THE ISCOWP NEWS Volume 9 Issue 1

Grazing the Fresh Grass

As we began to write this newsletter, snow fell on the pastures and the thought of Spring was far away. Now, as this newsletter is about to be mailed to you, fresh grass is growing and the cows and oxen are grazing enthusiastically. The grass is short, but such a delight after the snow and ice. This change took place only within a week or two, but at this time of the year the seasons change dramatically.

Spring means grazing and planting time. In this issue we have provided some sources in the Letter section for "heirloom" or "heritage" seeds (non-hybrid seeds used historically in sustainable, locally viable systems). We do recommend their use to get your garden planting off to a good start. Of course if you have some oxen handy you can prepare your garden site with ox-power.

Rejuvenation is the key word for spring, and as we review the activities of the past year, the plans for this year begin. ISCOWP is now entering its ninth year. We ask for your good wishes and participation to make this year as productive and progressive as the last eight. Thank you.

Inside This Issue

Letters

The Transcendental Cows, Seeds, Open-Pollinated Seed Sources, Sacred Cows Are Wily Too; Just Try Catching One, Animal Traction Contacts

Evaluation of Fiscal Year 98

Thank you for Contributing During the Fiscal Year 1998

ISCOWP Update

The Village System of Cow Protection

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Letters

The Transcendental Cows

From: COM: Jaya Jagannatha (das) PDA (Eugene, OR - USA) Jaya.Jaganatha.PDA@com.bbt.se 
Subject: The Transcendental Cows
Date: Wednesday, March 24. 1999 6:20 PM

Krsna had one cow he named Mrdanga-Mukhi ... Balarama das writes back. I offer this transcendental description of cows from Krsna's pastimes to make up for the less transcendental stuff I come up with...
In the Srimad Bhagavatam 10.35.21. Purport by Srila Prabhupada..Srila Jiva Goswami explains that in the afternoon Sri Krsna dressed Himself in new clothing and then went out to call the cows home.
Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti gives the following information about the transcendental cows of Vrindavana: For each of the four colors of cows - white, red, black and yellow there are twenty five subdivisions, making a total of one hundred colors. And such qualities as being colored like sandalwood-pulp tilaka (speckled), or having a head shaped like a mrdanga drum created eight further groups. To count these 108 groups of cows, distinguished by color and form, Krsna is using a string of 108 jewel-beads... (gems)
....... Those in the group with tilak marks on their foreheads are called Citrita, Citra-tilaka. Dirgha-tilaka and Tiryak-tilaka, and there are groups known as Mrdanga-mukhi (having a head shaped like a mrdanga drum), Simha-mukhi (lion head) and so on.
"Thus being called by name, the cows are coming forward, and Krsna, thinking that when it is time to bring them back from the forest none should be forgotten, is counting them on His jewel-beads."
In S. B. 10.19.7.. it says..
The Supreme Personality of Godhead called out to the animals in a voice that resounded like a rumbling cloud. Hearing the sound of their own names, the cows were overjoyed and called out to the Lord in reply.
I am sending this to illustrate how Krsna protects his cows (go-dhanams-herds of cows) by always counting and calling out their names. It describes Krsna's evening pastime so nicely and is a purely Krsna conscious way of looking at our mothers.

ys jjd

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Seeds
From: Radha.Krsna.ACBSP@com.bbt.se 
Subject: Re: au!
Date: Wednesday, March 03, 1999 5:14 PM

In the UK and available for Europe also is the Henry Doubleday Heritage Seed Library, of which I am a member, so people here can order through me. It has over 700 varieties and their aim is to make available to farmers and growers the outlawed varieties that are not dependant on pesticides and chemical fertilizers.
They say: Vegetable seeds did not always come in glossy packets. Gardeners used to save seeds themselves keeping the best varieties from year to year, giving them to other gardeners, and passing them on from generation to generation. It is a practice that has almost died out.

Radha Krsna das U.K.

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From: Samba.SDG@com.bbt.se 
Subject: Heirloom seeds Illegal?

I was pondering the reason for the illegality of Heirloom seeds, when I read an article about the power of multinational companies. Apparently there are about 40,000 powerful multinational companies worldwide. Many of these companies spent more on local investment than many national governments can afford.
Many politicians actively court these multinationals to invest in their countries, which the politicians use as political fodder (the creation of jobs in their areas etc) for their ongoing power struggle. But this comes at a price. The multinationals secure policy changes from these politicians to ensure their market goals are reached.
Seed companies develop engineered strains of seeds which give good yields, and are hardy. Just recently there was an article describing a new gene sequencing seed which, after having grown into a plant, self destructs the seeds of that plant, so that they will not reproduce (good for profits).
Many environmentalists are disturbed by this due to the danger of cross pollination effectively endangering wild species. Anyway I am digressing here.
It is not in the interest of these powerful multinational seed companies to have high yielding natural varieties of heirloom seeds available on the market, because these cannot be patented, and therefore profits will be reduced as one does not leave to buy them from the company.
Probably many of you are aware that out of the thousands of species of grains, vegetables and others, only a handful of species are currently marketed in the world nowadays, and this is under the control of the multinationals. Some say that in a few years these multinationals will have wiped out natural varieties, and will own all the patents to all food species. If this came about, they could effectively rule the world, as the entire food supply would be owned by them. Scary, no?
Bear in mind that many of these multinationals are actually combined companies dealing in many different business areas, not just food production, so once then have us by the neck with food they can then implement whatever ecological unsound, and environmentally damaging yet highly profitable enterprises they wish, with full governmental support. The only hedge against this is a few environmentally minded people who are prepared to make a noise about it. Fortunately this group is growing, but the multinationals are formidable foes, and are not past the odd termination if profits get too threatened.
This is going on very quietly and it is only occasionally that their devious plans leak out. Seems to me that an alternative society of people with sound philosophical answers with practical solutions to ecological problems is needed. A people who live simply and widely propagate heirloom species, for the health of all.
Prabhupada's vision is the answer.
Varnasrama anyone?
Now, regarding the heirloom seeds and the reason for them being banned, this is my speculation. Are there other reasons for their control, does anyone know?

