Let's be the Shaquille O'Neal of farmers, not the M.C. Hammer of farmers...wait, don't go... please let me explain

I had fun with that title.

At long last, I have made time to sit down and speak with all of you.  Try to imagine you have walked in on me reading a classic novel, casually smoking a cherry-wood pipe in my jacket of crushed velvet.  I look up and smile, my roguish dimples dancing in the firelight. (I am nailing this writing thing.)  "Oh hello, I didn't see you there.  Please, have a seat by the fire".  Wink

"What's that?  The article title is inconsistently paired with my strange and Wilford Brimley-esque introduction?  Right you are reader!  Let me take your hand and help you reconcile these spinning inconsistencies with a simple, "No more fun, Let's get down to business".  Serious face.
Now seriously, let me explain the title to my 3 remaining readers.

I am writing, primarily, in response to a gentleman who made the statement (paraphrasing) "You are growing hops the wrong way, you will never be able to produce nearly enough to meet demand." The gentleman in question was commenting on my trellis system.  I assume also that he was questioning the profitability of a less productive method, which it is...that is to say if I was only growing hops.  Fair enough, now my response.
   
      The human race has become incredibly skilled at farming huge swaths of land very quickly.  Small corn farmer?  Not in my America.  We need big, beautiful tractors with huge tires and the best harvesting stuff that massive loans can buy.  The 40 acre diversified farm is a relic standing in the way of brilliant, powerful, throbbing progress.  The EPA, conservationists, and worker's rights can take a hike with the rest of those socialist bastards, we need food and we need it yesterday.

This, dear readers, is M.C. Hammer farming.  You just came out with "Hammer Time"  you feel invincible, parachute pants will never be hotter than they are right now, and you stared down Michael Jackson from across the champagne room, MJ flinched.  Farming is getting more streamlined, more efficient every year.  A single driver in a John Deer can do the work of a thousand laborers in a single day, all while in a comfortable seat with adjustable climate control.  The corporations that control the money flow of the industry will happily buy out surrounding farmland, crushing small competition and further expanding their operations.  Farmers, spurred on by parent corporations, are continually expanding their farms, buying more large equipment for planting/harvesting/processing/transporting/chemical spraying.

We, the consumer, the citizens of the world, have a TON of food because of this (mostly cows, cows are eating a lot of that food), like...6400 calories per person ton of food.  So yeah, it totally works!  However; like the Hammer, we just placed an order for our second helicopter, and we keep tearing up those nice notes sent to our $30 million mansion from the IRS.

The bubble will burst...the degrading soil will tell us when it has had enough.  Eventually, no matter how much fertilizer you use, no matter how many chemicals you manage to spray, if there is no life in the soil from decades of tilling, erosion, and chemicals, nothing will grow...the soil will eventually quit making us no longer legit, then we end up having to do promos for cash4gold.com alongside Ed McMahon.  Big monocrop farming does one thing extremely well, but like Mr. Hammer, has failed to plan for a future, blowing it's big paycheck as soon as it hits the checking account.

Let's all farm like Shaquille O'Neal

The guy has been crushing it for 25 years.  He hit it big and prepared for a long, successful career well-beyond his basketball stardom.  Movies, Video Games (anyone remember Shaq-Fu?), Music (Shaq Deisel...Google it), Television, Podcasts, Sports Commentating (Nobody rocks a Big and Tall aquamarine suit like The Big Daddy), became a fully fledged reserve police oficer for L.A. Port Police, and to top it off...I just saw him doing a promo for Icy Hot not 2 minutes ago.  He is the Morgan Freeman of sports heroes.

 My point in all this is: Diversification and long-term sustainability.  If Shaq had torn his ACL and not had music, commentating, TV gigs, investments...etc. The next time you would see him is on 30 for 30 talking about what it was like playing against Michael Jordan. If a 'this-timeline" Shaq decided to pick up farming after his retirement from life in the media, I guarantee the Big Agave (I promise you, that nickname for him exists) would run a diversified Restoration Agriculture farm.  If he settles in a tropical paradise, one day you could be eating a Shaq banana.  That's a world I want to live in.

