| The variability of New England weather has been on full display this Spring, most recently during “March in May”, when a welcome warmup was quickly followed by a week of gray, mist, rain and temperatures that barely topped 50. We seem to be on a more summerlike trajectory now, much to the relief of the tender annuals (squash, cucumbers, basil, peppers, eggplant) and the farmers who tend them. As luck would have it, even those tender annuals we foolishly (optimistically?) kicked out of the greenhouse in late April seem little worse for the wear—we just pruned and staked our first tomato planting (set out on April 28th), and aside from some idle nibbles from presumably disappointed deer (tomato foliage not being choice forage), the plants seem undamaged and vigorous. The peas, much more at home with our recent cool spell, were likewise browsed by our deer friends (not dear to me!) in a more thoroughgoing and dramatic fashion—hopefully the tardily erected deer fence will put a stop to that and allow us a bountiful pea harvest toward the middle and end of this month. Of course, if the temperatures suddenly spike into the nineties, it will be the tender annuals who prosper, while the poor cold-hardy peas wilt and turn yellow in the unwelcome (to them) heat. Other spring crops have been in evidence, with an early asparagus season already winding down, but strawberry season just poised to begin. Nodding peonies are unfurling their scandalous blooms, a hundred varieties of apples (hyperbole? Who knows) slowly swell among the young green foliage, not to mention the gorgeous greens, luscious lettuce, ravishing radishes, sumptuous spinach…I could go on, but I won’t. Another exciting development to crop up this spring was the wedding on a cool, showery May Saturday of Liza Bemis (our fearless leader) and Tom Vanderhoof. We congratulate them both on their exceptional taste in partners, and wish them many abundant harvests in the years to come! Despite some difficulties with fields flooding and ponding, we have managed to keep up with our schedules, more or less, and we will open our doors this Friday. We will open staffed with regular hours on Friday May 30th (11am – 6pm), and another season of the farmstand begins! Regular hours of the farmstand going forward will be Tuesdays-Saturdays 11am-6pm, and Sundays 11am-5pm. Self-serve on the porch will continue for seedlings, but produce will only be available during staffed times. Two of our farmers markets have already started for the season (Saturdays at Union Square in Somerville, and Mondays at Central Square in Cambridge) and next Thursday, June 5th, our Thursday afternoon market in Belmont Center will also begin for the season. As our crop roster grows, we hope to see you soon at either the farmstand or at one of our farmers markets! As always, please check the “whats at the stand” tab on our website for the latest crop and seedling information – we try (as much as we possibly can!) to keep that page updated. Happy Spring! -Brian Cramer, Liza Bemis, and the rest of the Hutchins Farm crew |
 |
 |
May 2025 Newsletter – Opening Day Friday May 30th!