BGF NEWS - January 2021 - VOL. XLVI, NO. 3

WHAT’S UP ON THE FARM?

Precipitation in the past month: Snow: 9.0"

                                                            Rain: trace

Happy New Year from the farm!

It was a quiet, snowy holiday season on the farm with only those who live here gathering to share the day in person. We did have Zoom Christmas with extended family which was appreciated and prudent, but not the same. We assume many of you had similar experiences.

The darkest days of winter are now past us and as each each day dawns we have a bit more daylight. The winter crops really appreciate the increasing day length. Crops in the high tunnel are basically held in stasis from mid Dec until about Valentine's day. Then they will suddenly start to put on lots of new growth. 

Winter VegEmail harvesting

This will be a cause for celebration for our winter VegEmail customers as we should have more leafy green crops to offer as the weeks continue. The chickens also slow down during these shorter days. We went from getting 12-14 dozen eggs a day for much of the summer to  about 2 dozen on Christmas day. Don't they understand we have hungry egg customers???

The seed orders are finally all placed and the new seeds are rolling in. This is a photo of just "a few" of the new seeds that have arrived so far. The potting soil (which was hauled up the hill in the sled) is mixed and ready for the coming season. We will start sowing the first transplant crops next in a few weeks.

So what else have we been up to in the past month? VegEmail deliveries continue every two weeks. There's been a fair amount of snow clearing, both mechanical and by hand. The high tunnels have to be cleared whenever there is a heavy snow, which guarantees snow-filled pockets and hoods at some point, no matter how careful I am! 

Once I get the January newsletter out (today!), the 2021  garden maps are the next big priority. The screen shot on the right is a quick glimpse at the plan for our "El Sur" plot, which is about 3/4 done. 

Other than that, we are attending virtual farming meetings, doing daily chores and playing in the snow a bit.

2021 CSA:

Veteran member sign up has begun. If you were a CSA member in 2020, you should have received an email last month with the details and a link to the sign up form. If you didn't receive your membership email for the 2021 season, please let us know ASAP.  2020 members have until the end of January (just 2 more weeks) to lock in their spots and then we will open any remaining shares to our waiting list. Huge thanks to those of you who have already responded and an additional farm-fresh round of applause to those who have already paid (that helps us cover all those new seeds!) If you are interesting in joining us as a new member this season, you can email us at mail@bluegatefarmfresh.com and ask to be put on the waiting list.

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That's about it for now. If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know.

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and the whole BGF crew)

Indigo, Luci & Sky