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A few years ago, I spent some time in Alaska. The winter there was like nothing I’ve ever seen—it seemed like everywhere I went, the forests shimmered with frost. (Imagine an entire mountainside of trees looking like the ones on page 18!) I toured farms where the animals thrive in cold: the Musk Ox Farm in Palmer (where they harvest qiviut fiber) and a nearby reindeer farm that was the inspiration for this issue’s cover story (page 57). Now, I fully acknowledge that bundling up to visit a farm can’t hold a candle to working with livestock in subzero temperatures all season long, as Jill Burkhardt and her family do in Alberta, Canada. Jill’s ag diary, starting on page 28, fills me with gratitude. I’m thankful, too, for Kelly Sweet’s…
IN A PICKLE NO MORE I’ve been looking for a bread-and-butter pickle recipe that was one of my mom’s favorites, but no one in my family has it. I was astonished to see the recipe from Karen Owen of Rising Sun, Indiana, in the August/September issue of Farm & Ranch Living. I wanted to let Karen know that the recipe is as close to my mom’s as any I’ve found. These pickles taste almost like hers. I am grateful to Karen for sharing her mom’s recipe, and I enjoyed the accompanying story by Karen Giebel, too. SUSIE BREEN JACKSON, WYOMING WARM WELCOME! I just got my first issue of Farm & Ranch Living, and I love it! I especially enjoyed the in-depth ag diaries. Your magazine brings back fond memories…
1. WINTER STORM WATCH When a cold front came through bringing big, lazy snowflakes, I went out to close the barn door. As I arrived, the ewes poked their heads out—seemingly to check the weather—while a lamb snuck a peek too. ERIKA MILLER MONROEVILLE, OHIO 2. WE CAN DO IT! Every year we cut our own Christmas tree at a nearby farm. This time we got a second one for the kids. We loved seeing them work together, determined to haul their tree up the hill on their own. CYNTHIA SCHARENBROCH MARSHFIELD, WISCONSIN 3. SNOWY SURPRISE My daughter smashed a snowball in her brother’s face just before I snapped this photo. He was a bit shocked, as this was his first snow, but he took it like a champ. SHAYE…
For nearly 18 years of my life, I’d wake up each morning and gaze across the road at my uncle’s dairy farm. Maybe the cows had gotten loose overnight or the weather would be dry enough to bale hay. At the center of my view was the large white barn where I helped milk cows and load hay into the loft. It was a sturdy visual anchor amid the waves of corn and wheat. The barn yielded nothing to passing storms. When I stood inside, the timbers high above seemed so large that I could scarcely imagine how people equipped only with simple tools and strong backs managed to raise them. The skillfully placed stones that made up the lower walls had been pulled from the surrounding fields. Of course,…
The house was quiet. The snow had just begun to accumulate on the driveway and the tops of the fence posts. There was no wind to speak of, and that’s unusual in this area at this time of year. All was peaceful—for the time being. My family would be arriving late that night, and don’t we all worry a little more when our families are traveling home for the holidays? We visualize and pray for their safe arrival. Then comes the chaotic, blessed homecoming. Mittens. Coats. Snowy boots. Luggage. Gifts. Children. Pets. Hugs and laughter. We’re happy to see our daughters and sons smiling with pride in their children, directing our attention to how this one’s grown and how long that one’s hair has gotten. And the baby—the baby is…
BY KELLY SWEET GREAT BARRINGTON, MASSACHUSETTS EST. 1978 PRODUCT Christmas trees and holiday decor FARM ORGS. New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut Christmas tree associations My name is Kelly Sweet and this is my fifth Christmas season at Seekonk Tree Farm. We’re located in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts, about 2½ hours north of New York City and 2½ hours west of Boston. We offer cut-your-own and pre-cut trees plus all the accoutrements. My father-in-law, Pete Sweet Sr., started the farm on a part-time basis. He is an expert cultivator and knows everything about his trees. He also worked as the industrial arts teacher at our local middle school—so he knows everyone. The farm consists of three 7-acre lots, and we mostly grow Canaan fir, Fraser fir (the two most popular…
