Theme: Hallie Muller

News From the Farm | August 1, 2016

August 1, 2016

The California State Fair wrapped up last weekend after a nearly three week run at Cal Expo in Sacramento. The State Fair, which features everything you would expect in a typical fair – deep fried everything, carnival games with oversized stuffed animals, rickety rides that make everyone a little nervous, cotton candy and more – celebrates California agriculture in a fantastic fashion. 

Staying true to the history of fairs, the California State Fair hosts competitions to find the “Best of California” in categories from cattle to cheese – in fact, over 21,400 different entries were received by fair staff this year! The youth livestock show (where 8,870 livestock animals were on display) saw exhibitors from 4-H Clubs and FFA Chapters from around the state. The champion animals were then sold in a livestock sale that raised over $230,000 for those young people. The olive oil competition saw 161 entries from all over the state – and some of the top winners were from our small Capay Valley.  [Read more…]

News From the Farm | June 20, 2016

June 20, 2016

It has been a busy week at Full Belly! Summer came a’knockin with full force and brought the arrival of melons, tomatoes (we picked our first heirlooms!), more peach varieties, plums, apricots, eggplant, cucumbers, and corn – hooray for summer flavors! For most of us at the farm, we hold off eating summertime fruits and vegetables until they are in season which makes this time of year especially mouthwatering. In addition to the new harvest, we also welcomed our first group of summer campers to the farm yesterday – eager youngsters who will spend the week working, playing, swimming, laughing, and farming. Their first task: to care for the 11 new piglets born less than 24 hours before their arrival. 

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These little piglets are busy eating – and growing! Their mother, Blueberry, will provide milk for them for a little over a month before they start to eat Full Belly grains and veggies! [Read more…]

News from the Farm | July 7, 2014

July 7, 2014

We Love Our Customers! 

Summer has officially started at Full Belly Farm – as evidence by the truck loads of melons, tomatoes, beans, eggplant, and dark circles under the eyes of every farmer. Exhaustion is a common side effect of the summer months, which can, on occasion, lead to a grumpy farmer or two. Luckily, glee outweighed grumpiness last weekend as we had a surprise calf born on the farm. A handsome and dark red fellow, he was born late into the night on Independence Day, perhaps forced into the world a day early by the sound of firecrackers or a Piccolo Pete. 

Receiving feedback from our customers has never been easier than now, with the invention of social media. Just a few hours after the new calf was born, we posted a picture of him on both Instagram and Facebook, asking for name suggestions. The below photo and caption elicited the following responses: 

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Baby boy calf born late into the night on Independence Day. We are thinking of calling him Firecracker. Any other suggestions? [Read more…]

News from the Farm | March 31, 2014

March 31, 2014

A Farm Wedding! 

Last Saturday was an exciting and happy day at Full Belly Farm as farm ‘kid’ Hallie was married to her sweetheart Diego in the peach orchard. Everyone on the farm was involved – Andrew officiated the ceremony, Judith toasted the happy couple, Dru and Paul transformed the farm into a wedding wonderland, Jenna made a delicious carrot cake, Rye and Amon spit-roasted a whole Full Belly hog, guests enjoyed all the fresh farm food for dinner, and farm flowers decorated each table. It was a magical celebration of love and family. Below are a few photos from the day!

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[Read more…]

News from the Farm | February 24, 2014

February 24, 2014

Signs of Spring!

Everywhere we look, Spring seems to be popping up!

photo 1We had the most beautiful baby pigs born at the farm last thursday. Our sow, Candy, was bred with a wild boar so the piglets were born with a wide array of colors and markings. They are as fast as can be, and some have almost doubled in weight since their birth!  [Read more…]

News From the Farm | Week of September 23, 2013

September 23, 2013

Kick Your Heels Up and Put Your Hoes Down!

Every year it seems as though the calendar pages turn a little faster, the days speed by a bit, well, speedier, and just as we, the farmers, are about to collapse from summer exhaustion a glorious thing happens. The nights get cooler. The days get shorter. The last melons and tomatoes and hot-weather crops come out of the field. Fall is upon us. Sigh. Fall is so dreamy.

For most farms, this change in season signals a slow down – a time to drink bigger cups of decaf coffee and reflect on the summer. A time to begin work on all of the projects that were pushed aside while tomatoes and basil and eggplant and peppers needed harvesting. A time to wake up later and go to sleep earlier. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on how you look at it…), Full Belly Farm is not like most farms. The folks here at Full Belly are still in a frenzy, gearing up for the 26th annual Hoes Down Harvest Festival, happening the first weekend in October.  [Read more…]

News From the Farm | January 14, 2013

January 13, 2013

Each year, new energy arrives at Full Belly Farm in the form on our apprentices. They arrive when we need them the most – in the early part of May when we are bracing ourselves for the onslaught of summer, in September when the summer rush has left us tired and cranky, or in January when we are rested and need to be reenergized. This year, we have been blessed with a tremendously talented group of apprentices: Ingrid, Tyler, Becca, Jordan, and Tristan. They join the ranks of over 300 apprentices who have been a part of Full Belly Farm over the past 28 years. As one of the ‘farm kids,’ it is always fun to think back on the many apprentices who have left their mark on Full Belly – and to see where they are today.

Jack Hedin and Jenni McHugh were at Full Belly in the early 1990’s. I remember them as the best kind of storytellers, animated and creative. They spent hours telling my siblings and I stories of adventure, and I vividly remember Jack reading my older brother Amon and I the entire Lord of the Rings series. Jack and Jenni are now farming in Minnesota, creating their own adventure story. They farm a beautiful piece of land in the small town of Rushford with their three growing boys and every so often we hear tales of their great successes and challenges. Their farm, Featherstone Farm, has been hit with floods and droughts but continues to inspire a new generation of farmers.

[Read more…]