Presenter / Hosting Farm: Steve’s journey has been guided by a curiosity, from the education in Botany & Entomology with a focus on plant and insect interactions in perennial crop systems and organic farming. Over the past 30 years, Hawk Meadow Farm quietly unfolded in the background while Steve and his wife, Anne, focused on their art business, Acorn Designs. Steve was first introduced to the mighty Shiitake in the 80s as part of the macrobiotic diet. In 2006, there was a huge wind shear event that took down hundreds of trees in their woodlands. Many of them were oaks - the preferred substrate tree for shiitake. They inoculated hundreds of logs, and when mushrooms started to come in, they would take their harvest to the Ithaca Farmers Market. A lifelong collaboration with the woods and landscape gave birth to natural building projects using the wood, stone, and clay found right on the property - one such building is now the center of operations for tincture making and educational classes. When the farm was purchased in the 1980’s the 20 acres of corn fields were discontinued, and with Black Locust in the hedgerows, the now vacant fields were quickly grown-in by Black Locust, which preferred our well-drained glacial outwash soils. The woods are so much more than the resources that can be found there; it is a complex ecosystem. The results of this slow and steady collaboration have blessed us with all the abundance that the forest can offer. Over the years, this has led to many opportunities for different agricultural enterprises.