Home safe and sound

I guess the satellite imaging was wrong. It got so much worse. It was a long, slow drive home but here I am enjoying supper.

Drive safe:)

Snow Flying

We are still on our way. There are a few flurries here and I am not sure about in the HRM but I am coming along anyway. The satellite image shows that it will soon pass by.

See you soon!

Holiday time

We've had a great holiday.
I was not quite relaxed until I got groceries on Christmas Eve. Once I had the groceries, (none that we really needed, but ones that helped me feel festive) I was okay. Later on that day, once I had the centre piece on the table complete with fruit and nuts, I was happy and relaxed. I wanted to rush in the office to type an entry on this blog, expressing how all my holiday worries subsided once I had the food in place. It was just a moment of realization for me (once again) how important food is to comfort, happiness, survival, etc. It was also a moment of realizing that for the holiday season all I really need or want is to have great food and family/friends to share it with.

We have been eating for days now:)

Just to top off my focus on food, on Boxing day while Josh was starting the fire I was reading the paper. Did any of you notice the little text box somewhere in the paper, halfway down the page, on the left side informing us that a major pineapple company in Hawaii closed it doors and fields? They can make more money selling for development. They can produce pineapples cheaper elsewhere. Over 200 people laid of work.

I just shake my head.

I have pictures to upload of our work day on Boxing day. It was so fun!! Outside cutting down branches so we can have the walking trail reestablished. It felt so great to be out in the fresh air working hard towards our walking trail goal. Soon you can come and enjoy the trail. A bit more brush to move and it will be for the most part ready to go.

Have a great day with great food and great people!

Snow + Driving

If you don't want to drive please either call 542 3277 or email or leave a comment on this blog. I will place your share in the cooler for you to get sometime tomorrow OR you can double up next week. Please just let me know what will work best for you.

The deliveries, Wolfville pickup and Kentville Pickup will all still happen.

You can come early to the house if you like.

Yeah for snow!!!! Not fun for driving but lots of fun for kids!

Merry Christmas!

Rain on December 23rd

It is a drizzly day out there. The view out the window doesn't look so great for venturing out. It's great for the water cycle so I'll be thankful for that.

Today I will work on filling out a nomination form for Outstanding Young Farmers (OYF) Program. Josh and I were nominated, we accepted the nomination and now there is a 6 part document to fill out. There will be an event in February where we will present ourselves, be judged for the recognition of the 2010 Atlantic OYF. It is a national program, so if you win regionally then you go on to compete nationally. Last year the Atlantic Young Farmers won nationally. It is great recognition to our agricultural industry in the Atlantic region.

After I work on that for a bit I will begin putting the shares together for this week. Justine is going to head out at 3PM today to do the deliveries so she can have her evening with family.

I hear there is going to be some snow today. We'll just wait and see what happens. But if you feel uncomfortable to drive, I can place you share in the cooler until tomorrow for you.

Enjoy the drizzly day.

Solstice Soup and Superheroes

EGGS ARE BACK

The eggs are back on again. They are a bit smaller and will be for a few more weeks.

I'll bring them with me today.

Winter Solstice Wonderful Winter

We had a fantastic time on Sunday. We got ourselves down to Swallow's Nest at 9:30AM and started the fires. There are three fires to light. The fire place, the stove and the cook stove.

People started coming in around 11:30AM. There was a wonderful mix of CSA members and some friends and family throughout the day.

The kids ran around all day and the the adults mingled or followed little ones around.

We are looking forward to fulfilling the potential in this new place and land.

Thanks for coming! Happy Winter!

Planning for the party

Today Lydia made two soups and I made a chili. Nicole dropped of the rolls. We have everything ready for a nice time together with friends, CSA members and family.

I know the forecast isn't so great. Obviously, if it doesn't seem safe, then we'll plan to see you another time. Otherwise, we will be at 1702 Church Street even if we get 25 cm of snow. We can walk:) Also, if you feel like parking at the farm house (1736 Church St), you can walk down to Swallows Nest. Josh will be looking after the parking end, but if you don't mind the stroll that might keep things less congested.

I hope you have a lovely evening!

I am feeling festive, finally. Merry Christmas!

Grain Burner

What is the grain burner?

We use rye as a rotation crop for the vegetables. We harvest the rye, store it and then use it to fuel the grain burner that heats the green house for the greens and in the late winter the transplants. We also use one in Canard for the squash storage building. It needs to be kept warm until the squash is gone in February or March. Then it gets moved over to the greenhouse in Canard to heat it for transplants.

