DOWN on the FARM
with Tom Willey
Down on the Farm
“When people have a relationship to a farm, when they have a farm in their mind and in their heart, they’re engaged more as citizens of this planet,” Peterson said. “I can lament the declining sales and the struggles for farmers, but I really feel that the bigger issue is that the more people are cut off from the source of their food, the less able they are to deal with the issues of the world.” -‘Farmer John’ Peterson [Read more…]
The hoe’s approval stamp
The soil now gets a rumpling soft and damp,
And small regard to the future of any weed.
The final flat of the hoe’s approval stamp
Is reserved for the bed of a few selected seed.
There is seldom more than a man to a harrowed piece.
Men work alone, their lots plowed far apart,
One stringing a chain of seed in an open crease,
And another stumbling after a halting cart.
To the fresh and black of the squares of early mould
The leafless bloom of a plum is fresh and white;
Though there’s more than a doubt
if the weather is not too cold
For the bees to come and serve its beauty aright.
Wind goes from farm to farm in wave on wave,
But carries no cry of what is hoped to be.
There may be little or much beyond the grave,
But the strong are saying nothing until they see.
-Robert Frost, 1936
All the promise of a new year
My friend, Cecilia Sheeter, once described a moment of evening light when one feels as if its “thick golden sheen could be scooped out of the air.” To me, the spring air has that same feel, it is dense with all the promise of a new year. Bud break in grapes is my favorite week of this, my favorite season. A field of nascent green is suspended over the earth on a squat army of gnarled trunks. Years of past mistakes, misgivings, and missed opportunities are the wood of the vine, nourishing the tender young shoots. Their vigor holds so much enthusiasm; even our human losses seem diminished. This is Mr. Willey’s most stressful time of year. To him, all that spring potential is fraught with tension, danger and toil. With literally hundreds of tasks, for dozens of crops, to be completed in an ever-narrowing window of time and temperature, deciding each day’s priorities seems perilous. “Silty, sandy, muddy Earth, we savor God’s ardent endowment in you. Make us worthy stewards of your robust gifts, in wonderment and fright we witness life renew.” -denesse
Autumn 2015
“The medical profession is only beginning to recognize that no amount of medical technology will enable us to have healthy humans on a sick planet.” ― Thomas Berry
Usually, I welcome the autumnal equinox with as much gratefulness as the vernal crossing brings trepidation. Even with last week’s light showers, our farm appears a bit dingy and dusty, despite running a water wagon over its roads six days a week. Cool nights are welcome to many of our fall seedings. The Autumn Farm Tour will feature beets, carrots, lettuce, kale, turnips, squash, potatoes, tomatoes, leeks, chilies, sweet peppers, cucumbers, eggplant, parsley, dill, baby bok choy, basil, fennel, parsnips, rutabagas, Brussels sprouts and spinach. Reservations are required, directions are on the “Farm Tour” page.
5 June, 2015
An aging farmer ponders succession
Our three grown, college-educated children pursue careers other than cultivating the soil they’ve watched their parents tend for thirty-some seasons on several farms. The intimate, personal-farmer relationship we have enjoyed with thousands of local families through T&D Willey Farms‘ CSA program over the last dozen years is, without doubt, the most gratifying experience of our farming career. It is also the most exhausting. Desiring to perpetuate and further elaborate the local farm-to-family network our CSA initiated, we have begun collaboration with a new, visionary, community-based organization Read the rest of the story
12 May, 2015
A few weeks back, I signed a refund of deposit check for one of our original CSA members from November 2002. “We want to take a break” was the reason for discontinuing service after 12 years. I whispered under my breath, “me too.” Those of you who read this column know my family suffered 3 deaths in 20 days last October, their average age was 67, the same as Mr. Willey’s. In January, one of our sons, by way of condemning capitalism, told us “In this country, we work too hard to make money.” The last time I only worked five days a week was in 1986; since then our three children have each earned college degrees and I’m beginning to learn a new perspective on work. We will still be farming Certified Organic vegetables up here on the southwest corner of Avenue 14 and Road 20, but we’re taking a break from administering the weekly boxes. – denesse
