Week of November 30 2009 : 2.0 Upgrade

Here, Nathaniel (wearing the red hat, on the red sled, in the red trailer) inspects the cover crop: 65% winter rye, 30% hairy vetch and 5% tillage radish.

Pheasant Valley 1.0 was a success. At the beginning of the 2009 market season we had seed packets and empty seed trays. By the end of the season we had authentic market space and repeat customers.

A lot of work took us from seeds packets to repeat customers. Some experiences reinforced our expectations (like weed control) but other experiences were somewhat unexpected and certainly more gratifying.

I expect people to buy food to eat it. But sometimes eating takes on additional significance.

One of our customers liked our Roma tomatoes enough to purchase 10 quarts spread among three purchases. During the summer, she was already thinking ahead, thinking about the holiday season and sharing special meals with family.

She used those tomatoes as ingredients for a sauce recipe that would be served during Thanksgiving meal. Knowing my tomatoes were chosen to be on their table is very gratifying.

The operational aspects of farming motivated me to get involved in market farming. But the direct customer contact motivates me to make Pheasant Valley 2.0 a bigger success.