Star Light Gardens

Perhaps more than any other time of year(though it’s hard to say for sure) in August we find ourselves with our backs up against the wall and so much to do, considering there just isn’t enough time for it all. The tomato Waterfall has official began flowing requiring daily harvest and attention. The time to plant Winter kill cover crops is quickly approaching which needs extra space in the fields and in our heads. Then there is of course planting of veg for the Fall which also need to be done immediately. Today or tomorrow we will be receiving a lot of the seeds for our fall and Winter plantings, and you guessed it they need to be started asap. All of this on top of the regular tasks of weeding, prepping, seeding and harvesting which keeps the Good Food Rolling. Needless to say if you farm and it’s August, you are definitely feeling it, but we know what resolve is needed.

Now that the Tomato Waterfall is here it is time to indulge in a mostly tomato based diet. One look at the crates upon crates of heirlooms and it is easy to see that Jen’s hard work grafting tomatoes in the Winter has paid off. And in celebration of this we are offering a few tomato sales this week. Now these sales are online and Middlefield farm shop only, not at the markets. Pints of sungolds 2 for 10$ and heirlooms tomatoes 3 pounds for 15$. It is a little way for us to show we appreciate our most local customers and share in the tomato abundance together.

There is an old saying that a good snow pack is the poor farmer’s fertilizer, but the smart farmer’s fertilizer is cover crop. If you’re unfamiliar cover cropping is the practice of growing certain plants with the intention of suppressing weeds, to protect and enrich the soil. Not to be harvested and eaten but rather incorporated into the ground. This practice can be quite challenging for small scale intensive growers like ourselves , because simply put, a bed not planted with veg is not going to produce income. This is true in the short term but over time the benefits of cover cropping far outweigh the cost of planting a bed in green manure rather than a food crop.

Of course there is a lot of veg planing going on this time of year too, and currently the star of the show is carrots. If you have shopped with us over the Winter chances are you have had our Winter carrots. Sweet as candy and long lasting we like to say the only thing wrong with winter carrots is that they outshine and ruin it for carrots grown any other time of year. Well as far as planting these carrots the time has arrived with maybe a week or two reaming to successfully seed these sweet Winter beauties. We stocked up on 200k Napoli carrot seeds to ensure we have enough, just in case Joel spills a seed packet.

Have a Great Week

Hard to believe as it may be but here we are in the early days of August looking back and saying where did July go. As if the month flew by in a blur of prepping, planting, sweating, weeding and harvesting and in fact it truly did. But no matter where July has left you or how the greatest month of the year has left you feeling, it is August and we’ve crossed the peak of the Summer season. In terms of growing that means thinking and acting all things Fall and Winter, while all the time keeping a foot in the Summer. One thing that August’s arrival signals is the urgent call to get some of those storage crops out of the ground and properly cured. For us here at SLG since we have fished the 2026 Great Garlic Harvest, we have moved on to the onions and with a considerable urgency considering the wet weather of late. This year we planted nearly 2,000 row feet of onions more than ever before. If you happened to see the red long of Tropea onions at the markets last month than you may have an idea of just how nice the onions are looking this year. Currently there is only one 150 foot bed left in the ground as Joel worked tirelessly into the night getting 30 or so more crates harvested before the rain today.

Of course we are not all just onions, garlic, tomatoes and dirt round here at SLG. We do in fact have a soft side, especially when it comes to our four legged friends. Turn the corner around any bend on the farm and you could be greeted by one of several farm cats, a couple of pups and it’s never hard to hear the loud bah of the sheep grazing on one of their pastures. There was just one problem concerning the sheep, we felt that the flock just was not big enough. Quickly Jen’s mind got to work and it wasn’t long before by utilizing her connections with Beaver Brook farm that we were able to reserve a couple of lambs. Still a bit young at the time we would have to demonstrate patience until they were big enough to come to their new home. Finally the day came two weeks ago and after the Chester Sunday market, Joel drove the farm truck home and Jen headed to Beaver Brook to pick up the babies. Once home they were quite restless which was normal, however we were confident in how secure their enclosure was and were sure they would settle soon. Of course as new animals often do these spry little lambs quickly exploited a hole so small we could not imagine them squeezing through. From there they were into the main sheep pasture but still fenced in and secure, right? Wrong, on the Southern edge of the field a branch had fallen on the fence and the current flock was simply content to stay put so J and J never noticed the breach.

