It's a sunny and modestly warm day and I will be able to finish planting the garlic as the ground still retains it's late fall workability.  Post holes will be dug to complete those for the first 5 hoop houses, a general clean up, inspection of the cabbage heads and other crops in the fields, fixing the loose felt on the roof of the chicken coop, residential work (including the front door) are all on the schedule for the light of today.  Later I will work on a painting I plan to submit at the end of the month as part of my Arts Fest application.  Accounting also.  I can't proceed with 2012 without knowing what exactly happened in 2011. 

As for resolutions- easy.  I will try to do everything that I had planned on doing in 2011 but failed.  The wood fired oven, a small cheese cave, cultivation of mushrooms,  raise chickens, and ducks and have some good help.   New resolutions which really are this years' goals are to bring the gross business reciepts up to $80,000 by increasing crops by 400% (sounds like alot but with season extenders, irrigation and additional livestock sales it is very realistic), starting catalog sales, and so on.   I think the biggest problem will be manpower.  I am going to look to Penn State and my CSA members for help though- something that I have not pursued in earnest.  I also expect to have a long term intern starting in April- going through November and to have two ten week interns during the summer months.   A cabin has to be built to accomodate the interns which will be a time-line challenge.   The residence must be pulled together with working electricity and plumbing so that I can live there, and perhaps one other in the second bedroom.  Another time related challenge.  Cash flow will continue to be an issue but with the review of last years' flow (and cash problems) and the creation of some new income streams, I think it will be less of a problem.   My personal energy and outlook will be a challenge. Serious setbacks could put me into a downward spiral of depression and end the entire project.  Not a likely scenario.  A business partner would be a huge help as would a personal one.  For the moment, I am more positive than I have been recently and honestly, the entire forecast for success is a very delicate balance and could turn on a dime to failure.  I do still think of shutting down the CSA, and moving to Kentucky and I may have to but that projection doesn't feel right.  Still there is no contract so a trip to the attorneys once again seems inevitable.  How can you run a business without a contract with the land owner? 

The 55 hen chicks are doing quite well and I can't wait to get them out of my apartment.  I have lost two which is an acceptable rate of mortality.   I will be recieving 75 broilers on the 13th of January and by then, I hope to have the temporary pens set up in the first floor of the residence.   The temporary chick pens will be on the kitchen side and my temporary workshop will be adjacent.  The old wood burning furnace from the 1850's brick house which had originally be slated for a hoop house will be moved in to provide heat.   Insulation will have to be completed for the entire building.   The next phase (February) will be to get the new coop built.  The old coop will be remodeled to accomodate the hens.   The new coop will get a concrete floor with a drain, and insulated walls.  The structure will be raised first, then a wood burning stove installed so the floor can be poured.  All done in the comforts of freezing weather. 

Monday January 9

I'm waiting for my usual breakfast of fried onions & potatoes with the occasional egg, (and a dose of ketchup).   It is sunny outside and the month has been quite mild thus far.  I trapped the opposum that was killing the chickens and living in the comforts of the residence and killed it humanely.  A land lease has been worked out with the land owner and though it will be expensive it will be less disruptive to remain here than move the entire operation to another location over the winter.  The budget for 2012 is done and is based on the actual figures of 2011, includes a membership increase of 15 and the addition of chickens, ducks, geese, rabbits, and eggs.  Together, they will contribute 22,500 gross to the totals with a net of about 17,500 once all the expenses are deducted.  Catalog and outside sales (arts, crafts, furniture, etc) will be increased from last year's $3,000 to $10,000.  I am already busy designing, painting, sculpting and so on.   The priority however, beginning with this week are the hoop houses.   I stopped working on all farm projects about two weeks ago (I was away for a week), as I believed the business would be moving.  I also needed to stop farming- to have a mental break.  I can get three hoop houses completed this week. That is the goal.   As usual there are many other important projects so the days will be full speed ahead very shortly.  Distributions will begin on January 20th (tentatively), and I meet with an intern candidate this Saturday.   In short, the approach to this year will be quite different than the past three.  The hoops give me a jump on the growing season.  I am going to actively pursue help and work through the winter blues instead of succumbing to them.  This is the "quantum leap" year. The year where half the debt gets payed off, we grow enough crops, and raise birds and rabbits successfully.  We get the mushroom project going, are prepared for the Farm Tour, and hold the social dinners for the CSA members.  There is a great deal of construction to do.  I will have to see how much help I can get. 

Saturday, January 28  It's official: change

It has been a warm and muddy month thus far.  I am almost out of my doldrums and have gotten back into the swing of things with work on the hoop houses (for February plantings) along with completion of insulation of the residence first floor along with the plumbing line runs to the bathroom toilet, sink and bathtub.   An old furnace will be brought in to provide heat and front door will be built- custom oak with an insulated interior layer, a keyhole window and carved irises sweeping up from the exterior kickplate.  It goes with me when I make a future departure.   Finally solved the mystery behind the chick die off.  Probably the local feed.  Switched to a medicated feed.  The remaining seven (of 55) hen chicks have finally percked up and are acting normally now.   Chicks and a workshop will be temporarily housed on the ground floor of the residence.  100 meat birds arrive on the 16th of February.

As for the workshop: Ceramic tiles, T-shirts, cedar window planters, garden ornaments, and fine stone sculpted lamps for the high end market will be made to supplement the farm income.  An absolute necessity to get product sold over the next 4 months or I will be financially short again.  Making excellent progress thus far.  First up: a pair of Minoan Bull pots with horned handles.   Very unique, I expect to sell the first pair or two quickly.  The craft work will have to be concentrated from now through April. After that, naturally, the farm work takes precedence.  I will have to make a quick trip to Kentucky in March and may take a week off in May and travel overseas if I can get a replacement passport on time.   A very speculative idea but it could be a good mental break and since the CSA is year round, I might just do this once every four months- not fly overseas but get out of here, hiring an experienced house sitter to cover the chores.

New Help: I will know in a week if I can purchase the two Percheron draft horses I've been negotiating on for a few weeks now.  The owners just have to check if some friends of theirs want them or not.  If  not, they will be mine.  What beautiful beings!  Not too large, actually small sized for draft horses, they are docile, very well behaved and easy to command.   I must say that I am in love with Betsy and Alta (two new girlfriends if I am so lucky...).  They will make the plowing and planting of five times the crops that were put in last year (as long as I get the irrigation system in).  They will be worth ten interns without exagration and no insubordination!  They will spend  the spring here, and much of the summer on a neighboring farm, helping with the haying, etc.  It is an excellent arrangement.  For $1,000 I get the horses, full harness gear and a sit down plow (the long wood tongue needs to be replaced).   A small stables will have to be built and fencing extended, pastures upgraded.  If they are offered, I will be taking them around the Ides of March in order to get the prep work done.   Only have to hold my breath and cross my fingers for a week! 

The Tuesday Farmer's Market commences on the first Tuesday in June and will end sometime before Thanksgiving in November.  It is never cancelled and is held rain or shine.   The market commences at 11:30 am and finishes at 5:30 except in November (at 5 pm).  There is quite a diversity of vendors and each year there is more produce and other items, such as baked goods and crafts for sale.

The Saturday Farmer's Market on North Atherton is held in the parking lot in front of the Home Depot from May until early November.  Hours are 10 am until 2 pm.  This is a great market to attend. It has grown quickly so you can expect a wonderful diversity of vendors.  I wouldn't be surprised if it becomes one of the region's largest.

For 2012, Howard's End Farm will be selling a much broader range of produce than it did in 2011 which was our third year at market.  Along with produce, we plan to be offering ceramics for sale as well.  These will be designed and produced by Addison, who regards himself not as a farmer but as an artisan-farmer.  He's been an artist for most of his life, only having just discovered the joys of farming.

The produce that Howard's End offers at market is all organic (though uncertified), without exception.  It is also picked-that-morning fresh.  You also might find that some of the produce is unusual for central Pennsylvania such as Imperial Globe artichokes,  black Aztec sweet corn, ginger, bamboo shoots, Shungiku and Asian greens.  We are always looking for the unusual and one of our goals is to offer unique varieties for those wanting a gourmet experience.  We will be raising pastured chickens,( and eggs!) ducks, geese, rabbits and mushrooms, as well this season.  If the CSA doesn't gobble them all up at first, we might manage to bring some to market.

This is what we are adding this season to make growth possible and make life more interesting...

1. Get the drip irrigation system completely installed incuding the reservoir preferably in April.

2. Start the mushroom cultivation operation.  Sew shiitake plugs into oak logs and set up three different varieties of Oyster mushrooms using the log "sandwich" method (though we might straw as well). This to be done in February.

