The past few weeks have been very busy and productive here at the farm. The ground finally warmed and dried up enough to get out and turn some soil, and make beds. We have some beds of kale planted in the field, in addition to the beds in the high tunnel. Field plantings are covered for protection from flea beetles, woodchucks and the cold. Thankfully- so far I haven't seen any of the dreaded flea beetles, who's early season appetites can devastate early plantings of brassicas, including kale, broccoli, turnips, radishes, and ANOTHER species of them love tomatoes and eggplant. We have seen the woodchuck though. The consensus from many other farmers has been hopeful the winter was harsh and long and cold enough that we won't see the pest levels of the past few years of mild winters. However, the long term forecast looks like May will be pretty cool as well, and this season has put many farmers I've spoken with a bit behind, not being able to get out into the fields has been a challenge to many, so we count our blessings that we were able to take advantage of a few days nice weather to be able to get out there both on the leased land at Grindstone and here, as well as our high tunnel space.

We have confirmed one market so far, the Saturday CNY Regional Market; we'll be under the overhang outside Shed E on the North side. If you are signed up to pick up at the Watertown Market you will be picking at Grindstone Farm's booth, and we are still waiting to find out if we have a space in Oswego. If we don't get a space there, you will be able to pick up CSA shares from Grindstone there as well. We have an application as well for the new Downtown Syracuse market in Franklin Square on Mondays and are on the fence about the Rome market. 

A reminder that the next CSA-CNY planning group meeting will be May 7th at 7 p.m. at the Friends Meeting House on Euclid Ave in Syracuse. All members are invited to attend to share ideas, or offer a hand. I encourage POD leaders especially to attend. Meetings are held the first Wednesday of every month.

Along with the kale, we have peas, radishes, swiss chard, spinach, red mustard greens, and braising mix going in the field, and will be transplanting lettuce and collards this week. I hope to get some pictures added to the site soon of the plantings! We also have worked on seeding or transplanting the following: basil, tomatoes, leeks, brussels sprouts, pac choi, weekly lettuce plantings, broccoli, peppers, eggplant, nappa cabbage and more! Next week  we will be starting on cucumbers, squashes, and melons. 

Travis got some new "toys" last weekend as well. Tractor attachments that will make our job easier, include a multivator; which is essentially a multi bed cultivator/ rototiller tool. This goes along with the other tool, a bed shaper, which does just what it says, and can be used in no/low till systems. (We also like the fact that a raised bed is less stress on our backs!) He got them for a steal at an auction.  We'll share some photos of these babies in action soon too.

While we are a small family farm and most of the operation has been a two adult, three kid venture, we would like to commend those who have helped thus far. 
    Dick DeGraff of Grindstone has been a number one champion in many ways; by leasing the land to us and offering the CSA essentially as an already rolling business. He has also lent a hand in many tasks, such as getting our high tunnel up, moving seedlings, and sharing advice.
    Dave Coppedge (aka Tractor Dave) and his partner Mary have joined our team for the long haul, and are the only "employees" we have thus far. Dave worked with Grindstone for over 15 years and has a wealth of knowledge and experience to bring to the team. We have worked many projects with him through the years, from farming, to construction, and fixing vehicles; while Mary has been great help in transplanting, seeding, and babysitting.
    Friend and fellow farmer Andy Jacobson formerly from Jacobson's farms in Palermo has lent a hand at the farmers markets, and a bit here on the farm and will be sharecropping on a couple acres here on our property with a variety of veggies.
    And mostly, my father, Dan Wells who worked with Travis on many aspects of getting our house livable, from electric to plumbing, to house jacking, as well as electric in the barn, high tunnel construction and soon some welding projects, we have kept him pretty busy in his early retirement! With the overwhelming support from so many people, POD leaders, Planning group members, family, friends, customers, and even total strangers; in a way this truly is a grassroots community farm.

In addition to the ever growing farm tasks, there was two weeks of spring purging. As I stated before, this property came with a lot of history, and with it a lot of junk. While we discovered many utilitarian antiques, there were mountains of newspapers, glass, and a section of the barn that had fallen in. We rented a dumpster and filled it with anything that couldn't be recycled or burned. That was a huge task, as we filled a 30 yard dumpster, and still have a second load of metal to go to the scrap yard. But the potting shed is well on it's way to being put into use, and the barn's potential really shines now that there's empty space aside from the goats and chickens quarters. 

