WFCF Farm Manager, Andy Andrews

This was my first season at the farm and I was very fortunate to find myself in the company of some great farmers. This year’s farm staff consisted of three returning farmers: Nadine Dyskant-Miller, assistant manager, Tim Cook, equipment manager and Isabella Dibianca, assistant grower. And with the addition of Susanna, Rabar, Leila, Chelsea, Meg, Cameron, Abby, and our Community Outreach Farmer, Marie-Ana here at the height of the season, our crew peaked at 13.

We farmed all the acreage at the Field Station and all the acreage at the Lyman site which put our total acreage at approximately 10 and a half.

It was a very hot and dry summer. Massachusetts declared Middlesex County a Level 3 extreme drought (out of 4) zone, and the USDA Secretary of Agriculture declared most of eastern Massachusetts a natural disaster area. At the end of August, according to NOAA, this summer was the driest on record in over 100 years with 20 days at or above 90 degrees.

Maintaining our irrigation system of pipes, water reel and pump at the Lyman site – all done by hand - became a full time job for one of us. Keeping the plants alive meant running the irrigation into the evenings and on weekends.

The drought and heat affected our harvests, and yields of everything across the board were less than anticipated. We typically lost 10 to 15 percent of our transplants to the heat. Maturity dates were delayed, sometimes for several weeks. Lettuce that is typically ready to harvest in 60 days, took closer to 75 days. The vegetables were also smaller and lighter.

It started raining on Labor Day, and from then until now we have received a steady inch or more each week. And with the rain, all those crops we had been nursing along started coming into maturity. The number of available vegetables to choose from during CSA pickups increased from 10 to 21 within a matter of weeks. As of this writing, it almost seems that the only limit to what we can harvest is hours in the day. We’re heading into the extended season with an abundance of produce available.

During this time, our harvest is considerably smaller and reduced to every other week. This gives us an opportunity to make sure everything is cleaned up in the fields, buildings and greenhouses and provide training to staff.

All farms in Massachusetts were affected by the drought so it took some time to establish new relationships with partner farms, as long-time partner Picadilly Farm was no longer delivering. Eventually, I was able to connect with Riverland Farm in Sunderland, and Atlas Farm in Deerfield. Riverland supplied us with watermelons, cantaloupes and peppers in August at the height of the drought. It was quite a relief to see bulk bins of watermelons in front of the barn. We also expected potatoes from Buckle Farm in Maine in July and August but a water contamination issue kept them out of business until late September. Now we have potatoes and winter squash coming in from them each week.

Also this summer we were the recipient of a new walk in cooler thanks to the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grant. Having three coolers of this size are absolutely necessary for an operation of our size and it seems just enough to accommodate the produce at peak season.

Having just arrived here in June, I am extremely grateful to have landed with such a great group of people. I thank all of our crew – Nadine, Tim, Isabella, Rabar, Leila, Susanna, Marie-Ana, Chelsea, Meg, Abby, Cameron and Brooke, for their hard work, enthusiasm, commitment and for showing up every day no matter what the circumstances. And Stacey, Marla, Jess and Anna running everything else and creating and maintaining a thriving and supportive environment for us to work in.