Our selection of available veggies will vary each week. This week we have 16 items: Arugula, turnips, 2 types of carrots, kale, collards, bell and Italian frying peppers, jalapenos, serranos, baby and full size heirloom potatoes, mizuna, radishes, chard, and butternut squash.

We think that this will be a convenient and economical way to provide outstanding veggies to the hungry masses while the local growers markets are closed.  We anticipate that we will have an ongoing selection of produce through the winter, as our newly constructed hoophouses start yielding.

If you are a restaurant or have a need for larger quantities, we offer wholesale prices with a minimum order of $40.

P.S. Our blog site is under construction… we’ll be posting pictures ASAP!

I am happy to announce…HappyDirt Veggie Patch is back in business at a new location in Medford!  I have teamed up with Aluna Michelle of GardenSeed to grow veggies and flowers on three acres.

The land is fertile clay loam, which has been lightly grazed, but not cultivated, for over 50 years.  The water is from two wells on the property, plus irrigation water from Medford Irrigation District.  I moved to the property in March of this year, and have been setting up infrastructure and planting the first crops.  I have also been working a part-time job to keep afloat financially during this time.  The first harvests began about a month ago, and overall the results have been very good for a first season– very late planted– effort: basil, corn, chard, cucumbers, beets, scallions and green beans have yielded well.  Lots of other crops are on the way.

Now with Aluna coming on board, things are coming together rapidly.  We are doing the last of our fall planting this week.  We hope to have a good selection of winter veggies, as we seem to be in a relatively mild area for nighttime temps.  We plan to erect a few small hoophouses this season as well.

We have been selling our produce to various restaurants, and at the Rogue Valley Growers Markets through other vendors.  You may have already eaten our veggies and not known it!  We have also been selling to Jonathan Ash of American RuralCraft at Eagle Mill Farm.  We’re buddies again– please ignore my negativity in the previous post long, long ago.

We are considering a range of options for marketing our produce–wholesale to restaurants and farm stands, CSA, Growers Market, home delivery, internet ordering, etc….we would appreciate your input on how we can best serve your needs.

Stay tuned for more updates!

I’m sad to announce that this will be the final season for HappyDirt at Eagle Mill Farm.  As many of you know, this has been a tough season for many local farms, and HappyDirt was no exception.  On top of that, the situation here at the farm has evolved in ways that make the prospect of running a viable business seem further away than ever.

My collaboration with Jonathan Ash and RuralCraft turned into a competition–not by my choosing.  Essentially, without going into details, I’ve felt angled and pressured out of control of my own business, and I do not have sufficient support from the landowner, Ron Roth, to stop it. I cannot count on a solid lease, nor on running my own marketing at the stand.  I am not interested in a competition for who gets to grow and sell from this property, so I am letting it go.  I just like to grow stuff, not fight.

I am winding down the season– and expect to be gone by the end of the year. The stand is still open in self-serve mode. The summertime crops are slowing down to a trickle, but there are some nice fall things coming in.  There is a good crop of winter squash on hand. I’ll keep the stand going as long as there is enough produce to warrant it.

I encourage anyone who still has HappyBucks, or FarmBucks to use them ASAP at the stand, or get in touch with me if you want to get a big load of squash, potatoes, etc. to keep through the winter.

I am so very appreciative of the support from each of you for the past couple of years.  There have been many wonderful times and connections made, many great veggies grown and purchased, many magic moments.  It’s been a good adventure, and I don’t regret it at all.  Moving on will allow things to evolve as they should, and will open me up to new horizons.

Though I have needed to state my hard truth about the situation here, I’m already past it emotionally.  I hold no ill-will and wish the best for everyone who will carry on after I leave, and will do what I can to be helpful in the transition.

As for me, I don’t know what I’m doing next.  I’m hoping to stay in Ashland.  I’m pursuing some opportunities locally.  If I find a good gig soon, then I’ll stay.  If not, then I’ll have to leave the area and go wherever I’m called to go.  Scary…and exciting!

