Good morning shareholders,
This week on the farm we have been enjoying the joyful presence of our 10 new camp counselors. Led by our Camp Director, Pilar, the group has been familiarizing themselves with every corner of the farm, meeting the staff, and developing some absolutely fabulous activities for the campers who join us for the first week of camp on July 11th.
Our livestock team continues to hay, hay, and hay some more. The mountain of round bales grows by the day, making our farmers and cows feel secure about the winter feed supply. We have new volunteers helping in the dairy barn and starting this Sunday we will be welcoming some young volunteers to help with our Sunday barn chores. We are wrapping up our expansion project in the Carriage Barn and welcoming lots of families to our weekend Fun in the Farmyard and Rise and Shine programs. Friday Farm Dinners continue each week with some great restaurants coming to the farm in July.
We hope you enjoy a festive 4th of July weekend. We will be open regular hours for share pick up this coming Monday, the 4th - 1pm-7pm.
News from the Field:
I had hoped not to rely upon talk of the weather for
content. It is a trite New England tradition to begin with and twice
overworked when it comes to the talk of farmers. However my consternation
overbears my restraint and I must speak. It is about as dry as powdered
biscuit mix out there. I’ve been binge watching Deadwood, a tv show
set in the Badlands of South Dakota, and I’ve notice that Appleton is taking on
a similar color scheme. How dry is it? Yesterday our well ran to
empty for the first time in at least 4 years. After all my bragging about
new irrigation equipment we end up not having enough water to run it when we
need it. Please take a moment to appreciate our shiny new filters, lines
and overhead sprinklers on your way out to picking because, for the time being,
they have been reduced to expensive instillation art.
But que sera, sera. While I am trying to be very
cautious about planting or seeding brand new vegetables into this dust bowl,
the veggies that we all ready have in the ground seem to be holding on for the
most part. Soon this endless stretch of perfect sunny days must break and
the rain will come as a great relief to plants and farmers both. In a
month or so I expect the share will reflect our present troubles with a break
in the successions of our beans and cilantro. We haven’t seeded these
things in a couple of weeks because, with so little water, many of the seeds
could die before they even fully germinate. For now we’ll save the seed
and the time it takes to plant them and after the rain comes we will plant
double to make up for lost time.
The Share:
Greens
Lettuce
Turnips
Bok Choi
Kale
Cabbage
Scallions
PYO herbs
New this week:
Garlic Scapes
Broccoli
Volunteers Wanted: We are still looking for volunteers to help us in a number of capacities.
Sunday Barnyard Program Assistant (Kids 12+). Email Caroline at crouillar@thetrustees.org
Flower Fields Garden Maintenance Email Beth at bzschau@thetrustees.org
Volunteers also needed for the Boston Pops at Castle Hill. Email Marc at mmahan@thetrustees.org
Handy Volunteer to make 25 wooden reindeer for our winter Reindeer Quest Event
Upcoming Programs and Events:
Friday Farm Dinners
Fridays starting June 24th │ 5:30-8:30PM
Join
Appleton Farms and our local chefs for a summer evening of farm fresh food,
live music, and lawn games! This family-friendly dinner in our Stone Paddock
will feature a seasonal menu of fresh food grown or raised at Appleton and
other local farms. We have also invited the Ipswich Ale tap mobile to offer
beer and wine for purchase. Ticket
price includes the full dinner buffet, non-alcoholic beverages (beer and wine
will be available for purchase), dessert, games, music and all the fun you can
handle! Dinners are held rain or shine. Menu changes every week. Register online.
*July 8th- Food by Bambolia, rustic pizza makers from Salem and music by the Austin Torpedos
*July 15- Food by A&B Burgers and music by Derek Rando
*July 22nd- Food by Grassy Roots and music by Highway's End
Carrot Club
Starting the Week of July 5th
Tuesday & Thursday │2-4PM
Carrot Club is our
drop in, pop-up program outside the Appleton Farm Store every Tuesday and
Thursday from 2-4pm. Drop in anytime between 2 and 3:45 for a fun farm craft,
story or game. Activities will change every session so there is always
something fun to try! Activities will average 15-20 minutes and will be guided
by our farm educator. FREE
Wee Farmers Mini Camp - Week of July 11th – August 15th
Wednesdays and Fridays │ 9-10:30AM
Wee Farmers
is designed for our 3-4 year old friends
who want to explore the farm, meet our animals, and get a taste of what Farm
Camp is like at Appleton! You’ll get to dig into life on the farm and lend a
helping hand brushing our goats, feeding
our bunnies, singing songs, and taste testing in the education garden! Learn
about how we grow our vegetables and see how good your senses are with Harvest
Blanket. Tour the Cheese Kitchen and learn how sunshine helps to makes our
delicious milk. We’ll start our morning with a quick craft and song before
venturing out for some farm discovery and nature exploration. This program is
perfect for younger siblings who have older siblings signed up for the Appleton
Farm Camp and want to join in the fun too!
Meet the Machines & Summer Picnic
Sunday, July 24th │ 4-7PM
Balers and
bucket loaders and harrows, oh my! Pack a picnic and spend a summer evening at
Appleton Farms meeting our machines. You'll get to climb aboard backhoes, check
out manure spreaders and try out the view from our tractors. Afterwards, enjoy live music and your picnic brought from home in the stone paddock. When you’ve
gotten your fill of machines try your hand at some lawn games or check out
crafts in the carriage barn. Also make sure to say hello to our goats, sheep,
and bunnies in the barnyard! Limited picnic tables will be available, but feel
free to bring your own lawn chairs or blankets! We'll have free lemonade and
water available for all. Ice cream will be available for sale.
