Kettle Pond Farmers

Week 1 of CSA distributions

2010-06-10T16:40:00.000-07:00

Hey there,

Hope you all enjoyed the first week of CSA distributions. It sure was great to meet and greet all of you. As we mentioned in the newsletter here are the veggies pictures!

The share all together!

The Radishes

The Lettuce
The Arugula
The Swiss Chard
The Pak Choi
The Garlic Scapes
The Scallions

Hope you all enjoyed it!

~Steve

A Forgotten Post By our Friend Ellie

2010-06-06T16:48:00.000-07:00

Another Spring season at Kettle Pond Farm with Steve and Kelly starts in the green house. This will be the third season managing together. Way to go!

There is a new structure on the farm this year. West of the seedling green house now stands the steel frame of a hoop house, 72 x 26 x 12 feet. The hoop house is made possible by a grant research project and will extend the growing season without requiring suplimental heating or electricity. So have a look when you pick up your CSA share.

The area where the hoop house stands has been cleared. Last season red cedar trees lined the East side, a wooden shack that housed old wood stood in the corner, and the lot had a fence around it. The red cedar trees were cut and are now at the back of the field with other timber. Much of the wood shack fueled a holiday fire for the family who used to live on the farm. This lot has hosted various life throughout the past few years: chickens have been in and out of the yard. In the 2007 season the fence kept a bull in and also kept sheep in 2008. An old woman even lived in the shack for a few years in the early 1940s.

This year Kettle Pond Farm joined a grant project funded by USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service through Environmental Quality Incentives Program, EQIP, see full article. The grant will test the a hoop house in extending seasonal growing and increasing organic local food. The house is orientated on a North South axis with the long sides facing East and West. The walls will be a single layer of plastic which can be rolled up 4 or 5 feet during the warm season. In colder weather the hoop house will be closed and the beds within can be covered with smaller hoops and remay for extra insulation. The purpose is to extend the production of food two to four weeks both in early spring and further into the fall and winter. Other participating states and territories are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Pacific Islands, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

Passive solar heating, heat gained from the sun, can warm a house and there are many designs to make the most of sun shining into ones home; see Simple Facts about Sun Inspired Design. The other elements that make plants grow are water see the Eight Principles of Successful Rainwater Harvesting, and soil. Soil must be alive with beneficial aerobic bacteria, fungi, arthropods, and nematodes that have a relationship with plant roots, desease control, and worms in the soil. A biologist named Dr. Elaine Ingham studies and consults by observing and responding to the "soil foodweb" visitit this online library link for more infomation.

http://www.johnnyseeds.com/t-quickhoops.aspx

http://www.sunplans.com/learn/sun-inspired/facts

http://www.harvestingrainwater.com/rainwater-harvesting-inforesources/water-harvesting-principles/

http://www.soilfoodweb.com/

May, oh May

2010-05-11T14:41:00.000-07:00

This year is sure moving along. It feels like yesterday that we were working on the seed order, and now the greenhouse is always full and the fields are filling up!

The CSA is filling up nicely, but we still have shares available for the 2010 season. We have already filled 60 of the 80 total shares, and we really hope to have the whole lot filled by the 1st or 2nd week of June. So if you know someone who might be interested in fresh, local, certified produce then send them our way!

The chickens are loving their new coop, as are the farmers. It is very convenient! We have almost completed the new greenhouse, pictures to come. The farm has changed so much since last year, I can't really remember what it use to look like! I'm glad we have some pictures as a reminder!

Another update is that we recently updated the pick-up area, is not 100% complete, but it is getting there. I think the changes will really enhance to CSA, so please give us feed back when you come to pick-up your veggies!

I think I will end this here. Hope you are all having a great spring! More rain tomorrow. But sun the next day. Exciting changes all around.

~Steve
KPF team

Signing up for the 2010 season!

2010-01-26T11:42:00.000-08:00

Hey there fellow veggie lovers. Just wanted to add a quick update here that we are now accepting new members for the 2010 CSA season. We are looking to add 20 or so new members this season, which is ultra exciting.

A few weeks ago Kelly and I finished the seed order. Most of the seeds have already come in and it is really starting to feel like farming time again. The green house propane tank is full and ready to start the season, the potting soil will be on its way soon, all we have to do is wait.

The last update is that today I order 30 RI Red baby chicks...that means certified organic eggs again this year. The should be laying by the end of June.

Keep your eyes upon for more updates, pictures and all around veggie-ness.

~Steve
KPF team

End of the season

2009-10-30T19:29:00.001-07:00

Well it is the end of another wonderful growing season here at KPF. The CSA and market have ended, and the post season planning is about to begin. On Monday we will be planting the first of the 2010 crops, garlic. After that we will be putting out the 2010 member agreement and enrollment forms. We are looking forward to another wonderful season! Next season we will be expanding our membership and possibly expanding into the late fall, with some great fall vegetables. We are also planning to get more laying hens in February in order to have eggs by June. Look forward to more updated post

Sweet Pea Tepees and Friable Soil

2009-05-01T11:12:00.000-07:00

Truck loads of compost arrived in February from Thistle Hollow Farm down the road. Passers by may have seen piles of dark soil migrating via wheel barrow into smaller piles all over the fields. The cubic yards and cubic yards of compost are now spread. The sprouting rye grass cover the fields in places and we have wheeled drop spreaders to add calcium phosphate, gypsum, and lime.

