Monthly Summary – November 2009
RCM; Logs and records reviewed, and summary prepared 12/10

General Observations: As we rehash last November, I am reminded of my own arrival at North Slope.  My beginning marked the end of two other interns who we sadly said farewell too as they ventured westward.  Last year we were winding down and getting ready to pack it in for the winter, most workers had plans of travel in December and taking a nice long break from farming.  But for those still here there was work getting the heated greenhouse in order for winter salad production, settling the chickens in for their winter stay in a new greenhouse and preparing the farm for a little break.
Administration 31.5 hours: Monthly summary, end of the year summaries, bills for the year, payroll, meetings on plans for the end of the year/winter season, trainee meetings on goals and successes of the year, winter caretaker responsibilities meeting, 4th Quarter report to NJ.
Infrastructure 18.5 hours: Completing greenhouse covering for winter space for chickens, patching greenhouse holes and heating problems before the winter, shutting down the walk in and setting up winter storage in a smaller refrigerator unit, winterize the farm and draining the water system.
Greenhouse 12 hours: Preparing the heated greenhouse for winter seeding/production, fixing heating problems and holes in greenhouses.
Planting 22.5:
Week 2: Garlic for 2010, the start of lettuce seeding in the heated greenhouse for winter production
Week 4: Additional lettuce seeding in the heated greenhouse
Crop Care 3.5 hours: Taking down of tomato stakes, collections of irrigation parts in the field to be stored together
Harvesting 99.5 hours: crash course in harvesting for RC
Week 1: Chard, kale, field salad, scallions, salad mix
Week 2: tatsoi, kale, chard, scallions, arugula, salad mix
Week 3: Kale, chard, scallions, carrots, salad mix
Week 4: salad mix, kale, chard, carrots
Handling 20.5 hours: Washing, topping carrots, stripping teas
Marketing 61 hours:
Hopewell: 11/4 $453.41, 11/11 $389.35 , 11/18 $416.30
Summit:  11/8 $1800, 11/15 $2103, 11/22 $2,792
Special Projects 56 hours: Getting the chickens homes ready for the winter – Installing fence and BD finishing the framing on Farmhouse Gothic greenhouse.  Excellent job by BD despite taxing conditions and fabrication requirements – Thanks BD!
Weather:
Week 1:  Experienced an extreme temperature drop with a killing frost
Week 2: Much warmer with highs in the 70’s and lows in the 40s, but a front moved in bringing wind and colder temperatures
Week 3: Dry and stabilizing temperatures into friendlier conditions
Week 4: Keeping with relatively mild temperatures for the end of November, some clouds and rain move in