Amyrose Foll
Virginia Free Farm
Virginia Farm Consultants, Va. Dept. of Agriculture Equitable Food Oriented Distribution Taskforce, Women's Earth Alliance
Founder of Virginia Free Farm Amyrose Foll is a fervent advocate for food sovereignty, earth care, people care, and resource share. She works to live out the values of collectivism and community in order to ensure those around her are fed. She is a veteran of the U.S. Army, a former nurse, and continues her duty to protect and care for others through the farm.
Amyrose is speaking in Wisconsin, Texas, Pennsylvania, Kansas and is a contributor to Mother Earth News Fair Online.Workshops
Check It Out!
Traditional Indigenous Medicine for a Modern Life
Explore easy ways to integrate plant-based health into your busy life. Amyrose Foll (Abenaki/Penobscot) will discuss with you common remedies traditional to the Native People's of North America. Follow along and explore simple ways to easily identify, sustainably harvest, and accurately utilize Mother Nature's medicine cabinet.
Real Foods
Speaking At:
Pennsylvania, Sunday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Mountain Rose Herbs Stage
Kansas, Saturday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Real Food Stage
Sugar Bush Site Assessment: Which trees to tap
Come along through the woods of Virginia as Amyrose Foll describes the decisions necessary when choosing the right area to tap trees. Identify which trees are suitable, what to wear while moving through your woodlot, the ideal canopy for successful sap flow and more.
Hands On Sustainable Agriculture
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Stewarding Endangered Corn Cultivars
Explore corn cultivars with Amyrose Foll as she covers how to plant several different varieties while avoiding pesky cross-pollination. What most people commonly group together as “Indian corn” is actually a wonderfully diverse range of cultivars and all are edible. To be completely honest, all corn is, in fact, Indian corn. The simple beauty of corn transformed meals around the globe with the Columbian exchange. Sister corn deserves time in the spotlight for all her contributions to our nourishment.
Speaking At:
Texas, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Real Food Stage
Starting at Square One: Exploring Markets and Profits for your Farm Business
Thinking of starting a farm, but feeling overwhelmed by all the decisions? Have your online searches turned up piles of information, but you still feel a bit lost? Thoughtfully defining your goals and strategy before you begin can prevent wasted time & money. Join Amyrose Foll to learn how to start at square one and explore markets and profits for your farm business.
Modern Homesteading
Speaking At:
Texas, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Grit Stage
Seeds for Preservation and Perseverance: Native American Foodways
Discover the power of gardening and food sovereignty with Amyrose Foll. In the past five centuries, native foodways were used as a weapon to wage war on our population and more recently as a blight on our health. Native people have faced disassociation from their traditional foods due to environmental degradation, legislation preventing traditional harvesting, relocation to areas different from traditional homelands, and climate change. Gardening can be a great way to connect back to your culture no matter where you come from or your walk of life.
Speaking At:
Pennsylvania, Saturday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Organic Gardening Stage
Seeds for Preservation and Perseverance: Native American foodways
Food sovereignty is the right to choose what food to eat, where it comes from, and how it is grown. In the past five centuries, native foodways were used as control, a weapon to wage war on our population, and more recently as a blight on our health. By taking control of our seed, in some cases bringing varieties back from the brink of extinction, and growing our own fresh fruits and vegetables, we are not only preserving our cultural heritage and revitalizing our foodways, but becoming a testament to the resilience of our ancestor's legacy of farming. Native people have faced disassociation with their traditional foods by ways of environmental degradation, legislation preventing traditional harvesting, relocation to areas not familiar and different from traditional homelands, and climate change. Gardening can be a great way to connect back to your culture no matter where you come from or your walk of life.
Nature and Community Hands On
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Process Sap into Syrup
Introduction to Maple Syrup Production
Discover how maple syrup is produced! Maple syrup (or maple sugar) has a long history in North America, particularly among those indigenous to this land. In this talk, Amyrose Foll owner of Virginia Free Farm explores the history as well as different considerations for producing this sweet staple.
Animal Husbandry
Speaking At:
Pennsylvania, Sunday 11:30-12:30 p.m., Countryside
Kansas, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Mother Earth News Stage
Indigenous Medicine: Violets for food and health
Walk with Amyrose Foll as she introduces you to our plant sister: violet. She gives us both food and medicine. She is an extremely versatile plant, prolific producer, and hardy perennial in North America. Violet is easy to identify and is a great edible to start your journey in foraging and gathering.
Natural Health Hands On
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Indigenous Medicine: Turkey tail mushrooms
Walk with Amyrose Foll as she introduces you to an easy to identify fungus: the turkey tail. It is abundant in North America and widely available most of the year. It has been studied at length by modern medicine, and has proven effective for immune health. It's easy to identify and is a great medicinal to start your journey in foraging and gathering.
Natural Health Hands On
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How to Tap Trees for Sap
Let Amyrose Foll show you how easy it really is to collect sap for maple syrup production. With a few simple tools and pieces of equipment, get enough sap from your trees to make syrup for yourself or to sell. Make the process a family affair as Amyrose does when she teaches her pre-teen son how to tap trees himself.
Hands On Sustainable Agriculture
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How to Keep and Care for Chickens
Join Amyrose Foll for this introduction to keeping chickens. If you are on the road to self-sufficiency, chickens are often one of the easiest to start your homesteading journey. During this talk, you will learn the basics of choosing the proper chicken for your needs, whether for eggs, meat, or a little of both. Then, hear about the basic infrastructure, tools, and nutritional needs the birds require to grow up happy and healthy. You might even learn a few easy tricks to make life with chickens fun and rewarding. This presentation is sponsored by Purely Poultry.
Organic Gardening
Speaking At:
Kansas, Sunday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Mother Earth News Stage
Getting Started with Growing and Marketing Berries
If you’re exploring the idea of adding berries and bramble fruits to your farm, this course will help you consider all the aspects of this decision, from varieties and site selection all the way through profit potential and marketing.
Organic Gardening
Speaking At:
Kansas, Saturday 10:00-11:00 a.m., Mother Earth News Stage
Foraging Walk at Presque Isle State Park
Join Amyrose Foll and William Padilla Brown for a foraging walk at Presque Isle State Park and learn how to identify and harvest wild plants and mushrooms. Gain foundational knowledge about wild foods and benefit from the experience of your guides. Discover how foraging can fit into your life with this workshop! Proceeds for this walk will be donated to Presque Isle Partnership.
Natural Health
Speaking At:
Pennsylvania, Saturday 8:00-9:00 a.m., Presque Isle State Park
Finishing the Syrup Season
Farm Woodlot Management
Learn to recognize the potential value of woodlands and identify how they can support the interests of landowners. Woodlots are a common feature of most farms in the US and are often overlooked for the value they might bring to landowners and farm enterprises. Follow along as Amyrose examines methods to assess forest resources and discusses common woodland activities such as cutting firewood, harvesting logs for mushroom cultivation, and support for wildlife and long-term forest health.
Modern Homesteading
Speaking At:
Texas, Saturday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Sustainable Agriculture Stage
Kansas, Sunday 2:00-3:00 p.m., Grit Stage
Create Maple Syrup Products
Berry Paradise: Growing Blueberries and Blackberries Organically
Advantages of Nixtamal
Nixtamal has several benefits over unprocessed
grain: It’s more easily ground, its nutritional
value is increased, its flavor and aroma are
improved, and mycotoxins are reduced. Join
founder of Virginia Free Farm Amyrose Foll to
learn about Nixtamal and its uses.
Real Foods
Speaking At:
Kansas, Saturday 3:30-4:30 p.m., Real Food Stage