eco-Farm Conference in Monterey, and her Babydoll Southdown flock has been featured by CBS and Savor Magazine.

The Sonoma County Farm Trails July Early Bird Breakfast Club will take place on July 31 at 8 a.m. at the Hampton Inn. Please RSVP to farmtrails@farmtrails.org or by calling (707) 837-8896.

Farm to Pantry

: Gleaning Success

Melita Love of Healdsburg's gleaning organization, Farm to Pantry, has some news to share about the success of her organization. Thanks to the hard work of Farm to Pantry volunteers and the generosity of Sonoma County farmers, the organization has:

Harvested nearly two tons of surplus produce for needy families --ranging from the walnuts, persimmons and figs of last winter, to chard, green onions and citrus this spring and apricots, plums and purslane just last week;
Collected over 300 lbs of surplus fruits, vegetables and bread from vendors at the Healdsburg Farmers' Market for the Healdsburg Food Pantry this season;
Connected 360 surplus tomato plants with local families and seniors in need;
Worked with the Healdsburg Farmers' Market to get USDA approval to accept food stamps.Introduced dozens of community members to gleaning at 36 local gardens/orchards/farms;
Sponsored a National Service Day Event -- where community volunteers harvested community oranges from the plaza for community members in need;
Coordinated with new and established gleaning groups to reach more communities in the county;
Planted seeds with future farmers (average age 3) for sharing with family and friends.

Sonoma County Farm Trails would like to thank Melita for her hard work, and congratulate everyone involved in Farm to Pantry for its ongoing success!

Note to Farmers: Share Ag With Others! goat

Dear Farm Trails Member,
The Sonoma County Fair has opened a new Agricultural Education exhibit titled "Sweet Lil's Farm." It will fit under a 40X60 tent near the sheep barn and will aim to showcase and educate the general fairgoer about Sonoma County Agriculture. Our goal is provide an area with the look and feel of a rural area which will feature many interactive activities, contests, presentations, educational information, along with animal and crop displays.

We are writing to you in hopes that you are able to help us educate and promote local agriculture in this display. We are looking for products that we can display (crops, commodities, byproducts, etc.), educational information to include or give away, backdrop props for display purposes, give a ways, prizes, and lastly individuals who would be willing give presentations. If you can help in any way please e-mail me at psmanouk@sonic.net or feel free to call me at 592-8878.

Thanks so much for considering this exhibit.

Sincerely,
Sally Manoukian

Go ahead, brag -- and invite us over.

If you're a Sonoma County Farm Trails member and have any exciting news or events to share with other members and SCFT friends, please contact us. We're happy to share your good news in next month's Pollinator.

Also, office staff will be scheduling visits to member farms this summer. We'll be interviewing our members to develop feature-length articles for inclusion in future Map & Guides, newsletters, and on our website. We'll also take photographs of your farm to help us build a database of digital images to send to media outlets, use on our website, and include in future Map & Guides.

So, are you interested in having us visit to develop publicity materials for you? Call 837-8896 or email farmtrails@farmtrails.org. This service is available on a first-come, first-served basis for full members only -- we will be visiting different areas of Sonoma County on different days, so contact us soon to schedule a visit.

Weekend Along the Farm Trails Weekend Along Sonoma County Farm Trails

Your Time to Shine

Weekend Along the Farm Trails is coming up on September 26th and 27th, 2009. If you're a Sonoma County Farm Trails member, partner, or friend, we'd love to have you participate! You should have received a Participation Form via email or snail mail. Please fill it out and return it to us by this Friday, July 17th.

If you haven't received the form, or if you'd like to brainstorm ideas for your own station at WAFT, please contact the office at 837-8896 or farmtrails@farmtrails.org.

'Tis the Season: Cherry Tomatoes

As the weather gets warmer, summer crops take over your local farmers markets. And while the larger heirloom tomatoes aren't yet in full swing, early season varieties start to appear in July. So stop by the market and start stocking up on cherry tomatoes to brighten your green salad or add a sugary tang to your pasta dinner!

At the farmers market this weekend, keep your eyes peeled for the oh-so-sweet Sungolds, the beautiful chocolate cherries, and the darling miniature pears. Remember, cherry tomatoes don't have to be round and red -- they come in every shape and color of the tomato rainbow.