The following painting was left behind of the farm in spring. With the trees starting to get buds, and daffodils blossoming in the garden, spring is surely here, and the greenhouses at the farm are near overflowing with seedlings waiting to settle their roots into the earth. The painting is somewhat abstracted, as the henhouse turned potting shed on the right is not nearly as large or as close to the barn as it appears, but it is nearly as angled, a unique construction of weight bearing timber framing still standing after nearly 150 years. The red chairs in the painting were also found in the clean out, too badly rusted out to salvage. There are photos of Alice and Frances sitting in those very chairs, enjoying a summer drink in their garden space, their pride and joy which we are pleased to carry on the tradition of, except we'll need more chairs!

Daily visits from a herd  of deer, munching on the leftover corn now that the snow has finally melted, reminds us that these majestic animals can also be detrimental to crops. For now we enjoy their presence, and tracking their footprints through the mud. 

We have been very busy here staying on schedule with seeding on top of many other tasks such as cleaning out the barn for better utilization of the space, fencing for goats and chickens, constructing our high tunnel, filling out paperwork for farmer's markets and keeping up with emails, accounting and advertising. 

 We will be contacting work share members soon with all the info needed to start fulfilling hours, and start concentrating on narrowing the drop site locations for ease of delivery. Some of our sites may be subject to change due to low numbers at certain drop sites. If we find this applies to you, you will be contacted. If you have selected a build a pod option, please let us know where you have in mind. We have had requests for a drop site near the Clay Liverpool areas, and would like to find a place perhaps near Rt 31 to cater to Liverpool, Clay and Baldwinsville members. We have added a new drop site for the Downtown/ Westside of Syracuse area at Edge Strength and Fitness on West Genesee St. 

We are all geared up to start getting crops in the ground, waiting for some spots to dry up a bit. However with the high tunnel up we will start planting in there this week. We will be planting spinach, scallions, radishes and some salad greens to start with. With the spring getting off to such a slow start and snow in the forecast for Tuesday, we are cautiously optimistic that it will stay warm and we won't have to be moving row covers too much in the early spring!


With more seeds to start in the coming two weeks; cucumbers, summer squashes, and winter squash, we are also transplanting tomatoes and basil, peppers, eggplant, and soon will be putting the beautiful kales and swiss chard in the ground. Celery and Celeriac have been started along with Pac Choi and more lettuce, leeks and brussels sprouts. In early May we will planting Asparagus for  harvests in coming seasons. 

High tunnel covered with a little help from our friends at Grindstone Farm. April 11th. 

Although the High Tunnel and Tractor were purchased via a very low interest loan from the USDA's FSA loan program, it was only made possible from the support from our CSA members,  family and friends. Not only have our members help start the season, but start a whole new farm. We are very excited for the season to start and grow with our members. We hope to meet many of you and welcome folks to come visit the farm. It is your farm too! Just call and let us know if you'd like to come see the farm or lend a hand. 

For your historical update we have uncovered a large patch of fiddle heads. If you've never tried them, you may have the chance. Usually they are ready for harvest just before asparagus,  so they most likely won't end up in CSA shares, but we will have them available at the CNY Regional Market as soon as they are ready!

We are looking forward to the warmer weather and getting the season underway. The hens are also excited to see the ground again, as you can clearly see from this picture of Chicken Bliss, taken by our daughter Gavriel.

Our farm came with a lot of restoration work and invaluable local history. I will try to share a bit of the farm's history here on our blog as we look at a changing of generations in farming nationwide. The accompanying photo is one of the many historical treasures I found when we moved in. Much of what was found is currently at the Richland historical society being archived, photos of I81 being built, community picnics, class photos, and the like.

The previous owners lived their whole lives here and left the house and property to their care taker; who we have bought the property from. They had no next of kin to share their story, but the stories they have told Judy, which she happily relates to us, and the paper trail they left behind tell a story of commitment, and love of this land. They both lived well into their 90's and 100's and had both been school teachers. Their education lives on in the records they hung onto, and kept into their old age. Every plant that was planted, every repair that was done, every animal sold; recorded. From 1920-1949 their father; Louis, kept weekly temperature and precipitation averages neatly recorded in a notebook. They have a notebook after retirement they kept just of bird sightings in the yard! 

I can not write enough praise of these people I never knew in one blog, but feel part of their family with these records left behind and restoring their old farm. One of the treasures of historical import found as we were moving in was this box, tied together with baling twine, containing labeled vials of seeds. No dates or sources therein.  I presume that these seeds were some that their father planted for their livestock; hay seeds, and grains.  I will try to germinate and grow to seed as many as I can, these precious kernels of history and hope in a time of intense hybridization and GMO's. 

From what I can see of old deeds, the house and barn was built and land cleared by Henry McClelland in the late 1850's and changed hands to the Nichols family in 1906. This was the year Frances was born here, and passed away in 2006.  The original tract of 109 acres included the family cemetery across the road, and was reduced through the years to 89 acres of pasture land; much of which is now grown over. From the records it seems in the summer each of the local farms would rotate hosting picnics with one another and neighbors at their farms. What a lovely tradition to restart!

