First off, I just want to remind everyone that there is no market in Chelsea this weekend. Market resumes in May. Until then, folks for Chelsea can feel free to head over to Ann Arbor, where they will find a cheerful human with delicious vegetables!
And second off, let me say: Welcome to the first week of April! I would say that the icy fingers of winter are loosening their grip but I am starting to wonder if I should after the snow fall the other night.. Did I ruin spring? Was my jubilation premature? Did I call back the cold and the bite? No, I say! Celebrate the signs! Every winter has a last snow! Let this one be it!
The crew started on Wednesday, on the second-to-last snow of the winter of 2017-2018. To find out more about them, check out their farm bios on our website! We walked the farm, did various basic farm-skill training, got to know each other a little better, and worked on moving our deer fence to include fresh fields, all while getting beaten about the face by blustery, icy wind (literally, there was ice in it). A day like that is a great test of enthusiasm and endurance and I would say everyone passed muster and then some. I is such a joy to work with this enthusiastic team and I ended the day feeling like we are going make some good things happen this year.
It is exciting to be moving the deer fence. After it is completed, the whole West Side of the farm will be enclosed. Our fence is nothing fancy and requires some attention through-out the season, but if it gets that attention, it is quite effective. We use polyline with metal woven through it, electricity, and some peanut butter. We string five lines through insulated clips which are attached to t-posts pounded in along the perimeter of the field. After the lines are set up and hooked up to the fence charger, we bait them with peanut butter. The deer come to check it out and decide from themselves that our farm is a little too scary. Inevitably, a few deer get through, typically in the spring and fall. To combat this issue, during those times of year we walk the line more frequently, noting where passage is occurring, and then heavily bait those areas with extra peanut butter. This approach is surprisingly effective. Hopefully the fence will be complete by the end of the week.
In the field, the peas and many of the greens germinated under the protection of the row cover. On a sunny day the temperature difference between the soil in under the cover and the soil outside is just about twenty degrees! Row cover is one of my favorite examples of simple technologies making a difference. Now for their next feat, getting those cotyledons out of the soil! To do that, they must have survived last nights plunge in to the low, low twenties, and the next few wintry dips. Send them some good vibes and high hopes!
I hope you enjoy this wonderful sunshine while it lasts, but if you don't get a chance, don't worry, it will be back soon!
See you at Market!!!!
Helen and the Lake Divide Farm Crew
Vegetables!
Onion greens!
Kale (limited)
Kohlrabi: Beastly beauties. I have been cubing and roasting them and can't get enough
Micro Greens- Spicy mix
Micro greens- Mild mix
Potatoes: White, red skinned, and fingerlings!
Radishes: Green Daikon!
Spinach!!
Turnips- Sweet
*We send this email out before harvest, and although we do our very best to make accurate predictions, crops and quantities found at market may vary.
Markets, always rain or shine!
Saturday: Ann Arbor
The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.
And second off, let me say: Welcome to the first week of April! I would say that the icy fingers of winter are loosening their grip but I am starting to wonder if I should after the snow fall the other night.. Did I ruin spring? Was my jubilation premature? Did I call back the cold and the bite? No, I say! Celebrate the signs! Every winter has a last snow! Let this one be it!
The crew started on Wednesday, on the second-to-last snow of the winter of 2017-2018. To find out more about them, check out their farm bios on our website! We walked the farm, did various basic farm-skill training, got to know each other a little better, and worked on moving our deer fence to include fresh fields, all while getting beaten about the face by blustery, icy wind (literally, there was ice in it). A day like that is a great test of enthusiasm and endurance and I would say everyone passed muster and then some. I is such a joy to work with this enthusiastic team and I ended the day feeling like we are going make some good things happen this year.
It is exciting to be moving the deer fence. After it is completed, the whole West Side of the farm will be enclosed. Our fence is nothing fancy and requires some attention through-out the season, but if it gets that attention, it is quite effective. We use polyline with metal woven through it, electricity, and some peanut butter. We string five lines through insulated clips which are attached to t-posts pounded in along the perimeter of the field. After the lines are set up and hooked up to the fence charger, we bait them with peanut butter. The deer come to check it out and decide from themselves that our farm is a little too scary. Inevitably, a few deer get through, typically in the spring and fall. To combat this issue, during those times of year we walk the line more frequently, noting where passage is occurring, and then heavily bait those areas with extra peanut butter. This approach is surprisingly effective. Hopefully the fence will be complete by the end of the week.
In the field, the peas and many of the greens germinated under the protection of the row cover. On a sunny day the temperature difference between the soil in under the cover and the soil outside is just about twenty degrees! Row cover is one of my favorite examples of simple technologies making a difference. Now for their next feat, getting those cotyledons out of the soil! To do that, they must have survived last nights plunge in to the low, low twenties, and the next few wintry dips. Send them some good vibes and high hopes!
I hope you enjoy this wonderful sunshine while it lasts, but if you don't get a chance, don't worry, it will be back soon!
See you at Market!!!!
Helen and the Lake Divide Farm Crew
Vegetables!
Onion greens!
Kale (limited)
Kohlrabi: Beastly beauties. I have been cubing and roasting them and can't get enough
Micro Greens- Spicy mix
Micro greens- Mild mix
Potatoes: White, red skinned, and fingerlings!
Radishes: Green Daikon!
Spinach!!
Turnips- Sweet
*We send this email out before harvest, and although we do our very best to make accurate predictions, crops and quantities found at market may vary.
Markets, always rain or shine!
Saturday: Ann Arbor
The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.
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