The new lambs however found this in no time and quickly were making their way toward the neighbors, perhaps wanting to befriend their horses and sheep. Luckily those little sheep were making quite a bit of noise as they made there way and Joel knew from the commotion something was amiss. Compared to our full grown sheep a tame lamb is easy enough to scoop up and deposit on the other side of a fence and the new sheep’s journey quickly came to an end. They also did a great job of showing us the weaknesses in their fences and since have been behaved. After a week of separation from the main flock we have now opened the gates and though they are still integrating before long they’ll be one bigger flock. So if your Good Food Journey this week happens to bring you to the farm shop in Middlefield maybe you’ll meet the new lambs, Bunny and Rose.`

Have a Great Week

In the Summer of highlighting farm animals it would be out of the question to let July pass without mentioning another true child of Summer Stella Blue. Arguably the most well known and favorite of the farm cats if you met a cat here at SLG chances are it was Stella. She’s been with us from day one in fact was adopted by Jen a few months before J and J even met. Stella has many roles here on the farm supervisor, HR, pest control, the list goes on and on. Ask anyone who’s met her and they will tell you that she is the sweetest little cat around and this is in fact true. However, under the innocent grey fur exterior lies the heart of a hunter. Stella fully embraces farm cat life whether it’s staying out all night, dining on the occasional rabbit or climbing onto the peak of the high tunnels. She’s about as Star Light Gardens as they come, so if you happen to be swinging by the shop this week and see that sweet Stella Blue say hi.

On the subject of swinging by if you happened through any of the markets the past few weeks the increase in traffic is noticeable. We don’t have to tell any of you here about the power of Good Food, the community it sustains and the food truth it embodies. It is a reciprocal relationship, the basis for society and community, this Good Food Thing we are all a part of. Some though are only just starting to realize the importance of buying local and knowing the growers. At markets the lines have been longer and product selling out faster than is usually the case. We know it can be challenging for those of you who have been along with us for years now on this wild ride. We want to say how much we appreciate patience and understanding during these spikes in business at the markets. After all at one point or another we were all new to the Good Food Scene and beautiful things like this grow because of all the open hearts, minds and arms that this community embodies.

Meanwhile out in the fields things are going a mile a minute and to be honest we couldn’t even slow them down if we wanted. At this point our best bet is to simply hold on tight and go for the ride. The 2026 GGH is nearly complete with the last 4th or so being pulled later this morning. This year’s garlic crop is looking great and showed up online and at the markets this week. In other allium news we have also begun to harvest this year’s main onion crop. It looks to be a tremendous year for onions as well but the work is not done. We still need to harvest and cure the onions in the nursery, then get them stored in proper conditions, so we all can enjoy them for months to come. On the subject of heirlooms if you made it to the markets this past week then you would have noticed that the tomato drip has turned into a trickle and before we can say “tomato basil salad” the waterfall may very well be flowing. In addition to all things Summer the 4 season grower in us is also thinking about Fall and Winter. Our first Spinach seeds of the late Summer/Fall season will be arriving this week and will be getting started alongside other Winter veg in the coming weeks. Late July and August truly become a mixing of the worlds as Summer’s harvests begin to peak, yet all things Fall/Winter must be planned and started.

Have a Great Week

This time of year days off are few and far between. In fact when it comes to the sort of intensive small scale market gardening we do here at SLG days off can be akin to some sort of mythical creature, talked about but never truly seen. Rightly so considering that this Good Food Community we are all a part of does in fact require a certain degree of relentlessness. Yet, at the same time in the midst of all the sweat and Summer heat if you don’t take at least a sliver of time to step back, let go and gift yourself a little time for you, than heck what is the point.

