Giving sleigh rides at Shelburne Farms is one of the best jobs in the world. When you combine the magic of a horse-drawn sleigh ride with the magic of Shelburne Farms and the people from every walk of life, I finish each day exhilarated and ready for the next time. Letting the kids (old and young) handle the lines sometimes lights a spark of interest that keeps them coming back.

I like letting people know that the horses are useful for other jobs, too. My team does horse-drawn trash and recycling curbside pickup in Bristol every Friday morning. Around this time of year, it's especially enjoyable to gather sap with them. I never have to jump on a tractor to drive it ahead. I just walk around gathering the sap and ask them to step forward and stop on command.

We use our horses for all of our farm work. That includes mowing their own hay, tedding the hay to dry it, then raking it up to get it ready for the baler. We spread their manure to fertilize the fields with a ground driven spreader. We also have a Vis A Vis carriage that we use for weddings (at Shelburne Farms and other places) and a trolley for rides at company parties and other special events.

When you see me with horses you will often see a young person working alongside me. It is very rewarding for me to see how quickly young people catch on and how committed they are to learning about horses. Maybe you'll catch the bug, too!

Pat Palmer
Thornapple Farm, New Haven, Vermont

P.S. We have two Pergeron teams: Jake & Jerry (almost black); Butch & Miner (light grey).

First lamb of the season!

The first lamb of the 2011 season arrived last night (Feb. 17)! Sam Smith and Sally Lincoln in the Farmyard had been predicting March 1st, but this lamb and mom fooled them. There will be many more to come in the next couple of months. We'll keep you updated.

Market Garden Plans for the Season: Diversity and Specialty

from Josh Carter, Market Gardener

Our plan this year is to focus on supplying the Inn with a diversity of high-value, specialty items, including a consistent supply of salad and braising greens, microgreens, radishes, and baby beets. We'll especially focus on the spring production of these crops in the hoop houses. For staple crops like potatoes, we will focus on specialty varieties like fingerling and new, baby potatoes. This season, we'll also be harvesting our first crop of asparagus, which we planted in 2008, and our first horseradish, planted in spring 2010. Hopefully some raspberries, too! Call the Inn at 802-985-8498 to make your dinner or breakfast reservations and enjoy a taste of the spring season.

ABCs of Farm Education Workshop

There's still room in our upcoming Project Seasons Workshop for farmers on MARCH 4 & 5 (Friday & Saturday). If you're just starting to explore the possibilities of opening your farm for education, or looking for new ideas for your program, come join us! This workshop is FREE TO VERMONT FARMERS! Presented in partnership with the Farm-Based Education Association. Call or email Erica Curry for more information or to register: 802-985-0325, or download the flyer.

"Dressing up like a Plant" activity with educator Susie Marchand at last year's workshop.

New vacuum system for sugaring

To boost sap yields, we're switching to a low-pressure vacuum sap collection system this sugaring season. A what? Sap runs are driven by the pressure difference between the inside of a maple tree and the outside, so a pump that decreases pressure inside the tubing will help yield more sap. Over the past five years, our sap flows have noticeably dribbled off. That's because we're battling geography: Lake Champlain moderates temperatures around here, depressing sap flow, and the slope of our sugarbush isn't steep enough to create a natural pressure change in the tubes. "With this system, we could see a significant increase in yield," says Children's Farmyard manager, Sam Smith, who's installing it. Find out more about vacuum sap collection in this research from UVM's Proctor Maple Research Center in Underhill, Vermont.

PHOTO: Adventurers listen for the sap flowing through a collection tube. Can you hear it?

 Shelburne Farms cultivates a conservation ethic for a sustainable future. We are a nonprofit environmental
education center, 1,400-acre working farm, and National Historic Landmark.
1611 Harbor Road • Shelburne, Vermont • 05482 • www.shelburnefarms.org • 802-985-8686