There is pork sausage available for order. Look for order forms at your pick-up site or on the farm website at www.roxburyfarm.com
There are also black currents availabe for order from a farm in Columbia County. Look for order forms at your pick-up site and on the farm website.
This week's share includes: salad mix, braising mix, mini cabbage, broccoli, summer squash, zucchini, cucumbers, fresh garlic, scallions, basil and parsley. The fruit share is a quart of strawberries from Yonder Farm (the berries are not organic).
For Columbia County Members Only: There will not be a delivery this week due to the 4th of July Holiday weekend. There will be a make up delivery in November. Look for a postcard in the mail this week to tell you the pick-up date.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Photos from the Farm
The winter squash is beginning to bloom. Soon the field will be full of wild bees visiting the bright orange and yellow blossoms. 
The potatoes are blooming. They flowers are the same the color as their potatoes. The redish/purple flowers will have red skinned potatoes. The white blooms will have white or yellow skinned potatoes.
The potatoes are blooming. They flowers are the same the color as their potatoes. The redish/purple flowers will have red skinned potatoes. The white blooms will have white or yellow skinned potatoes.photos by Johannes Courtens
Week 5 Letter from a Farmer
First of all thank you for the many supportive letters we received from you as a response to Jody’s letter of “Gone to hail.” This week, I have chosen to write about some of our farm methods related to biodynamics. I could highlight all the quantifiable angles: the aspects you can count, measure and weigh. On this farm we rely a lot on numbers and good research and we respect the good science that comes from our friends at Cornell. So, what is it that opened us up to the rather extraordinary exercise of taking cow manure and placing it in a horn, to bury this in the ground over the winter, stir it for one hour in plenty of warm water and to spray this concoction over a field? Is this an exercise of faith and is there any science involved? And what is scientific anyway?
The natural world is always contextual; no creature lives by itself. No tree lives without the soil, sun, moon, birds, rain, bees, worms etc. We consider the farm as a whole to be an organism – a very messy concept indeed, as it includes not only the total farm and surrounding ecology, but also its economy, the community, etc. This goes way beyond our ability to accurately count, measure, and weigh. Therefore, some scientists will ignore an outcome that has too many fluctuating variables. A researcher friend once observed that something else is going on at our farm, and actually on all these biodynamic farms. “Whatever it is you do, keep doing it,” he said. The way he said it implied that he couldn’t quite put his finger on it – something intangible, something you can only feel and experience by walking the farm. Only by understanding the details will we fully appreciate the whole. Maybe contextual science is the “ultimate” science. But this will demand a complete new awareness whereby we can separate feelings from sentiment, and thoughts from garble. I am not ready yet, but I can imagine what it looks like.
The context of this biodynamic farm includes its relationship to the people who depend on it. Roxbury Farm is the result of a shared vision of the farmers and many of the original members. Following a dream or a vision means taking a chance, and our early members were fully aware of that. When we started the CSA, no one had heard of the concept. Following new ideas can be terrifying, but at some point you have to let go and jump. Visions are like dreams and are part of the context of this farm. Dreaming to me means “to sense an emerging future.” Someone who makes an effort to sense an emerging future is probably more likely to accept the idea of putting manure in a horn than someone who wants proof before the act.
When you act on a dream, you act more out of listening to an inner voice than out of calculation. Those decisions create either the greatest delight or the greatest despair, and usually the most memorable experiences. The greatest decisions in my life have been made by trusting the faculties that have little to do with numbers. Here we lean on a different ability – the words intuition, empathy and love come to mind. Fortunately, there is hardly a traditional learning process required: no downloading of information, only the ability to surrender and to develop an open heart and an open mind. (Someone once told me that the mind is like a parachute: it works best when it is open.) A long time ago, an inner voice told me to become a farmer. Since then I have felt blessed and cursed by my job, but I have never doubted that decision; it is a lifelong discovery to understand the purpose of this “calling.” (As I write this, Jody and I are feeling quite a bit of discomfort – I threw my back out and Jody had a minor farm accident – but I am writing this to make a point, not to gain your sympathy.)