3. Get 12 hoop houses built. Have four planted by the beginning of February, the remainder completed by May. A big task, but much of the groundwork has already been done.

4.The Farm Tour.  We will be ready this year to be a host. It will be nice to get the publicity.  Maybe we can get the salamander hill figure closer to completion.

5. On line catalog. Talked about this last year but never got it out of the drawing room. This year, however, we will get it started.  We already have a good list of catalog items and the cold months are the perfect time to manufacture the products that will be for sale.

6. A gourmet dinner program.  What was originally a three dinner idea has been expanded into a 10 dinner idea spread out over ten months beginning in March.  Three will be held at Howard's End (June, August and October), the remainder being hosted by CSA members.  All of the menus will be themed. For example, the October dinner will be a "Venetian Masquerade" and will feature Italian Veneto dishes with a twist.  Other dinner themes might include "American Barbeque", French, Indian and other regional cooking.

Finally the edibles.

We will be raising Chickens, Ducks, Geese, Rabbits for our members and market. They will be pastured and allowed to grow naturally.  The Ducks, Geese and Rabbits will be grown organically with very little grain.  We will feed grain to the chickens but they will get 40-50% from foraging and other feeds that we will feed them (such as spent barley from a local brewery which still retains its protein).  They will all be processed at the farm, the day before delivery to ensure freshness.

  Organic olive oil in 500ml refillable bottles will be offered to members- natural and with herbal infusions.  We may also offer this at market (upon approval).  Globe artichokes, blue corn for flour, English peas, Brussels sprouts, Belgian endive, romanesco, sweet melons,shallots,  burdock and the mushrooms will be added.  In general there will be more of all crops grown.

During the warm months we distribute produce to our CSA members on a weekly basis at the two farmer's markets that we participate in- The Tuesday Farmer's Market on Locust lane in downtown State College (11:30 - 5:30) and the Saturday North Atherton Farmer's Market at the Home Depot parking lot (10 - 2 ).   You can also arrange for home delivery if you reside within Centre county.  The charge is $3 per delivery and is usually made on Tuesday evenings.  Pick up at the farm is also an option. We are about 15 minutes from downtown Bellefonte off the Jacksonville road. 

Once the markets close, we move our pickup locations to an alternative location in downtown State College. The Saturday pick up remains at the Home Depot. During the cold months, produce is picked up once every two weeks. We usually take a month to six weeks off from Christmas until the end of January but will depend on the weather, member demand and the greenhouse vegetables production. 

  Here is our current list of what we expect to have available.  All produce is grown using organic methods, some of it via Tuscarora Organic Growers.  We also purchase or exchange produce with other organic CSA's in the area and local Amish farmers.  Any produce that we list as available that is not organic is noted on each weekly distribution list.

 Salad Greens  Asian Greens      Carrots        Mustard Greens      Yams       Mushrooms-(button, Oyster, Shiitake)  

Beets (Chioggia, Blankoma, Golden, Bulls Blood)      Spinach     Broccoli    Broccoli Raab  Cauliflower (white and Sicilain)  Romanesco

Turnips (Hakurei, Purple Top, Scarlet)     Mache     Arugula    Swiss Chard   Radishes 

Collards     Fennel (Florentine)   Kale (Tuscan, Chinese, Siberian)    Cabbage (Savoy, Red)

Kohlrabi (Purlple)   Onions (red, bunching)   Brussels Sprouts  Potatoes  

Herbs: Sage, Chives, Parsley, Basil, Cilantro, Sweet Marjoram, Oregano White Mustard

Chickens and Ducks  Geese  Eggs  Smoked Trout  Grass Fed Beef (local)

Certified Raw Milk  Pizzas  Scones  Jams  Chutneys   Sauerkraut  Pickles  Ratatouille pasta Sauce

Cheese- Smoked, Sharp, Sage, Italian and plain Cheddars  Ricotta   Swiss    

      Colby  Bondon  Queso Fresco and other specialty cheeses.

Basil Pesto,  Chick pea and Fava bean Humus

   Soups        Yogurt       Honey    Ginger (fresh)    Sprouts                              

Not all produce will be available at all times.  Thanks so much for your interest in Howard's End.  We look forward to meeting you.

We currently have ten memberships available.  There is a form which you can download, fill out and mail to us with your deposit.  An initial deposit of $200 will be required to open your debit account (unless you are a single individual- then it is $100).  If however you choose to send in $400 (which would last for 16 weeks if you spent $25 a week) you will recieve a 5% bonus and your account will be credited with $420.00.  Either amount will help us greatly- we have many capital improvements to make at this time.  Your membership will begin right away. 

Questions?  Send us an email at: howardsendfarm@gmail.com or call 814-625-0007 and leave a message if we aren't in.

Sincerely, Addison Hoffman  

Click here to download the CSA Membership Form in PDF format.

The point of this blog has always been to provide a format to record my experiences as a young farmer and the many thoughts that go along with that experience that others might find interesting.  My thinking has been that at times, other farmers who come here to read about my farming travails and explorations might benefit or share their ideas, or learn- something along these lines.  I have used this blog as an open book of rough ideas and experiences- unstilled and raw.  I write them quickly and oftentimes at the end of a long day or during a break when I think I have something reasonable to say.  As with any experience, farming is multi-faceted and there are many factors in the success or failure of an enterprise- whether they come from the realm of a personal, or family event, or a climactic one, or financial.  All of these rough writings will find their way into a book in about 5 years, and in order to complete the process which begins with these entries, research is added, themes are found and examples pulled from these writings and an editor makes the assemble possible- and coherent!

I am going to change the rules now as I will begin recording sensitive material which I don't want floating all over the ethosphere.  I will be pursuing some business ideas that could turn into something great or.... could just fizzle out as many do.  I have a few up my sleave and now is the time to pursue them as I feel I have completed my internship.   I will be making a single entry each month.  So this entry is it for the month of December. The remaining entries will be by subscription only and willl be free to the current CSA members of Howard's End Farm and to farmers, former interns, and to most of those following this blog.  Those in this category who would like to subscribe just send me an email or tell me at the CSA pickup that you would like to recieve the "writings" and I will say ok and each time I make an entry, an email will go out to the "group".   If I don't know you, you will need to introduce yourself and tell me who you are, about your farm, etc. by a hand-written letter.  Believe it or not but it takes time to do this- and as this year progresses, there will be a greater emphasis on research.  If you are not a farmer or a student studying agriculture or some other related subject, you will also need to send me $1.  That will be the cost of subscription for a year.  Please also include why you want to subscribe.  Mail your letter to: Howard's End Farm  345 Hidden Valley Lane, Howard, Pa.  In 2012, I expect to start including images of some of the projects, concerns that I am writing about.

Sunday, December 11

Our coldest night thus far and because I forgot to keep a trickle of water coming out of the faucet (the pipes are not completely insulated), the water lines have frozen.  Hopefully the manifold didn't crack, but it probably did which means it will have to be replaced.  In the meantime, I haul water by the bucket ful and get busy on completing the insulation.  It's a sunny day and the 55 hen chicks that arrived Friday are happy little campers and carry on an incessant chirp zipping about in the big galvanized livestock waterer I've got them in. Their accomodations will be upgraded either tonight or tomorrow to a much larger, 30 square foot square plus pen with plastic liner and peat for flooring.   These chicks are my future egg layers and will join the other remaining 8 near the end of May.   They will remain in the apartment for the first four weeks of their life before being moved to the new hen house which I plan to complete by the end of the month or beginning of the next- I will probably have to work under halogen lights in the dark to complete the task as my work roster is very full.

Today I will transplant the 30 or so globe artichoke seedlings that I have into their permanent places in one of the rows of hoop house #9.  I am going to start seedlings for lavender, tarragon, basil and more artichokes immediately since they will be able to go out so much sooner than usual with the hoops.  There is a great crop of young dill out there which I have cover with straw and row cover.  I may transplant it into pots however in bring it indoors since I do not expect it could survive the winter in its' current exposed bed.  Firewood has to be cut today, potatoes dug, garlic planted, top rail and ribs added to hoop house #1 and squash moved to a more secure location to get it safe from whatever is dining on it.

I went to a paty last night at O's and the dress theme was 80's off ice party which made for some very amusing dress.  I came as my scruffy self though I had managed to wear a clean shirt.  There was a beer drinking game which involved getting ping pong balls into cups, a number of people who spoke French so I got to practice a bit and be embarrased at the attempt.  When I decided that it was time for me to depart- around 9:30, B grabbed me and told me there was someone who was interested in farming.... I finally got out at 11, many conversations later feeling that I had talked too much but there was always someone asking me another question...  It helps to know that you are appreciated.  All the hard times melt away with that appreciation and cheering on.