Maybe you are an avid SLG fan or perhaps you’re just getting to know us. Surely either way you can safely assume here at Star Light we fully embrace being children of Summer. And as much as we love to spend time with our feet in the dirt, there are certain traditions which must be up held. So today for at least the later half we’ll be celebrating our July birthdays, crossing state lines and relaxing with our feet in the sand. So forgive us if this week’s letter is short, even for the Summer months.

That being said we couldn’t leave you without a few teasers of what’s going on inland. The flock grows, alongside melons and tomatoes. Days grow shorter, as hard as it is to believe and we must look forward to the season of falling leaves. Next week’s tale may likely be of Stella Blue and when someone one asks you where you got that Good Food? Go right ahead and tell them who.

Have a Great Week

With the Sirius star hanging over the night sky above us we all can rest assured that the hottest days of Summer have arrived. One quick glance at the forecast for this week confirms such astrological ideas and you can bet your bottom dollar we’ll be out there working like the dogs of Summer, all in pursuit of Good Food. Even though July and arguably Summer is just getting kicked off there are a lot of “season’s lasts” happening when it comes to the hot weather and truth be told our minds are shifting to Fall and Winter. As we phase out the heat loving cultivators in favor of cold weather favorites, things like Siberian kale, overwintered onions, claytonia and spinach begin to take the forefront in our seeding schedule. Funny how it goes always thinking one or two seasons ahead in this type of work, at least hopefully keeping our minds on the cooler seasons ahead will help us cope with the heat to come.

Now if you are as big of a fan of us here at Star Light Gardens as we think you are then you know that we take July very seriously and for more reasons than just J and J s birthdays. For one July is the month when the Great Garlic Harvest commences and this year’s is of particular importance. This past Fall we planted around 400 pounds of garlic the most we have ever planted here at SLG. However in addition to planting more than ever before this is the first year that 100 percent of the seed garlic planted was saved from our own stock. Over the years we have been planting and saving more and more garlic, supplementing our saved seed with seed from an excellent organic farm. This year though we were able to save enough to plant all 400 pounds of just our own stock. Not to say that we might not grow more than that in the future and rely again on our trustee grower friends to supplement any increased need for seed. First reports in from the fields indicate this year’s crop is looking as good as ever and will be showing up at markets and online before you know it.

July of course also means tomatoes and believe us when we say it that we are as eager for the tomato waterfall as the rest of you. Our first plantings of cherry tomatoes have been trickling into the markets over the past few weeks and the flow is getting steadier each day. Heirlooms too are looking good and the encouraging sign of a few ripe ones here and there has us hopeful that the plants loaded up with green fruit now. Will soon be a sea of green leaves spotted with the yellow, pink, red, and purple color spectrum that only ripe tomatoes can create. Besides a smaller outside planting all of the plants in our tunnels have been expertly grafted by the Tomato Goddess herself Jen. Though the process of grafting does set back the plants a few weeks, it will be made up in production and longevity as the plants continue to produce after non grafted plants will have succumb to the pressures of the season. Well worth the effort and wait.

Have a Great Week

If you happen to be taking the time today to scroll through our website checking out what veg is available this week you may notice one item is missing. Spinach which is arguably a staple for us here at SLG has seen the end of it’s early 2026 run. Usually the disappearance of Spinach for the Summer is something that we mourn but this year it may be something to celebrate. You see this is the first year for us that we have been able to produce a large amount of tender spinach into the warmer months including the first week of July. Usually Spinach into June can be a challenge for a myriad of reasons, so to think we would have Spinach on the 4th of July seemed unreal. However, this is an excellent learning opportunity for both growing and for life. Sure there are many factors which allowed us to have spinach so late into the season, the weather, the hard work from the crew and of course choosing the right variety. However, all of this would mean nothing if we hadn’t decided to push past the limitations or what we thought were the limitations of our beloved spinach. In the early days of the farm many of the things we do now seemed at the time not worth trying. Despite this if it was something we wanted to try David always had one answer, “there’s only one way to find out”. It’s this attitude and open mindedness that has allowed SLG to blossom into what we are today and it is this philosophy that will continue to carry us forward. And of course when it comes to spinach don’t fret too much because as we always like to say ” if we’re worth our wait in dirt we’ll have spinach again come September.” Sure September seems far off, especially with the heat like we had this previous week but it will be here before we know it.