5 May, 2015
It is always a pleasure to show off the farm to CSA members who attend our spring tours. Invariably, these tours are punctuated with a heightened anticipation for all of summer’s bounty yet to come, coupled with the risk and uncertainty we face as producers of food. You, as eaters, are no less dependent on the generosity of our soil and climate than are we. Some of you have asked why we host tours for our members. We love to share with you, not only what you find in the box each week but, the awesome wonder a productive gardenscape can bestow on your soul. Beyond that, we feel a responsibility to raise your food by a fully transparent process in a welcoming environment. – denesse
28 April, 2015
Now that the season has warmed a bit, we’re very excited to show off our early plantings on this Saturday’s farm tour. Basil, potatoes, melons and tomatoes are growing vigorously, and we are picking the first summer squash! If you wish to cast an eye on your “foodscape”, be sure to make a farm tour reservation today, 559-674-2642 or farmdesk@Tdwilleyfarms.com. Map and directions are on the website….from anywhere, select “Fresh & Local” then click on the “Farm Tour” link. – denesse
21 April, 2015
The first tomatoes have outgrown their protective row covers. Juan Jose and crew began to stake and tie them last week, all the while keeping abreast of continuous squash and melon seedings. We started picking a few seedless cucumbers, you’ll soon see these in your weekly boxes. Our first zucchini and yellow crookneck carries the promise of a productive season. January seedings of beets and kale have enjoyed the cooler weather, but any premature heat may send them bolting. Our neighbor Tom Bursey came to spread compost for a couple of days last week. Mr. Willey is doing great work with biological fertility and every living plant on the farm is enjoying it. Tractor drivers, Antonio, Clemente and Isaac, have kept busy turning ground over from one season’s bounty to another, a transformation that is nothing short of remarkable. We are looking forward to showing off the farm to CSA members on May 2nd. – denesse
21 April, 2015
The first tomatoes have outgrown their protective row covers. Juan Jose and crew began to stake and tie them last week, all the while keeping abreast of continuous squash and melon seedings. We started picking a few seedless cucumbers, you’ll soon see these in your weekly boxes. Our first zucchini and yellow crookneck carries the promise of a productive season. January seedings of beets and kale have enjoyed the cooler weather, but any premature heat may send them bolting. Our neighbor Tom Bursey came to spread compost for a couple of days last week. Mr. Willey is doing great work with biological fertility and every living plant on the farm is enjoying it. Tractor drivers, Antonio, Clemente and Isaac, have kept busy turning ground over from one season’s bounty to another, a transformation that is nothing short of remarkable. We are looking forward to showing off the farm to CSA members on May 2nd. – denesse
7 April, 2015
We appreciate the hand-written notes from members expressing the deep impact of eating fresh, local and organic. The farm really reminds us of the seasonality of food now. We have so many plantings of tomatoes, squash, peppers, eggplant and cucumbers that it is almost a chore waiting for summer. But, once the weather heats up for good, we’ll be missing those delicious greens and roots. We have a few more weeks to savor sautéed spinach, potato pancakes and fresh carrots shredded into our salads. – denesse
1 April, 2015
If you had a 1972 yearbook from Fresno’s Ahwahnee Jr. High, you might find a picture of the “Ecology Club” planting some trees around what was then, a brand new campus. Of those pictured, one became a high school English teacher, another a masseuse at Whole Foods Market, a third became a lawyer for Enron, another came to write a weekly vegetable newsletter and the star of our club became an engineer for California Department of Water Resources, later with the Regional Water Board, where she supervised the Compliance and Enforcement Unit in the Board’s Fresno office. JoAnne remained the truest to our “Ecology” roots and I’m so proud to have known her all these years after she, once again, shined the light on some local dirty doings.
