Recent WWOOF volunteers

 

Awa and Alban sowing tree seeds with Terry.

Awa planting lettuce seedlings in the market garden.

Alban picking three-cornered leeks for a local restaurant.

Stella, Heidi and Alban, packing potatoes in the packing shed.

Heading off to clean out the chicken sheds - Noe, Stella, and Awa.

Caroline at morning coffee break!

HUGE thanks as always to all our wonderful WWOOFers - and also to our team of amazing local volunteers!

Today's veg boxes

 

Harvesting mixed greens in the market garden in between yesterday's heavy downpours.

Today's 72 veg boxes are in the process of being delivered by our two volunteer drivers Chris and Richard, all around Penwith, or collected from the farm's packing shed assisted by today's shop volunteer Sue. We also have collection hubs in St. Ives, Penzance and Newlyn. Your boxes this week have been picked and packed by Ross, Lil, Noe, Gina, Sue, Ben, Jamie, Jonas, and Hugh (in no particular order), and contain:-

£8.50 box - Cara potatoes (UK organic), purple sprouting broccoli, mixed herbs, mixed greens, and salad leaves.

£13.50 box - Cara potatoes (UK organic), purple sprouting broccoli, mixed herbs, mixed greens, salad leaves, a cauliflower (local organic), parsnips (UK organic), and spinach.

Planting broad beans

Today we have planted hundreds of broad bean plants on the market garden - we are motoring!! - then finished planting this year's chillies and peppers in the polytunnel - many thanks to Jamie, Gina, Noe and Jonas for their efforts.

Planting potatoes

Following one epic Tuesday (releasing our chickens) we had another one yesterday, and planted more than one acre of potatoes, almost 2 months behind schedule. This year we were not hampered by the weather, as has been the case in previous years, but by the help available to do so, plus all the ground preparation needed ahead of time.

Gina and Mick on the potato planter.

This year we planted 38 sacks of seed potatoes, of four varieties -

1. Casablanca - first early (5 sacks(
   
2. Maris Peer - second early (5 sacks)
   
3. Ambo - maincrop (12 sacks)
   
4. Carolus - blight tolerant maincrop (16 sacks).
    

With many thanks to everybody who took their turn sitting on the planter in that cold easterly wind - Gina, Rob, Rebecca, Mick and Jamie - and to everyone else who helped on the rest of the farm to allow us to crack on and plant all day - Lil, Fran, Ross and Jez.

Unfortunately, due to the delay, we aren't expecting our early potatoes until mid-July. We are currently buying UK organic potatoes to fill this gap.

Chicken release day

Thankfully, having been confined to their sheds and a small netted outdoor run since November 1st, last Tuesday April 18th our chickens were allowed back out into the whole of their field. They are loving the green grass and freedom. DEFRA decided that the risk of avian influenza had reduced enough to allow captive birds to go outside again. Our eggs can now again be labelled as "free range" rather than "barn eggs", and are available in our farm shop and at Sennen and St. Just farmer's markets, priced at £2.30 per half dozen. We feed our chickens on an expensive brand of GM-free soya-free chemical-free feed.