"The landscape has taken on that lush verdant look that means we are in the thick of it now. The farm is buoyed by the waxing force of life, the great flood tide of the sun. The summer solstice is just three weeks away, and everything with roots and leaves is pressing the … [Read more...] about Essex Farm: See Farmer->Give Hug
Kristin Kimball
Avalanche Season at Essex Farm
"It’s avalanche season, work-wise [at Essex Farm]. As long as the weather holds we are all under pressure to get things plowed! composted! planted! weeded! fixed! moved! while simultaneously keeping up with all the quotidian work that the great living machine demands. This … [Read more...] about Avalanche Season at Essex Farm
Farm vs. Storm
"The thing that makes farming so interesting – and sometimes so heartbreaking – is the unpredictability that is built into natural systems. You really can’t count your chickens before they hatch. As farmers, our impulse is to control as many variables as we can (which is how we … [Read more...] about Farm vs. Storm
A Local’s Look at Kristin Kimball’s The Dirty Life
The Dirty Life is a memoir about Kristin Kimball's transition from an urban life and career in New York City to launching a bootstrap CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farm in rural Essex, New York with her then soon-to-be husband, Mark Gunther. At one point in my … [Read more...] about A Local’s Look at Kristin Kimball’s The Dirty Life
Tastes of Spring at Essex Farm
"All the ag rags are leading with news of the weather. "Unusual Weather Patterns Leave Farmers Scratching Their Heads", reads front page of the Farm Bureau organ, Grassroots. This was New York’s second warmest winter on record, and the warmest March in North America since 1895. … [Read more...] about Tastes of Spring at Essex Farm