The Lincoln Squirrel – News, features and photos from Lincoln, Mass.

agriculture and flora

Help button up the farm for winter on Dec. 8

cow on farmWork off your Thanksgiving weight gain on Sunday, Dec. 8 at the Codman Community Farms (CCF) volunteer work day to button up the farm for winter. We’ll start at 9:30 a.m., and you’re welcome to come all day or even just for an hour. There will be tasks appropriate for young and old, and lunch and snacks will be provided.

Codman turkey, beef and pork available

Thinking about serving turkey for Christmas or New Year dinner? There are still a few turkeys available that were raised at CCF on natural feed and fresh-frozen. They’re priced at $5 per pound. Stop by the farm office/kitchen and talk to Farmer Eric or email info@codmanfarm.org.

If you’re tired of turkey, consider joining the farm’s meat CSA, where each month from January to June, you get 10 pounds of Codman-raised, hormone- and antibiotic-free pork and beef for $600. For more information or to register and pay online, see the CCF website’s Farm Store page.

Kids dig the pigs at Harvest Weekend

Story and photos by Brett Wittenberg

Lying face down in the mud, snorting and rooting, were a bunch of stinking, lethargic and—if you asked kids visiting Drumlin Farm on Harvest Weekend—endlessly fascinating creatures.

Like changing leaves and cooler temperatures, Harvest Weekend has become an annual reminder that autumn is in full swing in Lincoln. On Oct. 19 and 20,  more than 3,000 visitors came from near and far to take part in the agricultural fun.

At the pig pen, Jen Sundstrom’s three kids took turns weighing themselves on a scale that told you, if you happened to be a pig, whether you’d be a piglet; a “finishing” pig, ready for market, a sow or a boar (see photos below). They climbed a stepstool to observe the real thing inside a wood-sided pen.

“The kids are loving the pigs,” said the Medford mom, covering her smile and her nose with her white turtleneck (her children didn’t seem to notice the odor).

The farm animals were a clear favorite with the younger visitors. Others explored the crop fields, went on hay rides, and picked their own fresh potatoes, squash and tomatoes to take home. Volunteers and staff circulated among the goat house, the horse barn, the chicken coop and the raptor and reptile houses to teach visitors about the farm’s year-round inhabitants.

“What I like most is actually this—seeing the people hang out, enjoying the simple activities, going out to the pick-your-owns… enjoying our fields which most people don’t get out to, getting to see the crops that we’re growing, and being able to harvest some stuff themselves. That’s my favorite,” a Harvest Weekend staffer said.

Heading down the hill from the front gate, visitors caught sight of kids laughing and darting in and out of the canopy of a flapping rainbow-colored parachute, gluing googly eyes and pom-poms to miniature pumpkins, kicking pumpkin-colored rubber balls, and “milking” wooden cows.

After stopping by the refreshment stand for glasses of cold apple cider, cookies from Concord’s Verrill Farm and sugar-dusted cider donuts, kids crowded around enclosures housing chickens, goats, pigs, cows, owls, and hawks. Even house mice drew a crowd as they skittered around a box of leaves while a staffer described their diet and habitats.

Two-year-old Avery of Lexington, sporting a ponytail and silver puffy boots, said excitedly that the pigs were her favorite part of Harvest Weekend, though she also liked the chickens, who were “climbing up the houses,” she observed.

Drumlin Farm is an interactive classroom of zoological facts for its youngest patrons, but older visitors seemed just as enthralled. “I like the raptors, all the owls and hawks,” said 47-year-old Ed Krasinski, who traveled to Lincoln from Salem, N.H., with his eight-year-old daughter and his wife, who said she used to visit Drumlin Farm when she was a kid.

“We just came to bring the girls to see the animals,” said Julie Fuller, 65, who drove six hours from New Jersey to accompany her three granddaughters, a 5-year-old and two-year-old twins, on their outing.

Hal Baker manned a booth of brochures, pamphlets and energy-saving light bulbs for Next Step Living, a New England residential energy efficiency company.  Although he was on the job last Sunday, looking to sign up passers-by for home energy audits, he seemed to be enjoying himself as much as any visitor. His personal connection with Drumlin Farm spoke to its enduring appeal.

