In its desire to feed as many as possible the best food possible ATG Farm does some serious work.
The orchestration of compost making, planning, ordering, cultivating, sowing, planting, weeding,
harvesting, marketing and delivery is a mighty wheel to put one’s shoulder to. The human efforts,
working constantly through good and foul weather, when things are working well and when they break
down, monitoring all the fields for signs of success and signs of trouble, constant self-education and
consultation with experts, these are all part of the intense effort it takes to grow and deliver produce to
our customers and CSA members.
All this human effort can sometimes hide the enormous efforts made by the soil beneath our feet. While the farm is constantly in touch with the soil, its nutrients and its needs, like all living creatures from time
to time the soil must find rest to relax its striving and delight in a period of non-cultivation. With all production parameters so tight, scheduling the soil’s rest is difficult. But with a commitment to soil regeneration in mind, this year the farmers chose the field named Tobacco Barn for some well deserved R&R. By sowing cover crops and allowing the field to rest from intensive vegetable production, not only does the soil regain vitality the pollinators also have a habitat and forage.
In the mix of slow growing warm weather cover crops sown on the tobacco barn field, the farm included
buckwheat, a swift grower, to nurse the other mixed crops beneath its delicate shade. Fluorescent green
leaves now have yielded to brilliant white blossoms and instantly have become a magnet for pollinators
of all types. The play of insects and the flowers nodding in the breeze make the whole field shimmer with
delight that it is being allowed to rest. In the morning the dew glistens on the blossoms and remains
unshaken into the morning at complete rest.
It may seem counterintuitive, but it is true: rest is a fundamental ingredient in the activity of the farm, for both people and animal--and of course for the soil that does so much heavy lifting.
We hope you take some time to rest and have a meal with family or friends.