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Sustainable Farming Connection
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Rural Writings Menu
These authors help put sustainable farming in perspective.

red ballnewAvery vs. Salatin Debate -- Sustainable farmer Joel Salatin and think-tank analyst Dennis Avery -- who both reside in tiny Swoope, Va. -- square off on talk radio (82K).
red ballGrowing 'International Markets' -- A humorous look at an exciting new "crop."
red ballOle & Sven Go Organic -- Scandinavian humor at its best, a tongue-in-cheek parable on the eve of federal organic standards.

Sustainable Farming Classics Online

Much theory, practice and inspiration can be gleaned from books and pamphlets first published decades ago. Some of these hard-to-find works are finding their way onto the world wide web at these sites:

red ballThe Holistic Agriculture Library -- This steadily growing site includes Sir Albert Howard's An Agricultural Testament and The Waste Products of Agriculture, Donald Hopkins' Chemicals, Humus and the Soil, John A Widtsoe's Dry Farming, and an annotated bibliography of other historical works with links to purchase information at amazon.com.
red ballYe Olde Forage Library -- West Virginia University Extension grazing specialist Ed Rayburn has started this collection with D.B. Johnstone-Wallace's 1938 pamphlet Pasture Improvement and Management, a work cited often by Andre Voisin in his classic, Grass Productivity. (If the cover page image is slow to load, just click on the hand in the top right corner of the page to go right to the table of contents.)

The Contrary Farmer -- Essays by Gene Logsdon

red ballThey'll Put A Spell On You -- The Contrary Farmer uses anatomically correct language (consider yourself warned) to describe the startling effects of endocrine disruptors..
red ballThoughts On Economic "Inevitability" -- The Contrary Farmer points out that the predictions of ag economists are far from a sure bet.

The Poet's Corner

red ballnewCow Dreams -- Poems by Steve Lucas -- In the tradition of the Cowboy Poets but with a modern grazier's twist. Enjoy!
red ballAmazing Grazing -- In our grazing area, New York dairyman Dick Warner sings the praises of pasture in this poem set to the tune of the old spiritual.
red ballCompost Yourself! -- From the Cornell Composting site, an entertaining ditty from the legendary folk singer Lee Hays of the Weavers. For more odes to compost, see the Compost Resource Page's Poetry Page.
red ballManure Happens -- Cowboy poetry er...cowgal poetry of Hilma (Volcano) Volk. Site features works of other cowboy poets and links to other cowboy poetry sites. Current (5/29/97) lead poem, "Outhousing" delivers a memorable punchline.
red ballPopularizing Soil -- From the soil science department at the University of Wisconsin, emeritus professor Francis Hole provides a few samples of his soil poetry and song.

hot pepperHot Links

red ballCan Organic Agriculture Feed the World? ... And Is That the Right Question? -- North Dakota organic farmer and sustainable farming activist Fred Kirschenmann, refutes the notion that all-out, high-input production for the global marketplace is the only way to feed the world.
red ballHightower Radio -- Love him or hate him, former Texas Commissioner of Agriculture Jim Hightower always gets you thinking. Check out his decidedly populist commentaries or tune in to his call-in program via RealAudio.
red ballAs the Worm Turns -- The folks at the N Bar Land and Cattle Company say this e-zine "grew out of our interest in alternative agriculture systems and the need to share thoughts, concerns and joys of rural people worldwide." Free subscriptions for the email version, plus back issues archived at N Bar's website. Includes essays (for example see Marty Strange's "As I Leave This Place" in the sample back issue), poetry, fiction, commentaries and a calendar of events.

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