Summer hit!
There’s a lot to do, and not enough time to do it. We are hurrying around, we are short on hands, and it is hot hot hot! Summer is here!
Let me sum up my experience on a farm thus far: anything unexpected could happen, so we just keep moving forward. It’s Murphy's Law, folks, right down the street over here at Hawkins Farm, a law of nature that supposes that “anything that can go wrong will go wrong.”
We COULD be cultivating fourteen beds of vegetables, but there is a rapidly expanding family of potato bugs having too good of a time in the potato patch. We SHOULD be harvesting all sorts of garlic, but the list of vegetables we need for the CSA is too long, and garlic takes longer. Farmer Zach SHOULD be doing all of the things on his big list, but we were surviving a drought for most of our growing season and moving irrigation around takes time. We COULD be catching up on garlic, or weeds, or cleaning bins, or tidying up, but we are down a set of experienced hands all of the sudden. Woohoo!
Yep, you heard me right. Due to a recurring shoulder injury, Michael felt that it would be best to to begin the slow step away from the farm to prioritize his physical health. This is a big deal. Michael has been a part of the farm for a collective seven years, with a little gap here and there. He started out working with Farmer Jeff helping with slaughtering, fencing, and other necessaries, but has since migrated over to Farmer Zach’s vegetable gardens. This is his fourth season working with the veggies, and it shows. He’s speedy quick outside doing garden farm tasks, and has taken on much of the organization that takes place in the packshed to keep the veggies looking nice until they become your groceries.
We are grateful when people choose to take care of themselves out here, but it still remains that there was much to do this week.
On Tuesday, we celebrated our nation's freedom by practicing our ability to freely train a new employee, and if you were me, practice the freedom to get soaking wet from the waist down while washing all the greens in the washroom. Erin took on the task of managing this week's harvesting schedule as well as bringing a new farmer up to speed. Zach went to town with his "Greens Trimmer 5000," and we all spent a couple of hours getting carrots out of the ground, washed up, and bunched. Enjoy those tops while you can! Thankfully, Michael was able to do some of the washing while we performed our carrot operation.
Wednesday was an extra long day on Hawkins Farm. I got to see where Michael’s efficiency in the wash room has really paid off as I was introduced to the veggie preparation process. Our work share helper, Tara, helped us to keep things moving, but eventually she had to get going, which left a long day of packing greens and meat for a single set of hands. Thank goodness for coffee and bluetooth speakers! It was a long day, but it was all worth it as soon as Farmer Jeff popped in to let me know that I had some beef stroganoff waiting for me in the kitchen when I was done. And when you stay late at Hawkins Farm, Farmer Zach has a habit of offering you cool bevvies from his stash in the cooler. The perks tend to outweigh the work.
Thursday was an even longer day off of Hawkins Farm! We had our typical pack parade on Thursday, and then it was off to the deliveries. Another first for me, Zach and Michael talked me through the whole delivery process, getting down and dirty into all the little details about dropoffs, as well as all the quick “how-tos” for the Sprinter van. There’s a screech here, and a buzz there but…. It’s completely normal. Just keep moving.
The chicken van! That’s right, you might get to see some more of the giant Hawkins chicken van in your life if you’re one of our lucky delivery shares.
It was a long, strenuous week of figuring out new things alongside newer hands, but we ended on a bit of a high out here on Friday. Speaking of that garlic we never got around to. Well, we got around to it. Upon Erin’s suggestion (via her mother at Joyfield Farm), Farmer Zach and I tested out a brand new peeling process, utilizing the stalk of the plant to peel off the dirt covered outer layer of the bulb. This step removes a lot of the seconds spent tearing off layers by catching them with your thumbnail. A method that was used in Erin’s family for decades, and on Hawkins Farm since Erin joined the team.
The new process worked well! Like, really well, as if the plant was designed to be handled in this particular way. As easy as peeling a banana. Suggesting that even though anything unexpected can go wrong, we can expect things to go right just as well.
-Alex
