The question is often asked, with a hint of sarcasm, “What do you do in the winter?” For those who work in an office, it’s hard to imagine we do much of anything. Farmers are seen in their fields all summer and when autumn arrives…poof! They’re gone. Well, picture the scene:
There is a low fire crackling in the fireplace. The snow is falling outside, creating a wonderful view thru our windows. I’m reading magazines and eating cookies. The Farmer is reading newspapers and relaxing in his lounge chair.
That’s what I imagine. It’s so far from the truth that I laugh to myself every time. It’s hard to keep a straight face. Since my arrival here at the farm, my winters are cluttered with more work than when I worked in an office. And it gets busier every year…
Our corn maze is open 7 days a week until the end of October. The Farmer miraculously finds the time to harvest a few fields. This usually involves repairs to the combine as well. A 30+ year old machine always needs a new part.
November finds us finishing the harvest (the corn in that maze), cutting copious amounts of wood (for Maple Syrup Season…you thought we burned that in our fireplace) and covering the strawberry fields with straw (after watching weather reports for days).
The calendar year is ending. It’s time to straighten out the accounting and figure out if our income will support us until June. Nope, we don’t get a paycheck every 2 weeks. We determine what needs to be ordered (tractor parts, strawberry plants, maple syrup containers, bee packages), contact people to set up activities (chefs for dinners, artists for Art on the Farm, local producers for our store) and determine our advertising goals.
The new year has started! Whee! It’s time for speaking engagements (so others can learn more about what we do) and business conventions (so we can learn more about what we do). Plus, events off the farm…farmer’s markets, expos, breakfasts…
It’s Maple Syrup Season now. We start this season walking thru 2 feet of snow and end it walking thru 2 feet of mud. Every other day. On a 2 mile trail in the woods we can only access by tractor. It’s a very hungry fire that boils the sap. It has to be fed every 15 minutes. From 6a to 9p. Most days. For a month.
As soon as the sap stops running, it’s time to tend to the strawberries. Uncovering the berry plants, renovating the rows, fertilizing the plants, planting new fields and the endless weeding.
Oh look, the warm weather again! Back to the fields…
There is a low fire crackling in the fireplace. The snow is falling outside, creating a wonderful view thru our windows. I’m reading magazines and eating cookies. The Farmer is reading newspapers and relaxing in his lounge chair.
That’s what I imagine. It’s so far from the truth that I laugh to myself every time. It’s hard to keep a straight face. Since my arrival here at the farm, my winters are cluttered with more work than when I worked in an office. And it gets busier every year…
Our corn maze is open 7 days a week until the end of October. The Farmer miraculously finds the time to harvest a few fields. This usually involves repairs to the combine as well. A 30+ year old machine always needs a new part.
November finds us finishing the harvest (the corn in that maze), cutting copious amounts of wood (for Maple Syrup Season…you thought we burned that in our fireplace) and covering the strawberry fields with straw (after watching weather reports for days).
The calendar year is ending. It’s time to straighten out the accounting and figure out if our income will support us until June. Nope, we don’t get a paycheck every 2 weeks. We determine what needs to be ordered (tractor parts, strawberry plants, maple syrup containers, bee packages), contact people to set up activities (chefs for dinners, artists for Art on the Farm, local producers for our store) and determine our advertising goals.
The new year has started! Whee! It’s time for speaking engagements (so others can learn more about what we do) and business conventions (so we can learn more about what we do). Plus, events off the farm…farmer’s markets, expos, breakfasts…
It’s Maple Syrup Season now. We start this season walking thru 2 feet of snow and end it walking thru 2 feet of mud. Every other day. On a 2 mile trail in the woods we can only access by tractor. It’s a very hungry fire that boils the sap. It has to be fed every 15 minutes. From 6a to 9p. Most days. For a month.
As soon as the sap stops running, it’s time to tend to the strawberries. Uncovering the berry plants, renovating the rows, fertilizing the plants, planting new fields and the endless weeding.
Oh look, the warm weather again! Back to the fields…
RSS Feed
