Hi supporters of Wild Earth! Intern Abby here to tell you about what has been going on around the farm and sanctuary since my arrival in May.
We tentatively started having our volunteer weekends again, with great success. Volunteers converged from near and far to install a much-needed new fence for the ducks, made firewood bundles for future campers at the Wild Earth B&B, groomed the rescued dogs, built a hugelkultur bed to regenerate eroded soil, flipped the veganic compost, prepped cardboard for sheet mulching in our no-till garden, chopped wood, and designed new permanent beds for our Mike Durschmid Memorial Permaculture Pollinator Garden. We are so excited to start planting our fall and perennial crops in the memorial garden! As always, we are eternally thankful for our volunteers. We are a 100 percent volunteer-run project, and wouldn’t exist without caring individuals donating their time to the farm and sanctuary.
During my internship, I cultivated organic tomatoes, beans, peppers, cucumbers, and melons. Our spring crops flourished (and have been delicious!), and include sunflowers, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, okra, squash, strawberries, corn, peas, garlic, canna lilies, kale, chard, spinach, cabbage, cauliflower, sage, oregano, and mint. Much of the produce grown on the farm is shared with our sanctuary animals--we love that they eat fresh from the farm! Our pigs are looking forward to more tomatoes, our chickens are snacking on sunflowers, and our ducks have their daily greens. Even the dogs have been known to gobble a few choice berries! Our biggest harvest was our heirloom elephant garlic, which took three full days of harvesting, and is currently curing in the hayloft.
I foraged for wild blackberries which grow in abundance on the land, and it has been a great opportunity to explore Wild Earth’s 200 acres. I came across various snakes, spiders, turtles, insects, toads, frogs, scorpions, moles, mice, birds, skinks, and a rat this summer. I have enjoyed meeting the wildlife in the area and relocating some to safer areas!
We replenished our sawdust supply (used for our composting toilets), from a local saw mill. It was great to directly see full circle the process of the local economy and its products. Unfortunately, we have been suffering from a drought and that is bad news, as we rely on a 100% rainwater system for Wild Earth’s daily needs. The rainwater cisterns and tanks around the farm and animal barns are very low and, for the first time ever, we have had to go to a nearby spring to haul water. We are finding creative ways to deal with the problem.
The weather has become hotter and hotter here and therefore pools have become a common love for the sanctuary residents. There have been a few changes to the animals’ routines and social structures. The pigs were all moved to one living area. This spring, Stella had been separated from Henry and Dillinger for a few months due to some hard feelings amongst the trio. They are all doing really well now and again enjoying their time together. Cassidy the duck (being the only female), decided it was best to leave the boys behind and hang out with the pigs. Virginia, the oldest hen of the flock, soon joined Cassidy. The pig barn has now become the Cassidy, Virginia, and the pigs barn, and although they have separate areas where they sleep and eat, you can hear contented clucks, quacks, and oinks as they all settle down for the night as new friends.
-Abby Roll
Wild Earth Sanctuary Intern