Last week was such a smorgasbord of amazingness that it is hard to sum it up in an introductory paragraph so just enjoy the pictures and captions!
Did I mention the farm has a beautiful waterfront view complete with a lovely pair of ducks.
Another view of our lovely pond. Want to take bets with how
long the water will keep us from planting in this field?!
Each week, we take a tour of the farm so our Farm Manager Jeff can tell us things to look for in crops (flea beetle damage), how to tell if a crop is ready to be basket weeded, and so we are all on the same page with the happenings of all of our hard work on the farm!
Nicole sitting in the cover crop of rye and vetch. The tall green grass just
makes me want to take a nap right there in the middle of the field.
Knee high cover crop! Yeah baby!
Another flooded field where we had planted brassicas. Heart break for a farmer
because all of the money, work, and food is lost when fields get this flooded.
We needed rain the previous week but 7 inches was more than we could handle.
Taylor stuck in the mud! Julie held on to him and I held on to Julie to pull him out!
Checking on the lettuce that we protect with row cover. Deer, groundhogs, and rabbits would love to eat this crop right up so we take extra precaution against wandering nibblers.
Throughout the season, we will go on farm tours to learn how other farms farm! Last Tuesday, we traveled about an hour northwest to Manoff Market Gardens near New Hope, PA. This farm is mostly an orchard, specializing in peaches. They also produce a lovely abundance of apples, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, eggs, tomatoes, and peppers. I hope to make it up there in a few weeks once the fruits are ready to be picked!
Front view of me weeding a bed of peas with shovels hooked on to the center of my tractor. The shovels dig in between the rows of peas to kill the weeds and then we hand weed between the pea plants so ensure we get as many weeds out of the bed as possible! A large amount of farming chemical-free is spent weeding. Jeff says if you weed a crop really well three times, then you've won. We'll see how these peas think of the mentality! Hopefully, they agree.
Back view of me weeding the peas. Behind my tractor is an implement to weed the tire treads. Even though the soil is heavily compacted in the tire treads, weeds still find a way to grow there!
Thursday forecasts were calling for some rains and there was still a lot of tractor work that needed to be done so Jeff bribed us to stay and work late in exchange for some food! Who can say no to that?! Certainly not hungry farmers who also just happen to love farming! Since I do not eat cheese (lactose intolerant), one of the pies was a tomato pie which I spiced up with some french fries. I try not to eat fried foods but when in Rome, right? (Or when working late on the farm and it's the only food available and you're a starving farmer!)
This picture is taken inside of our field house (which is like a greenhouse but not heated). We put stakes in between every third plant and wrap twine on either side in order to train the tomato plants to grow up right. The box of twine has to slits in the back so you can attach it on your belt. Hands free box of twine! Does this remind anyone of a very funny SNL song?!
Four rows of tomatoes.
Wee little plants that we will add a row of twine to each week as they
grow up to produce us lots of amazing tomatoes!
The picture is a bit blurry but how beautiful are these seeds for Plum Regal tomatoes?!
Found a duck egg in the pea fields! Perhaps from the
Mallards who have taken up residency in our flooded field/pond.
Friday's crew! This photo was taken after four hours of weeding and we are all still smiling!
Before taking this picture Jeff said to us "Look sad."
What do farmers do on Friday after work? Why balance stakes on their chins of course!
Matt working on our new (to us) cooler because he is amazing. Yahoo!
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