So, yes, Mr. Internet Commenter, you are absolutely correct.  As of right now, there is no way a restoration Hop farm could compete with large industrial Hop farms to supply the ever-increasing demand for beer, craft or otherwise...yet.  However;  If we can make getting into farming less cost prohibitive, DIVERSIFY to make the acreage more profitable, focus on soil improvement, and keep sustainable practices, then why not start creating more jobs in small communities?  Farms that not only grow hops, but also: grains, nuts, berries, leafy greens, mushrooms, aromatics, supply seeds, incorporate cattle, fiber animals, and poultry all on the same acre.  Supplying the world's beer makers from thousands of small, successful, local farms focused on soil health and restoration rather than a handful of 500, 750, 1000+ acre industrial farms.  Think of the arable land that could be created to add to global food production.  Think of the carbon that could be taken out of the atmosphere and turned into a beautiful, black, living, beer-growing soil.  Think of the diversity of beer flavors attained through improving local water sources and soil in different areas of the world.  Think of the small towns that could be revitalized by getting back to their farming roots, healing the economy, health, and happiness of people across the globe.  This is not wishful thinking of some vague Utopian future, this can happen right now.  I tilled up part of my backyard to show how easy it is to take action this week, tomorrow, today.  Other people are doing this successfully as well.  It can be done, this is happening...why not add hops to the mix?

Farm like Shaq...not like Hammer.


Thanks for reading!
For more updates and other ramblings on sustainability and soil stuff from this non-expert, please follow along!

The EHP blog at:
 elginhopsproject.blogspot.com
My Linkedin page:
Search-Robert Denwood

or contact directly for questions and comments:
elginhopsproject@gmail.com

Better Soil, Better Beer, Better World
-EHP


 

Mini Update - Beer's Done! May-19-2017

I promised an article, and normally I would have gotten around to posting, but I have been working more than average lately.  However; I will give a small project (side-project) update this morning.  I have not gotten any bites from local brewers offering to do a side-by-side brew with store-bought ingredients and the brewing ingredients grown in the EHP.  So, I did it myself. I reached out to a long-time friend of mine who has been home-brewing for a number of years and we made a small 5-gallon.  I have no previous influence in brewing, so I came up with flavors I would enjoy and my friend said "yeah, that would totally work," which made me happy.  A 5-gallon of Chamomile-Honey British Ale is now ready to be kegged.  I'm calling it "Pinky-Lifter" (Beta) and when my ingredients are ready for harvest, we will be making the EHP version of the same brew for a little taste test.  My plan is to do this every year for the duration of the 3-year project to see if the flavor is enhanced as the soil improves.  Exciting, huh?  Either way, I'm sure it won't be difficult finding testers...

Thanks for reading and following along!
Catch the whole blog at elginhopsproject.blogspot.com

Contact me here or direct through email:
elginhopsproject@gmail.com

Better Soil, Better Beer, Better Planet
EHP

Update: EHP May 15, 2017 - - - Holy Greens Batman!

 The good 'ol EHP. A lot less patchy these days, eh?

 Here we have the Aromatics/Beer additives plot.  Looking good fellas!...ladies?

Here we have some thick, luxurious, all natural barley, turnips, clover, mustard greens Brussels sprouts...can anyone see "weeds"?  I haven't done any weeding, I promise.  I haven't done much of any kind of work really.

 

Food, Hops, beer grains, a diversified farm plot for little-to-no effort.  Make a little money?  Maybe.  Healthier than store bought?  Probably.  Save a bunch on grocery bills?  Definitely.

Seriously though...I don't think weeds are a problem for me.  All this stuff is edible or saleable.  How much time do you spend weeding?

Turnips!  Thanks Territorial Seed Company!

