Star Light Gardens

Even when you really need to get away, its hard not to miss your home and few things beat that special feeling upon return. Add on top of this loving what you do and the Good Food People we do it for and with and you can imagine how hard it is to get away. The good news however is we’re back. Back in town, on the farm, at the markets and online for all you nutritional and conversational needs. We’d be lying if we didn’t say we miss it, working the farm, the markets seeing and reconnecting with all of you. It’s good to be back so let’s get to it.

Surely you must be asking yourselves what do farmers do on Thanksgiving? Play, work, sleep, do they get away to some exotic warm location even if just for a day or two? Well maybe at some point, but this year that’s not the case. We hopped in the old reliable Honda outfitted with new tires, just a week from today. Pointed North with only the our dreams and a compass to guide us, we were joined by two 2 farm dogs(more on this later) and headed to no other place but the beautiful NEK. That’s the majestic North East Kingdom of Vermont bordering Quebec. What would send 2 four season farmers all that way besides the beauty of this region itself? The answer simply enough is family. Jen’s brother Charles has been a bit of a warden of the woods there for years doing various levels of trail work and managing crews(this brief description doesn’t do the work justice) in parks throughout the Northeast. It’s the sort of work that goes unappreciated we suppose, but the next time you’re hiking in a state or national park take a moment to appreciate the skill and effort that goes into making all those trails passable and in a ecological and responsible way. It’s truly commendable and hard work, that would leave even farmers like ourselves asking when is the next break. This work is facilitated by a great organization North Woods Stewardship Center, which not only operates in Vermont but Massachusetts and Connecticut too.

With some trusty farm sitters watching not only both farm properties but, 5 cats 7 sheep and some chickens too, we were able to spend 3 great days in this breath taking landscape and in the company of family. The plan was a few relaxing days culminated by an early Wednesday Thanksgiving celebration with Jen’s parents and brother. In addition to this we were able to head even further North to spend an afternoon with Joel’s uncle, aunt and cousin, some NEK locals it’s always good to see. This would allow us all to celebrate together and return home Thursday allowing for our farm sitters to get to their celebrations and have another Thanksgiving with Joel’s folks that night. Big shout out to Sam and Jess for watching the place while we were away. It’s the first time in years we’ve been able to do anything longer than an overnight trip and we needed it.

Now let’s get to some actual farm business itself. First and foremost is the newest addition to the SLG crew. She’s completed her initial 2 farm dog training/trial period and has passed with flying colors. In what could be described only as fate, we adopted Annie our sweet little pup about a month ago. It seems as destined as the adoption of Sid the OG 2 farm dog. The two quickly have become best friends and partners in crime(which is mostly the destruction of dog toys). Two 2 farm dogs may sound like a lot in a house with 5 cats, but seeing a 75 pound pup play so gently with his 13 pound sister and the only thought that comes to mind is this is perfect. Whether or not you want to hear more about them, fair warning, catch us in conversation and the two will definitely come up.

Now let’s actually talk some farm news, as in markets and veg and such(not dogs). Like we said we are glad to be back with 3 more markets of the season and four more pick up weeks until we take an end of year break. 12/16 is the final Saturday market of the season and that will be the last Saturday pick up as well. The week of 12/17 there will be only one pick up day on Wednesday 12/20. To recap the next 3 weeks its business as usual with 3 pick up days and the Saturday market. The following week Wednesday 12/20 will be the last pickup day of the season, ordering will resume the first week of January. One last note to wrap up official business. Due to a glitch with square the system has not been reliably sending out receipts for transactions processed online. If you have a question as to your CSA balance please reach out.

Have a great week

Give or get a great gift for a great cause

This morning and the last we really got our first taste of a freeze, temps this morning were reading 23 degrees despite the tease of a much warmer 26. We’ve given all the outside plantings two or three layers of row cover and wished them luck. They’ve had the proper temps to harden off some, yet it’s nearly impossible to not have some loss and damage, just par for the course. The fun part will be uncovering them today long enough to breath and experience the warmth of the sun, then covering them back up tonight with only one layer seeing as the temps aren’t forecast to be as low.

