Karen and Paul Volckhausen. Photo courtesy of Happy Town Farm Sheep are an integral part of nutrient cycling at Happy Town Farm. English photo Karen’s cut flower business has grown since she retired from nursing. Photo courtesy of Happy Town Farm Paul and Karen Volckhausen were the “farmers in the spotlight” at MOFGA’s 2017 Farmer
Ron and Melissa Harwood and Luke. Photo by Michele McCarthy By Ellen S. Gibson Maine AgrAbility staff attends various events throughout the year to further its mission to help farmers, members of farm families and farm workers overcome pain, injury or disability so that they can continue to work safely and productively. In late September
Toki Oshima illustration By Joyce White In her 1987 book “The Chalice and the Blade,” Riane Eisler shows us a culture that existed for thousands of years, in which the inhabitants enjoyed peace, prosperity, cooperation, and equality between men and women. She calls that a partnership model of society, represented by the chalice; its opposite
Toki Oshima illustration You know what really matters when mention of the ECB in the mainstream media makes you think, first and foremost, “European corn borer!” and not the far less important – to our community – European Central Bank. What matters to us is growing food, flowers, trees, herbs and fibers in quality,
John Bunker and Laura Sieger model the apple design T-shirt that has been reprinted as a fundraiser for MOFGA’s Maine Heritage Orchard. Kip Sieger photo By Laura Sieger, MEHO intern For years people have been asking if the 2009 Common Ground Country Fair T-shirts with the apple design are still available. They’ve long been sold
A “Green Man” carving by Pat Austin in the display gardens at David Austin Roses, Albrighton, near Wolverhampton, England. Photo by Simon Garbutt from wikipedia.org By Joyce White Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. – Albert Einstein I’ve always suspected there is some kind of magic in woods, fields and
Gail Edwards’ four children were born at her Blessed Maine Herb Farm in Athens, Maine. Shown here, under a favorite apple tree, left to right: Belle Hilmer, Rosa Rosario, Edwards, and Gracie Hilmer. Rosa is holding her newborn son, Emilio, while 2-1/2-year-old Mariano is front and center. Edwards’ son, Johnny, not shown, lives on Nantucket.
Bryan McLellan By Betsy Garrold Systems and communications: Those are the two words that describe Bryan McLellan’s volunteer job at the Common Ground Country Fair. For years as a teenager, McLellan worked with Matthew Strong, first in his food booths and then on parking and communications for the three-day mega event. He left Maine for
Abbey Verrier is one with an heirloom apple tree. Photo by John Bunker By Abbey Verrier For the past four years, I’ve spent my fall seasons driving through Maine’s countryside, one eye on the road and the other scanning the landscape, searching for apple trees. I started doing this while apprenticing with John Bunker and
By Alice Percy, MOFGA President Treble Ridge Farm, Whitefield I can’t count the number of times I’ve had this conversation. Customer: So how big is your farm? Me: Well, we try to grow out about 80 pigs each year, and we’re cropping between 80 and 100 acres. Customer: That’s huge! Actually, that’s not huge. It’s
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