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and land reclamation . In 2019 , upon completion of a course in permaculture design , we christened our home “ Chicken of the Woods Permaculture Farm ” with 90 legally grown and flourishing commercial Cannabis sativa hemp plants in the ground , a first in 90 years for Montgomery County .
In addition , we formed a hyper-local egg CSA , delivering up to 15 dozen nutrient-dense pastured eggs per week to appreciative neighbors . We were also able to offer CSA bags of in-season organic vegetables and herbs including radishes , kale , basil ,
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Interestingly , in all our musings and designs for what a life with a gentle footprint might look like , something we never fully considered was community . Although deeply committed to the Butler
Montessori school community in
Germantown , Maryland , where I taught and our children attended , when the challenges of COVID became apparent , we decided to homeschool our boys and the farm became our focus .
With Jesse employed full time , I turned to Facebook to seek the community we had lost . The
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response was overwhelming and within a few weeks , our 10-plus family Homeschool Cooperative was in full swing . Parents and children , from infant to 13 years , gather weekly to experience what has been lost in this technologically driven age . We share a vested commitment to the wellbeing of people and our ecosystems , offering the opportunity to barter effort for health and wellness .
On any given Thursday , you might find the group enjoying a most tender stir-fry lunch after a morning harvest , or people rolling a snowman-sized
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sweet potato greens , peppers , tomatoes , cucumbers , okra and squash , and to sell large bulk quantities |
Few things get my children out of bed in the morning quickly : Christmas , birthdays and the Homeschool
Cooperative ! Bridgette ’ s kindness and enthusiasm for the roots of our humanness is contagious . The experience
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ball of sweet potato greens into a run of hungry goats patiently eyeing the feast , as children excitedly |
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