2022 Season Highlights

From new recipes to new team members, 2022 was a year to remember!

You, our community, visited the farm every day between May and October, and several days each week in November and December. You danced, sang, went on hayrides, and picked pumpkins at our Family Fun Day in October. You bought 3,248 pounds of carrots, 4,679 pounds of tomatoes, 2,017 pounds of summer squash, and discovered a love for Top Seedz crackers and fresh-pressed Juel juices. You gave lots of love to the farm cats, Ni and Steve, and supported us through another lovely season, leaving us all excited for those to come.

As we transition to a new season, we want to share a little bit of what made our year special. Here are some highlights from the past year, shared by our staff!

The Veg Crew…

• Is enjoying their newly constructed greenhouse and the improvements made on many others
• Had a blast with various volunteer groups, including days spent with AmeriCorps and harvesting garlic with our CCF Summer Campers
• Competed in the Annual Farmer Olympics organized by NOFA-VT
• Donated an abundance of produce to our partners at Willing Hands
• Loved carrots (don’t we all)

The Kitchen Crew…

• Made meals for a record number of Summer and Fall Dinner CSA members
• Welcomed a Bavarian trained baker and pastry chef to their already skilled and tight-knit team
• Developed new recipes and offered many more soups, salads, sandwiches, and other prepared foods
• Spent countless hours cooking and listening to all sorts of music, from Ariana Grande to Vivaldi

The Facilities Department…

• Converted a washing machine into a dryer for salad greens
• Helped install a new double oven in the kitchen
• Redid the faces on our retail plant and flower and early season tomato greenhouses
• Got a new van for deliveries and farmers’ markets, thanks to grant support from the State of Vermont through the Working Lands Enterprise Initiative
• Kept the farm trucks running and in top shape throughout the season

The Education Team…

• Loved watching summer campers’ families do creative dance moves and tell jokes to “pay” for the vegetables their children were “selling” at weekly camp farmers’ markets
• Helped Nando Jaramillo of Moon & Stars harvest corn with our homeschool program
• Explored the farm and tasted many different crops throughout each season, all with the help of our Little Farmers preschoolers
• Brainstormed with their coworkers from other departments to plan our workshop and event offerings for 2023

The Hello Cafe Crew…

• Made 6,464 latte-style drinks
• Got to sell (and taste!) many new and exciting baked goods
• Served many, many gallons of ice cold lemonade on hot summer days

The Farmstand crew…

• Built relationships with both new and longtime customers
• Got to showcase the results of each department’s hard work — pastries, flowers, veggies, fruits, and so much more
• Partnered with Newmont Farm to sell 14,175(!) pounds of local pumpkins
• Exchanged cooking and gardening tips with customers and fellow team members

Here’s looking forward to another exciting season with our wonderful community!