YS Samba das

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Open-Pollinated Seed Sources

From: Hare.Krsna.dasi@com.bbt.se 
Subject: Open-Pollinated Seed Sources
Date: Sunday, February 21, 1999 11:44 AM

Here is some brief information on open pollinated seed sources. This list comes from a full-length article in the Winter 1998 edition of "People, Places & Plants: The Gardening Magazine for Maine." www.maine.com/ppandp/  (You will see a number of northern suppliers here.) The article is called "Heirloom Seed Sources" by Amy LeBlanc. I have been meaning to type up the whole thing, but I don't really have time. So here is a basic list. Ms. LeBlanc has listed some of the seeds as her "favorites."
Many of these companies sell both hybrid and open-pollinated varieties. (I believe that the heirloom varieties are nearly all open-pollinated.) Most of these companies also have a fax number and additional information. If you are interested in any particular company but can't use the web to reach them, contact me and I will look up the information. Please keep in mind that sometimes it is best to purchase from suppliers in a climate zone similar to yours so that seeds sprout and mature at an appropriate time of year. A few non-US sources are listed near the end.

BIG COMPANIES

W. Atlee Burpee Co.
Warminster PA
1-800-888-1447
www.burpee.com 
Free catalog Est. 1876

Burpee Heirlooms *favorite*
(same as above)
"In response to the growing interest in heirloom vegetable and flower varieties, Burpee introduced a separate heirloom catalogue in 1997. This beautiful full-color booklet features photos from old Burpee catalogs and offers a nice selection of old varieties of flowers and vegetables. Many of these varieties were originally introduced by Burpee but have not been offered for sale for decades!

Park Seed Co.
Greenwood SC
1-800-845-3369
www.parkseed.com  
Free catalog Est. 1868

Totally Tomatoes Augusta GA
1-803-663-0016
Free catalog

MEDIUM COMPANIES

Bountiful Gardens Willits CA
1-707-459-6410
bountiful@zapeom.net 
Free catalog

The Cook's Garden Hodges SC
1-800-457-9703
www.cooksgarden.com  
Free catalog

FEDCO *favorite*
Waterville NE
1-207-873-7333
Free catalog
"FEDCO is a vibrant customer-and employee-owned cooperative that offers vegetable, herb, and flower seeds, spring and fall-planted bulbs, fruit trees, tubers, perennials, tools, books, and soil amendments and green manure for organic growers. FEDCO offers low prices and encourages cooperative orders for bulk discounts. Varieties are selected for suitability to Northeast growing conditions. There is a full range of hybrid, open-pollinated and heirloom seed, no treaded seed, and the catalogue makes such a great read, it's worth sending for it for that reason alone!"

J.L. Hudson, Seedsman *favorite*
Box 1058, Redwood City CA 94064
Free catalog
"J.L. makes no attempt to be "contemporary," and every order is filled personally, the old-fashioned way. I've asked him some "picky" cultural questions and received prompt hand-written answers. "

Johnny's Selected Seeds
Albion ME
1-207-437-4301
www.johnnyseeds.com 
Free catalog
[I'm not sure why this Maine seed company is not on Ms. LeBlanc's "favorite" list. It's on my boss's favorite list, because her husband is on the board of directors. Johnny's was the first seed company I ever heard of that actually promoted open-pollinated seeds to its customers.]
"The Johnny's catalogue is beautiful, filled with color photos of vegetables, herbs, and flowers that can be grown from their seeds. Johnny's also features a good tool selection, books, and extensive cultural information. In recent years, the selection of heirloom varieties has increased dramatically."

Nichols Garden Nursery
Albany OR
1-541-928-9280
Free catalog

Pinetree Garden Seeds
New Gloucester ME
1-207-926-3400
www.superseeds.com 
Free catalog

Seeds of Change
Santa Fe NM
1-888-762-7333
www.seedsofchange.com 
Free catalog

Shepherd's Garden Seeds
Torrington CT
1-860-482-3638
Free catalog
www.shepherdseeds.com 

Tomato Growers Supply
Fort Myers FL
1-888-478-7333
www.tomatogrowers.com 
Free catalog

Vermont Bean Seed Co
Vaucluse SC
1-803-663-0217
fax 1-888-500-7333
Free catalog
"Vermont Bean Seed Company began as a tiny source for fresh and dry bean seeds, and has grown into a much larger company offering full selections of vegetables and herbs, including rare, hard-to-find, and European varieties. It offers a limited number of flower varieties and recommends the Seymour's Selected Seeds catalog for a larger selection.

