J Mealy

I grew up in towns outside of the Catskills of New York and the Alleghenies of Pennsylvania. While most of my experience in farming and landscaping has been in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (see below), I have been farming and stewarding a historical 20 acre homestead in the Pacific Northwest for the past three years.

Here in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, I am learning about regenerative systems of land and animals.  As the Operations Coordinator for the nonprofit here, my primary undertakings are pruning the apple, pear, and plum orchards; grafting fruit trees to sell; maintenance and upkeep of the land and facilities; caring for goats, sheep, and turkeys; and general coordination of the site and the camping program.  Off the farm, I also manage (part-time) a neighbor’s small vegetable and herb farm and prune fruit trees around the community.  Additionally, I am studying ecological psychology and environmental humanities at a graduate level.

I have worked hard to find the intersections of the things that I enjoy and that support me.  I love what I do and I am ready for the responsibility and sovereignty of stewarding land of my own.  I hope to find land in the Appalachians to call home.  

Right away, I want to: Learn about the local and surrounding ecosystem of the prospective land; create (or learn the current) systems for caring for the plants, animals, and buildings already present on the land; build soil as needed; get basic landscape, infrastructure, farm, and business systems established; and start to design a self-supporting regenerative/agroforestry plan for the land.

Short-term business goals include: Developing a perennial fruit and medicinal plant nursery that may support a part-time ecological gardening and restoration business while I get myself established. (A potential nursery could extend into the long-term goal of growing perennials, forage, and pollinators for the farm.)

Depending on the land and situation, I would like to begin growing medicinal herbs for value-added products as soon as I am able. If there is an orchard or other perennial fruit system present, I would want to give my attention to the health of those plants, and am interested in renovating overgrown orchards if necessary. I would process fruits for the production of healthy, fermented drinks (like fruit "kvass"), vinegars, and syrups.

I would like to begin leading small classes or workshops on topics related to all of the above within a year or two.

My long-term vision is to establish an herb, fruit tree, and annual and perennial food farm that includes animals (ducks, chickens, and possibly sheep and/or goats). I am interested in incorporating woodlands into the animal and food systems over time, experimenting and record-keeping my experiences in agroforestry as I go. (I hope to support the research and development of this field over time.)

In addition to producing value-added products of fruits and herbs on-site, my commitment is to steward and develop land that may become a place of retreat, education, and/or working community. I am a dirt-minded designer who really enjoys the behind-the-scenes work of creating beautiful, accessible, and enjoyable spaces. I envision the farm ultimately having experiential and/or educational components such as minimal retreat-style offerings, plant medicine consultations, and workshops on topics like ecological psychology and land-based arts. I strongly believe in finding creative ways (work-trades, bartering) to make such offerings accessible to the community, without funds limiting that access.

Depending on the size of the property, I may want to be a part of a team of stewards over time. These may be individuals from the community, or possibly folks who would share the land. I have been involved with cooperative, collective, and guild styled organizations, and love to see how experts, specialists, and lovers of their craft can support the larger vision while being equally supported in their callings and livelihoods.