ST. FRANCIS, Maine — There have been a few changes over the years on the Martin farm up along the Canadian border in northern Maine: Potato varieties have come and gone, new mechanized equipment has rolled in and annual acreage has shrunk.
But one thing has never changed. Come September, generations of the family and hired workers are in the fields picking those potatoes by hand.
“I don’t see us ever doing this any other way,” Richard “Pete” Martin said as he took a break from loading barrels of potatoes onto a slowly moving truck in the fields. “Over the years this has always worked for us.”
In addition to Richard Martin, three other brothers are responsible for the family-owned farm, with the eldest, Jason Martin, handling the day-to-day operations.
Like two of his brothers, Arnold and Lance, Richard works full-time for the Maine Forest Service and takes annual vacation time for the harvest.
Also in the fields this week was their sister Verona Martin and their mother, Irene Martin, who was behind the wheel of the farm truck as it rolled slowly along rows of filled barrels.
“I do this every year,” 85-year-old Irene Martin said from the cab of the truck. “I wouldn’t want to be any other place right now.”
On their knees or hunched over from a standing position, workers fill their baskets, which are then dumped into the barrels that, in turn, are collected onto a truck for transport to the storage buildings—commonly called “potato houses” in Aroostook County.
Years ago, when a majority of farms used “hand pickers,” it was not uncommon for a single picker to fill more than 100 barrels in a day.
Today, two dozen barrels is the average on the Martin farm.
“I pick 20 to 25 barrels a day,” Ian Dubois, 14, said as he pulled freshly dug potatoes into his basket. “I’ve been doing this for three years [and] it’s something to do and I’m earning money for a dirt bike.”
Hand crews are paid according to how many barrels they fill in a day. On the Martin farm, pickers are earning $1 per barrel.
The Martins planted 6 acres of potatoes this year and began digging them last week.
With sunny and dry conditions, Jason Martin estimated on Thursday the annual harvest would be done within two or three days.
Source: Bangor Daily News