We sometimes use corn. Last year I purchased some from a farmer friend because our rye wasn't the best. This year hopefully it will be drier and cleaner and therefore burn better.

That is it. I don't yet have a good number on the value of the bags of greens that you get this time of year - Josh and I haven't done the hard pencil pushing yet. It is hard because the greens take so long to grow so in one week in the share a small bag has taken 4-5 weeks of heat. The greens at this point are more like a gift of green goodness versus an income stream :) But green goodness is worth it.

December 16th

The snow is falling down out my window. I was 23 bunches short of kale so Lydia was out picking this morning before the colder weather kicked in.

Last night Frank was up all night vomiting. It was every hour at least the pour little guy. Of the three, he is our vomitter. I will have the entry way sterilized, but he is fine now so I don't think there is a risk of spread. If you are concerned let me know and we can arrange something else for today.

Josh has been out this morning pulling parsnips so we have some in the weeks ahead for the shares. The forecast is cold, cold, cold.

Reference for you

http://www.localcanadianfood.com/

the value of the blog?

Last night I attended a gathering to celebrate the holidays. I was talking with a farmer about getting his story out, having a way to let people into the daily life he leads to get a final product out the door. I was arguing that people are interested and wanting to connect with "the farm". He didn't believe me. I have received so much feedback from this blog, I had no idea. His questions and doubt leads me to wonder, how many people do check into it, and what are the reasons for checking in on it, and do people really want to know and connect with what is happening on the farm or are the readers of this blog extra special because you are members in the CSA therefore you have an invested interest? So many questions. What do you think? Do you think that people would appreciate if farmers did more blogging type things? For me I want to provide a way for those of you who read it to see a bit into our world on the farm. It is hard to portray everything but it is a start. Anyway, last night as I was trying to fall asleep, I kept thinking that I want to ask you for your thoughts on this one. Many farmers tell me that people don't care. I say that they are wrong, people do care. What do you think? Care/Not Care, Blog/Not blog? Just a bit of pre Christmas dialogue:)

Friday burrrrr

As I look out the window right now at 3PM on Friday December 11, 2009 - Josh, Kinsley and Bolow are fixing the doors on the large spinach tunnel. The tunnels can not handle the weight of the snow or the wind during our winter storms so they will be taken down soon.

Today is the beginning of my birthday weekend. I love when my birthday falls on a weekend day because I will make Friday, Saturday and Sunday a celebration. Today's celebration will take place with my mother and sisters tonight for a visit. Also this afternoon I am playing hookie and taking Izaak to pick out paint colours for his bedroom.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Thursday Overcast

One of the records that we are asked to consider keeping as an certified organic grower is weather records. I have not started recording the weather yet. There is no reason except I haven't sorted out how to create a routine that work for me around recording. I am really bad at following through with routine activities. We need to go out and get a new thermometer so we know the temperature. Frank did a number of the one we've had. He pulled the wires apart.
Today is overcast, cool and a slight breeze. It feels like another storm is coming and if the weather forecast is correct, I think we are getting one.

I am off to run errands for the day (banking, post office, etc.) and go over the books before they go to the accountant. Hopefully they will be ready to go soon.

Last night the grain burner stopped working. It always happens just as we are falling asleep. Josh is great and gets up to fix it. He always frees me from the late night broken burner duty. Last year in February and March we would take turns because it would need to be checked almost every night. We are planning to get the propane burner fixed so that if in the night the grain burner has problems at least there would be some time to fix the problem before the greenhouse freezes. With only plastic the temperature changes quite quickly.

Enjoy your day.

For your viewing pleasure

http://www.cbc.ca/landandsea/2009/11/turning-a-green-leaf.html

December 20th Winter Solstice Celebration

On December 20^th you are invited to celebrate Winter Solstice with us at the new farm house. We are hosting a full day open house (11AM- 6PM) at Swallows Nest (1702 Church Street). We will have mulled cider and a pot of soup with biscuits for everyone. We invite you to come whenever you wish. We will go out for walks, enjoy story telling by Nicole's mother, listen to music, and just have the opportunity to be together. Please let me know if you'll be coming and feel free to bring others along too.

the view...

out my window is looking chilly. Since being away I have a large stack of papers to sort out on my desk. Bills to pay, taxes to file, and notices from school to read. One of today's tasks.
I woke up this morning worried about frozen water. Even though I know better, I am still a reactive person. I don't get the preventative stuff done and then I wake up worrying about if the water hose is ruined because of freezing. Everything is fine. Maybe some day I will establish a routine that boosts preventative measures. Josh is usually always looking out for that stuff, but I still feel worried because I haven't participated and then don't know. The greenhouse was set for 7 degrees last night, that is as cold as the thermostat in the greenhouse will go. The plants in there are fine at 0 degrees.

