Farmers are well-served by a familiarity with carpentry, electrical, plumbing, and machine work, but however much they can be used to improve a farmers' life, these skills can be daunting to acquire. Join farmer David Giusti at Second Spring Farm to learn about the tools and skills of the small farm shop, so that you can feel confident acquiring and using tools, making & repairing things, and asking for help at the parts counter. We'll talk about each genre of work and the tools involved. Although we'll have hands-on practice with the basics, no one class can teach the full body of knowledge so the focus will be on lowering the barriers to increasing one's capability in the future.
We'll start the day with lunch before taking a look at David's tool shop. Attendees will have the opportunity to try some hands-on repairs. Please dress for uneven terrain and bring your own water bottle.
About David and Second Spring Farm
David Giusti grew up in the DC suburbs with only the most basic of homeowner hand tools around, but after working summers on a farm during college ended up learning to grow vegetables and run a business from farm neighbors and old-timers in the Catoctin Valley of northern Virginia. In 2010 David started Second Spring Farm on 4 rented acres with a Cub tractor and home-built equipment, developing the farm year by year into an efficient, mechanized operation that supports a stable, long-term livelihood—relying on farmer innovations, tarps & baling twine infrastructure, cheap used tools & equipment, and unheard-of mechanizations to produce vegetables for a 15-week 120-member CSA.
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