Vesey's Seeds
Calais ME [Canadian border]
1-902-368-7333
FAX 1-207-555-1620

SMALL TO TINY

Allen, Sterling & Lodirup
191 U.S. Route I
Falmouth ME 04105
1-207-781-4142
$1 catalog Est. 1911
"Maine's oldest seed company specializes in older, open-pollinated varieties of flowers and vegetables. The catalogue is simple, straightforward in black-and-white.
The company's main focus is in seed racks, available in more than 100 locations in Maine,"

Fox Hollow Herb & Seed Heirloom Seed Co. *Favorite*
Box 148
McGrann PA 16236
1-888-548-SEED
$1 catalog
"Fox Hollow is still a family-operated business. Since they only advertise by word-of-mouth, I only recently discovered them. Fox Hollow offers a broad selection of open-pollinated vegetables, herbs, and flowers. They carry lots of Heirloom varieties, including some unique tomato varieties. Their black-and-white catalogue is filled with good cultural information."

High Mowing Organic Seed Farm
Tom Stears
RD #1
Derby Line VT 05830
$.50 catalog
1-802-895-4696

Le Jardin du Gourmet
Box 75
St. Johnsbury VT 05863-0075
Free catalog
"The really nice feature of Le Jardin is the seed packet sizing. It is possible to buy a sample of seed for only 25 cents..."

Peters Seed and Research
Box 1472
Myrtle Creek OR 97457
1-541-8863-3693

Salt Spring Seeds *Favorite*
Box 444, Ganges
Salt Spring Island BC V8K 2WI CANADA
Free catalog
"Salt Spring Seeds offers only certified organic seeds for food crops. The emphasis is on high-protein, good-tasting, and high yielding crops. The selection of GRAINS, particularly hull-less wheat and barley, is extensive. All the varieties are adapted to northern areas. The Salt Spring seed catalogue is put together simply, and filled with extensive cultural and seed-saving information. I've found Salt Spring to be very prompt and personal!"

Territorial Seed Co
Cottage Grove OR
1-541-942-9547
www.territorial-seed.com 
Free catalog

OTHER SEED SOURCES

(small companies and historical preservation foundations, etc.)

Abundant Life
Port Townsend WA
1-360-385-5660
http://csf.Colorado.EDU/perma/abundant/ 
"A non-profit organization dedicated to preserving genetic diversity and supporting sustainable agriculture."

Alfrey Seeds
Knoxville TN
(mostly hot peppers)

Eastern Native Seed Conservancy
Great Barrinton MA
www.berkshir.net/ensc/seedmain.html  
"A non-profit organization dedicated to preserving food crops native to the Northeast."

Garden State Heirloom Seed Society
Delaware NJ 07833
1-908-475-4861
"An heirloom seed saving and educational group."

Heirloom Seed Project *Favorite*
Seed-Savers Program, MVHS
Box 309
Waldoboro ME 04572
Free catalog (donations accepted)
School: 1-207-832-5389
"The seed catalogue is the result of seed-saving that is part of the second and third year program in Practical Botany Class offered at the Medomak Valley High School. The students research the history of each heirloom variety, the seeds are carefully grown out, and the resulting seeds are saved."

Kids in Bloom
Box 344
Zionsville IN 46077
317-290-6996
"An inner-city education program using land reclaimed after buildings are razed. Children grow and harvest produce for their families and others in need and harvest much of their own seed!"

ME. Seed Saving Network *Favorite*
Box 126
Penobscot ME 04476

"MSSN is a non-profit, publicly supported and membership-supported organization serving the needs and interests of farmers and gardeners who are growing and saving seeds in our region. Membership includes the newsletter, articles of interest, the catalogue of seed offerings, and notification of activities. Seeds are offered by savers from all across Maine, and may be obtained either from the catalogue, or at the annual Swap held in March each year.

Old Sturbridge Village
Heirloom Seeds and Plants
1 Old Sturbridge Village Road
Sturbridge MA 01566
1-508-347-3362
www.osv.org 
"Seeds harvested from the 1830's era gardens at Old Sturbridge Village. Seeds are available by mail; plants, books and gifts are available at the Museum Gift Shop at the Village."

The Pepper Gal
Ft Lauderdale FL
1-305-537-5540
(Lots of peppers)

Scatterseed Project
Box 1167
Farmington NE 04938
"Special mention goes to Will Bonsall for his extensive efforts to save vegetable, GRAIN, and fruit cultivars. He offers his seeds and grafts, usually around 1,500 varieties, exclusively through Seed Savers Exchange of which Will is a curator. He grows 500 varieties of PEAS and 300 varieties of POTATOES to maintain diversity within these important food crops.

