Former Intern Ali Dishes on Keeping it Local all Winter Long

By Ali Carter

Last Thursday, I was forced to face a frightful fact. My Community Shared Agriculture (CSA) with

Red Fire Farm

was ending. Every week since mid-June, I’ve been going to the

Dewey Square farmers market at South Station in Boston

to pick up a farm share of fresh fruits and vegetables. It was my first time trying out the CSA, and I can’t emphasize enough how much I enjoyed the experience and learned in the process. Not only was I exposed to a plethora of produce I never knew existed; I also learned how to cook creatively so that I was only using the foods that I received from the CSA, instead of taking a trip to the grocery store to buy additional ingredients.

Fruits and vegetables from local farms are much fresher and tastier than produce shipped from hundreds, possibly thousands of miles away. So, how does a localvore like myself cope with the changing season? I asked Greg Disterhoft and Susan Pincus, Red Fire farmhands, and Darry Madden, co-founder of

Boston Localvores

, for advice. Fountains of slow food knowledge, they revealed Boston’s bounty of local resources. With their help, I put together this in-depth guide to survive the winter, localvore-style:

Click

here

to read the rest of this piece.

Better Farm Welcomes the Plein Air Painters

Plein-Air Painters of America (PAPA) is a fellowship of professional artists who stay true to the historic tradition of "painting directly from life." The group, with members worldwide through the larger International Plein-Air Painters Worldwide Artist Organization, routinely sets up in various locations to paint what's around them.

We were lucky enough last week to have PAPA's Thousand Islands chapter visit us at Better Farm. Corinne had contacted them a while back, and made arrangements for the group's visit. They breezed in last Wednesday on a most perfect autumn day, set up easels, and got to work. Artist-in-residence Brian Purwin spent the afternoon serenading the group on violin, which was the cream cheese frosting on an already lovely day.

New Bathroom is Green in More Ways Than One

When it became clear there would be enough people coming through Better Farm to warrant a third bathroom, imaginings began as to how we could create a state-of-the-art space with as small a carbon footprint as humanly possible. I opted to retool what used to be Skyler's room on the second floor; which meant a lot of new pipes, some extremely creative spirits on the part of the workers who would do the dirty work, and a ton of patience.

I did extensive research on how to "green" a bathroom, and came up with a few key points to pay attention to from my handy-dandy "Green Remodeling" book. Here are some options to consider when renovating an existing bathroom or putting in a new one:

• High-performance, low-flow shower head with chlorine filter
• Compact fluorescent bulbs
• Lighting controls
• Windows that open
• Landscaping for shade
• Greater natural daylight
• Upgraded single pane windows
• Water filters
• Low-flow faucets
• Insulated plumbing and pipes
• Solvent-free adhesives
• Low-flow or greywater flushing toilet

With these ideas in mind, I made a few sketches of the perceived space:

  

 

From there, Fred Ciliberti got to work gutting the room and laying out the pipework. Bobby Rockerman showed up for a while to help get the piping from the basement to the soon-to-be bathroom. In the meantime, I scooped up several eco-friendly components:

