Goodbye farm life, hello summer camp!

Friday was my last day WWOOFing at Silvermine Farm; it was scorching outside, but my morale was high. I planted brussel sprouts, broccoli, and kolrabi, I watered a greenhouse full of tomatoes we had planted earlier in the week, and I weeded one of the farm's endless onion beds. Best of all, I hopped more eagerly than a bunny through the strawberry patches to collect sweet red treasures to take home with me (and to taste on the spot, too), and I caressed the three goats that I had so rapidly taken close to my heart. Mila, the most petite of the three, supported herself on her hind legs and propped her front legs on the wooden door so that was able to rub her stub-like ears, bony back, and curved neck. 

So after seven working days on the farm, I have seen how much effort goes into cultivating organic veggies and produce. At Silvermine, some of the work probably could have been avoided with proper foresight (e.g. weeds might not be so difficult to get rid of if they were not allowed to build up and compact), but still I noticed the care that goes into responsible growing. For example, to protect the potato crop, workers like myself first went through the rows collecting the mature beetles from the plants and destroying by hand the tiny eggs that the beetles lay on the underside of the leaves. Then we sifted an organic powder made from the shells of dead insects onto the plants. A few days later, Martha saw that there were still many eggs remaining on the plants, so she had to buy another organic chemical to spray on the plants that would stunt the development of the eggs. So, it can be a lengthy and stressful battle growing organically, one that warrants an often significantly higher price tag in the supermarket.

I wish I had more time to finish this post and to tell more about my experience, but I am off to summer camp in Maine in about an hour! Happy Summertime!