Crop Mobs Lend a Helping Hand to Small Sustainable Farms

A lot of us, myself included, tend to hold a romanticized vision of farming. We imagine ourselves as farmers, working the land, in harmony with nature, fill our bellies and the bellies of our communities with beautiful, fresh food. In reality, it’s one thing to garden; it’s another to farm. Running a successful and profitable farm is tough work. You have to really love it to do it, and even then it’s still hard.

Which is why most farmers will never turn down a helping hand, and why those of us who are dreamy farmer wannabes, should offer one. There are lots of opportunities to do this, and it can be as simple and as informal as walking down to your local farm and pulling up some weeds. But there are also more organized ways of helping farmers farm, and they’re a bit more impactful.

Recently, National Public Radio and, subsequently, the New York Times, both featured a story on crop mobs. Crop mobs are usually composed of aspiring farmers, food activists, and community members who, with the assistance of blogs and Facebook, coordinate their efforts and “mob” a local farm. The mob descends upon the farm full of energy and with the intention of putting a big dent in the farm owner’s to-do list. Plant some trees? Lay a fence? Clear a field? Repair the barn? All of that is easily accomplished in a matter of hours by a group of 20 or more eager, and often knowledgeable, helpers. Crop mobs have been likened to a modern version of the barn raising, and the recent national exposure has incited similar organized movements all over the U.S.

If you can’t hook up with a crop mob in your area, you can still be a big help on your local farm. Becoming a CSA member at a nearby farm is a big help in and of itself because the money you pay at the beginning of the season enables the farmer to buy seeds and supplies. But at many farms you can also participate in CSA member work days, when community members who have a share are encouraged to come out to the farm and dig in and experience the work that goes in to the bag of food they receive each week. Many farms also offer work shares, for which the shareholder agrees to work a certain number of hours each week in exchange for a bag of seasonal veggies.

If you are really serious about learning more about farming, or just want to be a more integrated part of your favorite local farm, you might consider doing a farm apprenticeship. And apprenticeship is usually a full-time, full-season commitment that benefits both the farmer and the apprentice. The farmer gets an extra hand and the apprentice gains knowledge about all aspects of the farm. Apprenticeships usually provide a small stipend, or room and board, plus all the veggies you can eat.

Whichever way you are able to help, I encourage you to become more invested in your local farms, and to really get your hands dirty, in order to better appreciate all the hard work your farmers are putting in to providing their communities with good food.

Protect Farmland, Protect Sustainable Food

There’s no wiggle room here: farmers need farmland. I know, that’s not strictly true. Creative urban and vertical gardeners have proven that you don’t really need that much land to grow fresh vegetables. Nevertheless by and large the fact remains that farmers need access to land. This is a global issue. It is happening in the US just as it is happening in Mali or Nicaragua. And, not surprisingly, the people that often get squeezed off the land to make way for big development projects are small, traditional farmers. The loss of traditional and productive farmland is a multifaceted issue and can have disastrous affects on the environment as well as on communities and entire countries.

In many parts of the world, traditional small farmers use sustainable agricultural practices. They work with the land, and have developed farming techniques that are tailored to their specific environment. They don’t use heavy-duty pesticides or synthetic fertilizers. Farmers are stewards of the land, a role that is often lost on land developers and big agriculture. Well-managed farmland helps preserve watersheds, control flooding, and protects groundwater, in addition to providing space for wildlife. Farmers work within the confines of preexisting natural systems and rows of plants are much better for the health for the health of the land than rows of houses or pavement.

The loss of farmland is also very disruptive to community health and structure. Not only does it mean the loss of local food sources, but it also means a loss of livelihood. In many places, farming is a way of life, rooted deeply in place and culture. The inability to maintain a traditional way of life is devastating for many communities. In the U.S., small farms play an important role in communities, though perhaps not as entirely vital as they do in more traditional farming areas around the world. Nevertheless, productive farmland means local jobs and businesses, and may also provide a place for recreation and educational activities.

The preservation of farmland for small farmers ought to be a priority for our local and national governments, as small sustainable farms are an important piece of food security, an increasingly worrisome issue. Many non-profit organizations recognize the importance of preserving land for farming and are devoted to protecting traditional, productive farmland all over the world. Farmland trusts or other types of land trusts often help new or expanding farmers to secure land as long as they comply with sustainable stewardship practices. Organizations with political voice and influence, like the international powerhouse La Via Campesina spread awareness about land loss and work towards change on the policy level. We need to reclaim land for farming, and specifically for farming that is healthy and sustainable for our land and our communities.

Tropical Food Forests: Sustainable Farming Meets Sustainable Forestry

When I think of a farm, I think of fields of grain, bushes covered in berries, and an orchard ripe with fruit. Despite my permaculture tendencies, the image that immediately leaps to mind when someone says “farm” is a farm of a single crop in long, straight rows. Then the more diversity-loving and sustainable side of my brain leaps in, admonishing the other side for the image, chiding it with mental images of companion planting and layered gardens.

No matter how much of a sustainable food lover or farmer you are, when most people think of a farm, a forest likely does not spring to mind. Forests? They’re for trees, for animals, maybe for those who gather food to a minimal degree. They’re not for intensive food production. Or are they? In landscapes where people desperately need to harvest food and forest cover must be maintained, food forestry or agroforestry is becoming a more and more viable option.

In the Philippines, food forestry has been practiced for generations. This island nation has a relatively small land base and a burgeoning population. Pressures on the land are intense, and as lowland farmers have moved into the hilly upland areas, farming practices have started to shift. There is a push towards agroforestry: sustainable farming that incorporates trees, food crops, and animals, all in one place. In addition to fruit, the trees also produce animal fodder, fuel, polewood, resins, and medicines. The forest becomes a farm, and the farm becomes a forest.

In the mountainous regions of the Philippines, removing the tree cover to create a farm can mean that the soil slips away. The water goes too, down into the valleys to create flash floods. By keeping existing trees and growing new trees for fruit and firewood, farmers help keep the soil in place and help that water drain more slowly into the soil, where it can sustain animals and other crops. Trees also help sequester carbon, and tropical forests play an essential role in reducing climate change.

Interestingly enough, after decades of research, education and practice in tropical countries, the idea of food forestry is finally making its way to temperate climes. Forest gardening is catching on in permaculture circles in Britain, Canada, and the United States. Drawing from examples like Robert Hart’s small forest food garden in Shropshire, forest gardeners try to create edible landscapes that begin with temperate forest trees.

As I muddle through the seasons in my small backyard, which is dominated by a maple tree, I like to think that I’m moving this trend forward as well. While my ostrich ferns and sweet cicely may not feed the nation, they provide food and tea for my family – a touch of sustainable agroforestry outside my door.