• Dual-flush toilet    Kohler makes a dual-flush toilet that can save the average homeowner more than 6,000 gallons of water annually by utilizing 20% less water-per-flush than your average toilet. In addition, there are two flush buttons instead of one so you can control how much water you need to wash away waste.
• Reclaimed claw-footed tub    The United Methodist Church in Alexandria Bay held a tag-sale fundraiser for which people in the area donated items. Among them was a claw-footed tub, in pristine shape—we were even able to use most of the original hardware, including wonderful old stainless steel faucets. All we did to update the tub was slap a fresh coat of primer and paint on the outside, soak the hardward in CLR, buff them up with some Bar Keepers Friend, and call in carpenter extraordinaire Gary Stevenson to hook it up.
• Evolve showerhead    The Evolve showerhead utilizes ShowerStart technology, which stops water flow to a trickle when it reaches 95 degrees. When you're ready to hop in the shower, simply pull the cord next to the showerhead and the water pressure is restored. So what does it save? A whopping 2,700 gallons of water annually, all the fossil-fueled energy it requires to heat that much water, and up to $75 off our annual utility bill.
• Reclaimed bathroom sink pedestal    Vessel sinks are all the rage in bathroom design these days, but we wanted to revisit some old-fashioned roots with this modern-day fad. Armed with a white vessel sink from Lowe's, we tracked down a pre-Civil War washing table at Liberated Sole Shoe Repair & Antique Shop in Watertown that once held—you guessed it—a wash basin. Using some minor wizardry by the wonderful Gary Scholes, the sink hooked into and through the table.
• American Olean tiles    American Olean spearheaded a Greenworks initiative, which offers information and support on LEED-certification, eco-friendly construction, and sustainability issues as they relate to construction. And by their very nature, ceramic tiles last far longer than other surface types. Less replacing means less waste and wear and tear on the environment. 
• Controlled lighting     There are three sets of lights in the bathroom, all utilizing high-efficiency bulbs. This way, during the day you can use no lights (east-facing window means plenty of natural sun rays), or if you're getting dolled up for a night on the town you can flip on the vanity lights above and to either side of the mirror. There's also a three-way fan in the ceiling, which has a hot air blower, regular room fan, and soft light when you just need a little glow to guide your way. 
• Eco-friendly insulation     Nowadays there's no excuse for toxic fiberglass insulation. All insulation-related updates at Better Farm have utilized cotton insulation that's so safe you can rub your hands and face in it.

With these elements in place, Gary Scholes came in to complete the carpentry and plumbing.  Gary Stevenson finished the project off by creating a small oak stage for the tub (he found a pile of beautiful, aged oak out in our barn and planed some of it for this project—stay tuned for future uses we put the rest to!) and hooking it into the pipework Fred and Bobby laid.

Photos from the process:

 

And for the finished product...

Many thanks to the following people for their support and expertise:
Kristen Caldwell's generous donation
Hunter Ciliberti, demolition
Fred Ciliberti, demolition, plumbing, and carpentry
Bob Rockerman, plumbing
David Garlock, consulting
Gary Scholes & crew, plumbing, tiling, and carpentry
Laura Caldwell, vintage towel rack
Scott Mueller, fish painting
Kate Garlock, bathtub refinishing and painting
Gary Stevenson, plumbing
Chris Menne, Brian Hines, and Sarah Herold, painting and staining

Better Farmers do the Can-Can

Sarah and I this morning wandered out to Better Farm's garden to see what three days of nearly constant rain had done to the fruits and veggies.

Holy cow. Armed with more string beans and cukes than we knew what to do with (yet again), we decided to finally take a crack at canning. The folks up here routinely can their excess fruits and veggies from their gardens; a practice begun in early-19th century France by one Nicolas Appert.

Having never tried to can before, we started doing our research; first reading up on what canning is all about, scooping up a few recipes from altruistic Redwood residents, and finally nabbing a few weeks ago a Ball brand "Home Canning Discovery Kit". With a couple morning hours to spare, Sarah and I got started today on some pickles and dilly beans. Here are step-by-step instructions and photos. Please share your own recipes in the comments section, or e-mail them to info@betterfarm.org.
Equipment Every Canner Needs

• Boiling -Water Canner (A big spaghetti or lobster pot will do)
• Canning Jars
• Lids and Bands
• Canning Salt (not table salt)
• Various spices, veggies, and fruit

And now for the recipes... 