 

Firsthand experience....it tastes amazing.  I think I will eat some, give some to neighbors, and sell the rest.

Don't think I forgot the Hops.

Questions, Comments, or Concerns:

Leave a post and follow the project here on the blog.

Contact the EHP directly at:

elginhopsproject@gmail.com

or find me on Linkedin - Robert Denwood

Thanks for following along.

Better Soil, Better Beer, Better World

-EHP



Harnessing sun power to the max by layering and diversifying within your biome; or get more by growing stuff in top of other stuff, but only stuff that already wants to grow where you are

Was that title too wordy?


Hey folks! I've been teasing this talking point for a while now, and my house is clean, baby Ivy is upstairs sleeping like a champ, so I really have no excuses.  I may need fact checkers on this, I am going from my memory. Here we go.

So I was recently confronted with an interesting argument while having a friendly disagreement with a friend of mine.  It initially began as a discussion of the massive fossil fuel dependency that our current U.S. agricultural system relies upon (I think it was 13 percent of our total national dependence goes to chemical and fertilizer production). His argument was that percentage was tiny in comparison to shipping and transportation (I seem to remember a whopping 54%, again, fact checkers please).  I would think that ground shipping of human food products, animal feed, brewing products, corn for plastics, cotton for clothes.....etc, combined with the amount of cheap grain we send overseas by ship and air, not to mention the food products that are shipped sometimes dozens of times from facility to facility for further processing (look at the back of a kid's cereal box sometime), that this would also constitute fuel consumption by the agricultural industry, I am sure this is all lumped into the "transportation" category which looks a lot like commuter consumption to the casual reader.

My friend's argument pivoted to "How else are we going to feed 9 billion people, this is the way we have to farm or the population will starve.  This is how it has to be done."

Hold on, big breath in Ace Ventura-style.

Okay, there are roughly 540 million people suffering from true starvation conditions across the globe at this moment.  Compare this to the 1.6 billion people who are currently overweight or obese, and suffering from any number of related diseases from this excess.  The US produces roughly 6400 calories per person from the acreage which is currently in production. Where does all of that food go? Oh, yeah, our cows eat it.  Hundreds of thousands of acres produce animal feed....corn/soybeans. That produces a massive net loss of calories. Cows are not even supposed to eat corn, they are grazers, for grass.

My friend was still stuck. "No, you have to use fertilizer, you have to, it is the most efficient way of supplying food to large number of people". I don't think I was going to be winning over anybody today.  That's okay though! We didn't start screaming at each other, nobody left in a huff.  We are still friends. Yelling at someone who has different views and experiences is insanity, stop it, even if you agree with everything that I am saying, your Thanksgivings will thank you.

So, let's say that all acreage is used for human consumption.  The war was won, everyone is a vegetarian, the new national hairstyle is dreadlocks. (My wife is vegetarian and I have a very plant-based diet, no angry emails please?)  The way we grow is still super inefficient.  We could be using far less farmland and still be producing the same amount of food/products.  "Witchcraft!", you cry. (it's 1 in the morning, the dog started barking, pipe down).  I'm not communing with my Wiccan familiars, I promise.  There are real, proven methods for increasing output and using smaller acreage, and you still don't have to use any chemicals or fertilizer.

The method involves, once again observing the best farm on earth, the forest.  The idea is planting commercial crops in layers.  If you walk along a forest path you may notice plants of varying heights.  In the undergrowth you may find edible fungi. Then you have shorter plants comprising the forest floor.  These are interspersed with bushes and shrubs.  Then you have the mid sized trees and finally the largest growth, the cedar, maple, pine...whatever is native in your neck of the woods.  This is all dotted with vines of creeping plants using the larger growth as a trellis.  There are many layers of growth occurring very naturally all around you.  The trick, then, is to observe how you can utilize this natural growing behavior, and plant production crops accordingly.

