**** PLEASE look at availability BEFORE sending me a request.
RIGHT NOW: I will be growing a smaller amount of vegetables than in the past for this season because I'm not doing the CSA shares this year. There are 7 beds or so still planted with mixed heirloom vegetables and natural dye plants. We will mostly be working on foundational things this year: soil health, barn fixing up in addition to general tending of what is here.
This farm is a beautiful historic 13-acre farm just outside of Buffalo New York. We are bordered by an organic hay field, a concord grape vineyard and hardwood forest. We stand atop a hill and have an incredible view of the sunset over Lake Erie on the horizon.
I grow almost exclusively heirloom variety vegetables and raise heritage breed poultry for soy-free, pasture-raised chicken, duck and goose eggs. I do a small amount of seed saving in addition to growing items for seed such as mustard, poppy, sunflower and caraway. I also have a small flock of sheep for fiber and I naturally dye the wool for yarns with plant material from the land and dye gardens. Depending on when you are here, you may get to participate in the yarn dyeing.
****This farm is dedicated not only to growing food, but to growing soil and community. With that in mind, this season, my 10th, I'm not having a CSA this year and focusing our attention on re-building the gardens and soils while still growing somethings for ourselves. This will be a focus on cover cropping, compost and mulching the beds and perhaps disassembling and re-buidling some of the wooden boxes. I *may* even reconfigure them completely. What will be growing this season: heirloom vegetables for ourselves as well as a couple of chef friends, increased natural dye gardens and edible flowers. We have a planned event June 28th, and possibly a late summer Chef Dinner as well as some workshops and the County Fair in August. There will probably be some fiber events in late summer/fall as well, so lots of natural dyeing and fiber work being done this season.
Our scale is quite small, currently growing vegetables on approx 7,000 square feet of the 13 acres. We have a combination of in-ground and box beds as well as 1 high tunnel and a small glass greenhouse attached to the farmhouse. I'd say we are a market garden.
My farming is informed by a passion for culinary arts combined with appreciation of the sacredness of nature. I say that my products are mindfully grown, meaning much more than organic-style garden practices.... I believe that every living thing requires care to grow well. This is why I've focused on working with chefs as well as hosting events.
I'm naturally an educator and use events on my farm as an opportunity to teach. In addition I occasionally teach at the community college culinary program, county fairgrounds and local schools.
****WHO I'M LOOKING FOR: This is not a place for quick vacations or housing while you do other things. I want folks who want to settle into the life here and be an active participant in what we are creating. I value curiosity and we farm with keen awareness to observation and acute attention to the details. I'm extremely intentional in EVERYTHING we do here and would like to welcome folks who honor and care in that way. This is NOT a place to learn a rote task and repeat it over and over again. That said, I try to find a balance between mindful care and productivity -- what I consider to be efficiency.
I talk about what I do as "mindfully grown" which applies to our organic practices as well as how we walk through life and interact with animals, land, one another and most importantly, OURSELVES.
SCHEDULE (approximate)
During the season, our days start early in the morning, usually at 7:00ish, sometimes as early as 5:30/6 depending on the day and part of the season. Days somewhat vary based on weather and what is happening on the farm that week. I try my best to balance the needs of the farm, daylight & temperatures, everyone's hours, nature's timeline and my own awareness of priorities and focus. There are some regular tasks and many that flow with those ever changing needs. Regular morning tasks include water gardens, feed animals, any required harvests and then we move on to the projects of the day. We tend to break midday for lunch and rest while it is the hottest part of the day and then go to evening chores around sunset (which don't take too long). We work as a team, including me, and often check in the day before about the upcoming day, what is needed and who wants to do what. There are sometimes days where we need 'all hands on deck' for a project, so working together with everyone and communicating is important. I treat everyone here like a family and family farm, so it is less formalized than an employee/employer situation. With that in mind, you need to be flexible and communicative to thrive here.
Each WWOOFer works 25-30 hours with 1 full day off a week. I expect everyone here to have self-governance and honesty and thus I don't track precise hours. That's for you to do for yourself and be in communication with me (well before you run out of hours). I do my best to accommodate everyone's desires and needs while also managing what the farm needs.
HOUSING & MEALS
I acknowledge we all have different eating habits and preferences when it comes to mealtimes. With that in mind, everyone does their own thing for breakfast and lunch with basic food and supplies provided by me. I run this as a 'family' farm and with that in mind, part of our farm culture is to sit down to dinner together most days. This gives us an opportunity to connect, share and create community. I cook dinner for us all, welcoming anyone who wants to help and contribute. Occasionally we have an open dinner where we all do our own thing, bring in food, or have other special occasions. I do my best to accommodate dietary needs, however this is a difficult household for Vegans. We are a soy and amino-free property.
Housing is in my large old farmhouse WITH me. In other words, we are not just working together, we are living together. You will have a comfortable room to yourself (with bedding and bath linens provided) and we all share the 1 1/2 bathrooms, common spaces and kitchen. There’s also plenty of outdoor spaces in gardens, on the porch and patio.
I'm a woman who farms and am particularly passionate about supporting more women in food (ag, culinary, advocacy, etc,). I also have a strong belief that homegrown food is the key that can unlock the path to wellness, happiness and abundance.
In addition to farming, I'm an educator through a variety of avenues like farm tours, the county fairgrounds and more. I'm a business coach/consultant and the hostess of a podcast, "Women in Food".
Organic methods: First of all, my property is a SOY FREE PROPERTY which means that all animal feed as well as cooking in the kitchen here are soy-free.
I am not certified organic, however I only use essential oils, insects, interplanting, fabric barriers and natural ingredients (like fish meal, my own compost, or local farm manure) in my gardens.
My farm is a low-till/no-till farm and so I use sheet mulching, local wood mulch, compost, some woven weedcloth, broadforking and sillage tarps to foster healthy soil regeneration as best as I can. This also means that everything is done by hand with minimal machines beyond my lawn mower/tractor. I have a glass greenhouse and an indoor seed germination room, however we have a healthy mix of direct sown and transplanted plants.
Poultry are free range on pasture supplemented with a non-GMO, organic, soy-free feed. I manage their health with herbs and essential oils as best as I can and do as much veterinary care on farm. We occasionally but rarely butcher animals here so volunteers need to be ok with that. Once the grass is growing well, the sheep graze our lawns, through our orchard and anywhere else that needs a 'mow'. We rotate them every 2-3 days with moveable fencing.
Certifications: Not certified, practice beyond organic and soy-free
***Current projects: The projects change all the time depending on the season and where in the season we are at.
In addition to one-off projects, there are some regular tasks such as tending the chickens, ducks and geese, working with our working dog, tending my sheep, regular weeding, harvesting, washing and packing of vegetables.
My farm is very focused on education and agritourism and so volunteers will be expected to help with on-farm events, tours etc.
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Learning opportunities
Vegetable farming
Poultry farming
Sheep or goat farming
Flower farming
Vegetable or fruit preservation
Food justice / sovereignty
Methods or systems
Biological pest control
Holistic management
No-till farming
Permaculture
Regenerative agriculture
Mentoring opportunities
Woman-operated
Host type
Production farm
5.3
Hectares
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13
Acres