Seed Savers Exchange **Favorite**
3076 N. Winn Rd Decorah IA 52101
1-319-382-5990
fax 1-319-382-5872
free catalog to members ($25)

"Members receive reduced seed prices. The SSE offers rare and heirloom vegetable seeds from seed savers all across the ***US and abroad.*** Roughly 8,000 members worldwide are working to rescue endangered vegetables, fruits, flowers, and fruit trees from extinction and to maintain this vast pool of genetic diversity. The recently gathered collections from EASTEN EUROPEAN countries represent some of the most important areas of agriculture as yet untouched by modern agricultural methods."

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange
Box 170
Earlysville VA 22936
1-804-973-4703
"'Saving the past for the future,' Southern Exposure offers a full line of vegetables including many heirlooms."

Thomas Etty, Esq.
Seedsman, Bulb Merchant *Favorite*
45, Forde Ave., Bromley
Kent BRI 3EU ENGLAND
020 8466-6785
Cataloge 1 pound sterling
"Seeds from the Henry Doubleday Foundation gardens, Thomas Eyys, Seedsman, are offered through their catalogue and through Seed Savers Exchange. "

Twin Leaf
The Thomas Jefferson Center
For Historic Plants at Monticello
Box 316, Charlottesville VA 22902
FAX 1-804-977-6140
www.monticellow.org/shop 
"Seeds harvested from the historic gardens of Monticello, established in 1987." [Jefferson was President of the United States around 1800, and was extensively involved with agriculture and agricultural improvements. He said, "I think our nation shall remain virtuous as long as it remains primarily agrarian..." Maybe he was right.]

Other India Press
admin@oibs.ibom.ernet.in  (not so sure this is correct)
They have Vandana Shiva's book "The Seed Keepers" and also '"Rapid Clonal Multiplication of Rice Seed. A field Guide" by Indian Society for Rural Gene Banks.
It says this simple 14 page manual tells you how you can multiply thousands of seeds from a single rice seed. Essential for those interested in multiplying traditional varieties of paddy. (contributed by Labangalatika dd).

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Sacred Cows Are Wily Too; Just Try Catching One

From: Jadranka Schauer nimfapromet@zg.tel.hr 
Subject: Re: New York Times article
Date: Tuesday, December 01, 1998 12:18 PM

From New York Times on the web

NEW DELHI JOURNAL October 21, 1998
Sacred Cows Are Wily Too; Just Try Catching One
Related Article
Growth Called Threat to Delhi's Grace (April 1, 1988)
By BARRY BEARAK

NEW DELHI -It takes eight men to capture a street-smart cow, so the municipal cow catchers of New Delhi must squeeze together tightly in the cab of their cattle truck. There are two parts to their important job and only one is easy: finding the cows. Getting the beasts into the truck is where these workers really earn their $119 a month.
It is estimated that 40,000 cows wander the streets of this city, and most seem well informed of their sacred status. They are a study in nonchalance, slowly crossing a highway or, as many prefer, relaxing in the right-turn lane of a busy intersection.
The 100 or so cow catchers employed by the city have always thought their occupation a merciful one, saving sanctified creatures from a run-in with a front bumper.
"It is necessary if misunderstood work," said Raman Kumar Sharma, a crew chief. "Sometimes people do not realize we have the cow's best interests at heart. We've had violence with the crowds. "
But these days, their mission has taken on added urgency because the urban cow has encountered a vicious new enemy: the plastic garbage bag. With little grass to graze on in the paved cityscape, cows scavenge through trash that is increasingly packed into polyethylene.
New Delhi's animal rights groups have recently begun campaigns against the lethal packaging. Table scraps may be fine fodder, they say, but the plastic wrapping is not digestible in any of the cows' four famous stomachs. They want use of the garbage bags banned, though as yet this appears unlikely. In modem India, the utility of the garbage bag may be a force beyond even the spirituality of the cow.
"Inside the cows we find glass, iron, wire, electrical cords, shoes, shirts and razor blades, but the real killer is the plastic," said Dr. Vijay Chaudry, a veterinarian who runs a refuge where the cow catchers deliver the caught cows. "We lose two or three cows a day, and when we cut them open it is terrible what we find. For an animal so sacred, they die a bad death."
Cows are as common to big-city India as bright lights are to Broadway, and revered though they may be, most live the life of vagrants. They are either unwanted animals, turned out because they are old and dry, or milk producers belonging to city dwellers who do not feed them.
"Cows that are still productive belong to people who think, 'Why should I feed this cow, when the cow can feed itself"' said Shamia, 36, a bureaucrat whose official title is milk tax inspector. "These owners sometimes chase us when we take their cows.
"I tell you, there are many difficulties to this work. Old cows are tired and sick, and these are easy to catch. Young, healthy cows, well, this is something else. The cow is quick. The cow is intelligent. The cow has learned to recognize our truck."
Hindus venerate the cow as a symbol of motherhood and a giver of life. It is certainly the mainstay of rural India, providing milk and pulling carts, Dried cow dung is the slow-burning cooking fuel favored by most village households. It also makes a good hard floor.
Cow slaughter - sometimes a volatile, violence-provoking issue here -is banned in most of India's 27 states, though there is no shortage of juicy steaks for those who can afford them. Beef is sold on the black market, and butchers casually deliver their prime cuts door to door.
This not-so-surreptitious killing is rarely discussed in a nation where the hallowed cow seems quaintly familiar on boulevards that are otherwise overpopulated with smoke-belching rattletraps.
For the cow catcher, the animal's high approval rating is a problem.
As a crowd gathers, more people are always rooting for the cow than the catcher. There is little use in talking to spectators about plastic bags and clogged digestive tracts.
"Why don't you quit torturing the poor animal!" a man called out as Sharma's crew took on its toughest challenge of the day, a horned, formidable looking white brute.
Stealth is the cow catcher's principal tactic. Once a rope has been slipped onto the animal's head, the techniques of the rodeo cowboy usually work - the headlock, the twisting, the tugging.
"If you grab the ears and put your hand in its mouth, the cow won't run," said Aji Ram, at 60 the most veteran of the crew. "Then someone's got to hold on to the tail. "When the catchers sneaked up on her, the big white cow had been enjoying the garbage beside a vegetable stand along busy Okhala Road. Another, more alert animal had just bolted away, recognizing the green rust bucket that serves as the cow catcher's truck. She then agilely ran up a steep slope, eventually taking sanctuary in a taxi stand.
The white cow, however, had carelessly allowed herself to be roped and there was little else for her do but use Gandhian tactics of civil disobedience. Whenever the catchers shoved her near the ramp of their truck, the beast went limp. If they wanted her so badly, they would have to carry her.
For 45 minutes, the catchers used all their wiles. When these failed, they used their poles, slipping the wooden prods under the animal and hitting her belly. At the same time, Aji Ram pulled the tail, Suresh Chand pushed the flank. Radha Krishna slapped the butt.
Sharma himself, dressed in a well pressed blue shirt, never touched the cow, but he did survey the crowd, which was ready to declare the animal the winner. "I don't think we catch this cow," Sharma said, calling off the struggle.
Anyway, they already had eight cows in their truck, a good enough bounty for three hours' work,. The animals were then driven to the city's outskirts and set free in a gosadan, a sort of a shelter for homeless cows.
There, they could chew their cuds in relative tranquility, and while their diet may neither be as varied or as tasty as human garbage, it would again be plastic-free.

