About the Garden
Crops grown include carrots, beets, radishes, turnips, cucumbers, melons, beans, squash, broccoli, kale, collards, peppers, eggplants, tomatoes, apples, raspberries, pears, shallots, sweet potatoes, leeks, garlic, and all manner of lettuces and salad greens including radicchio, endive, and escarole.
To enrich the soil, leaves are collected from fall cleanup, and we use manure from a nearby turkey farm to make compost. Intensive practices often mean up to three crops are harvested in any given bed per season. Lake Michigan provides a climate influence that enables us to hold cold weather crops well into the late fall even without season extension.
About the Farmer
Owner and chef/farmer Michael Everts enjoys sharing his extensive experience and seeks ways to expand his expertise. He usually speaks at standing catering jobs such as the Walloon Writer’s Retreat on topics such as how growing methodologies impact the tastes in foods. He works with culinary tour operator of Learn Great Foods, Ann Dorety, by supporting her as a chef, speaker, cooking class instructor, and garden tour host. Mr. Everts also worked with Rebecca Glotfelty, filmmaker and activist, with a screening of “Our Daily Bread”, an up close look at industrial food systems. This was at a Fall 2007 event of the Little Traverse League of Peace and Freedom Film and Speaker Series.
For his own education he attends numerous organic farming and culinary gatherings, including Slow Food International’s “Tierra Madre” in Turin Italy. These experiences have helped to build an extremely valuable depth of perspective relating to food production, and are outlined below:
• 2006, Traverse City, Michigan- The “Farm to Kitchen Coordinator” on the planning committee of the Kellogg Foundations Food and Society Initiative’s Annual Conference, a three day, 600 person meeting; worked with the Executive Chef at the Grand Traverse Resort and the Culinary Arts Staff at the North West Michigan College to source as much clean local food as possible, and gave a short informative speech. To view the Local Foods List Mr. Everts compiled for this event, see the pdf link.
• 2006, Blackbird Gardens- Collaborated with See-North to present a wild foods and early spring foods dinner.
• 2006, Northern Michigan- Small Farm Conference Speakers Committee.
• 2005, Northern Michigan- Cooking Class with start-up Agra-Tourist Business, Learn Great Foods.
• 2004-2005, Petoskey, Michigan- Committee Member for New Downtown Petoskey Farmer’s Market.
• 2004, Indianapolis, Indiana- Acres USA Conference.
• 2004, Turin, Italy- Delegate to the Slow Food International Terra Madre, World Meeting of Food Communities.
• 2003 and 2005, Lacrosse, Wisconsin- Upper Midwest Organic Growers Conference.
• 2003 through 2004, Walnut, North Carolina- Masonry oven construction and bakery re-model, Natural Bridge Bakery.
• 2003, Petoskey, Michigan- Caterer and Speaker for Northern Michigan Master Gardeners Annual Inspirational Dinner.
• 2003, Northern Michigan- Small Farm Conference, prepared a 98% local foods meal for 400 people, with grower information and photographs.
• 2003, Traverse City, Michigan- Presenter at the Great Lake Bioneers Conference.
• 2000 and 2002, Sausalito, California- Wood Fired Brick Oven Baker’s Conference.
