Greetings from Harding Hill Farm!

Life is challenging in so many ways right now for so many people. I know we are luckier than some. I work full time off the farm (now teleworking most days) and Tyler works the family business. Van and Robin are in a similar situation. Plus we are deep into the exhaustion of a busy maple season. The days are long and the juggle is real, but we are seeking out the moments that bring us joy – chasing our son through mud puddles, the smell of maple steam, one last beautiful snowfall, and the promise of warm days ahead.

The state of New Hampshire is about to enter a new phase of this pandemic, a ‘stay at home’ order. We’ve already been doing our best to do that; however, farm and forest businesses are considered essential and exempt from the order. We are still cautious. We leave the farm for essential tasks – picking up sap, delivering firewood, picking up spring fertilizer, etc. If customers want syrup or beef, we arrange your order for pick-up in our sugarhouse parking lot. If we’re boiling, you can at least take in the smell of maple from your vehicle. We’ve also started our spring firewood operations so be sure to reach out to reserve your cords. We’re making arrangements over the phone to limit in-person contact when we make your delivery. Once mud season is behind us, Tyler will begin his tree care services.

We are all still adapting, and the creative ideas are flowing. I’ve also made a push on our social media accounts to better share our farm story. I hope it gives many a brief distraction from life as we currently know it. We look forward to getting this time behind us, and we hope to plan a big Sugarhouse Grand Opening and Open Farm event later this year.

How to Purchase Maple Syrup and Beef

We’ve been getting lots of emails and phone calls about purchasing our farm products. Thank you so much for your support! If you are looking for some goods, start by visiting our website homepage. I set up some quick links to our price sheets. There are also price list buttons within our individual farm product pages. Once you know what you want, email or give us a call (603-504-4121). We will make arrangements to have you pick up your order at the sugarhouse parking area. If your circumstances require delivery, let us know and we will try to help you!

We have all sizes/containers of Maple Syrup available. We’re have Amber Rich and Dark Robust syrup on hand, so let us know what you’re looking for. Our grass fed beef inventory, however, is running pretty low. We still have ground beef patties, stew beef, chorizo, and hot dogs. Our online price list shows what is available.

Don’t forget to visit our Farm Recipes page to get some cooking inspiration.

The week Four Maple Production Update

The maple sap is still flowing! At around a month into the maple season, we start to get tired – it truly is a six week sprint to make as much syrup as possible. This year we had the added challenge of completing our new sugarhouse and figuring out how to use the space for the first time. It’s been fun, but not without some hiccups. Overall, we love it and can’t wait to show it off next season.

This week, we managed to achieve our typical goal of making at least 500 gallons of maple syrup for the season. Considering the mild winter and early spring weather, we’re thankful to make it this far. Yesterday, after quite a sap run, we hit 530 gallons of liquid gold. Last season we made 591 gallons of syrup, so we may end up close to last season’s results. To date though– we’ve collected 31,000 gallons of sap which is 4,000 more than the 2019 season total. We haven’t made more syrup than last year due to the sap’s concentration of sugar, which has been an average of 1.4%. We like to see that average closer to 2%, which is that traditional statistic many hear – it takes 40 gallons of sap to make 1 gallon of maple syrup.

We are out picking up more truckloads of sap this morning to get ready for a busy day of boiling. If you’re looking for syrup, today would be a great day to use our curbside pickup option. For the folks looking for Very Dark, we’re not there yet… but expect it may happen this week.

Taking Spring Firewood Orders

Have some time on your hands to stack firewood for next winter? A great project that requires social distancing! Contact us to get on our spring order and delivery list. Our price remains the same as last year at $255 per cord. We offer free delivery locally. We’ll notify you when you order if your location is outside our ‘free delivery’ range.

We’re taking some extra precautions this year to encourage social distancing. We will make arrangements over the phone ahead of your delivery to discuss payment options and where to drop off your wood. As always, we thank our many devoted customers for coming back to us every year.