The past five months have shown us how adaptable and resilient our communities are. School, work, therapy sessions and even dance parties have gone virtual. While we appreciate the increased accessibility to conversations and knowledge near and far, we've been really craving in-person connections beyond our housing pods. At Movement Ground Farm, we had the privilege to safely have knowledge and wisdom passed down to us through experiential learning on their 7-acre farm. None of our book reading, listening to podcasts, nor watching YouTube videos could ever measure up to the in-person mentorship of Farmer Keely and Farmer Kohei. We are really grateful for the ways they've opened up to us and offered us guidance to support us in our project.
“Lesson One: There are endless farm tasks to be done, prioritizing and efficiency are crucial to the wellbeing of the farm and farmer.”
We learned a lot of lessons during our time at Movement Ground Farm. Lesson One: There are endless farm tasks to be done, prioritizing and efficiency are crucial to the wellbeing of the farm and farmer. In just three days we got to try our hand at numerous different tasks, including: transplanting plants, setting up irrigation, laying down reemay, pulling up old plants, processing alliums for winter storage, raking up new beds and then seeding them in, and packing up CSA boxes. During this part of the season, two important areas of focus emerged: water and pests. On our first day on the farm, we found ourselves having to problem solve for both.
The first week after leaving our non-profit jobs, we pulled into Movement Ground Farm’s seashell-lined driveway for a few days of mentorship. The unforgiving heat of August made city-living unbearable and we looked forward to the soft breeze that seems to always be blowing through the sycamore trees there. As we arrived on the farm, the radio warned that Hurricane Isaias was barreling towards Rhode Island. A hurricane might seem like intimidating conditions to farm in, but the farmers at Movement Ground saw the storm as a hopeful opportunity to bring much needed rain to the area. We are in a drought. And according to our research, we haven’t received significant rain (over an inch) since June 28th. Plants need rain that can saturate the earth and permeate to their roots to thrive. The short sun sprinkles have left a lot to be desired by both farmers and plants.
As we waited for the rain, we laid out 200 yards of reemay cloth over our purple cabbage transplants. Reemay is a thin cloth that is used to cover young plants. It allows light to pass through to the plants, and also protects them against elements like strong winds and pests. For this particular task, we were using the reemay to shield the cabbages. This crop is vulnerable to flea beetles. Flea beetles get their name from the way they jump from plant to plant and bite the plants like fleas. They have a huge appetite and taste for plants in the brassica family including some of our favorites like arugula, bok choy, radishes, kales and cabbage. Recently, flea beetles and other pest pressure have been increasing and threatening plants. Why? Climate change. In addition to bringing us less rain and more extreme weather conditions like hurricanes in Rhode Island, climate change is creating milder winters that allow flea beetle larvae to survive New England winters. To ensure that our cabbage plants would survive into maturity, we had to be vigilant in covering them up with reemay. Amidst the mounting hurricane winds, we comically wrestled the sail-like length of sheet to the ground to protector our cabbages.
“Farm lesson two, there is a task for every weather condition (rain, sun, hurricane, too hot, not too hot, etc.)”
The clouds continued to darken and the strongs winds blew so hard that we even threw a sandbag into our tent to calm our fears of it blowing away. At around 2pm the clouds finally broke. Rain poured down and we dashed to the greenhouse. In the greenhouse, we clipped and cleaned garlic and began to lay out storage onions to cure. Farm lesson two, there is a task for every weather condition (rain, sun, hurricane, too hot, not too hot, etc.). Unfortunately, almost as soon as we settled into our onion curing groove, the rain stopped. Our thirsty transplants still hadn’t absorbed enough water so we went to turn on the irrigation to give them a deep, long drink before August’s heat kicked back in.
“Lesson three, never forget that water is life. ”
That day we learned that sometimes we get lucky and the skies open up to us and rain falls free of labor and of cost from the heavens. But those lucky days are less frequent than they used to be. Because of climate change, water contamination, and concentrated overuse of water in industry water is becoming scarce. As water becomes more scarce it becomes a monetized and limited resource. That is dangerous for us all because water is life. Lesson three, never forget that water is life. Where is the closest body of water to you? What can you learn from that water? What can you do in your life to honor and respect our lifesource, water? Just some questions to reflect upon. More on water in the future as we move west to an even more drought-ridden ecosystem...
Thank you to the team at Movement Ground Farm for the skills you passed along to us to tend to the fields and problem solve. Thank you for the wisdom you have passed along to us to observe the earth and the plants and to recognize the bigger global patterns that we are a part of. Bending our backs to labor with the earth isn’t easy, our aching muscles and blistered hands prove as much, but it is a gift. In a few months time, when we are creating a home on the other edge of this continent, we will know we are connected to our community on Wampanoag land when they open their CSA boxes and tucked into the corner, they find a purple cabbage.
- Jihelah & Leilani