New American Sustainable Agriculture Project graduate Jabril Abdi pauses in his corn field. Batula Ismail farms her plot in Lisbon. By Stowell P. Watters Photos by Greta Rybus Here is a nightmare we Mainers can only imagine: A group of men with assault rifles comes barreling across the savannah to demand that we part with
Nyla Bravesnow of Many Hands Farm in Thorndike picks rose hips. Many Hands focuses on homesteading and permaculture on 2 cultivated acres. Photo by Sue Smith-Heavenrich. By Sue Smith-Heavenrich If you visit Many Hands Farm in Thorndike, the first thing you notice is the abundance of flowers: sunflowers, coneflowers, beebalm and calendula. Lots of calendula.
Toki Oshima drawing. By Grace Oedel My husband and I recently moved in with my in-laws with the intention of farming family land. I wish I could say this was a smooth, easy process, but we all struggled. We were unused to what it meant to live together. We had differing expectations about how to
Laura Neale with part of an onion harvest. Photo by Sue Neale. By Stowell Watters Catillus – Latin for “kettle” meaning “a deep vessel.” It is a tool that outshines its various permutations to remain stark and simple. A robust icon forged in black iron, it is a familiar sight, the agrarian symbol heating up
Atina and Martin Diffley with 140 International Tractor. Photo by Laurie Schneider, from https://atinadiffley.com/press-kit/ Organic farmers have a sacred, fundamental, philosophical relationship to the land – a relationship worth fighting for. So said Atina Diffley, author of Turn Here Sweet Corn, during her keynote speech at MOFGA’s 2013 Farmer to Farmer Conference. Diffley’s earliest memories
Mike and Christa Bahner with their now 2-year-old daughter Lizzy. Photos courtesy of Bahner Farm. By Holli Cederholm Bahner Farm’s 37 acres of woodlot and tillable land abuts a busy stretch of Rt. 3 in Belmont, Maine, with just enough road frontage for their farmhouse, barn and, most importantly, their newly built farmstand. When Mike
Masanobu (left) and Tomoko Ikemiya cut elderberries at their Peace Farm in Bar Harbor. All photos by the author. By Laurie Schreiber “Well, here we are! This is it!” Masanobu Ikemiya declares in greeting, and then sets out on a tour of Peace Farm, the self-sustaining homestead he’s built with his wife, Tomoko, in Bar
Jim Nichols with his parents, Lois and Nick, who launched him on a grounded, farm-oriented life. English photo. By Jean English Lois and Mahlon “Nick” Nichols raised five children (one now a MOFGA certified organic grower, Jim Nichols) on a Dewitt, Michigan, farm. During a recent visit to Maine, they talked to The MOF&G about
Shaun Keenan and Benji Knisley have been managing Sand Hill Farm in Somerville for seven years. Jane Lamb photo. By Jane Lamb “If you don’t have to buy fertilizer and pesticides, why are organic strawberries more expensive?” ask many first-time customers coming to pick their own at Sand Hill Farm in Somerville. “Just go into
By Jean English Jamie Graeger leads an amphibious life. For three-week stints, he is at sea with the Merchant Marine; during alternate three-week periods, he is firmly grounded, raising certified-organic garlic, gathering and boiling maple sap, and raising nursery stock for Fedco Trees. You might expect his life to be a see-saw affair, and to
