Are you great with kids?
Enjoy Arts and Crafts?

The Harvestfest needs a Kids Activities Assistant to help plan and organize. Help set-up facepainting, scarecrow making, sand art, bug

hunts and more. Help make Harvestfest a fun-filled day! Contact Jocelyn Crosby at  ppfharvestfest@gmail.com. Harvestfest is Saturday,

October 6 from 11 am - 5pm.

Volunteers needed for the Harvest Festival on Saturday, October 6 from 11am - 5pm. Volunteer opportunities include: selling tickets, helping

with kids activities, face painting, food sales, parking assistance,hay ride attendant and more. Please contact Jocelyn to volunteer at

Tomato Bounty Shared with the Community 

Over the past 2 weeks, Pennypack Farm has donated over 600 pounds of fresh, organically grown tomatoes to area food cupboards. These  cupboards include; Manna on Main in Lansdale, Emmanuel Evangelical in Hatfield, Jerusalem Community in Schwenksville and Loaves and Fishes in Jenkintown.

 

Here is a comment from Joel Sever from Jerusalem Community:  I wanted to let you know that during our pantry hours (9-11) on Saturday, every single tomato you donated to our pantry was distributed to the families that came for help.  The people were thrilled to have access to tomatoes that were ripe, organic and "taste so good."  Many families asked me to pass on their personal gratitude for your kindness.  Many were amazed that you would be so thoughtful of people who live an hour away from the farm.  We had 31 families come to us during that 2 hour period and you made their day.

Who receives food from food cupboards? Families that earn below the threshold of 185% of the federal poverty rate. This means that a family of 2 that earns less than $28,000 per year qualifies. The cupboards have seen a huge leap in the number of families they serve since the economic downturn in 2008.

Pennypack Farm donates 60- 80 units of food to Loaves and Fishes Cupboard every week during the season. We are happy to spread the abundance this month.

A Day in the Life of a Pennypack Farmer 

Recently a friend asked me what I do all day long at the farm. Farm chores are never ending this time of the season and it seems there aren't enough hours in a day to accomplish them all.

Up at dawn, I start with my yoga routine and meditation. The farm staff starts at 7:00am. On a pick-up day, the harvest is done in the morning. There are a multitude of jobs on the farm. Often the farm staff will divide into groups in order to finish them all. Divide and conquer! Harvest 90 lbs. of beets, 120 heads of lettuce, 40 lbs. of swiss chard, 75 bunches of leeks, 80 lbs. of carrots, 225 lbs. of summer squash and cucumbers, 650 lbs. of tomatoes, 150 lbs. of eggplant, 95 lbs. of peppers and 40 lbs. of okra. That's all for one CSA pick-up. All of these items need to be washed and/or counted, stored and refrigerated. This helps us know how much we have to share during pick-up time. We do this three times a week, all before lunch with the help of our work share members and volunteers.

Educational programs for College Settlement Campers are organized with the aid of our summer interns. The kids learn about sustainable food systems and how their favorite foods are grown.

Lunch is a time when the farm staff cooks and eats together. From the field to our plates, the vegetables we grow taste best at lunch.

After lunch is a great time for farm chores. We finish weeding projects, plant seeds, transplant seedlings, lay plastic and other bed preparation, lay out row cover, mow and rototill in between beds, maintain infrastructure, haul compost and fertilize soil just to name a few chores. Oh yeah, don't forget to irrigate and any greenhouse duties you may have as a Pennypack farmer.

Some of our work share members work as greeters in the share room of the harvest house. They organize the days harvest items and help keep structure during the CSA pick up.

When our work is done in the field, we go home to our loved ones where there are yet more chores to be done. Getting to bed by 9:00pm is a farmer's indulgence. At the end of the day I realize that I enjoy organic farming. It reminds me that I am still learning patience, compassion and discipline on the farm and in my life. This gives me a sense of working in solidarity with organic farmers everywhere.

Jessica Gerani

Notes from the Edible Classroom 

The first of the Asian Pears are ready and they are terrific!  The front gate is flanked by these beauties, welcoming you into the EC.  To the  right is a later-maturing variety, those fruits should be ready in the next few weeks.  However, look to the left and you'll see an Asian Pear tree bursting w/ golden, apple-shaped fruits.  These medium-sized pears have a slightly textured skin and are crisp to the bite.  The meat of this variety is a creamy white and has a wonderful pear/apple flavor.  How do we know if the fruit is ready to be picked?  The easiest way is to gently hold the fruit and give it a very slight lift and twist.  If the pear is ready, it will easily separate from the tree.  If the pear gives some resistance, it's not quite ready.  

Fruit-breeders have developed several varieties of Asian Pears, each sporting its own set of unique characteristics including days to maturity, skin texture, size and shape.  I'm researching our varieties and will let you know what we have in the EC. If you have the space, consider planting 2 or more home! Click here for additional info on growing Asian Pears and a listing of a few of the more common varieties.  Next time you're at the farm, please stop by and try an Asian Pear.

Last week I mentioned I was replanting a few of the beds in the EC.  If you wander around, you'll notice the next round of crops coming up. Kale, broccoli and brussel sprout transplants are settling into the bed next to the shade canopy.  In other beds, watch for sprouting bush beans.  Replanting through the growing season is known as "succession planting" and it is one of most carefully planned activities at Pennypack Farm.  

Succession planting allows for the continuous flow of fresh fruits and vegetables. As you walk through the farm, you'll see the various stages of succession planting -- farmers seeding under the Harvest House shade canopy, seedlings in the greenhouses/hoop houses, seedlings hardening off on outside benches and farmers transplanting all those seedlings!  But wait, not all our crops are transplants, some plants are directly seeded into the fields using a hand-pushed seeder.  Clink here for additional information on succession planting.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the continued interest in EC slugs! Day-after-day, week-after-week, our youngest CSAers visit the sandbox in search of slugs.  This week, thanks in part to the rain, the young  slug-hunters found lots of these slimy, faster-than-you-thought possible, garden pests!  Yes, the slugs eat the tender leaves of many of our crops and are a big problem for many home gardeners.  So, in addition to touching, watching and measuring them, we also talk about how to control slugs in the garden.

Have a good week.

Diane