September: Special Events & Updates

In this months newsletter:

Crab Feast Sunday
On-Farm Field Days
Film Screening
Field Notes Dinner #3 Ticket s Live!
Community Corner
Black Butterfly Bulletin
From the Field
Community Solar

Crab Feast THIS SATURDAY

On September 9th, from 3pm to 7pm, join us at the Black Butterfly Teaching Farm, 3901 West Bay Ave, as we partner with Nosreme Baltimore Inc. Together, we are proud to present a grand crab feast for our beloved Brooklyn community! We will serve unlimited steamed crabs, watermelon and a specialty side dish prepared by Chef Catina of Our Time Kitchen. There will also be art from eight Baltimore-based artists in our “Rock, Paper, Scissors exhibit”; and a performance by Christopher ‘Kolpeace’ Johnson, known for his live soul performative portraits. See you there!

Crab Feast Tickets Here

On-Farm Field Days

Join us this Sunday 3-5pm for a visit to Junipers Garden, a small scale family farm in Brandywine, MD that grows herbs, flowers, African American heritage crops and more. We will learn more about their mission to provide a space for black and brown people to be on land; reclaim their ancestral farming practices, traditions and seeds; and gain access to valuable knowledge and resources. Come hungry - we'll be cooking up wood fired pizzas for sale too!

Our calendar is brimming with these exciting events. Admission is complimentary for Farm Alliance Members, ECO City & Future Harvest Trainees, and the general public can secure tickets for just $15.

Join us in the field as we learn together at these on-farm events hosted by local experts.

see all upcoming events & get tickets here

Film Screening

The Smell of Money Movie Screening, September 17th 4-8pm
Join The Farm Alliance of Baltimore at Baltimore Montessori Public Charter School for a film screening of Shawn Bannon's The Smell of Money.

This film follows Elsie Herring and her North Carolina community as they fight the world's largest pork corporation; they fight for their freedom to enjoy fresh air, clean water, and a life without the stench of manure. See the trailer for the film here. After the film screening, enjoy a special audience Q&A with Jamie Berger, who helped write and produce the film.

tickets for the film here

Field Notes Dinner and Dialogue #3 Tickets Live!

The Farm Alliance of Baltimore invites you to the third of our "Field Notes Dinner & Dialogue Series" for an evening in celebration of Norbert Rillieux, chemical engineer and inventor. We continue our series in support of the amazing work of the Farm Alliance of Baltimore as we build a movement in urban agriculture in Baltimore City.

Dinner three of the series will be an intimate gathering prepared and curated by Damian Mosely of Blacksauce Kitchen. Attendees will enjoy signature cocktails prepared with Lyon Rum created & mixed by spirits consultant & author Shannon Mustipher. On Sunday, starting with a cocktail hour, attendees will experience 2 signature cocktails hand-crafted by Shannon Mustipher featuring cane-based spirits from Lyon Rum Company and sounds from Baltimore DJ Sterling Warren.

A communal dinner follows cocktail hour; both feature the same ingredient which inspired Rillieaux's work: sugar, in its myriad of forms.

Post dinner and cocktails, diners engage in a thoughtful discussion led by Damian highlighting our celebrated figure for the evening: Norbert Rillieux, and his work to re engineer the very dangerous process of sugar distillation.

Finally, Damian will lead a thoughtful and informative tasting of several types of our celebrated spirit, rum.

The evening also features a silent art auction and book sale. Guests can bid on pieces from celebrated artists Pierre Bennu of exittheapple, renowned photographer I. Henry Phillips Sr., and ceramicist Michelle Lorentzen. A tour & tasting at Black Ankle Winery will also be available for bidding. Shannon's book Tiki: Modern Tropical Cocktails will also be available for sale.

For the dedicated rum lovers we'll continue the party Monday evening with an exclusive cane-based spirits educational tasting led by spirits expert and author, Shannon Mustipher.

Come celebrate Black excellence & intellect with us!

Community Corner

Day 1 Supply Microgreens is hiring - a part time volunteer or independent contractor for deliveries and order fulfillment. Base pay to start. If interested, contact Jermaine Dent at info@day1supply.com

Acres4Change is hiring - more info about the Urban Agriculture Coordinator position here

Great Kids Farm Updates - Great Kids Farm is excited to welcome 3 FoodCorps members with the program's expansion to Baltimore this school year. In addition to expanding capacity for their programs at the farm and in all schools across the district, they will lead the garden clubs at Bay-Brook EMS, Belmont Elementary and Harlem Park EMS. Great Kids Farm continues to welcome volunteers to join their gardens crew or to assist with field trip programs, and welcomes all families of Baltimore City Schools students and staff to our seasonal Family Farm Hours, upcoming Oct. 7th and Nov. 3rd .

Autumn Faire at Filbert Street Garden - September 30th from 11am-2pm, 1321 Filbert St, Baltimore, MD 21226

Black Butterfly Bulletin

The Black Butterfly Teaching Farm is winding down their summer crops and mowing in the cover crops to get ready for fall. Our field of winter squash has cured on the vine and we've begun harvesting lots of beautiful butternut, honey nut and delicata. The fall crops of collards, kale and cabbage are transplanted and growing bigger each day. Pictured above are farmers Myeasha and Andy with their SARE research plot of dent corn, which looks promising with the first tassels coming in!

From the Field

We had a beautiful field day & farm tour at Kitchen Girl Farm with former Farm Alliance Farmers, Farmers Christy and Connor. We started the tour in their 200 year old barn, which was also used as a dance hall for years! Then we walked through the fields and learned about the funding opportunities that Kitchen Girl Farm was able to access through NRCS and FSA to support their high tunnels and water system. Connor explained their irrigation system, which includes a very cool solar operated well pump. Christy introduced us to their chickens and their two Huacaya alpacas, Mike and Al, who serve as the guardian animals for their flock and explained how they rotate the coops around the farm. We ended the tour at their pack house (which was beautifully organized) and also includes a roadside farm stand! Next time you're up in Parkton be sure to swing by and get some fresh eggs and produce from these awesome farmers. Our Field day events are open to the public, will we see you at the next one?

Community Solar

If you get your electricity from Baltimore Gas & Electric (BGE) or any other utility in Neighborhood Sun's utility region, you can save money on your electricity bill each month by powering your home with renewable energy generated right here in the Baltimore area!

Community solar works much like a community garden: just like you can get a share of land for your garden, you can get a share of a solar farm for your home's electricity. Hundreds of homeowners and apartment renters can tap into the shared electricity from a nearby solar farm at a price 5-30% lower than the utility's rates--guaranteed.

That means NO solar panels on your roof or property, NO cost to join or cancel, and NO change in your utility company. Help us shift our energy systems away from fossil fuels and invest in a invest in a better future for our city and region.

When you sign up Sign up through this link, $75 will be donated to The Farm Alliance and you'll get a $25 gift card to Woodberry kitchen.

See you soon!

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