I was going thru this website www.attra.org/ and my head reeled from reading all those possible apprenticeships/internships! There were so many different kinds and all of them didn't specialize in just one thing but in several which is good, I suppose. I'm used to cattle operations that might have a small garden or a haying operation on the side but not with the variety that was offered online. I was suprised to see that Joel Salatin had several apprenticeships open..is he supposedly well-known for his ideas or ? I do have a magazine article on him but want to know more since he sounds like an interesting person....

On other note..too bad there weren't any apprenticeships in the southern states...seems most of those positions are in midwest and the east..interesting as well...

Ted

-- Ted Hart (tedhart71@hotmail.com), January 16, 2001

Answers

Hey Ted, I thought Joel Salatin was in Virginia. Is that close enough to you?

-- Laura Jensen (lauraj@seedlaw.com), January 16, 2001.

Yes, he's in Virginia..I just want more info on him. I do have a car and my options are open but I happen to prefer to try to find one in the southern states from where I'm at..Texas...other states are close on the list. I don't mind the cold but prefer not to see too much of it :)

Does he have a website?

Ted

-- Ted Hart (tedhart71@hotmail.com), January 16, 2001.

I do not know Joel Salatin except from his books. They are very clearly written and of great interest to anyone looking to make a living on the land. He seems very happy with his livlihood. If I were unattached (to my partner and my land) and a newbie I would consider his apprenticeship. Check out his books and see if they relate to you in any way. It might be worth travelling!

-- Anne (HT@HM.com), January 16, 2001.

Hi Ted. A very recent issue of Smithsonian magazine had a long, illustrated story on Joel and his farm. October/November issue or thereabouts. Sandy

-- Sandy in MN (jpevans_56353@yahoo.com), January 17, 2001.

Here are some other places that might interest you, Ted:

Andy Lee's, click on farm school, they take a few apprentices. Andy Lee wrote a book on chicken tractors: Good Earth Organic Farm

I couldn't get this one to come up, probably a temporary problem, so I can't say what all is in there: Acres USA

Here's the Smithsonian article: Smithsonian

As far as I can tell, Joel Salatin doesn't have a website. It appears that Andy Lee knows him though, since I believe they joined forces on a workshop. Maybe they're neighbors.

-- Joy Froelich (dragnfly@chorus.net), January 17, 2001.

The last address and phone number I have for Joel Salatin is Rt 1, Box 281, Swoope, VA 24479 - 540-885-3590.

If someone was really interested in making a homestead/small farm pay, a year with Joel would probably be ten times the education you could get elsewhere. However, be forwarned, the Salatins live am almost Amish lifestyle and I don't know what latitude they allow their apprentices since it reflects back on them. I know he pays his two children well for the work they do, and he may apprentices also.

I don't know about Andy Lee, but Joel does live close to Jeff Ishee, author of Dynamic Farmers' Marketing: A Guide to Successfully Selling Your Farmers' Market Products.

Joel really could sell ice to the Eskimos. He would have succeeded at anything he had tried. Locals have tried to get him to run for Congress. He is a facinating guy.

-- Ken S. in WC TN (scharabo@aol.com), January 19, 2001.