The yard; the many times in spring we drove by it before buying the property, has always burst with color in the spring with crocuses carpeting the lawn, and lilacs blooming with their nostalgic fragrance, tulips popping up on borders and peonies plopping over after a rain. And there are notebooks full of records of plants planted, how well they did each year for over 70 years! I feel so blessed to call this bit of paradise home, and to carry on the Nichols' family farm. 

There are farm records that I hope to use as a treasure map to find the overgrown gardens of perennials, and proliferate old strains of day lilies that will need to be divided, some of which I have never seen anything like. 

The women who grew up and lived here for nearly a century loved this land deeply, and their story should be shared; their education live on. I am humbled with the opportunity. 

I will share more of the history of the land throughout the year, as we meet each bit of history in passing. These seeds are better than a photo album or journal if we can get them to grow.

For now we are anxiously  waiting for the snow to melt. We have gotten a loan for a high tunnel, and are excited for the season to get underway. On a cold windy day, after my seeding is done, I thought I'd share this little bit of history with our farm members and supporters. Because we won't know where we're going if we don't know where we've been.

Spring is on it's way- dragging it's feet!

And here's a picture of our little ducklings.

And one of our bio char lesson.

And finally some seedlings in the greenhouse- yes we are growing food!

As We approach our May 14th deadline for CSA sign ups, I am excited to share that we are more than 1/4 away from our goal of 100 CSA members. Many folks are return members from Grindstone Farm's CSA, and I'd like to take a moment to thank all those who have chosen to continue to support the transition process up here in Pulaski! You know who you are. We have added a couple more pod sites to the website, and are still waiting on confirmation on our Oswego YMCA site. If you'd like to offer to host a site in Oswego, or suggest one please contact us. Again, we'd like to have at LEAST 5 members picking up per site. So far, our biggest hits are Green Planet Grocery in Fairmount, and on Farm. It is truly promising to see so many on farm pickups and I hope it will help to connect our members with their farm. To date we have seeded several beds worth of swiss chard, kale, lettuce, early tomato and pepper starts.

Here is Freyja, proudly posing with her tiny pepper seedling. While we just received our seeds from High Mowing and Johnny's, she was way ahead of us. Unintentionally she has become our farm poster child. All three of the kids are very excited to help, but Freyja most of all; wanting to be by our side every step of the way. Gavy has been busy making a sign for her "kids farm" and starting flower seeds, while Adonia has been target practicing with his bow and arrows, to help keep the pesky woodchucks in check. 

We have just completed our loan application for a high tunnel, and can't wait to break ground on that project.

To give a general idea of what to expect in shares this season, here is a list in no particular order:

Arugula, beets, broccoli, swiss chard, kale, collards, kohlrabi, nappa cabbage, green and purple beans, snow peas, zucchini, patty pan, cucumbers, peppers- hot and sweet, asian greens, leeks melons.

Heirloom tomatoes, and cherries-including sungolds, paste tomatoes, eggplant, onions, winter squashes, brussels sprouts, lettuces, mustard greens, spinach, tomatillos, pie pumpkins, carrots, parsnips, rutabagas, turnips, radishes, celery, 

herbs- basil, dill, cilantro, parsley, rosemary, thyme, chives...

and much more!

Travis and I will be heading to Wisconsin this week for another sustainable farming conference (MOSES), while delivering a couple root washers for Grindstone Farm. The lineup of workshops and adventure of travelling through the next Polar Vortex half way across the country should prove to very educational. 

I have set back my seeding schedule around this event, and will start seeding many crops first thing in March. I will be trying on a large scale this season doing much of my plantings by the moon. This is an age old method of planting, and is the core of biodynamic agriculture. So much of the natural cycles of the earth are centered around the moon phases, and the simple science behind it is convincing enough. 

We are looking forward to Dick and Vic's return from their vacation, and spring! 



The blank canvas of late winter:

Having very gratefully accepted a scholarship to the 2014 NOFA NY Winter Conference in Saratoga Springs, I feel I owe it to our members to share my experience there. 

When I first started a love for photography, my favorite subjects were found in nature. Old barns grown over with vines, fence posts with barbed wire poking through snow, flowers laden with dew, fruit fresh on the vine, the perfection of a leaf. Intricate designs of the  natural and weathered I simply hoped to capture and do nature justice in the images I took. On my early morning drive to Saratoga Springs, I felt compelled to stop so many time to snap shots as the sun rose in shades of pink and gold, rolling over snow covered feilds, but didn't want to be late! So this one shot of a beautiful barn in the sunrise was all I got. I didn't bring my camera into the conference, as I was already lagged down with multitudes of literature acquired, and pictures can only tell a small part of this story.

