Kickstarter.com October/November 2011 Hoop House Campaign

This page is to provide additional information to support the kickstarter campaign at kickstarter.com.  A further description of rewards (including images) will be included here as well as updates on the hoop house project including the planting and raising of their crops.  Some of this information will also be found on the blog page.   Here you will find a chronology of the hoop house progress and related subjects.

    Sorry the images aren't up yet.  We are farmers and have to get all support posts for all hoop houses in before the ground freezes, and the soils prepared and planted.  Images will be posted once this work is done- probably early December.

Rewards Description and Images (eventually)

Woodcut note cards: ($1)

Made the traditional way by carving into a piece of fine grained wood then inking it and pressing the block onto paper.  

Heirloom Seed Packets:  ($10) 

 From our farm or a reliable supplier such as "Seeds from Italy" or Baker Heirloom seeds enought to get you started.   You do have the option, if you don't have a place to plant a garden to take a half dozen wood cut notecards with envelopes instead. Just let us know.

T-Shirts  ($25) 

 We are dying and silk screening the T-Shirts.  There will be a couple of designs to choose from hopefully- we'll do the twisted carrot first.  The shirts will be a golden yellow in color.

Herb Garden Window Kit ($50)

The window box will be made of cedar with some nice scroll work.  It will fit in a standard window opening which is usually around 30 to 36 inches. Let us know the length you would like us to make your window box. 

T-Shirt and Ten Live Seedlings ($75)

Delivery in the spring.  What I meant to say was a selection of ten seedling packs (8 plants each). One of each- all heirloom- tomatoes, broccoli, lettuce, cucumbers, and so on. 

Jam a Month Club ($90) 

Thus far the flavors are (not in order): peach/rosemary jam, tomato/basil jam, elderberry/ginger jam, pear chutney, rhubarb/fennel/tarragon chutney, and apple/pineapple mint jelly.  If we can get local sour cherries and plums we will use those.   There will also be jams made with raspberries, black berries and currents  most likely and if we have figs (very likely) we will do something with those.  We are in the search for unique and tasty combinations- oh I forgot, we will have a quince/lemon marmalade I think...

Two Artisinal Tiles  ($100)

These will not be a standard size and there will be a few dozen or more to choose from.  They are all original, signed. signed, numbered and will be limited edition as they will be cast from a plaster master mold.  They will be glazed and unglazed in terra cotta clay and will all be low relief carvings in the Majolica tradition.  Sizes range from 4"x 5" up to 10" x 12".   Some of the images thus far: Medieval themes- fishermen in a boat on seas with a dove flying over; A Centaur running on the hunt with bow, his dog along his side; Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (also a modern version); floral decorative patterns from romanesque cloisters; Alphabet tiles in the manner of illuminated painting (Capitals),  Then there are tiles with Farm themes, Flower tiles, Animal tiles, and whimsical tiles.

6 Twelve inch Majolica Plates with Vegetable Designs ($250) 

These will not be circular but octagonal is shape.  They will be hand built with a raised edge and the vegetable designs will be incised into the clay.  I think there will be a sunburst design in the square center of each plate but that might change!    They will be signed, and numbered, each with a unique design with a cream background. The designs will be vegetable and floral and sweep across the plates.

Rosa Bianca Eggplant Soup Tureen with ladle, lid, base plate and 6 bowls.  ($400)

I love the shape of the Rosa Bianca Eggplant.  Nature is the ultimate artist... our Michelangelos don't hold a candle to the diversity and perfection that nature comes up with.  This will be a very large tureen in streeked purple over a cream white just as you would fine on the eggplant. The lid is the plants cap, be base plate modeled on the eggplant's leaf.  I haven't decided how I will model the bowls- they might just be an eggplant cut in half or I might go to the Madagascar eggplant which reminds me of a Venetian Gondola (if ever there was a vegetable Gondola) so maybe they will be shaped thus.  Again all original- these can't be cast but must be hand built. 

Hoop House Naming and seeds for a 40 x 40 garden ($500)

Our current goal of course is to establish this farm and get all aspects operational. In the long run however, we have a number of goals which involve the establishment of a foundation, land stewardship, link ups with other organic farms in the area, and on.  At some point we may have to move to a larger farm as we are restricted to 20 acres here, 10 of which are wooded. When we move, we will move the hoophouses as well- they are built to be dissassembled so if you'd like to put one in someone's name,  we will oblige, and with the name we would like a brief mention as to who they are, what they've done- or why... as for the seeds, you will get a very assortment with planting instructions (what to plant next to what and when, and so forth).  You can customize your garden as well- If you would like 16 varieties of heirloom tomatoes, we will oblige... (we recommend planting carrots with tomatoes but that doesn't mean we'll be sending you 16 varieties of those as well....)

October 19 

Finally got kickstarter launched yesterday after market with the addition of a photo of myself.  Honestly, I'm going to have to improve my computer capabilities.... The first pledge is in!  Having these hoop houses will make a huge difference here.Todays' forecast was for rain all day but it didn't rain at all (until now- evening) so I figured I would make good use of the time and get the beds planted for hoop house number 6 & 7.  I managed to add compost and lime, removed more rock during the deep hoeing before the raking and planting with the Earthway seeder.  These hoops are 28 wide by 50 long with four 3 foot wide beds in each.  I planted six rows of spinach, six rows of mache, two rows of shunkyo radish (for the greens which are delicious), two rows of Milan purple top turnips, two rows of Ching Chang bok choi and finally two rows of Black Summer bok choi.  One bed is reserved for overwintering globe artichokes (an experiment which I hope will be successful) with two beds remaining.  Once each bed is planted, it will get a row cover followed by ground hoops (about 3 ft high off the bed) which are then covered with a plastic cover.  The hoop house posts will be set since they are saplings thinned from the woods before the real construction begins. 

November 20

Beds have been completed for Hoop house #1,2,3,4,5,6 and 7.  Number 8 is half way complete. Hauled in 6 cubic yards of compost to get the job done. Framing is done for #1, #5 and #6.  Posts are cut for #7,#8 and #9.  Planting 100 feet of perennial globe artichoke plants in hoop #8 today.  row covers and low plastic hoops on crops planted in hoops #5,6 and 8 to keep the deer off.