One of the main reasons that we moved from California to Maryland was land access. After a decade of farming in California, I could not get secure long term land access on leased land. The prospect of purchasing farmland in…
Over 12 years ago I moved to California with hopes of following my passion for local food systems and working in the field of agriculture. I started off creating edible gardens for restaurants and private estates. I hung around farmers…
Every farmer has a style, so every farm has a different look. Farmers don’t just layout their fields differently but they maintain their crops differently. I for one ignore weeding, for as long as I can. It is not just because…
The long wait for local popcorn and beans is over, this week I visited a fellow farmer to use his thrasher. This was a speedy way for me to shell all the popcorn and dried beans that I had harvested…
During the hours and hours that I spend harvesting tomatoes I’ve been noticing that I’m not the only one spending quality time with these jewels of the summer. Various birds enjoy singing a song while perched on a tall tomato…
Recently I have had a lot of family visiting. When these visits were planned way back when, I figured we would spend our days sightseeing and occasionally visiting the farm to do some weeding or greenhouse work. But with the farm…
Last week I was down in Pacific Grove at the annual EcoFarm conference. I find this conference to be almost a pilgrimage, I leave before dawn and travel to a space filled with people involved in sustainable agriculture some I…
I have been harvesting pumpkins and gourds since mid-September, but I’m pretty sure that last week was my biggest harvest yet, not in number of pumpkins but in weight. Most of the pumpkins weighed around twenty pounds each. I felt…
Last week I went back to my alma mater, Hampshire College, to celebrate the college’s 45th anniversary. As soon as I got on campus, I headed straight to the farm center. This farm holds a special place in my heart…
Recently I have been noticing all the wildlife on the farm. The birds darting through the tall cover crop, racing each other, to find the next insects to eat. Lizards scurrying across the ground to find a hiding place. The squirrels…