Thursday, December 15, 2011

Progress Report: Three Months

image from etsy.com

Well the past month has certainly been a whirlwind of an adventure!  Even though I accomplished quite a bit this past month, in a lot of ways I feel further behind than I was in month two.

Things I Accomplished:
1. Attended a Soil Health Workshop and learned about intense cover cropping for rotational grazing, as well as a screening of American Meat and networked with area farmers.
2. Got a job and began working (almost) full-time again.
3. Farm visits: Stonyledge Farm, Sweet Acre Farm
4. Attended two New CT Farmer Alliance meetings
5. Conducted a thorough soil analysis and met with the DEEP about state-owned land associated with the North Stonington Farm
6. Attended the 2011 Young Farmers Conference at Stone Barns.
7. Attended the Holistic Farm Planning course on Financial Management.
8. Worked on the Beginning Farmers Loan Application and an official contract.  Put in my FIRST OFFER on a farm!
9. Waited a VERY long week, only to find that my contract for the North Stonington farm was denied, with no option to negotiate.
10. Started the process of searching for farmland to purchase again, beginning with the Canterbury "Farm in a Box."

Things I'm Still Working On:
1. Finding farmland to purchase or lease for the upcoming season.
2. Finding a good home for my chickens closer to me.
3. Continuing to develop my farm business plan.
4. Creating a decent back-up plan (just in case finding land doesn't go very well).
5. Putting myself out there and keeping my options open.



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