Announcement: Monday, Nov 19, 2012 Mtg of SWFSFN in Seffner

Hello members & supporters of the SW FL Small Farmer Network (SWFSFN)!   I am very pleased to send you this announcement and invitation to the next meeting of SWFSFN on Monday, November 19, 2012.  Following up our very successful June 18th  meeting at Umbuzi Goat Farm and Dairy in Ft Myers, we are continuing to provide you another event to support your sustainable, small farming and enterprises in SW Florida.    We are very fortunate this time to being hosted by Mothers Organics Humus Farms in Seffner, Florida.   For your information, since 2005, Mother's Organics has provided high-quality humus, or compost, to commercial growers and gardeners.  Rick Martinez, founder and owner of Sweetwater Organic Community Farm in Tampa, founded in 1993 as Florida's first community-supported agriculture operation selling directly to retail consumers, has been a Mother's Organics customer for several years.  Rick grows over 50 varieties of vegetables using annual additions of compost from Mother’s Organics.  For more background information see http://www2.highlandstoday.com/business/agri-leader/2012/jun/27/lrnewso1-compost-brings-varied-benefits-ar-420601/   We are also sure that you will not want to miss this opportunity for social and business networking with your fellow small farmers in SW FL.  Come meet your fellow producers and purveyors who are making our local food systems a reality!   Remember to bring seeds to share for our Seed Swap activity and help promote such collective actions of SWFSFN members.  Finally, we are planning to have another spectacular pot lunch so bring your locally-grown foods prepared with you special recipes of your crops from the peak of our growing season! For your reference, here 's our meeting’s details and agenda:   Date:            Monday, November 19, 2012 Location:      Mothers Organics Humus Farms, 6727 CR 579 Seffner, Florida 33584 Directions:   see http://www.mothersorganics.com/ Cost:            free RSVP:         yes, please, to mbhenry@ufl.edu Note:               please, bring your own eating utensils and a folding chair 9:30 to 10:00 am -                registration   10:00 am to 12:00 am -       welcome and presentation -       Overview of composting; explanation of  lab analysis for quality and food safety of a compost product -       Farm tour -       Demonstration of ‘Garden Sox’ using compost growing medium for crop production   12:00 to 1:00 pm -                pot luck lunch & seed swap   1:00 to 2:00 pm -                  growers meeting - introductions & announcements a)  news from attending county SWFSFN grower leaders b)  growers sharing of events, issues, etc of interest to the      small farming community   2:00 to 3:00 pm -           a ) Extension county agents announcements                                        b) feedback from 2012 FL Small Farms conference                                        c) Update on 2013 Small Farms Conference- August 2-4, 2013   Please, feel free to pass along this announcement to your fellow small farmers and local foods advocates who would be interested in the activities of SWFSFN.  If they are not familiar with SWFSFN, please, refer them to both our webpage (see http://sarasota.ifas.ufl.edu/AG/swfsfn.shtml) and Yahoo Group (see http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/SW_FL_Small_Farms/) Thanks, Robert

 

Robert A. Kluson, Ph.D.

AG/NR Extension Agent III

UF/IFAS Extension Sarasota County

Community Services Business Center

6700 Clark Road, Sarasota, FL  34241

(941) 861-9849 (Ofc)

 

"There are those who look at things the way they are, and ask why... I dream of things that never were and ask why not." . . . . . . . . . . Bobby Kennedy