Category: Farming

Maine AgrAbility

AgrAbility outreach: working with volunteers to build a raised garden bed at Farm & Homestead Day at MOFGA Cheesemakers move hundreds of pounds of milk in the course of their work, which makes the ergonomics of the cheese room an important consideration. AgrAbility coordinated assistance to help a farm family purchase a modified van, easing

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Tim and Anne Devin of Chase Stream Farm

Tim and Anne Devin of Chase Stream Farm wanted to do something completely different after their careers in the military. The Devins bought their 72-acre property in Monroe in 2016 and continue to refine their plans for the farm. The farm pond provides irrigation water. Sarah Alexander, MOFGA’s executive director, toured Chase Stream Farm in

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Paul and Sandy Arnold The Best Job on Earth

Paul and Sandy Arnold delivering the keynote speech at MOFGA’s 2018 Farmer to Farmer Conference. English photo By Jean English Paul and Sandy Arnold of Pleasant Valley Farm in Argyle, New York, call farming “the best job on earth,” and that was the theme of their keynote speech at MOFGA’s 2018 Farmer to Farmer Conference. Pleasant Valley

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Farming for the Long Term and Having Income Into Retirement

Barbara and Jason Kafka described their conservative methods of earning and saving money for retirement at MOFGA’s 2018 Farmer to Farmer Conference. English photo By Jean English Barbara and Jason Kafka of Checkerberry Farm in Parkman, Maine, and Paul and Sandy Arnold of Pleasant Valley Farm in Argyle, New York, spoke at MOFGA’s 2018 Farmer to Farmer

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Beyond the Field Edge

Trees need at least 20 percent of their total height to have living foliage to thrive and grow well. English photo Maine district forester Morten Moesswilde discussed different uses for a forest, depending in part on soil characteristics and existing species. English photo. By Katy Green and Jean English Maine’s woodlots can provide income, materials

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Ripley Farm

Gene and Mary Margaret Ripley, pictured with their daughter, Harriet, are the Piscataquis County Soil and Water Conservation District 2016 Outstanding Cooperators of the Year. The Ripleys rotate four categories or crops – summer crops, salad crops, carrots and fall brassicas – and try to leave at least four years before putting the same block

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Two Farmers Farm

Kelsey Herrington of MOFGA-certified organic Two Farmers Farm in Scarborough is among the skilled new farmers in Maine. In this photo she is harvesting and preparing leeks for market. Along with Herrington, Dominic Pascarelli of Two Farmers Farm strives for efficient crop production. By Stowell Watters Photos by Lily Piel Every five years the U.S.

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Gil Whitehead

Gil Whitehead with Star and Red – and one of two Aussies on the farm. English photo Whitehead heads into the Christmas tree plantation with his team of oxen. In winter, the oxen haul out Christmas trees that customers select and Whitehead cuts. English photo By Jean English Sixteen-year-old Gil Whitehead of MOFGA-certified organic Winterberry

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Brochu Homestead

Nicholas Butler of the USDA NRCS Soil Science Division discussed forest stand improvement practices, the relationship of tree species in the woodlot to soil profiles, and the Ecological Site Survey (similar to the Web Soil Survey) that USDA is developing. English photo By Katy Green, Kacey Weber and Jean English In 2016, MOFGA cosponsored four

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Balfour Farm

Doug and Heather Donahue of Balfour Farm at their booth at the Common Ground Country Fair. Photo courtesy of Balfour Farm By Sonja Heyck-Merlin In Gaelic, Balfour means “from the grazing or pasture land.” Maine organic farmstead cheesemakers Heather and Doug Donahue settled on the name in honor of Doug’s Irish ancestry. The name also

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