Category: Events

Your share this week

• Onions
• greens – chard, kale, parsley
• tomatoes – both kinds – roast ‘em or freeze ‘em
• eggplant, cukes, a few squash
• possibly carrots

TAG SALE!

Tomorrow 8 am to 2 pm. We could use some help breaking down and staffing the tables.

Or just come to browse and buy some great (and pretty darn inexpensive) stuff!

-Brenda

Work issues

Potatoes are fun to harvest, for adults and kids, especially if there are a few nice people to work with. Come to help with the potato harvest tomorrow, Saturday 8/21, starting at 11 am.

We need more people to work the harvests. If we have 3 members besides me and my daughter Alani, it’ll go much faster and you will get a better share. Come at 8:30 and leave when you need to. Please contact Annmarie Golioto if you can help on Sundays or Wednesdays. Signing up for harvests weeks ahead of time really helps us plan.

Here’s what you’ll probably get this week:

• potatoes (Austrian Crescent fingerling, Keuka Gold or Kennebec)
• scallions
• eggplant (could be a choice with squash and other things)
• tomatoes (cherry and regular-sized heirloom varieties)
• parsley, basil for pesto, kale or chard
• cucumbers
• garlic (Sunday)
• not sure about the fruit selection this week – probably choice of melon or peaches

Pick up issues

PLEASE tell me when you’re not going to pick up.  Write it on the switch sheet if you know in advance. Most members are remembering to do this. Last week was good – only a couple of no shows.

Please look carefully at the white board to guide your selection process. If you goof, you might be taking something that belongs to someone else. Ask the member who is staffing the shed for help if you need it.

Tag sale

Our huge benefit sale is September 4th on the Cheshire green in front of the Congregational Church.  You can rent a space for a $10 donation and sell your own stuff or just donate the items to the Friends of Boulder Knoll. Good stuff only please! Furniture is welcome – It sells well. You can bring last minute items when you pick up your food this week. I’ll help you get it into Bob Giddings’ barn next door. And don’t forget to come to the sale – You’ll be impressed by the quantity and quality!

Contact Meredith@friendsofboulderknoll.com for more info.

The farm dinner

We had a blast. Thanks to all who attended! Check out the pics on our website Friendsofboulderknoll.com. Thanks especially to members Fellis and Hap Jordan who worked really hard to make it an event to remember and to Meredith Berger, Dan Groberg, Bob Giddings, Kathryn Frund, Greg Melville, my family and others who came early to staff the shed, make flower arrangements, set up drinks, handle parking, and so on.

See you at the farm!
Brenda

Rain!!

We finally got some good rain after a very hot dry period. This was a huge relief to me and to the veggie and flower plants in the garden. All of the plants have started to grow fast because of it. Tomatoes are looking good; knock on wood. We’re getting a lot of fall plantings in now while the soil is moist. As one crop comes out, another crop goes in.

Your share next week

You’ll get blueberries, greens, garlic, red Norland and Caribe potatoes, sumac berries for sumac lemonade (no, it’s not poison sumac, silly), probably a choice of carrots or golden and red beets, maybe the following in the choice bin: Oriental Express eggplant, several varieties of summer squash, Sungold cherry tomatoes, Sugar Snap peas, other items.

After this nice rain the flowers will start to get bigger and brighter. Take a pair of scissors and a bag and pick a nice bouquet for your table. We have lavender, statice, orange cosmos, snapdragons, batchelor’s buttons and more. Some are shorter than they should be because of heat stress, but don’t let that stop you.

I won’t be at the distribution this coming Sunday, so I’ll miss seeing most of the Sunday folks.

Events

• Sept 4 – Huge Tag Sale to benefit Friends of Boulder Knoll. If you’d like to get more info and volunteer to help, sign up in the distribution hoop house at the farm. You can donate good quality sale-worthy items or even have your own table. Last year we had tons of good stuff and made around $2000! Thanks to member Meredith Berger who stepped up to help organize this year’s sale.

• Ten high school and post-high school youth from the Waterbury Workforce program are coming to the farm on two consecutive Fridays, July 23 and July 30 to learn about plants and gardening and to do some work. Let me know if you’d like to stop by to visit or help.

Work needs

We need lots of weeding, mulching and path making. We also need someone to straighten up the toolshed, clean up the perennials, weed the herb garden, and replant the mint and yarrow somewhere else.

A couple of pick-up reminders

Make sure you tell me no later than the day before your pick up day if you’re not going to pick up your share. I need to tell Wayne not to bring your fruit share. And remember to check off your name on the distribution list when you pick up your stuff.

In the event of a stormy morning that forces a postponement of the harvest, I’ll send out an email in the early morning. Feel free to call me to confirm (cell 203-645-1734 or home 203-393-1245)

See you at the farm!
Brenda

The planting continues at Boulder Knoll Community Farm!

Here’s what’s in the ground:

• some tomatoes
• almost all the potatoes (six different kinds)
• onions
• leeks
• peas
• Swiss chard
• kale
• lettuce
• Chinese cabbage
• broccoli raab
• beets
• parsnips
• flowers
• radishes
• scallions
• garlic

Still to plant:

• more tomatoes
• eggplant
• peppers
• sweet potatoes
• squash
• cukes
• green beans
• more flowers
• more lettuce
• tomatillos
• basil

Happenings

Members’ and friends’ farm tour, picnic lunch and work day, Sunday, June 6

Picnic lunch and farm tour on Sunday, June 6, noon until 2. See the new planting space and the improvements to the distribution shed. Bring your own lunch, something to sit on, and some gloves if you’d like to stay for some work afterward. Please RSVP with numbers and how long you plan to stay. If you can’t stay to work, that’s OK. Please come for the gathering anyway.

