July 27, 2021
Happy High Summer, dear ones!!!
It’s been a wild ride since my last post in - YIKES - April! All those beautiful seedlings matured into plants that we transplanted in late May and they’re thriving.
Drought in June presented a huge challenge to our sandy soil and we rotated watering between 3 wells and managed to keep everything alive - but it was so bad you could feel the parched earth crack and gasp between waterings. Our main focus was keeping the transplants alive, and hydrating the strawberries who rewarded us with a stellar crop. Red currants also gave us their best yields ever - thanks to Ralph’s careful rotational watering.
April 2, 2021
Do you feel it too? That surge of energy as spring awakens? It’s rolling forward even in spite of fits and starts like today’s low chilly temps after the balmy teasing days we enjoyed in late March.
We took advantage of that unseasonable warmth to get the long rows of raspberries and blackberries pruned, thinned and cut back.
March 1, 2021
This is the month where winter melts into spring, the month my neighbor calls “the month of waiting.” It’s a month whose sunny days tease us into thinking that spring is nigh, then strains our hearts with days of gloomy drizzle, slush, sleet, snow, and notorious winds. That said, I’ve heard the spring sounds of cardinals and the chickadee love song, and there was some bare ground that was soft underfoot when I walked into the woods yesterday.
January 17, 2021
Happy New Year!
Sending out lots of love and best wishes for a healthy new year to all!
This newsletter will be short and sweet, even though the news is BIG!
We have a brand new website! We first went online in 1999 (or was it 2000 - I remember being concerned about Y2K (remember that?) so it may have been 2000…!)
December 13, 2020
Season's Greetings, dear friends!
As this weary year winds down, we are grateful beyond measure for all the love and support you've shown our small farm. As people hunker down in their homes, cooking more and baking bread and goodies, products like ours help spread joy in a tasty way.
Our mail order sales are higher than they've ever been, as are our wholesale orders (we only wholesale to nearby friends with small shops, bakeries or farmstands). Tiny Farmstand has been a busy beehive of activity in spite of our somewhat remote location.
September 23, 2020
Autumn Blessings to All!
In spite of three nights of frost, we still have some lovely zinnias, nasturtiums, and sunflowers near the house that keep our spirits up. Temperatures today should reach into the 70's and the gardens are bathed in that beautiful golden light of September, ushering in what is truly "Indian Summer" in New Hampshire.
This will be a short newsletter because I have elderberries simmering on the stove and there's lots of work to be done outdoors. Luckily, "Caroline" Autumn raspberries aren't affected by light frosts and are still bountiful. We still have blackberries and blueberries too, and will pull off the bird netting over the blues and let the birds enjoy the remaining fruit.
July 16, 2020
Dear Friends,
I hope this short newsletter finds everyone safe and well!
It's a gorgeous summer day here on the farm and we're up to our ears in Raspberries, Red Currants, Black Currants, Blueberries and Blackberries! Tomatoes, cucumbers, and zucchini are also coming in strong and the flowers are bursting beautifully, and we've enjoyed making bouquets every day!
I'm just writing to say that Tiny Farmstand has been a great success- so successful in fact that we've decided to be open every day from 9-7!
June 12, 2020
Dear Friends,
I don't even know how to begin this letter in these difficult times - except to send love and wishes for good health to everyone.
The winter was mild, the mildest in my memory, but the cold air lingered into a long spring and life became surreal for all of us.
Everyone's been changed, and some have suffered great losses, and I think we all suffer from a collective heartbreak.
December 8, 2019
Season's Greetings this frosty morn! Temperatures dipped below zero last night, but luckily, we have more than 2' of snow keeping the ground well insulated. Ralph's bird feeders are full and the trees are filled with woodpeckers, juncos, titmouses, chickadees, cardinals, jays, and BLUEBIRDS!!
I could sit here all day watching them, but there's work to be done! I've been busy in the kitchen every day putting up preserves and sending out holiday gifts for folks, and I realized I should get in touch with everybody about holiday ordering.
October 29, 2019
Whoa summers really fly by these days, don't they?!? Somehow, everything happened, and our freezers are full. October began with a misty morning, but the sun has broken through and its golden light is dazzling on the gardens. We haven't had a frost yet, and the zinnias and sunflowers are still glorious, and the monarchs and other butterflies are dancing through the blossoms.