The first round of overwintered carrots were seeded outside this past week with the plan being to plant the inside ones today(assuming we can get the water running). Once the OW carrot planting is done for the season, believe it or not only a few main tasks lay ahead of us to close out the season. First and foremost on our minds and list(especially if you ask Jen) is getting garlic in and bulbs both in and out of the ground. With around 85lbs of garlic already in the planted we are almost a third of the way to completing the Great Garlic Planting of 2023. Now let’s turn the conversation to bulbs. Everyone knows few things bring hope like early Spring flowers near the end of months journeying through the cold and dark. With this in mind, we’ll be digging up the tulip bulbs from the previous two years, replacing them with freshly ordered ones. The older ones we still will replant outside, not wanting one bulb or flower as it may be going to waste. Also being dug up but not planted until the following spring are the Dalias. This year Jen got an early start on these precious blooms by germinating them from seed. But rumor has it the best ones come from the bulbs of previous years, so you can bet we will be doing both.

Lastly only in order and not in importance is soil protection. We have all but past the opportunity for seeding cover crop for the year, so we will turn to repurposed greenhouse plastic and landscape fabric. Areas that are currently ready will be semi prepped and dressed with compost to feed the microorganisms over the winter. Then a layer of plastic followed by landscape fabric will be laid down to protect from the fierceness of Winter’s erosion. Similarly areas still in crop, once harvested will receive this treatment as we attempt to have as much soil covered and protected for the season ahead.

Speaking of the season ahead we are really looking at the final stretch with only 5 total market days left in 2023(not that we’re counting). This Friday will be the last Madison Market of the season. We have to thank not only all the great vendors and of course customers who came out every week, but the market staff as well. All intricate pieces to the puzzle and you guessed it we couldn’t do it without you. In a bit of a break from routine and in an attempt to take a few days off next week we will not be doing on farm pick up. That means this coming Saturday either at the market or on farm pick up will be your last chance to purchase from us before the holiday week, please plan accordingly. We’ve added a few cool weather staples to the website this week, we hope you get the chance to enjoy them with your friends and family.

Have a great week

If the fact that darkness will have set in by 5 this evening isn’t enough of an indication than the frosty morning temps should be. Here we go again welcoming another month. This time of year means many things to many people but to us farmers a few things come to mind. First off is a slight panic “oh no a frost is coming”, followed by the realization that this happens every year and things will survive. Then a touch more panic “there is alot of stuff we need to get covered and fast”, leading into “there not enough light in one day to get it all done”. This last bit is important because sure there isn’t enough time, but that means more down time each day for the farmers. Which by this point in the season is warmly welcomed no matter how much is left on our to do list.

Circling back to that can’t get it all done in a day feeling. That is where we found ourselves last Tuesday with the following evenings low reaching 28-29. The majority of our outside plantings had received at least one layer of row cover and Tuesday’s lows teased the perfect hardening off temps around 30-33. Jen and Sam had worked tirelessly all morning and we were confident in our outside preparation, so we turned to getting row cover in place for the high tunnels. A simple enough task, sure we do have around 15 of them these days but we had brand new rolls of row-cover. The one thing we didn’t exactly factor in was moving those rolls around weighing about 200lbs each. Nothing impossible mind you, we had everything nicely covered by mid Wednesday. Just a good reminder of what goes into preparation for and winter growing itself. Not to mention taking the total weight of something into consideration when ordering supplies (note to self 22×1000 is the limit for row cover).

