Momentum is building for the 2010 growing season.
The vegetables and their many varieties have been chosen. Hours spent pouring over catalogs and websites have excited us about the coming year. There will be many adventures as we witness the seeds turn into the plants that will produce a bountiful harvest.
We are finishing our seedling greenhouse were we will see miracles happen. Most of the 100,000 seeds (give or take a few) will be potted and lovingly cared for while they grow into the seedlings that we will transplant when the soil can be worked. In the fall the ground was prepared and planted with a cover crop of annual rye and crimson clover. (It is growing well and our three young calves enjoy mowing it daily.)
These calves represent a piece of the research and development side of the farm. We are surrounded by dairies and cattle farms here in Iredell County, NC. The traditional way of raising calves is to quickly wean them and start them on a grain based diet. Our approach has been to provide them with milk for an extended period and wean them to a grass/hay based diet. We bought them when they were 1 and 2 days old, they are now 18 weeks. They are growing rapidly, have a pleasant attitude and love to head butt each other during their games. We will harvest them in the months to come.
During this winter we have also been building our production facility. This 30’ X 50’ building will house our “kitchen” where we will wash, sort and package the vegetable for the CSA and markets. We have had tremendous experiences during the build. Many family members and friends have come to help and cheer us on while we see the plans from the paper grow into the building we envisioned. We hope this will be typical of activities to come.
