saturday winter market

in my previous post, i say 'let the growing season begin.' however, i am not sure it ever ended. yesterday was the once a month winter market at oakmont. what did we have to sell in the middle february?? well, besides lots of meat, bird seed, wheat berries and a few winter squash, we had greens, greens and more greens. we took with us to market about 8lbs of salad mix, 2lbs of spinach and 2lbs of arugula. (remember, greens don't weigh very much. there was a mountain, not hill, of salad mix on the kitchen table on friday.) we also had bags of swiss chard, mustard greens, vitamin greens and cilantro. the spinach and mustard have been growing outside all winter under 2 layers of clear plastic, the rest has been growing in the greenhouse. altogether, we took 70 some bags (of varying weights) of greens to market with us. we came back with...10 bags. that is pretty impressive in my book. so when i say 'let the growing season begin,' when did it end?? it is awesome to be growing greens in the winter because people want them. market was buzzing yesterday. there were 4 farmer vendors at market (plus a vendor with pies and one with candles). everyone had great products to sell. and there were people there who wanted our products. and it is the middle of february (and cold and windy yesterday). it was such a great sight to see so much activity at market and such a desire for what we took the time to grow, wash and package for them.

one of the sessions i went to at the growers conference was talking about growing greens in the winter. he said, if you can, grow them because people want them. and he was right. he also said that the good old days of farmers working their asses off from march through october is over. i would agree with that. yes, i have had a couple of chances to take time off work this winter, but when i am at work, i am working. we don't sit around wondering what to do next. we catch up from last year, prepare for this year and continue with growing (on a smaller scale) and winter markets.

let the growing season begin

exciting things happened on the farm wednesday and thursday of this week. wednesday i looked at the seed starting schedule and realized it was time to start planting seeds inside! a flat (72 plants) and a half were planted - 1 flat of broccoli raab and half a flat of artichokes. we set up the front room with tables, lights and heat mats. as i was starting the seeds, i realized we needed more supplies by next week to start more seeds. so i gathered together the planting supply list and off to the store we went. we got more flats for seed starting and the watering trays they sit in. we got 4" pots for some seed starting (cucumbers and summer squash grow quickly and need larger pots to start with) and for plant sales in may, and trays for the pots. we got seed starting 'soil' and a lot of it - 3.6 cubic feet per bale x 16 bales... we got rolls of black plastic for laying in the field and the drip tape to go along with that. (we lay black plastic in the field and plant on it to help with weed control. the black also helps warm up the soil in the spring and keeps it warm in the fall. drip tape is for irrigation on the crops planted on plastic. it is buried in the center of a plastic row as the plastic is being laid. a hose is hooked up to the drip tape whenever watering and nutrient delivery needs to occur. hard to explain without seeing it, but that should give you an idea.) we also got little white tags to label what plants are what and little plastic clips to help with a new form of trellising tomatoes we are going to try. that is all...from that one supply place, anyway...

we also stopped to get more seeds. we get some seeds locally to help with shipping costs. lots of corn, beans, potato and onion seeds come from a local store because adding up shipping on all that would be crazy. we ordered our potato seed and picked up corn and bean seed.

shopping is almost done. most seeds have been received, just a few things on backorder. potato seeds and onion plants come in once freezing in transport is no longer an issue. most supplies are stocked. the planting schedule is finished and the fields laid out (just need to go over things with the bosses).

despite the snow and ice out there, i feel like it is time to make things happen.

learning how to be a farmer

i spent 1-3 february at the mid-atlantic vegetable and fruit growers convention in hershey, pa. there were talks by professors, farmers and extension agents about what this year's trends will be, what varieties of produce to grow, how to market your farm and products, how to grow potatoes, corn, leafy greens, etc. most farmers simply state what works for them. professors present their research on soil quality, crop rotation, this variety does better here and why. lots of useful and interesting information. but the conference is definitely for the conventional farmer. the older, white, man who sprays using the latest chemicals. even the organic section i went to talked about organic sprays as the alternative, not simply no spray. another thing i realized was that the farm i work on, doesn't fall into any of the categories. we don't plant one or two crop and rotate them around, nor are we just gardeners. we plant 6 acres of a large variety of produce. we sell at 4 markets. even when they talked about small scale farming, they are talking about 20-50 acres. it was a little frustrating. they were probably giving good advice, some of which i can use, but what about farmers like us? there didn't seem to be many there, or at least the talks were not geared towards those farmers.

