market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Market Farming
List archive
- From: "Beth Spaugh" <lists AT rhomestead.com>
- To: "'Market Farming'" <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
- Subject: Re: [Market-farming] Introduction
- Date: Thu, 11 Dec 2008 20:43:37 -0500
You seem to have collected an excellent
set of tools. The only things I could offer are 1) yes, you need to general
more income to support yourself, and 2) maybe look at a walk-in cooler a la “CoolBot”. Beth Spaugh Rehoboth Homestead "How we eat determines, to a
considerable extent, how the world is used." - Wendell Berry "Without power over our food, any
notion of democracy is empty." - Frances Moore Lappe From:
market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:market-farming-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Leigh Mae Friedline Hi Folks, We joined a while back and have been reading. Thank you all for your
postings. By way of introduction- We
grow 50 or so crops for a 20 member CSA, and 1 farmers market in southern NH on
clay soils, zone 6. We have about an acre in Certified Organic production in a
small valley pocket. What we lack in light we make up for in shelter from the
winds. It was land passed to me through my family (it is broken into many small
irregular shaped pieces and has a town road, a neighbors driveway right of way,
and two power line over and through it). But until we are able to afford better
land we are making the best of it. We would love to be able to grow on more
land but we haven't figure out how to afford it from farming income. We are
concerned about the appropriate or natural scale for our CSA vegetable farm.
Rented, lease or borrowed land seems to be at a premium in our area. We have
been growing for three years and have put most of our profit back in. Leigh Mae
worked for two seasons prior on a couple of local farms. To give some idea of
our cultural techniques her is a list of most of our important tools: a BCS 850
(with attachments: a cart, a manure spreader, a flail mower, a snow thrower, a
single bottom plow, a tool bar with chisels, a york rake, a tiller box, a disc
harrow), an Earthway seeder, a variety of hand hoes, remay, an on dirt 21x48
heated (propane 100K BTU) vented twin wall envelope Ledgewood Greenhouse,
bought in organic starting mix, various plug trays, a big 'ol 3 bay sink, a
hand crank honey capping extractor (for greens), a 1920's Palmer hydraulic
cider press, a s.s. bulk tank and bottler, 4 residential reach in
refrigerators, plastic totes and bags, 20 or so 4 by 8 hardware cloth covered
tables, a bunch of hardwood grade stakes, and even more sisal twine. We get
some cont. ed during the winter from NOFA and Extension. The production work
pretty much consume us during the growing season. Our CSA season is from early
june through Thanksgiving, we offer free choice, free quantity pick-ups twice a
week for family shares ($585) and once a week for single shares ($395). I
haven't totaled our crop quantity production records from last year but I have
the weigh ins in the little book (LOL). Really our record keeping is pretty
much down and tax time is a breeze. Our pest problems have been minimal, and
our fertility seems to be well managed with minimal soil amendments and
covercroping. Our challenges are labor (there are only two of us and we would
rather not bring in sharecroppers (interns/apprentices)), land, and
profitability (scale). We are looking forward to being able to fill out our
equipment needs in the next year or so. We keep a hive of bees and a 50 flock
of layer chickens. We have done hogs (feeders and breeders) and various poultry
but we just don't have enough land for the animals no matter how much of a
complete on farm input circle cycle (biodynamic) they make. We started out
thinking diverse was good and then we realized we couldn't do everything, we
are still learning. We have probably missed some finer points but that can give you all a
bit of an idea. Mostly we are winter dreaming now a days and plugging away at
that bit of off farm employment that carries us through financially. All of our best Zebadiah Kellogg-Roe & Leigh Mae Friedline Darling Hill
Community Farm |
-
[Market-farming] Fw: [Greenhouse_ShopTalk] Garden Chat This Tuesday /Thursday,
Sharon and Steve, 12/02/2008
-
[Market-farming] Introduction,
Leigh Mae Friedline, 12/07/2008
- Re: [Market-farming] Introduction, Beth Spaugh, 12/11/2008
-
[Market-farming] Introduction,
Leigh Mae Friedline, 12/07/2008
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