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Animal Traction Contacts

From: Hare.Krsna.dasi@com.bbt.se 
Subject: [Fwd: Ox Yokes in Zambia, India, Bangladesh]

Hi everyone,
I am accompanying my husband to a conference in Turkey in early September and wonder whether anyone has contacts there who are doing research on animal traction. My interests lie in primary health care of donkeys, horses and oxen used for traction and transport in urban and rural areas.
I have heard that animal traction is used extensively in Turkey. From Turkey I shall be visiting Southern Italy and then (hopefully!) France.
Best regards
Cheryl McCrindle BVSC PhD
Associate Professor, Dept Production Animal Medicine
Faculty of Veterinary Science, Medunsa, South Africa

Dear Mrs. McCrindle!

I don't know anyone in Turkey but I know some addresses in Italy and France. I am working on my PhD-Thesis concerning efficiency of modern horse drawn implements for organic farming in Germany (and thankful for any contact to others working in that field!).

Addresses to contact for France:
Sylvie Lafontaine; F-25430 Belvoir; Tel.:81863226

Jean-Jacques Marquart; F-54570 Trondes; Tel.: 383638560; Leader of ARTAP (Association de recherches sur la traction animale et le portage)

PROMNIATA (Promotion du Materiel Moderne a Traction Animale); 2 Ariege; F-09420 Rimont; Tel.: 61963660

Addresses in Italy:

Mipe Viviani snc, Officine meccaniche; Loc. Pian del Casone; I-53035 Monteriggioni (SI); Tel.: 0577 / 304069 or 304070, Fax: 0577 / 304070;
They built modem horse-drawn machinery and maybe they know about scientists in Italy working on DAP

Prof. Massimo Zoli, Dr. Francesco Garbati Pegna; Dipartimento di Ingegneria Agraria e Forestale; Universita degli Studi di Firenze, P.zle
delle Cascine 15, I-50144 Firenze

Peter Dipl.-Biol. (MSc.) Peter Herold
Universitet Gesamthochschule Kassel Fachbereich Landwirtschaft, Internationale Agrarentwicklung und kologische Umweltsicherung
Fachgebiet kologischer Landbau Nordbahnhofstr. la
D-37213 Witzenhausen Deutschland
Tel.: 0049 / 05542 / 98-1527
0049 / 05542 / 98-1565
Fax: 0049 / 05542 / 98-1568

e-mail: herold@wiz.uni-kassel.de 
www: http://www.wiz.uni-kassel.de/foel/index.html

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Evaluation of Fiscal Year 98

INCOME

Thank you for your help in fixing the barn roof after the tornado destroyed most of it. Also, thank you for contributing to the beginning of the Ox-Power Herb Company. You may look at the ISCOWP Update on page 10 to read the details of these two endeavors.
Since we are mostly caring for New Vrndavana's cows and oxen, we were reimbursed for feed and also partially for services rendered in the form of consultation to New Vrndavana's cow program.
In our last issue we described the basement completion of our straw bale home. Baladeva, our son, has been in charge of its construction and has now fully reimbursed ISCOWP for the 1997 and 1998 construction expenses. Thanks to his service, we are now all living here at Vrajapura Farm in the finished basement.