“I came here almost 50 years ago,” Baker recalled. “The first time I came here is when I was a little kid with my parents back in the early sixties.”

A young visitor tries to pull a pony cart.

Girls decorate miniature pumpkins at the arts and crafts table.

A girl “milks” a wooden cow.

A scale in the pig barn tells a young visitor she’s a piglet.

A boy gets a kick out of Harvest Weekend.

Tuesday: meeting on farming land in Lincoln

farm2The Lincoln Agriculture Commission (LAC) invites land owners, farmers, and others to an information session on its agricultural lands mapping project on Tuesday, November 5 at 7:30 p.m. at Bemis Hall. This community-wide meeting will highlight the LAC’s new map of agricultural lands in Lincoln, which was developed using publicly available information, and will feature tips on leasing land to a farmer.

We are in the midst of an exciting period of opportunity for local agriculture due to a resurgence of interest in locally produced foods, However, a weak link in the revival of regional agriculture is access to land for the beginning farmer. New farmers are critical to sustaining our agricultural base and to replacing an aging farmer population. Those interested in starting agricultural careers are increasingly challenged as barriers to entry are significant and traditional venues for education are declining.

The LAC is a town board charged with protecting and promoting agriculture in Lincoln. To that end, the group is working to inventory  existing agricultural lands and uncover properties that have the potential to support agricultural production.  There are many properties in Lincoln that may have valuable soil and land characteristics that could help a farmer start or expand his/her business and produce food for the region. The LAC hopes that by providing information about farming opportunities in Lincoln, they can facilitate matches between farmers and landowners and increase agricultural production in the community.

For this land outreach project, the LAC is partnering with the New Entry Sustainable Farming Project, a Tufts University program that assists people with an interest in small-scale commercial agriculture to begin farming in Massachusetts. New Entry provides services for beginning farmers such as locating and helping with leasing farmland, education, training, business/enterprise development, and production and marketing assistance.

Please contact Ashley Davies, Farmland Matching Coordinator, at adavies@comteam.org or 978-654-5738, or Christy Foote-Smith, Lincoln Agricultural Commission, at cfsmith@massaudubon.org or 781-259-2201 if you have any questions.

Coming up in Lincoln

Film about Lincoln architect Henry B. Hoover – Oct. 25

At its members’ appreciation event on Friday, October 25 at 7 p.m. at the deCordova Sculpture Park and Museum, the Friends of Modern Architecture/Lincoln (FoMA) will hold a premier screening of the film Breaking Ground: The Architecture of Henry B. Hoover.

Commissioned by Hoover’s children, Harry Hoover and Lucretia Giese, and directed and produced by Molly Bedell, the film features biographical background, interviews, and stills and footage of several Hoover houses. Hoover (1902-1998) received his M.Arch. from the Harvard Graduate School of Design in 1926 and was among the pioneers of modernism in Lincoln.

Hoover designed some 100 houses from 1937 to 1988, with his last important commission in 1972.  For Hoover, the site was all-important.  Writing about one house, he commented, “the design has been taken care of by the site… the view was hidden by a ledge outcropping. Distance and height were unseen until one climbed around the cliff side, when space seemed to burst open. It was superb.” His objective was to try to “preserve that surprise.”

FoMA is especially pleased to hold the event at the deCordova, which was founded in 1950 and was an important center for contemporary art during this period. Besides highlighting New England art, it was a community center for lectures, music, and studio art classes. “The kind of museum I believe in is a social force; I’ve always treated art as a celebration,” said founding director Fred Walkey, noting the importance that modernists placed on the idea of community. Modern architecture celebrated art and science and was meant to inspire community through thoughtful design that which was affordable and accessible to all.

Space for the event is limited; members are admitted free but must RSVP in advance. There is a $25 fee for non-members. To become a member, go to the FoMA website and follow the “Join” link at the top of the page. Hors d’oeuvres, wine, beer, and beverages will be served.

FoMA works to preserve Lincoln’s Modern architectural heritage. The town’s collection of Modern houses spans the range of a short-lived idealistic architectural period ranging from the 1930s through the 1960s.