December 17.

The last two distributions- todays' and next Tuesdays will be cancelled.  I am simply worn out and the CSA is temporarily bereft of funds until I can get to New York and do some work for clients there.  Finally broke down and bought a new, though inexspensive, chainsaw.  The old one doesn't care to start in the cold.  It works well and I have already cut posts for two more hoop houses and cleared another section of brush and scrub trees out of what will be a lightly forested area with walnuts and meadow where the chicken and rabbit tractors will be run. 

Howard's End Farm grossed just over $45,000 for 2011.  Now comes the hard part.  Breaking down that number into every last cent recieved and spent.  The receiving will be easy actually.  It will be the spending that will tell me what changes I need to make.  Full details will be available for those subscribing (see beginning of this month for details).   Some of the essential changes which will have to be implemented for the 2012 season in order to double the gross income are as follows:

1. Get the irrigation system set up and installed. Without this improvement I may as well call it a day.  This includes installing an 8,000 gallon reservoir and all the piping, drip tape, etc. 

2. Mulch as many crops as possible.  Try the new degradable mulch? Use pigs and goats to pre weed and till.  Free food for them and free tilling and root clearing for us. A proven workable method.   I will try the degradable mulch this year but will also use plastic mulch.  With the mulches and drip tape, we can plant a crop and spend much less time weeding and watering which will doom any commercial operation due to their gross inefficiency.

3.  Get as much compost/soil work done over the winter as possible.   With the erection of the hoop houses,  all of that warmed soil will be a song to prep.  10 hoop houses gives us 1/4 acre under cover.

4.  Get the 10 hoop houses built by March; half by the end of December, the other half by March if not sooner.  Earlier and later crops.  The hoop houses should increase total crop production by 50%!

5.  Raise chickens.  I finally know what I've been doing wrong.  They are very sensitive to temperature and if you don't regulate it very carefully, they get stressed and die.  We will raise 75 chickens a month.  It won't be enough but we will be able to manage this number.  We will have to get the hen house built. 

6. Raise ducks, rabbits,geese and pigs. All can be raised in tractors or moveable electric pens and on grass.  Very little grain is needed.  For the pigs, we will plant mangels in the fields they will be tilling and feed them spent barley from a local brewery and slops from restaurants (free).   Mostly they will eat off the pasture.

7. Build a cabinet for interns. It will be of straw or cordwood or wattle and daub or a combination of these. The floor will be of hammered clay (cement added).  I'll get used but servicable windows from Kentucky (recycled) and make a nice door. Maybe the walls will be surfaced with saw mill bark lumber. They will cost close to nothing, be very comfortable and melt into the surrounds.

8. Increase market sales by 300%.  Sounds like alot but they were rather low ($2,700).  An increase over the previous year but we should be able to do $9,000 this year even with the increase in the CSA membership to 100. 

9. Introduce online catalog sales.  In the works now with the kickstarter gifts that have to be produced and delivered.  Ceramics, painted furniture,   wood cut note cards, T-shirts,  garden architecture and sculpture, jewelry and value added products are all planned.  I will also be applying to the arts fest for a booth using some of these products.  It will be interesting to see what happens.

10.  Initiate Gourmet dinner series.  Once a month, a member or Howard's End will host a themed gourmet dinner for CSA members.   Themed could mean, Italian, French, Mid-Eastern or other regional cooking or Macrobiotic or some other theme.  We need to socially connect the food to the members and introduce the members to one another.

Thursday, December 22.

There are days when I am tied to the idea that I can't go out and  shovel mud in the wet or do construction in the residence or relieve the truck of it's two cubic yards of compost which awaits its assignment under the tarp keeping the rear tires in a state of unrelaxed compression.  I am stuck in mental mud so I sort through the bank account one month at a time re-recording that which the bank has for me to my system of divisions.  Money spent on gas, produce, building materials, market fees.  Monies debited for seeds and seedlings, monies removed for insufficient monies.   I'm always late with the accounting reports to members because I hate doing it (never say always...) and when I go to the bank's website I am nervous because I expect the news to be bad.  A nervous shudder flips like a mini jolt of lightning the instant before I click the login button.  I must have done it a dozen times today and each time it was the same.  I am nearly done with the recording of monies spent and there is going to be some good news.  First, I don't have to give up and walk away from this insanity because  the whole "vision" is an absurd failure.  It isn't. In fact it is showing rays of real potential.  I just need to find a way to hang on.  My phobia arrises when the bank account has drifted downward, creeping inexorably towards the mouth of Hades.  The financial accounts zip up, around and down like an old wooden roller coaster and I creek along the way, unable to get off the ride because I haven't yet decided that I can.   During times like these that most business entreprenuers have the pleasure of taking such a ride, it's always good to have a passenger along with you.  Some one to remind you of what is really happening and to cheer you over the rough bumps.  Match.com doesn't provide this service, and I intend to send in a complaint or at least a strong suggestion that they do.  I know I am misguided in this thinking- if there was such as service one might possibly find it under "Cheer.com".   We've just passed the winter solstice and the days don't seem all that short.  I seem shorter, especially due to the depth of the mud which seems to be on the rise.   Mud doesn't really bother me but the truck sure hates it.  Dressing to the nines in rubber- booties, pants (always a very fashionable USDA regulated yellow), rain slicker and one of the caps the shrimp fishermen sport makes me feel like a real farmer.  A REAL farmer.

With the sunshine and warm high-fifties weather, I am upbeat.  I can get through this month's bills, have the truck fully repaired, pay off some of the debt owed to the summer interns, and get to Kentucky to finally get my brother's roof completed along with the staircase (nightime work).  Would love to get the clapboards on the front of his house done as well.   I'll ask some workshares to stop in while I'm away to check in on the birds.

Sunday, November 6   Moving Plans

Since a yearly contract is not forthcoming from the landowner at 345 Hidden
Valley Lane, I will have to move the operation.  A month to month, undefined lease which is only defined by the handing over of a check won't do.  Too much risk to not know what can and can't be done and I'm certain that when I arrange a farm dinner or some other gathering I will be told that I cannot.  Winter is the best time to make a move since crops and insane work schedules have abated somewhat (though I still have more than I can handle to do),  so I have started looking.  I will not be moving to Kentucky.  I have a strong allegiance to the CSA and its' members and to suddenly cancel the operation would be an affront to them (and three years of very hard labor), and an added financial burden (all of their accounts would be refunded).  I can't consider this option.  I may make the move to Kentucky in a few years and if I do, I will have my debts greatly reduced and perhaps have someone to take over the business.   So, I will probably move to Huntingdon county.  Land prices are reasonable and it is a bit further south and about the same distance to State College as I am now.   I may even be able to farm on one of the market vendor's farms as they have an unused "back 40" but that would entail building a cottage so it's just an opening volley I think.  Ideally I am looking for a rent with a option to buy.  Rent for 5 years, grow the business and save enough to put down 50% towards the purchase price.  I'll start talking to realtors tomorrow, put out some ads today and send off some emails to some farmers I know in the area.  I would prefer to move in a year but this winter might be better.  Once again, without a contract, it will probably be a constant hassle to be here, notwithstanding all of the work that will go into the place.  The owner feels that I should be held responsible to the financial agreements made- i.e. continuing to pay the mortgage on the buildings on the property.  Those agreements (which I currently adhere to) were made with the underlying condition that I would be living here and have a relationship with the family.  That is gone.  We weren't married but this is a divorce never the less.  I've spent 6 years working on this place and I don't think the effort is appreciated at all.  Well, I'll take the rap.  Time to go.  This winter or next.

I have sixty 4 day old chicks living with me in the apartment at least until tomorrow while I clean the coop and build an insulated door.  I should have 75 except that the mail carrier left them outside next to the door in the 50 degree weather when I specifically left instructions to put them inside so of course a number perished.  They must have close to 95 degrees for the first week of their lives and as they grow that temperature is reduced by 5 degrees each week. I don't like raising chicks through the dead of winter but there aren't any predators so it's just a question of heat. 

One potato, two potato, three potato, four!   Five potato, six potato seven potato more!

It's amazing what pops into your head when you're digging potatoes.  I was getting more rock that potato but at least my technique for missing them has been on the upswing and all of the rock is making a good road base just where it is needed.  This is slow and inefficient work but for next year, these rows in the "triangle" bed area will be 5 feet wide and almost 24 inches deep with a very heavy dressing of compost. 

