Progress. . .

May was a very exciting month. Managing two farms and helping support a household is a bit much. . . especially when 3/5ths of the birthdays fall in the busiest planting month of the year.

June is already proving to be as exciting as May. This morning I was privilege enough to be invited to a town hall forum with Representative Chellie Pingree and the Under Secretary of the Department of Agriculture. They had pulled together a number of key players to present as the Feds are discussing the reauthorization of the Child Health and Nutrition Act.

As a representative of both Pearson's Town Farm and The Open Door I was honored to be there and more pleased to be in the audience and not presenting. This will be an interesting piece of legislation to watch regardless of where you sit in the political arena.

Back on the farm we have been busy trying to determine how to best approach our weed management program this year. We have toyed with the idea of using cover crops between the row to smother the true weeds, but I think that window of opportunity has closed.

With Amy's knee improving, she has been out scuffle hoeing quite a bit. The warm dry weather has left us with a desert like garden land scape which has allowed us to hoe out the weeds and let them dry out. . . this could work. . .

Even as we think about weeds, we haven't forgotten to plant. Sadly, we were unable to hire migrant workers this year (that may have been a joke), but we were able to afford some child slaves. . . And so poor James has been out planting your food. The tomatoes and peppers were cheater plants. They were already started offered us a false sense of progress. The beans and peas on the other hand have given us the unequalled joy of planting on a Thursday and watching the shoots pop through the soil on a Monday. It is great to see them pushing through the soil and reaching toward the light! Also in the ground this week were the cukes, squash, broccoli, watermelons and pumpkins. We even found a spot for the giant pumpkins - Common Ground Faire, here comes The Open Door.

For anyone interested in Rhubarb, now would be the time to let us know. They will be past when the first boxes go out.

Grow happy.

Garden

Well, now the heat has set in, and the sun is shining...
all that is left to do is give the garden a face. the rows are built.
the rows are hoed.
all that is left to do is give the garden a face.
Aritchokes eyes,
tomato ears,
peppers cheeks,
lettuce hair,
cucumber smile,
eggplant nose,
all the garden needs is a face...

Planting day...

The sun is hot upon my back.
The birds are singing a spring-time tune.
The garden gate is swinging in the breeze.
My hands have a tingle, and want to work.
I stroll in to my garden.
My skin feels hot in the sun, I am ready to plant.
The tiny green, so small, and fragile, is ready to begin a journey.
I make a hole, place the life into it, and tuck it in.
It requires love and a little shower.
It will be a fine garden.

Tuesdays . . .

Many thanks to Devin and Suzette who managed to wander out to the Open Door to dig ditches. Only twisted, or desperate people, come out to some strange persons house to dig ditches. But sure enough they came out and finished up about half of the garden beds. It was SO MUCH HELP!!!!!

I wish that I had taken some pictures, but alas, I didn't. I will save the pixels for moments when things are actually growing in the ground. . .

Veggies are soon to come!!!!

Stay tuned for pics.

Seeds gettin' started!!

It's been busy around here. Amy is going in for another surgery this week, but not before she and Addie helped get some of the seeds started.The primary field is tilled. One more pass and we will be building beds and putting in some early crops. It looks like it is going to be a warm spring so we want to get started soon to get some veggies on tables!!

All things Farmy.

Seed order is in!
With the warm weather the temptation to plant is way too great, but there is still a bit of winter left in the year. A quick run down of seeds that we have:

• Royal Burgundy Beans
• Beets
• Broccoli
• Brussels Sprouts
• Cabbage
• Carrots
• Corn - We have sweet and "Indian" corn. Not sure which ones we will plant.
• Cukes
• Okra
• Onions
• Peas
• A few varieties of peppers
• Chard
• Tomatillo's
• Tomatoes
• Herbs, plenty of herbs.

There is plenty more, but I don't have the patience at the moment to put it all here. If you really want to know just ask.
We will be breaking ground this week (depending on nature). If you want to come out and lend a hand it would be welcome.

Have a great week.

Who we is and What we does

We are just a little family living on a little bit of land with a coupla critters, some veggies and the community! The Open Door Farm is here to do what no government on earth can do - end hunger, save the planet, cure health care and build community. We believe in locally produced, organic food that is grown in a sustainable manner for both the farmer and the environment.
When we talk about "our" farm we want the community to be part of the "our". While we live on the farm, the food goes to many places. Money is not our motivating factor and as such we make zero profit. All proceeds go to improving the farms infrastructure and maintenance so that we can produce more food to give to both our "customers" and those in need.
Shares that are "sold" on the farm are matched pound for pound by shares that are taken to Catherine's Cupboard Food Pantry of Standish, Maine. Access to healthy organic food is a basic human right and not a privilege reserved for only the wealthy. In fact, one of our goals is to help develop local food security and good health by getting healthy foods into the hands of the disadvantaged.
The Open Door uses only organic and sustainable growing practices. As we develop and learn the rhythm of the land we will modify and experiment with new techniques. We will not certify as "organic" because we feel that the USDA's definition of organic is a little ambiguous - in short, a marketing gimmick. The farm is open for folks to come and visit any time so that rather relying on someone else to tell you that your food is organic, you can come see for yourself.
In short, we want you to come play in the dirt, eat from the garden, and share time together with us!

Here's to happy growing!