Domingo’s cargo bike

Member Domingo Medina has a fantastic idea that we could deliver our produce to Caseus, our restaurant friend, via bicycle on the Farmington Canal bike trail. He has purchased a cargo bike that can hold up to 400 lbs and can be assisted by an electric motor. He’ll be riding up to the farm on Wednesday morning to see if it’s a reasonable trip from his home on Canner St. in New Haven. We’ll experiment with different ways of loading the bike. It will be important to deliver produce in perfect condition, so we’ll probably need to experiment with coolers too. If it works, we’ll be asking for other people to try riding the bike to do the delivery too. We’re sure to get some press for this!

Field trip

We are hosting over 50 second grade children from Waterbury for a field trip at the farm on Friday May 28th from 10 am until noon. We’re going to teach about healthy soil including activities on composting and worms, and a garden tour and scavenger hunt. If you are interested in helping with this event and being with the kids, please send me a note. I would love to have a few more adults to help.

Wish list

• large sheets of cardboard or craft paper for paths
• 1/2 inch plywood (pieces will be used to cover hoop house end wall)
• wood chips (if you know any tree service people, I’ll take a quantity of chips – Have them contact me.)
• railroad ties or the equivalent for making a raised bed next to the hoop house distribution shed
• string for trellising
• compost fixins from your kitchen (please dump them on the right hand compost pile)
• a good, relatively lightweight wheel barrow or garden cart
• metal “T” posts
• cedar posts

Work at the farm

Thanks a million to the folks who have come to the farm to work. Our farm sure wouldn’t function very well without the contributions of all the members.

If you haven’t had a chance to get out there yet, check out the available work times every week. Even a small amount of time worked makes a big difference on the farm. I think everyone has enjoyed themselves and I can find jobs for all physical abilities. Come to do some of your 12 hours before it gets too hot.

Make sure our work coordinator, Annmarie Golioto, knows when you plan to come and for how long. When you’re done for the day, send her a note so she can keep track of the work that you’ve done.

Your veggie farmer,
Brenda

Greetings to members of Boulder Knoll Community Farm for 2010!

Welcome to new and returning sharers!

I’m anticipating a great growing season. We appreciate your enthusiastic support of our farm and of local food. We look forward to some great happenings this year – cooking demos, pick your own flowers and maybe berries, fruit from High Hill Orchard in Meriden, and a farm dinner or two by talented chefs from Caseus Fromagerie Bistro. We’ve expanded our membership to 53 CSA shares and will donate food to two soup kitchens in Waterbury and Meriden. We’ll continue to sell produce to Caseus and host educational programs to area youth and children.

Now that the rain has let up we can start to transplant the many seedlings that I have started in the greenhouse. They’re happily awaiting their permanent homes in our rich soil. Kale, scallions, Swiss chard, leeks and onions can be transplanted in the next week or so. Beets, carrots, peas, and greens will get direct seeded in April. Flowers, tomatoes, eggplant, basil, escarole, lettuce and peppers are growing, but need a few more weeks. Wow, there sure is a lot to do!

The farm needs your help

April and May are busy months for cleaning up, prepping beds and planting. I’ll be sending periodic emails to update you on our progress.

Since we really need your help in these early months I’ll be sending notes with available work times and descriptions of tasks that need doing.
You’ll never be on your own; I will always be there to teach and supervise your work. I’m generally at the farm for at least part of every day, so weekdays and weekend times will be available.

I’ll need someone organized who can act as work coordinator for the farm. Last year a couple of members split the season; their work was invaluable to me. Please let me know if you’re interested in doing this job for your work contribution.

I’ll be scheduling a potluck/ work party sometime this spring – a fun way to get to know other members and get a lot done as a group. Watch for it!

Upcoming events

• Healthy Kids First with Tim Cipriano, Saturday April 10, 2010, 4 – 6 pm,
  Hosted by Greg Melville, 474 Maple Avenue, Cheshire, CT 06410

  Chef Tim Cipriano, the dynamic Executive Director of Food Service for the New Haven Public Schools will speak on bringing healthy food from  local farms to school children in Cheshire and New Haven. For more information about Tim and New Haven school food please check out Tim’s blog.

  Everyone’s invited! For more info or to RSVP, please click here.

• Join us for a tour of the farm. Sunday April 25, 12:00 noon. You and your family can have a walk through the garden. I’ll tell you about the logistics of the CSA and answer any lingering questions you may have. Bring a bag lunch if you’d like. I’ll supply the drinks.

Farm Blog

Check out our website and blog at boulderknollfarm.com. Thanks to Dan Groberg, web-master extraordinaire, we have a recipe and food ideas section to which we hope you’ll contribute. There’s a member forum for asking questions and sharing thoughts, a work needs page and a page on which I’ll post the anticipated harvest for the next week. We hope this site will be useful and well-used!

Wish List

Almost everything on the farm is begged, borrowed and even picked off the side of the road at bulk pick-up time.

Here are a few things we need this year:

• garden trowels
• digging forks (especially the kind with D-shaped handles and 4 or 5 straight tines)
• 2x4s or 2x3s in decent condition (for construction)
• two large water coolers with a spigot for drinking water and hand washing
• hoses of any length (with non-leaky fittings)
• large sheets of cardboard for paths
• your kitchen scraps for our compost pile (put them in the right hand pile for now)
• racks that we can dry onions on (look for closet shelving or other closely spaced grates)
• saw horses
• a “garden weasel” (this is a spiky, rolling thing with a waist high handle that you use to break up the soil surface)

Thanks again to everyone who joined the farm this year. I’m looking forward to great food, great learning and great community.

Brenda Caldwell
Your grateful farmer
Boulder Knoll Community Farm