Whipstone Newsletters
Our New Normal
April 11, 2020
Our new normal. Gloves, masks, hand sanitizer, and deep breaths. Social distancing, even with our small farm crew. New (staffed) farm stand hours and lots of questions to answer every day.
Somewhere On Planet Earth
April 4, 2020
These last few weeks have felt like a such a whirlwind, or maybe it’s a time warp. There have been so many changes to navigate and adaptions necessary just to keep the farm open and working.
Pivot + Turn
March 20, 2020
So much can change in a week. This last week has felt like a month, with the amount of changes coming in on a daily basis and the level at which we need to adapt and create new systems from scratch.
Helping You Stay Healthy
March 14, 2020
The coronavirus COVID19 is causing a lot of concern for everyone. While this pandemic may make everyone’s lives and business more challenging for a while, we will get through it.
Planting All the Things
March 7, 2020
It was a busy week full of planting. Since we are having a bit of a warm and dry spell, it was the perfect time to get all the plants in the ground that were overflowing in the greenhouse. Peas, lettuce, chicories, chard.
Leaping into Spring
February 29, 2020
Happy leap day! Things are really exploding here on the farm, so thank goodness for the extra day! Spring is right around the corner and we are running around trying to catch up.
Short And Sweet
February 15, 2020
This week’s newsletter will be very short and sweet (well, short at least, hopefully you’ve still got some sweets leftover from yesterday). Between yesterday’s pop-up, a broken computer, and trying to get…
Put a Little Love In Your heart
February 8, 2020
Well, the weather switched back to winter this week. So cold and damn that wind! But Friday turned nice again, so there’s that. I know I focus a lot on our local weather – it dictates our everyday decisions.
Feels like Spring
February 1, 2020
It’s only the first of February, but it already feels like spring. I doubt it will stay. We are likely headed for a cold snap or snow storm again, but it sure is enjoyable for the moment. We have been busy, busy in the greenhouse planting all. the. seeds.
On The Bright Side
January 25, 2020
What a beautiful week! The sun and warmth came back. There was lots of seeding to do in the propagation greenhouse; possibly my favorite task and place to be in winter. It feels like we are getting things done (easier when the weather is nice).
Right Around the Corner
January 18, 2020
Even though the weather is still cold and we work each day with frozen fingers, feeling hindered in what we can actually work on; I am starting to get antsy. I want to complete all the projects so we can dive into field prep and planting as soon as possible.
The Pace of Winter
January 11, 2020
Winter weeks go by so much differently than summer weeks. They feel slower. Yet with the weather interruptions, the shorter days and shorter work hours, the speed at which your hands can actually function in the cold and the propensity…
Less Is More
January 1, 2020
We are jumping into the new year like we usually do, buried in crop planning and seed orders and planting the first seeds of the year. Onions and leeks are always are first big planting push of the year and we got them in right on time this year!
Ushering in the new decade
December 28, 2019
Foggy, rainy, frosty, almost snowy – the winter weather continues. Even though the wet fields make it extremely hard to work in, I still prefer this winter moisture to none at all.
Thankful
December 21, 2019
It was a very chilly week. Farming in winter is no joke. While I had grand plans of getting the sweet peas planted this week, along with lots of winter greens, it was just too cold to risk it.
Timing is Everything
December 14, 2019
It was a beautiful sunny week, with warmer weather than we could hope for in winter (except for the cold and frosty nights). This next week should be getting much colder, so we are just bracing ourselves for that.
Winter Stars
December 7, 2019
We had a wonderful week off, including lots of driving, sight seeing and family visits. We came home to a blanket of snow on the ground and a tough week of work, slogging through snow and mud –
Thankful
November 23, 2019
This is your big chance. Time to stock up for Thanksgiving!! Also we won’t be at the market next week, so another reason to stock up now.
Promises
November 16, 2019
What a week (oh no, do I say that every week?). We got so many big chores checked off the list. Things that had been digging into the back of my brain causing me concern.
Recharge
November 11, 2019
Winter market season starts today. We will be at Yavapai College every Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm. I know that feels like a drastically late start time, but noone wants to get up early in winter.
CSA: Week 26 LAST WEEK!!!!
