New Years Resolution!!

I hope this year I will be able to keep our blog up to date. I had good intentions last year but things got busy quickly and it was neglected. We had a successful CSA and blueberry harvest in 2011.



This was our first berry harvest and it proved to be challenging at times. We raked berries during the day and processed at night. Like the CSA we hope this aspect of the farm will get easier as we go along. We purchased harvest bins and a winder. A conveyor belt was built to help with the sorting of the berries. As the berries are winded they fall down onto the belt where three people sort out any other debris and then they are put into boxes at the end of the belt.


 
















The large 10,000 sq greenhouse was completed in 2011. Installation of furnaces and duct work is still an ongoing process. We are thankful for the light snow so far this winter. When we dug this irrigation pond for the large greenhouse we didn't even think about it being great for skating. The girls are loving it!!

This root cellar was built in 2010.  It proved to be invaluable in 2011.  This is where we stored and packed our CSA bags and where we stored produce over night for the market.  The cellar is cool and humid for storing the produce until our customers come or we take it to market.  Our pick-up CSA customers know to go to the root cellar to get their weekly bag.  Having this space for working during the hot months makes a big difference in the quality of the produce and the life of the produce.  Before having the root cellar our customers would pick their CSA bag up from our porch.

2011 CSA

There are a few spots left for the upcoming 2011 CSA. These spots are for pick-up at the farm. We have increased the number of CSA spots for 2011 in hopes that it will be a great year.

It has been a busy spring already here on the farm. With everything that is going on and that needs to be done it is hard to balance farm life and family life.

Our smaller greenhouse has been sowed with mainly spring crops, trays are constantly being seeded, the pasture has been seeded and gardens have been ploughed. Our main battle of the spring has been trying to get the plastic on our new greenhouse. The wind made it hard to get very far with putting the plastic on.

The asparagus, garlic and herbs have all survived the winter. We were worried that the snow load of this winter was going to take our small greenhouse but it managed to hold it's own. Next year with the large greenhouse I am sure there will be constant worries about wind and snow load.
JG

The season starts..

Trays of seedlings ready to go out in the garden within the next couple of weeks. The greenhouse has been seeded with spring greens, green onions, carrots and lettuce mixes.

Our larger greenhouse has been slowly taking shape. The wind has been hard on us this spring.

Everyone had to help re-roll a roll of plastic after a gust of wind blew it up like a sail.

It's February Already!!

It's February already and that means planning for the 2011 is fully underway. Seed orders, greenhouse prep, labour decisions, CSA member lists, garden planning and even seeding has started.

Trays of green onions and bulbing onions have been seeded and placed in our newly built germination chamber. We have built the germination chamber to hold 20 seed trays. We are hoping to get higher and faster germination with our trays.

Some of the berries we offered our CSA customers in 2010.

Getting greens ready for a Wednesday CSA.

Neighbour brought 19 hives to the farm in June.

3rd Week of CSA!!!

We picked strawberries from Brown's U-pick farm for the bags this week.... they are red, juicy and tasty!!
Our garlic scapes were ready for the bags this week...... so curly and tasty too.
Derek and Sarah pulling weeds in the giant squash field. If all goes well, there will be plenty of squash to go around and then some. We've planted lots of varieties including Buttercup, Butternut, Delicata, Acorn, Spaghetti, and Baby Pam pie pumpkins!
We've been putting green onions in the bags every week so far. They look and taste good and grew well in both the greenhouse and outside.
Last Saturday was our first week at the Kingston Market. The table looked very good and full for the 3rd week of June. We brought the first carrots of the season and sold out of everything very quickly! We hope to be at the market every Saturday from now on.

Packing bags just in time for pick up and deliveries.
Greenhouse is looking good for the 3rd week of June.
Derek is experiencing the magic of the lettuce spinner!

Summer is coming!!!

CSA FULL for 2010
Our CSA is now full for 2010 but we will be selling at the Kingston Farmers' Market so you will still have an opportunity to taste our produce. We thank everyone who expressed interest in being a member of our vegetable delivery program this year. If you did not get a spot for the full 20 weeks this year we may still be in touch later this summer for a partial season share depending on this years production. We will also be adding more memberships to our CSA in 2011.

Digging the new cold cellar!

Jodi is giving Sarah a lesson on how to use the seeder....

Joel and Derek transplanting onions

Carrots, radish, turnips, onions...... yummy!


Andrew is teaching Sarah how to dock the lambs' tails

Joel and Derek have discovered the fun of burning the weeds!

Putting parsnips into storage for now...


We have been bottle feeding 2 of our lambs because they were rejected by their mother...... they are always hungry!

We experimented with low tunnels this spring as an addition to the greenhouse to try and get a headstart on the season!

Derek is busy weeding the new carrots...... it definitely paid off... they look awesome now a month later!