Located in the finger lakes region of central New York, near Ithaca, Peter Larson’s family has farmed this land for seven generations, ever since it was deeded as a revolutionary war plot. Peter and Hilarie and their three children: Cora (16), Grace (13), and Henry (10). Peter’s parents, Peter and Jacqueline live next door. The farm is 45 acres located at 604 Van Ostrand Road, Lansing, New York. Their home still looks substantially the same as the photo below, when Peter’s great great grandparents lived there.
When Peter was growing up, his Grandfather lived on the farm. After his death in 1977, the house remained empty and the land was leased to neighboring farmers. Peter and Hilarie moved back to the farm in 1996, after going to college and working in Syracuse. The following ten years was spent renovating the old family home and building new outbuildings. It was a giant undertaking, and we did most of the work ourselves.
They quit their jobs, took back the leased land, and began farming in 2013. The work done on the house and farm buildings gave them confidence that they could take on any challenge. They maintain a do-it-yourself ethic of self-reliance, much like the traditional farmers Pete knew as a kid and who still make up the majority of the farming community in Lansing.
Being a self-reliant farmer means they do all the work ourselves. They repair their own equipment, build fences and infrastructure, make their own hay, cut firewood, make most of their own electricity via photovoltaics, and figure out ways to make do with what they have, whenever possible. If they encounter something they don’t know how to do, they learn how to do it via the advice of friends, books, and the internet. They are fortunate to have no long-term debt, and therefore little reliance on banks. Doing things themselves, vs. hiring them out, reduces overhead and helps ensure the banks stay out of the equation.
While proud of their self-sufficiency, the family are also proud to be a part of their community. This includes both traditional and progressive farmers, and their community of customers.
31.12.2019 Are you thinking about starting a small farm? If so, this is the video for you! We outline the things to consider when planning your farm, as well as how to get the right start after you have animals.
7.11.2019 When we started our small livestock farm, we created a financial approach to generating a sustainable farm income to support our family. It included some traditional farm ethics of being careful with expenses, not accumulating debt, living frugally, and keeping careful records. Now, seven years into farming, we can say with certainty that our approach worked. Join me as I outline the key principles of our plan. Starting your own farm, and/or have further questions about how we did it? Feel free to ask in the comments section, or shoot me an email!
25.11.2019 Growing your farmers market sales depends on some simple strategies including being a good salesman, carefully considering your marketing strategy, creating a unique product line, knowing your competition, and making sure your product is top quality. Join me as I walk you through how we grew our market sales to become a self-supporting small family farm.
28.11.2019 On a small farm, sales rise and fall seasonally. It’s important to think of income on an annual basis and set aside money for the winter. Join me as I walk you through how we manage our small farm’s annual cash flow cycle, including tips for making sure you have enough money to live on while operating and expanding your small farm.
1.12.2020 We start processing Missy the sow today, and she is a GIANT pig! But first, we’re loading the last of our summer batch of pigs onto the trailer and taking those pigs to the butcher. Then I spend some time showing how to properly set up the winter pigs’ nipple drinker. Finally, it’s time to shoot and bleed Missy the sow, then hang, skin, and gut her. Farm or home slaughter is the most humane way to harvest meat, and we show how it is done.
4.12.2020 We slaughtered one of our sows on the farm, and now it’s time for cutting our giant pig. Butchering a whole pig is not difficult; we start by sawing her into halves and separating the primal cuts. Then we go to work cutting pork: butt roasts, sirloin roasts, spare ribs, baby back ribs, pork chops, tenderloins, hams, pork belly (bacon), and trimmings for the later grinding of ground pork and sausage. Farm slaughtered meat is the most humane slaughter!
21.07.2020 For small farms, the decision whether to make hay or buy hay can be a difficult one. Making your own hay can involve significant investments in equipment. On the other hand, buying hay can cost thousands of dollars per year. Which is best for you? Join me as I review the costs of making vs. buying hay, using the costs of our farm’s equipment as an example.
16.06.2020It’s time to bale hay! In this video I cover the basics of baling and storing hay. I review how square and round balers work, how to check the hay to see if it’s ready to bale, baling the hay, and knowing when the hay is ready to load into the barn. I use an International 656 diesel hydro tractor and a Farmall 504 tractor to do the work, as well as a Gehl 1860 round baler.
9.10.2020 Breeding season is over and it’s time to reunite our Dexter cattle herd. The bulls battle for dominance as the cattle determine their new social order, and other head-butting contests occur up and down the line in the combined herd. After the cattle settle down, we turn them out on fall pasture.
