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A computer farming game may lead some people to try the real thing.
RODALE NEWS, EMMAUS, PA—As bizarre as it may seem, there’s a colossal army of farmers cultivating their crops on Facebook, of all places. So far, about 13 million users have downloaded developer Zynga’s “FarmVille” application through the social networking site, and are actively growing virtual strawberry and pumpkin crops while helping neighboring fellow Facebook farmers pull make-believe weeds and scare away digital crows. All the tilling and seeding occur in the comfort of one’s home, with simple clicks of a mouse (about a sliver of the energy it takes to actually till real farmland.) “I think there are a lot of non green-thumbers out there like myself, who don’t feel as bad killing virtual plants as they would killing real ones,” says Jen Heming, a teacher in Pennsylvania who’s a frequent FarmVille farmer. “I also think it’s a peer pressure, curiosity thing.”
finding a farmer to marry
Now how about finding a site to allow us to find farmers that want to get married and live life on a real farm??
Finding a farm to visit or even help out on
Two great resources for finding farms:
www.Eatwellguide.com is a great resource for finding ecofriendly restaurants, stores, farms, and even bed and breakfasts. Their “Plan a Trip” feature allows you to find potential places to visit along the route from point A to point B.
www.Localharvest.org is also a good resource for including trips to farms and farm markets in your itinerary. Plus, you’ll find great local spots to buy fresh, organic food whenever you want it.
And should you have a yen to pull a real weed or two, check out Willing Workers On Organic Farms http://wwoof.org/, a clearinghouse for finding a farm near you (or in some exotic vacation spot) that welcomes volunteers.