4-5 february was another conference in state college, pa - PASA (pennsylvania association for sustainable agriculture). this conference is definitely more along my lines of thinking. there is no talk of chemicals, only organic, sustainable practices. there are recycling bins everywhere, all ingredients for the meals are sourced locally and there are more talks not just about how to farm, but other issues relating to farming. topics like GMOs, the farm bill, the chesapeake bay watershed and tools designed for women are all discussed. there are a lot more women and a lot more young people. there are many talks on how to become a farmer and meet-ups for young farmers. there are lots of books for sale on small scale (actually small scale) livestock husbandry and produce, among other sustainable agriculture ideas. i went to one talk that was all about home gardens in sri lanka. not completely useful to my work on the farm, but very interesting nonetheless. other talks i went to were more technical, like how to trellis tomato plants and weed management (organically, of course). there was such a buzz in the hallways. people talking and sharing ideas, running into people they met last year. there was great energy and sense of community, something that was really not there that the growers convention.

all in all, a great week. i learned a lot, probably more than i know what to do with. i do, however, plan on putting some techniques to use this year on the farm, particularly the tomato trellising. it's too bad these conferences only happen once a year. however, with farming, there isn't a lot of time to just sit, listen and learn, there is more a desire (and need) to just go out there and do it.

supermarkets

i walked into one of the many supermarkets in the area this afternoon (this one happened to be a new 'giant' location). i was overwhelmed. it was huge. i stood at the entrance and didn't know what direction to walk in. i don't go into grocery stores very often. i get much of what i need from the farm and most everything else from local shops, including the local grocery store downtown, 'expressly local.' but this time, i just had such a feeling of being lost. so many choices. so much packaging. so many brands. why do we need all this?

as of 2000, the population in lancaster city was 55,000. there are currently 8 'giant' stores within a 10 mile radius of where i live in lancaster city. there are 11 weis stores. those are the 2 main grocery stores chains in the area. there are other sources of 'food' in the area - there is a save-a lot in the city and corner stores that sell processed food and drink. as of 2009, the population in edinburgh, scotland was 478,000. there are currently 4 sainsbury superstores, what we would consider a full size grocery store and 5 morrison's, another larger grocery store chain. that's it (as far as i remember and can find online). however, there are many small grocery stores throughout the city. sainsbury has what they call local stores and there is tesco and scotmid, as well as the ever forgotten useful corner store. there wasn't anything you couldn't find at the corner store at the end of my boyfriend's street. they don't just carry soda and chips, but produce, dairy, meat, fresh baked goods and packaged dry goods. the difference is the choices. you want canned peas with your carbonara? there you go. one brand. one size. take it or leave it. yes, it is nice to have choices sometimes, but do we really need so many and such large grocery stores? no wonder americans have gotten so removed from their food and where it comes from.

and just to make sure you caught that -

lancaster - population 55,000 with 19 full size grocery stores

edinburgh - population 478,000 with 9 full size grocery stores

another issue is the 'bigger is better' idea which also translates to more is better. last summer, my boyfriend and i went to a supermarket in lancaster in search of eggs. he said let's just get half a dozen, we don't need a whole dozen. ah. welcome to america. you buy a whole dozen whether you need it or not. got milk? half a gallon it is at the least. in europe you are welcome to buy a pint or quart of milk. their fridges wouldn't even fit a gallon of milk.

let's also not forget the lack of personal service is huge stores. no one knows who you are or what you normally buy. no sense of community will be found at supermarkets.

the greenhouse

not much to say except wow. the greenhouse greens are growing. they look and taste great. it is amazing what can be grown in a greenhouse with a little heat and water. this is a picture of the second batch of greens planted. many of the older flats of greens were cut on friday for saturday's winter market at eastern market. i hope everyone who bought some enjoyed them.

lambs!

friday 28 january 2011 was a very exciting day (at least for me) on the farm. the first lamb of the season was born. it was a single black girl. she was shaking (it's cold in january!), but her mom had already gotten her cleaned off by the time we found them in the field. we brought them over to a pen with a heat lamp. her navel (where her umbilical cord is/was) was dipped in iodine to prevent infection and it was made sure she was able to nurse. mom was given feed and molasses and water to give her a boost of energy to help recover from delivery. she was so tiny...i was thinking my cats are probably many times larger than her. both continue to do well.

as of right now, there have been six lambs born from five moms. there is never a dull moment, or season, on a farm. the lambs keep everyone busy. pens are made up for moms and babies. extra food is given to the moms. and there is constant checking to see if more lambs have arrived and that current lambs are healthy. there are 20 more moms expected to deliver in the coming weeks.

while i was intending to name all the lambs, i have not been on top of that. however, there were twin black boys born and i have named them...amos and andy.