Hello again. Here's where I've been.
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Dear Friends & Allies,
It’s been a while since I last wrote to you, but today seems like a great day to bring this newsletter back, since it’s the Summer Solstice – the longest day of the year, representing bright new beginnings and an abundant harvest ahead.
Here’s a peek at what I’ve been up to in the last year or so…
A SEASON OF STUDY
I’ve gone deep into study on all things sustainable and regenerative farming. I started with some courses at Quail Springs, a local education nonprofit that offers training to all ages on land-based living, natural building, and permaculture design, and then got to talking to lots of different farmers, poring over books and articles, watching YouTube videos…and just digging, digging, digging for whatever progressive agricultural practices I could find.
And then, bit by bit, I started testing them at my family’s Ellwood Canyon Ranch in Santa Barbara. Here are some of the things we’ve tried out:
We removed 32 acres of avocado trees that were old and failing, and ordered 10,000 of a hybrid avocado plant called a Gem Avocado to replace them. These new trees can be planted on berms that are about two feet high and three feet wide, isolating their roots in a mound so no water or compost are wasted on weeds in the sidelines. Because of their vertical shape, less space is required in between, so they can be more densely planted. All in all, they’re not just more nutrient- and water-efficient, but also more resistant to heat and wind, which means they’re much more suited to our land and changing climate in the long-term.
Instead of using chemical-laden landscape cloth to prep our berms for those trees, we first planted cover crops, including grasses with deep roots to help break up the soil and sink more water, plus nitrogen-fixers and plants to attract pollinators (bees, butterflies, hummingbirds, etc) and beneficials (ladybugs, praying mantises, and other insects that eat unwanted pests). Then, we grazed it all with Cuyama Lamb sheep – a much more energy-efficient way to get rid of it than a tractor or manual labor – and topped it off with mulch to facilitate more healthy microbial life and suppress future weeds.
In general, our methods look like ancient, traditional ways of farming, but we’re also bringing in some more “modern” technology, using drone photography to map out the ranch so we can see which sections are healthy. We also have weather stations all over the land to measure wind speeds, temperature, and other data.
We’re making worm compost for our small kitchen garden, and it’s freaking awesome. We’re planning to bring that worm compost system to a much larger scale as one of our next big projects.
And that’s just some of it. Over on Instagram, I’ve been sharing these trials and associated micro-teachings for about two years now, and it’s been a fun way to engage with the community (local and beyond) and to share my journey on the ranch.
OTHER EVENTS & PROJECTS
On April 15, I moderated Lotusland’s first Sustainability Symposium at the historic lemon-packing plant in Santa Paula, featuring some awesome keynote speakers and panelists that ranged from a botanical specialist to a fire ecologist and more. (Here, take a look.) The event attracted a really diverse crowd of humans at different levels of expertise to gather and talk about sustainability and all of its offshoots. We need more curious conversations like these. The second Sustainability Symposium is coming up on September 9, and I’ll keep you posted when tickets are available.
On April 29, I finally got the chance to visit Apricot Lane Farms (of "The Biggest Little Farm" fame). I loved chatting with one of its cofounders, Molly, and just taking in all the inspiration and teachings from their regenerative farming practices. It's so worth visiting for a farm tour if you can swing it.
On May 13, I hosted a fundraising event for what I believe is one of the most transformative agricultural projects out there right now. Permaculture icons Tom Cole and Warren Brush are collaborating with a rad organization called African Women Rising to rehabilitate a degraded piece of land in Northern Uganda into a resilient garden for demonstration, research, and training purposes. In this time of climate extremes, deadly conflict, and unheard levels of global food insecurity, the demonstration garden provides a unique and much-needed model of how to build resilient farming systems and move from food aid dependency to food self-sufficiency. All in all, we raised $210,000 to support the next phase of the garden's development.
On May 22, thanks to a grant from Women’s Fund, we hosted a group of young women from Freedom4Youth, a community-based program that empowers people within and beyond the juvenile justice system. Activities included picking avocados, journaling in the oak grove, a sound bath from healer Danielle Elese, and more. For me, the ranch has long been a place prime for grounding, reconnecting with nature, and healing on not just the physical but the spiritual level, and I loved getting to offer a microdose of that land-based medicine to some young women.
UPCOMING EVENTS & PROJECTS
On July 26 at 4pm PST, I’ll be in conversation with Mark Sylvester for TEDx’s Santa Barbara Salon. This free talk will focus on the links between healthy classrooms and a healthy planet, looking at both education and agriculture through the lens of my “4 C’s principle” that supports vibrant, regenerative ecosystems of all kinds. I hope you’ll listen in. Please click here to learn more and register.
And, speaking of juicy conversations, guess what? I’m working on a podcast! It’ll feature a wide variety of conversations on regenerative values and practices – the agricultural kind, and beyond. Watch this space, and I’ll let you know when the first few episodes are live, likely in August/September.
That’s all for now, but I’d love to hear from you, too. What are you learning and testing these days? Is there anyone you want me to speak with on the podcast?
Sincerely,
Stacy Pulice