EXPENSES (Total:$29,100.24)

We are presently protecting 25 cows and oxen at Vrajapura Farm. Animal expenses reflect feed and vet expenses. We installed a complete water system in 1997 enabling us to properly care for the animals throughout the year. We had a little more work done on this system this year.
Another project continued from 1997 was the construction of the basement to our straw bale home. We moved into this dwelling in September 1998 and we incurred a few more expenses for its construction at that time. The expense has been reimbursed (see full reimbursement in INCOME).
Fencing is yet another ongoing project, started in 1997 with all the fencing materials donated by Vanamali Pandit Prabhu. Since we now have 137 acres with most of the fencing being barbed wire and in poor condition, we are foreseeing a lot of hand labor to be done. All fencing that we install is of high tensile wire, not barb wire. The fencing expense reflects labor by Gurukulis.

As reported in our Spring 1998 issue, ISCOWP has expanded to 137 acres. The land expense reflects a small portion of that purchase. Also, we have been working on refurbishing the barn and improving the grounds surrounding the barn. (described in detail on page 10, ISCOWP Update).
The Ox Power Herb Company development was begun in 1998 with the clearing and filling of the site for the processing building and the road construction to and from the building. Clearing the garden site of rose bushes has begun also. As you can see by looking at the final balance there is money left over from the campaign to continue on with the campaign in 1999. For now we will mostly be clearing and planting part of the herb garden and building a drying shed. Please refer to page 10, ISCOWP Update, for more details.

The ISCOWP News, which now comes out 3 times a year, has been published since 1990. It provides news of ISCOWP activities and educational information in regards to providing cow protection for individuals as well as organizations. The other means of communication and education are the ISCOWP COW conference (cow@com.bbt.se) on which we and the other COW members formulated the Minimum Cow Standards, and our newly developing WEB page, http://www.angelfire.com/co/ iscowp. We can be reached at iscowp@ovnet.com , or iscowp@com.bbt.se . However many of our members cannot be reached by e-mail but by phone only.
Consultation for various cow protection facilities is provided through e-mail, phone, and travel to said facilities. By helping other facilities, more cows and oxen can be protected than can possibly be protected at Vrajapura Farm alone. Part of the consultation services is to train and maintain communication with persons either beginning or maintaining such facilities. In addition, land use, working out management problems, etc., are part of the consultation services and necessary to ensure the proper atmosphere for cow protection.

The wages reflect what ISCOWP paid Balabhadra and Chayadevi for their services. Balabhadra acquired a full time night job in November of 1998. Now for the first time we will have some reliable personal income even though it is considered on the poverty level. But since we live simply, cook a lot, grow some of our food, our expenses are low and a little goes a long way.

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Thank you for Contributing During the Fiscal Year 1998
(1/98 - 12/98)

This annual report is dated from 1/98 to 12/98. In the past years it was dated from February of one year to March of the next year. This always made it quite difficult to do an annual report since everyone is geared to report their taxes from the beginning of the year to the end of the year. This report may have some overlapping from the previous annual report, but from now on everything should fall into place nicely.
Since we incorporated ISCOWP in March, we thought it proper to begin each annual financial report from that point in the year. Looking back on the original incorporation papers we have read that the government gave us the fiscal year beginning at the beginning of each year and ending on the last month of the year. So, preparing the report from the first month to the last month will be easier and more in-tuned with governmental concerns. Also, We will try to begin each annual fund raising campaign as close to the beginning of each year and closing at the end of each year. That way, the annual report will include the campaign results.

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ISCOWP Update

Ministry for Cow Protection and Agriculture
Last year, with the help of the members of the cow conference, The Minimum Cow Standards were written. A month ago the standards were passed as ISKCON law. Now, at least in ISKCON, there are basic standards as to how to care properly for cows within a cow protection facility.
We are presently dealing with various problems of cow care on various ISKCON farms and the standards as law has helped tremendously to convince others as to the proper cow care. Although many similarities are there, some differences in care exist in a cow protection facility in comparison to a cow facility where slaughter is an accepted practice.

