It's been an arduous few days in the field dealing with the heat of August in the month of May. Yet we've managed to get lots of work done. Kale and radicchio are planted, as well as many herbs. Irrigation has been lain, weeds have been pulled or decapitated, and much time spent watering the small plants that have recently found themselves in the too-hot earth. We've also been very busy organizing all the plant orders for the landscapers and retailers that use our material.

We are now a team of five. Nikki and I were joined by Krissy in March. This is her second year with us, and it shows! In May we welcomed Katie and Julia — they are both in college and will be with us until sometime in August. My friend Zoltan was our delivery driver for three weeks as well. For the next two weeks, we are generously being helped by Ethan and Skylar, two recent graduates of Berwick Academy who chose us for their senior project.

But if you want to volunteer — it's a big field with lots to do! We'll be planting and weeding like mad over the next few weeks, so anytime you want to lend a hand just email or give us a call and we'll accommodate you. We are here on weekends as well.

And thanks for all the kind words about our first cut of greens — we're so glad you enjoyed them!

today's harvest

So when you come to the farm today or tomorrow, there will be many stacks of crates in the cold-room at the back of the barn. Those of you who have a FULL share, may take two bags of any greens. Those of you with HALF shares may take one bag of greens.

Your choices are as follows:

spicy mesclun (for salads or braising, with the occasional wasabi-type nasal rush!)
mild mesclun (for salads or braising, no wasabi rush!)
braising mix (better for braising, but can be eaten raw)
arugula (for salads or braising)

If you choose to braise the greens, they will be done in seconds!

Again, this is not a typical pick-up. Normally, you will pick up on Tuesdays, and you will have a bag prepared for you.

There will be NO pick-up next week. The official start of CSA pick-ups will be June 8th, after 3pm! You can expect the shares to initially be small, but they will progressively grow larger! Thus far, our crops are looking fantastic!
Enjoy!

early harvest!

We have an early crop of greens that we need to harvest this week. We'll be harvesting on Monday, and will have them ready for pick-up by 3pm. They will be in the cold-room at the back of the barn. The cooler will remain on until Tuesday evening.
This is not the official start of the CSA pick-ups, nor will it be a typical harvest. The pick-up days after this one will be on Tuesdays as previously announced.
We'll have more specific information about what's on offer on Monday. We'll have arugula, spicy mesclun, mild mesclun, and braising mix. We're just not sure yet if you're all getting some of each, or if we'll be offering some sort of choice... more info to follow!
See you Monday!

Our first beds of cabbage and bok choi are planted. This week we'll plant napa cabbage, radicchio, and more onions.

Nikki and Lona received their bees this weekend and installed them in the hives yesterday evening. So far the bees look very healthy and happy!

We'll be harvesting mesclun and arugula this week for the farmer's markets in Exeter and Portsmouth. As usual, we will also have many ornamental plants for sale. Come visit!

Potato plants are pushing through the soil! And so are lots of weeds — earnest weeding has begun!

Also, today we planted three beds of head-lettuce, or about 1200 plants. Varieties included Waldmann's, Winter Density, Breen, Magenta, Olga, and Buttercrunch.

It is very likely we'll be harvesting mesclun greens for Saturday's Portsmouth market. If not, we'll have it next week for sure. We will have lovely scallions and a few sprigs of thyme for this weekend's market, as well as a large variety of ornamental plants.

growth

This is what we're seeing in the field right now: peas, fava beans, mesclun, turnips, radishes, carrots, spinach, arugula, garlic, scallions, and beets. The garlic is of course the tallest (one foot) as it was planted last fall; the peas and fava beans are one to three inches tall, whereas everything else is about an inch.

All the potatoes are planted, and we have now moved on to onions. The first onions to go in are scallions, mini purplettes, and pearl drops.

In the greenhouse, our seedlings are looking really strong. They're all growing a little slower than I expected, but now seem to be benefitting from the increased levels of organic fertilizer that I've been applying. We'll be planting head lettuce and radicchio soon!