Can't Stop Spring

April 26, 2025

It’s been a long stretch since the last newsletter. Launched in 2016 as a monthly publication, it was my go-to vehicle for sharing all news, technical and personal, from the farm. Weather updates. Harvest updates. Staff updates. I never missed a month, and only once in a blue moon did it feel like a chore. When our contract expired in December, however, I lost the inspiration. The newsletter has always been about relaying the present with an eye towards the future, but with the future so uncertain, I didn’t know what to write. I also didn’t want to tempt fate. So I held back. Four months later, however, with spring kicking into high gear, the urge to spread the excitement is impossible to resist. So let’s go.

 

It's too bad strawberries don’t ripen in April, because the farm is absolutely stunning this time of year. The crab apple trees are blooming, the driveways are carpeted with chartreuse tree droppings, and the hillside overlooking New Pond Field looks like a Hudson River School painting. Even though the first harvests are still 2-3 weeks away, April is one of the best months to soak in the farm.

 

The crew, meanwhile, has been in a planting frenzy. Potatoes, spinach, lettuce, and strawberries went in this week. Onions—all 28,000 of them—will go in next week. Conditions, though, have been dry. A dry fall, followed by a dry winter, depleted the ground water reserves, and we irrigated this week to ensure the transplants get off to a good start. Things could turn wet in an instant—we’ve come to expect the unexpected—but for now, we’re happy to have both irrigation and the deer fence.

 

Our strawberry routine, in case you wondered, goes like this:

• January: order 700+ plants from Nourse Farms in MA

• April: plant

• May–September: irrigate & cultivate as needed

• June: remove flowers

• September: thin crowded plants

• April: mulch pathways with woodchips

• May/June: harvest

• July: move chickens in for “cleanup”

 

A commercial grower or home gardener can get multiple seasons from a single strawberry planting, but production declines after the first year. Some growers will “renovate” their plants in the fall to boost productivity, but the process is labor-intensive. We tried it for several years, but the results were underwhelming, which prompted the switch to an annual system.

Also notable is the fact that we remove our flowers in the first year. We could get a modest crop just weeks after planting, but we’d rather focus on root development, which shifts energy toward a bumper crop in the second year. This works well for our CSA model. When you promise 200+ families pick-your-own strawberries in June, you better deliver. 

We’re launching into the 2025 season with a new crew. Thomas Lennon joined us two weeks ago and got the usual dose of springtime diversity. Mulching one day, pea trellis installation the next, followed by days of planting, weeding, and cultivating. The true test will come in July, when we’re harvesting zucchini for hours on end. We’re counting on Thomas’ 2-year tenure at a commercial farm in Washington to prepare him for the repetitive work ahead. Fortunately, he has a great attitude—when it’s 95 degrees and humid, that will come in handy. Jackie and Nancy are both back in the saddle, and we anticipate additional newcomers joining the crew this summer. Introductions to follow.

 

The weekly Saturday farm stand has resumed, and it’s been great welcoming people back. The last of the 2024 storage crops (cabbage and carrots) are making their grand finale, and the first of the 2025 field crops (rhubarb and asparagus) are making their grand debut. Just as exciting are all the plants ready for the home gardeners. We've had kale, chard, spinach, lettuce, peas, beets, and onions so far, and with each week, more varieties will join the party. By May 9, we’ll be fully stocked with tomatoes, peppers, cukes, and more.

 

So there concludes the first newsletter in a while. I don’t know if I’ll resume the monthly schedule, but if the inspiration hits me, I will certainly take up the pen. With our contract still up in the air, our kids still needing attention, and Dan and I still burning the candle at both ends, we’ll take the slack wherever we can find it. But some things can’t be contained. And if the farm has something beautiful to share, I’ll be the first to share it.

 

Thanks for reading,

Caroline