Practical Farmers of Iowa Newsletter
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( ) the Practical Farmer Vol. 14, #2 Practical Farmers of Iowa Newsletter Summer 1999 Getting To Know You: IN THIS ISSUE PFI Women Tell All 3 Best PFI Camp Ever - Nan Bonfils 4 Endowment Fund Virginia Wadsley, Des Moines 4 Still Time to Catch a Field Day Who is the PFI woman? That question was posed at a number of 5 The Editor Muses PFI gatherings as members pondered how best to meet the needs and 5 Notes and Notices - Board Meeting tap the resources of women related to PFI. Then, last winter, PFI -Value Added Caravan ( women told all- well, maybe not all, but a lot-as they responded to the - Composting Workshop ·'Getting to Know You" questionnaire sent to every PFI household. - PR Annual Meeting Date -Women's Winter Retreat From the responses to the survey, a composite picture emerges. - SARE Producer Grant Recipients 6 Over the Back Fence The PFI woman is an active, educated person in her 40s who grew up - Nan Bonfils on or near a farm, is married and highly involved with her family life, 7 Field to Family Project Update does volunteer or paid work off the farm, and is interested in a wide -Gary Huber range of ag-related issues. Her greatest immediate needs are financial/ 9 Summer Field Days Out & About material and emotional with a desire for more education and technical -Rick Exner 12 Board of Directors Profiles, Part II information. Long-term, her primary concerns are making ends meet -Ken Wise -Walt Ebert -Ron Brunk - Steve Williams . - Mike Natvig , 19 1998 On-Farm Trials, Part Ill -JPM and Planting Trials - Managing Potato Leafhopper - Laura Weiser - Organic/ Conventional Com - Jeff Klinge -Fungal Control of Comborer 26 The Role of Hope - Paul Lasley 27 Footprints: Quackgrass - Tom Frantzen 28 Bits of Sustenance: -Small Poems -Anonymous -Heat Wave -Nan Bonfils 2 the Practical Farmer (PFI Women continued from p. 1.) The seriousness, breadth, and and the future of her children, along with preserving depth of responses was im- ,. and sustaining the family farm, the land, and rural 1 ) culture. She likes to travel, read, write, and do crafts, pressive and humor was outdoor, and nature activities, especially gardening. prevalent. The PFI woman feels moderately connected with her community but has a low level of participation in PFI. She is interested in getting together with other PFI impressive and humor was prevalent. Words ex women for various kinds of sharing. pressed great satisfactions and great longings; many were underlined to show strong feelings. The above summary profile is drawn from the most frequent answers to the questions asked. How The Heart of the Matter ever, responses revealed rich variations. Let's dig deeper. The questionnaire was divided into four sections: Who I Am, My PFI Involvement, My Interest in PFI Behind the Profile Women's Activities, and What I Think. Respondents did not necessarily answer every question and some gave multiple answers to various questions so few The questionnaire was created and responses tabulated by a group of "seven sisters" who coalesced totals add up to 77. Here's a closer look. informally. (The seven are listed in the last section of this article.) It was mailed to 306 named women and Who lAm 215 other households on the PFI membership list in November 1998, and several were picked up at the The largest occupational category identified was January 1999 Annual Meeting. Eighty responses farmer, market gardener, and/or livestock producer were returned, from which 77 were tabulated (forms (29). Other fields named were agency and program ) from a woman who asked to be removed from the list personnel, education, homemaking, medical, arts and and from a man were eliminated and two forms from publishing, business administration, retail business, one other woman were combined). social work, clerical, communications, computer, and labor. Two each listed themselves as retired, student, Women who responded are scattered widely or Jill-of-all-trades, and one is a volunteer. Eighteen across the state with a cluster in central Iowa (27% listed more than one occupation. come from Story, Polk, and Boone counties). Perhaps this reflects an isolation expressed by one woman who A large number of the women operate small said she would like all her PFI friends to move closer to businesses. Fourteen said they run CSAs or sell at her. Or it may indicate a nucleus of active women farmers' markets; eight are headed toward organic who can serve as a catalyst for growing PFI activity production. Specialized skills such as chicken produc throughout the state. tion, raising herbs, dried flower arranging, managing a purebred sheep flock, making soap, and marketing Many of the