For a few times last year and once this year thus far, Howard's End has supplied fresh ingredients to Fasta to make various pastas and raviolis.  While I was digging those two potatos, three potatoes, four I had the idea that we should collaborate moreso on a regular monthly basis with Fasta.  I had mentioned this to Bob who runs the company (when he's not playing rugby) a few months ago.  He was very upbeat about the idea but later I became a bit nervous about the cost H. E. would incur so I  dropped pursuit of the idea.  Now, perhaps it might be time to reconsider.   A ravioli a month and perhaps even a pasta a month especially during the cold months of the year would help greatly with the income stream especially if the raviolis in particular were unique.  How about a fennel and artichoke ravioli for instance- we will grow both next year.  There is also a caramelized pear and fennel ravioli and a smoke trout and fennel ravioli (actually it was salmon- I'm just speculating).  That chef who has the "F word" show- Ramsey does a duck ravioli with Jerusalem artichoke sauce on u-tube.  The list goes on.   By the way, I pulled all of these ideas off the web so I'm not exactly giving out trade secrets here...  Unique ravioli and pasta offerings to the CSA members every month would be a great addition for the CSA menu and ultimately would help Fasta as well.  It's just a question of working out the details and making certain that Howard's End can pay for Fasta's services with an inkind exchanges of herbs, eggs, various meats and produce. 

Had a nice chat with the property owner and I think H.E. won't have to relocate at least for 2012 which is a relief.  Now I will have to learn how the rest of that potato song goes as I have at least three or four hundred more feet of potatoes to dig.  I may have to create some new lines.  I mean really, shouldn't you be doing something more constructive than reading this????By the way-F.Y.I.  secret messages encoded in every paragraph! 

Monday Evening, Late

Waiting to pull the yogurt so it can by strained overnight removing most of the whey with the result that it thickens.  The flavor, creaminess, etc also becomes more concentrated.   Greek yogurt.  Just spent the last hour and a half cleaning and packing leeks, chioggia beets and turnips.  Still have scones to make but may wait until I awake which will be 4:30 am or so.  Five six packs of scones and two pizzas to make followed by harvesting of a few fennel and the mustard greens.  Should have plenty of time.

This afternoon I was in Mackeyville, and stopped by Aquilla's place to talk about one of his steers for butchering in early January.  For whatever reason, a conversation with Aquilla always seems to take a somewhat circitous route with a parry here and there.  There I am negotiating to purchase a whole steer which is going to cost me around $1,000 and I have no idea how I'm going to raise the money so I'm asking him if I can put $500 down when I pick it up with the second payment due net thirty.   From him there is no such thing as a straight answer but a quip about leaving town which I throw back at him later on.  Credit is tight and all the farmers know it.  Faith is on the lean side nowadays but we'll make a deal and I'll find a way to put together the funds.  I ask him if he might like to raise some pigs for me since I'm not permitted?  Nope. 

November 9  Sunny and Warm

The truck will survive another year and my estimate of around a thousand for repairs is very close.  As of yesterday I've been crunching numbers and working a plan for 2012.  Looks like I will be working with a budget of about $77,000.  Still no salary to speak of for me but I will be able to pay down some of the debt and get a number of essential projects completed such as the hoop houses (12), the chicken operation (includes ducks, geese, and rabbits),and an irrigation system for the entire operation.  I will not be able to hire a farm supervisor to assist me but will have to rely on interns again- only two this time, with experience for ten weeks from June until mid August.  Wwoofers will have to fill the gaps and I will build two platform tents for them to live in.  I will have to do as much winter/early spring field preparation as I can to make up for the lack of a partner.  The triangle field has been double-dug, composted and its' square footage doubled.  The raised beds now average 5 feet in width which is the maximum.  If December can be mild enough so that the ground doesn't freeze, I can get another large section completed.  With 4 hoop houses completed (I am presuming the failure of the kickstarter campaign), I can expect to have an acre ready for or planted with spring crops.  I will be able to plant 900 garlic cloves which is better by 300 than I had expected.  Completion of the scrub forest clearing and installation of the fencing will give me a running start as well.  That leaves the catalog set up, construction of the new hen house and chicken tractors and work on the residence to fill out the winter.  With a rebuilt Gravely walk-behind, we will have the upper hand on the weed situation.  I've made a good deal with Fasta tentatively- we will sit down and do a month by month plan shortly. 

Friday, November 11

It's a pleasure to drive the truck once again.  Despite its' lack of heat or air conditioning (actually it has both- hot in the summer and freezing in the winter), it's a marvel when the power steering and brakes actually work.  When I arrived to pick it up the young lady at the counter noted that with only a few more parts and subsequent repairs I should have the equivalent of a new truck.  Since I haven't managed to save five or ten thousand dollars which is what a decent truck would run, I think that an annual bill between eight and fifteen hundred dollars isn't all that bad.  If I cost average the miles and what it costs to maintain the vehicle it comes at around ten cents a mile.  The insurance is a whopping $266 a year.  I was offered a 4 x 4 vehicle with rear dual axles and 205,000 miles on the odometer in much nicer shape than mine for $3,500.  It got 9-10 mpg whereas mine gets nearly 20.  I will spend around $2,600 in gas in 2012 if gas runs around $3.60 on average.  The other vehicle would cost me $2,600 more in gas and with two hundred thousand miles it will have some issues that will cost a grand- so I'll stay put with my F-150.  After all it deserves some loyalty.  It has hauled enough lumber to build three homes not to mention the number of moves, loads of compost, and on.   Once I replace the engine, I'll get my winter heat and summer conditioning back too.  The odometer is just shy of 200,000 and I do have that Thanksgiving trip coming up.

Wednesday, November 16

Spent yesterday at the final Tuesday Farmer's Market.  It rained just as it had the previous year but was reasonably warm.   Had planned to attend a gathering at the municipal building centered around sustainable living, etc. but only managed to drop off two loafs of artisinal bread and a couple of jars of quince marmalade before leaving.  I was exhausted, unshaven and disheveled.  Got the chickens secured, finished reading a book, and watched a DVD before giving up.   Checked emails and much to my amazement a total stranger had donated $1,000!  That increased the pledges to $1,600 and by 5 this morning I had worked up a plan which I think might just work. I had completely given up on the idea- just too many other tasks to attend to- six weeks of double digging and setting hoop house posts, chickens, money problems-  I had decided that the design work and sale of a few antiques would get me through the next couple of months somehow.   Once I put my mind to kickstarter this morning especially with such a pledge creating the pyschological push, I realized that I knew alot of people who hadn't been contacted and as with most big projects that look daunting (we're talking about $3,400 in the next 12 days with Thanksgiving looming- a big distraction), I realized that I could break the problem into three parts. The first part we've accomplished- $1,600 so that's great.  The second $1,700 requires (in my mind) about 32 people to make an average contribution of $50 which is reasonable based on the first monies raised.   It took me about a half hour to come up with a list of 28 and I think most will contribute.  The final $1,700 is tricky- but by adding CSA memberships to the reward list (which will start May 1st) of either $200 or $400, I would only need 6-8 people to sign up.  I already know of 2 and I think I can cajole (sweetly) the current 90 members to help find a few more.  I even know of a couple of previous members who might rejoin since we are doing things differently now. 

Friday, November 18

In a few months there will be a curtain of green all along the window wall of the carraige house apartment.  Ginger, figs, orang, lemon and lime tree, lavender and rosemary are all shoulder to shoulder on the plastic shelving that we had used for seedling germination now do their duty indoors.  Despite my failings to have a single hoop house as yet complete, the hoop house beds show signs of emerging life and as the sun lazily expired low over the mountain, I set out a couple of row covers and a ground hooped plastic cover.  Spinach, shunkiyo, and swiss chard are looking good.  Finished harvesting the two 50 ft leek beds except for a sole shoot here and there, and piled up mounds of compost which will be spread and worked into the soil this weekend and later.  Two cubic yards of compost is just enough to dress about 200 feet of raised bed which will be expanded to a 5 ft girth.  Still there are over three hundred feet of potatoes to dig. I'm afraid I will lose many to rot but at least the beds will have been double dug with the "green" manure (weed) cover turned in growing wider with each completion. Broccoli raab and a mix of greens comprised of spinach, purple mizuna and lettuces will be harvested and offered for the "Thanksgiving" distribution along with sweet potatoes, and a sage/pepper fettucini FASTA has made for us.   I'm on the hunt for venison so that we can offer a venison/something ravioli in December. 

November 20- Sunday.

This morning, following a solid hour of washing the ton of dirty dishes that were scattered everywhere, and emptying the large cooking pot that I was using to wash clothes in, I put my heavy duty work shoes on and was promptly stung by a wasp.  It was like stepping on a needle and the first thought that came to mind was a scorpion bite.  My father had told me that during WWII when they were posted in North Africa (flying B-24 bombers), they always had to shake out their shoes in the morning because of the scorpions that would crawl into them.  I was relieved to find a wasp, and unlike a yellow jacket sting, it didn't cause my foot to swell.