Thanks again for the support you have given, and for the opportunity to serve in a healthy way.

Peace and Love,
Matt Suhr

541-499-4903

OK, the whining is over.  Though about a month late, our summertime crops are starting to come in, and they are looking good!  The tomatoes in particular are looking very nice.  That means it’s time to open our stand.

Jonathan and the RuralCraft apprentice crew have been busy cleaning up, setting up, and gearing up for the farmstand season.  I think you’ll enjoy the energy these folks have brought to the farm.  The fields are looking beautiful, and the crops are getting better tended than ever before. 

This year we plan to be open for more convenient hours.  We also are setting up a homemade evaporative cooling system which will keep the stand comfortable even when the afternoon sun beats down.  This will also help keep the veggies in prime plump condition much longer.

Our approach this season is to offer more great deals for volume purchases and for “field run” grade veggies.  Any farm has lots of veggies that are not up to top-notch appearance grade, but are otherwise perfectly good.   Along with the primo stuff, we intend to offer great deals on things like greens with some chew holes in the leaves, or tomatoes with blemishes.  The local growers markets discourage such sales out of fear it will tarnish their high-class image.

We’re less concerned about image, and more into getting good food to the people, whether they are rich or not.  For those on a tight budget, we will be the best place to get wholesome, nutritious, fresh local veggies at affordable prices.  For those with money to spare, we will have the best quality produce around without the crowds and parking issues of the growers markets.

We will be open Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays from noon to 6pm, and Saturdays from 8am to 4pm.  Come check us out!

This week we expect to have a variety of heirloom and standard tomatoes, summer squash, cucumbers, chard, kale, onions, garlic, beets, several kinds of basil, and maybe a few peppers  and eggplants, plus edible flowers and other things that I’m forgetting at the moment.

We will not be setting up at the Growers Market for the time being.  We want to focus on our own scene and be the best we can for those who make the trip out to the farm.

Of course, we honor all Farm Bucks and HappyBucks!  See you soon…

Matt

The biggest news is that HappyDirt was approved to become a member of the Rogue Valley Growers and Crafters market for this season.  We set up our booth for the first time on March 30.  Now we plan to be there each Tuesday.  This week we will have early season greens– lettuce, chard, turnips,beets, carrots, scallions, cilantro, spinach, leeks, etc.  We also have a surprise crop of Jerusalem Artichokes (sunchokes)— I went digging where I had planted four pieces of root last year, to grow out and replant this year.  Lo and behold there was a dense patch of roots there, about 150 pounds from about 1 pound that was planted.  That’s much more than we need for replanting, so we’ll be selling them at the market Tuesday.  They’re quite full and yummy, and great for regulating your blood sugar levels.

If you have purchased HappyBucks, you can now start using them at our stand. 

HappyDirt has also joined with other local farms and value added producers in the Ashland-Talent Growers CSA.   There is a new blog site atgcsa.wordpress.com which explains all the options that are offered.  The Farm Bucks offered by ATGCSA are redeemable starting in May.  The CSA box program runs for 20 weeks starting June 4.  There are local add-on options available, too, like mushrooms, olive oil, bread, wild wine, chicken, eggs, and prepared meals.  There is still time to sign up for a weekly box! 

The recent cool weather has slowed down some of the field planting.  There was a hard freeze a few nights ago– 21 degrees– which may have damaged our broccoli and cauliflower crops.  We won’t know for sure for awhile.  The plants look fine, but may prematurely bolt to seed when exposed to cold temperatures while young. 

All the other tender crops like tomatoes, basil, and peppers were double covered in the cold frames and greenhouse, and they appear to be fine.  We are hoping to have some very early tomatoes again this year.  The first planting in the greenhouse is about a foot and a half tall with a few blooms setting already.

