Common Ground Ecovillage Farm
We view the Common Ground land as an integrated ecological system that offers abundant opportunities for food production. These opportunities range from kitchen gardens to row crops, from pastures to orchards, to forest-grown mushrooms & medicinal plants. Even our village landscaping will incorporate food-producing plants.
The mission statement for the Common Ground Farm is to:
Establish and nurture an integrated agrarian system which sustains and is sustained by the Common Ground community, restores and protects the land, and provides learning experiences.
Our aims are to:
- provide a substantial portion of the food for the Common Ground community through practices that are restorative to the land
- generate income from land-based products and services to support operations
- create and maintain the physical infrastructure necessary for operations
- share our experience and evolving knowledge with others
- promote fellowship around shared enterprises on the land
We have and continue to develop plans with the assistance of knowledgeable professionals who share our values. While the details are not yet available, we can provide a general overview.
Farm operations will be guided by the Common Ground community, based on adopted principles and practices. We will use best practices derived from a variety of approaches as appropriate to our setting, goals, and capabilities.
Production will be small-scale, mixed, appropriate to our soil and climate, and based on the carrying capacity of the land. It will include annual and perennial vegetables and herbs, fruit-producing shrubs and vines, fruit and nut trees, honeybees, forest-grown mushrooms and herbs, and probably also pasture-raised small animals (e.g. chickens, sheep, goats). Specifically excluded will be industrial-scale operations and other activities that could present nuisance or public health concerns, negative traffic/road impacts, or generate significant air, water, noise or aesthetic pollution.
We will not be able to provide all of the food needed by Common Ground residents, but do anticipate producing a significant portion of our own vegetables, fruit, herbs, honey and eggs. Any production for off-site sale will be carefully balanced with the needs of the community for both revenue and food.
Common Ground will develop and own all permanent farm infrastructure, such as barns, sheds, wells, permanent fencing, solar panels, etc. In some cases, infrastructure may be built or financed in partnership with others, but Common Ground will retain long-term ownership.
Day-to-day farm management will be handled by one or more full member-residents of Common Ground who have farming experience. It is expected that many residents will be actively involved in farming activities, and that we will host interns. There are a variety of legal and financial models which may be utilized to define these relationships as needed.
Common Ground Ecovillage is committed to learning, experimentation, and demonstration related to ecological farming systems. To that end, we expect to continuously educate ourselves, test promising new approaches on a small scale, be open to research partnerships, and share our journey in various ways, such as making internship opportunities available, holding small public tours and workshops, and publishing on our website.