November 21

Almost always on harvest days there are root crops that have to be cleaned.  Usually we just put them in a large basin and let a hose run for awhile.  It helps but dirt still clings to the roots so all have to be hand scrubbed. This takes a long time.  The only option is to build a large machine that slowly and gently agitate the roots dislodging the dirt.  You might think of using a washing machine but with the amount of sediment, small rock and mud coming off, I doubt the washer would last.  There's another option.  Always great to have a machine around that doesn't cost an arm and a leg but can serve multiple functions.  A cement mixer is such a machine.  It mixes cement, naturally, but is also great for adding amendments to your seedling soils for example.  And, with one addition, it can also clean your root vegetables.  I can think of two options- find a large heavy duty plastic bucket that will fit snugly into the mixer and drill 3/4 inch holes all over it so that the water and dirt, etc will run out.  The better option (I think) would be to build a slatted bucket out of oak or some other hardwood (maybe s softwood would work but might not hold up well over time) with a solid bottom, using 1 or 1 1/2 inch slats for the sides spaced about 3/4 of inch apart.  use copper strips with copper nails to bind all the slats together or a very heavy polyethylene plastic as your strapping.  You would have to secure the sides to the base- I would rabbet a groove around the base and screw them in from the bottom with pre-drilled holes.  Better even to cut u slots out and fit them into the base that way.  You might want to double up the base- two thicknesses of 3/4 thick wood rotated 180 degress so the grain of each is 90 degrees off the other.  All edges of the slats on the inside have to be rounded so as not to bruise the vegetables.   You will want to have a clamp on the mixer to hold a hose there so you can have a constant flow of water.  You might also want to make a lid (maybe out of heavy galvanized fencing or wood) so when you tilt the mixer to remove mud, etc, your produce won't spill out as well. When you're done, just pull the bucket out et voila!  I'll give you an update on any improvements to this idea- I imagine there will be some.

Tuesday, November 22

Made the distribution of turkeys, broccoli raab, sweet potatoes, leeks and other goodies in the chill of a light rain wearing a light two buttoned (top two) marroon canvas coat that left me soaked by 2:45 pm when I departed for one final delivery and the bank with just enough money to deposit so that I could pay a couple of overdue bills, send my sister a $100 (so she could make an interview in Paris) and head to Kentucky where, aside from completing the roof on my brother's house (a job which has lingered over the past two years), I can wash all of my clothes in a washing machine rather than by hand which I have been doing for the past couple of months.   I'm caught in thoughts about the other CSA's and their farmer stewards and how everyone agrees just how bad this year was.  A piece of one of my back molars came off a couple of days ago into my hand while I was chewing something and it drew me to the problem of farming again as did a discussion surrounding the care of the elderly and what happens to the assets of a family member when he/she (read parent) goes into a nursing facility- if a Remainder Charitable Trust hasn't been established 5 years previous to entry, medicaid back charges the estate at the time of his/her passing.  That's the gist of it, anyway.  So a farmer breaks his/her back all of his/her life only to give up the property in order to satisfy the $225 a day (aand up) that nursing care entails.  I don't think the Amish have this problem- they take care of their own.  I presume so but will ask.   How do they keep their farms together- do they?  I was recently having an interesting conversation with one of my CSA couples in regards to my current predicament and what I might do.  They mentioned that they were very interested in establishing/running a CSA and in this idea were talking to another family about sharing a farm.  They were wondering if I were interested in exporing possibilities.  Maybe I should find out how kibbutzes are run, and seek out other community land owned possibilities.  Currently, my idea is to purchase a piece of land (20 acres minimum- bigger would be better) and create a non-profit corporation, foundation or trust that would then be owned by those who worked it.  That would afford continuity but how much security?  A mom- pop business is susceptible to all kinds of upsets.  Most CSA's are smallish operations- sole proprietorships with a small core of dedicated workers.   There are a handful in the state that provide for 300 plus members but they are still small businesses with a gross of no more than a couple of million at best.  I am convinced that as long as a farm is flying solo- and most of us are, it is as vulnerable as a bird separated from its' flock.  It may survive for awhile but will eventually succumb to predation, bad weather, bad luck or pure exhaustion not to mention the loneliness of its' predicament.   For this reason, I'm going to explore ways that CSA's in the area might work together.  I think there are more ways than might be immediately obvious. 

The greatest violinists, baseball players and other athletes, scientists and many other professionals at the top of their game all have something in common.   They have mentors and/or coaches.  Someone to look over their shoulder and give them advice and encouragement.   Farmers need mentors and coaches as well. They also need to share information and experiences amongst themselves and with researchers whenever possible.  There should be direct links between farmers in the field and those ag researchers in the university setting.  This is the first reason for creating a CSA/organic farmer umbrella organization.   As a start, the members could simply come to one another's farm and comment on the operation- asking questions, and making commentary.  Problems that are encountered could be shared and solved by a greater body than just the lone one.  An ongoing discourse between professors, graduate students and doctoral researchers could be established and would be ongoing.  The farmers could go to the researchers if they are stumped and vice versa- new ideas could be tried out on a commercial scale. 

A second reason- seed collection and preservation, and seed purchasing would be more efficient (for some but not all purchases) if the farms joined together to not only purchase their seed but perhaps other equipement as well.  The larger the discount (irrigation supplies, mulches, green house materials, etc) are almost always far less expensive in larger quantities as is shipping.  There are certain materials that most farms use every year.  The savings might amount to only a few hundred or a thousand dollars but every dollar saved is a step up. 

Third-  sharing of produce.  I believe strongly in diversity- "super diversity"- I think monoculture results in an acute loss of soil fertility whether it is organic or not.  We are have preferences- one farmer might want to grow mostly berry crops, another something else- with occasional crop failures suffered by all, perhaps there is a way to share crops.  If I am raising ducks or pigs for example, it might be more efficient to raise extra for the other CSA's while they raise in excess other crops and then we trade.  A rotating system could be set up for each season.  

Fourth- Publicity.  Coordination of membership drives, advertising, and general news to raise the visibility of CSA's in the region.  Sharing of costs and perhaps memberships where one CSA might be more suitable to particular members than others. 

Fifth-  One of the advantages of being represented by an at large corporate umbrella is that the farms may be able to secure federal or state loans or grants that might not otherwise be available to a single farmer.  Fund raising for health insurance benefits might be another possibility.  

Sixth- Better coordination over pricing of produce or CSA memberships and other related products.  Packaging would be less expensive if bought in bulk.   

Seventh- Initiation of a central Pa farmer's kickstarter online business model which would raise money for initiatives, increase public awareness and coordinate multiple projects.  In my opinion, the current "kickstarter" models are ill suited for regional needs.  They are nationally oriented, city centered and tend to focus on ideas which are not necessarity green- mostly "chic" and trendy.  A long shot, but we should give it a try.

Monday, November 28   Angels and Demons in Kentucky

Sometimes it's hard to know where to start so breakfast is always a good option.  I'm going through my mother's papers gathering all the essentials about her life that I can possibly find.  I haven't been here since last year and whenever I spoke to her on the phone, she seemed fine if not a little forgetful.  My brother would always report that she was about the same so all seemed well.  Clay, her 92 year old boyfriend is well (mom is 84) and sharp.  Without him, she would be lost in confusion.  My mom is in an advanced state of dementia and has trouble verbalizing her thoughts.  She can still dress and feed herself fortunately and get around with some difficulty but can't manage her affairs. Fortunately, Clay signs her checks and sends off her bills and her basic needs are constant for the moment.  Changes are coming soon though.  My brother and I have been "notified" by Clays' family that they intend to remove him from this relationship because they feel it is affecting his health and is abusive to him.  They seem to have forgotten that my mom and Clay love one another and though I do agree that changes must be made, I strongly disagree with their rational which is baseless.  What does this have to do with farming?  Everything, actually.  My mom owns 50 acres where my brother farms and besides the house she lives in, it is her other primary asset.  If my mom is put into a nursing home, medicaid will fund the first 90 days or so and then the estate will be charged once she moves on into a higher dimension.   Our primary concern is for her comfort so we will do our best to keep her in her home (my brother will assist and my sister possibly as well if we can get her here from Europe) for as long as possible while we take measures to hopefully protect the farm from being sold in order to pay for her care.   A good reason to incorporate a farm is to keep it from such a fate and the second fate of being passed down to siblings  and in the process endlessly divided until only small parcels remain.  My grandfathers' farm once was close to 900 acres when I was young.  Now, only 50 acres remain, the rest being sold off to other farms (not a bad thing necessarily), or cut up for building lots.  "Our" 50 acres has one of the original homesteads on it- a ruin which I have be gradually resurrecting - a high Georgian home built around 1810 by John Allen or his son.

