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On Sept. 13, the Agroecology/Sustainable Agriculture Program at
the University of Illinois will sponsor a tour of the farm for a
behind-the-scenes look and an opportunity to ask the owners
about the highs and lows of their experience in creating this
farm and business from scratch -- and in their "spare" time.
Cooperband and Jarrell both have full-time jobs at the
University of Illinois.
In 2003 they moved from Madison, Wis., to a farm in the
Champaign-Urbana area. That same year, they planted all of their
cropped land, about 5 acres, in a cover crop of buckwheat in
order to begin restoring the prairie soil. In 2004, they planted
over 350 fruit trees and 600 berry plants and purchased their
first four Nubian goats, three does and one buck.
Cooperband and Jarrell already have a growing following for
their goat cheese at the Saturday morning farmers' market in
Urbana and have applied this year for USDA organic
certification.
Prairie Fruits Farm is the first farmstead cheese facility in
Illinois. "We raise our Nubian and La Mancha goats on locally
produced, high-quality hay and pasture," said Cooperband. "Only
their milk goes into our cheeses. On just 7 acres of rich
prairie soil in the heart of central Illinois, we have begun to
transform the landscape from cash grain agriculture to
diversified perennial fruit trees and berries and goat
pastures."
On the tour, visitors will see the fruit and berry orchard
and hear discussions about organic strategies for dealing with
insect pests like Japanese beetles. U of I plant pathologist
Mohammad Babadoost will discuss strategies for managing the
microclimate of the orchard canopy (temperature and humidity) to
minimize diseases. The tour will also visit the goat dairy and
the farmstead cheese-making facility and will include a
discussion about the difficulties of managing a small goat dairy
herd organically.
Cooperband said their dream is that their farm will serve as
a model for others interested in small-scale diversified farming
systems.
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 "These tours provide a great opportunity for visitors to see the
real thing in action, to ask questions and get a much better feel
for the realities of the operation," said Deborah Cavanaugh-Grant, a
University of Illinois research specialist who coordinates the
tours. "We'll even get a chance to sample some of their goat cheese
on the tour."
Deirdre Birmingham, network coordinator for the
Upper
Midwest Organic Tree Fruit Growers Network, will also be a
presenter at the tour. She will contribute information about organic
tree fruit production. The network is a project of the Midwest
Organic and Sustainable Education Service and a co-sponsor of the
tour. The final tour of the season will be on Oct. 5 to several
places in southern Illinois. Tour stops are in the same vicinity and
will include Blue Sky
Winery, Darn Hot
Peppers and Great
Boars of Fire.
A fee of $20 per person will be charged for each tour. This fee
includes lunch. Registration at least one week in advance is
required.
To register and for more details about each of the tours,
including a map and agenda, visit
www.aces.uiuc.edu/asap/topics/tours.html or contact Deborah
Cavanaugh-Grant at (217) 968-5512 or
cvnghgrn@uiuc.edu.
The tours are sponsored by the Agroecology/Sustainable
Agriculture Program in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and
Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois; University of
Illinois Extension; the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture
Research and Education Professional Development Program; the
Illinois Small Farm Task Force; and by the
Agriculture Tourism
Partners of Illinois.
The Agroecology/Sustainable Agriculture Program at the University
of Illinois promotes research and provides outreach opportunities on
a wide spectrum of alternative farming practices as well as ways to
provide an adequate and dependable farm income.
[University
of Illinois College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental
Sciences news release] |
