Hello Farm Friends!

Somehow, we find ourselves at the end of April, with SO much time since the last time I caught you all up. Holy moly, It has been an eventful winter! I was going to go into ALL the details, but I thought it might be better to just reach out, and catch you all up in a flash. I can honestly say it's been a wild Winter ride.

Here is the quick catch-you-all-up quick-ish list!

Highlights:

Joel is recovering well from his hip replacement surgery
Maggie (our dog) has fully recovered from her accident
We had a successful Winter Faire event. Thank you to all who attended and supported!
We have a fantastic new crew, Jolie & Adelaide
Joel and his cousin Dan got a new sailboat. There is a picture at the end of the post.
Many improvements have been made to the Farm!

More Highlights:

Veggies seeds are started, onions and peas planted, tomatoes and peppers up-potted and ready to plant. We will have plant starts available soon!
We are working on a "Joy List" with our Farm Team advisors to rethink our farm business.
We are working with Cloud 9 Events and their new sister organization Salish Sea Hospitality. They will handle bookings and life celebrations events you might want to enjoy on the farm.
Our ducks & chickens are producing a lot more eggs!
Lambs, lambs, and more lambs (twenty of them so far.) Plus two more yearling ewes to go, and our upcoming flock reduction. Oh, the shearing is done!
The Pigalaters arrived from Horsedrawn Farm on Lopez Island, 4 Mangalitsa/Berkshire cross piglets.
May 15th Season Opening & Wednesdays in Warm Valley. Who wants to join us?

It's always difficult to include the hard stuff, but we have also encountered some challenges this winter, including Joel’s hip recovery, my 7-week illness in late December, followed by our first encounter with COVID-19 (mild, but yucky). The chimney issue was finally resolved, but at a reduced height. We are still working on our Farm Fridge fund. A commercial-grade glass-fronted refrigerator and freezer for the farmstand. We would be so incredibly grateful for your help! Then there is the blessing and challenge of receiving a Cost-share fencing grant from the Conservation District, (we are super lucky to receive it. Thanks Walt! But now we have to find the time to put it up!) And the newer contemplation our aging and farming, and limitations of time and energy…

We are currently looking for more volunteer participants for our OCPA crew, and more interns to learn to grow together. We are in the midst of re-imagining future farming seasons, and how we can share the bounty of the farm with our Island community. We can put you in touch with our OCPA site Manager, Bruce!

OCPA crew learning about tomato pruning from OCPA Anchor Farmer Caitlin Leck.

As we race towards our opening date, our Seasonal Farmer’s Market - Wednesdays in Warm Valley starts on May 15th from 3-7pm weekly. We have returning vendors: Gillian with "Orcas Island Tarot," Sarah Flickinger's "Room of Hues" stained glass, and Shawna with "The Bubblery" in The Summerhouse! We have several possible new vendors too! Stay tuned for that announcement.

If you’d like to join us as a vendor with us this season. Please reach out ASAP, here's the link for more info

In more immediate news:

Yesterday, I got two calls from two strangers, and a text from Eric Lum of Lum Farm, reporting that we had a lamb out on the road. I grabbed a bucket of alfalfa pellets and ran up the back of Westfield to our forest road, thinking if I could entice the ewes to the top of the pasture, the lamb would be easier to catch. As I arrived on the scene, I saw several vehicles with kind people who had all pulled over to help. Thank you to the people whose names I didn't get, both callers, and the folks at Frog Marine who all helped catch our errant lamb, Fiona. (The gap under the gate has been fixed!) This community continually amazes me with your kindness!

Unrelated but true, we are reducing our flock: Just in case you're looking for a starter flock, we have proven two-year-old ewes with their beautiful lambs for sale. If you need efficient lawnmowers, wool growers, or lamb for your freezer, we have some sheep for sale. Last Fall we borrowed Bob and Maria Nutt's Corriedale ram Frank, for his last hurrah. He was a big guy with wonderful wool. Our sheep stock is all originally from the Coffelt flock, so they are a mixed bunch of wonderful ladies. The lambs have a lot of Frank’s traits and are super adorable. Contact me for more info!

There is more exciting upcoming news we look forward to sharing in our next blog post. Hint: More collaborations with Warm Valley Farm!

Thank you all again for supporting local agriculture and Warm Valley Farm especially. We look forward to sharing laughter, conversations, delicious veggies, eggs, fruit, pork, and lamb this season. As well as beautiful consignment pieces, new stock in the shops, and more magic from The Bubblery in our Summerhouse.

Sending you all sweet Spring greetings. We're so lucky to live amongst you all on Orcas Island.

Annie & Joel