Dill Pickle Sandwich Slices\

• 2 Tbsp pickling spices
• 2 1/2 c. cider vinegar
• 2 1/2 c. water
• 1/2 c. granulated sugar
• 1/3 c. pickling salt
• 3 bay leaves
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds
• 3 heads fresh dill
• 8 c. sliced, trimmed pickling cucumbers (1/4 inch slices)

1. Prepare stockpot/canner and jars (for information on how to do this click here.)
2. Tie pickling spices in cheesecloth or other fabric to create a spice bag.
3. Combine vinegar, water, sugar, pickling salt, and spice bag in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar and salt. Reduce heat and boil for 15 minutes.
4. Put 1 bay leaf, 1 garlic clove, 1/2 tsp. mustard seeds, and 1 head of dill into each jar. Pack cuke slices into jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace.
5. Ladle hot pickling liquid into jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wip rim and center lid on jar. Screw band until fingertip-tight.
6. Process filled jars in boiling water for 15 minutes. Remove stockpot lid. Wait 5 minutes, then remove jars. Cool and store.

Dilly Beans
2 lbs. green beans
1/4 c. canning salt
2 1/2 c. vinegar
2 1/2 c. water
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
4 cloes garlic
4 heads of dill or dry dill

1. Trim beans. Combine salt, vinegar, and water in large pot and bring to a boil.
2. Pack beans into hot jars lengthwise, leaving 1/4 in. headspace.
3. Add 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper, 1 clove garlic, and 1 head dill to each pint (double amount for a quart jar).
4. Ladle hot liquid over beans, leaving 1/4 in. headspace.
5. Remove air bubbles.
6. Process 10 minutes in boiling water.

Memorial Celebration Jump-Starts Three Projects: Part I, 'The Birdhouse'

The weekend of September 11 marked a memorial celebration for

Em Doran and Emily Richardson

, two women killed in a 2005 car accident who've inspired a

burgeoning foundation

designed to empower young artists in the disciplines of writing and photography.

The memorial, coined "

A Better Celebration

," was held at and in conjunction with

Better Farm

. Festivities included the inception of three projects on the property: the Birdhouse, the Doors, and a blueberry patch.

Part I: The Birdhouse

As part of an ongoing row of alternative structures next to the library, attendees at a Better Celebration and the folks living at Better Farm were interested in constructing a treehouse-type structure alongside the recently completed

greenhouse

.

Corinne

found a cool design online of a tree fort called the Stockholm House.

Trouble was, we were concerned about the effects of frost heave

on the single support beam; and we wanted the structure bigger (roughly 8 x 10) in order for it to be a truly livable space. So, we tweaked the design a bit to allow for four stilts rising up out of the ground. At the party, led by our guru-about-town Craig, guests cleared brush and dug holes for the 4 x 4's:

Once the holes were in place, we stuck four 4x4s into them to create a lofted feel for our human-size birdhouse.

Next up was the base and flooring...

Stay tuned in the coming weeks for the finished product!

Many thanks to Redwood Lumber for supplying us with materials on such short notice! Special acknowledgments to Craig for leading the group, and Jody and Theresa for lending such big hands to the job. See more photos from A Better Celebration

here

.

Barn Cleaning (and Doors Project) In Progress

The downstairs of the barn has slowly been clearing out in stages (The Barn: Before, renting a huge dumpster last Spring, and clearing out for our Yoga Workshop), but an upcoming Fall Equinox Party prompted another quick once-over.

After a little organizing of the painting supplies (stay tuned for the grand reveal of our Doors Project), the arranging of a seating area and a good hard sweep, the barn is really starting to look like a realized space.






Now all that's left to do is finish getting any unnecessary items out, create some work areas and hang the white chipboard on the back wall as temporary gallery space. After that, wood shop and music studio here we come!

Blues in the Bay

It's 106 miles to Chicago, we've got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark, and we're wearing sunglasses.

Hit it.

This year's Blues in the Bay Festival, a marathon of great blues in Alexandria Bay from Sept. 2-6, featured more than a dozen bands—as well as a few mysterious characters roaming the streets in Blues Brothers getups.

The five-day festival even included "blues cruises" aboard Uncle Sam Boat Tours, and a Blues Motorcycle Poker Run on Sunday to benefit Jefferson County Hospice.

