Many maintenance chores on the farm are taking days and weeks longer by hand than they would with a tractor. The land at the farm sites is shaped and adjusted each season as McLaughlin Grows continues to mature. New plots are needed to increase production and to create educational space. These changes are currently done with shovels, rakes, axes, hoes and hours of heavy digging, lifting, and clearing.

Will you help us raise $17’000 to buy a tractor?

Using a tractor would not only save hours of work, it saves wear and tear on workers. As we build the farm into a growing and teaching space for all, there is a significant amount of land profile change to come. Having a tractor to do this work will make it happen quicker, cleaner, and create a much more professional appearance!

Daily maintenance is a huge part of why McLaughlin Grows needs the addition of a tractor. Such things as stirring the four large mulch piles we maintain could go from a three day chore to one done in a matter of hours. Imagine a job that is currently spread over two or three days being completed in less than an hour by using tractor forks!

These are just a few ways upgrading our machinery on the farm would help. McLaughlin Grows is expanding in so many ways: increased capacity, new projects, more educational opportunities, expanding CSAs into the workplace…and more. We are a growing farm looking for ways to push the limits of our finite seasons. Having a tractor on the farm will increase our efficiency and give us the hours we need to grow, feed and teach our neighbors and our community.