FSC Contributor Amy Halloran takes on an a podcast journey to explore the Northeast grain system. Amy’s series on scaling up the northeast grain system provides a wealth of information and serves as an incredible introduction to the world of local grains, and in this episode we continue that conversation. Grains are often left out of the locavore…
Category: Farming
{my farming journey} Starting Little Sparrow
The following is the very basic tale of how I’m starting my own micro-farm in Ballston Spa. It’s called Little Sparrow Farm, and yes, it’s named after Dolly Parton. Last summer I was telling a friend how I was going to be ordering a lot of garlic. The amount I ordered ended up being over…
{scaling the northeast grain system} Fall Plantings & Rotation
When I first started gardening, I couldn’t imagine planting anything in the fall. Sure, I knew about tulip bulbs, but I thought of putting them in the ground as winter storage, kind of like keeping your sweaters safe from moths in summer. I couldn’t wrap my head around plants that didn’t follow the path of…
{home wheat production} Crackers From Scratch
We have been wandering in the desert of home wheat production for three years now. We could see the mountaintop, but were not sure we could get there. Although it is not that hard to grow wheat, harvesting, threshing and milling all present real technical problems to overcome for home growers. We learned how to scythe, then…
{fsc podcast} Episode 7: The Farmers Market Scene
It occurred to us that while we’ve discussed all sorts of ways to access fresh, local vegetables and fruit, we’ve been missing a key way that so many people buy their food… farmers markets! So we are bringing you the scoop on farmers markets this episode- how they’re organized and structured, why farmers and producers…
{field trip} My Visit to Polyface Farm
I recently got back from a crazy five-day trip to the D.C. area. In that time, I spread some DIY Bacon love to Maryland where I taught a private lesson on bacon curing, I got to hang out with the wonderful Celia from On Cardamom and Cast Iron, and see the sights from the windows…
{food policy} Why Do You Grow Clean Food?
There has been a lot of discussion, and media hype, about the Stanford University School of Medicine Meta Analysis published in the Annals of Internal Medicine on September 4th, on whether organic food is more nutritious than conventionally grown food. (Definition Note: A Meta Analysis focuses on contrasting and combining results from different studies, in the hope of identifying patterns…
{know your farmer} Mountain Winds Farm
MEET OUR MAPLE SYRUP FARMER: MOUNTAIN WINDS FARM Farmer: Randy Grippin Location: Berne, NY Produces: Light and Dark Maple Syrup, Maple Cream and Candy, Pastured Eggs and some berries/vegetables. # Acres: 140 55,000 linear SF of pipeline 1291 taps hung with tension wire, on 1291 trees of Sugar and Black Maple In Business: 6 years…
{know your farmer} The Berry Patch
Editor’s Post: ‘Community Voices’ Contributor, Emily L of Capital District Dining Blog, is back with a terrific farm tour of The Berry Patch! We get our berries from The Berry Patch for many of our FSC Academy classes, so I’m very excited that Emily got a chance to have a personal tour! -Christina +++++ I…
{know your farmer} Barry’s Endgame
Editor’s Note: Welcome Josh & Stefanie Rockwood of West Wind Acres, a meat farm in Charlton, NY, as Community Voice Guest Contributors. They will bring us insight into the world of being sustainable and humane meat farmers using a full-fledged rotational grazing system with all their animals. If you haven’t listened to our latest podcast,…
{scaling up the northeast grain system} The Harvest
If it weren’t for my friend Howard, my wheat would still be in the field. When I got home from vacation last Saturday, I found a message that the wheat was ready. Howard had toured my plot, and found the grain passed the crack test. When the wheat is ready, the seed should feel hard,…
{summer farm tour} Meet Our Dairy Farmer
{Meadowbrook Farms Dairy, Clarksville, NY} Christina (FSC’s editor) had it right in Saturday’s post (Meet Your Meat Farmers): “I can’t stress enough how important farm tours are to customer education & enlightenment, customer-to-farmer relations and community ties. To actually see & hear, in detail, up-close, how your food is grown or raised is an empowering…
{interview} Mark Izeman of the NRDC
A few months back Jillian and I got to participate in a webinar put on by Mark Izeman of the Natural Resources Defense Council and Laurie David, author of The Family Dinner, Great Ways to Connect to Your Kids, One Meal at a Time. The webinar focused a lot on food and the environment and…
{kickstarter campaign} Building Soil w/ Pedal Power!
Food Cycle is a Kickstarter campaign that is close to my home and near to my heart. Troy Bike Rescue and Collard City Growers are two great projects happening around the corner from where I first lived. I learned to ride a bike in the driveway of my house on Second Avenue. The first self-portrait…
{FSC PODCAST} episode 4: urban farming
This episode of the FSC Podcast, we are diving into the world of urban farming. That’s right, farming in cities. Not the typical, sprawling pastures in the country or the iconic red barn, but we’re talking to people and organizations who are farming in the city. They are increasing access to fresh food, forging a…
