8 THINGS WE LOVE ABOUT FARMING THIS YEAR

This year we have farmed more and harvested more vegetables than we ever have in previous years.  As Fall approaches and our growing season winds down, we wanted to take a little time to reflect on what we love about farming this year. Below are 8 things we love about farming this year.

1. BEING OUTSIDE IN THE SUN. Now granted, every day was not sunny while we were farming; however, it was marvelous on the days that were. On days where we got out to the farm early, we were able to see the sun heat up the dew on the leaves of our vegetables and create a swirling steam effect much like a hot cup of coffee on a cold day. In the afternoon, the sun would warm up our bodies and give our plants the necessary dose of light energy to create photosynthesis. In the evening, we often found ourselves working harder and racing the sun so we could get home before dark. There is something to be said for getting out of the house, away from computers, and soaking up the sun's rays.
2. THE VARIETY OF VEGETABLES THAT WE ARE GROWING.  This year, we branched out beyond our leafy greens and tried growing many vegetables that we haven't tried before. Most were successes. We were proud to get root vegetables such as beets, carrots, and parsnips to grow this year. We tried out several squashes and cucumbers this year and found out we are in love with spaghetti squash. We were able to grow beans and tomatoes like never before after learning from our mistakes in the previous years. We also discovered some spicy leafy greens such as arugula and nasturtium leaves that we plan to grow more of next year. When we look in seed catalogs, there is so much variety. We know we can grow them all, but we sure can try enough variety to learn how to be dangerous. :)
3. HAVING CSA MEMBERS AND BEING ABLE TO TALK TO THEM EVERY OTHER WEEK.  This year, we started a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program and provided produce to 10 families every other week. It has been so cool to see their faces as we give them a box of vegetables and explain what they are getting in the box. We get to talk to them about what we do on the farm, healthy living, and fun recipes to try with the vegetables they are getting. We get to learn about their families, jobs, and interests. It is so fascinating what brings each family to the decision to eat healthier and support local farmers. We appreciate each and every one of them. 
4. KNOWING THAT WE ARE FEEDING OTHERS WITH PESTICIDE FREE PRODUCE.  We have recognized in the past how disconnected we were with where our food came from and what chemicals had been used to grow the vegetables we bought in the store. By farming, we are able to control how our vegetables grow and we choose not to contaminate them with questionable chemicals that have even more questionable long-term effects on our bodies. It takes more time and effort to farm organically, but it is worth it to know that our food does come from industrialized factories. We cover most of our growing vegetables with row cover to protect them from insects, we weed by hand instead of by using herbicides, and we clean our produce with good old-fashioned water instead of chemical-laden preservatives or waxes. We are making an impact in the local community and letting companies like Monsanto know that we don't need them to be sustainable or grow successful crops.
5. EATING MORE FRESH VEGETABLES THAN WE EVER HAVE BEFORE.  Even after providing our CSA members and wholesalers vegetables, we have a lot of extra vegetables. We are eating them, canning them, and freezing them like crazy! We have discovered the wonderful versatility of kale and collards this year. We have probably cooked zucchini 1,000 ways and loved most of them. We have replaced pasta with spaghetti squash in several recipes. We have taken more salads in our work lunch boxes than ever before. Even though it is a lot of extra work now, we have also frozen pre-made dinners with vegetables, soups, and blanched vegetables so that we can enjoy them all winter long. We probably have over 50 different vegetable dishes in our deep freezer right now.
6. SHARING A FOCUSED GOAL WITH MY PARTNER. There is something beautiful about sharing a farming hobby in a relationship with a loved one. Most couples bond by a shared interest in the beginning of their relationship and sometimes it is challenging to keep that going through the years. Whether it is going out dancing, drinking, or mountain biking, it is good to have something other than responsibilities and bills to share with your partner. Damian and I share the mutual love of farming and have a goal to keep farming for many years to come. 
7. WORKING HARD WITH A PURPOSE. Americans get a bad rap for being lazy and we don't want to be lumped into that category. There is so much that can be done to make our lives and our world more interesting, but often we wait for someone else to get things started.  We don't want to just want to be spectators in our world. We wanted to make an impact by growing organic produce. In order to do that, it takes A LOT of hard work. From putting the seed in the soil, taking care of each plants basic needs, and getting the fully grown vegetables to the consumers, it is a lot of love and work that has to go into it. We have watched sweat roll off of each other and witnessed crabbiness from exhaustion. When one of us is tired, the other one pushes us to finish what we have to get done in order to go home and be rewarded with a delicious meal. No one ever told us farming would be easy. Most of them told us that it is a lot of hard work. They were right.
8. WATCHING HOW EACH OTHER DEALS WITH CHALLENGES AND THE GROSS PARTS OF FARMING. Everything we planted has not grown. Deer, bugs, and mother nature have caused us to lose plants and caused us frustration. When it rains, the plants get watered for us, but it also means we have to weed a lot more. When playing out in nature every weekend, we ran into some pretty gross things that I don't even want to go into detail about. Mostly smells and rotting dead things, but I still don't think this blog post needs to get into the icky details. Through the year, we have gotten better at communicating with each other about how to get through challenges we have at the farm. We have to be able to let things go and recognize that we are not "perfect farmers" or anywhere near that. We still have a lot to learn. When we encounter challenges at the farm, we might squeal, curse, or puke depending on the situation. However, we are still hear to tell about it and poke fun at each other for how we reacted to certain things. Thank goodness we have had each other to witness the best and the worst of farming because I don't think I could have done it alone.