questions were open-ended (difficult were mentioned. Seven families are homeschooling to tabulate but give a deeper, more personal picture of their children. How can we support these activi respondents) and every effort was made to remain ties and create new opportunities for this faithful to the women's statements in categorizing and abundance of talent and skills? combining answers for summary purposes. The seriousness, breadth, and depth of responses was Fifty-five percent (39) of those who gave their birth dates are in their 40s. Half that many (19) are in their 30s or 50s. Five are in their 60s and four each are in ... it may indicate a nucleus their 20s or 70s. of active women who can serve as a catalyst for growing PFI activity throughout the state. (PFI Women continued on p. 16.) Summer 1999 3 THE BEST PFI CAMP EVER that have grown up through the years of PFI camp and are very talented, motivated young people- excellent NanBonfils role models for the campers. With a day just for them, The PFI acronym was used to label the 1999 we hope to show them our support for the farm Camp as Positively Fantastic Irresistible Camp. projects they currently do, and the future agriculture Sometimes it's dangerous to put so much praise into a and natural resource endeavors that they are consider 1 ing." name before the event, but the 5 h Anniversary Youth and Family Camp lived up to its name, and some say surpassed it. Camp Director Shelly Gradwell wrote, "I Camp activities included: communities class, low just can't say enough positive things about this year's ropes teams course, discovery hike, soils class, horse camp. It was really the best back riding, archery, rappelling, climbing, crafts, PFI camp ever." (Thanks in journal writing, owl pro no small part to Shelly gram, night hike, campfires, herself, we'd like to empha bird hike, creek walk and size.) Sixty-one participants geology class, 7 generations nearly doubled last year's Native American program, number, and there was an and dancing. One parent excellent balance between wrote, "The camp activities folks from farms and more were really well organized urban sustainable ag sup and the staff was truly porters. exceptional-great educa tors and role models. The The camp continued a natural history training we half decade pattern of received was about the best hands-on experiences with I've ever encountered." agriculture and the natural esources that enhance "Positively the best!" The 5•h Annual PFI Camp began TheY camp site also with an anniversary party and ended with a picnic. Iowa farms and communi offered a variety of accom ties. The schedule was modations for campers of all packed with early morning ages and their families , plus bird hikes, educational flexibilty in meal planning. classes, adventure activities, Portions of the meals were evening programs, and grown by farmers and campfire songs and stories. gardeners who attended the "Camp was the best time in camp, and there was time my life. It was like having a set aside at each meal to sleep over every night," recognize them. We had wrote one camper beef and spinach from Nan & Don, beef and lamb from This year the camp was the Bahrenfuse farm, pork held at the YMCA Camp in and eggs from the Madsens, Boone County to take advantage of a superior educa strawberries from the Mays family, lettuce from the tional program led by an excellent staff of professional Zacharakis-Jutz farm and salad greens from the naturalists. Here are Shelly's thoughts on this year's Liebman garden. The food was praised by our camp staff. "Mike 'Marsh' Havlik, who has done programs ers and also the YMCA staff-we had the least at past PFI camps, now leads the outdoor education amount of food waste of any camp at YMCA this year. program at the YMCA Camp. He led an incredible Thanks to the food growers! mix of classes, activities, and programs. Mike taught most of the counselor leadership development day, in Camp ended with a family potluck picnic at the vhich counselors participated in activities that helped Boone County farm of Don Adams and Nan Bonfils. them learn about themselves, others, and lessons they Turnout was much higher than expected, probably a can use throughout their lives. I am very glad that we testament to how much everyone enjoyed the week- added an extra day for counselors. These are teens end. "No one wanted camp to end! " 'l 4 the Practical Farmer Sowing Seeds for the Future of PFI Any season is the right time to sow seeds for the future of PFI. Your gift to the Practical Farmers of Iowa Endowed Fund is welcome at any time. Created to assure long term financial stability for PFI, the fund began with an initial investment of $25,000 from Jean Wallace Douglas through the Wallace Ge netic Foundation.