It's Happening on the White House lawn!

After a week of rain here on the farm, and watching John wade through the ditches to get to the chickens and collect the eggs, we decided not to have our Potato Planting party this weekend. It's just too muddy- and would be a sad, rough way to introduce folks to the joy of planting.
But in Washington D.C., Michelle Obama and friends will be planting the first food garden on the White House lawn since Eleanor Roosevelt had a Victory garden in the forties. It will be pretty big- 1,100 square feet, with 55 varieties of plants coming from organic seedlings started in greenhouses on the property.
I am over the moon with joy about this. Not only, is our First Lady making a choice for her own family- with a couple of pizza eating girls whose pediatrician urged her to adjust their nutrition-but she's getting help from the fifth graders at a public school in the district- and the Prez himself! What a great example she is setting for the rest of us.
So, once the ground dries a little, we'll get out there and plant the potatoes. And it will be great fun, and we'll be so happy a couple of months later on when we dig up our " precious" tubers.
For more info on the White House organic garden see: www.nytimes.com/2009/03/19/dining/19garden-web.html

Signs of Spring in Frigid March

A flock of fifty chicks of various colors and kinds arrived on Sunday, March 1. It was a cold rainy day, preceding the mighty storm that brought snow and bitter temps to the farm and surrounding areas of Tidewater. John and I had to hurry up and create a nursery for the less than one week old chicks who were shipped via US Post Office special delivery from Iowa's McMurray Hatchery. The chicks were in a small cardboard box, all fifty of them squished together , with only nickel sized airholes for breathing during their journey to Virginia. The two at the left are going to be lovely hens, and there are several with furry feet often associated with hobbits! These chicks are FOR SALE! John will be happy to build you a little mobile henhouse and we have plenty of organic feed for them too! Call us at 427-6515 if you are interested. We're keeping them warm and fed till the spring sunshine makes the earth ready.

We have collected deposits from many of last year's CSA members, and are filling up the spots that remain from the ones who will not be joining us this season. Some of the 08 group are growing their own food this season, and many say they'll be purchasing produce from the Five Points Community Market that moved last year to 26th and Church streets in downtown Norfolk.

It should be a great year- the fourth for our CSA- and we'll be working with some new systems. For one thing, there will be no boxes this year- You can either bring your cooler or a cloth grocery bag to bring your produce home, and we'll use a choice system rather than pre-pack your share. We have enjoyed the calls and emails from our new members as they get ready for the season.

Keep March 21st on the calendar. From 9am to noon, we'll host the first annual PotatoPlanting/St. Patty's Day Breakfast party. Check back for more details! Here's another pic of the chicks gathering under the lamp for heat!