Copper Fox Farm and Gardens

08/03/2023

Registration for my next Agroecology-based trip to Ireland opens on Friday! Join me on the Emerald Isle in April!

The following class will be open for registration beginning Friday morning, August 4, (at midnight). Midnight registration will be available at 12:00AM. If you try to register and are unable to enroll and/or waitlist for the full section, please call 630.942.2356, leave your name, phone number and email address, and you will be enrolled or added to the wait list in the order your message was received.

Going Green on the Emerald Isle
Ireland is known for its green hills and endless rolling farmland. Its agricultural pursuits have led it to have some of the finest produce anywhere in the world. Over the last 30 years, Ireland has secured its place as a top gastronomic destination, honing age-old recipes and traditions, and embracing world cuisines. Local, organic, farm-to-table ingredients have formed the bedrock of modern Irish food quality. Learn about this produce from the source, visiting local farms, food and beverage producers, and farm to table restaurants and gastropubs. Discuss topical food issues from farming to sustainability to food security and experience the rugged and beautiful Wild Atlantic Way on Ireland's west coast. There we will explore scenic green landscapes, seascapes, forests, and waterfalls while learning about the ecology of the area and the historical and cultural importance of connection to the land. Visit castles and ruins and be immersed in Irish culture, music, history, folklore, and the famously friendly Irish hospitality. Classes: April 1, 8, 15 and May 6 (6 to 8:20 p.m.). Field Study: April 19 to 28. Fee: $3,450 (includes air/land transportation, accommodations, most meals, gratuities, and excursions). Required tuition is extra. Information: Connie Kollmeyer, email: [email protected]. Register for HORT 1800 FS033.

07/03/2023

I had fun talking about Community Centered Agriculture with the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association recently and showing them around our DuPage County Corrections urban farm lab!

Many people think of “urban” as strictly being in the city, but urban agriculture can include suburban, peri-urban, and ex-urban areas as well. It is “community-centered agriculture,” or growing food right in or near the communities where the people are who are going to eat it!

Growing food in populated areas also lends itself to creative design so we can make it look pretty as well as being productive! This is such an exciting field, full of opportunities!

06/13/2023

I kept seeing signs of leafcutter bees in my peas, and I finally caught one in action! (See the reel I posted for video!)

Leafcutter bees are native cavity dwelling bees that usually like to nest in rotting wood, lining their cells with pieces of leaves as nesting material. See the nice round pieces of the leaves they’ve removed? (Don’t worry, the peas are just fine!)

This is one of the many reasons I grow strictly organically and support a balanced garden and farm ecosystem! Our gardens and farms are a part of our surrounding natural ecosystem, not apart from it!

05/11/2023

I had the pleasure of judging an Urban Ag/Food Production contest for IL high school students again last week at the Gary Comer Youth Center in Chicago! Check out their amazing indoor and rooftop garden spaces!

The students competing were so thoughtful and creative! They were given a hypothetical scenario and had to come up with a farm plan and present their business plan to the panel of judges (shout out to my fellow judges, Erika Allen of Urban Growers Collective and Paul Dietmann of Compeer Financial!)

I can’t wait to see what these kids do for the environment, their communities, food security, food production, and food justice in the future! Thanks to Luke Allen with IL FFA for organizing this!

05/01/2023

Are you curious about homesteading and want to know what’s possible for you to do at home?

Join me and a panel of beginning and experienced homesteaders for a conversation about “Homesteading in the ‘burbs” Wednesday evening at the Downers Grove Public Library!

https://downersgrove.libnet.info/event/8230769

Listen and ask questions of our panel of local homesteaders, and learn how you can live a self-sufficient life that is sustainable and ecologically friendly - even in the suburbs.

04/29/2023

What a productive and happy day we had at the Warren-Sharpe Community Center Garden in Joliet with Our Legacy Initiative Gardens this week!

With the help of
The Morton Arboretum
Chicago Region Trees Initiative
One Tree Planted
And volunteers from the local community,
The Conservation Foundation,
Amazon, Macy’s, and more,

we got 12 trees planted, 28 garden beds filled and prepped for planting, plenty of exercise, and we had a great time doing it!

If you’d like to help plant veggies for the community in the garden soon, OLI/Our Legacy Initiative Gardens welcomes you! Follow them for more info and upcoming opportunities!

04/27/2023

This is such a busy but FUN time of year! We had a great time starting seeds and talking about gardening, sustainability, and food security last week at Skeleton Key Brewery! If you missed it, be sure to check out their other upcoming classes! They’re offering Mead Making & Honey Tasting, Foraging, and so many other cool topics!
https://www.skeletonkeybrewery.com/springlearning

Also watch for their sharing days when you can stop by to donate extra produce from your garden to help support their partnership with GardenWorks Project and the West Suburban Community Pantry!

Now I’m off to help with “tree planting day” at the Warren-Sharpe Community Garden with OLI GARDENS and the Morton Arboretum and Chicago Region Tree Initiative! Photos to come!

Keep planting, busy bees! 🐝

04/21/2023

“Cool season crops” really does mean cool season! Peas planted on St. Patrick’s Day ☘️ have happily thrived through several snowfalls since then, and even this little pot of baby lettuce was just as happy as can be in the snow last week!

If you’ve caught the gardening bug and just can’t wait to get outside and start planting, that’s great! Just plant the things that like cold weather now and wait a little while on the things that don’t! Everyone can have a green thumb with a little practice!

04/19/2023

Join me on Saturday at Skeleton Key Brewery for answers to all your seed starting questions! This will be a hands-on workshop! You will start some seeds to bring home and grow!

Skeleton Key has teamed up with the GardenWorks Project to get extra produce to local food pantries, so you can grow for yourself and grow for a great cause! If you have questions as you go, I can help!

🍅🥦🥕 This Saturday, April 22, we are so excited to have Connie Kollmeyer of Copper Fox Farm at the brewery to lead a FREE, hands-on seed-starting demo at 1:30pm, complete with everything you need to grow healthy produce this summer:

FREE heirloom seeds, CowPots seed-starting pots, organic potting soil, and plenty of tips and tricks from Connie and the GardenWorks Project on how to grow healthy food at home!

When it comes time to harvest, bring your excess produce to the brewery on select days (TBA) and we'll deliver it to West Suburban Community Pantry to help make sure everyone in our community has access to healthy food. Your green thumb will earn you special perks in the taproom, too!

Sign up now at: https://forms.gle/2zHi2M2ucDyoBzhB6
Or learn more about our Growing for Good program at: https://skb.social/good

02/25/2022

If you haven’t ordered seeds for your garden yet, now is a good time.