With mostly all the high tunnels planted and ready ready for the months ahead and the outer fields either in last of the season plantings or cover of some form. What else is there for the restless farmers of SLG to do? Worry not we aren’t out of the fields yet. Two main tasks loom on the horizon for the coming weeks. First and foremost is the seeding of our overwintered carrots. We are less than a week away from that magic time of year and Joel sits eagerly with 100k carrot seeds by his side, obsessively watching the weather in an attempt to choose just the right day. Equally as important yet not quite so time sensitive is the planting of the Love Garlic. The cool weather and darker days has not stifled our ambition concerning garlic as we ambitiously plan to plant 300lbs this year around 100lbs more than the previous. This year 200lbs is our own saved seed with the remaining 100lbs coming from our trusted friends at Fort Hill Farm in western Connecticut. Garlic continues to be one of our most in demand crops, our soil seems to love it and yes we Love it too.

Speaking of Love and being in Demand, as the market seasons wind down we can’t help but say it again to all you Good Food People out there. Thanks for supporting us and allowing us to fill your bellies and homes with our veggies, flowers and Love. We are at the point in the season with only 5 more market weekends on the schedule. 2 more markets left for the Madison season this Friday the 10th and the 17th. In addition too this the last 2 markets will run an hour shorter from 3pm-5pm. That makes 5 more Saturday markets in New Haven 11/11, 11/18, 12/2, 12/9 and 12/16. With the winter market returning early January stay tuned for details. This year we will not be having a pick up day Thanksgiving week so plan accordingly.

Have a great week

Certain common elements exist within every farming season. Constants that don’t exactly change but rather take a different shapes. The familiar, the predictable, the certain. Of course each and every season also has it’s own unique elements, unpredictable things that can be largely out of your control but exist nonetheless. Who is going to join the farm crew and how they will all mesh together is just one of those things. We are still pretty new to this being bosses to anyone but ourselves game, but each year putting together a main season crew has been challenging in it own way . This year arguably has been one of our best crews yet. You all have seen the results of this in both the abundance and beauty of the food we have had the privilege of growing this year. Without the help of Ben, Lindsay, Sam and Zoe this year it wouldn’t have been possible so a huge Thank You and shout out to them.

Yesterday afternoon we took the opportunity to enjoy their company and conversation without harvest lists and weeding and also meet or see again their better halves. In a spectacular farm fashion Jen whipped up a menu that would make some of our chef customers jealous. And of course Joel worked tirelessly out on the deck grilling up what is becoming a SLG employee dinner tradition, Brats from Four Mile River Farm. The drinks flowed, plates were cleared refilled and cleared again, there were games and even costumes to fit in with the season. Before we knew it we were hugging and saying goodbye, left only with the memories of a joyous and beautiful season and of course the friendships that were forged along the way.

Of course now the question is raised what is next for SLG this season and as many of you know we don’t stop, just kind of slow down. With that being said the lack of help on the farm now combined with the approaching cold will be keeping our hands full this week. Luckily we are not without any help as Sam is again staying on with us through the winter to return for his 3rd season in 2024(where does the time go). So the name of the game tomorrow is row cover, row cover, row cover and of course a lot of sand bags. Usually without fail the first major days of putting cover in place are extra windy adding to the challenge. Perhaps our neighbors will see all the white fabric blowing around and thinking they are ghost will say, “wow they really have the Halloween Spirit over there”. Or maybe luck and weather will be on our side , either way three farmers moving row cover is far superior than one or two.

With the cooler weather and Holiday season approaching we want to once again highlight all of the great Star Light Gardens swag that is available through the website. We have your upper half covered from tank tops to hooded sweatshirts, featuring art work from Star Light Gardens original sign created by artist and Founder Ty Zemelsky. If you are unfamiliar with the art work believe us when we say it is truly breath taking. Stop by the market and see it first hand on one of the shirts or our current market sign which is a digital reproduction of more original SLG art work she created. Official SLG Merch

Have a great week

Its seems like almost every week we find ourselves saying well that month went fast. Now here we are starring straight at the end of the year’s scariest month. Even more significant is the fact that this is the last main season week with the full crew. You heard it right, we’ve basically shifted from saying wow that month went fast to wow that season went fast. What a season it has been with all it’s ebbs and flows, full of challenges and uncertainty. One thing is for certain that is it would not have been the great season it has been without such a solid crew. All of their hard work is not only appreciated by us but also by all of you. This coming Sunday when we celebrate and close out the 2023 season together we will make sure to remind them of just that.