Drumlin Farm Food Day – Oct. 26

Come for a day of tasty fun as Drumlin Farm celebrates statewide Food Day on Saturday, October 26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Explore in the garden with farm staff, meet some native wildlife, and enjoy a taste from Drumlin’s farm stand. Farm teachers will be on hand to share the bounty of the fall harvest and help you learn how tasty sustainable agriculture can be. All activities are free with admission, which is $8 for adults, $6 for seniors and children 2-12, and free for Mass Audubon members.

Special programs throughout the day:

  • 10 a.m. — A Taste of Drumlin: Sample the fruits (and veggies!) of the season.
  • 10:30 a.m. — Flying over Fields for Food: Visit with one of the wild birds that loves a farmland habitat.
  • 11:30 a.m. — Garden Exploration: Open your senses during a garden scavenger hunt.
  • 12:30 p.m. —  Beyond Butter: Shake the jar with us to find out how easy it is to make your own flavored herb butter.
  • 2 p.m. — A Taste of Drumlin: Sample the fruits (and veggies!) of the season.
  • 2:30 p.m. — Chickens and Eggs: Scramble up a few fresh eggs with us and meet one of the chickens that laid them.
  • 3:30 p.m. — Turtles Eat their Veggies: Meet one of our resident reptiles and watch him enjoy a favorite treat.
  • 3:45 p.m. —  Seeing Seeds: Explore the magic of how a seed turns into a new plant.

Lincoln Garden Club hosts talk on sustainable landscaping – Nov. 4

The Lincoln Garden Club and co-sponsor Greening Lincoln welcome Mark Richardson, the newly appointed Director of Horticulture at the New England Wild Flower Society, on Monday, November 4 at 7 p.m. in Bemis Hall.

Richardson, who oversees Garden in the Woods in Framingham and Nasami Farm in Whately, Mass., will update us on the new standards in sustainable landscaping. He will give examples in public gardens as well as our own Lincoln properties. He holds BS and MS degrees in urban horticulture and has lectured at Longwood Gardens and Brookside Gardens.

This is the Garden Club’s  biggest program of the year and the public is invited, so bring extra friends and family for this function you wouldn’t want to miss.

Coming up in Lincoln

“Taking on Invasives: Invasive Forest Beetles” — October 17

Join Jennifer Forman-Orth, Ph.D., state plant pest survey coordinator, on Thursday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m. at the Thoreau Institute (44 Baker Farm Rd., Lincoln) for a discussion on the Asian longhorned beetle and the emerald ash borer. Wine and cheese reception supported by The Cheese Shop in Concord. Presented by the Walden Woods Project and the Sudbury-Concord-Assabet River Watershed Cooperative Invasive Species Management Area with support from a SuAsCo Wild and Scenic River Stewardship Council grant. Seating is limited, so please call 781-259-4707 to reserve your seat.

Lincoln Girl Scouts sell pumpkins — October 19

Don’t buy your pumpkins yet—support the Lincoln Girl Scouts and buy your pumpkins at its second annual pumpkin sale on Saturday, Oct. 19 from 2-5 p.m. at Codman Community Farms. The fund-raising event will also include baked goods for sale and face painting.

“Scarecrow Classic” 5K — October 20

The first annual “Scarecrow Classic” 5K road and trail race (run and walk) to benefit the Lincoln Land Conservation Trust will start at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday, Oct. 20 at Lincoln Station. For more information, see www.ScarecrowClassic5k.com.

Lincoln Fire and Police Ball — November 8

The Lincoln Fire and Police Ball will take place Friday, Nov. 8 at the Nashawtuc Country Club in Concord. This annual event, which has grown in popularity over the past few years, has an important role in supporting the Lincoln Fire Association and the Lincoln Police Benevolent Association. Both organizations use funds from this event to support local scholarships and community organizations, including the Lincoln Family Association, the Lincoln PTO, the Lincoln Council on Aging and others.

Tickets may be purchased for $60 by mailing a check payable to Lincoln Fire and Police Ball to Lincoln Fire and Police Department, P.O. Box 342, Lincoln MA 01773.

Order pies and help L-S teachers

The Foundation for Educators at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School (FELS) announces the 2013 annual thanksgiving pie sale. Orders for apple, pumpkin, pecan and chocolate pies for $15 each are being accepted through November 15. Order online or print a form from the website or pick up a paper copy at the main office at L-S.