September aside there is still plenty of Summer left and love it or hate it that means a lot of hot weather too. It’s safe to say that both crops and growers were struggling this past week with the heat and humidity as high as it was. Of course in a constant show of solidarity all of you Good Food People were out in full force at the markets this weekend in spite of the oppressive heat. We can’t thank all of you enough for supporting us and other growers out there, without the love and support of all of you this Good Food thing just isn’t possible. We also want to give an extra special shout out to all the vendors and customers that were at the Madison Farmers’ Market this past Friday. We had the odds stacked against us with the market location changed for the day, extreme heat and a holiday weekend. And beyond the simple challenge of how much business will there be, we had to smoothly set up at a unfamiliar location all in that heat. However all the vendors were patient and understanding making the market setup as smooth as any other Friday afternoon. As 3pm approached the parking lots began to fill and many familiar faces appeared eager to get their Friday afternoon market tradition going. The good news is this week things are back to normal in Madison and for the remainder of the season we will be on the Green.

Have a Great Week

With July meres days away things on the farm are going to be heating up both figuratively and literally this week. In Middlefield our nursery is overflowing with transplants that desperately need to get into the ground. Unfortunately temps in the 90’s and even hitting 100 does present significant challenges to successfully transplanting. Familiar territory for us as it may be, weighing out the downfalls and benefits of acting now to get things in the ground or waiting out the weather so conditions are more favorable. The reality is we will more than likely develop a mixed approach to this dilemma. A few sections of transplants will go in, but not all of them. Enough so we can manage them properly using overhead irrigation to keep temps tolerable and ensure survival. We certainly won’t plant everything for one because its a bit of an all your eggs in one basket scenario but also simply because it’s too much to manage properly and patience and restraint must be practiced.

Of course transplanting is really the only farm work which will be significantly effected by the heat. Unfortunately for us with boots on the ground the never ending list of farm tasks ominously waits no matter what the temps are. At least for some tasks like weeding and cultivating the strong sun and hot temps help ensure the weeds dry out quickly and die after we’ve worked a bed. And of course as one could imagine this late in June after a few days of precipitation there is no shortage of weeding to be done. But of course every task will be that much more laborious in the sweet Summer heat of July. Let’s just say we will be keeping our water bottles close and our sun hats closer.

Another thing that doesn’t stop no matter what the weather, is the need for Good Food. And that’s a big part of why we do what we do and will be out there this week cultivating, sowing seeds and bringing in the harvest. Oh and that harvest, you of course can find it this weekend on farm and at all of the markets. Even with the 4th of July holiday all markets and the farm shop will be operating on schedule and business as usual July 3rd 4th and 5th. The one exception to this being this Friday in Madison. The town of Madison is holding in a concert on the green this Friday so we are temporarily moving the market to Academy field which is just on the other side of the playground next to town hall. It is difficult to know what parking around the green where the market usually is will be like with the concert, however there will be parking in the Academy field lot as well, as other lots on Bradley road. The market will run as scheduled from 3-6 however some vendors will be remaining a few more hours while the concert goes on. Activities around the concert begin at 6pm so in addition to the market a fun night a celebrating could be in store. Whether you are just coming to the market to shop or considering enjoying all the town’s festivities that night we hope to see you there.

Have a Great Week

The arrival of the Summer Solstice means a lot of things for many people, but for growers all around it signals a bit of a do or die scenario for many crops. This time of year feeling overwhelmingly behind on things is relatively par for the course. With so much going on at once this is to be expected but the reality is that if certain crops aren’t in the ground yet it is probably your last chance to do so within the next week or two. It seems sort of strange with the Summer just beginning but the truth is a lot of up front growth is required for the Summer’s bounty that we all know and love and that means planting in the Spring. Now believe us when we say that we have been there so behind that we are planting eggplant and potatoes in July. Of course no matter how on point one may be with their plantings that ominous feeling of Summer’s overwhelming to do list never really goes away in the heat of Summer when the grass and weeds grow faster than your quickest crops.

