This is not work for hire.

By this expenditure

You make yourself a place;

You make yourself a way

For love to reach the ground.

                                    Wendell Berry

Meadowstone Farm is a small diverse farm and that is explicitly by choice. We believe in cycles, and nowhere else in the world is that more tangible than on such a farm. Feeding hay to the goats, composting their manure, using that compost on our crops, growing those crops on what was previously pastured pork and chicken range, milking the goats, making cheese, and then feeding the left over whey to the pigs and chickens is just one of many examples of how life on the farm continuously comes full circle. Farm life is cyclical and that is how we think and operate. Yes, we have spread sheets and to-do lists that hold all sorts of numbers and tasks, but more often than not we pool our collective brain power about how things worked before, where are we now and where are we going. Like any business and job Meadowstone Farm has ends to meet and bills to pay, but we don't see this simply as a job: it is a way of life, a way to raise children, a way to strengthen our communities and a way to connect to our world.

"In vain our toil.  We ought to blame the culture, not the soil." --Alexander Pope

We are also a diverse farm because we want to offer a variety of local farm products to Northern New Hampshire. Ranging from tomato plants to pork to compost to swiss chard, we feel that supporting local food systems is imperative in strengthening local economies, improving health and increasing regional independence. It is one of our goals to inspire people to grow their own food. We do this by providing compost and plants to local community gardens, donating "custom gardens" to local raffles, hosting schools and garden club tours at the farm. We also provide housing and board for interested folks who want to give farming a try through an organization called WWOOF (Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms). We also sell seedlings and compost to individuals who have gardens of their own, however small. It would be wonderful if Meadowstone Farm worked itself out of its current business because all of its customers produced what they needed. We realize the idealism in that model and until that happens we will continue to provide healthy, fresh, and great tasting food the way nature intended.

We talk about Meadowstone Farm being "organized chaos" and it works for us. We all have specific responsibilities, but can, and do, do each other’s jobs as needed. We communicate constantly, always have a plan for the day, but can easily scrap it if the weather, animals or something else catches our attention. We love the diversity at the farm and that all jobs require numerous skill sets: customer relations, carpentry, equipment repair, electrical work, rock picking, animal husbandry, cleaning beets, record keeping, marketing, and organization. They are part of the job and we relish and thrive in that diversity of experience.

Nature is The best farmer,

for she Preserves the land,

conserves The rain;

she deepens soil,

Wastes nothing;

and she is Diverse and orderly.

She is our mother, teacher,

And final judge on earth.

Wendal Berry