207.712.1003

Month: May 2018

And...we're off! Let the harvest begin! We are excited to announce the start of harvest next week with on-farm CSA pick-up on Tuesday June 5th or Friday June 8th. Come anytime, either day, between 2:00-7:00 p.m. The greens look great, the strawberries are in heavy flower, and zucchini is on track to make its earliest appearance ever. The crew has been going all out to keep us on track the past month. They have come in early, stayed late, and spent more than a few weekend days on a tractor. Maura and I are very grateful to have such a dedicated team this year.

While it has not been the warmest of years it has also lacked the extremes of highs and lows, which if you are a plant is the better way to go. We often lose early sowings of arugula and radishes that stress out in the hot-cold temperature yoyo and go to flower before we can harvest them. With moderate temperatures working with us my only wish now is for a good soaking rain.  For the past two years southern Maine has  been shut out by a jet stream that sends storm after storm through Massachusetts to the south and Quebec to the North. I'm pining for the days when we had a wet spring and didn't need to worry about irrigation until July!

Add-on Samples

Add-on shares will formally start in the third week of pick-up.  This first week we will have samples for you to try as you come for your produce. The products are some of the best that Maine has to offer and we think they really add to the produce we grow to make an unmatched Maine summer eating experience. Want to refresh your memory as to what we offer for add-on shares? Click here. You can also order these add-on from this link.

What to Bring for Your First Pick-Up

Please bring bags to pack your produce into as well a larger tote to carry everything home. We will always have new smaller plastic bags but the fewer of these we have to bring into the world the better. 

The switch from winter to spring flipped a couple weeks back and we have been off to the races! Temperate weather with a little rainfall, nights not too cold and days not too hot have made it a pretty good spring so far. The crew and I have been plowing through the planting schedule, building plastic tunnels for tomatoes and peppers, zucchini and cucumbers, burying irrigation lines and refilling the greenhouse with endless seedlings. Kim and Bob have been setting out endless flowers, herbs, beans and peas into the Upic field.  All of this scurry is to get us ready for the first harvest just a few weeks away. Honestly the hardest thing  faced this year is getting the blog post out in a timely way!

When is the First Share?

The plan for for our first harvest is the week of June 4th. At this point we appear to be on track for that but we will make the final call in about a week and send out another email note to confirm. The crops look good and healthy. The deciding factor for harvest start this time of year is always temperature. If the lettuce grows and the strawberries flower then we will be on track.

Brunswick On-Farm Share Almost Sold Out, Delivered Shares Moving Quickly

If you have been waiting to join the window is closing. At the time of this post we have but 9 Brunswick on-farm shares left. Want to close the deal now? Here's the link for the on-farm share.Our delivered shares are also going quickly. Click here to sign up for our farm box delivered all over the greater Casco Bay Area.

Add-on Great Maine Food to Your Produce Share

We work with the best growers and producers in Maine to offer add-ons of organic eggs and yogurt, artisan cheese, fresh cut flower bouquets and more to make you weekly farm share even better. To find out more log into your farm account and add-on. Here are the links for On-farm and Delivered shares to sign-up.

New Member Orientation May 26/27

If you are new to CSA or just new to Crystal Spring come out to the farm and see what we are all about. Our annual non-mandatory new member orientation is a chance to meet the farmers, find the Upic field and see behind the scenes of how we grow all this great food. Both Saturday and Sunday, May 26 and 27 at 4 pm.

How Do We get it all Done?

Ever wonder what the day looks like on the farm as we grow all this great food? Come join us and find out. Every Wednesday we welcome members to join the crew as we plant, harvest and weed our way through the summer. We love to share what we do and we are pretty good at chit chat while we do it. The crew leaves the farmstead for the fields promptly at 8am and we work until our lunch break at 1pm. Send us an email the day before so we know to look for you.

Save the Farm and Save the Landfill -BETA Version

Our newly created Brunswick on-farm share composting program is coming together. Starting at the first Brunswick pick-up we will have buckets and lids for you to take home and fill with your trimmings and leftovers. Bring them back to the farm, trade for a clean bucket and repeat. Our hope is that we can all work to extend the life of our local landfills, save you some cash by reducing your garbage costs, and at the same time build some fertility back into the farm. The cost for the season will be just $6 to cover the cost of organizing, labor and supplies. Here's a link to everything we do to protect and preserve the farm and the planet.