Tuesday, November 29

Met with an attorney this morning and feel far more secure.  Need to gather more information in the next couple of days and set meetings with some local home care providers, find the deed to the farm, and other important papers so that an LLC can be established among other things. We aren't out of the woods yet but the attorney seems to feel we might be able to manage.  In the meantime, a day spent finishing the staircase and installing windows and doors in my brother's house will move that project along.  We have to try somehow to get the first floor pulled together in 2012.  I will have to plan visits at least four times in 2012 which means having a farm "manager" in place.   The demons have retreated a little. 

Angels...                    Despite my very late push to alert every one I could think of, the kickstarter campaign succeeded!  The funds will make it possible to get the hoop houses built and survive the winter.  As I now have orders for wood cut notecards, T-shirts, ceramic tiles and plates, cedar window boxes to fill, the creation of a catalog is soon to come.   There are also some real business options to pursue which will take time but might prove to be very beneficial.   It means research and business plans but I now have access to brokers who will help me finesse my concepts before connecting the concept to the investors.    I will add a facebook site to the CSA to strengthen the social profile of the business.  Despite the many negatives of this year, its' summary is positive.  Hard for me to fathom but the CSA income doubled, and the members are happy.  We have added many more products and continue to do so.   We will be far more prepared for the 2012 season which translates into much earlier crops, more value-addeds and better cash flow.  This auspicious beginning will result in the doubling of the gross proceeds again.   If I can keep the family situation on a par, avoid burnout and skip the winter blues by keeping busy, then I have a chance.  I have had two long season intern inquiries thus far via ATTRA which is a very good sign.   

    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.  

Amanda, our third intern arrived yesterday and is housed in the big house while I try and get the larger of the two bedrooms on the second floor of the "residence" complete enough so that it is comfortable for the duration of her stay.  Though there is a great deal of planting and other tasks to perform, it feels good to spend a half day each day upgrading the residence and bringing it closer to completion. Once the room is in reasonable condition, with a carpeted floor, door, closets, bed, chairs, etc. then work on the bathroom and downstairs kitchen will commence with emphasis on the installation of a toilet and sink and door for the bathroom and then a clearing of a third of the ground floor for a communal kitchen/dining area.   Perhaps I'll even get a front door on- incomplete (uncarved and without stained glass and an insulated core) but operational.  I'm not certain if the barn swallows will go for the intrusion- we'll just leave it open during the day and hope it doesn't upset their comings and goings too much. 

Sunday, June 5

J and I created two more "tumuli" today- both quite large.  Many of our tumuli are chicken tumuli as we start with the burial of a chicken or multiple chicks.   We are still encountering predatory problems but are getting them in at night- the one we lost last night probably got out at 4 am and paid the consequences.   I won't allow that to happen tonight- or at any point in the future.  We had our first Sunday luncheon and meeting in the shade between vehicles in the gravel drive with lemonade, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, carrots,  and a couple of hummus and cucumber dips.  Worked out days off for June, July and August and discussed the work for the week to come.  J and I then went off and got a large slate chalkboard which we installed in the residence.  We will now have a central point of planning.  K and Amanda spent the day working together in the "triangle" beds weeding the Fava beans, leeks, harvesting the red lettuce heads and pulling all that had bolted, and finished with the harvesting and processing of Kohlrabi and Collard greens.   Tommorrow will start off as a morning filled with the planting of seedlings and some direct seeding before we get into bed building (Jonathan and I- he to continue on the sweet potatoe beds and I on the salamander earth figure for the artichokes which are crying out to be put in the deep earth mounds there.) and harvesting later in the day.   The repaired tiller should be back on Wednesday and will be a help to speed up tilling and planting.  I expect we will put about 2,500 feet of new raised beds into service this month.  Potatoes and corn will be next week.   Caught a small bright green snake and passed it around.  Quite friendly but glad to be on its way when I released it into some tall grass.

Monday- Harvest Day June 6

My father was a navigator-bombardier on a B-24 when the D-Day invasion occured.   He flew a total of 25 mission before retiring as a Captain at the old age of 23 to teach younger men how to fly in Ireland.   He appears on the cover of a Life Magazine which carries the caption "Navigator-Bombardiers of the 8th Army Air Force" or something like that.  I can spot him right away looking somewhat debonair in the crowd of men.    He never talked about the war and his experiences except perhaps once telling the story about how there raged a football game on the second floor of a bombed out building with a sardine can as the football and how one yound gent got carried away literally when he successfully caught a pass and flew out a window but was unharmed.   He went on to become an Air Attache and work in intelligence in various emabassies in Europe or at the Pentagon when we were stationed back to the U.S.  He never discussed the war though he had good friends in ex-German fighter pilots and his job was a silent experience for us his family members. He wore the uniform of a Colonel and smoke and drank alot.   When we were out at my grandfather's and uncle's farm in Kentucky I think he enjoyed being there.  I think he might have enjoyed farming though I'm not sure what he would think if he knew that I was now farming.   He is at peace now and I feel better too. 

June 8 

Howard's End CSA is a full service CSA.  Not only do we cater to our paying members but the local population of young bunnies and groundhogs have decided to join too.   I practically steppend on a bunny which was too busy chewing on beet greens to pay me any notice and I had to shoo it away which it acquiesced but only reluctantly.  The young groundhog was less fortunate.  it met its end, quickly.   I think we will be setting hav-a-heart traps and see if that helps.   Mowing should help the problem by removing the cover.  

June 11

Two hours of sleep last night due to friction with one of the interns and a fierce rainstorm that dumped 1 1/2 inches of rain and kept me in fear of finding dozens of dead chicks for one reason or another.   Following market and the successful sale of many pounds of broccoli among other things it is agreed that teamwork is the way to go.  Four farmhands equals two teams of two, or one of four or a threesome (when I am out picking up compost or something).  This way, there are far fewer chances for one on one confrontations.   A better social atmosphere is created and the work effort of all workers are increased with the comraderie.   No one is alone, facing a huge project that stretches for hours.  Everyone has to pitch in and a natural rhythm is established.  Time for a short nap. Then off to pick up the repaired tiller which as sat, until now, in the field since last year.  It is only useful for the final top tilling of any raised bed but that is where all the seed rests so it will be a great help and pick up the planting pace a bit. 

June 17

This weekend marks the final push to get caught up with crop plantings.  18 crops need to go into the ground.   Upon completion of this list, we will be in reasonably good shape and can change our focus over to field maintenance which is seriously lagging , harvesting and successional crop planting.  Though we are signed up for the August 6 farm tour, I'm still very apprehensive about the whole idea.  We have to make a final decision by the 24th.     Our cash flow is but a trickle and I don't expect much improvement until August.  In the meantime,  I will have to find ways to improve it.  One idea is to have a "Dinner at 8" near the end of July at the farm- under the stars.  This dining event will feature a "country-grourmet" meal for let's say, about 40 people (if I can get Valerie to agree to this number).  We would provide everything but the wine (??) including our own brewed beer (if we can get started soon enough), some liquors, an herbal gelato and some artisinal pizzas baked on site along with some main courses and a salad.  The pizzas necessitate the construction of a clay oven which can be done.  At $30 a person, I think we could net about $1,000 which would complensate us for all the produce, chickens, eggs and labor that will be demanded.   Another income source will be the local grass fed beef idea and what holds up the commencement of this project is the anticipated formation of a new local butcher in Spring Mills.  It is currently in a formative phase and I imagine won't become a reality until sometime in the fall at best.   I may have to contract the local commercial butcher if I can- I understand that they book well in advance.   A third financial cog would be the garden ornament business which I have designs for but have yet to implement.  All I really need to do here is clone myself (or better- someone larger and younger than I) so that I can get down to business right away.  In the meantime I will just have to wait until the planting and the other behind schedule jobs get some progress under their collective butts.    I do hope to have a few prototypes around and about for sale by the time the farm tour rolls around.   In the meantime,  I need to fix the lawnmower and hook up the hot water heater today so I can feel good about myself a little.

