First, I try to get them in by myself. Then I ask Jack to come help, and then I call in the big guns and ask Dan to make the ½ hour trip over to help me get them back in. At this writing, he hasn’t come yet, but I am quite confident that the 3 rogues will reunite with the 5 good dobees before the day (Saturday) is out.
Which brings me to my point today. Farming should be done with friends and family (as of course life should also). We all know at least in our gut, that we cannot do this life alone, but it is beautifully obvious every day on our farm that so many folks with so many talents are essential to make this place run.
Let me list some responsibilities and some of the folks who accomplished those in the past week alone.

• Foliar spraying of the vegetables and fruits – the back pack sprayer is heavy when full – probably 40-50 lbs. I count on Luke, Marissa, Clare, and Nick for this, not to mention Dave and Matt, who keep them running.
• Tractor driving, and this week I counted on Clare, Luke, Matt, Dave (our repair guy), Danny, Jim and Marissa for this. This week we will be training up Declan too. I just can’t see well enough to manage that big machine.
• Carpentry and repairs – Danny and Stu are our head team members, along with Matt. And Jack is there as an advisor. This week he and I took apart a failed ground fault wall plug that caused us to lose our electricity to our heat lamps for the young meat birds.
• Hoeing, weeding, tarping and detarping, planting, mulching, picking – all things that I do a lot of, but to raise the quantity of food we raise we need lots of hands. This week we counted on Nick, Bryan, Luke, Clare, Marissa, Alex, Paula, Leslie, Becca, Matt, Declan, Marcia, Stu, and Jennifer.
• Back-end work – marketing, data management, taxes, insurance, customer management – and thanks here go to Jennifer, Leslie, and Jack
• Wood management and odd jobs – Gary, Yohairo and the kids from Stetson do so much to help support us with our wood supply, and often help putting on and taking off tarps and sand bags, and sometimes mulching.
• Peanut butter balls, tinctures, food preservation, help with cooking – to keep all of these folks well-nourished, there is a lot of “back end management” on the food scene. Thanks to past support folks – Clare, Jennifer, Paula, Leslie, Jack, Marcia, Stu, Matt, Becca – and to the others who will be coming along.
• Thanks again to Dan and his friends Megan and Shawna who were instrumental in getting those pigs out of the truck and into their house.

Shawna enjoying removing the pig from the truck

Dan accepts pig handoff while Megan manages the door to the house

At this writing I am still biting my fingernails over the pig outage. These little “emergencies” come up from time to time, and often I have to call for extra help. I have learned over and over again to be comfortable asking for help, and for offering it and responding to requests for it that come my way. Isn’t it wonderful to be part of the human family!

Note that these pigs are outside the fence rather than inside it

Expressing Gratitude this Week 

It is to Brendan and Katia Holmes, Katia’s mom Lin, and Allister, Johnny and William, their sons, who Jack and I visited in Albion, ME Wednesday and Thursday to pick up our 8 certified organic piglets. They raise the best piglets and we are happy to travel the 4 hours to get there. Brendan and Katia used to live in Hardwick and used to keep their cows and pigs all over Hardwick (17 different farms) before they were able to buy a farm in Albion.

They represent the next wave (after ours) of farmers who have kept the back to the land movement viable, and are now beacons for the younger farmers who in their 20’s and 30’s are in need of good examples and mentors. It was such a pleasure to see their success, their family-centered business, and their hard-working approach to life that makes Jack and me proud to live in the same tradition. Good friends and good farmers. We left their farm Thursday morning with big smiles on our faces.

Brendan hauling pig to truck

Jack, Katia and Brendan catching up

What is in your CSA Share this week?

The share on week 1

Often, we are nervous about the first weeks of the CSA, but the weather has been almost perfect this year with heat, rain, cool, etc. We got off to a good start last week and plan to have the following items this week

• Chard – modest amounts as we transition from hoophouse to field
• Chives – all one size
• Lettuce – larges get three, 2 for mediums and one for smalls
• Chinese cabbage – large medium small
• Kale – finishing the hoophouse supply on Monday and moving to the field for Wednesday and Friday
• Arugula– new crop this week – enjoy it in salads – one of those super foods
• Beet greens – we are thinning the beds and you get the results, fresh and tasty greens to use lightly cooked better than raw. Use the whole thing
• Green onions – They are getting bigger – still use the entire plant
• Oregano – just this week before it takes a break to grow back
• Radishes – there are only a few left – you will get a portion
• Strawberries – these will be available maybe on Wednesday and Friday, not for Monday
• Spinach – we picked it all last week to avoid bolting. There will be small portions for everyone.

Need some help? Give me a call. 978-257-1192

We can use rubber bands, recycled cardboard egg cartons, recycled grocery style plastic bags, pint, ½ pint, or quart plastic or cardboard containers (please no off sizes), and grocery size paper bags. You can return these items in your share bag. Don’t forget to take you share bag back to your pick-up site this week.

Education this week

A great podcast with Ari Whitten on the 5 best things you can do to help your brain be more healthy – https://theenergyblueprint.com/how-to-optimize-your-brain-health/?inf_contact_key=5e4c28e5d2ac8827300c121ae76576d9dcd43eaff8ca03dc1d15424b3c75c21d

Volunteering at MHOF

This week Declan started volunteering with us, and did it in style with 3 full days of committed work. By the end of the week he had picked up some major skills and next week will be learning how to drive and manage the tractor. Thank you, Declan.

Specific Opportunities this week

We are looking for a specific volunteer/working shareholder. We have an increased need for help with Saturday chores. Now we have old layers, young layers, meat birds and pigs to do chores for. When those chores are done, we will either prep drench and foliar materials for the next week, or do some weeding and most particularly perennial management. Come for breakfast at 7:00 and we will be out of the house by 7:20, do the chores and go onto another manageable task. Stick around until 9:30 am and in exchange, I will provide you with a large produce share. One needn’t sign up for every Saturday, but 2 Saturdays per month would be appreciated. Be in touch – julie@mhof.net, or 978-257-1192.

We are also looking for a very specific volunteer or paid position to help with foliar feeding. This job needs to be accomplished between 5:00 and 7:00 am. You must be good with 2 cycle machines, be strong of back – about 40-45 lbs. of weight on your back. This can probably be accomplished in 2 mornings once you get the hang of it, but might take three mornings at first. We can pay $17/hour plus a large produce share. All of our sprays are certified organic and non-toxic, and it is a brilliant opportunity to learn about our intricate fertility program. Enquire.

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