Some people associate listening to an inner voice with spiritual or religious matters; maybe true, but even nonbelievers still utilize it when they make the most important decisions in their life. Art and religion cultivate or help us to articulate these experiences. Art might well be the vessel for the modern-day transcendental experience. I happen to have been raised as a Catholic, so I am most familiar with the stories of the Old and New Testament. If I had been raised as a Muslim or Hindu, I would be able to find stories of these experiences in the Koran or the Bhagavad Gita. In my mind, every religion is truthful, as all of them can be a meaningful way to get closer to the divine part of our Self and the world. Good religious practices allow us to open up our minds, hearts, and wills and stop us from listening to the voices of judgment, cynicism, and needless fear.
A Christian community priest once said that going out and spraying the horn manure preparation on the field is a similar act to that of the woman who poured expensive ointment over Christ’s head (Matthew 26 and Luke 14). The rational voice in me speaks like the apostles who scolded the woman for wasting such expensive oil. They could have sold the oil and given the money to the poor. Christ responded to the apostles that they should stop bothering the woman as she helped prepare him for his death. My heart tells me that the earth, its people, and other inhabitants are suffering, and that it needs the blessing of our love as much as our daily cares. We need to develop the woman in us.
From Hildegard of Bingen to Bernadette Soubirous, women have had strong visions or apparitions. In the story of Bernadette, Mary asked her to scrape the ground, saying to her “Go to the spring, drink of it and wash yourself there.” There was only a little muddy water to begin with, enough for Bernadette to drink. At first this water was muddy and dirty as the Grotto was a pigsty, then, little by little, it became clear. In its physical content, the water in Lourdes is really no different than the surrounding springs, so what allows it to heal? When I spray water with just a tiny amount of horn manure or silica in it, I intend for this water to heal the earth and its food. Do my intentions matter for this to have its effect? Am I crossing the line here between pure matter and universal life energy? Do I have to make a choice between facts and dreams? Why can’t I give them both their rightful place, as maybe the tension between the two is often imagined.
I have the dream that food will not only nourish us, but that it will eventually be a healing medium again – and this concept goes beyond “safe food.” My dream is of a world where farms and gardens are integral, vibrant, and diverse; in symphony with all living forms and rhythms. It is a world where people have Self determination. In this world, food will have vitality and authenticity. Food can give us the strength to discover our authentic Self, as eating allows for the spiritual world to whisper in our ears. When we listen closely, we might develop a new story for this planet: one that concludes that our presumed separation from this earth is an illusion. Call me a dreamer, but we have to start somewhere. ~ Jean-Paul
The natural world is always contextual; no creature lives by itself. No tree lives without the soil, sun, moon, birds, rain, bees, worms etc. We consider the farm as a whole to be an organism – a very messy concept indeed, as it includes not only the total farm and surrounding ecology, but also its economy, the community, etc. This goes way beyond our ability to accurately count, measure, and weigh. Therefore, some scientists will ignore an outcome that has too many fluctuating variables. A researcher friend once observed that something else is going on at our farm, and actually on all these biodynamic farms. “Whatever it is you do, keep doing it,” he said. The way he said it implied that he couldn’t quite put his finger on it – something intangible, something you can only feel and experience by walking the farm. Only by understanding the details will we fully appreciate the whole. Maybe contextual science is the “ultimate” science. But this will demand a complete new awareness whereby we can separate feelings from sentiment, and thoughts from garble. I am not ready yet, but I can imagine what it looks like.
The context of this biodynamic farm includes its relationship to the people who depend on it. Roxbury Farm is the result of a shared vision of the farmers and many of the original members. Following a dream or a vision means taking a chance, and our early members were fully aware of that. When we started the CSA, no one had heard of the concept. Following new ideas can be terrifying, but at some point you have to let go and jump. Visions are like dreams and are part of the context of this farm. Dreaming to me means “to sense an emerging future.” Someone who makes an effort to sense an emerging future is probably more likely to accept the idea of putting manure in a horn than someone who wants proof before the act.
