Friday 11 January 2019

Update January 31st:

Hello everyone:

We are here.  Our internet is on.  Our new phone number is listed below.

We arrived in Lanark, bringing our little load of worldly stuff, a lot of ideas and plans and a whole lot of cold air and snow.









We may own the property but the house is ruled by Cayley.  She gave her final word on our being here after about two days by selecting a new piece of our furniture as her own.

According to the sellers, she is a good mouser.  Considering her pouncing speed and the sharpness of her claws, I'd be inclined to believe them.







Now that the house is mostly unpacked and roughly organized, I've started work on the first outbuilding. 





Hello Everyone:


Welcome to 2019...I hope this season is a fruitful one for all of us.

This will be a big year for us, lots of learning curves and plenty of work.

I’ve spent a lot of time considering various scenarios and have finally settled on how to proceed.  There are a number of variables that will affect how this season’s production plan will unfold, so I am leaving plenty of room to adjust our plans.



Please find more details on the “How to Buy a Share” page.




Agriculture always has its share of unknowns, I’ve learned to live with these over the years and thankfully some of my past careers gave me a bit of experience with this as well.  I can say I am looking forward to getting through this period of time in which there are a few more variables than usual...until then thank you for your patronage.







I have reserved two piglets, but "mother" has to successfully deliver and wean a big enough litter - we are at the end of the waiting list.  If pork is available, it will be ready in late fall and purchased separately from the produce basket; customers get first opportunity to purchase cuts.









Shiitake Mushrooms:

Two weeks ago, we were at the new farm taking a tour of the woodlot with the sellers.

During that time, we found that there were oaks and a source of year round water.

These are two of the ingredients required to grow shiitake mushrooms.  I have since sourced the inoculation plugs and equipment needed to inoculate the oak logs, AND a local farmer eager to share their experience in this endeavour.  If all goes well and I can get a suitable quantity of chicken wire (to keep the squirrels and chipmunks from eating the mushrooms) then we can start to provide the fruits of the forest in about two years...


This would be the realization of another wish I have had since doing a workshop on shiitake mushroom growing during my internship.






If you are aware of anyone in the Ottawa area who is interested in this model of agriculture as a potential career; forward them the following link to my advert on the “Farmlink” website below.  My listing is under the heading “Certified Organic Starter Farm Opportunity”.  If you look on “map view”, our listing will appear under the tab near Munster.  If you look on “list view”, our listing will appear near the top of the first page.