Letter from Forget Me Not Farm

The first full year on the farm has been interesting. The deer fencing from Lee Valley worked, and is being packed up for next year. All of the garlic crop has been sold, except for the seed saved for next year. The driers have been working full time drying fruit from the trees in the orchard, and everyone has been helping out with the canning of our own produce.

Everyone from my 94 year old mother, to Murphy the new dog. One of the best days I had was preparing beans while my mother prepared peaches. It was great because the beans and the peaches were our own, and even greater because I was learning from a master at preserving food.

The irrigation pump is drained and packed away. The green cover crop, Buckwheat, is ready to be turned under in preparation for planting next years garlic. The land that grew the garlic, potatoes and corn will be planted with Fall Rye, in order to return nutrients to the soil.

Now our attention is turning to the cutting of timber and lumber for the support buildings we need
to ready for the spring season.

The wood lot will echo to the sound the axe, as we start to cut select trees for this purpose, as well as Birch and Maple firewood ready to dry over the summer for next years fuel.

We will take a break from all the wood cutting, the first two weeks in October to plant next year's garlic crop. Thanks to local demand we shall be able to double our production for July harvest.

With all of the physical activity on the Farm there has not been much need to attend fitness classes, as we all are stronger, fitter and I think happier.

Despite the increased physical activity, or more likely because of it we have kept up the Yoga classes despite that "fact" that Yoga evidently can make our feet bigger. This according to "Tanya" from the movie "Mama Mia".

The major political activity for us is not the federal election, but the work being undertaken by local groups to block the planned development of a "Smart Center" shopping mall that includes a Wal Mart. This activity serves to remind us that to protect our environment we cannot just work to preserve the land that is under our families stewardship, but community land as well.