This season we are working with RuralCraft to do some of our field work.  RuralCraft is an apprenticeship program initiated by Jonathan Ash, which will involve probably 6-10 young folks who want to learn a variety of practical and artisan skills, including farming.  They will be providing work crew services to HappyDirt as well as other local farms.  Jonathan saved our butt last season when we were overwhelmed with the harvest.  We hope to avoid being overwhelmed this year by having a trained crew on hand for whatever abundance Mother Earth dishes out to us.

For now, we are selling produce only at the Growers Market on Tuesdays.  We will expand to restaurant sales as more crops come in.  Then we will open our on-site stand when we have enough variety to make a good presentation.  Best guess is that that will happen late May–early June.  We plan to continue doing the Tuesday market through the season, and have our on-site stand be open Thurs-Sat. 

One of our best helpers at the farm, Deb Van Poolen, is leaving to go to Ladakh, which is in the Himalayas of northern India.  She will be working there for 6 months, helping to preserve the traditional culture that has prospered there for many centuries, at over 10,000 feet elevation, but is now threatened by Western development. 

Many blessings to you this season!

Matt

We are still working out the final details, but here is the basic deal:

Weekly Box: Each of the farms will provide some of the veggies for the weekly box, each Friday afternoon. There will be a number of value-added options from other local producers also available, such as meat, eggs, mushrooms, dairy, fruit, flowers, etc. There will also be the option of home delivery.
The season will start June 4 and go for 20 weeks until Oct. 15. There will be a singles box for $18/week ($360/season) and a family size box for $28/week ($560/season). Home delivery will be available for $5 per week ($100/season).
There will be central pickup points established for customer convenience. We are serving the Ashland/Talent area.

Farm Bucks: We will print bundles of farm bucks that can be purchased at a discount before the season, and spent at any of the member farm locations or their stands at the Rogue Valley Growers Markets, throughout the main season (May-November).
Farm Bucks will be issued in packs of $50. You can buy as many packs as you think you will need for the season (you can also trade them with others as a local currency instead of cash). If they are purchased by Feb. 28, there is a 15% discount ($50 redeemable value for $42.50). If they are purchased in March thru April, there is a 10% discount ($45). After that, there is a 5% discount ($47.50).

There are several other farms involved with this project, that will contribute to the CSA boxes some of the weeks, such as Abundance Garden Co-op, Neighborhood Harvest, White Sage Gardens, and Sean Gordon. The value-added producers include Rogue Valley Brambles, Mycoverse, Andy’s Organics, Our Local Bounty, Pickled Planet and One Leaf Microgreens.

Quite a list! And there will be more, no doubt.

Our official launch is:
Saturday, January 23,  9am – 1pm, at The CommUnity Breakfast Meal and Market at The Bellview Grange, located at 1050 Tolman Creek Rd., Ashland Details Here

We’ll have a table at the brunch  with sign-up forms and more information. You can also contact me (Matt) directly to sign up.  The Farm Bucks have not yet been printed, but we can take orders.

This is a whole new adventure for all of us. We feel that working together will offer much more value and convenience for our customers than each of us running our own CSA programs. The 15% discount for early Farm Bucks purchase is very significant. I’m sure you’ve noticed how busy Ashland Food Co-op gets when the 5% coupons are about to expire.

The prepayments allow the farmers to manage their cash flow more effectively. Many of the expenses of a farm (seeds, amendments, labor) occur early in the season, when there is little or no income. Having working capital enables a more productive season to follow.

We are looking forward to a great 2010 season at HappyDirt! We plan to grow more veggies, extend the seasons, and improve the overall soil health and beauty of the farm. We will have an improved farmstand with longer hours (late afternoon drive home time) as well. We hope to see you frequently!

And many thanks for your patronage last season.

