The grower of trees, the gardener, the man born to farming,

Whose hands reach into the ground and sprout,

to him the soil is a divine drug. He enters into death

yearly, and comes back rejoicing. He has seen the light lie down

in the dung heap, and rise again in the corn.

What miraculous seed has he swallowed

that the unending sentence of his love flows out of his mouth

like a vine clinging in the sunlight, and like water

descending in the dark?

 - The Man Born to Farming Wendell Berry 

For anyone who has ever wondered why someone would commit themselves to a life toiling in the soil I think Wendell Berry states it perfectly. Those of us committed to farming are born to it through the love of the land, the feel of the ground, the daily changes in weather and light and the taste of the food that is born of the earth. Each season we start with a blank canvas from which we create a landscape that changes with the seasons. We know from the start that this landscape of fruits and vegetables will ultimately turn back to soil and sod but it is the experience of watching the land grow and change that brings us joy.

Being able to share that experience with our community is why we created Rushton Farm CSA. It is hard to believe we are entering our eighth year. We have seen many friends and families share in the experience of a season on the farm and we are thankful to our members who will join us for another year.  

I ask that when our members visit the farm to pick up their share they stop to take in the landscape around them. Being part of the 85 acre Rushton Preserve means that the landscape we craft each season goes beyond the crops in the field to the wildflowers planted in the meadows, the grasses that grow on the hills, and the hedgerow that buffers our land. It includes the bees and other insects that pollinate our crops and the birds that feed and nest in our fields. This landscape changes each and every day as does the food it provides. It is a beautiful thing to experience a season on Rushton Farm and we look forward to sharing it with you.

-Fred

We have a tremendous staff for 2015 with Noah Gress and Chelsea Allen returning to manage the field production. Assisting them as the Rushton Farm Apprentice will be Jared Ingersoll. Jared has been volunteering at the farm since its creation seven years ago. Now at nineteen years old and entering his sophomore year at McGill University he is joining us for a season in the field to learn more about the food we grow and the relation between our agricultural methods and their impact on the surrounding ecosystem.

Also on the staff this season to study agroecology is Todd Alleger.   Todd has spent the last few years as a master bander with the WCT Bird Conservation Program and he is now our Agroecology Project Coordinator. He will be spending the season working on the farm and studying the relationship between our farming methods and the surrounding ecosystem. He will be doing this by continuing to study the bird population and habitat as well as wildlife, edge habitat, pollinators, soil, weed density, woodland ecology and water quality.

Helping with the study of weeds in and around the fields will be our Research Student Intern Katie Pflaumer who is working on her Masters of Environmental Sciences Capstone for the University of Pennsylvania. In the past four years we have had 5 students do their Capstones based on research at Rushton Farm. Subjects have ranged from pollinator studies to raptor- prey relationships in and around the fields of Rushton. James Dickinson just completed a brilliant cross comparative study of the economics and environmental impact of small organic farms versus mid-sized and industrial agricultural systems. These students work is always illuminating and helps us to further understand how we can improve our growing practices.

Finally we added a much needed addition to the administrative part of the Rushton Staff with the addition of Eliza Gowen. Eliza will be handling the management of the CSA, volunteers, events and community relations as the Rushton Farm Outreach Coordinator.

The Rushton Farm Staff will be looking to meet those in our CSA community so give a wave or introduce yourself when you see them at pick up.

-Fred

Come join us for Beers at the Barn!  

Friday, May 29th from 6:00-7:30pm

 

Stay after your pick up or just stop by! We will have some beer and lemonade and would love to say hello! Meet your farmers and sit back and relax. Come enjoy the sunset with fellow CSA members as we kick off the 2015 season. Tuesday pick- ups members are welcome too!

 

If you can't make it this week, we look forward to having these Beers at the Barn once a month this season and hope to feature some of our own WCT musical talents as well. Mark your calendar for  

July 10th and stay tuned for additional future dates.

 

-Eliza