Last Days on the Farm

Weeding

On Thursday I finally got a break from tomatoes (yay) and got to weed peanuts instead (boo). After teaching some other volunteers how to string tomatoes, I found myself armed with a hoe among rows of weed-choked peanut plants. I had never seen peanut plants before (some part of me thought peanuts grew on trees) and it took me a bit of wondering where the peanuts were before I realized that they grow underground. These plants won't yield ready-to-eat peanuts until the fall, but the plants have gotten pretty big, as have the weeds around them.

Weeding is probably the hardest thing to keep up with on the farm, although it is the easiest thing to have volunteers do: once you know what the crop looks like, you just pull out everything else. It is just hard to keep track of everything that needs weeding, since things like harvesting and watering and staking tomatoes are more pressing and time-consuming. But after everything that is ripe is harvested, and everything that is dry is watered, there is always weeding. Like most farm work, there is something satisfying about looking down a newly weed-free row of plants that you just hacked at for the last three hours, but it is also tedious. 

And buggy. I had a particularly close encounter with one of those cicada-killer bugs yesterday. The weeds were so tall that when I bent over to pull them, I basically got a face-full of plant. At one point while my head was submerged in the weeds, I heard this crazy buzzing right next to my head. I straightened up just in time to see a discombobulated cicada-killer (this huge, black and orange bee-like bug) dash out of it's cozy home in the weeds that I just ripped up. Needless to say, I sprinted down the row as the thing buzzed around in circles for a bit before giving up on it's old home and flying away in search of new weeds to nestle into, but it took a while before I felt comfortable reaching into the weeds again.

It's incredible to notice how many more bugs emerge as the summer goes on. When I first started volunteering on the farm in May, I was pleasantly surprised (and confused) by the lack of bugs. Around June came the adorable, carefree, white and yellow butterflies, and even a few monarchs, but nothing very creepy-crawly. I guess I got lolled into a false sense of security, because now there are bees, wasps, daddy long-legs, cicadas and their killers, spiders, and more that seem to pop out from under each leaf!

I also stopped by to check out the chickens - they've gotten so big considering they were just chicks when I first met them in June! They should start laying eggs in September and I'm sad not to be able to stick around to see it.

All-in-all, my second to last day on the farm was a hot, sunny day spent alone amidst peanut plants, humming and sweating - and inspiring a relaxing trip to the beach.

Rain

Of course today would not be a beautiful day to end on, but rather a rainy, dark, and stormy one. But at least it wasn't hot! I was back in the tomatoes, this time clipping little plastic rings to clamp the vines that escaped back onto the strings (I was going to take a picture, but of course it started pouring). It only seemed fitting to end with the tomatoes that I've spent so much time in this summer.

Saying goodbye to the farm today was strange. It had become such a routine part of my summer that the thought of not returning until possibly when I visit for fall break was strange. Not only had I become accustomed to the work and the food, but the people have been incredible. It was sad to say goodbye to the everyone, but it was wonderful getting to know them and learning from them. Thank you to everyone at Crossroads for such an incredible experience!

The culture of Crossroads is the exact environment I hope to replicate at the Villanova Community Garden: everyone sharing experiences, welcoming each other, working together, trying new things, and bonding over wholesome food. The volunteers and staff at Crossroads are of all ages and backgrounds, but together they work in the fields, meet for potluck dinners, and form a supportive and unique community.

Bringing the Farm Home

Today I finally got to buy a little crate of tomatoes to take home. These were the tomatoes I had helped transplant, and stake, and weed, and everything all summer - and they tasted amazing! When I got home from the farm, lunch consisted of raw corn on the cob (from another Long Island farm) and a couple of juicy organic tomatoes. Knowing they came from my own and other volunteers' and farmers' hard work made the tomatoes even sweeter. As I type this blog post, I smile as I notice some tomato resin still under my nails. My experience at Crossroads this summer will always stay with me. Like stubborn tomato resin, it reminds me to enjoy the wonders of nature and that when we harmonize with it and each other we can create something sustainable, healthy, and beautiful.