A green plant is a complex machine for turning sun energy and atmosphere into food energy or calories. If you can, imagine a farm field as a collection of solar cells . The more surface area absorbing energy from the sun through photosynthesis, the more energy will be stored and converted. In this case, the conversion produces tasty things.  (Real quick so I can say it in a way that will make me geek out....A giant ball of nuclear explosions in space sprays our planet with energy and radiation, and our planet figured out a way to turn those explosions into radishes and flowers.  Isn't life fun!). So...if you maximize the surface area, you are maximizing potential for growth.

The easiest way for me to visualize this was given to me through Mark Shepard's Restoration Agriculture.  He states that a monocrop field where corn (and only corn) is grown is like a flat piece of paper.  If you plant in a layered polyculture (many types of plants in the same area), this would be like taking a lot of other pieces of paper, folding them into pyramids, and placing them on top of the original piece, thus drastically increasing the amount of surface area and potential energy absorption. The EHP is currently planted with, I think, Three (3) layers.  I recently had a brief chat with a Mr. Jesse McDougall of Studio Hills Farm in Shaftsbury, Vermont.  He and his wife are working on Seven (7) layers of planting! Wow!, that's neat huh? Jesse is a much more experienced farmer and writer than I.  I want to be him when I grow up.

So there you have it folks.  Less land producing more food.  Let's hope that its local and chemical-free! I hope it was as interesting and informative for you to read as it was meandering and difficult for me to write!  As always, feel free to send me any questions, comments, or skeptical concerns.  I will do my very best to respond quickly and courteously.  Thank you for following along with the project.  Have a wonderful day!

Keep following at: elginhopsproject.blogspot.com

Find me on LinkedIn: Robert Denwood

Contact the EHP directly: elginhopsproject@gmail.com

better soil, better beer, better health, better world
-EHP

EHP update for May 2, 2017

Update today! I know all of you have been on the edge of your seat.

The days have been a little wet...wet and cold...I am sure you have noticed.  The EHP has seemingly kept right on chugging. Every day looks a little bit greener, and even where I was most irresponsible in spreading straw (we're talking chunks of baled hay, big chunky chunks...hey you guuuys!), it doesn't seem to be affecting my seed and it's Kung-fu super sprouting action.  (Is this fun to read, or am I just making myself chuckle? Boy, that would be embarrassing). So far so good, and people are starting to take notice!

Ladies, gentlemen, the EHP had a very special visit from the Daily Herald!  Elena Ferrarin, writer for The Daily Herald, contacted me to do an interview, and this Tuesday May 2, 2017, yours truly and the EHP were seen gracing the local paper, spreading the word about responsible agriculture.  At least, I hope that was the message that gets through.  Either way, publicity! Yay! Very exciting, very promising....very handsome.

The project has also been contacted by several other interested sources for furthering goals of conservation and sustainability.  The response so far has been surprising, and quite positive.  So, a big thanks to all of you reading, contacting, commenting, collaborating, and caring about our soil.  If you are here due to the promise of local, cheaper, tastier beer, I applaud you as well.  My goals are your goals. Let's drink our way to a healthier planet, shall we?

Keep reading, I am doing more than updating today, a full post will follow

Keep following at elginhopsproject.blogspot.com

Or contact us direct with questions and comments:

elginhopsproject@gmail.com

better soil, better beer, better health, better world
-EHP

Check me out on LinkedIn!

Check me out on LinkedIn if you would like to get in touch with me on a more professional platform.
Search Robert Denwood

Or

Elgin Hops Project

Thanks, have a great day!

Thanks Daily Herald!

A big Thank You to the DailyHerald for doing a story on the Elgin Hops Project!  It is out in papers today: May 2, 2017.  Take a look, read and follow along at https://lnkd.in/evE7ZcS

Send the project any questions or comments at elginhopsproject.gmail.com

I will be writing about the idea of maximizing product-per-acre using a diversified, multi-level planting design very soon, or;  growin' stuff on top of other stuff real easy like in a forest and what not, stay tuned folks!