MOTHER EARTH

Woman farmers, apple cider donuts

McDonough “Mac” Scanlon can fix a tractor, sharpen clippers, and manage accounting. Oh, and she also grows winter greens, tomatoes, and amazing cucumbers—both classic varieties and exotic ones like round lemon cucumbers and long greenish-white Itachi cucumbers—a specialty veggie that was requested by a chef who buys wholesale from her.

Turns out farming is a lot more than weeding and planting. As proprietor of High Road Farm in Newbury, Scanlon has had to learn everything from repairing a fan belt to QuickBooks, relying on resources as varied as The Carrot Project