Final Winter Preps - December 22

While students are away from Winter Break, I completed the final overwintering preps for the Slow Food and adjacent growing beds. This entailed adding a 2-3 inch layer of mushroom compost, a layer of dried leaves on top, followed by draping frost fabric over the plot to hold down the leaves and provide a bit more warmth to the plot to ensure active microbiologic activity throughout the cold winter months. All of this work will add essential nutrients and carbon back to the soil for growing next season. See you in the Spring!

Farm Fridays - December 6

Today was the last day of class and the last Farm Friday of the semester. We harvested all the broccoli, cauliflower, fennel, brussels sprouts, celery, and mint that was remaining on the Slow Food Plot. This produce was primarily prepared for donation to St Mary's Caring, while students also took some home for Winter Break. We then prepared the plot for the winter season by removing any remaining plant matters and turning over weeds into the soil. Thanks to all the help from students in the LEAD101 Slow Food class this semester!

Farm Fridays - November 22

We braved the cold, wind, and rain to harvest produce throughout the Slow Food plot including: cabbage, mustard greens, arugula, two kinds of kale, and beets. The produce was harvested, then washed in the warm safety of the high tunnels. Some of the produce was taken by students home to their families for Thanksgiving break, while the majority was donated to the local food bank, St Mary's Caring.

Farm Fridays - November 15

This week, we worked on preparing one of the larger beds for the winter. We removed the tango cosmos, compeltely weeded the plot, tilled in a layer of mushroom composted, and planted a cover crop of winter rye. This cover crop will provide erosion control and weed supression throughout the winter and should provide green manure come Spring.

Farm Fridays - November 8

We worked on creating a new spring flower bed along with planting nearly 150 tulip bulbs into the bed to sprout and bloom this coming Spring. We also began to break down the flowered sunflowers in the front of the Farm. We cut down the stalks, which will be chipped up for compost, and saved the spent sunflower heads for reseeding next Summer and Fall. We also cut some arugula, romaine, and mustard greens which was cleaned and washed for the Veggie Co-Op's weekly Friday Family Dinner. Finally, the Slow Food Farms plot was weeded and watered, along with the high tunnels.

Bouquet Making with Event Flouret - November 7

We welcomed Fay Nourani, from Event Flouret, a bespoken floral design company based out of Raleigh, North Carolina to lead ENST depatment classes and our Slow Food students in making floral arrangement harvested from fall flowers and greenery grown throughout the farm. We had nearly 100 particiapants come and make beautiful and creative floral bouquets that they took home, gave away as a gift to friends/family, or donated to the local food bank, St Mary's Caring.

Kate Farm Veggie Co-Op Tasting Event - October 29

Get ready to savor fresh, local flavors! The Kate Farm Stand is hosting an exciting tasting event on Wellness Day, in partnership with the Veggie Co-Op and Slow Food class. Discover vibrant menu items crafted from produce grown right here at Slow Food Farms and other nearby farms. Sample our farm-fresh daikon radish kimchi, crispy kale chips, and roasted beets—all made with ingredients almost entirely sourced from Slow Food Farms and Kate Farm!

Swing by on October 30th and 31st to celebrate local produce and experience the dedication of our student chefs. Don't miss this delicious opportunity!

Farm Wednesdays - October 23

We teamed up with the Kate Farm Club to gather and donate a fresh harvest of leafy greens to St. Mary’s Caring food bank and soup kitchen. Together, we washed, packed, and delivered a bounty of 28 pounds, including 5 pounds of arugula, 2.5 pounds of dinosaur kale, 2 pounds of mustard greens, 4.5 pounds of curly kale, 4 pounds of black magic kale, 8.3 pounds of rainbow chard, 1.3 pounds of romaine lettuce, and 0.5 pounds of spinach! To top it off, we added 36 dozen eggs from the Kate Farm Chicken Bus.

At Slow Food, we’re all about connecting our community with fresh, sustainable, local food, and we’re thrilled to help bring nutritious options to our neighbors!

Farm Fridays - October 18

We cleaned out the bedding within the Chicken Bus to provide new, clean pine shavings and bedding for our egg-laying hens. At the Slow Food Farms plot, we treated the brassicas with neem oil, weeded between rows, and watered the entire plot. In addition, we weeded inside the greenhouse tunnels, treated with neem oil, and watered the tunnels. Finally, we deadheaded and cut the sunflowers in the frontage of the field.

Natural Dyeing Workshop - October 15

Farm Fridays - October 4

We harvested, cleaned, and packaged nearly 55 pounds! of leafy greens that were all donated to the local food bank, St Mary's Caring. These greens included: kale, arugula, romaine, mustard greens, rainbow chard, and butterhead lettuce. In addition, nearly 250 eggs from the Kate Farm Chicken Bus were donated.

Farm Fridays - September 27

This week, maintenance, weeding, and watering were the primary chores done on the farm. All of our Fall crops are coming in and growing nicely and hope to have a good harvest before Thanksgiving break!

Farm Fridays - September 20

For our second working Farm Friday, we tackled a few chores on the Slow Food and surrounding plots as the fall crops begin to recuperate from transplant. We harvested all the basil for pesto sauce. We also harvested mustard greens, arugula, and romaine lettuce which was washed and packaged to give away at the first Fall Open House on Saturday. Finally, we harvested more Tango cosmos flowers and seeds. As the cooler temepratures become the norm, our fall crops will really begin to take off!

Kate Farm Pizza and Movie Night - September 13

We again partnered with Veggie Co-Op to make homemade pizzas as a part of the Kate Farm open house. The pizzas used dough from a local business, St James Deli, and tomato sauce, basil, oregano, pickled banana peppers, and roasted red peppers all from the Slow Food Farms plot. We made nearly 80 pizzas! We also watched, "Lunana: A Yak in the Classroom" projected on the barn to launch our new ENST-sponsored Bhutan study abroad.

Tomato Sauce Making - September 6

We partnered with Veggie Co-Op to make homemade tomato sauce with all ingredients from Slow Food Farms and the Kate Farm. We used 57 lbs of Paisano tomatoes grown and harvested from Slow Food Farms, as well as, Tuscan basil. In addition, we used garlic, white onions, and oregano grown across the broader Kate Farm. Collectively, we made nearly 5.5 gallons of tomato sauce, some of which we will use for the Kate Farm Pizza Night on September 13.

Farm Fridays - August 30th

On our first Farm Friday, we picked all the peppers off the plants, removed the plants, and prepared the bed for a planting of purple cauliflower. We also cultivated all the red dye amaranth, cutting the flower bracts, and tying them into small bouquets for drying in the rafters of the barn. Finally, alongside the Fall 2024 Kate Farm Interns, we harvested nearly 180 pounds of French radishes from the front beds.

Pride Garden Replanting

On the Sunday before classes, we took the weeds out of the Pride Garden, leaving previously planted zinnias and rainbow chard. We then planted some zinnia seedlings!