I went to the PASA conference (Pennsylvannia Association of Sustainable Agriculture) this past weekend. I’ve gone to the conference for several years now, and it’s always a great source of diverse agricultural know-how. This year I learned about everything from internet marketing to hops growing – it turns out I don’t want to grow hops. [...]
When Landon and I started this venture, we knew our friends and family would be supportive. We’re incredibly fortunate to have people in our lives who believe in our abilities to try something new and recover from our mistakes.
But we couldn’t have imagined the depth and sincerity of their support. The words of encouragement, [...]
The rest of this winter could be tough… Landon and I are finally living in Oley full-time, anxiously awaiting the start of our first growing season. Sure, we have lots of farm work to keep us busy, but the odds of cabin fever are high.
Fortunately, I’m working on a strategy to beat the odds. [...]
When we first visited what is now Root Mass Farm, Wilbur greeted us warmly–jaws agape, anxiously awaiting an edible treat. It’s been over a year now, and we’ve gotten kind of intimate.
This Monday though, he’s off to the butcher. As a farewell tribute to our farm friend, we’ve compiled some video footage of [...]
Bug scale rating: -3*
People wax poetic about the arrival of spring’s first harvest–the asparagus and the strawberries and the radishes that remind us, no, winter won’t last forever. Not me, though. My heart belongs to fall. Every September, my stomach fist pumps at the sight of the first winter squash–the hand-painted look of the [...]
Lin and I first tried our hand at pickling a few years ago while I was working at Keith’s Farm. Keith specializes in garlic, and it turns out that 70,000 garlic plants produce 70,000 garlic scapes. A bit more than you can sell even at the best farmers’ markets. So we figured why not pickle [...]
So, this is our first attempt at a contest of sorts. Right now, there are no stakes. A right answer wins you nothing.
Eventually, we hope to reward you for competing with free things like vegetables and pickles. But first, we have to see if it works.
You can submit your answer to the pop [...]
Landon, Landon’s sister (Aislinn), and I took a visit to the farm yesterday after a long hiatus. We were delighted to find the fields covered in a downy soft coating of buckwheat.
Maybe the term “covered” is a little favorable: my first time with the broadcast seeder yielded some patchy results. But MOST of our [...]
The day started with some tractor complications and ended with some lighting complications. In between though, Landon and I chalked up all sorts of successes. Well, one. We finally got the buckwheat seed into the fields, and I got to do the seeding honors. Which means I basically looked like this guy:
But, thanks [...]
It’s populated by some really dynamo folks.
Today, I had the pleasure of visiting Leotah’s Place–a newly opened coffeehouse in East Kensington. I first learned of Leotah’s Place back in February ’09 when it was just the thoughtful vision of one Brittney Lewis (Blew). As Blew’s classmate, we planned for our future businesses [...]
Back when Landon worked at Keith’s Farm and sold produce at the Union Square Greenmarket, I met the proprietor of Rick’s Picks. The man was clearly devoted to his pickles, but beyond that, he worshiped their flavor-rich life source–the pickle brine. Over and over again, Rick of Rick’s Picks implored me to save the brine, [...]
Landon spent most of yesterday atop the tractor, sweating bullets in the late-May heat. With my computer on my lap, I’m reminded of the sort of heat machinery can give off. It’s hard to imagine the degrees emitted by that giant engine. (Although his sweat-drenched Red Sox hat gave me a pretty good idea.)
Thanks [...]
We’re one season away from being a bona fide farm–the kind with customers and products and pests and complications.
Hello! Welcome to the online home of Root Mass Farm–a fledgling vegetable farm located about an hour outside of Philadelphia. Here, you can find out what’s happening at Root Mass Farm, see pictures of Root Mass Farm, and laugh at the bloopers of two people who are trying things for the first time.
When [...]
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