1000 x 90

Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture and the Organic Growers School Co-host Farm Dreams Workshop

The Organic Growers School is collaborating with Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture to teach their Farm Dreams class August 17 at the Watauga County Agricultural Conference Center.

Susan Owen
Susan Owen

Are you dreaming of starting your own farm? Farm Dreams is an entry level, three-hour, exploratory workshop designed to help people who are seeking practical, common sense information on whether sustainable farming is the next step for them, and how to move forward. This is a great workshop to attend if you are in the exploratory stages of getting started farming. During this class, you will learn about sustainable farming careers in Western North Carolina from farmers in your area.

The High Country Farm Dreams workshop will have a farmer panel featuring Susan Owen and Matt Cooper. Susan owns and operates Lily Patch Farm in Vilas, NC and received Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture Mary Boyer Sustainable Food and Agriculture Grant to create a pawpaw orchard on her farm. Currently, Susan grows starts for area farmers and gardeners, tends her pawpaw orchard, and opens her farm as a wedding venue several times a year. Matt Cooper owns and operates Lively Up Farm in Valle Crucis will also present on his farm. Matt grows a variety of vegetables organically – garlic, two kinds of kale, swiss chard, winter and summer squashes, collards, onions, peppers, specialty pumpkins.

During Farm Dreams, you will be led to discover and assess your resources, skills and farming intentions, begin to develop an educational plan toward farming, prioritize your next steps toward your farming goals and connect with regional resources and support services. The course is open to aspiring, beginning and expanding farmers in Western NC and surrounding Southern Appalachian states – Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia, and South Carolina.

BRWIA does this by providing opportunities for women farmers to share knowledge, hosting an annual 3-county Farm Tour, providing opportunities for consumers to learn about self-sufficiency and connecting everyone to our local agricultural heritage and landscape.

Matt Cooper
Matt Cooper

The Organic Growers School (OGS) has been providing organic education to farmers and home growers since 1993. The organization grew out of the volunteer efforts of a group of farmers and extension specialists who gathered to discuss the need for nuts and bolts, region-specific crop growing information applicable for farmers in Western North Carolina. From this meeting, OGS was born, along with a mission to deliver practical information about organic agriculture at a reasonable price. Organic Growers School is the premiere provider of practical and affordable organic education in the Southern Appalachians, building a vibrant food and farming community by boosting the success of organic home growers and farmers in our region.

Farm Dreams registration can be made at www.organicgrowersschool.org and it is also listed on a Facebook event here. The cost is $55/ person.

The Organic Growers School is organized annually by the Organic Growers School, Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. Blue Ridge Women in Agriculture is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Boone, NC.