It isn’t so much snow that is the problem with Winter but rather things like the cold, ice and wind which really drive home the challenges with this time of year. In fact as far as snow goes though we did have well over a foot of snow fall it’s the light kind which rolls off the tunnels with ease and is cleared by shovel, plow, or snow thrower just as easily. However, the really cold temps that we will be experiencing this week will be a real challenge to four season growers like ourselves. When it comes to harvesting veg in the cold temps you must wait until things are above freezing and everything as thawed out. As cold hardy as the veg is harvest it when they’re still frozen and a bok choy for example will simply turn to mush. The high tunnels do in fact allow for the temps to climb quickly even on cold days when there is sun. Yet, five days in the 20’s with single digit nights that is pushing it. This cold harsh reality is what we will be facing this week, that everyday if we are lucky there will be a brief window to harvest and some days we probably won’t be able to harvest at all. As a result of this and the fact that it will be quite icy on the farm itself, we have made the difficult decision to not have any on farm sales this week. This includes pre orders and on farm shop. We will be attending the Saturday New Haven Market as usual but will likely have a very limited amount of fresh greens available. This is something we try as much as possible to avoid and is not a decision easily made. However, between the slippery farm conditions and reality of how little actual harvesting time we will have, this is the best decision for us to make. We will of course be back to business as usual next week.
Business on the farm this week especially today and tomorrow will look a little different as we will be trading in our hoes for shovels and tractor for a snow thrower. The nice thing about having two farm properties is the amount of space we have to grow, the adverse side being it’s a lot to maintain especially when it come to snow. On the vegetable front besides freezing outside things are moving along nicely inside. Tables and germination chambers continue to fill up in the grow room and the basement is slowly turning into tomato HQ. Luckily the cold weather will provide us with the time we need to keep up on the rigorous seeding schedule that must be maintained.
Have a Great Week and Stay Warm