Showing Tag: "farm" (Show all posts)

A successful December barn raising...and looking forward to 2014

Posted by Marty Castriotta on Saturday, January 4, 2014, In : News and Updates 

Blessings to the community that came together to help raise our barn on December 14th. The day started at a balmy -2 degrees and inched its way up to 6 degrees by mid day. Fortunately the snow held off until after the sun set and it wasn’t until we started losing daylight and picking up tools that it really started to fall. A blanket of eight inches rested on every surface by the next morning.

Twenty helpers made lifting three 24-foot bents seem like light work. Thankfully, all of our ...
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Farmers & Foragers - Fall 2013

Posted by Marty Castriotta on Monday, November 18, 2013, In : Farmers and Foragers 


Picking apples, pressing cider, herding turkeys, making greenhouse beds and planting seeds. These are just some of the activities that Farmers & Foragers have participated in so far this fall. This week we held circle around a campfire, drinking cider and eating other local treats (apples, carrots, cheddar cheese and popcorn). At our circles we share stories, songs and farm experiences. We also discuss what we are getting into that day and why.

“What does it mean to sustain...

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Mid-Summer - Summer camps and the challenges of so much rain

Posted by Marty Castriotta on Monday, September 2, 2013, In : News and Updates 


July 23, 2013

We have finished teaching in the 2013 summer camp season at The Orchard School, and I've never seen so many squash bugs, earwigs, potato beetles and Japanese beetles in my life. I taught "Our Earth, Our Voice, Our Choice" a leadership camp for 13 to 16 year olds that provides an exciting forum for teens to connect, explore, and create around the three basic principles of food, shelter, and clothing. Who do you want to become? How do you walk your talk? How can your choices c...
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Changes and Spring News

Posted by Marty Castriotta on Sunday, April 14, 2013, In : News and Updates 
This year Village Roots will no longer be operating as a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). We will instead offer a Farm Stand at the Orchard Hill Breadworks. The farmstand will be open Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. We are also offering a very limited number of working shares or trades. Contact us to inquire.

This year will also be offering limited Holiday shares. For Thanksgiving this share will feature a heritage turkey, along with winter squash, potato, onion, turnip, greens an...
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About Me


Marty Castriotta Marty grew his first potato when he was 12 year old on a worn out piece of ground behind his parents’ house. He’s been attracted to the idea of growing food ever since. He started growing seriously in 2001 with his wife Ellen’s guidance and has worked on several organic farms prior to moving to Orchard Hill. His passion is in integrating all aspects of the farm; the gardens, animals, buildings, water systems and so on. Marty has been raising heritage farm animals since 2003, and started training his young oxen Boss and Chez to do some of the farm work in the winter of 2012. Marty graduated from Antioch University New England with an MS in Environmental Studies and currently teaches Farmers & Foragers and summer camps at The Orchard School, as well as Permaculture Design Courses at Orchard Hill.