THE MARKET ON MAIN.

Small farmers get a lot of credit for the new local food movement, but perhaps more deserving of that credit are the people who build the markets, battle with local governments for permits, organize and facilitate said movement––people like Jamie Aramani (of sustainablekentucky.com). Jamie is an absolute inspiration to us and few people have done more for small farmers in Kentucky than this wonderful lady. For years she has promoted small farms, organized events like the Green Living Fair and WildFest, and written for many publications about the importance, value and lives of the small farmers in our dear state. If you regularly read our site, it might very well be because of something Jamie––one our very first supporters––wrote. Remember when we raised $8000 to build our cabin? We could not have done that without Jamie's help. No way.And now, excitingly, she and her crew are crowdsourcing money for a permanent retail location in which to sell local food and products year-round. This project is designed to help support local farmers not just for a few hours a week during summer at their busy farmers' market in Somerset, but year-round, creating more income for them, and more exposure for local food in Kentucky.So please join us in making this retail location become a reality. They're only trying to raise $15,000 and are halfway there already. But we still have to get that last half in the next week! Even if all you can afford to do is share this campaign on your social media, that would be huge. Write something for your blog if you keep one. Maybe you can kick in a few dollars if you have it––every little bit helps.To support people like Jamie, and projects like this, is critical if we want to keep growing this movement. Luckily, the internet makes that easy. Click, donate and share. Thank you all.- Jesse + Hannah.Photo from The New Pioneer.

THIS & THAT.

Some random photos from the past week.Further loves sweet peppers...and his bouncy swing.All the rain has filled the forest with fun mushrooms. We seem to find a new kind every day! Oh, summer harvests.The shiitake logs are looking great! The white means its working.Making bouquets for market. 

ONION HARVEST.

Things on the farm have been a little chaotic, lately. If you have been wondering where we've been: Cher broke her leg (and is 7 months pregnant, by the way!) We had nearly 10 inches of rain, basically all at once. A giant tower of stacked soil block trays toppled over in the greenhouse. So, yes, I'm sure you are tired of hearing it, we are busy.But things are good! Cher is healing well, the weeds are insane but the food is still growing, the gardens are beginning to dry. We harvested onions a few days ago, and Further was complete trooper in the 95 degree heat. It was a somewhat sad harvest, as the recent deluge of rain was not kind to the onions, but we are glad to have them out! They are all laid out on woven wire fencing in the greenhouse, where they can hopefully dry out in the intense sun. After we get the potatoes dug, all of our "major" summer projects are finished....I'm already dreaming of the ease of the fall garden!- Hannah.

THE HEAT IS ON.

This will be our 5^th year of living without electricity - without air conditioning. And truly, it is not so bad. There are always some rough spells during the summers – a few 100-degree days that are just pretty nasty. But when you work outside all day, coming back to a chilly, air-conditioned house makes the outside seem that much worse. Once your body gets acclimated to the temperatures, when your body does the work to cool itself, it is not so bad. Really!THAT BEING SAID – we are having a hard time adjusting this summer. I can’t exactly pinpoint why, but I have my ideas. First, the past couple of mild summers have spoiled us. We didn’t have 100-degree days, or 100 percent humidity, in June. This past week contained four consecutive scorchers with choking humidity. No thank you. Second, we have never had a summer with a baby before. We have to consider him when deciding whether to tough it out in the blazing sun to try to finish that last row of garlic. Jesse and I can deal with a little bit too much sun or heat, but it’s not just about us anymore. Plus, when it comes specifically to ME, I have a tiny, sweaty, hotbox of a human suctioned onto me for most of the day. If he isn’t literally attached to me, I am wearing him in a carrier or holding him or sleeping next to him– which is just so, so unpleasant when it is this hot.But of course, as I write this, the heat wave has broken, and we have survived, as we always do. The heat has brought on the tomatoes, corn, and melons, and we employed some new coping mechanisms: we went to the creek every day, I fanned myself with prefold diapers while nursing Further, we closed up the windows and curtains during the day to try to preserve that little bit of cool air from the nights, and we only went into town for ice cream once.- Hannah.