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The Milkweed Tussock Tubers Haymaker Fund
Alright. I want you to imagine your ideal, regenerative farm. An agricultural operation where endangered snipes and camouflaged killdeer are safe to nest. Where tiny bird eggs are tucked securely in grass as shaggy, heritage-breed cattle graze calmly around them. Breathe in the fragrance of a healthy soil ecosystem: here, we sequester carbon. Microbes and mushrooms sing as they feed flowers rich nutrients from recycled organic matter. Can you see them? And the pollinators, thriving as they visit endangered root vegetables - sunchokes, rare potatoes, groundnuts - who in turn feed you, feed the farmers, and feed the community.
Welcome to Milkweed Tussock Tubers.
In 2016, Milkweed Tussock Tubers was a dream and a logo in a sketchbook. Now St Lawrence County, New York's only seed potato business, we operate under the umbrella of Bittersweet Farm, our small-scale, diversified, certified organic sponsor organization. A woman-run, no-till farm, Milkweed Tussock Tubers takes our role as integral players in a complex, astonishing ecosystem very seriously. We work to: restore and re-popularize unusual and endangered root crops; farm in the most ecologically responsible way possible; and teach others to do the same. We provide our community with 16 tablestock potato varieties and three types of seedstock, while rejuvenating regionally developed spuds. We're also re-introducing groundnuts, sunchokes, wild ginger and Solomon's Seal, returning diversity to both terra and table. Our small scale means it's possible for us to focus on a wide range of projects, making our practices holistic in nature.
Alongside our efforts to bring gastronomical diversity to customers, we also freely share our extensive knowledge. Students, volunteers, customers and friends visit the farm and learn how to grow their own gardens, preserve their own food and save their own seeds, changing the world in ways both intimate and expansive.
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And, most excitingly, we're becoming a cow-powered farm!
MTT will be one of few farms in our area working with oxen. We are transitioning away from fossil fuels, and our beautiful heifer calves, Emma, Fern and Galadryal, are learning to pull a cultivator and dig potato trenches this year. Soon, they'll be strong enough to pull haying equipment, like a wagon, rake and mower. The EFGs are the inspiration for this fundraiser. These girls need appropriate equipment to do their jobs. Unique tools for unique workers on a unique farm. And the rest of the farm needs the same.
As a no-till operation with animals to feed, Milkweed Tussock Tubers relies on the hay we harvest with Bittersweet Farm. The 2,000 45-pound square bales we put up provide mulch hay for gardens and food and bedding for cows, sheep, pigs and poultry. Mulch builds soil organic matter, retains moisture, reduces weed pressure and prevents soil erosion. The diversity of our hay provides the animals with micronutrients and roughage, promoting healthy digestion. And our haying methods are different, as well. Unlike neighboring farms, we pay close attention to very specific creatures with whom we share the land: field birds.
Meadowlarks, bobolinks, red-winged blackbirds, savannah sparrows, killdeer and snipes are just a few of the feathered friends once common in Northern New York fields. Due to the industrialized haying methods of surrounding farms, these ground nesters are unable to successfully rear chicks. When large farms chop hay in May, eggs and baby birds are sucked up into drum mower blades and slaughtered. Repeated hayings throughout the season prevent parents from rebuilding their nests and trying again.![]()
At Milkweed Tussock Tubers, the story is a different one.
MTT and Bittersweet Farm hay after the 14th of July in order to avoid harming ground-nesters. We leave swaths of grass untouched until we're sure the fledglings have left. Our no-till practices allow certain species, like killdeer, to nest right in the gardens. And our use of small-scale haying equipment has a smaller impact on overall field health.
So What's The Problem??
Well, after years of working with a second-hand mower and baler, our tools have fallen apart. We are unable to consistently cut, rake and bale our own hay. Our options include hiring someone to hay for us, with their equipment, or purchasing hay from off the farm. Unfortunately, both options put area field birds at greater risk. Hired hayers work on their own schedule, not ours or that of the birds, and purchased hay is something over which we have no control. The quality could be poor, or invasive species brought in, or genetically modified seeds might find their way here.
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We need to buy new equipment.
Tractor Tools Direct in Terre Haute, Indiana, sells the Compact Homesteader Hay Package for $12,237.00. After scouring the hay world for appropriate tools, we've determined that this the right fit. The equipment is small, manageable and makes bales that can be handled by everyone on our team. Shipping from Indiana to MTT in Depeyster, New York is $600.00, and paying for assembly will cost about $500.00. The total needed, then, is approximately $13,337.00. With a smoothly functioning haying system, Milkweed Tussock Tubers and Bittersweet Farm will be able to provide ourselves with hay for the whole season. Galadryal, Emma and Fern will be eating high-quality, diverse roughage during the winter, and the potatoes will grow in a protective blanket of mulch. And we will be able to teach our neighbors about bird-based haying techniques, spreading the word about the importance of ecological respect in food production.
So we need your help!!
Whether you be a farmer or a foodie, a bird-lover or a bookworm, you can support small-scale, regenerative agriculture! Help Milkweed Tussock Tubers become a leader in local ecological farming. Our combined efforts can put delicious food in folks tummies, restore endangered species and rare crops, warm the oxen on a cold winter's day and ensure that we all keep smiling. So what are you waiting for? Let's work together and make some positive change in this crazy world.![]()