June 18  Market Day

Amanda and K accompany me to the market so that I can hop over to Greenmore Gardens CSA , talk about chickens during their "open house" and take a look at their crops.   We arrive fifteen minutes before opening bell but manage to get set up in time.   The two interns are in great spirits and end up running the show for the day while I sit back, rest and laugh at their  humorous dispositions.   By market's end we've done over $150 in business, made our distributions and head down to "Nature's Pantry" to pick up supplies for various pesto and hummus recipes we plan to make for distribution to the members this forthcoming Tuesday.   A large box of seed from Johnny's greets me at home which is a welcome sight and I take the rest of the day off once the truck is unloaded.  Just can't do anymore.  Tomorrow, Sunday will be a long day of planting and I am determined to get at least ten crops in.  J and K will both leave around noon for four days.  The hot water installation has failed for some reason.   I will probably need to hook up the pressure tank after all and consult a manual to see what else needs to be done.  I also have CSA accounting to do which I have thus far managed to avoid.   That will be a Sunday evening task.   I could sleep for a week.  

June 28 Market Day Evening.

The last time I remember, I was in the truck returning from the Saturday, Market, talking to Amanda about Dairy Queen and listening to her describe Peruvian eating traditions and their spiritual world.   Then I'm in upstate New York, exhausted as usual, working out a new budget which this time is based not on potential crops but on the value of each distribution that we've been making.  It makes more sense.  We have hit distribution number 16 for the year.  There will be a total of 40.  My estimation now, based on the distributions, time of year, emerging crops and value-addeds coming and a look back at the fall distributions, is that we will gross around $65,000.  Enough to pay the bills, remove $16,000 of the red from our books and have a little saved to get us through the 12 week break which begins mid-December and ends at the beginning of February.   With each drink, the Peruvians bless the earth and we are planning a Big Feast.  The 29th of July.  Places for 40 people.  An evening of merriment and fine country dining under the stars.   Time to firm up the menu planning.   Time to make the artisinal beer and build the artisinal clay oven for the artisinal pizzas that we will serve.  Time to get those damn artichokes into the Salamander beds.  Time for the Salamander to make its' presence known.  Time to bang the bend out of the lawn mower blade so I can cut more grass.   Time to do alot more planting. Time to start planting for the fall and time to mound up the earth around the leeks so that they will become fat and tender.   The interns are putting in longer hours.   I am told that yesterday K stood up in the field and exclaimed that she hated farming.  She kept on farming and both she, J and Amanda worked very late in the kitchen makeing Basil and Garlic Scape pestos, pizzas, and spinach hummus while M and Valerie made scone and pizza dough.  I arrived just at midnight and everyone were still in the kitchen though somewhat dazed and quiet looking.  I was a bit dazed myself having spent a ten hour day shingling a roof before driving the 5 hours to return.  Up at 7 (late!) and everyone pitches in to wrap things up and get the truck loaded.  I run off to a local market to purchase the odd vegetable, eggs and cheese from some of my amish friends to supplement what we already have.    The yogurt is no good due to a small error but we have extra so it doesn't matter.  The distribution goes well though I feel battered and jet-lagged.   The farm is coming together though and that thought will make this week a good productive week.   We will get the planting done and get some clean up and infrastructure work in too.   We will also try to get those pigs again this Friday.    Maybe build a giant See-Saw for them.  One on either end. I See this pig and Saw that one.   I'm thinking seriuosly about working up an outline for a farm radio show.    I wonder how the interns will do tommorrow.  I have a local "intern" candidate comeing to visit on Thursday.   Time to go to sleep.

One of the events that we will hold in 2012 will be entitled "The Central Pennsylvania Boules Championship" and will consist of a boule tournament naturally, a barbeque roast of our chicken, duck,and local pork and goat along with a large smatteing of vegetables.  The highlight along with the many boules courts that we will create (all over the farm- using unused bed rows and the flat area down at the residential area), will be the beer tasting.  I figure we'll make 6 different beers- an India Pale Ale, a Belgian Ale, a Chocolate Stout, and so on.  Everyone will be able to sample the beers and will get two or three bottles to drink as part of the package deal (so we won't be selling the beer at all), which might run $20-25 a person.  Maybe we could hire the Alleghany Ridge Runners to play music for a couple of hours.  I can't wait!

Following a week of a grey and chilled rain, the sun has reappeared and rumor has it itmay be around for a week accompanied by rising and warming temperatures.  Kickstarter is not yet launched due to the Amazon maze of accounting requests with tiny deposits made into the business account for verification.  I imagine it will be done and launched this week.  I imagine.

During this past week in between harvest and other outdoor chores, I retreated in doors to knock the chill off and catch up on the accounting which always seems to be in a state of near completion or falling behind.  Glass half empty or half full I guess.  During this duty, I did take the time to tabulate the incomes for the months through September and with some reasonable calculations for the final three of this year, I determined that the gross income for Howard's End would come in around $40,000 which is a disappointment if I look at what I had hoped for- $60,000 or more but on the other hand, with the abysmal weather patterns we have suffered and poor luck with the interns (3 of 4 unsatisfactory), we have managed to pay our bills (mostly) and have harvested about three times as much as we did last year.  We sold around 6-700 chickens last year whereas this year we have sold none (to date) due to predation and disease which wiped out the first 250.  With poor assistance at hand, I had no choice but to abandon the program for this season.  We will rebuild and electrify over the winter and into the early spring for next year and add Pekin ducks which I have learned can be raised on foraging alone (or almost).  Geese are grass eaters so I will try a few of those as well. As for next year, with the addition of chickens, ducks, etc, hoop houses as season extenders,  the addition of a commercial kitchen and subsequent value added products, and arts/crafts catalog we can get our gross into the $80,000 range without a struggle, especially if we can increase our crop production by 30%.   The more hoop houses we build (with a goal of 12 currently) the more control we will have over our crops in relation to the weather.  Irrigation is still a grave concern which will have to be in place by May.  Without it, we may as well pack up and go do something else.  Finally, I plan to hire a full time assistant/partner.  Without full time assistance- experienced, I can't continue.  One farmer with interns doesn't work.  Two farmers will. We will limit the interns to two and screen them very carefully and pay them in relation to their work and experience.  In all fairness to the interns, with two full time farmers in place, they will recieve a better education and overall planning will be more regulated as opposed to the "crisis management on the verge of constant exhaustion" sort.  We are coming to the close of our third year and I personally feel that I am emerging from my own internship.  I have a much better overall view of this business now and don't have the deep boned exhaustion that I was experiencing at this time last year.  Hopefully I will avoid it this time around.

October 12

Thinking alot about grass fed beef these days.  Currently in negotiations to set up the first distribution and friendly chats with one  of the local Amish butchers and the owner of the steer are ongoing as I sort out all of the logistics.  Reading up on the number and kinds of cuts that can be expected.  Also researching raising beef especially the costs- fencing and winter feed primarily.  Probably won't be able to do it on this farm but I do have friends who have 8 acres of pasture that might be available but unfenced.  The next step will be to chat with a number of farmers who have cattle to get the low down on the whole story... what I can expect.  What I'm thinking, currently, is to have a half dozen head at most so that the membership can have a grass fed beef distribution every two months or so. 

At some point in the future, it is most likely that Howard's End will have to move off it's current location.  The family isn't particularly enamored with it's presence and without a current lease- just a kind of unwritten presumed agreement- it's state is somewhat tenous.  I think at some point there will be a written agreement and as soon as I have had the chance to sit down with a real estate/contract lawyer I expect to learn my current rights and those of the owner.  If I have to move I will hope to move to a nearby location so the CSA can continue.  Moving a farm business is very costly and whenever a move is made or when a new farmer is negotiating a land lease there are many considerations to be made especially if you plan to raise produce organically, include livestock, maintain a commercial kitchen, grow fruits and berries, improve the soil and so on.  Farmers make huge labor investments in the land.  A long term lease is a must and a thorough and clear understand between the farmer and land owner is an absolute must.  Here are some considerations that I think should be included in a  farmer/owner contract (or at least in the negotiations):             (to be continued)

October 20

In order to make tomato jam you first have to peel the tomatoes and remove the seeds.  You do this by dropping them into boiling water for around 15-30 seconds depending on how ripe they are then scooping them out without scalding yourself and into an ice water bath.  I've got some ice in the bowl, but just let the water run.  Peeling is quick and instead of coring, I just stick a finger in and pop out the seeds.   I'm ready for a break so I think I'll go dig potatoes.

Finally got kickstarter going this past Tuesday and am just sending out emails.  Might make a big sign to hang at market (today) and will print out flyers.  It will be fun whether we are successful or not.  In the meantime, hoop house work and fall/winter planting is now a daily affair.

