Hey y’all! It’s your favorite farmer back in your inbox for the first time in far too long. Warm greetings from sunny Florida! We managed to get away while the getting away was still good to load up on some Vitamin D. Why, after a year of radio silence am I writing you from Florida on a random Wednesday morning? Good question – two reasons actually!
First – I wanted to make sure everyone heard about the winter market a week from today at the Grafton library (1-5pm). I’ll be there selling some of the goodies I grew on my year “off” (along with veggies from my friend’s farm), but also the man, the myth, the legend…Jeff Backer from Short Creek Farm (and founder of Potter Hill Farm) will be there with simply the best homegrown handmade sausages, salamis and other delicious items. I know he would love some pre-orders – you can do so here and select Grafton Winter Market on checkout.
Secondly-I wanted to announce I’m back. Back again. Grady’s back. Tell a friend (but don’t really). I have secured labor for the season, so I will be growing delicious organic vegetables and eggs this season, though on a much smaller scale than previously. I do hope to return to and exceed the farm’s previous output, but this year I’m committed to a lopsided work/life balance (life > work). Along with many other reasons (like housing instability, multiple required summer trips already lined up, sketchy labor coverage, etc), I thoroughly enjoyed having extra dad time last season, and I’m not willing to give that up while my girls are young enough to still like me. I apologize in advance that there will not be veggies for everyone at all points of this season, but I do hope to make it up in future years. Look for future emails for more details of course. CSA slots will be very limited and opened first to previous CSA members. The Monday pickups will be looser as usual and will accommodate more customers, and I will not be attending the Grafton summer market unfortunately.
As nice as the 80 degree weather down here is, I’m excited to bring the warmth back with me and get started on the growing season. It looks like Spring will finally arrive upon our return. Although I still have a long way to go before starting seeds (like actually ordering them and building a new place to start them), the promise of abundant fresh greens and other great things to share with you is thrilling again, and I can’t wait to get started!
Since growing vegetables on such a small scale is a labor of love and not at all profitable, I’d like to try something new and enlist your help this season to make the farm sustainable. And I don’t mean working on the farm necessarily – keep an eye out for requests for help, and please reach out if you know of a specific need you can fill on behalf of the farm. There are many!