Of course not everyone around the farm is feeling overwhelmed there is in fact a cast of cool characters that can often be found lounging in the Sun, the farm cats. Today we are going to be featuring one of the less seen but none the less big personality farm cats, our sweet little Mizuna. Named after the Asian green that we use the most here on the farm J and J got Mizuna and her brother Paul early on in their of days living on the farm in Durham. Originally city cats that were rescued because their neighborhood starting targeting strays, the idea was they didn’t like humans and would simply be barn cats. Now this may have been true for Mizuna but for her brother this was not the case. At first we barely saw this little cat named Mizuna. She was so small and sickly that we assumed she was Paul’s daughter and in fact the way he cleaned and cared for her it seemed as such. Until their first visit to the vet where it was confirmed she was no kitten but a few years old. The first few months we had her there was a drastic improvement in her health and appearance as she finally had a stable environment. Slowly she began to show herself and we began to gain her trust and as the Summer rolled on and the cool Fall nights began J and J knew soon these “barn cats” must become Farm cats.

Luckily, over the course of a few months Mizuna and her brother began to realize that J and J were in fact not disappearing everyday but rather, going inside the little red barn they called home. Waking up in the morning we started to find the cats outside the house waiting for their humans to come out for the day. Though beginning to trust and let us pet her Mizuna was still skittish and we did fear that trying to bring her inside may send her running away. So it was decided, get her by the front door and quickly swoop her up and into her new home. And it was inside where the cat we called Mizuna transformed fully embracing house life, sleeping all day like a Queen, glancing outside occasionally as if to remember what was. Unfortunately, her rough up bringing had left her dental health in a dismal state, quite smelly and drooling in fact. But so grateful to be inside and to be loved, any attempt to sit down resulted in a full on assault of love from this cute but stinky little cat. Her relentless pursuit of love and pets combined with her less than lovely smell/discharge gained her the nick name Zombie Cat. Flash forward a few years and she is just as insistent on getting love and pets but without the Zombie like smell since the oral surgery she received some years ago, none the less the name Zombie Cat had stuck. And though the majority of the time she can be found lounging in a window sill or eagerly awaiting dinner she does regularly go outside to patrol the house and inspect the deck railings for comfort level.

Have a Great Week

It may not quite be Summer yet but the way things heated up this past week, everyone here on the farm certainly got a taste of what is to come. Luckily, this coming week though warm will surely be a relief from the temps we had. Despite the hot weather we kept on moving along in expert fashion, starting the week off with the often exciting sometimes frightening task of recovering a high tunnel. Though we did promise pics, the fear we would jinx ourselves by recording the process won the day and you will have to settle for an written account. As one can imagine we start the process with removing the old plastic, easy enough, next you take positions. The new plastic is placed on a large metal bar and positioned on one of the end wall or shorter sides of the tunnels, supported so it can be unrolled. Two people grab the sides of the plastic to pull it the length of the house, one person(usually Joel) is on a ladder at the peak to push the plastic over the top as it is pulled, two more help to unroll the plastic smoothly and one more person to walk through the tunnel and using a long tool keep the plastic from getting caught as it crosses the peak of each hoop. Sounds simply enough and it can in fact be. But a few things like how actually heavy the plastic is and potentially strong gusts of wind can turn and easy task into a gut wrenching affair. On this particular day things did in fact go quite smoothly and we were able to pull the plastic over the span of the tunnel easily. A few adjustments to make sure the plastic was square and it was time to begin wiggle wiring the plastic to the structure. Then came the wind and quite a few large gusts at that. So just imagine, six people, two on ladders holding onto a 100 by 40 foot piece of heavy plastic draped over a high tunnel and the wind begins to blow. At that point there isn’t much else you can do but hold on and hope. And you better believe that is what we did. As a fierce wind blew for probably minutes that seemed like hours we desperately clung to our individual portions of the plastic, dreading that any second the whole thing would go flying and the day would be lost. Alas it was not and we stood strong, the wind calmed down, we were able to secure the plastic and not even one piece of patch tape was needed. We’ll mark this down as an exciting and successful day.