I was not on a photo trip, but a journey to learn. I met so many wonderful people, and I'd like to share who I met and what I learned.

When I arrived, just in time to catch breakfast, I pulled up a chair at a table of children, and an older gentleman. We both agreed that it was the best seat in the house. Upon introductions, I learned that he was none other than executive director at Hawthorne Valley; Martin Ping. Hawthorne Valley Farm is a diverse organic farm in Southern NY,  and have grown since their founding in 1972 to include an incredible farm store, and a Waldorf school, among many other accomplishments. Their cooperative farm's story has been a great inspiration to me throughout the years, and I was planning a trip in the early spring to see the school and farm. He offered to help in any way he could for us to start a school as we move forward. He also raved about the healing qualities of the blueberries Grindstone Farm sends every year for their CSA and bakery.  What an honor it was to meet him!

At my first workshop, presented by NOFA council member, Steve Gilman, I was relieved to learn that NOFA, along with countless other farm advocacy groups, and third party certifiers, are vehemently opposed to the Food Safety and Modernization Act; and that the last comment period resulted in the FDA and legislators having to bring the whole thing back to the drawing board. Bottom line, clean food does not cause illness! Presently there is a maximum of $500,000 GROSS sales in order to qualify for an exemption from the rigorous regulations proposed in this law. The consensus of most small farms is that $500,000 in gross sales is very low considering the cost of labor, and cost of production. If you are interested in participating in the next comment session, please join the National Young Farmer's Coalition's mailing list  to keep updated on action alerts.

Speaking of the National Young Farmer's Coalition ,(NYFC) they were present at the trade show as well. I first learned about the organization at last year's NJ NOFA conference. They are a not for profit group educating beginner farmers, tackling the land access issues facing many new farmers, and politically active for farmer's rights.  While I have been in contact with them since last winter, Freedom Rains Farm is now a proud NYFC member. This helps their (our) cause and gives us some great discounts off seeds and equipment. Essentially it is a lobby group, and organic small growers are rarely represented in DC due to the lack of funds. The more we can support groups like this, the better our chances of achieving goals for a healthy future. Anti fracking, GMO labeling, land access  for small sustainable farms and food, allowing a space for ingenuity and sharing experiences and ideas for farmers across the nation; they are active in all these areas. They were founded in NY to deal with the issue of land access in their area, and have grown to a nationwide organization with chapters in many regions, connecting local farms. 

 Wayne Gottlieb, a presenter from Thompkins County presented the trials, errors and successes of starting a school garden at Dewitt Middle School. He went through all the layers of approval and support it took to get started, and all the success and growth it's seen since it's inception. By doing this he provides hands on outdoor education to his science students, as well as fresh organic food for the school cafeteria. The school gardenis currently seeking funding for a summer program. I have found that is the biggest barrier to school gardens in CNY, our most active growing season is summer vacation for students, and funding for summer programs gets tighter every year.   School gardens are all but non existent in Oswego and Onondaga Counties, and we would be happy to support any school projects in any way we can, whether through education, donating seedlings, or at school training.

I saw Tim, formerly of Greyrock Farm in Cazenovia. For those familiar with Greyrock, Tim was the draft horse expert there, and is currently seeking his own farm. I spoke with many young farmers about the issues of finding land. What it made me realize was how blessed we are to have the arrangement we have. To lease already certified organic land from Grindstone, to have such and abundance of fresh water, to have the freedom to do business and work cooperatively with our local producers, we are in a unique situation in comparison to many who seek to start  their own farms in NY.  While land ownership is still on the forefront of the battle, we must utilize our youth and our predecessors experience to create an environment of seamless transition of America's farmland and food supply. So many old farms are relics; crumbling under the weight of time and development. So many farmers are reaching retirement age with no pension, little to no social security, and few options for land transfer beyond outright sale to developers, or corporate farms. Too many foreclosure sales and auctions are going on in the farming world to make anyone who eats feel comfortable. Groups like American Farm Land Trust, NYFC, and FarmNet, are great resources for both the senior and junior generations. 

As many New Yorkers are seeking ways to contribute to a sustainable foodshed in our state; urban farmers, rural farmers, community gardeners, food access advocates, food processors and the like; I found that Central NY is lagging behind the rest of the state in many ways. When given a list from the NY Small Scale Food Processors Association of "local" food processing facilities in NY there was a huge gap in the CNY area. While an Oswego County food hub currently in the works, in cooperation with the city of Oswego and SUNY Oswego; it may be years before it is underway. By supporting this project we hope to have access to commercial kitchen space to preserve excess harvest for our members and community; schools, hospitals, nursing homes; and provide access  to minimally processed local foods. We need the support of the community on this as well. No great feat is accomplished without a strong backing. If you'd like to become involved in support of the food hub, or organize a school to farm program, please contact me. 

