Book recommendations
When we're not weeding or feeding we spend our free time reading about beginner farmers, farming, and food and history.
Written by the chef of Blue Hill at Sone Barns, The Third Plate looks at what we're eating and what it all means. Dan Barber comments on food by looking at the farming that brings it to his kitchen.
This is a series of essays on farming philosophy and sustainability. This collection of works is base on Mr Kirschenmann's experiences on his North Dakata farm.
Farms with a Future is a how-to guide for the beginner small farmer. Rebecca Thistlethwaite has put together important perspectives from farm owners and managers accross the country to bring home lessons all focused on sustainability.
Judy
Recipes
Here are some of my favorite recipes. Needless to say, they're all better with fresh, local ingredients.
If you're a fan of lamb then you can find a lot more recipes on the fans of lamb web site.
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Farm Life
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Lamb
Summer around here ends with the Fonda Fair, our local county fair which closes on Labor day. When the fair is over, summer is over. Kids go back to school and we begin in earnest selling our lambs.
Plate of deep fried vegetables
Go Swifty, Go!
There have been County fairs in the US since before it was the US. There’s some dispute whether the first county fair was held in Fredericksburg, VA (1738) or York, PA (1765) but the first state fair was held in Syracuse, NY in 1841. Then, as in now, ...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Farm Life
MacKenzie Hart did an awesome job at the Fonda Fair with her Texel ewe lamb “Annie Marie”. Here they are all pretty with ribbons (Annie Marie is the one on the left). Kenzie worked hard with Annie Marie to make sure that she looked her best. Our lambs are born later than a lot of fair animals because we focus on grass-feeding as our prime objective. ...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
Here is a link to the story: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/12/01/magazine/bittman-lamb.html?_r=0 ("Better Than A Meat Lollipop" in The New York Times Magazine, December 1, 2013)
His recipes include braised, roasted, stir-fried, and g...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Lamb
To cut groundskeeping costs during World War I, President Woodrow Wilson brought a flock of 18 sheep to trim the White House grounds – specifically the south lawn. The war ended in 1918 but the sheep were on the grounds at least until 1919. Included in the flock was Old Ike, a tobacco-chewing ram. They were shorn and nearly 100 pounds of wool was auctioned off to raise money for the Red Cross during World War I. The wool sales brought more than $50,000 to the Red Cross.
Read more here ht...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
Every now and then we move a flock of sheep across Stone Arabia Road, also known as County Route 34, which divides our farm in half. There isn’t a high volume of traffic on the road but people do drive fast, so we don’t take crossing the road lightly. We prepare by putting up fences on both sides to contain the sheep before and after the crossing, and we recruit a couple of neighbors to act as sheep crossing guards. It always goes well, but we always wish that we had a Sheep Crossing ...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
The best thing about growing hops is the people. Working 18 feet off the ground in high winds also has its moments, but the best thing is definitely meeting the community of people interested in beer and brewing.
Most brew beer; some are interested in the social or architectural history of brewing or hop farming. The Albany Ale Project combines both interests. And is now brewing beer with heritage hops from Dutch Barn Farm. We are proud to be a small part of this very cool project.
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Hops
We are committed to eating locally and this year we are making that a financial commitment.
2013 lamb sales are in full swing. We are taking orders for whole, half, and select cuts of lamb. The 2013 lamb crop will be ready by mid-October, although we have already delivered some. This year we have been thinking about eating locally. As our web site points out, our lamb is at least 10,000 miles more local than meat from Australia or New Zealand. We want to reward folks who are committed to eat...?
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Lamb
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Farm Life
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Lamb
Summer around here ends with the Fonda Fair, our local county fair which closes on Labor day. When the fair is over, summer is over. Kids go back to school and we begin in earnest selling our lambs.
Plate of deep fried vegetables
Go Swifty, Go!
There have been County fairs in the US since before it was the US. There’s some dispute whether the first county fair was held in Fredericksburg, VA (1738) or York, PA (1765) but the first state fair was held in Syracuse, NY in 1841. Then, as in now, ...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Farm Life
MacKenzie Hart did an awesome job at the Fonda Fair with her Texel ewe lamb “Annie Marie”. Here they are all pretty with ribbons (Annie Marie is the one on the left). Kenzie worked hard with Annie Marie to make sure that she looked her best. Our lambs are born later than a lot of fair animals because we focus on grass-feeding as our prime objective. ...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
Here is a link to the story: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2013/12/01/magazine/bittman-lamb.html?_r=0 ("Better Than A Meat Lollipop" in The New York Times Magazine, December 1, 2013)
His recipes include braised, roasted, stir-fried, and g...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Lamb
To cut groundskeeping costs during World War I, President Woodrow Wilson brought a flock of 18 sheep to trim the White House grounds – specifically the south lawn. The war ended in 1918 but the sheep were on the grounds at least until 1919. Included in the flock was Old Ike, a tobacco-chewing ram. They were shorn and nearly 100 pounds of wool was auctioned off to raise money for the Red Cross during World War I. The wool sales brought more than $50,000 to the Red Cross.
Read more here ht...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
Every now and then we move a flock of sheep across Stone Arabia Road, also known as County Route 34, which divides our farm in half. There isn’t a high volume of traffic on the road but people do drive fast, so we don’t take crossing the road lightly. We prepare by putting up fences on both sides to contain the sheep before and after the crossing, and we recruit a couple of neighbors to act as sheep crossing guards. It always goes well, but we always wish that we had a Sheep Crossing ...
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Sheep
The best thing about growing hops is the people. Working 18 feet off the ground in high winds also has its moments, but the best thing is definitely meeting the community of people interested in beer and brewing.
Most brew beer; some are interested in the social or architectural history of brewing or hop farming. The Albany Ale Project combines both interests. And is now brewing beer with heritage hops from Dutch Barn Farm. We are proud to be a small part of this very cool project.
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Hops
We are committed to eating locally and this year we are making that a financial commitment.
2013 lamb sales are in full swing. We are taking orders for whole, half, and select cuts of lamb. The 2013 lamb crop will be ready by mid-October, although we have already delivered some. This year we have been thinking about eating locally. As our web site points out, our lamb is at least 10,000 miles more local than meat from Australia or New Zealand. We want to reward folks who are committed to eat...?
Posted by Marc Kratzschmar. Posted In : Lamb