Stay tuned to Alexandria Bay's main site for information on next year's blues fest, as well as other upcoming events.

Dining Alcove Goes from Boring to Bronze

Before

The dining alcove at Better Farm has always served its function in a straightforward manner without fuss. Sure, it was never particularly lovely; but the table could be stretched to accommodate up to eight at a time, the windows let in beautiful light, and Better Farm dinner conversation was (and is) second-to-none.

As renovations began in 2009, the patchwork wallpaper job in the dining alcove got stripped, cleaned up, and replaced with a coat of white, eco-friendly paint. When we scored some church pews off Craigslist from a soon-to-be renovated church in Calcium, N.Y., Better Farm's dining alcove felt like a a whole new space.

But we weren't done! When the single, hanging bulb over the table broke sometime around New Year's Eve, we were reduced to candlelight. Danny Ely came in at the end of May and installed new chandeliers for us, which left us with one final project: the ceiling.

The main part of the kitchen is graced with a gorgeous, original tin ceiling that's been painted white. We mimicked the style, buying faux tin ceiling in mass quantities from Lowe's and affixing it very carefully.

Only thing we've left to do is commission a custom table that follows the arc of the pews...

After

Caroline Reid and Kate Ryan: A more realized space

Caroline Reid and Kate Ryan spent the last week of August at Better Farm as artists-in-residence in our betterArts program. The two Brooklyn-based women play together in the band Frankie Rose and the Outs¸ which kicks off a fall tour Sept. 15 at The Glasslands Gallery in Brooklyn.

Caroline is a multimedia artist and bass player who launched her first capsule collection of one-of-a-kind jumpsuits in 2009. In the process of expanding that line, she put her focus into designing stage clothes for Frankie and the Outs. She also used her time at Better Farm to expand her study of the tarot; which, she says, "will ultimately manifest as a video-tarot deck.

"I plan to create a series of vignettes that unpack and re-imagine the stories and archetypes of the tarot," she said, "with the ultimate goal of using technology to compile them in an order that responds to cues from the viewer, creating a cinematic experience that is different for every person every time it is watched."
 
Kate came to Better Farm to expand her body of writing—an opportunity that, she said, was stifled by a busy work schedule and day-to-day stresses in New York City.

"Writing and completing a substantial piece of work," she said, "[and] to work on the farm and be a part of the community at Better Farm, is one that I would value enormously. The theory behind Better Farm, to learn and grow from everything, to learn to love and work with whatever it is life gives you, is an important guiding principle in my life."

In their time at Better Farm, Kate and Caroline transformed the bus and barn into studio spaces complete with makeshift desks and chairs, dried flowers, and candlelight.

The women also contributed by running our farm stand and manning Better Farm's table at the weekly farmers market. We wish them the best of luck on their tour and with all their creative pursuits!

For more information about betterArts' residency program, click here. To see pictures of the bus and barn transformation, as well as other photos from this summer's residents, click here.

Found: Images of Better Farm's first float

Long before this generation of Better Farmers got involved in Redwood Firemen's Field Days in 2009 and 2010, some old, found pictures reveal the former generation shared our penchant for parades.

These shot appear to be from the late 1960s or early 1970s, and could have been taken in Ridgewood, N.J. on the 4th of July. Better Farm's founder Steve Caldwell is seated in the below photo at center in glasses.

Redwood Field Days 2010

The 2010 Redwood Firemen's Field Days were a flurry this year of junk auctions, live entertainment, beer and food tents, oodles of rides and games, raffles, prizes, and all the fried dough you'd ever care to eat.

Festivities were kicked off Thursday, Aug. 26, with a junk auction held behind the Redwood Fire Department's station on Stine Road. From there, the excitement built to culminate Saturday night in a parade down Route 37 in downtown Redwood, past hundreds of onlookers.

