Notes from the Field

Early spring cleaning in Wayland.
Image courtesy of C. Wager.

Happy spring everyone! The weather has been reminding us that we are farming in New England and that the weather is unpredictable. Nor’easters are sharing space with 50F days, the ground is thawing, but snow still lingers in the shady corners of the field. March is a month for finalizing plans, starting the earliest of seeds indoors, and looking carefully in the field for the first signs of spring.

Exciting news for spring - our Medway site is open! Join us every Friday from 9am to 11am at the Medway Community Farm. Early season tasks will include preparing the space for spring growing, weeding, mulching, and seeding out the earliest of crops. We are looking forward to a fabulous season, so please come join us!

Fun in the dirt with garlic at the Medway Community Farm.
Image courtesy of T. Ashok

In Patterson’s Field in Wayland, the very earliest signs of spring are arriving. The first bit of color can be found in the herb and perennial flower patch. Tiny little pansies are putting out lovely purple flowers. Our garlic patch is dappled with tiny green sprigs. It is wonderful to note that the varieties Music, Polish White, German White, and Bogartyr are pushing up the quickest, while Georgian Crystal and Romanian Red are slowly but surely pushing up leaves. Nearby, the overwintered spinach is also putting out new growth and should soon provide a nice harvest of early greens for our partnering food pantries. And in a promise of more color to come, the bed of tulips appears to have multiplied, and dozens of plants are putting out leaves. In a month or so, the field will be full of color until the first frost in the far distant fall.

Some early signs of life at Patterson Field in Wayland.
Images courtesy of C. Wager and T. Smith.

Sustainable Farming through Cover Crops

Over the past two or so years of newsletters, we’ve often informed you about our cover-cropping projects to enrich the soil, but have never delved into the details of cover-cropping’s benefits. Agricultural research is increasingly demonstrating that traditional methods of farming, which leave the earth bare after crops have been harvested, are detrimental to the soil. A 2019 USDA Factsheet notes that wetter weather in the spring and fall reduce the number of days a field can be worked. Heavy rains contribute to high levels of erosion, soil compaction, and nutrient run-off. The Factsheet suggests the use of cover crops to mitigate these climate challenges while also promoting soil health.

Diagram borrow from USDA FactSheet

Our future goals of providing food for our partner organizations rely heavily on maintaining, improving, and enriching the soil of our plots as sustainably as possible. Through careful use of cover crops on Patterson’s field, we have already seen much of the soil improve dramatically. In 2022, the soil’s water-holding capacity allowed us to forgo irrigation for the majority of the summer. Soil that was sandy and acidic has increased in organic matter. The soil is steadily becoming softer and easier to plant in as the compaction is alleviated. We have seen a huge increase in beneficial insects and pollinators, which contributes to increased yields of our produce. As an added bonus, many of our cover crops are downright beautiful. A strip of our field planted with white and crimson clover is a magical sight, and we appreciate it all the more, knowing that those beautiful blooms are supporting our mission to grow sustainable, healthy food for our communities.

Hannah discussing our crimson clover cover crop in the summer of 2021.
Image courtesy C. Wager.

Support Aurelia’s Garden!

Donate to our Annual Appeal! We are still looking for support to help us reach our $15,000 Appeal Goal!
Paypal Favorite Charity: If you are a regular PayPal user, set Aurelia’s Garden as your favorite charity to have the option to donate every time you checkout with PayPal.
Our Gift Registry: Aurelia’s Garden now has an online registry wishlist! Farming requires a lot of tools and equipment, some obvious and some less so. The registry has a variety of useful things that we would love to have, ranging from storage equipment for our tools to weights for holding down row cover cloth. All of the items on the list will support our efforts to become a more sustainable organization as well, moving away from single use materials and focusing on well-made durable supplies.
Donation of Spare Equipment: Have something in your garage that you see on the wishlist or think we might need? We welcome donations of used equipment as well! In line with our sustainability mission, we are always looking for used garden tools, old but functional power tools, and old weights no longer in use. Have something that you think we might like but unsure? Email us at aureliaspantrygarden@gmail.com and let us know! We’d love to hear from you!

We deeply value your support. Contributions can be made securely online
or by sending a check to:

     Aurelia’s Garden, c/o K. Martin
     40 Beaver Pond Road
     Lincoln, MA 01773

Donations to Aurelia’s Garden are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.