Sandhill Farm Winter Newsletter

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Winter Newsletter
February 11th, 2024

Elwah River in Olympic National Park near Port Angeles, WA. Dams on the river were completely removed by 2014.

Farm Updates

Planes, trains, automobiles, AND ferries :)
After many winters in the Midwest we were finally able to take a grand adventure! By the end we traveled over 6600 miles and drove most of the Pacific Coast highway from Mendocino, CA all the way to the Olympic Peninsula. We even stopped up to Vancouver, B.C. Canada. It was Andie's first train ride, plane ride, and ferry ride and Ashley's first time in the Pacific Northwest. We walked amongst old growth Redwoods, Douglas Firs, and Cedar trees. If anyone has spent time with these trees or read the book Finding the Mother Tree by Suzanne Simard you already know the stoic grace these trees carry. These trees are hundreds to thousands of years old and bigger than the imagination can hold onto. Very few remain compared to what once stood, but we are grateful to have had the opportunity to visit them.
We thought about traveling overseas instead, but we're glad we didn't this trip. Next time ;)
There are so many stories to share from our trip, but we also want to give you updates from our farm life.
We always debrief the past growing year. What went well? What didn't? Want does our community want more of? What should we stop growing? When the days are short (December to February) we plan for the following growing season. We cram in a lot on one acre so good planning now gives our brains more space to deal with the dynamics and curve balls of growing organically outdoors. We also have to keep meticulous records of EVERYTHING we do on our farm to pass our yearly organic inspection so wintertime is good chance to improve the ease of record keeping. We will begin starting seeds soon and have already started preparing beds in our tunnels for extra early plantings. We also took soil samples again this year, but sent them to a more specialized soil lab this time. They run biological tests in addition to chemistry-based tests and Ashley really enjoyed talking to our soil health resource. We are excited to implement some new additions to feed our soil.
In addition to the usual winter work routine, we have a couple of new offerings this year that we're excited about. 10% off to all members when they shop with us at farmers' market. We also plan to offer early ordering for starter plants this spring. More details will be available soon.

The January & February months spent at home are always much needed, and enjoyed! Our newest member of the family: Luna kitty is growing quick! She's about 4 1/2 months old :) A lot of our time is spent playing with her and our other furry pets (cash dog, opie, rajah, and pumpkin kitty). They love winter too! Another past time is watching Iowa Women's basketball games. In fact, we are going to a home game in the next week with Ashley's mom (Mary). It's gonna be a blast! And then of course, we like the idle time of lounging around, reading, watching TV and old time movies, and having a "normal" dinner time.

Above: Having fun in the vista cart on the train!
Below: Stunning terrain of Colorado

Above: Watching a storm roll past in Trinidad, CA
Below: The Colorado River. View from the train.

Above: The scenery starts to change quickly as we entered Utah on the train. The sunset was incredible too!

Above: Sun breaking through on a cloudy day at Sue-Meg State Park in Trinidad, CA. We hiked to the beach below the next morning!
Below: Gorgeous sunny day driving along the 101 Highway. The ocean is amazing!

Above: Morning hike along the ocean bluffs in Mendocino, CA.
Below: Gazing up at the Redwoods!

Above: Devil's Punch bowl in Northern Oregon.
Below: Snowy hike in the Olympic National Forest. This is in Port Angeles, WA.

News & Stuff!

CSA Sign Up is Open!

Interested in joining our CSA Program? We are currently running an Early Bird Special of 5% off Summer Shares, now until March 4th. Check out our website for details: www.sandhill-farm.com. You can also register by clicking the button at the bottom of this newsletter!

**New** This season all members (regardless of CSA type) will receive 10% off their purchases at our farmers' market stand.

Last weekend Andie went to a farming conference in Madison, WI. It was hosted by the Fairshare CSA Coalition. The conference focused primarily on farm labor (challenges, employee retention, fair wages, etc.) and vegetable growing specifics. This is both Andie & Ashley's favorite aspect of this conference because of the deep dive it takes on growing crops. Farmers lead the conversation with photos, videos, and detailed info about how they start the crop, transplant it, cultivate and irrigate, harvest, and sell/market the crop. The sessions included: potatoes, peppers, asparagus, and garlic. All of which were very relevant this season!

Lastly, we were accepted into the Savings Incentive Program by Practical Farmers of Iowa. This is a two year program that supports farmers in creating successful farm businesses. It offers coaching from financial advisors, networking opportunities, and guidance from experienced farm mentors. During this time, our business plan will be refined and we'll have support setting goals for now and in the future. Over the two years we'll invest savings into an account with PFI matching funds up to $2,400!

Plans for 2024

We bought a cube van last spring before the start of farmers' market season. What an awesome upgrade! We were also lucky to score some wood from a friend to replace the floor of the van. Andie hopes to take on this project in the next month or so. The last touch to make the van even more efficient, and awesome, is purchasing a ramp for it. This will be a serious time saver and unloading at market will be a breeze, right?!
A new additional to our growing system is the paperpot transplanter. A fellow grower was offering the machine itself for free if we purchased two cases of the paper pots needed for it. Only a dozen or so farmers we're given this opportunity, and, we've been waiting for the right moment to purchase this system. The time seemed right, so we jumped on it! There will be a learning curve, but the reason behind using this machine is to save labor and space in the greenhouse. We will definitely keep everyone updated with photos!

More funds are available for the LFPA (Local Food Purchasing Assistance) Program in Iowa & Wisconsin again this year. We have been approved to participate and the contract amount increased slightly for Wisconsin. We're really grateful to be part of this program and hope it can continue for years to come!

CSA Sign up Here!

Thanks for supporting us in all the ways you do! It takes a village to raise a farm.

A small scale, diversified vegetable farm owned and operated by Andie Donnan and Ashley Neises. Our one acre certified organic farm rests in Sinsinawa, WI as part of the Sinsinawa Mound Collaborative Farm. Since 2018, we have been purposefully growing nutritious produce for our community. We work mostly with hand tools and manual labor, do our best to minimize tillage, and intentionally grow borders with flowers and grasses for native and beneficial insects. Our techniques and approach allow for a more intimate connection to the earth.
We grow the way we do because we have hope for the future!

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2551 County Rd Z Sinsinawa, WI 53824

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Sandhill Farm · 2551 County Rd Z · Sinsinawa, WI 53824 · USA