Looking Northward

Sorry for the delay.  Moving from DC to Albany took up most of my weekends last month, so there wasn't much time for blogging.  I'll be gone again this weekend because the moving truck will be arriving in Albany tomorrow afternoon.  Which do you think is easier, packing or unpacking?

August highlights

• The Pfeiffer Center covered the registration fee for the Northeast Organic Farming Association's 37th Annual Summer Conference at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, so I was able to spend 3 days learning about cover crops, using mushrooms to clean up toxic waste, school and community gardens, the Farm Bill, and other interesting topics.  This allowed for some good networking opportunities too.

• Fellow intern MaryAnn and I visited Amawalk Farm in Katonah, NY and learned about growing raspberries and the best-looking salad greens you've ever seen.  Westchester friends- the greens are sold in food co-ops around the county and they taste just as good as they look.

• I harvested the baby pan pumpkins that I helped plant in May.  Fellow intern Josh has already made a couple of pies with them.  I'm surrounded by bakers here and loving it.

• I spent more time with the bees.  Here's a photo of Elexis and me examining a frame.  Since summer is winding down, we've been checking the hives to make sure the bees have enough honey stored for their winter food supply.

Of course, there's been plenty of harvesting, weeding, and planting succession crops.  We're now discussing what will be in the garden next year and which beds to use.  This is quite challenging as there are many variables to take into account: which crops were previously grown in a bed, amount of sun/shade, air flow, pests, etc.  I have a map of the garden that I've filled in with my ideas, in pencil.  The eraser will most likely be gone before I finish this project.

Though my fair skin has often made me feel rather fragile next to the other interns who are sporting tank tops and shorts while they work, I'm pleased to have made it through the summer without getting burned.    Insect bites and stings are another story however: I'll spare you the story of the wasp in my pants.

Hope you've had a good summer too.  Best wishes for a relaxing Labor Day weekend!