Notes from Arcadia Farm: Welcome Spring!

Preparing the soil at Arcadia Farm.

My winter is always spent with a great deal of time in front of the computer.  Every square inch of the farm is mapped out and scheduled for planting, cultivating, and harvesting.  And then, as I like to say, the season happens.  Fields don't dry out like I'd like, the weather stays cold later than I'd like, and seedlings aren't growing according to schedule.  These are the nuances that make me view farming as much an art as a science.  On a new piece of land, you have to be flexible; you have to observe and learn not force too hard, as tempting as it may be to try to meet that schedule.  

All of the planning and prep work and patience pays off when that first seed hits the soil in the spring.  There's something meditative about the process; the cool soil on my hand, tools gliding through the dirt, and the faith in this most basic of human acts.  At the end of the day, we have to put our faith in seeds and in nature, and trust that all of the hard work will pay off and that we'll be rewarded with a bountiful harvest.

Spring has arrived at the Arcadia Farm, and our interns and volunteers have indeed been busy working our fields from sun up to sun down, prepping land and planting seeds.  We have ambitious plans as we embark on this new season to bring new land into production, expand the scope of our growing, thoroughly educate everyone who spends time with us, and, most importantly, grow delicious food to share with those around us.

Cheers to the new season!

Stephen Corrigan, Farm Director