Speaking of exciting and successful yesterday was the opening day for our last market of the season to begin, the Chester Sunday Market. This is the newest market for us here at SLG and we are in fact one of the newest vendors there. Over the past few years we have been getting to know the Good Food People of this market and we are proud to say they have been getting to know us and our food too. This was very apparent about 20 minutes before the opening of the market as fans of food and flowers began to line up at our tent just waiting for J and J to be all set up and begin to sell. From the moment we opened it was a whirlwind of bouquets, fresh produce and friendly faces for the first couple hours, so busy in fact that Joel wasn’t able to get a coffee until sometime after 12:00 something nearly unheard of. Despite the lack of caffeine it was a tremendous day and we felt welcomed back with open arms and hearts.

If you know SLG gardens chances are it is from a market and chances are you know how much we love doing them. Don’t get us wrong it is a lot especially at the end of a long week. We load, unload, set up and repeat 3 days in a row, but it is also a unique opportunity to connect with people and communities over the power of Good Food. With Market Season now in full swing you have 3 days a week where you can find Star Light at a Market. Fridays you can come see us on the farm in Middlefield or at the Madison Farmer’s Market from 3-6pm. Saturdays(12 months a year) we are in New Haven every morning from 9-1. And now we are back at the Chester Sunday Market from 10-1 every Sunday running through early October. If you hadn’t had a chance to get out to one of these markets with the Summer about to officially start there isn’t a better time than now and the coming months. Heck maybe even make it a point to explore each market and discover the unique Good Food happenings each one has to offer.

Have a Great Week

It may or may not come as a surprise to you that we here at SLG are a relatively small market garden operation. Yes, we do produce a lot and sometimes when we actually think about how little acreage we are cultivating compared to production there is nothing to do but say wow. Now even though both farm properties are not huge, each one has inclines. And though the distance may be short, one gets tired quickly of hauling everything back in forth with a cart and only human power. So as many of you could imagine we have been going back and forth trying to figure out just what is the best solution to this problem. There is an older saying around the farm that goes something to the effect of ” the solution to one’s problem is often much closer than you think”.

And when it came to deciding just what sort of machine we should get to help us lighten the load so to speak, we had to look no further than our next door neighbors and another group of great farmers. Both of whom had made the purchase of a mini truck and were quite pleased with the result. You yourselves have probably seen them out there in the wild a small little white pick up with the steering wheel on the right hand side. So the decision was made and the search began for SLG’s very own mini truck. Finally the day came and we found what seemed like the perfect one for us a Daihatsu Hijet. Needless to say since we have had the truck it is proving itself invaluable hauling everything from transplants, pups, harvests and firewood with ease. And if the lush and epic condition of things around the farm are any indication, this little truck will be working as hard as the farmers this season.

Confident in our ability to haul stuff around we are moving forward into the week and have our eyes on a few key tasks. First and foremost will be recovering the high tunnel named Shiloh in Durham. You may remember the story this Winter of Joel meticulously taping a rip that formed in that tunnel. Well he must have done a good job because the tape job is still holding, however we would be fools to think this will last. So new plastic for Shiloh, stay tuned for pics and a full account to come.

Nearly all of the main season plantings are done and as crazy as it may sound with Summer only weeks away it’s time to think Fall. So as the farm faces head on all the beauty and chaos that can be the Summer, J and J must keep one foot in the here and now and one in the season to come. Broccoli, cauliflower, kales, collards, overwintered onions and Winter carrots are just a few things which will be started prepped for and planted in the next month or two to ensure a plentiful harvest in the cooler months. But for now let’s just stick with Summer because after all the tomatoes begin to trickle in, cukes and squash are showing up and before we know it the first ripe melon will be found, more than likely leading us there with it’s sweet aroma.

Have a Great Week