Meanwhile in and around the farm, weekdays have been holding such beauty yet the latter half not so much. Perhaps the most common phrase uttered at the market besides tales of making soups was “this had been the 7th Saturday in a row with rain”. It has been a bit of a downer but support is always there and each quick conversation makes working on a rainy day easy. Needless to say everyone is holding out hope that the Saturday rainathon is done. We don’t have to say it again but we will. To all of you the good food people who support us and what we do in both the good times and the bad, weather or otherwise. Without all of you and your support farms like us could not do it, Thank You so much.

Meanwhile in more Global news, David’s attempt to evade the rain by visiting Scotland have well how can we say, backfired. If you haven’t heard about the weather over there certainly David will be filling everyone in upon his return. They say a picture says a thousand words, well just ask Jen to share with you the blustery video David sent us, it speaks around 100k words. Even a quick glance at this past weeks picture conveys the depth of hard wok and dedication the SLG crew has been putting in, shout out to them once again.

Now the story behind this photo is more entertaining. You could say Joel climbed nearly to the top of one the tallest trees on the property and out onto a limb to make this shot happen. However, he had nothing to do with the actual taking of the photo. In addition to being a farmer here at Star Light, Sam is also a photographer and amateur drone pilot. Perhaps like Icarus flying too close to the sun. On Thursday Sam was focused on the best possible shot not realizing the pines looming in the background. In nearly an instant the drone disappeared into a sea of green and the search was on. Luckily these pine trees are nearly like ladders with all their branches and climbing them is quite fun. Unluckily upon climbing two trees and retrieving the drone Joel realized there were two vines growing on those pines. One of which was in fact poison ivy. Also luckily the local pharmacy carries that poison ivy removing scrub and barely any irritation has occurred. Once retrieved the drone needed some minor maintenance and calibration before it was off flying again. This great shot of the farm is just one of the images captured by Sam on this test flight. Stay tuned for the exclusive releases of photo and video to come.

Have a great week

With the last Chester Sunday market in the books, there not much left to do but look back and reminisce. Back to the first market that we prepared for but actually was happening the following week. To the actual first market a week later when just two nights before we discovered the compressor on our walk in cooler was done for. The subsequent weeks that followed trying to balance the workflow of a new market with the struggles of sub par refrigeration. All the while struggling to find the answers to the tractor that just wouldn’t start. But there is so much more than just those struggles. There are the great to vendors turned friends we have had the pleasure of working with and getting to know. Everyone at the shops and restaurants who were so nice and hospitable. And of course all the Good Food People both new and old that we were overjoyed to share our food and conversations with. All and all it was a really good market season in the quaint little town of Chester, with any luck there will be some room for us in the market next year.

Though markets maybe ending all around the state for a four season farm like ourselves, instead of closing down we are switching gears. Though it’s hard to let go of all the heat loving crops we wait so long to have. For all but the latest planting of tomatoes and the turmeric time is just about up. The nursery is filled with transplants that are ready to go in as soon as their summer veggie friends are removed. Mostly a variety of Chinese cabbages, choys and spinach as well as lettuces that have been diligently seeded each and every week of the past month and a half. Besides transplanting there is still a lot of direct seeding that will be taking place. In fact a decent amount of it is scheduled to take place today. Now is just about it for our chance to plant something we hope to have in this season but there is also the challenge of not planting too much all at once. Although we want a steady supply of greens all winter long if we plant too much too early there will be large luxurious plantings that can be damaged by the extreme lows of the winter months. The key will be timing and little bit of luck. Hopefully by spacing out the final plantings of fall over the next few weeks all of our lovely brassica friends will be arriving at the winter markets in pristine condition.