October 21

Another world will end profecy passes by and we're all still here. Rats!  A break from the heavy work load would have been welcome!  In between dozens of email messages being sent out to everyone I can think of to let them know of kickstarter, I'm making a tomato/basil jam, I  have a full harvest schedule to keep and if there's time the quince/lemon marmalade needs to  be done as well.  Have to run to town to pick up a couple of packages of goat sausage and other supplies such as parchment paper, pectin, and organic flour & sugar.  Got the T-shirt design worked out fairly quickly last night which was a relief.  Got about 50 feet of a new raised bed dug but had to quit due to the rain and the heaviness of the soil- we picked up an inch and a half of ran last week and have had an inch this week.  No sunshine to help everaporation of the moisture.  Just gray.  Planting is going fairly well though in between the deluges.  I'll have to focus on the existing hoop beds and that construction. Framing is nearly complete for three hoops so instead of digging heavy wet clay, I'll finish these first three completing their cover and plant out their beds which are only partially done at this point.  I've decided to publish a small pamphlet on this method of hoop house construction which I've devised presuming that it will hold up well in the worst weather with instruction/commentary on the clay ovens I plan to build to heat  them (bake bread and heat the hoops at the same time!).

October 24

the forecast for rain has held off with periods of calm and sun.  A perfect time to harvest. 
Started the morning around 5:30 with accounting work continued from the evening before.  Three more distributions to sort and record and then I can tally up.  Again, I was a full two months behind.  A very busy evening coming with many orders for scones, pizzas along with a jam and a marmade to make.  The members are placing full orders which always makes me happy.  Already nearly a dozen orders for fennel and many orders for sunchokes- I provided three recipes in the distribution email and that seems to have made the difference.  In order to maintain sanity (most of the time), I visit the Bellefonte library to pick up BBC murder mysteries and other series (I recommend "Foyle's War" and "Monarch of the Glen" and the Poirot series with David Suchet), along with cook books and the odd book to read (currently I'm reading "Moonlighting with Einstein" which is about the science of memory).  I am learning to cook. I bake bread regularly and dig for recipes.  I've just discovered a loadstone in "The Four Star Kitchen" which has many great duck recipes (for next year), deserts (medicine to counter the winter blues) and good all arounds using chicken, vegetables and so on.  I've been learning that the more fluent I am with what I am growing- i.e. what one does with it, the easier I can sell it.  Helps to develop costumer loyalty too.  I'm having a whole wheat pancake for lunch before returning to the field to harvest salad crops.

Fall has proven to be a very difficult time thus far.  My moods follow the weather- up with the sun and down with the rainy greys.  It's hard not to slip into periods of depression.  The stress of the entire season is a strong memory that doesn't fade quickly and with a very tenuous and uncertain financial future all the positive thinking can end up on quicksand quickly stipping into the mire.  I have solutions to the challenges but can they be implemented quickly enough?  Will Kickstarter work?  At this point I have to accept that it may not but I will do everything I can to bring success to it.  Money is a huge problem but solvable but I will need some luck.  I am developing new income streams and have other options but the current situation is very serious.  The truck continues to be a problem and probably needs at least $700 worth of work and I do need cash continue building the hoops.  I can't repeat last year. I must be able to grow more crops, and spend far less buying from other local growers.  I need to produce more and have reliable workers.  There simply won't be room for insubordinates in 2012.  I need to manage much better.  We need livestock to fill the gaps.  I need to feel financially secure.  I don't mind the long hours but killing myself and not being able to pay the bills is a place I can no longer be.

Sunday Evening  October 30

As the milk slowly heats and makes its' journey towards become the first batch of "Greek" yogurt, I'm poring over the orders for Tuesday, in particular those for the local grass fed beef.  I am gauranteed not to have enough sirloins but the hamburger will hold up and I think the soup bones will too.  It took awhile for the process of steer to table to reveal itself.  I ended up with half a side and paid for 240 pounds dress weight.  Once the side was cut up I ended up with about 160 pounds, just over half of it in hamburger (88 lbs) with the rest in short ribs, t-bones, sirloin, pot and chuck roast.  Once I had it safely stored in the refrigerator and had lowered the temperature to its' lowest setting I ran off to Wegman's to price their organic grass fed beef.  The place was packed as they were having a big Halloween to do for kids but I managed to squeeze myself past the gorilla, the whitch and her cauldron and numerous other frightening scenarios.  They had hamburger, happily which I duly noted ($5.15 lb) and then there was rib eye and strip steak and some other cuts which I couldn't relate to the tally the butcher had given me.  At some point I will have to go over one of those diagrams of a side of beef cut up in three-d.  Maybe next Halloween.

I burned the tomato/basil jam later that night as I tried to reduce it down a bit. Charred tomato jam.  A halloween treat.  The pepper plants froze.  I was picking peppers in the snows of Saturday.  Three bushels- one bushel diced and frozen for winter and spring pizzas, one bushel of the very large for stuffing duty (sausage, cheese, etc) and one for everday.  Picked the Marvel of Venice beans that I had left on the vine for seed. When the pods are dried and dehydrated, I will open them and collect the seed.  The fennel lives on. i'm going to cover the bulbs with a heavy mulch of staw and give it a plastic cover to see how long I can keep it going.  The other hope is that with a heavy mulch, I might be able to keep the roots alive through the winter.  I discovered that when the bulb is cut, new shoots appear for more fennel bulbs.  I will be saving seed from those plants that have bolted.  I have Brandywine and Striped German tomatoes, Turkish Eggplant and squash all happily rotting.  As the fruit rots, it activates the seed.  Once the fruit is a rotted mess, the seed is removed and left to dry and then stored.  I have seed for three sweet peppers and two hots as well. 

The potatoes are being dug.  The results are poor because they weren't hilled soon enough so there are only spuds at the base.   The red Norlands are a bright pink however and the beds are full of worms!  So they were worth it.  The beds are being widened and dressed with more compost.  Where the potatoes where this year, there will be leeks next year except instead of two rows of 50 feet, there will be 6 and they will be planted much earlier.  This will permit a continuous harvest well into the spring of the following year.  As for garlic which was a disaster this year (I planted an unkown variety), I will plant 600 garlic cloves which will produce 600 bulbs of which half will be sold and the remaining 300 divided to make a planting of around 1500.   I would plant more if I wasn't so broke.  It's a reasonable start.  I calculated that for a CSA of 100 families a planting of about 7,000 cloves would be about right if you wanted to keep everyone in garlic through the year.  That's only 6 bulbs of garlic per family per month.  The milk is approaching 150 F.  Once it gets to 185, I will put it in a cold water bath and bring the temp down to 115-110.  The yogurt culture is gently stirred in, the oven is set on warm for a few minutes and  the pot is covered, set in the oven and left overnight.   By morning it will be yogurt.  That's when the fun begins.  It will go into fabric and into the cheese press so that all of the whey is removed (a few hours later).  It should lose about half of its' mass in the process.  Et voila, Greek yogurt.  That's the theory.  We'll see.  Found an Amish farmer who sells Jersey cow milk.  Jersey milk is different from Holstein milk.  High solids content and yellower in color.  Planning on getting a few gallons to make Gouda cheese and perhaps a blue (Stilton or Gorgonzola) with some this winter.  Winter is a good time to make cheese if your cheese cave isn't up and running but you happen to have a basement.  I will make a "temporary" cheese cave environment and use a heater to keep the temp at 50 - 52.  I also plan to force the chicory that I've planted for Belgian endive.  I may even be able to start Oyster mushrooms.  I am going to start 50 hens and 50 meat birds so that we will have predator free chicken by February and a enough hens giving eggs by May.  The coldest weather arrives in January and by then the chicks will have their feathers at 8 weeks old.  On warm days I will put them in the heated hoops so they can get some greens.

November is the month to set all of the posts for the hoop houses that aren't yet up.  Then it won't matter whether the ground is frozen or not. I will be able to raise them.  I'll have to set the oven foundation pads in them at the same time- for those that I plan to heat.  Black raspberry and red raspberry bushes will be transplanted in early November and globe artichokes will be planted, heavily mulched and covered in hoop house beds in a bid to get them through the winter. I'll start more artichokes in December and put the figs and ginger in the hot house (sun pit) to get them through the winter.  I hope to prepare and compost a few hundred feet of beds which will have to be covered with plastic mulch, weed block or row cover to eliminate any chance of erosion. 

I'm negotiating for a Gravely walk behind- actually two of them for $275.  One works the second is for parts.  They come with a plow.  If I can manage the expense we will finally begin to get an upper hand on the weeds.  I will be very busy these cold months.  The 2012 festival for the arts artisan's application deadline is January 31 and I plan to apply.  My application will include a very large painted screen as a backdrop, a table, a lamp (sculpted stone with free form shade) and ceramic tiles, pots, plates and bowls all of which will be in the new catalog.  Woodcut notecards will be there too. And T-shirts.  I don't think the kickstarter campaign will succeed but at least it will have launched the catalog and get me back into art work.