WANNA LEARN SOMETHING THAT'S GOOD FOR THE PLANET?

KOKOPELLI FARMS

Shepherd Bliss of Kokopelli Farms

I recently attended Daily Acts' Community Resilience training for the  thousands of April 16 & 17 events that they plan to organize around the county to encourage people to "save water, grow food, conserve energy, reduce waste, and build community." I can send information about that to those who request it. 

Daily Acts provides good alternatives to the huge Dairyman Winery that wants to locate itself around 2 miles by-how-the-crow-flies from my farm and other such wineries and vineyards that are invading rural Sonoma County. Their training encouraged me to do a similar training on my farm. I had 16 students from Santa Rosa Junior College here yesterday and at least two people from the Community Resilience plan to come today. So I wrote up the following, and send it to you as an invitation to visit Kokopelli Farm some day. Feel free to pass this on to anyone who might be interested. It is important to challenge that which we object to, but also to provide alternatives, especially when it comes to agriculture.

Shepherd

Kokopelli Farm’s Hands-on Trainings, Farm Tours, & Dog Park

It’s Spring! Kokopelli Farm offers free hands-on trainings in sustainable agriculture this time of year. Upon completion of this 3-5 hour work, one is eligible to be hired to pick boysenberries on early morning hours during June and July. Shorter farm tours are also available. Either can be arranged any day of the week. 

Trainings include a description of basic agricultural principles with nature in mind, rather than against it. The following are covered: safety precautions, eye/hand coordination, plant identification, time/energy issues, plant/animal interaction, color differentiation, appropriate clothing, and attention to details. Proper ways to mulch, prune, use hand tools, weed, fertilize, farm in a wild area, and work with a farm dog will also be described. Agriculture will be explored as a productive way of being in nature and learning from plants and animals. We will help teach participants how “to think like a berry.” 

Farms tours are also available for families and for community, church, school, environmental and other groups. Trainings and tours begin on the forest floor of a redwood stand, extend into the ag zone, and beyond into the unique Cunningham Marsh. Given our unpredictable future, it can be helpful to learn how to improve one’s capacity to work the land to grow one’s own food.

Trainings are for those 15 years or older and tours are for people of all ages. Kokopelli also provides a free dog park for non-aggressive dogs, accompanied by humans, to play and roam.

Kokopelli resides slightly south of Sebastopol, up from Hardcore Coffee, off Bloomfield Road. It is small, humble, and rustic. Shepherd has owned and operated this farm for 22 years. Information from 707-829-8185 or 3sb@comcast.net. We can send you a description of the farm or schedule a training or tour, as well as a photo of our Catahoula leopard hound.

FARM ON!