Monthly Summary – November 2012
Posted By: TH Date: 11/5
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General Observations: first notations in log for the month are of the after math of Hurricane Sandy at the end of October. Eventually clean up began. Comparatively the farm did ok through the storm. Mostly it brought wind that wreaked some havoc on the green house plastic, but damages were minimal overall. The pace of the remaining work and harvests slowed considerably. There were many shorter days, some very cold and less tasks to occupy a crew.
Equipment 0 hrs:
Administration 18.5 hrs: Kyle sustained a minor injury. Some of his teeth were chipped when a heavy-duty pin dropped, striking his face while replacing the tow bar on the Ford. The notes include the medical treatment and the farm insurance. We had a meeting around the bunkhouse fire on the 27th to talk about the concluding season, the season to come, and the remaining tasks. On 11/28 there are notes about the increase in minimum wage. The regular payroll and bills practices are observed, amongst the compiling of data, and posting summaries. Seed order for 2013 is list as to do.
Infrastructure 39.5 hrs: Sandy knocked out the power from 10/30 until 11/11. on the twelth the water pump at the ranch was fixed. Chicken chores, storm clean up and repair, and end of season/winter readiness are all the tasks at hand. Storm “lessons learned” as logged include: Generator, at least three days of fuel, drinking water containers filled and stowed, and water for toilets. Also a note for catchment and hand pump as future options. The plastic on the ends of Ralph’s house were secured with staples through drip tape. Repairs attempted on rips in seedling green house. Some wind damage to small wood frame green house was repaired. The chickens required moving to new locations, fresh hay, and food and water. Along with taking care of the birds our newly residing cats needed care for their first winter in the seed shed. The cats have been named “Agua” (female), “Silky” (male, long hair), and “Skunk” (male, short hair). “Skunk” was later renamed “Ghost” do to his illusiveness and evading capture. Row cover is collected along with hoops and sand bags. There is notation on the 18th for draining the water system over night, and later the heater in the barn attic was turned on the prevent pipe freezing. Some time snow shoveling is also logged.
Greenhouse 0 hrs:
Composting 0 hrs:
Planting 0 hrs: On 11/6 the last field (tomato field) for cover crop was prepared and seeded by Rita and Kyle. The flower field was also broad cast with cover crop then mowed, leaving the chaff as cover.
Crop Care 15 hrs: 11/14 Protected hazel nut and apple trees. The trunks were being nibbled.
Harvesting 73.5 hrs: We had our regularly scheduled Thursday and Friday harvests for West Windsor and Summit Farmers markets. 100lbs of carrots harvest from 1/3 of a big garden bed on the 14th. Last harvest was cold and long on the 15th and 16th
Handling 35.5 hrs: crops could not be washed during power outage. As mentioned the last harvest weather was particularly cold. The task of washing took Mike into the night, having to be resumed the following day.
Marketing 52 hrs: On the 3rd some roads are still closed on the way to a slow and cold market. On 11/10 Colleen goes to Gravity hill market with tea! The last two markets are both indicated as having been busy and a good end to the season, with excellent weather. At summit it is noted that we ran out too early of mushrooms and cider.
West Windsor: 11/3 $776, 11/8 $912, 11/17 $1486
Summit: 11/3 $1190, 11/8 $2600, 11/17 $3420
Gravity Hill: 11/8 $65, 11/17 $125
Special Projects 10 hrs: 11/19 Cedar post harvest as part of the wood lot management plan. The harvested cedar is to be used as fence posts around the fruit cluster and a small post and beam structure to be built in the same location. 11/20 Mike heads into the east woods for clearing dead falls. The log states the goal of establishing access lane and thinning deciduous trees to allow remaining cedar to reseed and establish a new stand. ATV worked well with the trailer in the logging configuration.
Weather:
Week 1: After the hurricane, wet, cold.
Week 2: Cold, windy. Forecast Nor’easter. Hard freeze. Warm for weekend.
Week 3: Saturated, rainy, cool. Cold days, freezing at night.
Week 4: Excellent weekend weather. Cold and freezing nights. Partly sunny
Week 5: mild sunny day, just freezing at night. 11/27 Snow!