When you act on a dream, you act more out of listening to an inner voice than out of calculation. Those decisions create either the greatest delight or the greatest despair, and usually the most memorable experiences. The greatest decisions in my life have been made by trusting the faculties that have little to do with numbers. Here we lean on a different ability – the words intuition, empathy and love come to mind. Fortunately, there is hardly a traditional learning process required: no downloading of information, only the ability to surrender and to develop an open heart and an open mind. (Someone once told me that the mind is like a parachute: it works best when it is open.) A long time ago, an inner voice told me to become a farmer. Since then I have felt blessed and cursed by my job, but I have never doubted that decision; it is a lifelong discovery to understand the purpose of this “calling.” (As I write this, Jody and I are feeling quite a bit of discomfort – I threw my back out and Jody had a minor farm accident – but I am writing this to make a point, not to gain your sympathy.)
Some people associate listening to an inner voice with spiritual or religious matters; maybe true, but even nonbelievers still utilize it when they make the most important decisions in their life. Art and religion cultivate or help us to articulate these experiences. Art might well be the vessel for the modern-day transcendental experience. I happen to have been raised as a Catholic, so I am most familiar with the stories of the Old and New Testament. If I had been raised as a Muslim or Hindu, I would be able to find stories of these experiences in the Koran or the Bhagavad Gita. In my mind, every religion is truthful, as all of them can be a meaningful way to get closer to the divine part of our Self and the world. Good religious practices allow us to open up our minds, hearts, and wills and stop us from listening to the voices of judgment, cynicism, and needless fear.
A Christian community priest once said that going out and spraying the horn manure preparation on the field is a similar act to that of the woman who poured expensive ointment over Christ’s head (Matthew 26 and Luke 14). The rational voice in me speaks like the apostles who scolded the woman for wasting such expensive oil. They could have sold the oil and given the money to the poor. Christ responded to the apostles that they should stop bothering the woman as she helped prepare him for his death. My heart tells me that the earth, its people, and other inhabitants are suffering, and that it needs the blessing of our love as much as our daily cares. We need to develop the woman in us.
From Hildegard of Bingen to Bernadette Soubirous, women have had strong visions or apparitions. In the story of Bernadette, Mary asked her to scrape the ground, saying to her “Go to the spring, drink of it and wash yourself there.” There was only a little muddy water to begin with, enough for Bernadette to drink. At first this water was muddy and dirty as the Grotto was a pigsty, then, little by little, it became clear. In its physical content, the water in Lourdes is really no different than the surrounding springs, so what allows it to heal? When I spray water with just a tiny amount of horn manure or silica in it, I intend for this water to heal the earth and its food. Do my intentions matter for this to have its effect? Am I crossing the line here between pure matter and universal life energy? Do I have to make a choice between facts and dreams? Why can’t I give them both their rightful place, as maybe the tension between the two is often imagined.
I have the dream that food will not only nourish us, but that it will eventually be a healing medium again – and this concept goes beyond “safe food.” My dream is of a world where farms and gardens are integral, vibrant, and diverse; in symphony with all living forms and rhythms. It is a world where people have Self determination. In this world, food will have vitality and authenticity. Food can give us the strength to discover our authentic Self, as eating allows for the spiritual world to whisper in our ears. When we listen closely, we might develop a new story for this planet: one that concludes that our presumed separation from this earth is an illusion. Call me a dreamer, but we have to start somewhere. ~ Jean-Paul
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
Photos
Cara, Luke, and Mike harvest sugar snap peas. It takes a fast picker 45 minutes to pick a bucket full. For a full week of deliveries we have to harvest about 25 buckets which means we spend about 20 hours picking peas during the week.
Justin and Wouter harvest broccoli while Jean-Paul surveys the field.
Week 3 Newsletter
This week we want to introduce you to the people who are growing your food and caring for the farm. They are a pleasure to work with and we hope you are able to meet some of them this season.
John Middleton is back for his third season on the farm. We are glad to have a third person to share the weight of managing the farm. John has stepped up to manage the maintenance and upkeep of our considerable fleet of equipment. He also helps to oversee the greenhouse production and has started to take on much of the field work that only Jean-Paul and I used to do. He is also a good teacher and helps us to instruct the apprentice crew on how the farm works. As we write this, he is in Brazil visiting his fiancée, Lidia. Due to visa issues, Lidia won’t be able to join John on the farm until the fall. We look forward to having Lidia become part of the farm crew next season. John and Jean-Paul will take turns delivering the vegetables to New York City.
