Educational Initiatives: In The House
Compost & Vermiculture
Composing is an integral part of living a more sustainable lifestyle. Over 1/3 of the materials we throw into landfills are in fact biodegradable, given a few weeks in the proper environment. At Farmhouse, we built a three-bin composting system to turn fresh food scrapes and yard waste into rich and delicious new earth. We add fresh material (kitchen scraps, fruit peels, egg shells, forgotten rotten food, dry leaves, and yard waste) to the first bin. After 4-6 weeks when the material has visibly reduced in volume and is beginning to break down, we fork it over into the second bin, aerating the aerobic bacteria and microorganisms in the process. Finally after another 4-6 weeks when we can no longer really distinguish all the different materials, we move it to the final bin to finish the composing process. The dirt we make will all go right back into our garden to grow more food and replenish the soil.
Backyard Gardening
our lettuce bed in late October!
There is no better place to demonstrate food sovereignty and become an intimate participant in your food's journey from seed to table than in your own backyard! Growing food is an incredible project that will teach you more than you ever wanted to know about how connected you are to the earth. You will also never look at a supermarket the same way again. Farmhouse had a very successful growing season the first year with a bountiful fall garden and several different root crops that lasted into the winter. In the spring we harvested our first crop of baby lettuce, spinach, and radishes, and planted a full summer garden with all the seasonal favorites.
For more about our garden project, click here.
For more about our garden project, click here.
Preserving the Harvest: Canning & Freezing
This past fall Farmhouse experimented with an age old tradition of preserving the harvest. With the help of our housemate's grandmother, we canned eight quarts of tomatoes and six quarts of applesauce. We also froze corn, broccoli, and cauliflower. There's nothing quite like opening up a jar of summer tomatoes in the middle of winter! Putting food by is yet another demonstration of food sovereignty and we hope to do more in the future.
Independent Projects
Within the house we are also developing a method for residents to take on leadership roles and develop their own projects that address some aspect of sustainability. Positions right now include Education Coordinator, Community Liason, Resource Manager, Waste Manager, Food Coordinator, and Garden Coordinator. Projects range from organizing events, to tracking our usage of gas and water, to supporting local farmers and organizing food purchasing in the house. In the future, we hope to have students use the Farmhouse as the foundation for a senior or community-based research project.