Birds & Bees Team
Kathy and Ed share all the chores. Kathy lets the hens out in the morning, and Ed puts them away at night.
In addition to keeping bees and chickens, we also raise a few rabbits. Ed feeds them mostly with grasses and leaves that grow right here in the yard. The manure is great for amending garden beds.
Kathy, Founder and Director
“Ed and I both always had big gardens, and here in our current space, chickens have always been part of it.
“As our food-production evolved through the years - and after we added bees to the mix - we started calling this place Birds & Bees Urban Farm. All kinds of folks would stop and look, and we’d invite them for a quick tour. So many people said, ‘I want to learn to do this,’ that it felt right for me, in 2019, to quit my job and establish the educational nonprofit.
“We need to know and trust where our food comes from. Growing food is a lost art. I want to see the knowledge, the skills, and the passion for growing and eating good food expand into the future.
“Food is a universal experience, so it brings people together. And we need that right now.”
Ed, Gentleman Farmer
“When someone asks me who my heroes are, I say the farmers I knew as a kid in Ireland. I was amazed at what my uncles could do using simple tools - build a haycock, stack a reek of turf, mound a ridge of potatoes without burning a single drop of oil.
“Here at Birds and Bees Urban Farm we want to show how a family, or even an entire community, can feed itself using traditional practices. That doesn’t mean we reject anything new and innovative, but miles and miles of chemically enhanced, genetically modified crops is not the answer in the New Climate Era.
”We need sustainable farms that look like the ones people admire in paintings and photographs. We’ve gotta move away - and quickly - from the industrial-scale factories that Big Ag wants and Big Government subsidizes. Our dream here is to see this happen everywhere. Millions and millions of birds and bees urban — and rural! —farms.”
Ed currently directs two climate-focused nonprofits - Bold Iowa and Climate March, and he also a hosts a weekly talk show, The Fallon Forum.
This Barred Rock hen is hungry, so she’s not shy about getting close to the camera. It’s all good. She lays luscious eggs with deep golden yolks.
A healthy, take-charge queen is essential to the health of the hive. This lady has what it takes to keep things going smoothly.
The Birds
Scrap Management & Egg Production
The chickens do more than produce pods of perfect protein. They ensure food waste stays out of city garbage trucks and local landfills. They also produce manure that’s rich in nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorous, which are invaluable in the creation of compost. And talk about entertainment value! No need for a TV with these critters around.
The Bees
Pollination Patrol & Honey Production
Bees are crucial pollinators that ensure crops reproduce - which means we keep eating the next year, and the next, and the next. However, in July 2019, ABC News reported on the nearly 40% decrease in the US bee population. Beekeeping is a lot of work, but it’s crucial that more people make sure bee colonies survive. Oh, and another perk is the delicious honey!