By having successive plantings of lettuce heads and brassicas we are able to produce these crops throughout the growing season. Plants are started in the greenhouse every ten days and are hardened off and transplanted after two to three weeks.
For some of these transplants it has been almost two months in the greenhouse. Now that the danger of frost has passed the tomatoes and other hot crops can finally go outside to harden off.
There are over 20 varieties of tomatoes in the field; everything from heirlooms to beefsteaks to cherries. Tomatoes are transplanted onto black plastic which serves to suppress weeds, warm the soil and retain moisture. We stake and trellis both determinate and indeterminate varieties.
After transplanting trenches are made for burying the edges of remay. This row-cover is an important tool in organic agriculture and it helps to increase temperature for early season plantings and provides excellent pest control for insects like flea beetles.
This is the greenhouse in early April. The onions and early tomatoes are starting to get big, while flowers, peppers, eggplant, lettuce heads, and brassica crops are just getting going. (photo gallery)
The potatoes are being seeded and we are having spring time bonding with the black flies.
A nice stand of Bright Lights Chard, one of our favorites. We call it the valadictorian of vegetables. Chard is directed seed as early as May first and we continue to provide it until the middle of October. We enjoy it steamed with butter or use baby leaves fresh in our salads. For more adventurous eaters see our recipe page with many tasty ideas from our friends at Eden Vegetarian in Bar Habor.
This is Clover our first holstein steer. We bottle fed him when he just one week old and now look at the size of him. Good pasture grows good animals.
Just out for a relaxing day on the pasture.
Hothouse tomatoes, no ripe fruit yet but it won't be long. These tomatoes are started in the greenhouse on heating mats in the middle of March and are ready
for transplant around the second week in May. That's three weeks earlier then our field transplants. The goal is to be able to start providing ourselves and
customers with tomatoes that much sooner. After a long winter of frozen, canned, or the occasional store bought tomato we know what a treat its when the
first ripe heirloom varieties start to appear.
Just a couple of the many beautiful cut flowers grown at the Freedom Farm. Zinnia to the left and Picotee Cosmos on the right are commonly featured in
Ginger's beautiful flower arrangements.
