Julien's Journal September 2016 (Volume 41, Number 9) | Page 40
Life Farm located in Sinsinawa Mound Farm
in Sinsinawa, Two Onion Farm in Belmont,
Kristi’s Perfect Produce in Cuba City, and
Honey Hill Organic Farm & Apiary in Potosi.
The public is invited to visit with farmers
and others who produce local food that
will be sourced to Dubuque and Western
Dubuque schools in October. Tours, samples,
and demonstrations will be available at each
of the farms. Each site will also offer activities designed just for kids. The Farm Crawl
is free and open to the public. Visit www.
DriftlessFarmCrawl.com for downloadable
maps, field guides, and more information on
featured farms and farmers.
The September 10 Farm Crawl also offers
urban tours and demonstrations at the
Dubuque Community School Alternative
Learning Center (ALC) garden located at
1090 Alta Vista St. and the Dubuque Rescue
Mission Community Farm and greenhouse
located at 300 Iowa St. behind the Canfield
Hotel.
“At ALC, we’re highlighting what’s going on
with Dubuque Community Schools,” said
Olson. “We’ll have teachers and administrators from elementary, high school, and NICC
showing what’s happening on the ground
and in the classrooms with gardens, chicken
coops, and hydroponics. It’s a grassroots
look at what’s going on with teachers and
students, as well as what’s happening at the
A birds eye view of the Dubuque Rescue Mission garden. Contributed photo.
top administratively. It’s a look at what’s going on behind the lunchroom door – what it
takes to source local foods.” ISU Extension &
Outreach horticulture and youth educators
will also be at the ALC to talk with teachers
and families interested in exploring farm to
school curriculum and resources.
The ALC garden is one of five school gardens
planted in Dubuque in the past two years
with the help of Iowa State Extension’s
School Gardens 101, a five-week training
course designed to help teachers, faculty,
Farm Crawl Information
and volunteers build a dynamic team for
a successful school garden. Other local
schools boasting gardens include Northeast
Iowa Community College (NICC), Sageville
Elementary, Hempstead High School, and
Jefferson Middle School.
The Dubuque Rescue Mission began their
downtown food production in 2008 on
a half-acre urban plot. “Our goals for the
space are multi-faceted,” said garden manager Ashley Neises. “Primarily we engage
Rescue Mission residents in farm cultivation, provide healthy and fresh food to our
The Two Onion Farm family is participating in this year’s Farm Crawl. Photo
contributed by Four Mounds.
The Iowa Food Hub (IFH), managed by Georgia Windhorst, is located in West Union, IA. The farm is a nonprofit organization first
established in 2012 as a series of pilot projects. It has grown into its
current role as a local foods distributor with an emphasis on small
to medium farms and beginning farmers. The IFH is GroupGAP Certified, and evaluates all of its growers to ensure that food safety mea-
38 ❖ Julien’s Journal
sures are enforced. The Food Hub is located in Northeast Iowa, and
sources all of its products from within 150 miles of its warehouse.
Tree of Life Farm, located in Cuba City, WI and owned by Marc Millitzer, provides carrots, green pepper, and tomatoes for the Farm to
School program. Tree of Life is an organic farm, serving the tri-state