Year 37, Issue 7

In This Issue

President's Message

July Early Bird Breakfast Club: Four Legged Lawnmowers

Gleaning Success

Share Ag With Others

Message to Members

Weekend Along Farm Trails

Tis the Season: Cherry Tomatoes

Jacob's Jamboree

Jacob's Jamboree:
Bethel Sherwood
alpacas

Jacob's Jamboree is a true family farm -- with an emphasis, above all else, on family.
"We moved here for our children," Bethel Sherwood explained, "So they could grow up in this environment."
Bethel is a proud mother of two, a musician, and caretaker of the farm's unique family of animals: part of the reason that the environment at Jacob's Jamboree is so special. Bethel is always ready to introduce visitors to Leonardo and Yumiko, the llamas; Rusty, Blackie, Brownie, and Daffy, the alpacas; Tikki, Corran, Peter and Thunder, the New Zealand rabbits; Springer Spaniels Isaac and Esther; and kitties Pascal and Lady.
Every animal at Jacob's Jamboree is respected and cherished. As Bethel puts it, "My philosophy is, this all doesn't really belong to us anyway: we're here and we're caretakers. As human beings, we aren't superior, we're just another part of creation on this planet. We're all responsible to one another."
So Bethel treats both her animals and her land gently. She doesn't treat anything in her garden chemically, and all of the plants on the property are fertilized naturally -- with llama, alpaca, and rabbit manure.
Tours of Jacob's Jamboree are by appointment only. She enjoys sharing her "mini farm" with with visitors not only from our Northbay communities but also from various parts of the USA, as well others passing through Sonoma County from other parts of the world. Bethel joined Sonoma County Farm Trails so that she could share her country lifestyle with others.

"Even if they come through for only an hour, it's a nice break," she notes.
So if you'd like to spend an afternoon feeding adorable rabbits, learning about camelids, wandering among the alpacas, and feeling the yarn and knitted samples from fibers grown on the farm, call Bethel at 707-824-5611 or visit jacobsjamboree.com. (Photos on the website are of well-loved animals who have since passed on.)

Sonoma County Farm Trails

930 Shiloh Road, Suite 7, Windsor

(707) 837-8896

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FARM TRAILS NEWS

Sonoma County Farm Trails awards Agricultural Scholarships

Heather Borck and Megan Renker awarded scholarships by Scholarship Committee Chairperson Phebe Sorensen at the 2005 Gravenstein Apple Fair.

A Gravenstein Apple Fair tradition awards the Santa Rosa Junior College Farm Trails Memorial Scholarship and a second scholarship, the John Smith Memorial Scholarship which honors the Farm Advisor who encouraged farmers to create Farm Trails almost 30 years ago.

2007 Scholarship Recipeints:

Jacqueline Hull, Sonoma County Farm Trails John Smith Memorial Scholarship

James Bachor, Sonoma County Farm Trails Memorial Scholarship

In the Spring, Farm Trails also awards scholarships to four local FFA students who have demonstrated achievements in Agricultural endeavors These awards contribute to agriculture education in Sonoma County, a goal of the Farm Trails organization. For more information on supporting or receiving the SRJC or FFA awards, call (707)837-8896

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Locate food, wine, spirits and beer events in your area at LocalWineEvents.com

For more information on upcoming local events, visit the websites listed on our Links page under “Visitor Information". These are tourism related organizations and provide details on some of the fun things happening in Sonoma County!

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Spending the weekend in Sonoma County?
Here is a list of accommodations to make your stay a good one!

Healdsburg Petaluma

Dry Creek Inn, Best Western Goltermenn Gardens and Country Inn

Hotel Healdsburg Quality Inn

Sonoma County Vacations
(Healdsburg Property Management) San Francisco North/ Petaluma KOA

Sebastopol Valley Ford

Full House Farm Strozzi Ranch

Holiday Inn Express

Vine Hill House Sonoma

The Sebastopol Inn Larson Family Winery
(farmhouse vacation rental)

Santa Rosa West County

Best Western Garden Inn Sonoma Orchid Inn

Vintners Inn & John Ash & Co
by Ferrari Carano Village Inn

Locavores Guide
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