Harvest!

The farm really came alive in July. All the planning, planting, cultivating, tending, and patiently waiting has paid off in more lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, eggplant, peppers, radishes, beets, basil, cilantro, onions, garlic, kale, chard, peas, carrots, and flowers than we know what to do with. Farm tasks the past several weeks have consisted mostly of weeding and harvesting, and not much else. We're in full-blown production mode!

A truck full of freshly harvested garlic, ready for curing

The abundance of summer is visible everywhere. I spent my July rotation at Half Pint Farm, owned and operated by Mara and Spencer Welton. As the name implies, it's a tiny farm (2 1/2 acres) specializing in tiny vegetables. They may be small, but they are mighty! During my four weeks there, we harvested carrots, onions, scallions, hot peppers, baby cucumbers, summer squash, potatoes, string beans, and more. I really love Mara and Spencer's farm philosophy: their guiding principle is grow what you love, and sell what you grow. They only plant what they enjoy growing, and they're excited to sell it. They work hard but love what they do, and it shows in their finished product. It was really inspiring to see how they've turned their little farm into such a productive and satisfying business.

Our farm is now home to 200 chickens! The day-old chicks arrived on the farm in early July and got nestled in the brooder coops that we built for them. Now a month old, they're fully feathered, gangly teenagers. We took them out to pasture last week, where they'll live their lives roaming one of our fields not currently in production, scratching up the soil, eating grubs and weed seeds, fertilizing the land with their droppings, and living happy little chicken lives--while simultaneously improving the field for future planting. At night, they get herded back into their mobile coop, which is moved to a new patch of field every three to five days. They are true free-range chickens.

Wee little chicken babes

Our chickens are meat birds, and I know meat is a fraught issue that elicits strongly-held opinions in many people. I truly believe that meat animals can be raised in a way that is both environmentally sustainable and honors the lives of the animals. In a small-scale operation like ours, we can use the chickens' natural instincts and habits to improve our land for future vegetable production. On some farms, where the soil may be too problematic to be used to raise crops, animal grazing is the best way to make the land effective at producing food for humans. Large-scale meat production is a big, dirty, inhumane, and unnatural operation. Animals are kept in confinement, pumped full of hormones and antibiotics, and live in filthy conditions. Why? Because it allows consumers to have cheap, easily available meat--three times a day, every day. If customers continue to demand meat in the quantities that they currently do, we'll continue to rely on Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) to meet the demand, regardless of the ethical, environmental, or health implications.

Honestly, I think meat should be a luxury, to be enjoyed only occasionally, or in small quantities. It should be raised in a way that requires care and attention to the animals' needs, and that level of attention should be reflected in the price. We can't continue consuming meat at the rate that we do, unless we want to continue degrading the environment and subjecting animals to horrific conditions. If we viewed meat as an indulgence, to be eaten only once or twice a week (or less); committed to purchasing only high-quality grass-fed beef, or pasture-raised chicken or pork; and paid a price that takes into account the care that went into raising these animals--it could go a long way in minimizing the meat industry's impact on the planet, and would vastly improve the health and happiness of the animals whose lives we take for our sustenance.

Ok, I'm off my soapbox now. :)

Summertime off the farm has been just as delightful as on the farm. The past weeks have ben full of swimming, watching the sunset over the mountains and Lake Champlain (or, in the case of Fourth of July, watching fireworks over the lake), and potlucks with friends. My mom came to visit, and I had a wonderful time showing her the farm, shopping at the farmers' market, exploring Burlington, and--my favorite--eating creemees. And just a couple weeks later, three of my dearest friends from DC came to visit! The last week of July was my mid-program vacation week, so Lauren, Alix, and Jay came up to spend the week traveling in Canada and New England with me. After a weekend in Burlington, we spent a wonderful day and evening in Montreal, then drove to Acadia National Park in Maine, where we spent three days camping and hiking. We returned to Vermont, spending one night in the northern part of the state, then came back to Burlington to close out the week. It was a wonderful vacation, and so great to spend it with friends. And my sister is coming to visit this week! I'm really liking having a new round of visitors every couple of weeks, and getting to show off Burlington.

Cadillac Mountain in Acadia National Park

A closing thought: what good is the bounty of a farm if you don't get to enjoy the abundance? There's a real beauty about eating a meal made entirely of produce that you grew yourself. It feeds the body and the soul. My roommate Isabella has all but turned our kitchen into a commercial kitchen, turning out tomato sauce, ratatouille, kimchi, jam, pesto, more pickled veggies than I ever thought you could pickle, and delicious dinners on a regular basis. Yeah, it's good to be a farmer.

Farmer friend Corinne and our overflowing farm stand