While land access, tackling food deserts, making and paying a living wage, producing organic foods in a chemical environment may sound like big challenges to NY's farmers; the elephant in the room is Hydro Fracking. The consensus is that NY is rich in agricultural history, and we've seen what fracking has done to Ohio (frack related earthquakes, sinkholes) Pennsylvania (dangerously contaminated water); any farmer who truly wishes to continue farming must play activist against Fracking in NY. Food and Water Watch was there with much information to be shared and distributed. The pressure must be put on Albany to put an end to the discussion. New York has spoken- no fracking in the Marcellus Shale, but apparently we have to keep reminding the powers that be where we stand. Renewable energy is a viable alternative to fracking, strip mined coal and nuclear.

Being at the conference, realizing only a small handful of organic growers were there, made me see what an incredible community of sustainable farmers there are in our state. Seeing old friends, and making new ones.  Having the honor of talking to a few gentlemen from Vermont, who were pioneers of organics, helping to construct a national organic standard. When I asked them if they ever thought back in the 70's and early 80's if they'd ever see a conference so big in the NE they said, never in their wildest dreams had they imagined that the organic community would have grown to the size it is now. And it's growing. That they were thrilled to see so many young folks filling in the gaps for their generation. That there is still much footwork to be done. 

Upon returning home for two days of wind and snow accumulations of 3-4 feet, hauling water to the barn in blinding frigid lake affect winds, seeing my family after a two day break, I realized two days without farm and house chores was more than enough time to know without a shadow of doubt- I love my job!  I might be crazy, but I'm not the only one. 

Travis and I spent last evening fine tuning our field plans, and tallying seed prices (that discount from NYFC will come in handy!) I started a germination trial of red russian kale seeds with a sample of potting soil from an Ithaca producer, Green Tree. If it works well, the price is right and it's a locally produced product, we will be using it this season for all our transplants.  We also filled out the paperwork for the 2014 NOFA Farmer's Pledge, which will put us in NOFA's big book of organic growers in NY. While we grow on Certified Organic land, the certification for both business entities was a little redundant, and quite frankly confused the folks at NOFA.  We must be on the fringe when we ask questions people don't have answers to.  Also, in many ways, I feel that the Farmer's Pledge is a more sustainable model for organic producers and our communities at large, as it includes social justice, sustainable energy usage, and conservation practices not included in USDA organic requirements. 

 While the cold seeps through the walls we dream of spring, awaiting that first harvest with eager hopefulness, in the meantime the fruits of our labor come in the form of fresh eggs, and the loving support of CSA members who instill confidence in our goals of growth and community. Thank you to all who have supported us thus far. Farmers are only part of the equation- conscious, knowledgeable customers are the other part! The organic community of growers would never had grown to such wonderful abundance without the support of our communities across NY. 

I envision a future where all farms are organic in nature, that all livestock is pastured and treated humanely, that no pesticide residues contaminate our food or drinking water,  that GMO's are a horror story of the past, that everyone has at least one neighboring farm the call their own, that food is not shipped in from overseas.  I envision a future where old barns are active and restored, not abandoned relics of the past. We have a long way to go yet, but I am reassured to know there is such a strong passionate base of support for organics in NY. 
 "You might say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one"


Travis and I will be attending the MOSES (Midwest Organic & Sustainable Education Service) conference at the end of February in Wisconsin on behalf of Grindstone Farm, so more to come before conference season is over!

Here are links to some of the great organizations and businesses who attended and supported the conference:
www.hawthornevalleyfarm.org
www.youngfarmers.org
www.farmland.org
www.justfood.org
www.nyssfpa.com
www.foodandwaterwatch.org
www.syracuseculturalworkers.com
www.agriculturaljusticeproject.org
www.independentsciencenews.org
www.greentreegardensupply.com
www.nofany.org


Our chicken coop, awaiting restoration in the spring looking buried in the snow banks. The chickens are presently overwintered in the barn. 

CSA Q & A

There are many factors that go into planning for another season of farming, let alone a first season of a new farm. The art work to the left is just some sketches that lead to the final "logo" seen on the top of the blog, on our facebook page, and egg labels.  While my main passion is sustainable agriculture, I also have a deep love for fine arts, and truly see little difference between the two! Both are a mix of science and attunement with the world we live in. 

 As with being in tune with the natural world, our hens have also found their balance of rest and production, and have tapered off on their laying over the last few weeks....They are picking back up, and eggs will be available soon.


