VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY:

Tree Planting May 31 - June 1, 2025
On our farm in Kalkaska, MI (5hrs from Chicago, 3hrs from Detroit)

Join us on the farm in May! Volunteers will learn about reforesting northern Michigan’s mesic forest ecosystems and our farm’s conservation management plan to create songbird habitat as we design to accelerate succession of our future forest.

Volunteers will gain hands-on experience helping plant berry-producing shrubs to support songbird habitat and small conifer saplings to create a windbreak on the northern and western perimeters of our 15-acre conservation project.

Volunteers will learn proper planting techniques, the importance of adding mycorrhizal inoculation to the soil, methods for protecting hardwood saplings from deer and rabbit predation, native tree and shrub species, as well as our plans for creating songbird habitat as we design to accelerate succession of our future forest. Volunteers will also be invited to join us on a tour of a mature mesic forest ecosystem.

AMENITIES: Rustic camping is available on site- we will host farm tours, and provide all meals prepared with ingredients sourced from local area farms.

If you are interested in helping us restore the beautiful Northern Michigan mesic forest ecosystem, we'd love to have you!

RSVP to [email protected] for more information

MORE INFO: One of the biggest draws for us in looking for a farm in Northern Michigan are the beautiful northern forests and wildlands this region is known for. In 2022, we found our farm, with 200-year-old maples and 80' pine. Unfortunately, 15 of our 40 acres had been clear-cut by previous owners.

In late 2023, we received a grant from Kalkaska Conservation District to begin reforesting our farm. With the help of volunteers, we planted over 500 deciduous and conifer tree seedlings in our 15-acre field to start reclaiming the area from invasive purple knapweed and nurturing the soil microbiome. In 2024-2025, we were awarded another grant for the next phase of our vision, to create a conifer windbreak along the perimeter with interior patch groupings of berry-producing shrubs. Following best practices guidance from a peer in the field of ecological restoration, we are designing our reforesting project to mimic natural forest succession- where all layers of the forest ecosystem are planted together.  

This project is funded by a grant from Kalkaska Conservation District to begin the process of reforesting 15 acres that were clear-cut by previous owners just over 10 years ago. Our intention is to bring back the Mesic Northern Forest ecosystem that this region of Michigan is known for- and place it into conservation so that we can help expand wildlife habitat, sequester carbon, rebuild topsoil, and replenish groundwater in our region.

This volunteer learning event is part of our mission to establish our farm as a site to host permaculture and homesteading-themed events and workshops as we embark on establishing our farm as an educational destination for sustainable, ecological living, and land stewardship.