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Farm Pickings
News and Updates from Sanborn Mills Farm
— September 25, 2024 —
The aster has not wasted spring and summer
and only the frost lays it low.
~ Henry Ward Beecher
Upcoming Events at the Farm
Click on the title of the event for more information and to register.
September 27: Farm to Table Lunch
October 4, 11, 18, 25: Farm to Table Lunch
October 5: Chili Cook-Off
October 13: Sunday Supper
December 7: Winter Market
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How Hot Do You Like It? Don’t Miss the Chili Cook-Off at the Farm, October 5
So your family thinks your chili is oh-so-good. But they’re biased. How good is it really? Bring a pot of it to Sanborn Mills Farm on Saturday, October 5, and see how your mix fares competing against the chili brought by friends and neighbors.
The deadline to enter is coming fast — in just three days, September 28. For those who want to enjoy the offerings in competition (and to vote on favorites) without entering a bowl, a ticket is just $10.
Click here for more information and to sign up.
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Meet Samantha Locke, Our New Teamster
Growing up on the family farm in Barnstead, N.H., Samantha Locke, who joined the Sanborn Mills Farm as teamster earlier this summer, knew her life would always revolve around large farm animals. “My dad taught me everything I know” about working with draft animals, she says. When she was four years old she was learning to drive a pony, and by the time she was 12 Samantha was baling hay with a draft team.
She still lives in Barnstead, and brings her two draft horses, Bill and Pete, to the Farm for the week. On weekends they return to Barnstead where Samantha rides them in parades and uses them to pull hayrides. “We are really busy!” she laughs. Bill, weighing about 2,100 pounds, is a 10-year-old Belgian, and Pete, slightly smaller at 2,000 pounds and younger at five years old, is a European Belgian. Both were born on the Locke family farm and Samantha raised them from their birth.
She became familiar with Sanborn Mills Farm when she attended some events, and when she heard about a staff opening for a teamster, she jumped at the chance. “It’s really fun and so great to be outside,” she comments. She adds that draft horses, especially, are charismatic animals that people seem almost magically drawn to. “So many people love them — they want to touch them and pet them, just to be around them.”
Upcoming Workshops of Interest
We are in the latter stage of Sanborn Mills Farm’s 2024 Workshop Program, but there are still several workshops on the schedule to choose from, going all the way into mid-November. Many of our workshops fill quickly, so if there’s a workshop or two that catches your interest, make a point to register soon. The full schedule of 2024 workshops is posted on our website here.
Here are three upcoming workshops that may be of particular interest to you. Click on the workshop title for more information and to register.
NOTE: One spot is available in each of two popular workshops:
Blacksmithing Basics (Oct. 11-13) and Sharpening Woodworking Tools (Oct. 19). Click on the workshop title and to register. These two available spots are sure to be filled quickly, so if you’re thinking about registering for either of these workshops, don’t delay.
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Creative and Classic Rug Braiding
October 19-20
Instructor: Jan Sheehan
In this workshop you will learn to braid rugs using wool. We will start by using an old craft thumb technique, strive for a consistent braid, add new strips or make color changes and complete a spiral laced circle with a rat tail ending. Your creation will be unique, as you will get to choose from a variety of wool colors in solid, tweeds and plaids. The finished size will depend on your individual pace. You will be provided with the history of braiding, resources for wool, braiding supplies and materials, patterns that can be planned within the braid rows and how rugs are judged for quality and technique. Feel free to share any clean braided family heirlooms and memories that we equate with hearth and home. This workshop is appropriate for all levels of experience.
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October 26
Instructors: Ray Ramsey and Tyler Allen
Come learn this essential agricultural skill that is vital to any homesteaders practice. This workshop is also for the culinary enthusiast or for anyone who just wants to know where and how their food comes to them when it’s locally harvested and humanely handled. In this hands-on class participants will learn the basic skills of processing their own birds. You will leave with one 5 – 6 lb. packaged bird to take home. No prior knowledge is necessary to take this workshop. Taught by Sanborn Mills Farm Manager Ray Ramsey with assistance from staff members Tyler Allen and Jenn Merrill.
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November 2
Instructor: Donna Kay
Fair Isle is renowned for its tradition of colorful wool sweaters and accessories. Gloves and mitts are still hand knit there today! Students will combine wools in the colors of their choice as they knit a pair of fingerless mitts using traditional stitch patterns. This is an intermediate level class. Students should be comfortable using double-point needles and fingering weight yarn.
Photo Credits
Top photo by Helen Westergren.
Chili photo: public domain.
Photo of Samantha Locke by Steve Bjerklie.
Workshop photos courtesy the instructors.
Sanborn Mills Inc. | (603) 435-7314 | info@sanbornmills.org | www.sanbornmills.org
Hands-on education in traditional craft and farming: Inspiring the future with tools from the past.
Sanborn Mills Farm | 7097 Sanborn Road | Loudon, NH 03307 US