Q & A
As we start getting CSA sign ups rolling in, there have also been a slew of questions that I hope to answer here. 

One of the most asked inquiries is: Is Grindstone Farm offering a CSA? 
 The answer is no, they are not. They will continue offering local and organic produce through the healthy box program, and wholesale markets, but will not be offering a CSA. Having been in operation for over 30 years, owner Dick DeGraff is ready for a much deserved downsizing, and that is how we came to a lease agreement to grow our own farm. We will be working cooperatively with one another as well as some of the other nearby farms Grindstone has done business with over the years to provide fresh organic foods to our communities, and supply the growing demand for locally grown food. 

Why doesn't CSACNY.org have any information about our farm? 
CSA CNY is a non profit group of volunteers and sometimes it takes time to get to things like that. We hope that this doesn't deter folks from signing up, but maybe encourages folks to volunteer their time. 

Can I still get special orders and Wholeshare orders with my CSA? 
Yes, we will be coordinating with both Grindstone Farm's store and Wholeshare to continue providing other items we don't grow to be delivered with your shares as you've been able to do in the past. 

Can I still get a pre packed share instead of building my own box?
 While we offer the build your own box option for our market pickups, it is not standard. Depending on pickup site the way you get your share may vary. We offered this option for folks who have dietary restrictions or have picky eaters in their household. We want people to eat the food they bought, and from our years with Grindstone have found that many people just feed their compost with unfamiliar foods. 

What pick up sites will be available?
 So far the only confirmed pick up sites are Oswego, Watertown and a Syracuse farmer's market, and on Farm pick up tentatively Sundays. While I love that people open their homes for the CSA,  the POD leaders on Fellows Ave in Syracuse and Walnut St in Fayetteville have been the only members that has confirmed that they will continue hosting a drop site. We invite folks to host if they have a covered space to distribute from, and we would like at LEAST 10 shares per each drop site. We would like to look into another market in the Syracuse area, as the lease for the Regional Market is fairly high compared to others and would like to try the Westcott Community Center one instead. We will be relying on input from our members to determine where the best pick up locations would be. 

Is your farm certified organic?
Yes. We are certified by extension through NOFA-NY. While our eggs are not certified, our free range hens are supplemented daily with organic food scraps and waste from the farm, keeping a steady supply of organic nutrients throughout the seasons, and maintaining a rich golden yolk color. 


What veggies can I expect in my shares?
We will be offering much of the same variety that Grindstone Farm has offered in the past, while selecting varieties that we know to do well in the soils and climate. From asparagus, strawberries, various greens, radishes, peas in spring; tomatoes, peppers, summer squashes, beans, eggplant, blueberries in summer; beets, carrots, winter squash, potatoes, onions and cold hardy greens in the fall, we aim to remain diversified in our selection to provide variety each week.  Also we will be working with some experienced orchardists  to improve our apple and pear quality. 

Why no spring or winter shares?
After having been part of Grindstone's extended seasons for numerous years; we realize that offering these share options is not only a lot of extra work, but also requires the high tunnels which we are not leasing from Grindstone. While we intend to put one of our own up in the spring, one is not really enough to offer shares from. Any early crops grown in our's or Grindstone's high tunnels will be a available on their online store, at farmer's markets, or from some of our local wholesale customers, such as Real Foods Co-op. As far as winter shares go, we are working on a winter harvest share that would include late fall harvests from ours and other local farms, and might include canned goods from our surplus,  meat, eggs, or cheese from other local farms as well. 

Why no cheese shares?
We are starting our first season, and want to keep things simple and offer our own goods. You will still be able to order Cranberry Ridge's wonderful raw goats milk cheese from Grindstone Farm's online store to be delivered with your CSA.

Are there discounts available?
While we offer a 10% if you sign up and payment is received by Jan 31st, and a $45 savings for on farm pickups, there are no other discounts being offered this season. However we are willing to work out payment arrangements with families upon request. 

I hope that this helps answer some questions folks have about our CSA, and please don't hesitate to contact us with any other questions not covered here. Any suggestions pertaining to interest or ideas about a possible  coffee share, or fall harvest share are welcome as well. Also pickup site suggestions are welcome!

We wish all our friends and family a very healthy and happy new year!

This is our youngest, Freyja, who was just so excited about that tiny egg, and the full moon, I had to share the photo.  She brought the egg to her sister, and they bundled it up in some of Travis' old silk ties; hoping to hatch it, and refused to believe me when I told them that a small egg like that probably wouldn't hatch. In their young creative minds anything is possible, and if a massive pumpkin can grow from a tiny seed, a bullfrog come of little slimy egg, why not a chicken from an abnormally small egg? If only everyone could have such imaginations; a sense of hope and knowing that with just a little loving care and warmth, anything can grow, including their dreams to reality. It is they, our children, our future, who have inspired and taught us how to build our dream of farming and sharing great food into being. We farm for them. 