Ox-Power Herb Company Campaign

Dirk Vansant (from Belgium) is training with Agni and Shyam by removing fallen tree limbs from the garden area designated for the Ox Power Herb Company

Establishing the Ox-Power Herb Company to support ISCOWP's ox-power training and cow protection work is a major step to forming a future for ISCOWP which is not totally dependent on your donations. Now that we have our own land to develop solely for the purpose of supporting ISCOWP activities, the goal is to develop it in a way that will provide LONG TERM support that is a showcase of self-sufficient activities based on the land and oxen.
The 1998 campaign (12/97-12/98) for the Ox Power Herb Company enabled us to hire a contractor who cleared and levelled the site for the Ox Power Herb Company processing building. Also, the driveway into the farm was widened and expanded to circle the old house. This way there are two means of access to the process building site. Gravel was brought in and laid on both roads. At this time we need to lay more gravel, as the original gravel has settled.
An old wash house was on the site where we plan to place the processing building. Actually there was a lot of garbage with it also. It took a great deal of work by Balabhadra to break down the wash house and clear the garbage and then clear the surrounding rose bushes and debris.
Actually, the contractor (John Hart) told us that we should wait 5 years to build on this site. The earth must settle properly, so that there is a stable earth foundation for the building. With this in mind we will build a drying shed this year which is to be eventually attached to the processing building.
Since we had some emergencies with a tornado destroying some of our barn, much of our energy and some of our funds got cycled into the barn to maintain it for the cows. It was also a more severe winter this year than last and we realized some inadequacies in the barn and immediate surrounding area that needed attention and care. But more on the barn later.
A 3/4 acre area above the house was plowed last fall and will be ready to plant this Spring (real soon). The area by the side of the house is in the process of being cleared. It is a 2 acre area and we figure we can clear a 3/4 acre area. Remember this area is infested with rose bushes. It is also not on flat land, but on a, slight hill. So landscaping the garden will not be in the traditional manner of entirely straight rows. Vegetables and herbs will be planted in both areas.
We thank you all (see donors listing on page 8 & 9) for contributing to the beginning of establishing long term support for ISCOWP.

The Barn: New Campaign

Agni likes the new feeding aisle in the barn at Vrajapura Farm.

We thank all of you for contributing to fixing the roof on the barn. It is 95% fixed. All the tin and materials have been purchased from donations that came in for the roofs repair.
This past year of 1998 has seen more improvements on the barn. Balabhadra has put siding on 3 sides of the barn, the side facing the silo is half completed. Now the barn is mostly enclosed on 3 sides. Before it was open on 4 sides except for some rusty tin nailed on parts of one side.
Balabhadra completed the extensive floor system in the barn so that hay and equipment can now be stored in the barn. The materials both for the siding and the floor were mostly recycled from old barns that Balabhadra took down at the request of their owners.
Sliding doors have been installed at the front of the barn and cement and a drain have been laid by the silo area where the cows were once belly deep in mud during the rainy wet times. A feeding aisle has been built in the barn which provides more efficient use of the hay.
We have additional plans for the barn to make it more efficient. This winter we realized the practical situation in keeping 24 cows at the barn. We need to lay some cement in certain areas to minimize the mud. Especially at the feeding area where the large bales are fed out and at the back of the barn. Where the large bales are fed out, the cows are knee deep in mud during wet times. At the back of the barn, a retaining wall has to be built to secure the cement fill. Also, Balabhadra wants to finish the siding, and roof.
In short, due to necessity we were forced to use some of the funds you donated for the Ox Power Herb Company for repairing and upgrading of the barn. Approximately $5,052.41 was spent on materials and the contractor. This does not include labor which was extensive due to the labor intensive nature of the barn improvements done by Balabhadra. And due to the obvious need of more improvements for the barn and the comfort of the cows, this year's campaign will be centered on barn improvements. Soon we will be asking for your help to further improve the conditions of the cows. Thank you in advance.

Balabhadra is training both Dirk Vansant (leading Vraja & Gita) and Krsna Balaram (from New Vrndavana and sitting on the disk) how to disk the field that was plowed last fall. The field was plowed and then cow manure from the barn was spread over it. The manure is now being turned into the soil by disking

ISCOW Member Update
Paramesvari dasi and Maha-ratha das, founders of Gopala, Inc. in Serbia, have been living in Novi Sad and are now being bombed by the NATO forces. Paramesvari and her children, except Maha-ratha, have fled to Hungary. The last we heard through e-mail from Maha-ratha was that he was still in Belgrade. We will keep you all in touch as to how their lives are unfolding. Please pray for their safety.

Paramesvari dd, Surabhi and members of Gopala practicing cow protection in Serbia during better times.

Bhakta Dave Hunt, who trained with Balabhadra for about 1 1/2 years as a recipient of the Train a Teamster Campaign, is buying the two parcels bordering us with the intention of developing his life around the oxen and land. He will be working cooperatively with ISCOWP in this endeavor. Due to economic pressures, he will continue to work in Baltimore and come here when he can to develop his property. When he has enough money to build a house, he will then move here.

Dave Hunt trained with Balabhadra a few years ago and is now buying the 2 parcels next to us

Bhakta Dirk Vansant is here from Belgium for a period of 3 months. He is training under Balabhadra to become an ox teamster and is acquiring other useful knowledge for developing food production. Balabhadra trains Dirk along with Krsna Balaram das, a devotee living here at New Vrndavana.

Balabhadra instructs Dirk Vansant from Belgium in the first principles of logging. Agni and Shyam are hauling a log down the road to Vrajapura Farm.

