HIGHLIGHTS OF OUR 2021 FARMING SEASON
We powered 100-150 members and families for 8 months of the year with nutritious and nutritious food. On top of that we were able to harvest and sell over 4,000 lbs of greens, 1,000 plus lbs of tomatoes, and hundreds of lbs of herbs and roots to our community. Everything that we don’t sell gets donated to Community Harvest of Central Vermont and gets cooked in meals that go to community lunches and Meals on Wheels.
We have paid over $60,000 of wages this year. We employ up to 6 people in the summer and between 3 & 5 in the Spring and Fall. About half our team is BIPOC, and we highly value the language, background, and mindset that our diverse team contributes in creating an amazing diverse workplace and extremely productive small diverse farm. We are all proud that our hard work contributes to feeding our community and creating a beautiful and biologically diverse place to spend our days working in the gardens. We were acknowledged by various experts in the field for being in the top tier of Vermont Farms in our farming practices, organization, and success.
As many have seen, the infrastructure in building a farm is a major contributor to the success and longevity of a working land business.
This year you helped us build a fourth greenhouse. These structures are not cheap and are built to withstand storms, snow, and the test of time. This infrastructure is crucial as we aim to provide more food to our community in the Spring and Fall, and be more resilient to weather extremes.
We completed a second walk-in cooler in our barn that is super insulated and energy efficient. Different crops have ideal storage conditions and we are ever closer to being able to store a diversity of produce year round with this new space.
We improved ventilation in two of our high tunnels by installing large exhaust fans to help avoid mildew and overheating. We installed a heater and airflow fans in our tomato greenhouse, which is part of the reason we had such a great tomato harvest this year!
We purchased another double fridge to display our produce in the farmstand tent and improve your shopping experience.
We purchased a few small tools to increase our efficiency and safety on the farm, such as a 5-row seeder, commercial washing machine we converted to use to spin our greens, and a back-up salad greens harvester.
For 2022 we plan to:
Plant over 250 blueberry bushes for a pick-your-own that we will offer to CSAers.
Expand our pick-your-own flower offerings to CSA members:)
Continue to make improvements to our work area in the barn by expanding, insulating, and heating our work area where we wash and pack, and the crew eats lunch on rainy and cold days.
And most importantly grow absolutely delicious, mouth watering produce harvested and distributed the same day to our members.
Oh and this year beat the woodchucks and produce scrumptious broccoli and kale!
Start developing Plant-based nutrition and cooking classes to contribute to the health and wellness of our community promoting tools and resources for our CSAers and expanded community, so they can take control to their health through the power of the food choices they make.
Navigating the Pandemic world scenario, making sure that we keep building a sense of community while we take all the precautions and follow all the public healthy recommendations, to contribute to our greater wellness and continuing being part of the healing and solution.
Thank you for being part of this dream that has become true to all of us! Thank you for your continues support. If you are reading this lines we are sure you care for and value our work.
In order to thrive we need you more than ever!
So, please consider to sign up to our CSAs for 2022. With your early payments we will be able to be prepare and plan for a successful and bountiful 2022 harvest.
To learn how to become a sustaining member and help us develop our goals for 2022, please visit our 3 Seasons CSA page.
To sign up for all or any of our 3 Seasons CSA please go to this form and reserve your spot for this 2022.
Thank you!
May we all have a healthy and happy 2022!
The Ananda Gardens Farmily
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