June 18 - 24, 2007
Location:
Mark Shepard’s New Forest Farm, Viola, Wisconsin
This course in complete.
We had a wonderful week. Click Here for a full photo summary. (This may take a minute to load. Lots of great pictures.)
Unique to This Course
Permaculture on a Farming Scale
One of the things that astounded Wayne about Mark was his bravado. There is no one we know of that has swaled the better part of 100 acres and applied a permaculture model to an entire farming operation. No annual plowing and exposure of the soil, no artificial fertilizers, no herbicides, no pesticides, no fancy irrigation system, and still, he gets a larger and larger crop every year. This course will explore just what is possible for the farmer of tomorrow and how anyone can apply permaculture principles to a large or small piece of property. (Click here for some great photos of Mark’s Farm)
Emphasis
Students will have the chance to become intimately familiar with Mark’s operation and see first hand the simplicities and the complexities of creating such a diverse farm. The emphasis of this course will be on plant guilds, soil building, water retention and management, crop diversity, and the useful incorporation of animals into such a system.
Classroom, Camping and Food
The main reason for the lower price of this course is because of the rustic nature of the accommodations. When we are not out on the farm, the classroom time will be spent in Mark's utility and retail-sale's building. We will be out of the sun, wind and rain but on a concrete floor. Bring your favorite folding chair. Camping space is available for everyone (plenty of room on the farm) and primitive showers and toilets (port-o-potties) will be the luxuries of the day. Camping is free but students bring their own tents. The food will be mostly prepared on site and we will eat in the dinning tent, in the open or in the classroom. For the 'camping challenged' there are a few small motels just 17 miles down the road in Richland Center. Students are responsible to make and pay for their own motel arrangements. Carpooling to and from Mark's farm is a likely possibility.
Site Tours
There will be plenty to see and do on Mark’s farm but there are a couple of other local operations that we feel are too important to miss while being in the area.
Tour 1 - The Trout Palace Fish Farm
Jim and Cathy Pierce are good friends of the Shepard’s and live only 15 minutes away. With a fresh-running spring on their property they are able to raise some wonderful-tasting trout. They do sell some live fish but their profitability is mostly due to their direct-sales marketing efforts which we will learn about. There is also a large-retention wall made out of recycled tires we will examine which houses an even-more-interesting root cellar. They have a charming home which the two of them designed and built. This stop will stimulate a lot of permaculture discussion.
Tour 2 - Organic Valley Headquarters
If you don’t know the story of Organic Valley and the pioneering work this co-op did to reinvent the way that sustainable farmers can do business, then you owe it to yourself to check it out. Mark was one of the early farmers involved with Organic Valley and still provides organic produce to this day. We will visit the headquarters and other parts of the operation since this is the home of this nationally-known business.
Tour 3 - One Sun Farm & Bakery
For quite a few years now, Mark had taken on young interns who have lived and worked with him on his farm through an entire growing season. He says he has had one intern who sticks up above the rest. His name is Dave Varney and One Sun Farm is his own 5-year-old permaculture-farming operation (5 acres) he started after studying with Mark.
Working from a permaculture design, the farm specializes in perennial nut, fruit & vegetable varieties such as asparagus, strawberries, raspberries & garlic. They are also investing in hazelnuts, blueberries, apples, and cherries, not to mention the pork and beef which provide many benefits to the farm.
Dave and his wife Erin’s primary-marketing efforts revolve around a CSA operation, their new-bakery business (wood-fired ovens) specializing in homemade pizza that include their own organic ingredients and, new this spring, a retail-farm store right on the premises.
This stop will hold a gold mine of practical, hard-won and fresh-permaculture experience.
Dave Varney in front of their recently built farm store.
Description of our Full, Permaculture-Design-Certification Courses If you landed on this page and happened to miss the full course description, you might still be wondering what is actually covered in a certification course. Click Here to go to that page.
Join us at the MREA Fair immediately before - caravan to Mark's farm. Bill, Mark and Wayne (BMW) all have workshops to give at the Midwest Renewable Energy Fair in Custer, WI, the weekend immediately before the June course. This is the largest fair of its kind in the world and is an outstanding educational event.
Weekend Permaculture Reunion
All registered students of the June course are invited to join us for the first Midwest Permaculture Annual Reunion. We will be camping at Alice's farm (one of our recent graduates) who lives only 15 minutes from the MREA Fair site. Join last years graduates and meet your fellow course mates. We will all be attending the fair during the days but spending our evening and mornings in conversation. Saturday night Bill, Mark and Wayne will be hosting an evening talk and campfire. Bring your own tent and food to share with others. The camping will be rustic, similar to Mark Shepard's farm, with latrines and outdoor (but private) showers. Cost is $10/night or $20 for the weekend for singles - $15 and $30 respectively for couples and families.
When we wrap up everything on Sunday (the 17th) there will be two caravans traveling to Mark's farm to set up our tents for the coming week. One of us will head out early with the first group (around 3:00) to be on hand for the first arrivals to the course. Registration runs between 6:00 - 9:00 Sunday evening, the 17th - resumes Monday morning from 8:00 - 9:00 a.m. Students will be responsible for their own meals on Sunday evening. The first course meal is Monday breakfast.
Monday - All Day Tour - Public Invited:
Your course begins Monday morning as part of an all day tour of Mark Shepard's farm. There will be other's joining us for the day for this tour. This will be the main tour of the farm where we will learn about all that Mark has done and is doing, and why. Day tour guests leave at 5:00 p.m. Your course continues after dinner with your first evening session at 7:00. Family members of design course students are invited and encouraged to join us on this day. The fee is $25 for student family members and includes lunch. The regular registration price for non-course participants is $95. Click here for more details on this. Scroll down to item #3.
Course Fee & Registration:
The price for this course is $1,100.
Fill our the registration form and mail in with your payment in full or, a $300 down payment will hold your spot in the course with the balance of $800 being due by May 25 (the Friday before your first Sunday webinar). A discount of $200 is available for your spouse, significant other, or a second (immediate) family member. We require a minimum of 25 students to hold this course with a maximum enrollment of 80.
Cancellation and Refund Policy - Should you have to cancel your enrollment in the course there will be a full refund less $50 if you cancel before May 18. After that date it will be a full refund less $150. In the unlikely event that we have to cancel the course (due to insufficient enrollment or some other unforeseen circumstance) we will refund everyone’s payment in full. You keep the book - our gift.
Click here for a registration form which you may print out, fill out, and snail-mail in with your check. We hope to have electronic registration with credit card capabilities available by the end of April.
Share the Course:
We know there are many folks out there who would love to know about this permaculture course. The hard part for us is being able to reach them. If you would like to assist us by letting your friends or group associations know about this course, we offer additional discounts to you and your friends.
Group Rates
# of Students Registering at the same time Discount per Student
2 $ 50
3 $ 75
4 $100
5 $125
6 $150
7 $175
8 or more… $200 Reminder: Partner, Spouse or Immediate Family Member Discount
$200 off Full Price
