I have written before about Lincolnville’s agrarian past.

Subsistence farming is generally the best we have done. There is a reason we lost so much of our population in the years following the Civil War. The sons and daughters of Lincolnville went west — to the cities and factories of further down the coast, to the promising farmlands of the Plains. Our rocky soil just didn’t have much to offer.

But some remained, finding the niches; potatoes up the County, blueberries downeast. Following the example set by Helen and Scott Nearing, the 1960s and 1970s brought an influx of new Mainers seeking to live “the Good Life”, homesteading and farming.

My parents were part of this, though my dad, with Maine roots going back centuries, might dispute it.

There was a sudden interest in learning farming and animal husbandry. My dad had to search to find an old timer who still knew how to hand-milk his newly acquired dairy cow. I will not get into detail about the early attempts at home butchery, tales that are now family legend.

We are in the 21st millennium, and there is a new back-to-the-land movement, with small farms springing up amongst the long neglected fields of our forebears. Families having a go at supporting themselves off the land, rocky though it may be.

This led me to a little “research trip” around town, to explore three of the most established farmstands about town.

I first came to 3 Bug Farm, on 105/Hope Road, up toward the Hope border. There, Jed Beach and Emilia Carbone, and their four boys (the final “bug” was not yet born at the time the farm was established) tend their plot of land.

3 Bug has expanded beyond the crops they grow, to include the products of other local small producers — meats, cheeses, bread, cider vinegar — all contained in the shed near the road. 

I was fortunate to get to chat with Jed’s father, Chris Beach, at the time of my visit, who was just getting finished trying to tame the meadow where the farm’s crops are grown. 

From 3 Bug, I stopped by Calderwood Farm on Beach Road, just down from the Center.

The old homestead of the Calderwood family, Brent Wucher has spent the last two years bringing it back to its old glory. The barn, which in my early youth was full of rows of dairy cows, is now the farmstand, full of produce collected from the greenhouses Brent has established on the property, as well as a freezer full of lamb and pork from the animals he is raising to help reinvigorate the soil.

The barn walls are lined with prints from the Calderwood family album, documenting the farm’s history.

Remembering my wife’s love of fried green tomatoes, and my reluctance to interfere with out own ripening crop, I asked Brett if he would be willing to sell me some green ones. He led me to the hoop house, packed with plants growing beefsteak tomatoes like clusters of grapes.

“I feel like I can actually watch them grow,” Brent told me, as he related his efforts to keep up with the rapidly ripening fruit. There is nothing like the smell of tomato plants.

A leg of lamb for a future dinner, green tomatoes for dinner that evening, and the promise of a rack of lamb for Christmas in hand, I made my way up to North Lincolnville, and Ararat Farms.

This farmstand has much in common with a general store, and has grown since I last stopped by.

At the corner of Belfast and Vancycle roads, the Ararat farmstand has a little of everything — the farm’s own produce, plus and array of locally made products, from spices to meats to ice cream. The farm, just up the hill, was the home of the Mudge family in my youth, and I spent a lot of time there — haying, sledding, exploring all the nooks and crannies of that old farmhouse.

These three farmstands are just the tip of the agricultural iceberg in Lincolnville. Baked goods, fresh eggs, berries, and vegetables are being sold all over this little village, supplementing family’s incomes, justifying that backyard flock of dinosaurs. 

At a time when there is so much uncertainty in the world, it is comforting to feel a tiny degree of self-sufficiency, the idea that we can grow our own food, that we can take care of our community.

Monarchs at the LHS

Plan to visit the Lincolnville Historical Society, 33 Beach Road, the Saturday morning, July 26, from 9 a.m. to noon, to meet some monarch butterflies. Eggs, caterpillars, chrysalis, and the beautiful black and orange adults should all be in attendance, along with the requisite milkweed these amazing creatures rely on. 

Celebrate this summer resident that has been coming to Maine for thousands of years!

Grange Speaker

Join the Tranquility Grange on Wednesday July 23, at 6 p.m. for a talk by Julie and Pete Beckford of Rebel Hill Farm in Liberty. They will share their experiences growing native organic plants over the last 35 years. This supports the Grange mission of advocating for agriculture agriculture, rural communities, and responsible land stewardship.

Library Happenings

From 3-5 on Tuesday July 22, the needleworkers will meet at the library. Join them to improve your handwork, a skill that will take you through those long winter months to come. Saturday, June 26 at 10 a.m., the library will host summer kids yoga.

Okay, this town I love, these are my musings for this week. Take care of each other, enjoy the week. Reach out at ceobrien246@gmail.com.

Municipal Calendar

Monday, July 21

Historical Society Museum Open, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., 33 Beach Road

Tuesday, July 22

Library open 3-6 p.m. 208 Main Street

AA Meeting 12:15 p.m., Community Building, 18 Searsmont Road

Lakes and Ponds Committee, 7 p.m. Town Office

Wednesday, July 23

Library Open, 2-5 p.m., 208 Main Street

Historical Society Museum Open, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., 33 Beach Road

Budget Committee, 6 p.m. Town Office

Bayshore Baptist Church, Bible Study, 7 p.m

Thursday, July 24

Library open 2-5 p.m., 208 Main Street

Friday, July 25

AA Meeting 12:15 p.m., Community Building, 18 Searsmont Road

Library open 9-12, 208 Main Street

Historical Society Museum Open, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., 33 Beach Road

Saturday, July 26

Library open 9-12, 208 Main Street

Sunday, July 27

United Christian Church, 9:30 a.m. Worship and Children’s Church, 18 Searsmont Road

Bayshore Baptist Church, 10 a.m. Sunday School for All Ages, 10:40 a.m. Coffee and Baked Goods, 11:00 a.m. worship, 2648 Atlantic Highway