It is nice to be home, though. While running some errands today, we stopped for lunch and it hit me, right in the middle. I turned to Erica with a smile on my face and said: "Hey! I don't have to pack up and go back to the farm tomorrow!" It felt good to be able to say that.
Anyway, it's difficult to sum up the summer but, as encouraged by Heather, I've written some reflections on my experience as a whole. Since it seemed a little like a 6th grade assignment, I titled it "What I Did on Summer Vacation". ;)
(Oh, and thank you, to you all who have followed along. Trying to express myself during all of this has been easier when I know there are people reading!)
What I Did on Summer Vacation
Every time I tried to start summarizing my summer here at Suncrest Gardens, I ended up with a novel. Trying to condense it into a manageable size is difficult! I learned so many things, some that are even hard to verbalize.
I arrived here with some basic knowledge about gardening and my goal was to see if small-scale farming was something I wanted (or even COULD) do. Honestly, there were some days when I doubted both of those, but at the end of it all, I say yes.
The list of things I've learned beyond that is long and varied. Obviously, a lot of it was about veggies. I now know how to grow and prepare: veggies that I'd never heard of before, veggies I've heard of but never eaten, and veggies that I thought I didn't like, but if prepared differently are actually good!
I learned that the importance of healthy soil goes beyond just throwing a shovelful of compost in the garden every spring (although, that's not a bad first step!). I learned about plant families, their characteristics, likes and dislikes. I learned about how to take care of veggies when planting, growing, picking and after they've been harvested. And, I think every day showed me a new step in the “Circle of Life”.
The knowledge I gained went far beyond growing veggies, though. And, I think those other areas might be where I learned the most. I believe there is a unique way of thinking involved in running a successful small-scale farm. (Rule #1: Don't call it a “hobby farm”! It is a business, not a hobby.)
This can, and should, be work you enjoy doing, but the “successful” part is all in the numbers. And the numbers have to be on your mind all the time. How many pizzas do you have to sell to make it worth starting the oven? What is the value to the customer in being open “rain or shine”? Even during “rain”? How many CSA members do you need to have to make another drop-off site worth the time? Worth the gas? What is the retail value of this box of veggies? The 1st box of the season? The 10th box of the season? Is it fair to the member receiving the box? What is the cost of raising a chicken? Feed, water, chore hours, equipment, processing? What do they provide in return? Eggs? Meat you can use or sell (at what price?)? Do they provide entertainment to the people coming to the farm?
Everything has a value—even though some are fuzzier and harder to quantify. But, to be successful, I will have to know what each enterprises' value is to the big picture.
It was also reinforced to me that “thinking outside the box”—as cliché as it now is—is vital. Using materials already on hand instead of investing money in something new; not reinventing the wheel; learning to do some things yourself, but also making use of other people's skills as well (when your time is better spent elsewhere); having diverse sources of income to minimize financial risks; bartering and other creative solutions that solve more than one persons problems; networking and really being part of a community.
Even though these ideas weren't really new to me, seeing them played out over and over and over, here on the farm as well as across the community made their importance stand out to me.
This summer has been invaluable to me in so many ways. My ideas of what I want to do have solidified, my faith in my abilities has grown, and I know that I can grow beautiful, healthy food that people will enjoy and be happy to pay for.
No comments:
Post a Comment