Field Days provide an excellent opportunity for small farmers, homesteaders, and home gardeners to connect and learn from one another. During the event, the hosts will guide the group on a brief farm tour, with a focus on a particular successful or challenging aspect of production that they can share with the group. Participants are encouraged to ask questions and share their own experiences during the event.

Field Days are free and open to the public, and a donation of $10 is appreciated but not required. Registration is mandatory, and you can RSVP either by visiting www.fwsoil.org/field-days or calling (618) 370-3287.

Field Days are organized by the Southern Illinois Farming Alliance, which is a program of Food Works (www.fwsoil.org), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that seeks to promote long-term farming networks that create healthy soils, healthy food, and healthy communities across the 23 counties that comprise Southern Illinois.

In this full day workshop-style event, you will build your knowledge of weed management systems, view and try a wide variety of tools, and learn from a weed management expert and experienced farmer peers right in the field. You will leave with the strategies you need to develop a detailed, comprehensive, and actionable plan for managing weeds on your farm.

Beekeeping is a multifaceted practice that offers numerous benefits to individuals, communities, and the environment. Illinois Extension is teaming up with Food Works of Southern Illinois to offer a beekeeping 101 course as part of the modern homesteading series.

Join us for a free event at Main Street Pastures in St. Rose, IL to learn about multi-species grazing and direct meat marketing.

Noah Scalero from Beet Root Farm gave visitors a tour of his farm and discussed his no-till methods for managing his acreage. He also explained how they used crop planning to grow intensively for profit on a small scale and shared his experience starting a farm from raw land. Beet Root Farm offered over 30 varieties of fruits, vegetables, herbs, and flowers to their CSA members and the Carbondale Farmers Market.

In addition, Ellen Esling from Food Works was available to talk about the new Food Works Mobile Farmers Market. This mobile farmers market aimed to connect communities in the southern 13 counties by providing locally-sourced, fresh foods and sustainable products. It offered a new way for communities with limited access to farmers markets and grocery stores to access fresh, nutrient-dense foods, while also providing local farmers with a sales platform that took less time away from the farm.

We are grateful to everyone who attended the apple tree grafting workshop led by One Circle-Eco Farm and Scratch Brewery. It was a great learning experience for all of us. Participants got the opportunity to learn about the history and benefits of grafting, and they also watched demonstrations of several types of grafts.

At the workshop, we discussed how to cut scion wood, grow your own rootstock, and graft other types of fruit trees. It was an exciting day where we shared our knowledge and love for apple trees.

We want to thank everyone who participated in the workshop and hope that you enjoyed it as much as we did. We hope that you will continue to propagate apple trees through grafting and gain access to bio-regionally adapted apple genetics. Thank you again for making it a successful event!

Biochar for Small Farms

Food Forests, Planted and Foraged Perennial Herbs

Small Scale Grains

Cottage Food & Beyond

Transitioning to Organic Production with Rodale Institute

Permaculture: Planning for Berms and Swales

Creating, Diversifying, and Protecting Pollinator Habitat

Climate Change and its Impacts on Agriculture in Southern Illinois

Preserving the Harvest- Intro to Canning

Low Till/No Till Vegetable Production

Chainsaws: Basics, Tree Trimming & Felling Demonstration

Constructing a High Tunnel and Planning for Winter Vegetable Production

Solar Energy for Small Farms

Enemies and Allies: Insect Identification and Management Practices for a Diverse Organic Garden Ecosystem

Beekeeping Basics for Southern Illinois