Ecological Agriculture, Permaculture, Edible Landscaping

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Former Interns with Long Branch have received academic credit from the University of North Carolina -- Asheville, University of Vermont, University of Maryland, and Warren Wilson College in Asheville, NC. We are currently seeking affiliations with other colleges and universities to be able to offer Interns other options for academic credit.

The Center offers three main tracks for our internship program:

l. Ecological Agriculture,

2. Sustainable or "Green" Building Design, Energy Efficiency, and Practicum,

3. Ecological Restoration with native plant, shrub, and tree species.

l. Ecological Agriculture, including:

* Organic Growing techniques, including utilization of wild edibles and edible flowers

* Edible Landscaping, including insectary and nitrogen-fixing plant species,

* Permaculture Design, an integrated approach to land use providing for ecological conservation, and sustainable food, fuel, fiber, building material, and fodder production,

* Aquaculture system design, operation, use of native species to attract native insectary feedstock, research, management and marketing analysis on native Brook trout being raised at the Center,

* Biological horticulture in Attached Passive Solar Greenhouses,

* Native plant propagation and nursery management.

Our Ecological Agriculture work includes:

* agroforestry and tree cropping systems including a broad diversity of fruit and nut tree species, small fruits, and brambles. Species being cultivated at the Center include several hundred old-time apple varieties, nectarine, peach, pear, plum, cherries, Hall's Hardy Almond, and other tree crops including blight-resistant backcrossed American Chestnut hybrids.

We have nurseries of both antique apples and blight-resistant American Chestnuts. We are also conducting joint research projects with the American Chestnut Foundation.

* broadscale farming research and experimentation with integrated pest management (IPM),

* companion cropping for increased productivity and pest and disease minimization and control,

* research on overcoming allelopathic relationships, e.g., walnuts and raspberries

* no-pesticide, no-till cultivation,

* permanent living mulch systems, especially utilizing species such as Dutch White Clover (Trifolium repens)

* mulch system design and installation, including use of Biomimicry of native forest ecosystems

* apiculture, including non-inorganic chemical controls for pests and diseases

* viticulture, including use of grapes that are tolerant of high relative humidity and rainfall, and are resistant to fungus,

* grafting of a variety of species, especially heirloom apples

* alley cropping and two-story agricultural systems,

* research with Effective Micro-organisms (EM) to increase soil fertility and control of diseases, e.g., fire blight in apples and pears; and control of invasive exotic pests, e.g., hemlock wooly adelgids,

* vermicomposting, vermiculture, and use of worm castings;

* innovative crop marketing research including you-pick operations, Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs), and tailgate markets

* value-added processing.