It's a Long Road to a Tomato: Tales of an Organic Farmer Who Quit the Big City for the (Not So) Simple Life

I was looking forward to this book and greatly enjoyed the first one hundred pages or so, even ignoring the ill-advised method of punishing his dogs for killing chickens - tying them up with dead chickens around their neck (after beating them with said dead chickens) and then leaving them there with little to eat. As any dog owner with a modicum of common sense can see,chickens are the greatest squeeky toys on earth. They make funny noises, have feathers that fly all over and when they run away from you it is absolutely comical, not to mention the fact that they aren't nearly fast enough to actually escape. That is why the vast majority of dogs in this world would love to kill a chicken if they had the opportunity. The way to prevent this is to keep dogs away from chickens. It's as simple as that.In one of the later chapters the author seems to be very amused that his free-ranging, adult, un-neutered dog has been breeding females on his travels. Well, duh. When his neighbor is upset about this, the author desparages them. Obviously, it is funny that his dog has been impregnating females and his neighbor is taking things far too seriously. Finally taking his adult dog in to be neutered(the dog had been in his "care" for some time) they discover that he has heartworm disease. The author explains that this is a disease roaming dogs are susceptible too. Yet, he hasn't ever thought of having the dog on heart worm preventative. Indeed, his dog hasn't been to a veterinarian during his stint at the farm. Oh, he did take him to a couple of those free rabies vaccination clinics. As an aside, those clinics are intended for low-income dog owners, not lazy people who don't value veterinary services.As his dog's heath declines and he suffers from severe arthritis - so much so that he is incontinent and has much difficulty rising - the author decides that the dog would be most happy living out his life as an outdoor dog. This despite the fact, that as the author allows, with his short coat he is ill-equipped for life outdoors during winter. He goes on to explain that it was one of the worst winters in his time on the farm and he relays the hardships on the poor dog and himself. But, he decides that the "primal blood" flowing through his dog's veins has a need to be outside among the wilderness that is his true home. Primal blood? Dogs are domesticated, meaning that we have taken them AWAY from the wild.Finally and most appallingly for me is his idiotic treatment of his roster. As has been commented on by others, one of his actions is unexcusable. Some have defended him by saying he was new to farming, but when this event occurred he had been on the farm long enough for his original rooster to be too old to serve his purpose - mating with hens. While at the farmers' market, he acquires a handsome, strong, young adult rooster. Getting back to the farm late in the evening, he walks through the dark to his chicken coop and places the new rooster on a perch amongst the hens and the old rooster. For some reason he seems surprised when he discovers in the morning that the young rooster has nearly killed the old rooster. This is after he has commented on how chickens can be very combative and cause great harm to other chickens. Again, his old rooster nearly getting killed is just part of the circle of life, or so it seems to him. This despite the fact that the chickens were confined in a coop that he made himself.For someone who is so vehemently against "industrial agriculture" and cramped confinement systems, his words have an incredibly hollow ring given his treatment of his own animals.I have made it to the last chapter of the book - but I'm not sure I even want to read it. Earlier on I was planning to share this with other local food and sustainable agriculture proponents I know. Having read the book, that isn't going to happen. This could have been a wonderful book, if only he didn't have animals.For those who consider this a rant, I would beg to differ. I would have really appreciated a review like this before I wasted my time and money. But in a way, yes, it is a rant. That's the beauty of free speech.

Recently I read IT'S A LONG ROAD TO A TOMATO: TALES OF AN ORGANIC FARMER WHO QUIT THE BIG CITY FOR THE (NOT SO) SIMPLE LIFE by Keith Stewart and so was engrossed that I neglected of my work. As a vendor at my local farmers market in St. Augustine, Florida were I sell herbs I have an inkling of the work that a farmer does, or at least I thought I did. This marvelous book tells it as it REALLY is. Keith writes with passion and truth about the trials and tribulations, joys and rewards that he and his interns face while farming organically in upstate New York. He's been a passionate, sustainable farmer who has been farming for more than 20 years. His beautiful words, his descriptions of his farm, the informative portrayal of what he does from writing about barn swallows that he welcomes into his barn in the spring to the business of how he feels about the environment create a moving book. One needs to thank Keith for writing this amazing book. I for one didn't want the book to end. I for one wanted to bite into more words and some of the glorious produce Keith raises on his farm.IT'S A LONG ROAD TO A TOMATO is touching and filled with Keith's love of life, of farming, of the earth. I intend to pass it on to my like minded friends as I know they will enjoy it as much as myself.You will miss out if you don't read this book!

If you want to understand a good bit about the daily life, the challenges of growing healthy vegetables, and the business and politics of organic farming this book is for you! Concise prose, infected with wisdom and humor this series of short essays is insightful and truly a pleasure to read.Beyond all that, what makes "A Long Road to a Tomato" worth reading is the unvarnished sharing of what this farmer thinks, feels and does as he grows his business and carves his niche in New York City's competitive Union Square Greenmarket. If we had such an honest telling of how our agribusiness-supermarket food came to be, we'd all be in line at greenmarkets growing throughout this country. A fascinating story, well worth your time and attention!If you are interested in "Growing Organic Vegetables and Herbs" get Keith's book by this name, a very readable encyclopedia of facts, procedures and wisdom on how to produce food without poisons, also sold by Amazon. Dan

I can't believe the other reviewers read the same book I did! Early on, the author relates his method for dealing with his dogs after they've killed several chickens. He beats them, ties them up for days without food, hits them with chicken carcasses, and ties dead chickens around their necks until the chickens rot away.And he tells this story as if it reflects well on his problem-solving ability.I know he was inexperienced at farming at the beginning of the story but you don't have to be especially bright to know that1. Chickens who remove all the grass in their enclosure will make every effort to get to where the grass is greener.2. Chickens are prey.3. Dogs -- especially unneutered males -- have a strong prey drive.4. Combine untrained, unneutered dogs with freely roaming chickens and it's bound to end in tears.The whole imbroglio is Stewart's fault but his response is to beat and torture the dogs into submission. (I was immensely relieved to learn that he has no children.)In his chapter on farm dogs, he prattles on ignorantly about how much they love being chained to a tree at night and their pleasure at living out of doors in all kinds of weather, while the reader grows increasingly depressed.One can only be grateful that he concentrates on vegetables.But no matter how great his veggies are, he's ignorant about and mean to the animals in his care. (Rather than my usual practice of giving old books to the library, I threw this book out. I wouldn't want to encourage anyone else to read it.)

Interesting read & extremely informative. We never appreciate the food put on our table and do not bat an eye to leave food on our plate. After reading this book it gave me a deap insight into what it takes to grow food.No leaving food on the plate post reading this book.