Old School Farm Blog

Monday, November 25, 2013

Git 'er Done....

November is an interesting month in Northeastern Pennsylvania - one day it can be 65 degrees and downright balmy, thirty six hours later the thermometer can be hovering around 10 degrees. We are currently in one of those cold snaps and the old Kalamazoo wood burning furnace has been pressed into round the clock service.

Safety precaution to prevent falling ice and snow

We've been putting a lot of things to bed for winter and already planning for spring. We also just put "snow shoes" on our barn roof to keep the snow and ice from sliding off and seriously hurting someone. The pump for the garden has been pulled out, the crops in the high tunnel that unexpectedly got hit by an early November freeze (we forgot to tie down the side and cold winds blew in one night) have been pulled out, and a good portion of the garden has been tilled and planted with winter rye - some of it got a nice jump start during a few of those warmer days this month.

Lessons on the farm - be sure to secure side flaps to prevent frost.

One project the Benner brothers really enjoyed this month was the spinning down of a few combs of our own honey. This was the first year for doing this, as last year with a new colony, we felt it best to leave all the honey for the bees for winter food (honeybees do not hibernate, they keep their wings moving inside the hive so as to generate enough heat to keep from freezing). Once or twice a winter they will exit the hive on a warm day to defecate - a necessity. We borrowed a friend's antique galvanized hand spinner and cranked away for an hour or so, producing around 10 lbs of most delicious, light-colored honey.

This year we decided to focus on what we do best - raising happy and healthy pastured poultry, and

instead of slaughtering and butchering them ourselves, Dave took the birds on a short ride to the McDonald family's butchering operation at their 200 acre farm. Eighty year old Florence raved about the quality of our birds, and the first young rooster we roasted did not disappoint. A 20 lb hen turkey is thawing in the refrigerator at this very moment for Thursday festivities.

Al pulls carrots. Asparagus to right has since been cut

We have harvested most all of our carrots now and all the beets are in. The only crops left standing in the garden moving toward December are a few brussel sprout plants, a double row of rutabagas, and a double row of dinosaur kale.

We've been really enjoying an Ethiopian Potato/Cabbage/Carrot/Onion dish that is seasoned with cumin, turmeric, salt, and pepper and sauteed in lots of olive oil. Look up the recipe online - you won't be disappointed. We've also been steaming our beets and then simmering these in a pan with some cumin and curry along with a few spoonfuls of yogurt and olive oil - very tasty.

The deer blind where Al saw his two young bucks

Here's wishing you and your family a very happy and healthy Thanksgiving season. Enjoy all the photos from the farm. Oh, and no, Al Benner did not get a deer for the freezer yet - his attempts bow hunting with his crossbow turned up two bucks that, in the last light of day appeared to not have enough points ("tines" - 5 total needed) for them to be legal. He did not pull the trigger. Hopefully gun season yields different results.

Enjoy all the fun photos below...

Be well -

Your Friends at Old School Farm

A poor potato year, but what we have are in the springhouse

Cracking shellbark hickory nuts with "Pop B."

The Benner family visits good friend and fellow farmer, Pat Knight
in New Hope, PA. Pat on left, Sue Benner on right. Thanks for the nuts Pat!

Deena Benner sautes up several pounds of giant puffball mushrooms

Fall colors for duck weed and water cress

Oh so sweet Grex beets

Fall Buck Rub

Cornucopia of winter squash in guest bedroom

Young Milk Snake

Farm Entrance

Sweet Potatoes dug

Buddies for Life

Living Room Acoustic set (Dave may be on tour soon :)

Some of these birds found their way from our hillside to the freezer

Grape vine fun

The right ash sapling

Being sawn to length & then split in half for two bows

The Archer with an audience of chickens (they kept wandering to the target to pick at hay bale!)

Slippery Elm Stump - soon to become a kid's thrown

Coleman and his new bow

The rooftop beds again produce lots of carrots

Dave uses a hot knife to remove the wax caps

Al turns the crank to create centrifugal force

Honey flows out, and through strainer once valve is opened

10 lbs of "Old School" honey - we left a lot more for the bees for winter

Dave carving off meat for grinding

Free Range, organic turkey burger - slow to cook and very flavorful

Freya, Uncas Jr. , and Olive bulk up for winter

A nice buck in a neighbor's field searches for corn kernels

The vibrant green of winter rye

Our motley crew of some half-breed chickens and two Spanish Black turkeys -
one is a male, so we are looking good for having our own poults come spring

Carrots and Kale

The final carrot harvest

The old Ferguson is put away for winter

Saturday, October 19, 2013

Puffballs, Painting, Pizza, and Projectiles

October has seen some fun and interesting activities both on and off the farm. For starters, Owen Benner spied these giant puffball mushrooms on his way to school in Philadelphia. They are most delicious when sauteed in butter and, or olive oil.

Other events of note include rookie crossbow enthusiast and Old School Farm owner Al Benner splitting an arrow from 25 yards out while target practicing for deer season.

Several friends were also up at the farm over the Columbus Day weekend (he never really "discovered" North America you know). It was nice to take a couple days off to do some biking, hiking, and enjoy fresh farm food together with friends and family - the weather was simply stellar.

We recently purchased a grader blade for our old Ferguson tractor so we can re-grade our gravel and dirt drives and plow snow as needed. The unit was manufactured in the Carolinas and is of the highest quality and very thick steel. Dave performed much research prior to deciding on this unit - it also has many adjustments so it can be used for many different applications. If you are ever in the market for one the company is called EverythingAttachments.com In a matter of minutes Dave was able to completely smooth out our sloped driveway that had been rutted and washed out by heavy rains.

We are also currently finishing some hand painting of signage for the farm - doing it the "old school" way by hand drawing letters and then painting freehand - not easy.

Our old toilet that was most likely original to the 1925 home finally gave up the ghost. Leaking from hairline cracks, it had rotted the tongue and groove maple/cherry floorboards beneath, and they had to be cut out and replaced. Dave did an amazing job of somehow getting the old warped spare boards from the attic to fit together and we now have a new hunk of porcelain installed where the old gal had previously resided for close to 90 years - we were sorry to see her go - well sort of....

Tomato, pepper and eggplant production continues to be robust - we figure we have now well surpassed 2,500 pounds of tomatoes harvested this season inside our high tunnel, and we anticipate continued output of these crops for at least another month. We have also seeded the greenhouse with a winter crop of spinach.

The sweet potatoes in the raised beds are out of control and continue to grow like crazy - the warm compost in these elevated beds is ideal for these tubers. Sun Chokes really
took off up in the

Transplanting Sunchokes - a great year round "survival food"

orchard area and we have since transplanted them around the perimeter of the orchard. These can be used raw in salads or can be baked or stir fried. They multiply quickly and can be dug any time of year, often lasting right through until the next spring if left in the ground.

We are hard at work making plans for our Farm Camp program for next summer for 12 - 14 year old boys. We are excited to share our knowledge and farm experiences with others and hopefully instill passion in the next generation of sustainable farmers and stewards of the land.

For now we will simply leave you with a lot more photos taken around the farm during this glorious time of year. Until next time, be well and soak up those last rays of warming autumn sun.