Cedar Circle: A Happy Harvest with Ralf
Riss McKinney (she/her) loves Riss swimming, kayaking, fishing, or four-wheeling. Her favorite vegetables are corn and cucumbers!
Emily Nelson enjoys fishing, hiking, and swimming at the beach during the summer. Her favorite veggies are snap peas and cauliflower, but she is more of a fruit person, and loves pomegranates and apples!
The Teen Farm Fellows spend most of our time on the farm’s home fields; however, we also go on service learning trips, where we travel to other farms and food accessibility centers in the Upper Valley Region to expand our knowledge and help others.
Several weeks ago, we started our morning with an official harvest orientation from Ralf, the Vegetable Production Manager. We went to the “JT” fields, which are a short drive down the road, where we began our learning process. He talked with us about safety measures, and what we can do to reduce food-borne illnesses, and also taught us proper harvest techniques. We were given a ‘Fresh Sheet,’ which explains what we need to harvest, how much of each crop we need, and where it will be stored.
We harvested bok choy, fennel, chard, spinach, cilantro, kohlrabi, radishes, and scallions. Each vegetable required a different harvesting method to ensure our safety and the safety of the food. We talked about our interests and found how similar we all are. Although we just met one another, we shared passions for similar things and were able to form deep bonds through that. Community is super important for us because there is a sense of belonging. The Teen Farm Fellows have already created a space where we feel safe to communicate our needs, wants, and worries. There is a lot of trust, and I am so glad to be in a group with such amazing people. The morning went by quickly as we all connected and were invested in learning and executing our new material.