Justin Wilder joins us for his second season. Justin, along with his wife Sarah and their son Dylan, also lives on the farm. Justin is a Minnesota native and moved to New York when he met Sarah. Justin is also an artist and spends part of the year drawing caricatures at fairs and festivals. We appreciate his hard work and willingness to do what needs to be done. Having people return for more than one season helps us to have a consistency with the work on the farm. Justin, Sarah, and Dylan also care for the pigs on a daily basis. Our new Tamworth boar has been christened Sweet Heart by Dylan for his bright red color. Justin is taking on the Westchester delivery route this year.
Dave and Linda, Jody’s parents, are starting their fifth season on the farm. They joined us from Iowa after they retired from teaching. Linda provides us with a presence in the farm office. She is there on Mondays and Fridays putting together the newsletter and answering your emails and phone calls. She also takes in your enrollment forms and payments. She maintains the member database and keeps track of your membership, fruit shares, and meat purchases. Her work allows us to serve you better. Dave is our resident carpenter, electrician, web man, and driver. This winter he took on the building of the apartment for John and Lidia. He has helped us improve the farm infrastructure with electrical work, building projects, and fencing. He also updates the website each week. The Capital District members will see him on Tuesdays when he delivers the produce.
Cara Fraver most recently has been working for Just Food in New York. She was responsible for connecting farmers to community kitchens and food pantries. This program is called “Fresh Food for All.” She helped to manage the relationship between the farmer and the community kitchen to make sure both parties’ needs were met , which isn’t always an easy task. She and her partner, Luke, decided
that farming was what they wanted to do, and so made the big move from Brooklyn this spring. This season Cara is taking on the greenhouse production and transplanting in the field. We appreciate her attention to detail and positive spirit.
Luke Deikis studied film at Sarah Lawrence University. For the past few years he has been a freelance lighting technician for commercials and movies in the city. While living in the city, Luke and Cara gardened and grew hops to brew their own beer (which we hear is quite tasty). Luke has a talent for construction and is always trying to build a better mousetrap. This is a skill that will come in handy for starting a new farm. We appreciate his ability to look at a situation and see how we can improve what we are doing.
Mike Yund is a Capital District native, but is arriving at the farm by way of California. He moved out to California after college and found he loved working in agriculture. He worked on two farms, doing greenhouse production and managing a market stand at a large farmers’ market in the Santa Cruz area. He decided that he wants to pursue a career in agriculture and wanted to learn farming closer to his family. His aunt is a longtime Capital District member and told him about Roxbury. We are grateful to her for bringing Mike to the farm. His laid-back style is a welcome addition to the farm. His willingness to get the job done with a smile is a pleasure to be around. He is helping Jean-Paul out with hay making by doing the tedding and raking.
Wouter van Nuil is from the Netherlands. He is a student at the agriculture school Jean-Paul attended. As part of his schooling, Wouter needs to complete a five-month apprenticeship. We are fortunate that Wouter chose to do his at Roxbury Farm. While he is working all day on the farm, he is also required to write an extensive report on the farm that includes all areas of production – plant and animal. He comes to the farm with a lot of experience and knowledge. He is also always willing to work at whatever needs to be done and does so with precision and care. Wouter is the youngest of the crew this year.
We are fortunate to have these people helping us to grow your food with such dedication, care, and love for the work. ~Jody
John Middleton is back for his third season on the farm. We are glad to have a third person to share the weight of managing the farm. John has stepped up to manage the maintenance and upkeep of our considerable fleet of equipment. He also helps to oversee the greenhouse production and has started to take on much of the field work that only Jean-Paul and I used to do. He is also a good teacher and helps us to instruct the apprentice crew on how the farm works. As we write this, he is in Brazil visiting his fiancée, Lidia. Due to visa issues, Lidia won’t be able to join John on the farm until the fall. We look forward to having Lidia become part of the farm crew next season. John and Jean-Paul will take turns delivering the vegetables to New York City.
Justin Wilder joins us for his second season. Justin, along with his wife Sarah and their son Dylan, also lives on the farm. Justin is a Minnesota native and moved to New York when he met Sarah. Justin is also an artist and spends part of the year drawing caricatures at fairs and festivals. We appreciate his hard work and willingness to do what needs to be done. Having people return for more than one season helps us to have a consistency with the work on the farm. Justin, Sarah, and Dylan also care for the pigs on a daily basis. Our new Tamworth boar has been christened Sweet Heart by Dylan for his bright red color. Justin is taking on the Westchester delivery route this year.
