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Help Diego start Riverwood Farm

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My name is Diego.  I'm sure I know many of you from being in this community.  I'm a Northampton native, I love the valley and the hilltowns, and I love settling deeper and deeper into the area through farming.  


I have a farm!  It's called Riverwood Farm, and I'm growing on one acre that I'm leasing from Valley View Farm in Haydenville.  They host weddings and events.  It's beautiful there...you should come check it out, and stop in the farm stand while you're at it and get some fresh produce!


I started farming there halfway through 2017, growing spinach and radishes and salad mix, and selling to River Valley Coop, the farm stand at Valley View, and to a couple local restaurants, including Paul and Elizabeth's and Sláinte.  2018 will be Riverwood Farm's FIRST FULL SEASON!  And I'm so excited!  Can you tell?


I've already invested a lot of time and money in the farm.   Now I'm asking for your support so that I can start the farm off with the RIGHT tools and equipment.  In farming, more than many other professions, investing smart early on saves TONS of time and money later.  


Things your $ will pay for:

1.  A "wash and pack" shed for, well, washing and packaging the harvest.  CRUCIAL for me to be able to be efficient.  Washing in the shade of a large tree was not ideal last season!  ~$2,000


2.  Drip and overhead irrigation:

Irrigation is crucial for a farm, especially in a time when weather is less and less predictable.  Drip irrigation saves thousands of gallons of water and time spent hand watering, and overhead sprinklers allow me to germinate direct seeded crops successfully.  ~$1,000


3.   Hand tools:

I don't use fossil fuels if I can help it, so I rely heavily on quality hand tools.   A wheel hoe with attachments will take care of lots of my cultivation needs instead of a tractor.  I'll aerate the soil with a broadfork, forgoing the need to till (which destroys soil structure).  A precision seeder will save me countless hours spent hand-sowing seeds or thinning poorly seeded crops.  A tilther will allow me to prepare beds for planting by mixing up only the top two inches of soil.  Rakes, hoes, and well-made hand tools are critical to my intensive style of farming.  ~$2000


And so much more, including season extension supplies (greenhouse structures, row covers), harvest bins, packaging for produce, and spiffing up the farm stand.

I need many of these supplies by early April, as soon as the field is dry enough to plant in.  

I firmly believe that small scale agriculture is the key to a healthy future, in terms of ecology, human health, and a strong local economy.  Everyone eats.  Farming is the foundation of a society.  

“Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens.  They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous, and they are tied to their country and wedded to it’s liberty and interests by the most lasting bonds.”  -Thomas Jefferson

This is my attempt to fulfill a dream and do something meaningful.  And I want it to grow and last.  Your support is the root of my success.  Thank you so much!
Doneren

Donaties 

  • Miles Kohrman
    • $30 
    • 6 yrs
Doneren

Organisator

Diego Irizarry-Gerould
Organisator
Williamsburg, MA

Jouw gemakkelijke, krachtige en vertrouwde plek voor hulp

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  • Vertrouwd

    Je donatie wordt beschermd door de GoFundMe-donatiegarantie.