Drumlin Farm ribbon-cutting for accessible trails Oct. 5

icepondOn Saturday, October 5 at 10 a.m., Mass Audubon staff and volunteers will celebrate the opening of two universally accessible trails at Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary at a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the completion of the two-year project.

The Ice Pond Trail and Farmyard Loop Trail are designed to allow persons of all abilities to experience nature and learn about sustainable agriculture. The new trails feature an accessible garden bed, tactile exhibits of animal casts, post-and-rope guide system, an interpretive audio tour, and Braille signage.

There will be refreshments and a guided tour of trails and “sensory” features. This project was made possible in part by the Institute for Museum and Library Services. 

Harvest Weekends at Drumlin Farm start tomorrow

scarecrowOn October 5-6 and 12-14, Drumlin Farm Wildlife Sanctuary will be bustling with special activities, games, and pick-your-own opportunities. Join us on a hayride and enjoy cider, apples and cider donuts from Shelburne Farms or pizza from Vesta Wood-fired Pizza, and don’t forget to stay for one of our live animal demonstrations.

The farm will be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with special activities from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Admission is $8 for adults, $6 for children 2-12  and seniors, and free for Mass Audubon members. Pick-your-own (see below), which involves an additional cost, will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. or while supplies last. For more details, see the Drumlin Farm website.

Pick your own:

October 5  and 6: Pumpkins and gourds – pick out your favorite from our display in the field!

October 12- 14: We’ll check with our farmer to see what is ready to harvest and post it on the Drumlin Farm website before the weekend!

Join in Trail Improvment Day

boardwalkThe Lincoln conservation groups are organizing a trail and land improvement day on Saturday, October 5 from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Even if you can only stop by for an hour or two, it would be a huge help. If you can stay longer or even all day, that would be fabulous. We will gather at the Codman North field, past the entrance to the Codman house  along Codman Road before you get to Rte. 126. Light snacks will be provided.

Work will be along field edges and trails in the woods. Dress accordingly. Please bring gloves, loppers, rakes or shovels. For more information, call Angela Kearney at the Conservation Commission office 781-259-8942.

Come help out at Codman Farm Work Day

barn copyResidents are invited to Codman Farm Work Day on Saturday, September 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. to help beautify Codman Community Farms for the upcoming Harvest Weekend. Come for the day. Come for an hour. Lend a hand and enjoy the company of other CCF supporters. Pick a task that suits you, such as:

  • Weeding
  • Painting signs
  • Hanging signs in the barn
  • Painting the bathroom floors
  • Organizing the lower barn
  • Washing windows
  • Weeding the children’s garden (great for kids!)
  • Litter hunt (great for kids!)
  • Putting in a fence
  • Rolling silverware for the upcoming Farmside Feast

Please bring work gloves and gardening tools. Pizza and refreshments will be served at noon for volunteers.

Strawberry Day rescheduled for June 22

strawberry-smCelebrate the strawberry harvest by heading out to Drumlin Farm on June 22 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for Strawberry Day (originally scheduled for June 15). Dig in the dirt with our farm staff, meet some berry-loving animals, and pick your own strawberries to take home. Drumlin’s strawberries, like all of its produce, are grown without the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides.

All activities except strawberry picking are free with admission ($7 for adults, $5 for seniors and children 2-12, free for Mass Audubon members). Pick-your-own strawberries will be available for purchase from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., while supplies last. Special programs throughout the day:

10 a.m. – A Taste of Drumlin: Sample the first fruits (and veggies!) of the season.

10:30 a.m. – Woodchuck Wonders: Wonder who may be nibbling in your garden? Meet one of our groundhogs and find out!

11:30 a.m. – Seeing Seeds: Explore the magic of how a seed turns into a new plant.

12:30 p.m. – Wild Wetlands: Get an up-close look at what’s going on in our local ponds.

2 p.m. – A Taste of Drumlin: Sample the first fruits (and veggies!) of the season.

2:30 p.m. – Fields for Food: Visit with some of the wild birds and mammals that make fields their habitat.

3:30 p.m. – Turtles Love Strawberries: Meet some of our resident reptiles and watch them enjoy a favorite springtime treat.

3:45 p.m. – Foxes Love Strawberries, Too: Learn more about our fascinating foxes, who love strawberries as much as we do.