Better Farm's "float" in the parade—comprised of a banner draped across the front of Butch's pickup truck, CCR blasting on the stereo, Chris and Joel handing out cucumbers and fliers, and Corinne and I throwing bags of string beans into the confused crowd while Kobayashi Maru and Han Solo napped in the truck bed in their Hawaiian leis—took third place for floats. It was a major step up from Better Farm's "float" last year; which was really just Stacie Mae and I wandering down Main Street while throwing wildflowers at the crowd.

We plan to come out in full force next year and sweep the parade for first.

It was a great weekend of communing with locals, winning a few prizes, listening to some great music, and enjoying the last bit of summer.

Only another 362 days or so until the next field days rolls into town. Until then, better be.

Artist-in-Residence Mike Sperone Performs Compositions for Glockenspiel

Two weeks ago Better Farm welcomed composer and artist Mike Sperone to the betterArt residency program. Referring to sound as his medium, Mike's music runs the spectrum from short and simple to long-form, complex compositions.

"I am influenced by the physics of nature and mathematical formulae used to describe them," Mike told us. "But in such a strict and logical discipline, I also see the inexplicable, seemingly random, and beautiful occurrences which push my art in a likewise direction."



During his time at Better Farm, Mike helped out with finishing touches on our greenhouse, setting up the farm stand each morning, collecting crops from the garden daily, and taking care of our chickens Henrietta, Sissy, and Scarlet. He also proved extremely valuable as a Better Farm ally during Bill Johnston's Pirate Days in Alexandria Bay.

Mike's musical project during his residency was a series of compositions for orchestra bells (glockenspiel) and computer.  "I have used this combination of instruments to create pop music," he said, "but had not yet composed 'serious' or 'classical' music with it. With such a simple instrument as a set of tuned metal plates, and the limitless possibilities that lay inside the computer, I knew there was a lot I can say with this."

Say it he did! Last Friday Mike followed a sunset dinner on Butterfield Lake with an outdoor concert at Better Farm featuring his compositions. It was the perfect conclusion to a great couple of weeks having Mike on board at the Farm. Best of luck to him and his musical career!

To learn more about Better Farm's betterArt residency program, click here.

DIY Greenhouse

Inspired by a Mother Earth News article from last year, we decided in the spring to construct a greenhouse utilizing rough-cut local lumber, and recycled windows donated by people around town.

We further decided to go with a basic 10 x 10 size, A-frame roof, and a ceiling made of greenhouse plastic (donated to us by Krings 1000 Island Produce and Nurseries). All the wood we bought for the project came from Redwood lumber, and supplemented by the supply of an Amish family down the road in Pamelia, N.Y.


Next step was getting the crew together; a feat made far less impossible by the fact that people in the North Country are among the most helpful you'll meet. On the day of construction, no fewer than 12 people showed up on-site to lend a hand.

We laid 4 x 4's along the ground to form a square, leaving the center floor open so the greenhouse would have a grass carpet. We put the walls together with rough-cut 2 x 4's, leaving appropriate space for the windows (many thanks to Craig for being the mathematical wizard behind all of that). Next step was framing the walls out, and standing back as Craig and Jody figured out the roof.

Then, we found some old house stain in the basement of Better Farm. Presumably bought for the main house, it doesn't match and was most likely stowed away for use on something else. The day had arrived! We applied the stain to the exterior of the greenhouse, let it dry, and stood back to admire our work. A few days later, a team of us stretched the greenhouse plastic over the roof and tacked 1 x 2's down over it to keep it in place.

We used power drills to pop the windows into the structure; leaving four hinged so they could open for ventilation. Adhering those with 1 x 1's to the building, we then painted the trim to match the main house and screened in the hinged windows and roof.

From there, it was just a matter of constructing the ladder to reach our sleeper loft, putting in hooks and shelves for our tools and seedlings, and putting the door on the main entrance.

Click here to see the full photo album!

Please contact us if you're interested in purchasing the plans to build this greenhouse.