– denesse read story: bit.ly/19UP2W9
24 March, 2015
Only a few days ago, our winter kale and beets yielded their ground to the seedlings of summer; tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, squash and melons will soon prosper in that same ground. The generosity of living soil is unfathomable, it is eager to grow anything and seems indiscriminate in offering a chance at life for both food crops and weeds. – denesse
17 March, 2015
My friend, Cecilia Sheeter, once described a moment of evening light when one feels as if its “thick golden sheen could be scooped out of the air.” To me, the spring air has that same feel, it is dense with all the promise of a new year. Bud break in grapes is my favorite week of this, my favorite season. A field of nascent green is suspended over the earth on a squat army of gnarled trunks. Years of past mistakes, misgivings, and missed opportunities are the wood of the vine, nourishing the tender young shoots. Their vigor holds so much enthusiasm; even our human losses seem diminished. This is Mr. Willey’s most stressful time of year. To him, all that spring potential is fraught with tension, danger and toil. With literally hundreds of tasks, for dozens of crops, to be completed in an ever-narrowing window of time and temperature, deciding each day’s priorities seems perilous. “Silty, sandy, muddy Earth, we savor God’s ardent endowment in you. Make us worthy stewards of your robust gifts, in wonderment and fright we witness life renew.” -denesse
10 March, 2015
We have just planted our first cucumbers and tomatoes under protective row covers. With continuing dry weather, we plan to transplant over 100,000 seedlings coming out of Kenny Lucero’s greenhouse over the next six weeks. Where winter crops have grown, Mr. Willey conducts the highly choreographed, rapid transition of shredding, discing, chiseling, bed-forming and mulch-laying that are key to the productivity which allows us to employ nearly 50 people year round on our 75 acres. People, machines and nature in concert, feeding you the best! – denesse
3 March, 2015
The soil now gets a rumpling soft and damp, And small regard to the future of any weed. The final flat of the hoe’s approval stamp
Is reserved for the bed of a few selected seed.
There’s seldom more than a man to a harrowed piece. Men work alone, their lots plowed far apart,
One stringing a chain of seed in an open crease,
And another stumbling after a halting cart.
To the fresh and black of the squares of early mould The leafless bloom of a plum is fresh and white; Though there’s more than a doubt if the weather is not too cold
For the bees to come and serve its beauty aright.
Wind goes from farm to farm in wave on wave, But carries no cry of what is hoped to be.
There may be little or much beyond the grave, But the strong are saying nothing until they see.
1936 Robert Frost
24 February, 2015
Leeks are one of the oldest cultivated Alliums, related to both the Lily and the Amaryllis families. Leeks add a subtle touch to recipes without overpowering other flavors. Their soft texture is essential in making flavorful winter soups with other cool season crops like kale, chard, turnips, potatoes, and carrots. Alliums have been well-researched and found to reduce total cholesterol and LDL, or “bad” cholesterol levels, at the same time helping to lower blood pressure, moderating the risk of heart attack and stroke. Just two servings per week is associated with reduced rates of prostate, ovarian and colon cancers. The combination of manganese, vitamin B6, vitamin C, folate, and iron make leeks particularly helpful in stabilizing blood sugar, slowing absorption of sugars to ensure their proper metabolism in the body. Martha Stewart has 39 leek recipes on her website including Fettuccine, Leek & White Beans which was eaten heartily by our vegetarian son Patrick, this past week. Halve Leeks lengthwise, from top to bottom and wash well under cold running water. Use the tough, dark green portion of the stalk to add flavor to soup stock.–denesse Willey
17 February, 2015
The lengthening days make a farmer’s pulse quicken, as much from fright as anticipation. We have finished digging our winter potatoes. That crew has now begun to cut seed potatoes for spring planting. Truck after truck arrives at the farm with composts made from either dairy manure or urban yard greens. Our neighbor, Tom Bursey, broadcasting the dark, earthy fertilizer, drives in between white bags neatly marking the fields. Moments later, powerful tractors work fresh microbial food into the awakening soil. Flocks of small birds follow the disk, looking to pick off an easy snack. – denesse
16 December, 2014
For several weeks Canada geese have been flying over the farm on their way to southern climes. The sound of this annual migration beckons me from the office and reminds me of the pleasure of living on the Pacific flyway. I will hang my thistle feeders at the house this weekend to lure the California finches within sight of our kitchen windows. These glimpses of nature fill me with wonder and hope. The geese call out to one another, hence the nickname “Canadian Honkers”. I wonder about these aerial communications; are they gossiping about the tidiness of farms over which they pass or might they be words of encouragement for the flight leader? The sound is both exciting and forlorn, reminiscent of homecomings associated with these winter holidays. The Satsumas harken us to reread Truman Capote’s A Christmas Memory. I hope there’s a memory or two for you in this week’s box. – denesse
9 December, 2014
Last Week’s storm brought some much needed snow to the highest elevations, and with this warmer weather a bit of valley fog. I always praise the wretched summer heat and soul sapping winter fog; “without them there would be 3 1/2 million people living here and the place would be ruined!” It looks like we will have some hand-dug Yukon Gold potatoes for the extra-value holiday box next week. The crop is “made”, but we need to wait for the field to dry out and the skins “to set” before harvesting in earnest. – denesse