Neighbor News
Notes From the Field - Farming in Waltham
Learning to share our food and the land from which it grows is a process that can change the world for the better.
This time of year the landscape is diverse and vibrant with life at Waltham Fields Community Farm. There is a dynamic quality to our farmer's daily life. Every minute is filled to the brim. Even the cabbage moths are fluttering about and the swallow tail butterfly caterpillars are active. Each field is like its own universe. We have crops just beginning their journey in the greenhouse such as lettuce, cucumbers, and bok choy. We have crops like squash and zucchini that are just starting to be harvested now. On Saturday, volunteers helped to transplant our 7th generation of lettuce in the front field. It looks quite beautiful with the varied range of colors and textures. It’s the farmer’s version of an oil painting or a ceramic sculpture. Other crops are already finishing their life, like the epic volumes of spinach we have produced this year. On Friday alone we harvested 530 pounds of spinach, making it almost an all day harvest!
Another highlight of this past week was our large donations of lettuce to Food for Free, the Waltham Boys and Girls Club, and Lovin’ Spoonfuls. Here at Waltham Fields we believe in growing food for the whole community, and to allow the gifts of the Earth to be accessible. For those of you who are new to our organization, we are a non-profit with a mission that includes sharing the bounty of what we grow to food pantries and a variety of meal programs. We work to support our community members in need because everybody must nourish their body and mind. In just a short couple of weeks our Mobile Outreach Market will begin. We are still looking to fill a once-weekly work share position if you know anyone who might enjoy working for vegetables. You can find out more about our once a week work share positions on our website, we are also looking for people for our morning weed crew paid jobs. Check out the "about" tab on our website, communityfarms.org.
Vegetables and weeds grow strong and bountiful when sun, heat and water combine. Life is always shifting, fluctuating, and changing whether you want it to or not. As much as we desire to control our surroundings, there will always be a factor that is out of our hands. This I have to remind myself of with healthy regularity. It’s about knowing when and how to let go and about being flexible. This work is about finding that peace and joy within the chaotic nature of the farm life in the mid-summer season. And yes, it's also about chopping, slicing, sautéing, roasting, nibbling, eating, and digesting all the fruits of our labor. And of course, sharing them with loved ones :-) ~by Farmer Anna and Marla and from everyone on the farm
