In mid-April, Andul Sundaramurthy became the resident farmer for Two Mountain Farm, located on Shaw Hill Road in Andover. Andul replaces former farmer and Andover resident Kat Darling. At the height of Kat’s career at Two Mountain Farm, she was running a 30-person CSA, grew vegetables on more than two and a half acres, sold produce to several markets in the area, and ran a horse logging operation in the winter.
“Tough shoes to fill,” says Andul, “but this is my first time being my own boss, and I love it!”
Andul, a chipper and animated young woman, has a ceaseless smile that has not yet waivered in spite of rainy farmers markets, endless weeding ventures, and the time she punched a hole in the farm greenhouse with the tractor. Her positivity is absolutely contagious, but her work ethic is hard to match.
One could say farming is in Andul’s blood. Her grandfather was a farmer, and her father spent much of his early life farming before moving to Canada and then the United States to work as an engineer.
“I feel like our society has lost at least one full generation of farmers who teach their children the ways of farming. Nobody has parents to ask anymore, only grandparents now,” said Andul.
Her smile returned when she voiced her optimism about the new generation of young people who want to be farmers. “It’s exciting to see and be a part of this movement and shift of consciousness that is bringing people back to farms,” she said.
Andul moved to Wilmot at the age of 10, first residing on Pleasant Lake to be closer to her mother’s side of the family, the Stearns, an old New England family that can be traced back to two brothers who sailed over to the Americas on the Arabella. “My mother’s side of the family, the Stearns, have been in Wilmot for a long time, about five generations,” said Andul.
The North Wilmot Congregational Church was built by Isaac Stearns in 1829 and to this day remains the oldest church building in Wilmot. Andul’s grandmother, Cathy Stearns, owns Bog Mountain Farm, also in Wilmot, which has been in the family since the late 1800s.
Andul is taking over the farm operations as part of New Hampshire’s two-year Journey program, which is a mentoring-from-a-distance program for young farmers. The program is through the Northeast Organic Farming Association (NOFA) and helps young farmers transition from working as a farmhand to becoming an independent farmer. The previous Two Mountain farmer, Kat Darling, helps to mentor Andul.
Before her work started at Two Mountain Farm, Andul gained farming experience through her work as a farmhand, primarily at Muster Field Farm since 2003. Andul graduated from Hampshire College in 2008 with a major in Ethnomusicology, the study of various music cultures. After graduation, Andul worked for four winters grooming horses in New Zealand, returning to Muster Field in the summers to work.
In 2013, Andul moved to Massachusetts for a year, working part time as a nanny while pursuing her dream of running her own farm. “While looking for land, I signed up for every farm-oriented mailing list I could find,” said Andul. She received an e-mail notice about Two Mountain Farm looking for a new resident farmer from NOFA New Hampshire in January and applied within a few hours. “I was thrilled with the prospect of returning close to home.”
Andul has several short- and long-term plans for the farm that she shared while weeding her rows of carrots. “It’s important to start small when implementing change,” she emphasized.
Primary to Andul’s plan is looking for cost effective and creative ways to become more efficient. “For one, I’d like to find a more effective way to weed these carrots,” she said jokingly.
In January she created a plan which took into account market demands, easiness to grow, and cold heartiness. She decided upon six different crops which met these criteria: kale, chard, scallions, beets, carrots, and basil. “These are my ideal crops,” said Andul. “With the exception of basil, they are all really cold hearty, which is perfect for not having to worry so much in the spring and fall. The kale, chard, and basil you only have to plant once but can harvest them throughout the whole season.”
These crops are the ones which Andul sells wholesale, because she feels she can rely on her supply. She also grows other crops, including tomatoes, lettuce, eggplant, peppers, and herbs, to sell to the general public.
“Just because a crop is easy to grow, doesn’t mean that it’s easy to sell,” explained Andul. “On the contrary, some vegetables, like carrots, that require a lot of time weeding and replanting, are a staple and are worth putting in the extra time.”
Andul regularly sells produce at the Market on the Green in New London every Wednesday from 3 to 6 PM. On Saturdays, Andul can be found at the Wilmot Farmers Market from 9 AM until noon. She has sold produce to local restaurants La Meridiana, the Pleasant Lake Inn, and Live Juice in Concord and is in the process of contacting more restaurants in the area. In addition, Andul has also sold produce to the Concord Co-op. “I’m merely experimenting with different avenues for selling my crops and seeing what works and what doesn’t,” said Andul.
Marketing through social media is a significant piece of her attempts to get her name to the public. “I have never been as active on Facebook as I am now.” To get up-to-date information on Andul and her progress, you can “like” Two Mountain Farm at Facebook.com/TwoMountainFarm or stop by at 76 Shaw Hill Road.
While Andul loves being her own boss, she is looking for ways to incorporate more people on the farm. She sponsored a work party on July 13 which served as both a venue for establishing herself and encouraging cooperative efforts within the community. Andul was ecstatic with the enthusiasm and efforts of the 16 people who made a dent in her to-do list and worked tirelessly to weed the 100-foot, 5-row carrot crop. For their efforts, Sundamarthy fed them and topped off the day with ice cream. “Ice cream is a very important part of my life,” explained Andul.
This coming winter, Andul is planning an apprenticeship under a horse logger. Her hopes lie in bringing draft power to the farm. “Horse power is a way to move away from fossil fuels. It’s better for the land and less hard on the soil,” said Andul. Tilling, or mechanically agitating the soil, pulverizes the organic matter, kills the worms, and compacts the soil. Drainage problems could arise in the soil from being over-compacted. “Horses have four points where they are touching the ground, which is great for distributing weight. Horses also weigh less and can’t abuse the land the way you can with a tractor,” said Andul.
It has been almost six months since Andul began working at the farm. She is still the boss and admittedly the rookie, but is very content with being both. She is optimistic about and grateful for her new life at Two Mountain Farm.