Sunday Morning at the farm.  I’m sure it’s pretty glorious.  I live a little bit away from the farm (20-25 minutes), so I am rarely there on Sunday morn.  It’s my morning off.  I am going there later to water the onion flats and switch some watering in the main field.

Next year it looks like I’ll be farming on a 10 acre piece of land right down the road from where I live.  I will continue to farm at Wildgrace (Glenn and Muffy’s) next year as well.  I want to put in about 50 peach trees there as a test - I’ll see how well they do during a long, hot, dry season (it has been in the 90’s since May).  I’m planting all the garlic, shallots and onions and leeks there this fall, and hope to do early peas, tomatoes and squash there in the Spring.

So, my farm career is evolving.  This year has been encouraging and lets me know that farming can be an economically viable labor.  Small  Farming makes me heavily dependent on top production, diversification, and marketing - especially direct marketing through the CSA and farmers’ markets.  That is the difference between solvency and sunk - direct marketing.  Wholesale means no money for me.  I would need another job to augment farming - unless it were done on vast acreage, probably mono-cropping - but that isn’t the same thing anymore and not what I want to do.

I started farming because I had a thirst for it.  I couldn’t imagine another job for me.  I still feel that way, however I have switched my focus to a service-orientation as well.  I want to provide good, fresh, clean veggies for my community members, friends.  I guess that’s what I’ll have to do to enjoy this job to the fullest.

Now we have completed week nine of the CSA.  This week we offered: tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, squash, carrots, lettuce mix, turnips, garlic, sweet corn!, kale and bulbing fennel. It was a good week, and next week is looking great also, with potatoes and leeks on the menu.  It seems a little out of season to have potatoes and leeks, because I love potato-leek soup a lot, but, hey, those will be ready. Out at the farm, the tomatoes are really productive, yet could be looking better. … Read the rest of this article »

Just wanted to say hi.  The farmers’ market went well today.  We keep selling out of food, so that is a good thing.  I am so happy that our Saturday Morning Market is so well attended.  The people are great - the other growers, shoppers - they are all happy to be a part of the market.  And so are we. I think the big hit this week was a toss up: the spring mix, or the lettuce mix.  The spring mix has mixed leafy-brassicas - tat soi, arugula, kale, big mustards, mizuna.  The lettuce is… Read the rest of this article »

We are now entering week four (of 24) for the CSA.  Today we had our drop-off/pick-up for our 10 monday members.  We have 23 members in all - 10 on Monday and 13 on Wednesday.  We are going to add members when the summer stuff really picks up, but for now, that is our max. Let’s see what was in the boxes: 1 lb Sugar Snap/Snow Peas Zucchini/Yellow Crookneck Summer Squash Romaine and Black-Seeded Simpson Lettuce Heads Broccoli Basil Parsley Radishes Garlic Scapes Lacinato Kale Rainbow Chard… Read the rest of this article »