As we head into the calm coldness of winter, a time for family and reflection, planning, and dreaming, I wanted to share some of our reflections. 

We farm, not just for today, but for tomorrow. For the health of the soil we till to continue providing sustenance, not just for our bodies, but the whole ecosystem; we choose organic practices, not as a mere business model, but as a labor of love and understanding for the circle of life. 

We choose to be a CSA farm for the future as well. CSA's provide money for future returns, a secure deposit on your season of local food. Peering further into the future, however, the CSA model will enable us to to create a symbiotic ASC, or Agriculture Supported Community. By inviting neighbors to be members of our farm, we are inviting you to be part of a community. While people have differing reasons for choosing to eat healthy by way of CSA rather than farmer's markets, or grocery stores, the majority see it as a way of building a stronger local economy, a buffer from the national and global economy at large. Prepaying for your share allows a unique opportunity to avoid the stresses of ever increasing food prices.

 However we realize that many factors deter people from choosing a CSA, the most prevalent being selection and up front price. These are two factors we considered when building our CSA plans. We have decided to offer a build your own box option at a couple of our pick up sites, so that members can choose the produce that their family likes best, and less food is wasted. Also we are willing to work out payment arrangements for folks who want to join our CSA, but it is not financially feasible to pay everything up front. While this doesn't allow people to get the early full payment discount, they can disperse their food bill over the growing season as their budgets allow. We are also working on getting set up to accept EBT payments which we feel is an important step in making healthy food available to everyone. With these harsh economic times, and increasing food and health care costs, and something like 1/4 of the U.S. population on some sort of public assistance, and many more on the brink of needing it, being flexible and keeping local is very important for the the success of any small business.  While many have told us that it is counterproductive to offer payment options for a CSA, which is supposed to be money in our bank to start the season, I see it as a way to disperse income throughout the season in a manageable way, and allow us to market to a previously unmarketable demographic.  While last year Grindstone Farm worked with CSA-CNY to develop a "subsidized" share offering,we hope that offering payment options will offset the need to subsidize shares. We haven't given up on this idea however, and if you'd like to donate to CSA-CNY to help offset the cost of a share for low income families, please go to their website- www.csacny.org Donations are tax deductible, and can give folks a chance to eat healthy in our many local food desserts.

So as we reflect and plan, anxiously awaiting spring, we look to the future with hope, as more and more CSA's appear on the market, and more and more new farmers are going organic, and the national rhetoric for healthy food is increasing despite the push from every direction to further industrialize our food system. By choosing to support a CSA, you are voting with your wallet, saying that clean food is a human right, and it's being eroded by our present food system of GMO's and deadly chemicals. We feel it is not just a right, but an obligation to future generations. The more people choose to support local organic farms, the less we are part of the destruction of our delicate ecosystems. The less we are dependent upon fossil fuels, expensive, sometimes harmful medicines, and  large corporate food giants who abuse human rights across the globe. The more connected we are to the Earth, and our fellow humans.  The more freedom we have to choose to know where our food is coming from, the more empowered we become to make further conscious choices in our daily lives that will affect future generations. The choices we make now can be our grandchildren's blessing or bane. 

I think about this farm and all it's seen since it was built in the late 1800's. Looking around at all the former farms that are now something else just in my lifetime, it is a miracle that it still stands, intact, as if untouched by industrial "progress". Sitting along I81 where former farms are now Walmarts and gas stations, it contains 89 of the original deed of 109 acres. The farm records that we were lucky enough to acquire with the property indicate that it has been a farm since the land was settled and cleared. The house and barn constructed from tree cleared for grazing and planting. There is a bit of nostalgia in our timber framed barn, and the  plans to restore it to original beauty and functionality. The past meets the future with us in between.  Growing on acreage up the road at Grindstone Farm, named after the creek that runs through it, we are doing our small part to protect our watershed, as it runs through both farms. 

Freedom Rains Farm was founded with a vision of a sustainable community. One in which we no longer have to fight for clean water, clean food, clean air. One which we are proud to pass onto future generations. One which knows no boarders. One in which the only rule is "love, and do what you love" While we know many want to become more independent, and we encourage folks to grow gardens, we know that people's passions and talents lie in different places, so let us do what we love so you can do what you love. 

We grow for our members. We farm for the future. 

