3 SUNS Farm Land Management
In a world where so many have been distanced from the natural order, 3 Suns Farm exists to model a reconnection. Through a lifelong, intentional effort to comprehend and copy Nature’s systems, we are continually finding ways to reconnect and are regularly reminded that all that we have to do is remember... our ancestors were connected in ways that we can only imagine! Join us in rediscovering what humans have known since time immemorial; we ARE Nature.
Land Management
Fuels Reduction
Due to the suppression of fire, our fire-dependent ecosystems have been significantly disrupted. Major efforts are needed to restore healthy fire return intervals and by default, resilience. While the dominant narrative continues to be around the exclusion of fire, 3 Suns Farm embodies its inclusion.
Those same dominant narratives advocate short-term solutions (mastication/mulching) that create long-term problems (compaction/soil disruption/concentrated fuel loading). By mirroring Nature’s systems, healthy ecosystems remain so in perpetuity. Fire cannot just be reintroduced into heavily fuel-loaded landscapes without careful consideration of every variable imaginable.
- Rational Grazing
- Biochar Production
- Prescribed Burning
- Reforestation
Farming
Community
3 Suns Farm is not what most people imagine when thinking about farms. When people ask what we farm, we often answer with one word: community. Within every individual’s personal space and skillset lies a unique opportunity for involvement.
Consulting Service
Determining the potentiality of your land and skillsets is at the core of our consultation services. Identifying goals and available resources is paramount to a successful relationship. Every project is unique and has needs and offerings that will contribute to and draw from our community in various ways. Access an abundance of community resources through our relationship.
Planning and Implementation
After the initial consulting, we will directly or indirectly facilitate the work to accomplish your goals. With our significant community resources, we can do so at a fraction of what others might charge.
- Livestock Consulting
- Selective Breeding
- Custom Feed
- Prescribed Grazing
Water Systems
Water is life – Life is water
Nowhere is the interconnectedness of the elements more clear than in water management. Scientific evidence is clear: healthy, living soils produce foods of higher nutrient density and the relationships between humans, livestock, soil, and manure are integral in many ways. Irrigation efficiency, fuel moisture, fire behavior, erosion, and much more are influenced by effective water management. The permaculture adage “slow it, spread it, sink it” summarizes our approach nicely.
- Catchment
- Storage
- Irrigation
- Hydration
Education
Workshops
Hands-on learning is proven to be the most effective way to acquire knowledge. We facilitate at least 4 major workshops annually, always on the Saturday closest to the Celtic cross-quarter festivals of Imbolc (Feb 1), Bealtaine (May 1), Lughnasadh (August 1), and Samhain (November 1), in honor of our ancestral celestial traditions. Each festival is associated with one of the four elements and each workshop is appropriately themed. Smaller workshops happen throughout the year, with cultural burning, various methods of biochar production (pyre burning, kiln usage, pyrolysis), milking (along with butter and cheese making), sheering (along with looming, felting, and weaving), slaughtering and butchering (and BBQs!) being just a few of our regular offerings.
Team Building
Few things build morale better than collaborating on a project that provides a solution to a community's needs. Necessity truly is the mother of invention, and through the combined efforts of your team, members will have memories, photographs, and usually a physical piece of the project that can be taken with them. Facilitate a workshop from the above list or create a custom one unique to your team.
Field Trips
Visiting our property (or one of our many associated projects) is an incredible opportunity to gain access to unique, holistic systems that often inspire attendees to create their own. With activities for all ages, every hosted field trip is memorable! Nature walks on the educational par course, a petting zoo with baby farm animals, swinging, climbing, swimming, and more await your group.
Apprenticeships
As with all of the educational resources 3 Suns Farm provides, apprenticeships are supported by both academic and practical experience. Apprenticeships are highly sought after, with full and part-time opportunities available, complete with room and board. Both John and Leslye facilitate these apprenticeships in their respective fields, see the “About” section and fill out the “Contact Us” form for more information.
About
Since receiving his master’s degree in education from UC Santa Cruz in 2003, John has taught in many different forms, including in public middle and high schools, standardized test production, through the authoring of educational articles for various magazines, and most recently (and most consistently), in real-world applications such as the many workshops, field trips, team building programs and apprenticeships offered by 3 Suns Farm. His passion for Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) frames everything he does. #TEKtech emphasizes the importance he places on using technology to support the rich traditions of first peoples everywhere.
On top of her diverse and extensive educational experience (culminating with her master’s degree from Columbia University) Leslye brings over 35 years’ of experience and enthusiasm to her psychotherapy practice and endeavors to work actively with clients to identify goals that lead to practical solutions in a meaningful, lively, and thought-provoking way.
Contact
Please contact us using the form. We will get back to you within 24 hours. Thank you for your interest!