What a week we had! In this post, I’ll focus on the bees and a conversation with Melissa Maxwell from Barrett’s Mill Farm.
Backyard Bees
The week kicked off with bringing home our new bees. I took a day off from work to do the pickup at Autumn Morning Farm in Barre, MA. It was a beautiful drive and a great adventure to share with my son. The farm has pick-up down to an efficient science, with a circular drive, check-in, and even a mock-up hive to demo their recommended method of installing a package of bees. They had a whole trailer full of packages, and I noticed right away that there were a few out-of-state vehicles. This made me think, they must have good bees!
Once home, we suited up and introduced the bees to their new hive! It felt good to have gotten that far, but then the worry of the coming cold nights and uncertainty of being new to beekeeping crept in. I waited a few days to take a peek and check on the queen but have been going by a couple times a day just to look and see what kind of activity was going on. On Wednesday the queen was still in the queen cage (with plenty of candy left to keep her in), but she was active and looked fine. A couple more days later, on Friday, I checked again and brought out some fresh syrup. The queen was free! From what I understand, it is still too early to do an inspection, so I simply removed the queen cage and left the frames alone. Next week I will inspect in more detail. I am excited to find out what progress they are making, especially since they already had some good frames of comb with which to work.
Conversation with a Farmer
I had the opportunity to chat with Melissa Maxwell from Barrett’s Mill Farm. We discussed what’s going on at the farm right now (challenges and her “favorite task” this week), advice for aspiring farmers, and observations regarding the farm’s effort to donate and discount CSA shares to group homes and low-income families.
Melissa explained how one of the biggest challenges this time of year is just “keeping up” with the tasks at hand: what to plant, preparing everything from equipment to seeds, dealing with weather, etc. She called this the typical spring pressure. It was clear that a lot of the pressure in the spring is because there is a point of no return – that is, if the spring doesn’t go well, the rest of the season will be affected by those problems. It seemed like a theme I experience at a much smaller level – spring is a time of new projects, trying to keep on schedule and on task, and trying to not over-commit to too many things at once!
It was neat to hear that Barrett’s Mill is trying to grow ginger for the first time this year! For the ginger, Melissa described how they are constructing a new hoop house and trying to sprout the ginger. This was possible, she explained, because the weather has been favorable this year and the farm is staying on schedule. Since they are on target, they have the opportunity to pursue new things! I love this because it seems like it is a concept that anyone can apply, from backyard gardeners to family farmers. We must take advantage of successes and the consequent opportunities when they present themselves!
When I asked about a favorite task on the farm this week, Melissa told me about how she enjoyed seeding carrots and beets. She said that it feels good to get it done on time, and that is it really “pleasant” using the push seeder in the fields. I can imagine the sense of accomplishment that relates to what Melissa described as being set up for success. They are getting so much done on the farm, with tilling, seeding, placing row covers, and installing the fencing.
One thing that got me thinking was Melissa’s advice for aspiring farmers. It was interesting to me that her top advice was about more logistical considerations of starting a farm. Melissa’s advice was to carefully consider the existing soil type and access to water for irrigation at a property before committing. This was from a business perspective I had not even started to consider. Melissa explained that because in farming everything is “marginal” and there is no room for error, you often cannot afford to put in extra time to do things like improving the soil AND make it all work. So, from this perspective, it seems that unless you have time and a financial situation that would allow you to take on tasks such as regenerating the land or installing a well, you are better off looking to start your farm on a property that has good agricultural soil and existing access to water. The other thing that really struck me was how Melissa described how devastating one bad year can be. She explained that you could be fortunate for one or even five years while farming on a “marginal” property. However, the risk with the slim financial margins of farming is that the losses from one bad year could mean the end of the farm. I’m nowhere near a point where I can consider investing in property for farming, but this advice will be helpful as I think long-term. Since any kind of agricultural pursuit would be my second career, I do have the luxury of time to do self-assessment and deliberate planning about what I may or may not be able to take on in the future.
The final topic from my discussion with Melissa was about donated CSA shares. This helps tie my efforts back into produce donation and hunger relief efforts once again! As a returning member of the Barrett’s Mill Farm CSA program, I am aware that they have a small number of shares that are donated to group homes or offered at a discount to low-income families. The shares offered to the families are an even better value because they can also use benefits such as SNAP when they make their purchase.
Melissa said that the most striking observation she has made is that the participants in this program keep coming back. She was concerned that they may not return to the CSA, that they may not be able to add pick-up to their schedule or make it work, but they are clearly benefiting and enjoy the program enough to return. Melissa believes it is important that the participants have access to the entire experience of being a CSA member – visiting the farm, enjoying the same variety of foods, etc. A priority is not just to donate the produce, but to incorporate this full experience. It was very interesting to hear how ten years ago, a farmer might need a high school guidance counselor to identify families that could benefit. Now, Melissa explained, the programs in place make it easier to identify and connect with people, it’s easier to get the word out about the opportunity. They also see the benefit of partnering with local organizations.
I truly appreciate the time Melissa took from her busy schedule to talk with me. I’ve reached out to her in the past and we’re trying to find a good time for me to visit at the farm. However, I am looking forward to my morning working at Gaining Ground this coming Friday. It will be great to see what’s going on there this time of year and get an initial glimpse into their operations.
Ongoing in the House and in the Backyard
The usual activities continued this week! Inside, the seedlings keep growing, we harvested some delicious baby greens, and I’ve been researching how to battle gnats (first time I've had an issue - since I'm trying to grow so much more inside, I think) and of course I keep reading up on beekeeping. I did a little more spring cleaning in the gardens, and I sowed more radish as well as arugula, lettuces, chard, snow peas, lemon balm, and salvia. I am hoping for great weather this coming week/weekend so I can finish clearing out my other garden beds. Seedling pick-up at the farm is May 9th, so as long as I continue to make progress this week, I’ll be ready and right on schedule!
Have a great week! And if you celebrate it, Happy Easter!!