farms

While most grain silos in the rural Midwest are put to use storing grain, seed, or silage, this one has a much more decorative purpose. I spotted this silo at the farm where my friends recently tied the knot, and I had to take a closer look.

The silo's wire exterior was used as a giant circular arbor. Years' worth of ivy snaked its way to the very top of the structure. Inside, skeletal, industrial furniture in keeping with the silo's look waited for guests to take a seat and relax. There was a stripped-down lounge chair in particular that I absolutely adored. Want to see it? Check out the gallery for all of the details.

On a rough-and-tumble corner in Oakland's Ghost Town neighborhood, the most unexpected of sights awaits you. Behind a chain-link fence, on an abandoned lot, sits a thriving urban farm. I stopped by Ghost Town Farm yesterday afternoon for its informal farm stand, where preserved lemons, dinosaur kale, and extremely local honey, among other selections, were being sold.
The force behind this farm is Novella Carpenter, author of best-selling memoir Farm City, which notably begins, "I have a farm on a dead-end street in the ghetto." In the book, Carpenter describes the evolution of the empty lot next to her rented flat from garbage-filled wasteland to thriving urban farm. It's a great read, and I recommend you pick up a copy of the book, which is now in paperback.

If you're planning on visiting the Bay Area, be sure to check Novella's blog to find out about the time of the next farm stand. Her site is also packed with anecdotes and advice on everything from building a cob oven to keeping livestock in the inner city. Curious as to what she's raising? Check out my photos of her 4,500-square-foot farm. While I didn't get pictures of the bunnies and chickens, I did snap some photos of one of the goats, one of the beehives, and quite a few of the veggies and fruit trees that abound on this unexpected piece of agrarian culture in the middle of the city.

If the words "If you build it, they will come" make your heart go pitter-patter, I've got one real estate listing that may strike your fancy. The real farm made famous by the 1989 Kevin Costner baseball flick Field of Dreams near Dyersville, IA, is on the market for $5.4 million.

For that price, you can call yourself the proud owner of the movie's baseball diamond, a two-bedroom, one-and-a-half-bath house, six outbuildings, and 193 acres of land. The current owners have owned the property for a century and have preserved the famous field since Universal Studios built it in just four days in 1988. Two buildings on the property actually date back to the 1800s, so it's a historical home in more ways than one. If you're interested, you'd better be tourist-friendly, as the farm is visited by an average of 65,000 people a year. The land comes with two souvenir sands, and a merchandising agreement with Universal can be arranged, so you may make a pretty penny off of this home, too!

Want to see more photos of the farm?

While the vegetarian trend has continued to rise, a meat movement is also gaining popularity. The latest subject in sustainable agriculture? Pasture-raised veal. Compared to conventionally raised veal, rose veal, as it's been dubbed, is leaner, with a blush color.

Eating veal has long been an animal-welfare issue, with opponents pointing to calves confined in stalls so tiny that livestock are unable to move. But producers of pasture-raised veal argue that the meat comes from hormone- and antibiotic-free calves who drink their mother's milk, consume pasture grass, and freely roam pastures.

Animal-rights activists are against the slaughter of young animals who have strong maternal bonds — yet according to veal proponents, calves are the same age as lamb and older than pigs when they're slaughtered. Where do you stand? Would you be more likely to eat pasture raised veal?