Runamuk Acres Conservation Farm
Soil-first farming, building health from the ground up!
They say that dogs are “man’s best friend”. And people talk about the relationship between man and dog, but unless you’ve actually experienced that connection it’s really impossible to comprehend just what it means. I’ve been around dogs all my life–my family had a dog when I was growing up, and then when we embarked…
We could have bought a homestead better suited to farming, better set up–some New England style farmhouse with an attached barn, or a garage with an outbuilding we could convert into a shed for the livestock. Perhaps it would have had a sprawling pasture, an established garden however humble it may be, and a berry…
It is with a heavy heart that I share this news with you. In the wee-hours of the morning on Sunday, July 20th, our brave little dog Ava ferociously faced off with one of the forest’s wild creatures, and lost her battle. We did not see the animal that took her life, so we cannot…
My farmers’ tan is a testament to the amount of time I’ve been spending in the market garden lately, working long hours in the sun and in drizzling rain to get crops in the ground. It’s an on-going process, and there’s also successive sowings to think about–and the fall crops to keep in mind. So…
This week we added the first of many new animals to our growing farm–Willow the livestock guardian dog! Willow is a great pyrenees/anatolian shepherd cross. The Great Pyrenees breed–or the Pyrenean Mountain Dog is an old breed that has been used by shepherds for hundreds of years. Developed in southern France and northern Spain where…
“What a hideous plant! Isn’t it terrific!?” “Oh my gawd–check out this spider! Look at all those long legs!” These are not exclamations of repulsion, but terms of endearment uttered by myself and our family. We truly love nature. To us the Earth is a marvel; there is beauty in even the ugliest of plants,…
Mother Nature brought us a whopping 12-14 inches of snow last week, forcing me to postpone the first class of bee-school, and while I’m sure we’ll get more snow between now and then, the first day of spring is just 6 weeks away now. Here at Runamuk, Keith and I are gearing up for the…
I’m really excited to announce that this year, Runamuk will be reinstating it’s CSA! Some of my followers might remember our CSA program from 2012–which I put on hold during 2013 in the face of our impending move. I learned a lot about farming and business that year, and we will carry those lessons with…
We’re finally moved in at the new homestead and the family is settling back into our familiar routines. With my kitchen unpacked, I am at long last able to get back to my typical Sunday baking habit–admittedly, homemaking (cooking, baking, cleaning, etc.) is not my most favorite of activities, but baking my own breads really…
There were times when the obstacles seemed insurmountable, times when I all but despaired of ever reaching my goal–when the dream of returning to the forested hillside where I found my salvation appeared forever out of reach; but I am finally able to say that yesterday, Friday, December 13th of this year 2013–we met with…