You ever feel like that famous race between the tortoise and the hare? Either you got lots of things done really fast and then, after a quick nap, you realize you still didn’t meet your deadlines. Or maybe you’re trudging along steadily, unsure that you’re even getting anything done until finally it all comes to fruition.  more

When I was growing up, sometimes I would run late in the barn in the morning due to unforeseen circumstances—aka animals getting out of fences, pipes freezing, etc. I would have to go to school either in my barn clothes or clean clothes, but I would still smell of the barn, because I didn’t have time to take a shower.  more

While spring is most certainly sprung and the most recent snowstorm officially melted away into the land of blissful ignorance, I can’t help but feel like I’m still playing a lot of … more

Raising pastured pigs on small acreage MIDDLETOWN, NY — Pigs don’t sweat, and neither should you when you’ve decided to pasture-raise pigs. Join All Family Farm and Cornell … more

What's going on in your community, March 31 to April 6 more

Steam filled the air, swirling and wafting away as it plumed upwards from the wide stainless pan in our grandfather’s driveway. Sap dripped steadily into the top of the pan, slowly filling it. … more

SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — Dairy farming in Sullivan County isn’t just a family business. It’s a way of life, and has been for generations of family farmers. “It was a great way … more

Some purchases are unique; chicken feed and fertilizer don’t exactly fit this bill. No, I’m talking about much more rare opportunities. The kind you normally spend years window-shopping … more

I both love and dread January each year. I love the start to a new year, the excitement it brings and the hope that this year will be better than the last. I also dread it because it means that time … more

SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — November 25, 2019, was a brutal day for Sullivan County’s foie gras farmers—Hudson Valley Foie Gras (HVFG) and La Belle Farms. The problem was not in the … more

After a week of watching too much of the national news, I had the strongest need to use my own media soapbox to talk to you, my readers, about something far more edifying. Babies. I don’t … more

Sen. Patrick Leahy of Vermont recently announced that Tom Vilsack, the secretary of agriculture, is responding to the senator’s request for some financial aid for U.S. dairy farmers by making … more

We sold the homestead. Yes, you read that right, my wife and I finally closed on selling our home of four years on the two acres of homesteading heaven we’ve been cultivating throughout that … more

As many of you will know—either by reading this column or through the community grapevine—my wife and I are always working in agriculture, be it with vegetables or livestock. Very … more

I’m someone who loves his job, truly. But I’ve also been described as a jack of all trades, which makes me anxious sometimes when I spend too much time doing just one thing—i.e. my … more

WAYNE COUNTY, PA — In early 2019, the Wayne County Agricultural Development Plan was drafted, stressing the need to revitalize the area’s existing agricultural facilities. Nothing made … more

Letters to the editor October 29 to November 4 more

It is the fundamental connection to the land and to nature on which our rural culture is rooted that is my refuge and also the source for renewal. It goes back to my childhood when, as a … more