Compost, soil amendments, and rye grass are all preparing for healthy vegetables for our CSA members! We hope to have “friable” soil. Not necessarily the kind you want to stick in a buttered up pan and eat with a fork, although compost aged five years, like a fine wine, tempts some gardeners. Friable soil is soil that has the crumbly texture ideal for the root growth of plants. Next year along with the compost, soil amendments, and cover crops. Kettle Pond Farm hopes to add humates to the field.

Our green house brims with the miracle of life. Managers go away for the weekend and come back to find once blank soil trays popping with kale, lettuces, herbs, and onion sprouts. The garlic next to the green house planted last November looks happy and healthy. On April 5th in our northwest field, we direct seeded (meaning put directly into the ground) peas! Peas resist cold temperatures and will yield fruit in June. After planting we put posts in the ground to support lattices for the pea vines to grow up.

A new addition to Kettle Pond's fields is The Learning and Giving Garden for community use. Tepee frames mark the East side of the Learning and Giving garden.. Angela Possinger a neighbor and biology student at Roger Williams Univeristy is organizing the plot. Many of you know her as the education coordinator.

Three and soon to be four tepee structures consist of four seven foot sticks tied at the top with straw bale twine. Peas have been planted round the base and will grow up to cover the frames. A door will be kept open on these playful structures to invite children and anyone to sit inside to contemplate the growth around them.

Pea tepees join gardening with human space. Here is a link with articles written by a dynamic dance collective about the human body in landscape (it even mentions a neighborhood pea field). What better snack than a fresh peas in a pod plucked off the vine. Picking peas in large quantities can wear a farmer out, but it seems young kids can't pick enough.

-Written by Ellie, our favorite work exchanger.

Photos by Kelly.

Top: Kelly spreading compost.

Bottom: Possingers and their tepee.

Bee-autiful!

2008-04-19T08:25:00.000-07:00

Greetings from the farm!

What a wonderful week it was, and after stocking up on sunscreen nothing could stop us. This week we added various seedling trays in the greenhouse including one of our favorites, SWISS CHARD! We also transplanted our onions, and spent a good amount of time getting the fields ready for future plantings.

The chicks have been moved into the barn and are feathering out nicely and getting bigger by the day! Two bee hives have been added to the property courtesy of the Ellis' - members of our CSA!!

Above in the picture is Eddie Ellis and his bees. To see more pictures from this week check out the photos section of our website!

Peace, Love, and Farming,

~Kelly

Soil Blocks

2008-04-06T08:27:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends,

Steve here dishing out an update: Tomatoes and eggplant have been planted! Last Wednesday, with the help of several young helpers, we seeded 1120 soil blocks and they have already started to sprout! The blocks are an alternative to the plastic plug trays and are quite fun to make! Here are some pictures...

The soil blocks are set on a heat mat and are under 3 lamps (growing lamps). Plants respond well from bottom heating and the lamps act as sunlight. Because the blocks are so small they easily dry out and need to be sprayed with water every 3-6 hours. After about 2 weeks these small blocks will be put into larger soil blocks and several weeks after that they will be ready for transplanting! I can taste those tomatoes now!

Peace, Love and Farming
~Steve

Egg-cellent

2008-03-26T16:20:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Kettle Pond Farm!

After much anticipation, the chicks have finally arrived! The 30 Rhode Island Red hens are adjusting nicely to their new home, literally! They are inside until they get a little bigger and can handle cold nights out in the barn. Here is Steve tending to them!

Peace, Love & Farming!

~Kelly

Tomato Sprouts

2008-03-22T07:35:00.000-07:00

Hey Friends!

Good news coming straight from the warmth of the greenhouse: The Early Tomatoes have officially Sprouted! The proof is in the pictures:

Andrea's Greenhouse is pretty full:

Peace, Love and Farming,
~Stephen

Onions!

2008-03-19T14:08:00.000-07:00

Hey friends,

First post for the Kettle Pond Farmers! The season is beginning and today we planted onions with the help of Janis, one of our very own CSA members! Nancy and Angela also helped out making today an especially productive day. Our neighbor Andrea has kindly let us use her greenhouse until ours is heated, hopefully it will be up and running by late next week...This week we turned over some earth to prepare for the planting of fava beans and peas in early April. The soil is looking good and tasting good too!

Next week the greenhouse work really picks up meaning good eats on the horizon. The baby chicks will be here by Wednesday next week and should by laying by late July or early August. Also we now have a puppy! Max, a year old Puggle, has joined our ranks and is ready to protect us from hungry deer (they love to eat squash flowers...). Thats all for now...

Peave, love and farming,
~Stephen