Matt

happydirtveggiepatch@gmail.com

(541) 499-4903

There are several big news items to share:

First is that Sari has decided to pull back from her work at the farm. This leaves a large void, since Sari has been responsible for all of our marketing, communications, bookkeeping, etc., in addition to running the stand, sorting, harvesting, organizing, delivering, etc., etc.  Sari will be greatly missed.  Fortunately for me, the off-season gives me a little slack in getting up to speed and filling her shoes.
And what is Sari’s reason for leaving?  Here’s her words: “I learned an incredible amount this past year and I loved it.   After many weeks of processing, I have made the decision to move on from HappyDirt Veggie Patch. My role at HappyDirt and the numerous hats I wore there has triggered the bug in me to get back into the world of business.   I’m not sure yet what I’ll be doing, but keep me in mind if you have any creative ideas.”

Alongside this, Cameron has been pulled toward his first love of mushrooms, and will likely have less time to devote to HappyDirt in the coming season.  Cameron was the backbone of our field work this season, and he plugged us into his extensive network of family, friends and associates that have benefited the farm in many, many ways.  I’m hopeful he will be a big part of HappyDirt this coming season as well, but if the mushrooms call, I understand.  In that case, he will still be our mushroom connection person.  We do have plans to integrate mushroom cultivation into veggie growing, and Cameron is indispensable to that project.

So that leaves Jonathan and me here at the Veggie Patch.  Literally!  Jonathan moved into the cabin by the entrance gate a month or two ago.  I am in the process of fixing up another cabin behind the Winery building to become my residence.  This will change the dynamics of the farm substantially!  We will be on-site, with lower overhead and lots of other synergies.

In order to streamline the transition process, we decided to dissolve our LLC partnership.  I will take on the business of HappyDirt as sole proprietor, and assume the remaining debts.  Jonathan will establish his own enterprise called Rural Craft, which is a farming apprenticeship program that also serves the labor needs of local farms.  Jonathan and I will be working together very closely to develop new models of how to get the labor component of farming accomplished in the context of education, teamwork, and making a living.

The final big news is that I’ve decided to change our CSA program into a HappyBucks program.  What this means is that instead of pre-paying for a specific box of veggies each week, customers can pre-purchase HappyBucks at various discount levels, and spend them at our stand whenever and however they choose.  I’m still working out the final details, and expect to officially launch the new program in the next week or two.
The idea of this change is to give customers more choice and flexibility.  It will also help customers save substantially on their food bill.  I intend to expand the stand hours this season to make it more convenient for more people.  I have also applied to be a vendor at the Rogue Valley Growers Market.  If that is approved, HappyBucks will be accepted at our stand there as well.
Another idea in the works for this season is to offer email ordering (using HappyBucks) for retail customers from our weekly availability list, just as we currently do for our restaurant accounts.  This could include the option of home delivery.

Well–that’s enough information for awhile– lets allow all that to sink in a bit…

Many blessings to you and your loved ones,

Matt

Letter from Sari:

Dear Friends,

I shared an abundant Thanksgiving yesterday with family and friends. I have had so much to be thankful for in this past year. I have been blessed to come together in very deep ways with friends and community. I also lost two very close friends early in 2009 and this touched me and connected me deeply with old friends and brought new precious friendship and ventures to me, including HappyDirt.

Some of my deepest gratitude from this year goes to my friend, Matt Suhr, who shared with me his love and understanding of farming. Beginning in January, Matt and I began planting seeds, digging out Bermuda grass, recording daily temperatures and reading the rain gage. I learned to mix soil, how to bump-up starts, how to properly label seed trays, techniques for laying transplants into the field, and how to make furrows and spread compost.  Matt set me to work, laying and connecting drip line, taught me how to jumpstart the well pump, to time and drip the field beds, and something as simple as how to angle the hose just right when watering starts. I learned how to break the bind weed without damaging the crops, and to dig Bermuda grass out, without losing the root. I learned how to recognize when a tomato was ready to be picked for the ripening chamber, what a perfect, ripe eggplant looks like, and how to recognize when eggplant are overripe and tough. Matt taught me how best to snip and pop squash off the vine, getting them harvested without nicking their tender, shiny skin. And, I saw purple peppers for the first time this summer. I was mentored in just the right way to cut a head of lettuce from the bed, how to snap off leaves of kale and collards from the plants and how to snip and clean the cabbage in the field before pack-out. Matt showed me the intricacies of  produce pack-out; soaking, spraying the fresh harvest with the perfect hose-head setting, snipping, trimming or peeling off layers to perfect produce perfection. And I learned how to judge if clean is really clean enough.  I was taught the best way to pack produce into boxes. I discovered there were lots of details to packing out produce. Where else would I have learned that the white bitter juice from lettuce stems could run onto the other heads, affecting their leaves, if packed improperly?

