A Beginners Guide to Anywhere Farming

If you’ve ever had fantasies of making your own little house on the prairie but don’t think you have the space for it, think again. There are creative ways to grow your own food, make your own honey and keep chickens in almost any yard.

Gardening Made Easy
So you have a little piece of land and have decided that you want to grow something besides grass and weeds on it. If you weren’t blessed with a green thumb, opt for a hands-on instructional class. In Providence, the South Side Community Land Trust is offering hands-on gardening instruction on April 9 for their 7th Annual Urban Agriculture Kick-Off from 11am-1pm (Various community gardens. 401-273-9419, SouthSideCLT.org). In Warren, New Urban Farmers (569 Main Street, Warren. NewUrbanFarmers.org) holds free gardening classes from April through September; all you have to do is sign up ahead of time.

Soil testing is also an important part of starting a healthy and productive garden. The URI Master Gardeners (401-874-4836, URIMasterGardeners.org) hold soil testing events across the state throughout the growing season. They even have a garden hotline for all your plant questions.

Beekeeping for Beginners
Bee-lieve it or not, there is a movement towards keeping your own bees, and with good reason. Keeping your own bees will increase your garden’s productivity, provide you with pounds of honey and help add to the declining bee population.

But, there are many things to consider when starting an apiary. First, check your local laws and do your research to make sure that you are allowed to own bees in your town. Additionally, owning bees isn’t like buying a cactus that you may or may not kill. Bees are living organisms that require care and have costs associated with them. Because of this, there are classes available at the University of Rhode Island and Rhode Island College offered by the RI Beekeepers Association to teach you everything there is to know about keeping bees.

Everything a beginner beekeeper needs to know is covered throughout the course, like the honeybee life cycle, buying bees and equipment, choosing the best site for your apiary, where and how to buy bees, types of equipment you’ll need, how to put the hive together, getting the bees into said hive and nectar sources. By the end of the course you will well on your way to your goal of beekeeping. 401-207-6879, RIBeekeeper.org

Raising Chickens
Everyone knows that free-range eggs taste the best. Happy chickens lay even happier eggs, and you can have them every morning if you’re in the market for some backyard chickens. Of course the first step is to check your local laws to see how many chickens you are allowed to have, if roosters are allowed or if you can have chickens at all.

Once you’ve figured this out, talk to a professional – someone who can tell you everything you need to know about what it takes to keep chickens. Cluck! Urban Farm and Garden Supply is a wonderful resource for keeping chickens and beyond. A quick perusal of their website and you will find out ways to start your flock, where to get hens, chicks or fertilized eggs and how to choose a breed. They even offer services such as coop consultations, which is a great way to determine where to keep your flock.

Consultations take into account all aspects of your backyard. Drake Patten, the owner of Cluck!, will suggest the best management practices including setback, size and building strategies. She can also give you her advice for the best way to start your own flock.

This practical overview covers how you want to start your flock – with chicks, pullets (a young hen) or egg laying hens – and which breeds are right for you. There’s even a Chicken Keeping 101 class on April 6 from 6-7:30pm at Cluck! that covers all the ins and outs of having your own flock. With a little know-how and great advice, you’ll be well on your way to farm fresh eggs straight from your backyard. 399 Broadway, Providence. 401-274-1160, CluckRI.com