Organic Farming
Curt Ballard was born and raised near Ogema, in Northern Minnesota. In 1996Curt began growing all organic crops on his 400 acre farm, and was
certified organic in 1999.Curt, and his wife Darlene, raise cows,
chickens, pigs and turkeys, as well as grow crops such as soybeans,
wheat and other cereal grains.He has also grown Bear Island corn and
raised Heritage Turkeys for the White Earth Land Recovery Project. Curt
and Darlene plan on utilizing wind energy to help power their farm and
home.
Curt and Darlene Ballard (2004)
Interview with Curt Ballard March ‘05
Q: What attracts you to wind power for your farm?
A:
Absolute common-sense. Inverting back to what grandpa used to do. He
had a windmill for the cows with a battery to run lights and radio for
the house. We’ve gotten away from this kind of thinking and I think we
need to go back to it. Wind isn’t harmful to the environment and is
just waiting for us to harness it. I feel there is a need to go back to
our roots.
Q: How did you get involved with the White Earth Land Recovery Project as far as your interest in wind?
A: It had to do with my thinking on organics, etc. Why should I
reinvent the wheel? WELRP brought in a lot of organic farming, heritage
turkeys, wind, etc. Working together is a form of networking, and I
find it inspiring. There are lots of resources we can share and
questions we can look at together.
Q: Such as?
A: There is a multitude of awareness and resources once you become
interested in wind. There are questions of the technicalities and
affordability… where to go for information. By working together we can
come to some solid answers.
Q: Do you consider the internet a good resource?
A: Well… yes, but where do you draw the line on that? When do you take
a walk to look at the turkeys, or go see what the meadowlark is doing
today?
Q: Where are you with the plans for your wind turbine?
A: We’re moving along, we’ve already had the property checked out. We
have good elevations and are planning on having the anamometer up soon.
Q: What do you expect the impact of wind to be, besides the obvious
advantages with your energy supply? Do you think it will have an impact
in the community?
A: It’s like what we are doing here with the organic farming. If you go
out and try to change the world, people are going to resist that. But,
if you live by example, then little by little people will notice and
their lives will change.
It’s such an exciting time here now. Organics are becoming more credible, and people want to be healthier.
Q: Have you always been an organic farmer?
A: I thought about it in the ‘70’s, but there were no markets for it then... We became Certified Organic in 1999.
Q: Why is it important to you to be an organic farmer, and to use things that are earth-friendly such as wind power?
A: The thing we lose track of is that it’s a living organism, a gift.
It has a way of humbling you. Just think of all the people who have
raised those same seeds before. Here it is, 2005, and think of the
hundreds and thousands of hands that have passed it on. It’s keeping
tradition alive.
We have to remember the importance of food.
A:
Absolute common-sense. Inverting back to what grandpa used to do. He
had a windmill for the cows with a battery to run lights and radio for
the house. We’ve gotten away from this kind of thinking and I think we
need to go back to it. Wind isn’t harmful to the environment and is
just waiting for us to harness it. I feel there is a need to go back to
our roots.
Q: How did you get involved with the White Earth Land Recovery Project as far as your interest in wind?
A: It had to do with my thinking on organics, etc. Why should I
reinvent the wheel? WELRP brought in a lot of organic farming, heritage
turkeys, wind, etc. Working together is a form of networking, and I
find it inspiring. There are lots of resources we can share and
questions we can look at together.
Q: Such as?
A: There is a multitude of awareness and resources once you become
interested in wind. There are questions of the technicalities and
affordability… where to go for information. By working together we can
come to some solid answers.
Q: Do you consider the internet a good resource?
A: Well… yes, but where do you draw the line on that? When do you take
a walk to look at the turkeys, or go see what the meadowlark is doing
today?
Q: Where are you with the plans for your wind turbine?
A: We’re moving along, we’ve already had the property checked out. We
have good elevations and are planning on having the anamometer up soon.
Q: What do you expect the impact of wind to be, besides the obvious
advantages with your energy supply? Do you think it will have an impact
in the community?
A: It’s like what we are doing here with the organic farming. If you go
out and try to change the world, people are going to resist that. But,
if you live by example, then little by little people will notice and
their lives will change.
It’s such an exciting time here now. Organics are becoming more credible, and people want to be healthier.
Q: Have you always been an organic farmer?
A: I thought about it in the ‘70’s, but there were no markets for it then... We became Certified Organic in 1999.
Q: Why is it important to you to be an organic farmer, and to use things that are earth-friendly such as wind power?
A: The thing we lose track of is that it’s a living organism, a gift.
It has a way of humbling you. Just think of all the people who have
raised those same seeds before. Here it is, 2005, and think of the
hundreds and thousands of hands that have passed it on. It’s keeping
tradition alive.
We have to remember the importance of food.