We met with the CSA CNY (www.csacny.org) planning board Wednesday this week. As they have; since 1998 contracted with Grindstone Farm to grow for their CSA, we met with them to discuss some of the changes we'd like to make from the existing CSA offerings, and the couple of folks  from the planning group felt they were necessary changes, and were very supportive of moving forward supporting our CSA. Which is very exciting for us, as CSA CNY is a  not for profit group of volunteers who are active in advertising and education for the benefit of organic agriculture, and other sustainable activities to build a brighter future. 

While over the past few years, active involvement in the planning group has dwindled, there is still a core group of committed individuals who are motivated to table events, and put together advertising materials.  It is my hope that we will see the involvement grow from it's present standing and bring the "community" back to the CSA model. So we are working together to come up with brochures to distribute at the upcoming (Dec 6&7)Plowshares Craft Fair, an annual event organized by the Syracuse Peace Council. (www.peacecouncil.net) 

Since the group is volunteer based, we will be directing folks to our website for info and contacting to ensure an optimum level of customer service, and free the limited volunteer group up to work on other endeavors. We do encourage you to take part in planning meetings if you can, or  volunteer in other ways in your communities, to raise awareness of sustainable agricultural practices, participation in community gardens, etc. If you cannot attend meetings, but would like to volunteer at the farm, distribute flyers,  or just become active within your local community, and would like more tools or info, please contact me at [email protected]  and I will do my best to help you. If you are interested in us giving a talk about CSA's, organic agriculture, or the local food movement, I would be happy to arrange such an event at your work, event, school, etc.   Remember, CSA is a COMMUNITY effort!

Upon sign up there will be a member agreement form, as well  as an option to go in and set preferences. This is so we can determine what folks really want to see in their shares based on what we grow, and help us in our field planning. Although we cannot  guarantee that you will always get exactly what you want, we hope, by starting our first season  CSA small; to personalize  your share as much as possible. This in a way allows you to actively participate in the field plan, and your input will be utilized to determine what we will grow. Because we intend to be a CSA exclusive farm, your input is very important to us.  While we want to provide you with foods you know your family likes, we also will encourage you to try new foods, by sharing recipes here on the Farm News Blog. I will do my best to add in descriptions of crops, but there are so many references  for nutritional information, photos, recipes,  and more, including Grindstonefarm.com; all over the web, I most likely will offer links to those sites and allow you to explore and learn more on your own, and  free up time for us to farm. You will also have the opportunity to schedule vacations, make a payment plan, and enter preferred pickup days. As of now we have no confirmed pickup sites except on farm. We would like to have at least 10 shares to justify a pickup, and if you are interested in hosting a pick up site, please contact us. You will also have the opportunity to continue placing special orders from grindstone to be delivered with your share, as well as wholeshare orders. We will coordinate with Grindstone to make this work, as many present share members have expressed that they appreciate being able to have these options. 

We are excited moving forward to have the support and encouragement from many of CSA CNY's shareholders over the past years, and thank those of you who have been supportive of Grindstone Farm in the past. It is our hope you will give us a springboard for our first season, while continuing to support Grindstone's growing efforts.  

There is a 10% discount for paying in full by Jan 31, as well as a 5% discount for choosing on farm pickups. By choosing on farm pickups, you will have the chance to see where your food comes from, participate in u pick offerings, and save money.  If you have any questions about our farm or our CSA, please contact us!

Also, please check out the links in this entry to see the many great things that CSA-CNY, Syracuse Peace Council, and Grindstone Farm have to offer. All three are incredible organisations and we look forward to continuing growing with them. 

This week, Travis worked till the wee hours of the morning navigating our CSA sign up soft ware and while there seem to be a couple bugs, we are ready to start accepting membership. 
 While it is very user friendly, we found that while the program requires a password, it doesn't give you the option in sign up to make one. You have to follow the link from the confirmation email to create a new password in order to create one at all. this allows you to go into your account, set preferences, set vacation dates, and view your balance. Other than that detail we are set to start immediately offering monthly egg shares, and are offering discounts for signing up for veggie shares early.    At this time we are accepting payments by check only. We also are accepting down payments, so you can secure your share without breaking the bank.  Since we are starting small with room to grow there will be  a limited amount of shares available this season. 

Some of the differences you'll see from Grindstone Farm's CSA is that we are offering two different sized shares, and also offering a create your own box option at our farmers markets. These decisions are based on feed back from current Grindstone Farm CSA members, and largely appeal to us as well. We love the CSA model, however realize many people are turned off from membership due to the lack of flexibility, so we aim to create a more inviting CSA  that allows you to purchase a CSA that fits your family size and preferences. 

We are looking forward to the 2014 season, and continuing to grow and provide fresh organic food, and fresh free range eggs to our friends and neighbors. We hope you are too!

If you have any questions about our CSA or our farm, please feel free to contact us.