October 29, 2019
Here we are. We made it to the last week! It is bittersweet, of course. I know you all will be missing your veggies and we will be missing you too (unless you come to see us at the winter farmers market on Saturdays).
BOTTLED SUNSHINE
October 26, 2019
This is it. Last market of the “summer” season. Though it sure isn’t feeling like summer anymore. Time to stock up though, because there will be no farmers market the following week (Nov 2).
Slowing down
October 19, 2019
This week felt slower and less stressful than last. Once the cold weather has come and gone and done it’s damage, there is nothing more to stress about. Now we just keep plugging along.
Winter Prep
October 12, 2019
For so much of the summer, our work can feel overwhelming yet also routine. Harvest, weed, harvest, weed, plant, stake, net, harvest, weed, harvest, weed. But as the seasons roll over and the weather brings.
Transformation
October 5, 2019
A lot can change in a week and with a few more degrees of cold. On Monday we were still combing through beans and cucumbers and squash, picking the last that we could from half-damaged, frosted plants. By the end of the week, those crops were gonners.
steadfast
September 28, 2019
I’ve spent the last week trying to digest what happened last weekend. In case you hadn’t heard, we planned a dahlia festival which we then cancelled one day before due to an early, unexpected frost that damaged the flower fields.
Harvest Moon + Big News
September 14, 2019
What a lovely week this has been. Full harvest moon and Friday the 13th. The temperatures have cooled down so much – it feels as though fall is really here. Mornings are dark and chilly (hellloooo sweater weather), and the cool nights are helping.
When The Stars Align
September 9, 2019
This is the week we wait for all year, when the stars align. The week when all the good crops come in simultaneously. We have a mountain of green beans, a literal ton of melons, the eggplant is abundant, the field tomatoes are in, the flowers are off the hook.
Good Food
August 31, 2019
While days still feel long and full this time of year, the mornings are getting a wee bit darker and cooler and the inevitable ‘end of season’ feels are creeping in. Last week’s panel discussion on local food sourcing at the Good Food Expo was enlightening.
Smoke + ashes
August 24, 2019
Another hot week (go figure, it’s August). But also so smokey. There are several fires burning nearby and the skies have been filled with smoke for the last two weeks. I was surprised to find scattered ashes among the plants this week.
Farmer + Chef
August 18, 2019
What a scorcher this week has been! And what happened to the monsoons? I sure am missing that rain. And so are the crops. Enough about the weather. I could go on forever about the weather. We really tackled a lot of projects this week, which felt awesome.
On The Bright Side
August 10, 2019
Most of our crops aren’t the best, but I am resigned to that this year. It is so easy as farmers to focus on the things that are out of our control (or in our control but going wrong). A reflection what happens in the larger world, I suppose. Luckily there are small victories and unforeseen treasures that suddenly emerge.
Perspective
August 3, 2019
We finally got some lovely monsoon rains this week. It is pretty strange, living in a desert, and being accustomed to months on end of no rain. When the rain comes it truly changes everything. It effects our work, the plants, the health of the farm, our moods and well, just everything. So, thank you, rain.
Honesty Is The Best Policy
July 27, 2019
A little bit of rain this week. Not enough to count as irrigation, but the plants are already jumping. Come on plants, we are rooting for you. This year has felt really tough to be a farmer. Nothing tragic, like hail, to point to and say ‘this one catastrophic event ruined everything’, more like a thousand little pin pricks.
Don’t count your chickens
July 20, 2019
Not too much to report this week. We are just plugging along. Still planting, as always. We have one more round of summer flowers, basil, squash, cucumbers and late tomatoes to get in the ground. After that, we will start planting crops to get us into winter.
whirlwind
July 13, 2019
According to the weather report, the monsoons are here. We haven’t had any rain yet, but there was a noticeable shift in the weather – humidity is high and we are sweating even more than usual. But, the skies were amazing this week with all the storms brewing.
warp speed
July 9, 2019
We finally got the last few beds of garlic harvested. It looks to me like this is one of the best garlic years ever. Which is a nice feeling, because so many crops are not feeling like the best year ever. The statice, veronica and feverfew are really shining in the flower field this week.