Stepping from inside the high tunnels to out in the fields there is quite a different feel and not just the one created with the HT micro climate. Hoops and row cover are in place to create their own micro climate, hopefully speeding up the growth slowed by September’s rains. The beds that are done for the year and won’t receive cover crop for are being prepped and covered for protection. We probably have more areas in cover crop this year than in the past, with nearly every area we intend to cover crop in Durham done. That leaves a few spots in Middlefield to receive winter rye and maybe vetch so long as it is safe vegetation for the sheep to graze.

With nearly all the cover cropping done all eyes look towards the next critical plantings that will take place in 2023, the over wintered carrots and garlic. Just over a month off now on the carrot planting it’s time to call up one of our reliable seed suppliers for an order of 100k carrot seeds. As far as garlic goes we have some good and bad news. Let’s start with the bad; are 99% out of garlic available for sale. The Good news is we have 300 lbs stashed away to ambitiously plant for the coming season. There is a chance when we complete the 2023 Great Garlic Planting that more will be available, but there is no guarantee.

Last week, in what felt like divine timing, we stumbled upon this piece by Ty. With David’s permission we wanted to share it with all you good food people out there. Take care & gather peace

Have a Great Week!

The Chill in the air this morning and the last, leaves little to be questioned when asking has Fall really arrived. We more than likely would be out of step to suggest there aren’t a few 80-90 degree days left in 2023. Regardless between the daily low temps and dwindling light there’s no getting around it. Around the farm that means throwing on our hats and having extra layers at hand for both the early and late day cold. Hoops for low tunnels will be popping up all over the farm and along with them weighted bags and the row cover itself. We’ll have to go through the piles of repurposed greenhouse plastic which will make this winter’s low tunnels, trying to have them at the ready for our future time savings.

Had you stopped by in Durham last Tuesday around 11 or so there might be one question on your mind. “Where are all the farmer’s and who hired the professional green house covering company? ” Upon further inspection however, you would find that in fact those are the farmers there, just covering one of the high tunnels in quite a profession fashion. With the benefit of 6 farmers who know how to work together, the picturesque perfect day to do it and a little bit of experience, we were done in well under an hour. Not a rip in the plastic, even and tight, now all that remains is for Joel to finish the other updates to this tunnel.

As the hours of daylight shorten so does our to do list for the main 2023 season. Recovering the high tunnel was one and another was planting overwintered onions. Last years OW onions were quite a disappoint considering how much we planted mainly due to one fact. An newer to this area bug the Allium Leaf Miner, who we are learning(often the hard way) more about each season. Evidence of our learning is certainly reflected in this year’s main season onion crop. By covering the onion transplants early in the spring until the heat of summer we were able to avoid the production shrinking damage from the leaf miners. Our Strategy for the fall OW planting is quite similar with one additional measure a location change. So it was off to SLGNW Wednesday and Friday for a few of the crew. There the planting of 1000 or so row feet of onions in the location of our first summer squash planting of 2023 was just one of the objectives accomplished. Currently covered with a heavier row cover in the coming weeks we will be adding more hoops and plastic for the low tunnels, hoping for a bumper crop for the early 2024 season.

It is really exciting to be starting production in the outside field space in Middlefield. We hope to tarp and cover crop these areas in the coming year also using our animal friends the chicken and sheep in the process. We’ve taken the first step in pasturing the sheep in another area of the outside space right by the 200 ft high tunnel we call the Jungle. This year was our first production year for half of this tunnel space. The remaining 100 ft we have cover cropped with peas oats and radish to be some winter fodder for the animals. Between the animals and the cover crop this neglected soil should be in much better condition for the coming years. This cover cropping and rotational grazing system is something we hope to use not only to recoup the land here in Middlefield. We also strive to make this a long term closed loop fertility system.

