Progress report for ONC24-143
Project Information
This proposal establishes community through the re-integration of sustainable mixed-power livestock and crop systems, addressing critical environmental and land concerns by increasing biodiversity and restoring resilient farming environments in McLean County, IL. Partners will work collaboratively to cultivate and apply mixed-use power systems to prairie pollinator/native plant plots (PNPP) at three small farms, and a flagship public demonstration site at the Illinois State University Horticulture Center (ISUHC). To empower Partners and the broader public, community-building and discovery will occur through two public farmer-led field days, ongoing expert and peer-to-peer training, workshops, and field trips, among other activities. We aim to reconnect people with sustainable methods of establishing biodiversity and increase the awareness of healthy food production on small farms in our county. The importance of this project is related to biodiversity and farming community but is also site-specific:
in the 1820's, teams of oxen “prairie breakers” removed native prairie to make way for human-directed agriculture in Central Illinois, an economy now dependent on specialized crop production. The specialization of crops changed farmer’s relationship to labor and time but came with environmental cost. 200 years later, how might we use mixed-power systems to regenerate ecologically diverse communities, soil, and land?
Objective: to raise awareness of the importance of biodiversity and healthy food systems in Central Illinois through events and the mixed-power establishment of two PNPPs and two PNPP earthworks (“art that is made by shaping the land itself or by making forms in the land using natural materials). PNPPs create pollinator habitat, enhance soil health, and balance pest and pathogens using livestock/crop integration. We aim to provide Partners and target audiences the skillsets and knowledge to implement sustainable, mixed-power practices in their farms and their homes, increase general awareness of the importance of pollinators through community and corporate partnerships, and to foster resilient community infrastructures that exist beyond the project duration.
Cooperators
- (Educator)
- - Technical Advisor
Research
Educational & Outreach Activities
Participation Summary:
15 Consultations have been held at four different locations, most often at the ISU Horticulture Center. A fact sheet about the flagship earthwork has been distributed. The PI has a forthcoming edited chapter about the flagship location in an upcoming Routledge text and has led one on-farm draft animal demonstration. ISU mentioned the SARE grant in the fall 2024 issue of ISU's Redbird Scholar Magazine, and the project will be featured as the cover story in the forthcoming issue (spring 2025). We are currently seven weeks out from our first public Field Day event (May 3, 2025) at the ISU Horticulture Center and are securing speakers and confirming teamsters, exhibitors, and small farms. The PI traveled to present the project at the Midwest Ox Drovers Association Gathering in Scotts, MI (June 2024) and the Draft Animal Power Network Field Day in Montgomery, NY (Fall 2024). Farmer Jeff Hake gave a tour of his maple sirup operation in Funks Grove Township, IL. Two of the four farmers were able to attend the eco-attunement workshop; we plan to host another gathering this summer.
Learning Outcomes
Sustainable farming methods - mixed power systems
Viability of incorporating draft animal power in cultivation practices
Project Outcomes
Overall, the flagship site at the ISU Horticulture Center will provide future economic benefits for farmers through increased crop yields. Without pollinators, soybean yields can decrease by as much as 50% (https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016788092300035X). A new connection with COUNTRY Financial and Heartland Community College, formed through the flagship site of this proposal, will attract greater tourism to the area, benefiting all residents of McLean County, many of whom are farmers. This flagship site at the ISU Horticulture Center is situated between residential development and productive agricultural land on the edge of town. It is part of a larger 23-acre botanical garden that serves as a buffer against further residential encroachment into farming areas. The earthwork at R Wildflower Farm & Fields will generate economic and environmental advantages by incorporating more pollinator and native plant species alongside an existing current organic corn and bean production. There will be an enhanced quality of life for project-involved farmers who plan to integrate mixed-use practices and agroecology into their existing production systems. The PI and farmers have built a new network among themselves, attending workshops, tours, and consultations, while being introduced to other farmers and new groups outside of those involved in the project. Each of the sites promotes biodiversity and contributes to the expansion of pollinator habitats and food sources for pollinators.
A specialty hay farmer from Central Illinois is exploring sustainable mixed-power methods in their cash crops and is actively searching for a team of draft horses for work on their farm. The network created through the grant is yielding additional public events. One farmer supports a newly-established local community garden in Central Illinois and is bringing PI’s team of oxen to till during the “ribbon-cutting” event for the location.
I anticipate needing the free year extension on this project and will make this formal request later in 2025. An unexpected development that arose from this funding was the energetic response by the community about the publicly-accessible flagship location. As a result of the excitement incited by the SARE project, we were able to raise an additional $40,000 (through individual community donations and a corporate grant) to fully realize the flagship location in the year 2025. The complexity of this site was thus scaled up and required additional time for planning and working with additional community partners. We shifted the field day event at the Horticulture Center (Normal, IL) back to Spring 2025 (May 3rd) and the event at R Wildflower Farm & Fields (Gibson City, IL) to Fall 2025. These two large public events require the pollinator strips at The Shire (Downs, IL) and R Navis (Heyworth, IL) to also happen over a more extended period of time.
I anticipate a robust report in March 2026 after all these great events have occurred!