Showing Tag: "permaculture" (Show all posts)

A successful December barn raising...and looking forward to 2014

Posted by Marty Castriotta on Saturday, January 4, 2014, In : News and Updates 

Blessings to the community that came together to help raise our barn on December 14th. The day started at a balmy -2 degrees and inched its way up to 6 degrees by mid day. Fortunately the snow held off until after the sun set and it wasn’t until we started losing daylight and picking up tools that it really started to fall. A blanket of eight inches rested on every surface by the next morning.

Twenty helpers made lifting three 24-foot bents seem like light work. Thankfully, all of our ...
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Happenings in August

Posted by Marty Castriotta on Monday, September 2, 2013, In : News and Updates 


August 26, 2013

Things have been busy around the farm in August. With some drier weather earlier in the month, we finally got a first cut of hay on our field. We had time to get plastic on the new high tunnel, despite the wind. We are harvesting lots of cucumbers, greens, summer squash and herbs. We put a dozen ducks in the freezer last week and 50 more broilers started. We are looking to harvest wheat tomorrow...help permitting and before more rain. There's work to do to break down fro...
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About Me


Marty Castriotta Marty grew his first potato when he was 12 year old on a worn out piece of ground behind his parents’ house. He’s been attracted to the idea of growing food ever since. He started growing seriously in 2001 with his wife Ellen’s guidance and has worked on several organic farms prior to moving to Orchard Hill. His passion is in integrating all aspects of the farm; the gardens, animals, buildings, water systems and so on. Marty has been raising heritage farm animals since 2003, and started training his young oxen Boss and Chez to do some of the farm work in the winter of 2012. Marty graduated from Antioch University New England with an MS in Environmental Studies and currently teaches Farmers & Foragers and summer camps at The Orchard School, as well as Permaculture Design Courses at Orchard Hill.