Maine Tales. Rock of Ages. Moosejaw, Saskatchewan.
    Circa 1997.

Terry Emery had an infective sense-of-humor and the rare ability to convert his experiences into comical tales. He was the one organic farmer who lived close to us, if you ignored the fact that he lived in a different country. Terry grew up on his parent’s family farm a dozen miles away and just ‘across the line’ in Centreville, New Brunswick.

Across the Great Divide

Daniel Webster may have negotiated the political division between the United States and Canada, but the fact is our Aroostook County and Terry’s Carlton County are two peas in the single Potato pod. Both sides lie in the St. John River watershed. Both sides have the same gently rolling ground which contains well-drained soils related to the ‘Caribou Loam.’ Once cleared of trees - and the not for the faint hearted multitude of rocks left behind by eons worth of glaciers - these were fields God had intended to grow Potatoes.

So of course, the Emerys raised Seed Potatoes. Plus Turnip Seed, Apples and cattle, among other crops. Terry grew up learning how to do everything. His brothers had left the farm and went into the overhead door business. For awhile Terry tagged along and became a master in the building trades. But farming in Centreville was his real love. Terry farmed with his parents and then afterward for as long and as much as his health would allow.

Terry was a good friend. He learned business acumen from his mother, Gladys. His father, Ernie, taught him good husbandry. We admired Terry’s good nature and his phenomenal business ability. More than anyone else, Terry knew how to ‘turn a dollar.’

Offering Good Advice

It was no doubt Terry’s cumulative talents which led him to be appointed to a position on a regional government Citizen Advisory Commission focused on improving the rural jobs situation. Mostly, they had meetings locally every month or two. One Summer they had planned a big national jamboree of similar Citizen Advisory Commissions from all of the Provinces. The big event was to be held in Saskatchewan.

Because of responsibilities at home, as a group, farmers are not the most-well-traveled of citizens. However, Terry decided to seize the opportunity and attend this grand event in the Prairies. He did so as a guest of the government’s largesse. Mixed in among the string of indoor rural job development seminars was the farmer-favorite, a bus tour of local rural enterprises across Saskatchewan.

On one stop they visited a well-kept grain farm owned by an old-timer dressed in overalls. Typical of the Prairies, this was a large farm now narrowly focused on growing grain. Mr. Farmer had a fine old large barn. Divested of the cattle and horses and hay from back in the more diversified era, the barn now sat largely empty.

Saving the Best for Last

After explaining the various elements of his farm operation to the group of visitors, Mr. Farmer, toying with the crowd, had saved the best for last. He ushered the group inside the barn. There, in fastidious fashion were pallets laid out across the floor along one wall. Atop the pallets, organized by color and shape, were literally, dozens of rocks. Each had been carefully and lovingly bathed, and were the recipients of a regular regime of getting dusted off. Mr. Farmer, bursting with pride, explained that what they were now witnessing was his prized lifetime collection of rocks, the ones he had discovered hiding while working a thousand acres of Prairie fields.

Terry was a kind and generous soul. After carefully inspecting each rock, he turned to Mr. Farmer and offered the ultimate, albeit parsimonious New Brunswick compliment, “Them’s nice rocks!” Mr. Farmer, beaming and as proud as a new father, accepted the praise and reveled in this rare opportunity. It was not often that a Saskatchewan farmer gets to share such a considerable accomplishment with so many Canadians from afar.

“Jim, I just didn’t have the heart to tell him about all the rocks we have back home in New Brunswick.”

Caleb, Jim & Megan

Megan's Kitchen Recipes:
Potato Pizza

Wood Prairie Family Farm Photos.

Caleb Heading Out to Finish Combining Winter Rye. In the last issue of the Seed Piece, we shared a photo of Caleb making a tricky weld on an important broken cast iron assembly on our Massey Ferguson 300 Combine. The breakdown occurred when we had just an hour or two of combining left to finish up harvesting this year’s crop of Organic Aroostook Winter Rye.  When it comes to cast iron you don’t really know if the weld will hold or not until you put it to an actual working test.  After our Combine breakdown Northern Maine turned rainy and wet.  It was another two weeks before it had dried out, conditions were right and we could put Caleb’s welds to the test.  In this photo Caleb is driving out our driveway to finish the combining work.  The very good news is the weld held and our job of combining grain is now done for the year.

Late Season Beauty Arrives in Aroostook County. As August transitioned into September, we had our sure signs of the approach of Fall. Breathtaking Organic Cosmos flowers came into full bloom.  As well, striking Organic Sunflowers have been showing off their well-known beauty, including this lone Sunflower hiding behind the jungle of Cosmos.  These two kinds Flowers are a sign of the times and late-blooming members of our Beneficial Insect Flower Beds which we planted last Spring in and around our fields of Organic Certified Seed Potatoes.  These ‘Beneficial Flowers’ nourish and give refuge to the Beneficial Insects who help to keep in check troublesome insect pests of Potatoes.  And there are further signs of Fall’s approach. Hardwood trees are starting to turn color. Local Seed Potato farmers have been killing their seed crops and are beginning to harvest Potatoes. On Wood Prairie Family Farm, we arrest the growth of our Organic Certified Seed Potatoes while tubers are still in their juvenile-stage. This practice of 'early killing' Seed Potatoes provides maximum vigor in the harvested seed tubers. And that super-vigor translates into the highest yields in the next generation - that would be the Organic Certified Seed Potato tubers we'll be shipping to you when you buy from us in the Fall, Winter and Spring ahead.