Spring cleaning at the farm! Brad gets the second greenhouse ready for the spring transplants.

Farmer Scott planting a persimmon tree on the first day of spring.

Our shiny new spader! This is the workhorse that will prepare many of our fields and create a beautiful crumb layer of soil for planting.

Farm Update

Hello from the farm,

Is it spring yet? No, but it sure seems like it--the greenhouse is filling up with trays of seeds and seedlings, we're watching the soil for it to dry out, the new spader is adjusted, greased and ready for action, the trainees are pleased and smiling about the seeding and planting...everything is picking up speed to an inaudible but present cadence.

We seeded several thousand cabbages and broccoli and are getting into Cherokee and Tropicana lettuce today, as well as hot peppers, which need a long time to get established. Some of the hot pepper varieties are Tabasco peppers and Pepperoncini. The flower seeding will start with snapdragons, zinnias and herbs begin with basil and stevia.

If you haven't yet signed up for a share:

Visit us at http://goodwillathomefieldsfarm.csasignup.com/members We offer credit card payments for your convenience--we are charged a percentage for their use, so we prefer payments by check, but want you to have options, please do what works best for you. After you've signed yourself up, let others know that we are accepting members if you wish to help us. Thank you!

When should I pay? You can pay the deposit ($50) or up to the full amount. We request that the share be paid in full by the date of the first harvest


Looking forward to sustained warm weather and the harvest season ahead!

Your farmers

Yes we have shares available!

We are welcoming new shareholders (and returning ones who haven't gotten to it yet :-)

Go to: http://goodwillathomefieldsfarm.csasignup.com/members/

to sign up for fresh vegetables and fruits this year

Shares Available and What's New?

Hello from the farm,

It is spring-like today and very welcome indeed! We are looking forward to the ground drying out and we are gearing up for getting started with greenhouse seeding. The shop is wonderfully organized, and we are preparing the transplanter for planting. Packets and bags of seeds are abundant.

So What's New This Season?

We will be planting an additional fifty blueberry plants here on the Berry Hill, and are ready for rhubarb with 75 plants ordered. The rhubarb will take at least a season to come into fruition and the blueberries, probably three seasons. For the real long-term propositions, the pawpaw trees are now five years old and should start to bear lightly this season or next. The persimmons are now about three years old and still a few years away from bearing. We've got outstanding varieties of vegetables, strawberries and melons queued up for the season and lot of determination and grit to make it happen :-) Strawberries will be ripe sooner than you think!


Ready to sign up for a share?

We are opening it up to brand new shareholders this week, so to ensure that you get a share, please visit us at http://goodwillathomefieldsfarm.csasignup.com/members/returning . We offer credit card payments for your convenience--we are charged a percentage for their use, so we prefer payments by check, but want you to have options, please do what works best for you. After you've signed yourself up, let others know that we are accepting members if you wish to help us. Thank you!

When should I pay? You can pay the deposit ($50) or up to the full amount. We request that the share be paid in full by the date of the first harvest.

Enjoy the beautiful day,


Scott

Scott Breneman
Farm Manager

Notes from Your Farm ---Final Harvest

Hello from the farm!

Hard to believe, but six months of harvests are coming to a close this week. From the poring over of catalogs and spreadsheet calculations of winter, to the seeding of the farm in miniature in March, to the transplanting of all the young seedlings in April and May and then the intense weeding, harvesting and succession planting into the fall and almost winter, it's quite an adventure.

Reflecting back on the season...we grew a lot of food this year--five acres of vegetables. The ergonomic cart was a huge help with certain crops, especially cucumbers, as they weren't trampled by our feet as in the past, the crop lifting bar promises to lift a lot of weight for next season, meaning that we will be able to grow and harvest a lot more carrots in particular, but also garlic and potatoes, a core group of trainees did very well here at the farm and prospered greatly, Elizabeth, Law Reh, and Kim as staff were outstanding, each bringing great talent and thought to their roles, and an historic event was the purchase of the farm next door, knowing that we will have land for crops and rotations in the future.

Looking forward to next season, we anticipate a great farm team once again, the excitement of planting, expecting a great harvest, and then harvesting and eating. Carrots are clamored after by most of us, so look to see more of them, as well as an expansion of the blueberry patch. We will be cover cropping and starting to use some of the new farm land as well, so we won't be cramped for getting the things planted in time in the best rotation possible.



Self Harvest Starts Next Week: Keep the Good Food Coming

Mon-Sat. 9am-dusk as long as the season permit--possibly into the new year!
--maps of remaining crops will be posted here at the distribution table
--pruners and bags will be available.
--LIMITS--the amount you will use in a week/ or for a batch of pickles, kraut, etc.
--also: if abundant, take more abundantly, if scarce, take less as guideline


Time to Sign up for next season: as a current shareholder, you have first chance at getting a share for next season. To sign up, go tohttp://goodwillathomefieldsfarm.csasignup.com/members/returning. You'll be able to sign up and send a check, or pay partially or fully with a credit card online.



Thank You

Thank you to each one of the trainees who made this season bountiful and fun, to Elizabeth, for excellent work with the trainees, field, office and beyond, to Law Reh, for great work, morale, and perception, to Kim for harvest days skill and bringing the farm community together, and to you, as a shareholder for encouraging us, enjoying the vegetables, and being a part of the farm!

--Your Farmers