CLASSICAL AGRICULTURE

LIRA BLOG

Dormant Seeds

As surely as a seed will grow when planted in the ground, God's Word, as surely, makes us know: In Christ we're homeward bound. Our confidence before God's throne is fruit of His Great Word. This gift was sown, to grow and thrive, the moment we first heard. More...

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The Power of a Seed

By Bethany Maronde When I hold it in my hand, it is so tiny, yet so powerful. Thousands of years of intelligence are stored in the genetic code. A tiny seed has known times of drought, poor soil, harsh conditions. It also knows exactly what to do when it is in times...

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The Hope of Zion’s Harvest

This is a guest post from LIRA partners Rev. Timm & Hannah Heath, whose humble homestead grows in New York State’s Southern Tier. ...let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us...

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Limitations, Faustian Economics, and a Goose Egg

If the idea of appropriate limitation seems unacceptable to us, that may be because, like Marlowe's Faust and Milton's Satan, we confuse limits with confinement. But that, as I think Marlow and Milton and others were trying to tell us, is a great and potentially a...

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Spring Planting on the Hugelkultur!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkP2EUr1t5E We set out to use Permaculture techniques to increase productivity and nutrition. Check out how we have started using this "raised bed"! In this video we discuss cold tolerant vegetables to plant, perennial onions, drip...

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Joel Salatin on Being a Christian Farmer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NlpPvGKe3ro Rev. Maronde chats with Joel Salatin, founder of Polyface Farms in Swope, Virginia, and best-selling author of books such as 'You Can Farm!' and 'Pastured Poultry Profits,' about stewarding God's creation as a Christian....

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Investing In Winter

In September, as our garden was in full production mode, my mind began to be pulled toward next year's garden. The garden is always about next year. This year we had 2 families subscribe to a 20 week CSA and I used every inch of my two tiny garden beds to fill the...

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Dominion

(Above is a 15th century icon of Adam naming the animals) A guest post by Rev. Ian Kinney. God blessed them and said “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion” (Gen 1:28) This is the blessing of the Lord given to man both in and...

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Fall is Garlic Planting Time!

Here at the Maronde homestead we finally got our garlic tucked into the ground for its winter rest.  If you have a love of garlic like our family does, you probably already have it as a common staple in your own household. I wanted to take a moment to share...

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Helpers from near and far!

It has been an eventful couple of weeks at the farm! Arriving on the evening of October 2nd were three helpers from Texas. Matthew, Brent, and Angela spent the week with the Maronde's, hard at work cutting trees, cleaning up portions of the property, and putting in a...

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Does she have the guts to do it?

It's been a quiet couple of weeks on the blog because its been a busy couple of weeks on the Maronde farm. Nearly 160 chickens have gone from the mobile shelters to the freezer, twenty-five or so at a time. Every member of the Maronde family pitched in, from catching...

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Why we need LIRA

This is a guest post from LIRA partners Rev. Timm & Hannah Heath, whose humble homestead grows in New York State's Southern Tier. Before God formed the far-flung depths of the cosmos, He shaped the earth and called the first crop of life out of the ground (Genesis...

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Who are the Heaths?

By Hannah Heath This is a guest post from LIRA partners Rev. Timm & Hannah Heath, whose humble homestead grows in New York State's southern tier. At any given moment of the day my husband can bellow a resounding "WHO ARE WE?” and from every room will come a...

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Chicken Processing by Joel Salatin

As the Maronde's prepare to process their first broilers (perhaps in only a couple days!!), they've been watching a lot of YouTube videos. We'll share some of our favorites in the coming days, but we'll start with this relatively short one by Joel Salatin....

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An Incredible Opportunity

What in the world am I doing? I am carrying Charlotte on one hip and dragging a 25 foot fallen tree on the other side. Sweat rolls down my face, rolls down my back, drenches my shirt. Put Charlotte down, lift tree onto brush pile, stop to take a breath, wipe the sweat...

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Reclaiming the Land

From LIRA supporter John Rabe of Lincoln, Nebraska. Spending any time in farm country, as it exists today, one is struck with much to consider.  Serene pastoral beauty?  Good, hardy folk living as one with the land?  Endless miles of lush and nutritious...

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Every kid should have some chickens!

Eleven year old Samantha tells us all about the laying hens that she cares for on the Maronde farm. Caring for pets is great for kids (and we have a few of those as well!), but raising farm animals is another level of responsibility. Plus, its a lot of fun!...

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A $5 Chicken Tractor

Interested in having a few chickens, but don't want to spend a lot of $$ on a shelter? Want to try out urban farming? Don't have a lot of space? Have space but want to start out small? In this video we pass along tried and true building ideas that may help you on your...

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The Favorite Part of My Day

Happy animals make the best food, and it is the task and great joy of those humans who care for them to make them happy. The chicks that you see in this video are now much much bigger, and now they move to a new 'salad bar' each and every day, and you should see their...

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Chores at Sunset

The beauty of this land is something that cameras can't quite capture, and the best time to experience the wonder of God's creation is during evening chores, as the sun is setting. Seeing the chicken shelters, ready to move (yes, we know they should be moved in the...

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A Gosling Named Titania

January can be dangerous for the homesteader, especially for the dreamers who imagine what could be when faced with the blank canvas of a fresh snowfall. Some dream big, planning earthworks for a new pond, acres of food forest, a whole herd of livestock. I dream those...

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The Depths of His Love

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love thee to the depth and breadth and height My spade can reach, when digging in your sight For the ends of working at an ideal pace. I love thee to the level of every day’s Shovelful, from sun up to candle-light. I love...

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Can the Home Economy be Restored?

Gleanings: The podcast of LIRAEpisode 2 https://youtu.be/JhQZX54NbIo What happened to the home economy? Can it be restored in the modern world? Host Rev. Martin Hill and LIRA director Rev. Christopher Maronde discuss those trades which have not only stood the test of...

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Chicks arriving!

A couple of weeks ago, we received our second batch of broiler (meat bird) chicks. The little ones you see in this video are now out on grass, and loving it, eating bugs, grazing, and most importantly gaining weight! This fast-growing breed will be reading for...

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Pastor Maronde Installed at Hastings and Oakland Iowa

On Saturday, August 30th, Pastor Christopher Maronde, director of the Lutheran Institute of Regenerative Agriculture, was installed as the sole pastor of Saint John Lutheran Church outside of Hastings, Iowa, and St. Paul Lutheran Church in Oakland, Iowa. He will serve...

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First LIRA podcast

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hB3LgmVTH8&t=1689s Rev. Martin Hill and LIRA director Rev. Christopher Maronde discuss Willa Cather's 'O Pioneers'

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