Did you know that this year Codman Community Farms turns 50? Oh my, our Golden Anniversary! While we will do away with the need for lavish golden-like gifts we will indeed be celebrating the year in many ways.
We have many events on the docket including some not listed above. The farm turning 50 is a special occasion and first and foremost want to thank the Lincoln Community for its dedication to the farm over all these years. There have been many ups and downs but we are so proud of where we are today and are planning so many new and wonderful changes for this year and beyond.
As spring approaches we are extremely busy devising new ways to welcome everyone to the farm, including the final touches on our plans to renovate the Codman Community Courtyard. For those not aware, the area in front of our main barn will be renovated this spring into a new, pedestrian-friendly gathering space. It will be a beautiful new space devoid of mud, ice, and rocks and instead filled with new flower plantings, benches for lounging, and maybe even a few picnic tables.
For now, the space is still being used for intermittent parking since our nice bright orange parking cones blocking the area have been clobbered into tiny little orange bits so many times we have given up on the effort. We do intend to finally prohibit parking in the area once the renovation is complete…so time is ticking on all of you cone killers! You know who you are. Yeah yeah, I know when it’s raining or dark and it’s just easier. I got you. But know your days are numbered.
FARM UPDATES
While the photo above looks like it was taken on a beautiful Fall day, in fact, it was taken this weekend as a group of volunteers and Codman Board members began tapping maple trees for sap. I’m beginning to wonder if we should just do away with seasons altogether as they don’t seem to mean anything anyway these days!
The tapping of the trees marks the beginning of the end of “winter” and the early signs that “spring” is coming. At Codman, the maple sugaring season represents the pinnacle of volunteerism since full-time farm staff are not involved in the process. For many years it’s been a passion passed down from board member to board member, and this year is no exception. Board President, Jason Curtin (seen above in his barely noticeable yellow corduroys), and Steve Hoenig have been instrumental in preparing for this season. Steve has worked tirelessly to prepare our new evaporator (new to us, courtesy of a donation from one Richard Nichols) for the first batch of syrup - and Jason organized a workday a few weekends ago to fill the sugar shack to the brim with freshly split wood.
Steve reported that the taps this weekend were flowing heavily and so we are hoping for some heavy flows these first few weeks. The work is non-stop once it starts since the taps need to be constantly monitored and buckets emptied to ensure a steady capturing of the sap. Bucket after bucket is emptied into larger containers and then brought back to the farm for eventual boiling in the sugar shack.
Once enough sap is collected the evaporator will be fired up and the process of reducing the sap to syrup will begin. It’s a 40:1 ratio so it takes a lot of sap to make a gallon of syrup. Do the math with me! 40 gallons of sap equals…..yes yes, 1 gallon of syrup. Good job. So, it takes a lot of wood to boil down all of that sap. Usually, we have a few weekends where volunteers will hang out in the sugar shack to keep the fire burning and sap a boilin’. It’s good fun and a great excuse to gather and celebrate the approach of spring.
questions or comments can be sent to pete@codmanfarm.org
MESA at CODMAN!
As promised, 2023 will be a year of change and excitement at Codman Farm. For the first time ever, I am extremely excited to announce that the farm will be hosting TWO International Agricultural Stewards to work, live and learn at the farm this season.
We have partnered with MESA - Multinational Exchange for Sustainable Agriculture which is a nonprofit organization that “sponsors the Sustainable Agriculture & Global Exchange (SAGE) program. SAGE is a J-1 visa-designated training opportunity for beginning and established international farmers (Stewards) to train with U.S.-based farmers or ag. related organizations (Hosts) for an entire season”
“U.S. Host sites embrace MESA’s learn-and-share model of cross-cultural exchange and are eager to share and learn traditions, techniques, and innovations in sustainable food and farming systems with Stewards”
We are always looking for new and innovative ways to share our work as a sustainable farm and what better way than to invite folks from across the world to live and learn about what we are doing here!?
After a lengthy application process by both us as a farm and the candidates themselves and after several rounds of international zoom meetings - we are happy to be the hosts for Kenyan farmers Timothy Chege Kiarie and Joshua Mutarin Tinka. They will both be living on the farm. They will be helping and learning all aspects of what we do here, with a focus on helping in the market garden and with our livestock.
If this visa process proceeds smoothly we will be welcoming Timothy and Joshua to live in the apartment in the farmhouse by mid-April and you will no doubt see them working and training alongside our existing farm crew as we begin or 50th farming season at Codman.
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
The apartment on the farm is currently unfurnished and so we will be seeking donations for a few items to help us make the apartment as comfortable as possible for Timothy and Joshua. At this time we are seeking the following:
Lightly used and clean twin or double bed mattresses with frames (2)
Clean bedding for above
Dressers (2)
Lamps (2)
Clean couch or living room chairs (1-2)
Small dining room table with chairs (1-table, 2+ chairs)
Table or floor fans
Pots/pans/dishes/silverware in good shape
Please email pete@codmanfarm.org if you have any items you feel are appropriate for our needs. Thank you!
FARM STORE & KITCHEN
We are testing new recipes and gearing up!
Our kitchen has been slowly gearing up these past weeks and we have just hired our first-ever Codman Kitchen Chef to begin cooking an array of tasty dishes made from our own proteins and local produce. Next week we will introduce our new chef so stay tuned for that exciting announcement!
We know we have been teasing the heck out of folks with our delicious, deeply flavored pasture-raised roasted chicken and beef stock and most recently our first batch of meatloaf. Coming soon we plan to have a regular supply of stocks in our fridges and then expand into hearty soups, chilis, and stews and perhaps start dabbling with items like mini-quiche, braised meats for dinner entrees, and more. We hope you are as excited as we are to see the Codman Kitchen come alive.