Then came sorting tomatoes-thousands of pounds of tomatoes. I sorted by variety, size, and ripeness. Matt mentored me in the fine intricacies of tomatoes; how to palpate a bruise, catching a subtle sun burn, and finding the tiniest split that would cause the tomato to prematurely rot. I learned the difference between #1, #2, and #3 tomatoes.  I determined what assortment a case of mixed heirloom tomatoes should contain. Some weeks, I struggled to find just enough perfect tomatoes to complete the boxes for our wholesale orders. If the ripening room didn’t have enough of the needed multi-colored, shining treasures, I’d strap on my kneepads, don my straw hat, wet my sleeves, grab a bucket and head out to the field to pluck the perfect gems.

Between the physical farming, mastering QuickBooks, setting up a wholesale marketing system and accounts, learning to keep a blog, and running a farm stand, it was a powerful year of exponential learning and growth for me.

I learned an incredible amount this past year and I loved it.   After many weeks of processing, I have made the decision to move on from HappyDirt Veggie Patch. My role at HappyDirt and the numerous hats I wore there has triggered the bug in me to get back into the world of business.  I’m not sure yet what I’ll be doing, but keep me in mind if you have any creative ideas.

I have loved my connection to you all through my part in the farm and am deeply grateful for your faith and support in our first-year effort.  Matt will be continuing with the farm, as sole proprietor, working his magic with this incredible rich piece of land. And, I’m sure you may still find me there at times, dabbling in the HappyDirt.

In gratitude,

Sari

We had a full-on season of weekly boxes for our C.S.A. Last week was our last official week  for boxes. This week, our members who signed-on early with full payment, will receive their end-of -season bonus box. We are working up our C.S.A. Plan for next year and it will be posted here by January with a sign-up form for 2010.

While our farm activity has slowed down, Rogue Valley Farm to School has been a very active presence. They have had weekly Pumpkin Tours and Harvest Meals at the farm kitchen throughout October. It’s been great seeing all the school children at the farm. Besides the RVFTS activity, the grapes in the back vineyard  are being harvested and pressed.

We are still doing a small transitional season wholesale business, though we have gone down to one harvest and one delivery day each week. We plan to be slowly gaining speed with that again by the end of February, when Ashland swings back into seasonal action.

Hope you had a great October! Maybe see you at the parade on Saturday.

-Sari

Today, after the farm stand closed, Matt and I packed it up for the winter. We’ll keep you notified on the web-site as to our stand plans for next season, as well as updated details regarding how our C.S.A. will work next year.

I’ve posted some photos below. One sent by customers Holly and Robert, of a salad they made from our produce(note the heirloom tomato and sliced melon too). One  photo was taken last week of me with Jonathan’s way cool dog/wolves, Ketzel and Upeka. And photos from this evening, when Abbey Sarver (our wwoofer) and I pickled some of the last of the 2009 HappyDirt cucumbers,  green banana peppers,  Italian sweet peppers, purple peppers, and carrots.  I used some lovely dill I found  in the field today and  garlic I grew in my home patch this year.

Here’s the recipe from my Cousin, Meghan, a  Holistic Lifestyle Consultant- click on the link and watch Meghan make the pickles on youtube: http://meghantelpnerblog.com/2009/10/08/cut-the-pickle-tickle-tickle/