I have been very excited to attend the homesteading festival in Paris, IL. I had hoped to go last summer and it didn’t work out. So, I’ve been planning for a year to go this June.

Sweet Husband has given me some beautiful notebooks- I chose to bring this one in which to take notes throughout the festival seminars.

SPEAKERS

DAY ONE:

(above) Jill Ragan @WhisperingWillowFarms and the author of The Tiny But Mighty Farm and The Tiny Farm Planner. She spoke of the Self-Sufficient Garden. I was tickled to check out this seminar. I had heard Jill was going to be speaking and so I looked her up. She has a gorgeous high tunnel garden in Arkansas and they grow a huge percentage of their own food. I was able to meet Jill at their booth where she sold her books and sourdough supplies. Very sweet family!

Rachel Hester of Whoopsie Daisy Farm and author of The Guide to Homestead Dairy Sheep. The powerpoint equipment was down most of the festival, unfortunately, but Rachel still spoke a lot about the Intro to Dairy Sheep subject with knowledge and experience. She and her family are out of KY.

Jim and Joelle @FromScratchFarmstead. I have been following this couple on YouTube for over a year now and enjoy their practical and down to earth content. This seminar was on soap making, something I plan to implement this summer/fall season. I was thrilled at how straight forward the process seemed to be. I made soap with my mom as a child, but never paid attention to the process and was never solely in charge of it. They had a booth as well and I met both Jim and Joelle at different times. They farm in northern IL, possibly only a few hours north of us!

Darryl Patton of The Southern Herbalist. Health and Herbs. This seminar had some fun tips and interesting stories. Darryl is 82 years old I heard and still very spry and energetic. (I generally don’t call adults of this age by their first names…). Anyway, he also did an herb walk (mentioned below). His show and tell method with stories interspersed gave evidence of his knowledge and joy in his subject matter. I did end up splurging on his book.

David Dhom of Everything Honeybees. This seminar had a lot of history and I was only able to stay for half of it. He spoke about how bees in the present day do a lot of traveling to pollinate large orchards, etc. He and his wife also had a booth and explained their beekeeping methods.

Darryl Patton: Herb walk. We found herbs (aka weeds in many instances) growing right there alongside the festival at the edge of the woods. Some I already knew, but others I excitedly recorded in my notebook or mentally to find on my own. Herbs we found (among others): SmartWeed, Plantain, Jewelweed, Garlic Mustard, Poke Salad, Broadleaf Dock, Yellow Dock, Lambs Quarter, Rag Weed, Stinging Nettle, Horse Tail, Burdock…

DAT TWO:

Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms. Joel was one of the keynote speakers on Saturday. I was very excited to hear him speak. I have watched many of his instructive videos (chicken butchering etc) as well as heard him speak at the School of Traditional Skills online summit the past two Septembers. He began with Scripture and his talk was about Caring for Creation. His life experience offers a lot to share with people about regenerative agriculture. Joel Salatin is considered the ‘Father of Modern Homesteading’ by many. If you haven’t heard of him, I would encourage you to look him up.

Temple Grandin. Animals on the Homestead. The second keynote speaker of the weekend was Miss Grandin. I was tickled to be able to hear her as well. Since the PowerPoint wasn’t working, her talk was shorter but she left a lot of time for questions. She knows a lot about animal behavior and emotions, how this plays into big livestock operations as well as the small homestead.

Jim and Joelle spoke again on Saturday, this time about their Five Acre Homestead. I knew most of what they shared because I have been following their youtube channel, but it was still nice to hear. One thing I loved was that every time Jim shared, Joelle smiled up at him so lovingly. They are a sweet couple.

David Seltzer. Azure Standard. Soil Health. Azure is a bulk food company out of the west coast. This seminar was on soil health and why it is important. I have not ordered from this company yet, but I know folks who have and I hope to try them out sometime in the future.

Chicken Butchering. Joel Salatin. When my brother and I butchered his chickens last September, I watched Joel and Daniel Salatin’s videos numerous times. Since I had butchered, I knew the main process, but it was still good to hear it and see it done in person at the festival. This was the last part of the festival I stayed for. The weather was super hot and humid (95* under tents for shade but no fans).

There were many vendors and demos also. I enjoyed walking around and spoke to a few folks at their booths. I brought home some literature and bought our family a 6-pack of the ‘Yes Honey” drinks. Mm! All in all, it was a good weekend and I am very glad I got to go. The speakers were available and down to earth, willing to give off their time and answer questions or sign books. The venue was nice and open and there were food vendors as well as plenty of port-a-pottys available. Many other folks spoke but I could only see one at a time. I wanted to see a fermentation talk by An American Homestead, but missed it unfortunately. Maybe next year! (I use her mozzarella cheese recipe video!) What a fun weekend! . Check it out for next June!

I appreciated seeing someone as seasoned and skilled as Joel Salatin still taking notes and learning alongside the rest of us during Temple Grandin’s talk.