Runamuk Acres Conservation Farm
Soil-first farming, building health from the ground up!
You may be wondering what’s next for Runamuk now that we’re buying a farm. When will we move? What are we going to do with the new property? Will we get goats and put up a high tunnel to start making cheese and growing high value tomato crops hydroponically? What’s the plan, Sam? Read on…
When I first started selling vegetables nearly 8 years ago, I was a stay-at-home homeschooling mom to 2 rowdy young boys. I wanted to earn an income without having to get a job outside the home, and what started with a 10-family CSA has grown and transformed into a diverse apiary operation with supporting acts…
Here we are at another year’s end. This always seems to be an introspective time for me. A time for reflection and review, for letting go of what no longer serves us and for embracing new things into our lives. Before we move on to 2018 and all that a new year brings with it,…
On Saturday I harvested─and ate─the first shoots of my #WinterGrowingChallenge. Yay me! I started that first round of seeds 2 weeks ago on Saturday, December 9th. It took 14 days to harvest the first salad. I was initially concerned with the cooler temperatures in our home slowing down the growth of the shoots, but according to…
The Earth’s orbit around the sun has brought us once more to this─the shortest day and the longest night─the Winter Solstice. For all of Earth’s creatures, nothing is so fundamental as the length of daylight. It drives warmth, weather, and life itself on our planet. Today we know that the solstice is an astronomical occurrence,…
11 days after sowing my first seeds for shoots as part of my #WinterGrowingChallenge, I am still patiently waiting for those leafy-greens. I’m fairly lusting after a pea-shoot salad with my favorite homemade balsamic vinaigrette dressing─maybe with a little crumbled feta. The idea makes my mouth water even now. There was one thing I overlooked…
It’s been 54 days today since I dropped off the bulk of my FSA farm loan application with the Somerset County branch of the USDA’s Farm Service Agency. Surprisingly enough, things continue to progress in the direction of ownership of the Swinging Bridge Farm for Runamuk. The Story So Far: Making an Offer Negotiations Hesitation…
With the FSA’s monster loan application submitted for review, and the FarmRaiser party behind us, all focus has turned toward preparing for the winter looming ahead of us. The unseasonable warmth we’ve experienced so far this fall can be deceiving, but make no mistake─winter will come to Maine. When it does I intend to be…
For the first time in my 7 years of beekeeping I am trying my hand at raising my own Queens. I’m excited for what this new skill means for my apiary and now wonder why I didn’t start sooner! We’re at the height of the growing season now and I am out there in the…
Yesterday was my first-ever visit to the annual Fedco Tree Sale and what an adventure it was! An event the reminded me of Black Friday─but instead of sales on electronics, toys, and household gadgets people were lining up to take advantage on huge savings on trees and plants. Maine’s longstanding agricultural heritage and community of…