Small Farm Equipment Rentals Available through our partner organization the Thurston Conservation District. 

CFLT assisted in the purchase of lime spreader and poultry processing equipment for use by local farmers.  The Thurston Conservation District manages the rental of this equipment along with a nutrient spreaders and other tools.  They offer low-cost rental of tools and processing units to all community members. This helps support local farmers and backyard producers to raise their own meat birds and manage their yards and landscapes.
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Be sure to reference their website as they have updated their nutrient spreader process to ensure guidance on best practices for timing of spreading to maintain effectiveness for better soil and water quality. Applications for rentals are now available through their website or contact them at (360) 754-3588 for details regarding rentals. 

Drop Spreader

Thanks to a grant from the Community Sustaining Fund, CFLT was able to purchase a small lime spreader that can be pulled by an ATV or pick- up truck.  It can be used by beginning and micro farmers without access to a tractor. and will improve soil fertility, helping increase revenue for local small farms. 
For small farmers without the economic means to individually purchase a lime spreader, getting lime onto small acreage soils has not been possible in Thurston County except by time consuming spreading by hand. Finely powered lime cannot be spread like fertilizer because it will "bridge" in the hoppers. Lime requires equipment with strong hopper agitators.

Without lime (a USDA approved Organic amendment), soils turn sour (especially in high rainfall areas like ours), creating an acid soil pH. This reduces soil fertility, tying up nutrients as well as decreasing the activity of earthworms and important soil biota.  

Featherman Mobile Chicken Processing Units

For many local farmers, raising pastured poultry helps diversify their farm income and fertilize the fields.  For community members, it means access to local food. Although many farmers have successful poultry operations, they don’t have access to equipment to process the poultry and prepare it for sale.

To help overcome this barrier, we received a grant from Heifer International. The award provided match funding for a collection of mobile equipment that farmers can use on-site instead of transporting their poultry or attempting to process by hand. 
Additional grassroots fundraising for the grant was joint effort between the Community Farm Land Trust, WSDA Organic Program, WSDA Small Farms & Direct Marketing, The Evergreen State College, Homegrown Pastures, and the Mason Conservation District.
These items and other nutrient spreaders and other backyard tools are available for rent to anyone in our community from the Thurston Conservation District. Head over to their website for more information and fill out their online application forms!