Labangaltika dd in Raigad, India, an expert on Homeopathic remedies for cows, writes: " I have just returned from Delhi where I went at the government's invitation, courtesy of Laxmi Narain Modi, to a National Symposium on Sustainable Agriculture, and I got to speak, for about 10 minutes on Cows and Homeopathy. The Minister of Agriculture was there and many government policy makers, scientists and so on. They are now interested in the farmer's traditional skills as the Green revolution has withered away. I met a lot of people with whom I'll keep in touch."

Labangalatika dasi's herd is heading home (Raigad, India) led by Gaura.

Unfortunately the government has decided to build an expressway from Mumbai to Goa right through our land, 100 meters wide. The survey just missed the cowshed. People are losing whole mango orchards and homes. It benefits no one, only the multinationals who have come over here to try to exploit India."

Removing the Milk House

Balabhadra is burning the remains of the milk house.

As you known it has been a constant determined effort to clean up the property which we bought and now call Vrajapura Farm. Part of the effort to clean up is removing the old milk house, which has been an obvious eyesore. The first step was collecting the thousands of empty milk jugs left inside the building. Then Balabhadra removed the insulation inside the building. The really gratifying work was to remove the upper structure by attaching chains to it and pulling with Baladeva's truck. Most of the remains have been burned and the rest will be burned in the near future.
This leaves a cement brick foundation. We have several ideas as to how to proceed, one is to build a workshop on top, We still have tons of manure to remove from inside the foundation as the cows used to go in there to find shelter before the barn was enclosed.

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The Village System of Cow Protection
From an article by Shri Venishankar M. Vasu, published by Viniyog Parivar Trust

Two Types of Grazing Lands
Grazing lands were of two types: one belonging to the State which was protected, the other for the common people and open for all. The cattle from the village used to graze in these open grazing lands throughout the year. For the young calves or for the old and sick animals who could not go to the grazing lands, people would cut the grass from such grazing lands and bring it home for feeding such animals. Thus cattle used to get free fodder. In the protected forests the grazing was not allowed for common animals throughout the year. Grass in the common grazing lands used to last till March, April and when it was exhausted by this time, the State used to open up its grazing lands for animals of the village. If the need to open up these reserved grazing lands did not arise due to abundance in common grazing lands, the grass in the reserved State grazing lands was harvested and preserved in large heaps, which was freely made available in the years of famine or relatively poor years where the grass used to be in short supply. Such grass heaps also were maintained in each and every
village. In this well thought out and managed system it was not at all difficult to feed grass to the cattle.
However, cows cannot be fed on grass alone. They need to be fed on cattle feed also such as deoiled cakes of oil seeds etc., so that their capacity to yield enough milk, as well as the quality of milk yielded, is maintained at a high level. It is possible for the affluent or middle class people to feed their cows with cattle feed. But what about the poor people? Their need for milk is the same as the need of the affluent and middle class people. To take care of this aspect and to ensure that their cows also get enough other feeds, the Hindu religion has laid command to offer "Gogras" whereby each person of the Society before starting his meal sets aside some portion of his
food for consumption of the cows. "Gograss" is not meant for one's own cow but it is meant for the wandering cows belonging to the poor people of the village. Thus each and every family in the village was able to get fresh milk and pure ghee in sufficient quantities as per their need. Sometimes a family would consist of only old people or sick people who were unable to look after a cow. In such cases the neighbors would give milk and ghee freely to such families.

Cow protection at Vrajapura Farm presents challenges not found in a warm climate.

The Scheme of Maintaining Stud Bulls
The responsibility of looking after and grazing stud bulls was that of the herdsman of a village, and the responsibility of providing cattle feed for such stud bulls was that of the Village Committee. In case a cow fell sick or became dry, each family would take care of the cow as if it was a family member. But this could be afforded only by the rich families. For the poor families there was a system of "Panjrapoles" which was managed by the Village Committee and would look after the old and incapacitated cows belonging to the poor section. When cows gave birth to a male calf, the calf was gifted away free to the farmers, and when a female calf was born it was nurtured in the family and given away when fully grown into a cow.

Need for Developing the Herdsmen Community
Each family in the village kept cows. This helped in meeting the need for milk and fuel. If a family was capable of keeping more cows it helped in meeting the need of the ghee also. However, it was not possible for each and every family to keep cows in sufficient numbers. And hence a section of the Society was created in the form of herdsmen (called "Maldhari" in local language) who kept hundreds to thousands of cows. These herdsmen never stayed permanently available. After a few days they would move to another place with their cattle. They did not sell milk but made curd and ghee from the milk and sold it. They reared the male calves and trained them and thereafter sold them to the farmers. From amongst the better male calves, they reared some into stud bulls and gifted them to the Village Committee as and when they needed them.
When a female calf became 3 years old it was mated with a stud bull. The stud bull of each village was changed every 3 years because if the stud bull remained longer than 3 years there was a chance of it's mating with its own progeny, and as a result of consanguinity, the future generation could become weaker.

No Commercialism in the Whole System
In this whole system, the financial viability, or non-viable profit or loss was
not considered. This system could yield fresh milk, pure ghee, fuel, and good bullocks for farming as well as transportation for the entire society. Thus the entire
population was robust and healthy. This was a very useful and essential system and part of our culture and nationhood.

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