Organic Musings
When things are not rushed and occur naturally, they are said to happen organically. But the chill in the air, the changing leaves, and shorter days certainly get me moving around more quickly. The birds are beset with Zugenruhe (migratory restlessness) as their fall migration begins. Just yesterday there were about a dozen turkey vultures kettling over the back field. We have enjoyed the birds so much this year - we have seen almost 100 species on the farm. I think Justamere Tree Farm alone accounts for about half of all the subadult robins out there!
While urgency of fall migration belies the “urban” definition of organic, other fall events do not. The trees are changing colors slowly, the monarchs seem reluctant to start their long journey, and the bees are exhibiting a slow determination to collect every last bit of pollen on the sedum or stonecrop.
Monarch on our sedum fueling up before its migration to Mexico.
Everything we make on the farm is organic. All of our ingredients are organically sourced and we try to do everything in the most sustainable way. But, you may notice, that we don’t have an organic label on our syrup. This is because to be “organic” you need to be certified. It is on our list of things to do.
First signs of fall on one of our “organic” maple trees.
Did you ever wonder why all natural and sustainable food needs to be certified and have a label while highly processed foods are considered the norm? When did we start accepting that our cows weren’t grass-fed and our chickens weren’t cage-free? Why, as a society, do we not pay attention to our food? These questions caused me to consider my own thoughts about food. My life has taken me 360 degrees - a food circle, and I am back where I started. As a kid in the single digits, I would help my great-grandmother can beans and beets (yuck!) so she would have vegetables throughout the winter. I spent many autumn afternoons with my mom at the picnic table processing tomatoes to make sauce. As a young adult, convenience won out over nature and I bought and enjoyed highly processed foods and didn’t think much about what I was eating. In middle age, I returned to where it all began, having a garden and canning away all that summer flavor - but we don’t grow beets! The happiness of the chickens seems more important than how many eggs they produce. To be clear, that is an ethic I developed, as it certainly was not the way of my great-grandmother. We have said a few times in this newsletter that we bought the farm because of its natural beauty and seemingly intact ecosystem. That is an ethic I got from my family and one that sustains me.
In American society today, food is largely an afterthought, when two short generations ago is was a central thought and activity. So we leave you with these organic musings, something to slowly consider. Why should we have to spend time and money to be “certified organic?” Shouldn’t organic be the default and highly processed be the exception? Might we have this process backwards?
Wishing you all a safe and bountiful fall.
Kim, Kelly, and Deb