My farming life has far surpassed the dream. The original dream came to me spontaneously, at the age of 9 or 10, when I received a vision and comprehension of where things were headed with the world: ecologically, economically, societally. I didn’t want my family to be waiting in line for a food handout, wanted to see myself on the provision end of things, and figured that what we’d need, in order to take care of ourselves and help others, would be a farm. Starting then, I went after life skills learning and personal development opportunities, gathering abilities to enable myself to do what ne ..read more

One way to deal with these different weather extremes is to spread the risk through diversification. When arable farmers expand their crop rotations, they will always have crops that are better adapted to the extreme situation that arises than others. However, in vegetable growing this is much more difficult to implement. Future food security can only be created through an improved climate resilience of our social-ecological system. This requires developing or rediscovering more stable and resilient systems that do not rely on optimizing a single factor. In recent decades, yields and earnings ..read more

Ploughing is an age-old agricultural practice, a cornerstone of farming since it’s earliest beginnings. The method involves turning over the top layer of soil to prepare it for planting, effectively controlling weeds, aerating the earth, and incorporating organic matter into the soil structure. While modern agriculture has seen the rise of no-till and reduced-tillage methods, ploughing remains a vital process for many farmers to this day. The post Ploughing Towards the Future appeared first on Small Farmer's Journal ..read more

Gooseberry was thrilled to have company who knew his language. He was very sweet and comforting to the terrified new gosling. Lucy was just sure that we were out to eat her. Gooseberry was a good example and Lucy soon calmed down. Not only did she calm down, she became quite fond of lap time and was a snuggly baby goose. The post Gooseberry & Lucy appeared first on Small Farmer's Journal ..read more

Now all these years later, February finds a half mile of yellow along a remote road in Tennessee. Their simple immortal beauty lives on for future generations. They tell those passing by of a woman no longer there, who tried to brighten a little of her wilderness. The post Wild Daffodils appeared first on Small Farmer's Journal ..read more

“Lie down dog! Lie down Bo-Patch!” I was shouting while cutting frantically at the wool. When –– what should pull up at the gate but a very big sedan car; a luxury vehicle and to my horror two coiffured older ladies get out. “Cooee Ian! Cooee!” they shouted. “O look he has lovely lambs! Can we help!” They were two ladies who live on Cherry Hill; as the name suggests a very nice area in the village behind my house. ‘Ladies who lunch.’ The post A New Leaf appeared first on Small Farmer's Journal ..read more

As you may recall I contacted you several months ago seeking information concerning Big Wheels. This Adventure started in 2015 when Matt Veerkamp of Veerkamp General Engineering in Placerville, CA found a metal wheel hub. It was labeled “The Holt M.F.G. CO. Stockton CA.” As a Historical Consultant, he asked me to find what the hubs were used on, as he wished to build the item. That started a nine year process of research, phone calls and travel. The post Big Wheels appeared first on Small Farmer's Journal ..read more

I am one of the editor's daughters, as I presume most of the readership knows. He put my photo on the back cover of a series called Farm Romance in the late 90's, and the same photo has shown up in his books and magazines over and over again, like pins threaded with red string across a map. I admit, I look much different now than the giggling, nearly bald toddler running down the red cinder road between the pines, although I'd like to think I have maintained the way my eyes disappear when I grin and the toothiness of that smile. The post new calf born in the January snow appeared first on Smal ..read more

I thought I was just getting an equipment tour and donkey visit, but I quickly saw that François had other ideas when he slipped a halter on Pepito’s long kind face and led him back to the stable where he tied him to an iron ring in the stone wall and ducked inside to round up a curry comb. After a brushing, he went after his donkey harness, a minimal, but perfectly functional breast strap affair, which featured built-in “saddle” bags, an accessory of which François was particularly fond. “You just throw a sandwich and a water bottle in there and off you go!” The post LittleField Notes: Pepito ..read more

A couple of years ago, after years of allowing moles to run roughshod all over the farm, I finally had had enough of their damage and I served them an eviction notice: “Out of the garden, and while you’re packing, out of the lawn as well! And would you mind also giving my hayfields a break!” It took time to make an impact, but there could be no doubt—with fewer moles there were many more worms. Of course the moles didn’t merely take their leave voluntarily and head off into the subterranean sunset. In order to reclaim a bit of my domain, I first had to learn a bit about the nature of these pes ..read more