ecologically-conscious farming and land management practices through education and demonstration
There are many Seva (volunteer) opportunities in the orchard, and GreenFriends is always grateful for help from volunteers. The activities vary from weeding, mulching, harvesting, weed whacking, trimming, irrigation, and planting. Saturday is the regular seva day in the orchard, led by one of the …
Spring has Sprung, as the saying goes! This is the time of year when we are putting the weed whackers to good use! It is a necessary activity with many benefits for the fruit, soil, and some wildlife residents. Alas, other residents do not like our clearing of weeds and tall grasses. In the spring, we carefully use machines …
GFF has been busy planting in the new Pollinator Garden to support the Monarch project—Milkweed and the Monarch Butterfly. The Pollinator Garden is a multi-year project. The first stage is to clear the area of the plant Hemlock. The plant is invasive and very difficult …
It has been a busy March. Losing three of the Bee Hives was disturbing—a combination of yellow jackets and weather. And now it is time to welcome four thousand new Sevites, a new Bee Hive. Thanks to Bill and Dan for nurturing a new queen …
The GreenFriends Farm team and Seva group enjoyed a warm Sunday and had fun making seed balls and painting boxes. We also welcome Vivek back to the Farm Stand after his travels. Amy brought the materials for the team. The Poppyseed balls are made from …
This past week, the team began the Milkweed project, whereby Milkweed will be planted in various locations at the Ashram to help and support the Monarch Butterfly. This project will take place over several Saturdays into February. It will continue this Saturday, February 3rd, 2024, …
We harvest a lot of Pomegranates at GreenFriends Farm. And we are constantly looking for better ways to collect the arils. What are the arils? Each seed is encased in a sweet and juicy covering known as an aril. We have a new addition to …
The Olive trees in the Maha orchard are delivering a bountiful harvest. It has been thrilling to see all of the beautiful black olives appearing, as it has been rare for the trees to produce this amount of fruit….and yes, olives are a fruit! The …
The Saturday Seva volunteer team has been bustling for the past two weeks. The team has been harvesting Persimmons and trimming. You will see Leah and Jordan in the persimmon trees below. It is also a good time to address the citrus and apple trees …
Over the past few weeks, the GreenFriends Farm team and volunteers have been preparing to plant several apple trees. Approximately a dozen Golden Delicious apple trees are to be planted. The Process: The holes are dug to allow at least 3″-4″ of room around the …