Have a great week

We never claim to be exactly accurate on everything but occasionally even when we are wrong on a few points we are still right on point. Here specifically we refer to the Chester Farmer’s Market’s starting and ending dates. We were completely right about the number of Chester Farmer’s Markets in total. If you can recall back to our early June writing in which we jumped the gun, thinking the Chester Sunday Market started a week earlier than it actually did. Well we are staying consistent in our thinking when we announced the Chester Sunday Market ending 10/8 a week earlier than it actually does Sunday 10/15. And yes we are sounding like a broken record yet again saying there are only two more weeks of the Chester Sunday Market, Sunday 10/15 is in fact the last Chester Sunday Market.

So let’s keep the sounding like a broken record theme going and once again thank all of you the Good Food People for coming out to the markets Friday and Saturday. It’s tough getting ready for and attending markets in the wet weather but it is well worth it to see and hear from all the folks who rely on and appreciate the markets for being a source of local healthy food. Not to mention hopefully seeing Joel work in the rain for a change was in itself worth it. A few market dates that we’d be willing to bet the farm on are Friday 11/17 the last Madison Market and Saturday 12/16 the last New Haven Market. On farm pick up will continue up to the week of 12/16 returning early January as well as the New Haven winter market.

More relevant on farm news includes sweet potato and ginger success, 7 sheep’s first move into Middlefield field blocks, recovering one of the high tunnels in Durham and our friends the turkeys making trouble. As teased last week we dug our first ginger and sweet potatoes of 2023 to see how they were. We are pleased to report it took 5 farmers and several implements to dig out our modest planting of Purple Splendor sweet potatoes. Large and more or less without blemish these beauties are curing as we speak and will be showing up online and at market in a few weeks. Making an appearance at the markets this past weekend and newly available this week online is fresh ginger. An adjustment on the early season sprouting technique combined with a bit of cultivation has helped us find redemption from last year’s disappointment and we are hoping similar success with the turmeric, stay tuned.

Tomorrow looks to be ideal weather for recovering a high tunnel and Tuesday is an all hands on deck farm day, so with any luck we will be able to quickly complete the task. Last summer we planted two rounds of cover crop in this high tunnel, let the chickens eliminate the cover, planted a portion of last years seed garlic, then cut and removed the more than 13 year old plastic. The idea being proactively recovering a high tunnel while gaining the benefits of cover crop, rotation and rain(a lot of rain).On the animal front upon completion of some fencing this morning, the flock will be moving to some fresh pasture near the cover cropped portion of the Jungle, which will hopefully be their Winter oasis. Peas, oats and tillage radish planted a few weeks prior is looking lush and with the benefit of the high tunnel should stay that way till the end of the year when we will allow the flock to graze. In the mean time they begin the exciting process of rejuvenating the field space in Middlefield. Meanwhile in Durham the mystery of avian spinach destruction has been solved. Over the past month several mornings were spent scratching our heads while inspecting strange newly planted spinach destruction, with only a feather as a clue. Our insect eating friends a local gang of Mothers and young turkeys, were caught in the act gleefully dirt bathing Wednesday in a freshly prepped(luckily not yet planted) bed. After 4 or 5 spinach plantings turned into 4 or 5 frustrating re-plantings its hard not to be a little upset. That being said its also hard not to love a bunch of little turkeys we’ve been watching grow up, eating problematic pest along the way

Have a great week

The endless Summer is certainly something we strive for here at SLG but sometimes you have to face the facts. Fall is here and arriving in a cool, rainy way almost letting us know it means business. There is still a lot of green up there in the trees but we are starting to see the hues of orange, red and gold. October is merely days away, you can almost hear the excitement from all the Halloween decorations as people close pools and pack up for the season. On the farm we’ve always had a philosophy of staying in the fields as long as possible up to Thanksgiving. It is always a tough call to make, deciding when to say no more planting in the field. Alas the time has come all eyes are focused on the inside now.

