WELCOME GRIER ACRES!

The Griers are lovely people who have worked professionally in Dothan for a number of years. Harry in fact was the guardian angel who kept a watchful eye (and your Market manager on track) as the Market transitioned to our permanent business structure last year. They are in the process of re-establishing a family farm – land that’s not been used in 75 years!

They’ve tackled the opportunity with their sleeves rolled up and are in the early stages of productivity. We’re happy for them and look forward to seeing more fruit from their labors.

Welcome aboard!

THIS WEEK’S GROWER NOTES

We have the best Growers in the Wiregrass! Please learn more about them on our Grower Page.

AVALON FARMS: We’ve been experiencing a population explosion here! Three baby goats in the last 2 weeks. The brown one was born last Sunday in all that rain. Poor momma had a terrible time getting it dry. The big goat in the back of the picture is our Ms. Hazel, soon to be momma Hazel. (Well, soon is a relative term, as we’ve been saying soon for 4 weeks!) The other 2 births were totally unexpected as they barely looked pregnant. First time goat grandma here, with lots to learn.

BAIN HOME GARDENS: Hello Market Friends,
    How nice the weather is today(Friday)! All I want to do is be in the garden from sunrise to sunset when it’s this beautiful out. However, with the many hats I wear it isn’t possible. Time management is so important.  In fact at our home this has become our new project! I heard it illustrated this way: If you take a pail and put pebbles (less essential activities of life) and then  try to put the stones (most essential things in life) in, there isn’t enough room for even the important things! However, if you put the stones in FIRST you can still fit most of the pebbles around the stones! Why is Mrs. Bain Home Gardner talking about stones and pebbles? Well in garden life there are pebbles and stones too. Recognizing which is which will lead to success on the homestead. This week we threw some stones in the pail! We have our second planting of peas in the ground, amended a few beds & tilled for spring planting. This year we are being smart by starting plants BEFORE last frost in an effort to harvest a bit earlier in the growing season.  This will be our first full on year as homesteaders and we are looking forward to a beautiful & long growing season! Stay tuned, many adventures await!
From our family to yours!

HAWKINS HOMESTEAD FARM: This past week we were all taught a lesson…Well I know for sure that we were! That lesson is that no matter how much you plan, prepare, or plant, the weather changes everything! The majority of our plants were drowning in water. Did you see the video on our Facebook farm page? We thought we were going to lose most, BUT the water dried up, the sun came out, and our plants sprung back to life. Even some of our sprouts survived! We thought they had all washed away. So we are thankful and hope to be able to roll with whatever other weather setbacks we have.

One more thing I have personally learned is patience! I have found that when I really want something to happen fast….it never does. Does this happen to anyone else? Or just me? Well I will just keep waiting for the plants to grow, for the chickens to grow, for Spring to come, for the hens to lay more eggs….just waiting….patiently!

FOOTNOTES

We would love to hear from you! If you have a favorite recipe, want to write a product review, have an idea or request for an article or information, let us know! You can reply to this newsletter or write marketatdothan@gmail.com.

We thank you for your interest and support of our efforts to bring you the healthiest, the freshest and the most delicious locally-produced foods possible!