A Place of the Heart Farm

The drive from Broken Magnolia was pretty uneventful, with our only major stop being a detour into Nashville to check out the first Trader Joe's we'd come across on our trip (there's not really any in the South). We took advantage of their fine ales and toothbrushes before exploring our favorite "aisle" out back, where the daily special was BREAD, crazy varieties of pretty good-quality bread.Even though we thought we gave ourselves enough time for the drive, we didn't realize we'd be crossing the time zone, nor did we take into account the fact that our little car does not go as fast as Google Maps claims it should. So, our "early evening arrival" ended up being a little after 9 pm. Since it was dark and we were on windy country lanes, we weren't sure where exactly A Place of the Heart Farm was. We saw a school bus-turned-camper, and remembered that we would be staying on a school bus, so we knocked on the closest door. That door turned out to belong to people who, through a bizarre twist of fate, own one acre within A Place of the Heart's borders. We learned through monosyllabic responses that the farm was further up the road, and Adrienne and the dogs Osha and Lucky greeted us when we pulled up. She showed us the common kitchen, and then the actual school bus where we would be staying. Adrienne did most of the remodeling herself, and turned an old school bus into a cozy home where her and her family lived for a few years. It is heated with a woodstove, and has electricity. 

Left: the door onto the bus where you can see the "mudroom" with firewood and our boots. Above: Randy reading by the wood stove. Right: Looking down the length of the bus, the edge of the kitchen table on the left, our bedroom in the far back.
A Place of the Heart is a mostly vegetable-based farm, with a CSA, restaurant sales, and one of the oldest booths at the Knoxville farmer's market. We did a lot of planting and garden prep, as well as taking care of their 3 dairy goats, one or two of whom are pregnant. Adrienne and Mac have created a welcoming community, in which everyone pitches in to keep the farm running smoothly. This community includes WWOOFers as well as old friends who come and go regularly.

Adrienne and Mac

A few days after we arrived, we accompanied Adrienne to the Knoxville Farmer's Market vendor's pre-season meeting. We carpooled with Adam and Shelby, nearby neighbors on the farm we would be going to next. Before the meeting we took a brief tour of Market Square and grabbed a few drinks while learning about the set-up of the market. The meeting was a potluck, and farmer's potlucks are the ones you want to hit up. Not only was there amazing salads, pizza with meat from local farmers, and pasta, there was also ice cream and milk brought by a dairy, and cookies, muffins, and sweets brought by people who sell them at market. Needless to say we all OD'd on sugar, and Holly especially jumped up every time a new dish was revealed. The meeting was a mixer for new members, and an opportunity for farmers to meet with local chefs and restaurants. After the meeting we waited in the parking garage in our vehicle until a van pulled up. Several young men in matching plaid shirts jumped out of the van, money was exchanged, and they began piling 50 lb yellow bags into the back of Adam's van. This was actually just farmers sharing a really good price on quality potting soil, but it sure looked like an Amish drug deal.
 A lot of farmers at the meeting are Certified Naturally Grown, which I'd never heard of, but it is a really cool organization. It meets basically the same requirements as Certified Organic, but it is farmers certifying farmers on a small scale, without having to pay for all the red tape and bureaucracy that the USDA requires. Adrienne has been CNG for a while, and has enjoyed helping her neighbors get certificated too.

Us on a hike with Osha looking on.

The Tennessee climate is rated sub-tropical, and we saw our fair share of rain including a lengthy tornado warning for our region. Adrienne wasn't worried about the tornadoes because of the narrowness of the valley we were in. She said a tornado coming into the valley would be as difficult as threading a needle, and if one did make it in we would all be doomed, basement or no. 
Once a month around the full moon Adrienne and Mac host a sweat lodge. We took part in one, and although it got intense, we enjoyed the heat and steam.

Everyone hanging out in the dining room

The last week we were there, we got to hang out with three other WWOOFers, Evan, Sequoia and Judith. We had a lot of fun, and were glad they were the first other WWOOFers we've spent much time with.

Sequoia, Adrienne, Holly

Sequoia is a beekeep, and Adrienne was excited to have someone help get her bees in order. We looked on and helped as the hive was deconstructed, cleaned, reassembled, and evaluated. It was a long strenuous process, but one taste of that fresh honey made it all worthwhile.
 We also learned how easy it is to make sprouts in a mason jar, yogurt in the Excalibur dehydrator, and kombucha on the window sill. Side note: your septic tank is the perfect kombucha environment, and the mother will expand to whatever sized container it's in, so never flush it!

Checking for hive beetles, wax moths, and varroa mites.

Most people in this photo had just tried Tony's Trinidad Scorpion pepper dust, hence the pained expressions.

 

Farmin' teamwork

What sword practice session would be complete without a wooden dagger to the ribs?

After spending two lovely weeks at A Place of the Heart we headed on down the road to Adam and Shelby's, but we're glad to be so close and we'll be sure to stop in again before leaving the area!