On the day of the plowing match, Farmer Jim transforms into "Ice Cream Jim," making old-fashioned ice cream for the masses. His ice cream maker is powered by a 1913 Stover hit and miss engine. Today was the day to make sure everything was running smoothly. And it was.

Just as the heat of summer begins to wind down, plowing for fall crops begins... Today Farmer Ian plowed a future wheat field.

The farm is abuzz with preparations for tomorrow's 29th annual plowing match. Schedule below:

10:00 a.m. - Fine Plowing Competition
10:30 a.m. - Ox Plowing & Steam Engine Plowing
11:00 a.m. - Visitor Plowing Events
02:00 p.m. - Obstacle Course Competition

Earlier in the month, the potato harvest was postponed by soggy soil conditions, but most of the potatoes are now dug up and bagged.

The quality of the potatoes was, "not bad, considering" according to Farmer Rob. This year's crop was negatively impacted by leafhoppers and dry, hot weather. Read about it here.

On a farm, one of the hardest animals to catch is an agile piglet.

This was proved again this morning, when one of Howell Farm's piglets slipped through a gap in the fence and started exploring the barnyard. A dog and four human beings were needed to restore the piglet to its pen. The piglet was never actually caught, it was just kind of ushered in the right direction.

Both of the piglets came from Walnut Creek Farm in Flemington, from two different litters. The spotted pig is a mixed breed -- Duroc and Poland China. The white pig is a mix of Duroc and Yorkshire.

It's the little observations -- sometimes positive, sometimes negative -- that define a year of farming. This year, the Howell Farm farmers have noticed that the huge flies that constantly track and bite the draft horses -- Farmer Jeremy just calls them "the bombers" -- arrived earlier than usual and in incredible numbers.

"This was the worst, worst, worst year ever for them," Farmer Jeremy remarked. Last week, while trying to shoe a horse, 30 of the flies were killed with well-aimed slaps before the farmers abandoned the task.

If there's an upside to the Summer of the Fly, it's that it may be almost over. This week, compared to last week, the number of flies seemed to decline markedly.

Wet conditions put a damper on Saturday's potato harvest. Plan B is for our farmers to harvest some of the potatoes this week, and the rest on Saturday, during the Fiddle Match. We hope all the good music will inspire visitors to lend a helping hand.

The posters are printed. Now all the remains until Howell Farm's 29th annual plowing match on September 1 is to grease up the plows and clean the harness.

10:00 a.m. - Fine Plowing Competition
10:30 a.m. - Ox Plowing & Steam Engine Plowing
11:00 a.m. - Visitor Plowing Events
02:00 p.m. - Obstacle Course Competition

Last week, as I walking around Howell Farm with my camera, I spotted a green heron perched on the wooden bridge that overlooks the farm’s pond. I didn’t have my zoom lens, but I stalked as close as I could and snapped a photo. Then the heron flew off to hide in a nearby tree.

This morning, as I was walking around Howell Farm, I spotted a great blue heron perched on the same wooden bridge that overlooks the farm’s pond. I didn’t have my zoom lens, but I stalked as close as I could and snapped a photo. Then the heron flew off, looking like a pterodactyl, across the farm fields.

This bridge must be well suited for heron perching.

Having observed great blue herons before, I get the impression that they’re very cautious birds. They leave at the first sign of humans. The green herons seem slightly more laid back.

I learned something about great blue herons in a book I’ve been reading. Although they are solitary fish hunters, they nest in giant colonies of other herons, often in a tree, with up to 500 nests in a colony. I’ve yet to discover a heron colony in the woods, and I read that this is probably a good thing, because the herons would rather you stay away.

Howell Living History Farm invites the public to celebrate the coming harvest season on Saturday, Aug. 18 by unearthing a special crop of potatoes that will be donated to the Greater Mercer Food Cooperative.  The potatoes were planted April 28th by Howell Farm visitors, volunteers and interns.

Visitors of all ages can join the harvest crew any time between the hours of 11 a.m. and 3 p.m., for as long or short a time as they like.  Experience is not necessary.  The crew will be led by farm staff, who will use horses or oxen to pull a special plow called a "potato lifter." 

If you think the photo above doesn't look like a field of potato plants, you're right. The plants have already been mowed down. But the potatoes are underground, waiting to be unearthed.