Dear Friends of PTB Farm,
This morning I heard a hoot owl. I was in the greenhouse, fussing with my starts: waving my hands over the baby seedlings to encourage them to grow strong; squinting to see if any new seedlings had emerged over night, and drinking my coffee slowly in the low angle of the morning sun in winter. The owl was barely audible, way out in the woods somewhere, but as I brought my attention to the hoots, I then heard the woodpecker banging on the dead cherry tree not far from the propagation house. I walked out to see if I could catch a glimpse of the him, and his signature flight pattern, but I couldn't find him. Perhaps he was hiding on the other side of the tree?
Later, while we were rolling around the animal paddocks, for evening chores, I finally caught a glimpse of the woodpecker: flip-flip-flapping across the sky, and landing on another snag before furiously pounding his head into the deadwood in search of a winter meal. These moments of existing in the world with the wild things, observing their natural behaviors and even getting to see their weird quirks; that's one of the great pleasures of being a farmer. But the other side of the coin, the side you don't see in instagram posts or written about in loving prose, are the times when this work feels like walking uphill in both directions.
We've only just gotten into this winter, and yet we've already had our fill of challenges. In December and January we had temperatures dip below freezing for over 200 hours, which meant that the animal watertanks froze, and crops I had counted on for January market harvest were damaged (some irrevocably, and some not), and 2018 will likely be another year without figs for us (or the birds).
The thing about challenging winter conditions though, is that with good design, and some forethought, most of the problems can be mitigated. Yes the animals need more bedding, more calories, and a few more creature comforts, but with well-planned systems, the only real problem is the personal discipline required to get out when everything in my body is telling me to stay in bed, conserve energy, stay warm. Farming is about getting up, even when the weather is challenging and making sure all the plants and animals in our care are well looked after. And so, on one of the coldest days this winter so far, we had our fifth annual on-farm animal welfare audit. We voluntarily participate in this program, which certifies that we raise our animals in the highest possible welfare. And we are so proud that despite challenging conditions on the day of our yearly audit -- which included a high temperature that day of 23 degrees, one farmer sick in bed, and the other just getting better from the flu -- our inspection went off without a hitch and we were awarded another year of Animal Welfare Approved (AWA) status!
We don't take these things lightly, and although there are lots of other ways to raise animals and vegetables -- systems that may be more economically profitable, or systems that may take more intensive capital investments and rely less on human labor, to name a few -- everyone (eaters and growers alike) is choosing what they prioritize most. We have chosen to prioritize the way the wild and managed worlds intersect and so our systems are ecologically-centered, requiring thoughtful human planning and input, but minimizing impact on our soils, our water, and the natural systems on which we rely. We love sharing our farm, our little piece of wild and managed earth, with the birds, the beavers, the deer, and the fireflies - as well as the ticks, the moles, and the grasshoppers.
We are looking forward to a fabulous new year, and have already begun planning and hoping and dreaming for the warmer days; long and full. We are happy to say we will be back from our short break from market (perhaps you didn't even notice!) at our usual spot this Saturday at the Greensboro Curb Farmers Market.
I'll have information at my booth about joining our 2018 Coop, and if you're interested please find me to answer any of your questions regarding the program! This will be our fourth season of offering our unique and flexible take on the traditional CSA program, and we are enthusiastically accepting new members until March 31! If you aren't familiar with our Coop program, please check out our website for more information or come find me at the market this week!
As always, we hope you are enjoying a delicious season and look forward to seeing you soon!
with love from your farmers
Hillary and Worth
Bea, Cassius, and Tazi the dogs
PS -- if you didn't catch it, we were happy to be cited in this vice article about pig farming and it's manure problems, as a positive example of ecological pork production (with no manure problems)
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