Gratuitous Barley picture is from this time last year. Note the greening grass and distinct lack of snow.
They’ve been doing a series on WGBH radio this week called “What Winter Did.” Some intrepid local reporter has been going around talking to experts about the effects of the extremely cold and snowy winter that just passed. (Or has almost just passed – was not thrilled to find a good coating of snow and ice up on the hill this morning.) There were pieces on the impact of the cold and snow on wildlife, and fishermen, and farmers. It’s official, and has now been documented on public radio – this has been a tough winter, and we are weeks behind in the growing season.
Now, you can be forgiven if you’ve tuned out my sky-is-falling attitude about the weather, and if you’ve learned to just skip over the parts of the newsletter decrying the wet, heavy soil on our north-facing slope. Especially for spring-time newsletters. Every year, I just about give up hope that the soil will ever dry out enough that we might get out in the field and get to work. This year, it seems real. It’s mid-April, and it just barely feels like mid-March. Normally, at this time of year, I’m contemplating turning the cows out into a cover crop of 6-inch-high winter rye to give them their first taste of spring. This year, the rye hasn’t even begun it’s spring growth spurt. It looks like a stretch of good weather is heading our way (finally!), but it’s going to take a lot more than a few seasonable days to get things back on track. That said, as the sun gets stronger by the day, things can change in a hurry, and so we continue to hope for the best.
While the first harvest of spring greens may be a ways off yet, you can support the farm now by signing up for a Pastured Pork CSA Share. If you were considering signing up for a share, please send in your deposit sooner rather than later. Your deposits will really help the farm get through this frustratingly slow-to-start growing season.