From the Farmer's Perspective: A JBG Playground and Farm to School

As many of you know, I really love art, and I’m always trying to find new ways to create space for artists on the farm (by the way - this Saturday is your last chance to check out Farmer as Artist at the Prizer Gallery!). I’ve also had a dream for a long time to create more community space at our farm, to make events like our spring and fall hoedowns an even more exciting place to bring the family. This week I wanted to let you in on a big project I’ve been working on - plans for a playground at the Garfield Farm!

With all of the seeding and planting and building going on at the farm, you might be wondering where I’m finding the time to think about things like a playground. I promise I’m not trying to do too much, but these sorts of things just seem to track me down! I have a funny knack for accidentally networking, and it seems like several times a week I connect with people by accident, and am inspired to take on new projects without seeking them out. Really! Remember how I went to see the Grateful Dead play in California? Well, on my road trip back to Austin, I met someone who put me in contact with a man named Mark Hemphill, who lives in Atlanta. While Mark and I haven’t actually met yet, we’ve certainly been in contact, and he’s a really creative guy! Right now he and I are collaborating on a design for a farm playground made from reused tractor tires, and I’m excited to share the beginnings of the project with you.

While this was just starting to take form, I made another really interesting connection at the farmers market a few weeks ago. I ran into a man named Paul Clarence Oglesby and his wife, and found out about Paul's sculptural art. Paul works in concrete, and creates some really amazing forms and spires - I was amazed when I saw them! Paul also has a strong horticultural background, and a really neat permaculture garden at his house in Austin. It seemed like too perfect a coincidence! So, I’m working with Paul to plan for a project at the Garfield Farm - I was thinking we could integrate this work in with the kid’s playground! Between the recycled tires, Paul’s work, and of course some old vintage playground equipment, this playground is going to be a blast.

While I don’t think we’ll have the playground ready for the Fall Harvest Hustle (October 24th is coming up soon! Have you saved the date yet?), maybe we’ll have it ready for the kids by Spring. If you have any ideas for our newest project, be sure to drop us a line.

We have another piece of great news for your kiddos this week, one that is sure to make school lunches a little more exciting. JBG has been approved to be an official vendor for the Austin Independent School District!! We are incredibly grateful and excited to be pairing up with Austin’s schools to provide fresh produce from a local farm. AISD parents can help us out by calling or writing to your school administration - let them know that you would love to see JBG on the menu! A huge thank-you to AISD for raising the standard on school nutrition programs and allowing us to feed the next generation of change-makers. You can find out more about how AISD is improving school lunch by visiting their website.

Now, with all of this said, I’ve got a ton of projects I’ve got to get moving on - we are hoping to finish a 12,000 square foot shade house by next week among all the other things! Be sure to say hi at one of our weekend markets - we’ve got a myriad of produce coming out of the fields right now. After a really challenging Spring and Summer, the farm is looking absolutely beautiful and I am so proud of the produce we are bringing to market - especially all of the new Fall greens coming in!

For more of the farmer’s perspective, follow Brenton on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram @farmerbrenton.