Autumn farewells
Greetings, friends!
Frost arrived at the farm on Thursday morning, after a couple of days of false alarms. Our mum crop still looks lovely, but we’ve said goodbye to the dahlias until next year. Our crew spent the week removing crops and seeding cover crops, trying to get a nice cover established before winter sets in. This time of year is bittersweet; we love growing flowers and never feel as though we’re truly ready to say goodbye, but the promise of a long winter of rest and planning is a treat. We’ve got a lot of relaxing, reflecting, and dreaming to do!
Rest won’t come too soon, though. During our field walk this week, I made what may be the longest to-do list the farm has ever seen, and we’ve continued to add tasks every day. We’ve got a long list of perennials and fruit trees to fertilize, new perennials to plant, dahlias to bed down for winter, high tunnel plastic to repair, and so much more! There’s plenty to keep us busy in the field over the course of the next month or two, but we’re also hoping to make some time for creative work— wreath season is fast approaching, after all.
As the season turns, we always note the disappearance of some of our favorite farm inhabitants and visitors. The butterflies have disappeared for the year, migrating to warmer areas. The frogs we love to watch spend their days by the pond have hidden themselves from us, perhaps preparing to enter hibernation. We notice fewer insects (aside from aphids, who love to spend winters in our high tunnels), and fewer mammalian visitors to the farm. But the colder months always bring sightings of species we don’t get to see much of during the summer. Bald eagles circle the farm this time of year, and once every autumn we’re graced with the sounds of tundra swans flying over the farm. And of course we have year-round residents who are always close by, like the cardinals, finches, sparrows, and chickadees who visit the bird feeders throughout the season. The farm is never truly asleep for the winter.
Cleanup time! Karen, Meg, and Dave took out all of the zinnias on Monday, kicking off a big week of farm cleanup.
Since frost didn’t hit us until Thursday, we will have bouquets and bunches of flowers available at the market after all! After this the pickings will be slim, likely limited to wreaths, mums, and some evergreens. We’ll continue attending the market as long as it seems worthwhile for us to do so.
Market bouquets, get them while you can!
Market
We’re back at the JFX market on Sunday from 7:00-12:00.
This week’s market stand will feature bouquets, bunches of dahlias, eucalyptus, marigolds, mums, and hairy balls. We' don’t have much produce left in the fields, but this week the selection will feature lettuce and pawpaws.
Thanks for reading!
Take care,
Amelia and the rest of the Two Boots crew
We’re extremely proud of our ornamental kale crop this year. After years of producing an underwhelming crop (curved stems, pest damage, and poor timing were our biggest struggles) we have a phenomenal crop this year.
Karen, harvesting the last pawpaws of the season.
It’s a great year for autumn foliage! We’re taking in these beautiful views every chance we get.