We will be doing a few things on the farm over the next few weeks that I guess you could look at as our packing up for the summer. First and foremost is getting as much inside space prepped and planted asap. This involves clearing out the tomatoes we can easily let go of. Things like beans, cucumbers, melons, callaloo, we must all say good bye for the summer. There is also recovering and updating a high tunnel in Durham, putting up low tunnels in the fields and getting row cover ready to cover those hoops. Not to mention a few solid hours spent cleaning up and organizing irrigation and insect netting, so they are at the ready for us next year. There is still a fair amount of cover cropping to be done, most of which within the next two weeks. Beyond cover crop the only things going in the ground outside, like carrots, onions and garlic will be to overwinter.

With the 103rd Durham Fair passing by as fast as Summer, we are now back to our regular on farm pick up schedule. Also with it Sweet Sage Bakery breads, available Friday on farm pick up only. With only 2 more Chester markets left of the season J and J are eyeing the calendar for that first non market Sunday. The Madison market continues until the Friday before Thanksgiving and December 16th is slated for the last New Haven market of the year. A big thanks to everyone who came out to support us this weekend in the less than desirable conditions. We can’t say it enough, without all of you we could not do it.

Tomorrow we plan to pull out our first sweet potatoes of the 2023 crop. We have not grown them very much here at SLG so needless to say we are excited to see the results. It is a modest planting just half a high tunnel, but you gotta start somewhere. With a little luck they will be in good shape and ready to harvest. Then we can get them all out of the ground freeing up space for some transplanted lettuces and Asian greens. We are also on the cusps of harvesting the first ginger of the season. It may make an appearance at the markets and if it does be assured online next week. This years crop holds much more promise than the previous, the turmeric too but that will come a month or more later.

Have a Great week

With Fall right around the corner it’s difficult not to wonder what the cooler months have in store for us. Looking back on the summer and even the last few weeks, one thing can be sure is that Mother Nature will be making all the decisions and more than likely they will be unpredictable. This seems to be the pattern we’ll have to live with in the foreseeable future stronger and less predictable weather events.

The past few weeks our particular section of the state received some really strong rain events. Washing away freshly seeded beds of cover crop, salad, turnips and radish. Drowning what was quite possibly our most beautiful beds of arugula this year, beating down new transplants and generally taking the wind out of our sails. Its hard on the spirit and the psyche working in the face of forces which we cannot control. Yet we need look no further than the very plants we are cultivating and their resolve. In the moment of or the direct aftermath we look a upon a field of transplants thinking that nearly all is lost. Yet in time and with a little help the veg not only survive but often thrive, seemingly defying the odds. So we’ll replant, we’ll reseed, staying strong and staying the course taking a cue from our little plant friends. Mother Nature can be fierce and unpredictable but she’s also strong in her resolve and we can be too.

Things on farm this week look a little bit different for a few reasons. First off our work and harvest schedules will be slightly adjusted for the fact that our 2023 Durham Farmer’s Market season has come to an end. Thanks to all the great customers and market staff who made this season not only possible but a great year. And of course a big thanks to Sam for running the show and holding it down at the Star Light Gardens tent this season. In addition to the extra on farm time we will have this week, there is also only one pickup day available with the Durham Fair taking place at the end of the week. This Wednesday 9/20 is the only pickup day we will be offering this week. Next week back to business as usual.

Those of you that spend every week just waiting to hear what’s going on at SLG will remember rumors of free range dads and father in laws being sighted at and around the farms. Well the truth seems to be worse than the rumors as our centralized surveillance system has recorded weekly occurrences in both Middlefield and Durham

All joking aside we would like to give a big shout out, thank you and we love you to Chuck and Brian or Dad as we call them. It is a fact that we do what we do only because of the support structure we have around us, Family, Friends and of course you the Good Food People. But today we want to highlight some family specifically our Dads. Keeping everything nicely mowed around Middlefield and doing a regular clean up and organizing around Durham have really helped us. These are things that we often cannot keep up on during the season of 8 day weeks and 12 hour days. The help you both have done to keep things looking good not only is aesthetically pleasing but also contributes to our peace of mind and the overall functionality of the operation. Knowing that it brings you joy to help your children is powerful and touches our hearts. In our hearts we know that we are making you proud and that alone makes it worth while.

Have a great week