Jenna Woginrich - Barnheart: The Incurable Longing for a Farm of Ones Own

Praise for
Made from Scratch

This fine, simple book is the real deal and it will come as a great relief to people feeling some silent dread in a time of rising gas prices, food shortages, and the like. Much can be done in your home!

Bill McKibben, author of Deep Economy

This is an outstanding book for anyone yearning for the satisfactions that come with a simpler, more self-reliant, and sustainable life. I highly recommend it, for both country and city homesteaders.

Cheryl Long, Editor in Chief, Mother Earth News

If youre tired of being just another consumer, and want to take charge of creating your own life, this book is for you. It has both the how-to and the why-to. It reads like fiction but delivers a wealth of useful, down-to-earth information.

David Wann, author of Simple Prosperity and coauthor of Affluenza

Woginrich writes with an infectious enthusiasm and a dry wit that may have you ordering hens before you reach the last page. A delightful introduction to the simple (and not-so-simple) life.

William Alexander, author of The $64 Tomato

I cant get enough of Woginrichs life on her Vermont farm this book left me wanting much, much more.

Debbie Stoller,Bust

Its a how-to as well as a what-not-to-do.

Boston Sunday Globe, Shelf Life

This book isnt about having a farmhouse on acres of land, or a barn full of livestock, but about being more open to learning the simple skills most of us have forgotten.

Deseret News

Made from Scratch is about being more open to learning the simple skills most of us have forgotten, and finding joy in the process.

Homegrown.org

The book is chockablock full of simple life advice on everything from creating storage from scratch to gardening, with loads of 21st-century homespun philosophy to boot.

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Her essays, supplemented with how-tos, are philosophical, humorous, and remarkably poised for a newbie writer.

Seattle Post-Intelligencer

Woginrichs comfy writing style and gentle humor make this book a must-read for anyone who dreams of a simpler, handmade life.

ForeWord, November 2010

The mission of Storey Publishing is to serve our customers by
publishing practical information that encourages
personal independence in harmony with the environment.

Edited by Carleen Madigan
Art direction and text design by Mary Winkelman Velgos
Cover design by Dan O. Williams
Text production by Liseann Karandisecky

Front cover illustration by Meg Hunt/Scott Hull Associates
Author photograph by Tim Bronson

2011 by Jenna Woginrich

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages or reproduce illustrations in a review with appropriate credits; nor may any part of this book be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or other without written permission from the publisher.

The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. All recommendations are made without guarantee on the part of the author or Storey Publishing. The author and publisher disclaim any liability in connection with the use of this information.

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Storey Publishing
210 MASS MoCA Way
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Printed in the United States by Versa Press
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Woginrich, Jenna.

Barnheart / by Jenna Woginrich.

p. cm.

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-60342-795-1 (pbk. : alk. paper)

1. Country lifeVermont. I. Title.
S521.5.V5W64 2012
630.9743dc23

2011024846

BARNHEART

THE INCURABLE LONGING
FOR A FARM OF ONES OWN
a memoir

Jenna Woginrich

Thank you to my parents, Pat and Jack, who have watched with grace and support (even when it confused the hell out of them) as their daughter evolved from an urban designer to a rural shepherd. My parents are the only reason I ever believed I could achieve whatever I wanted in this world, even if what I wanted was to be sitting with a flock of sheep on a hill.

Thank you to my brother and sister, John and Kate, who relentlessly support me, nod in approval, and make me laugh at my own antics. Thanks to Kevin Boyle, who has been my best friend for over a decade and has always loved me, even when I let him down (which I do from time to time). Thank you to Erin Griffiths, Raven Pray, Leif Fairfield, Phil Monahan, Steve Hemkens, Sara and Tim Mack, and Nisaa Askia all of you are part of this story. Its the folks who stay in touch, visit, call, and heckle that make a life that makes a book.

And of course, big thanks to everyone at Storey, most of all to my grand editor, Carleen Madigan, whose own work and writing fuel my dreams and constantly make me want to learn new skills and take on new adventures. Thank you to everyone at Orvis coworkers and friends who are wonderfully tolerant of me (possibly the most unorganized person in New England to hold down a day job) and make that place a dream career. Not a lot of offices let you bring your kid to work (when its a bottle-fed Toggenberg).

Thank you to James Daley and Phil Bibens, who have helped me build sheep sheds and amazing friendships. You guys made Vermont feel like home first. Thanks to everyone at Wayside, especially Doug and Nancy Tschorn, who are my unofficial grandparents and run the best country store in the state of Vermont. This fact can be argued, but the argument is pointless. Thank you to Tim Bronson, who helped me get this book started and earnestly supported me at a point when the book youre holding in your hands was just a shot in the dark in a conference room. Thank you, Paul Fersen, fellow Civil War buff, farmer, and friend who keeps me laughing and lends me old calf hutches hes not using to house my bum goats. Thank you to Eric and Erica Weisledder, Suzanne and Allan Tschorn, Jo and Bob Wise, Nancy and Dean Bishop, the Daughton family and Roy next door neighbors like you made this farm (and the future of this farm) possible. Thank you, members of NEBCA, especially Barb and Denise, important members in the great club of shepherds who are just beginning to show me the ropes of this new life. Thank you all, over and over.

And thanks, of course, to Jazz and Annie, still the best roommates a girl could ever have, and Gibson, the finest farmhand and business partner Ive ever known.

For Mom and Dad
The only reason everything happened

Certain people, myself included, are afflicted by a condition thats difficult to describe. Its not recognized by physicians or psychoanalysts (yet), but its really only a matter of time before its a household diagnosis. Its a sharp, targeted depression, a sudden overcast feeling that hits you while youre at work or standing in the grocery-store checkout line. Its a dreamers disease, a mix of hope, determination, and grit. It attacks those of us who wish to God we were outside with our flocks, feed bags, or harnesses instead of sitting in front of a computer screen. When a severe attack hits, its all you can do to sit still. The room gets smaller, your mind wanders, and you are overcome with the desire to be tagging cattle ears or feeding pigs. (People at the office water cooler will stare and slowly back away if you say this out loud. If this happens to you, just segue into sports banter and youll be fine.)