Last night I handed the chair position of the federation of agriculture in Kings County. Now I am ready to focus in on and farm and the Ag Land Review Committee for the winter.

Enjoy your day!

Monday Dec 6th

Here it is 10:31PM. I am catching up on the emails, the dishes are done and now it is time to write tomorrows newsletter. Ahhh, I will do it in the AM. I wanted to give the final report on our conference.
On Saturday morning I heard a presentation from a woman who owns a grain farm outside of New York (with her husband). She gave a great presentation on how to prepare and use grains and also her experience with self sufficiency. The local grocery store in their town closed down. At that point she and her family took on the challenge to feed themselves. I am all excited now to get a grain mill for the kitchen counter. The description of the corn meal muffins made with freshly ground corn meal sounded wonderful. I will post her list of food items needed for a year for a family of 4.
Overall the conference was a very good experience. I am glad we went. As with all things there were some contradictions. The focus wass about eco agriculture, treating the soil with respect and be conscious of our impact. But then our meals were offered in mountains of plastic (hotel service). And, in all of the places in the USA we were at - the airports there was no recycling or compost. Hard to really understand that things are so different just a few hours away. At our local organic conference, ACORN, there is great effort taken to ensure that the food is organic and that there is minimal waste. This conference was offered without meals, so it was up to us. It is hard to be thinking about great food - the production of it and then not have access to eating it. Anyway - all in all it was nice. Josh and I walked along the Mississippi river on Saturday afternoon. It looks like it is a lovely place in the summer. Many of the river boats were still in the water.

Night for now......

Sitting in a room

I am currently sitting in a room with about 300 people. We are listening to a presentation on the science of the gut, "The primary importance of the gut in all healing". We just finished watching the noontime film, Dirt. It you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. I am actually thinking that it would be great to get the film into our communities, maybe via the schools as a family film night. We have watched, at noon, Fresh, Food Inc and Dirt. Throughout and at the end of these films I have felt tearful. The strong emotions of feeling helpless and empowered all at the same time.
Obviously I am not learning much right now as I am typing. I will sign off now to take in some of this science. It think that overall the point is, eat probiotics, raw milk and of course a great diet filled with fresh veggies, whole grains....but I will keep you posted.

Thinking of you all!
P

Last night Message - Raw Milk Raw Food

Last night was a reminder and a call to move forward. That we as farmers are societies health care. That we must continue to grow healthy nutritious food and we must work hard and differently in the marketplace to connect with consumers building relationships between ourselves & consumers that is based on health for the consumers and health for the farmers. He says that we, Farmers are the only ones that can do anything about. Go out there and provide people with excellent nutritious food, help them learn how to eat it, and this will keep them out of the depths of the health care system.



He spoke about how the FAA has a mandate to prevent disasters in the aviation world. They have multiple check points, multiple tests, years and years of preventative action before people are able to board an aircraft. And when there is an accident, the FAA researches until they find the error and work to correct it to further prevent such an incident from occurring again. He compared this degree of prevention to that of the FDA. That the FDA which operates on a reactive basis. Providing lists of drugs to cover-up, or fix a problem with the human body. There is no mention or recognition that by eating healthy raw foods we could prevent most of the health aliments that occur in our society.



Of course there was much more, but basically he called on us to not get discouraged, that this is a grass roots movement that we as farmers must carry out. We must do our work to correct the health of our nation.

Day one - Acres Conference

The first part of the day was organized for visiting the trade show. It is quite a large trade show with lots of booths promoting kelp products. There is also a large book sale available with a lot of the ACRES recognized books. We watched the film Fresh. It is a film with a message about choosing fresh food. Michael Pollen was in the film along with the farmer he follows in his book, Omnivores Dilemma, Mr. Nayor. It was worth watching.

We both took in 30 minutes of "Pigs on Pasture" with Dr. W. Winter. He raises Berkshire pigs on pasture. He talked about a lot of things but kept coming back to his pigs and the methods he uses to raise them.

Josh went to "Back to the Key Principles when the Eco Input isn't enough" by Gary Zimmer. Josh took in that he needs to make sure his Magnesium and Boron are plentiful as they are important minerals for plant health.

I tried to participate in a session on Fertilizer needs and costs, but I couldn't stick with so I went to the trade show and talked to the people at the biodynamics booth and then joined back up with Josh for the "Advanced Soil Ecology and the Soil Food Web" session.

Now we are on our way out for dinner and then back for the evening lecture on "Taking Back the American Food Chain".