Runamuk Acres Conservation Farm
Soil-first farming, building health from the ground up!
Yesterday was the Madison Farmers’ Market’s “Autumn Harvest Celebration” and though the day was not bright and sunny, the event turned out well. We saw a good turn-out, many of the market’s devoted followers came out-along with a number of tourists. We had a couple of different agricultural presentations, food, games, and music–and aside from…
Somehow it’s not hard to believe that it’s already almost mid-September. Perhaps other farmers feel the same sense of urgency that I do–from the moment that bare soil is exposed in the spring til the morning you wake to find the first killing frost upon the ground–there’s a sense of urgency–a sense that time is…
It’s been 2 weeks since I received that fateful call on my cell while I was at farmers’ market. It was a beautiful sunny summer day, I’d opted to leave Willow at home while I peddled my wares that day–partly because it was too hot on the blacktop parking lot for a dog, but largely…
I’m excited to announce the opportunity to participate in workshops here at beautiful Runamuk Acres! In the five years since I established Runamuk and the Somerset Beekeepers I’ve spent a fair amount of time teaching the local community about bees, beekeeping, pollinators and pollinator conservation, salve and soap-making. I’ve volunteered as a master gardener for the…
For those who don’t already know, I volunteer my time and services with not only the Somerset Beekeepers, but also with the Madison Farmers’ Market. As market manager, I serve local farmers and the communities of Madison-Anson, as well as the surrounding area. I’m privileged to work with some really great farmers, gardeners, and artisan crafters….
With the Open-Hive behind me, the garden in maintenance mode, and the bees content to do their thing, there’s a momentary lull in the activity here at Runamuk that affords me the opportunity to write. Generally speaking, things are going well here at Runamuk’s new location. It’s painstakingly slow progress, but it’s progress and I’m content…
We’ve got a beautiful location for this event, and new Queens arriving this week–so as long as the weather cooperates, beekeepers from around the area can participate in making splits at the Runamuk apiary. I also plan to demonstrate some of the various mite-testing methods since this is such a crucial aspect of beekeeping these days. These…
This morning before I left for work at Johnny’s Selected Seeds I spent about an hour and a half pulling weeds and grass-rhizomes out of one of the beds. The bean-seeds that I had planted there were older seed and very few spouted, so rather than trying to pick all the weeds out around the…
It’s hard to believe that it’s already been more than two weeks since Runamuk and I became residents of Starks. This was our third move in the last six months, and like all of the other moves there has been a period where I was once again without internet access. That, coupled with the business of…
Tomorrow evening I will be signing the lease for this gorgeous farm, and then Saturday and Sunday we’re moving in!