Dave and Linda, Jody’s parents, are starting their fifth season on the farm. They joined us from Iowa after they retired from teaching. Linda provides us with a presence in the farm office. She is there on Mondays and Fridays putting together the newsletter and answering your emails and phone calls. She also takes in your enrollment forms and payments. She maintains the member database and keeps track of your membership, fruit shares, and meat purchases. Her work allows us to serve you better. Dave is our resident carpenter, electrician, web man, and driver. This winter he took on the building of the apartment for John and Lidia. He has helped us improve the farm infrastructure with electrical work, building projects, and fencing. He also updates the website each week. The Capital District members will see him on Tuesdays when he delivers the produce.
Cara Fraver most recently has been working for Just Food in New York. She was responsible for connecting farmers to community kitchens and food pantries. This program is called “Fresh Food for All.” She helped to manage the relationship between the farmer and the community kitchen to make sure both parties’ needs were met , which isn’t always an easy task. She and her partner, Luke, decided
that farming was what they wanted to do, and so made the big move from Brooklyn this spring. This season Cara is taking on the greenhouse production and transplanting in the field. We appreciate her attention to detail and positive spirit.
Luke Deikis studied film at Sarah Lawrence University. For the past few years he has been a freelance lighting technician for commercials and movies in the city. While living in the city, Luke and Cara gardened and grew hops to brew their own beer (which we hear is quite tasty). Luke has a talent for construction and is always trying to build a better mousetrap. This is a skill that will come in handy for starting a new farm. We appreciate his ability to look at a situation and see how we can improve what we are doing.
Mike Yund is a Capital District native, but is arriving at the farm by way of California. He moved out to California after college and found he loved working in agriculture. He worked on two farms, doing greenhouse production and managing a market stand at a large farmers’ market in the Santa Cruz area. He decided that he wants to pursue a career in agriculture and wanted to learn farming closer to his family. His aunt is a longtime Capital District member and told him about Roxbury. We are grateful to her for bringing Mike to the farm. His laid-back style is a welcome addition to the farm. His willingness to get the job done with a smile is a pleasure to be around. He is helping Jean-Paul out with hay making by doing the tedding and raking.
Wouter van Nuil is from the Netherlands. He is a student at the agriculture school Jean-Paul attended. As part of his schooling, Wouter needs to complete a five-month apprenticeship. We are fortunate that Wouter chose to do his at Roxbury Farm. While he is working all day on the farm, he is also required to write an extensive report on the farm that includes all areas of production – plant and animal. He comes to the farm with a lot of experience and knowledge. He is also always willing to work at whatever needs to be done and does so with precision and care. Wouter is the youngest of the crew this year.
We are fortunate to have these people helping us to grow your food with such dedication, care, and love for the work. ~Jody
Stormy Weather
On Monday afternoon the farm was hit by a severe storm bringing with it golf-ball sized hail and 2.5 inches of rain. We sustained some crop damage and we will see in the coming days how extensive the damage is. Some of the crops you will receive in the next few deliveries will show some hail damage. The peas for the rest of the week and maybe next week were shredded and bruised by the hail. The tomatoes, winter squash, and onions are damaged but should grow out of it in a few weeks. Our fellow produce growers to the north lost most of their crops and think it will be 2-3 weeks before they can have a harvest for their markets again. It looks like a lawn mower went over their fields. The orchards in Kinderhook and Valatie lost their soft fruits and most of their apples. We will keep you updated on the crops in next week's newsletter.
We have already received emails of support and encouragement from members. Thank you for your kind words and good wishes!
We have already received emails of support and encouragement from members. Thank you for your kind words and good wishes!
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Calendar of the Soul for the Week of June 16
Week 11, June 16-23
In this the sun’s most glorious hour
It rests with you to know this word of wisdom:
Surrendered to the beauty of the world,
Feeling yourself within your Self, experience this:
The human I can lose itself
And find itself within the Cosmic I.
In this the sun’s most glorious hour
It rests with you to know this word of wisdom:
Surrendered to the beauty of the world,
Feeling yourself within your Self, experience this:
The human I can lose itself
And find itself within the Cosmic I.
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