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Live Earth Farm's 15th farming season: Wow, and Thank You All!
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We are completing another growing cycle, our 15th season, and nothing is more gratifying than to know the incredible support that has nurtured this farm since its inception. In 1996, it all started with 20 committed members (several of whom are still with us today) who decided to pick up their harvest shares here at the farm and support what at the time seemed like a fairly radical idea - eating organic, local, seasonally available fruits and vegetables, and sharing in the risks inherently associated with growing them. Today, 15 seasons later, as I compose the list of items that will go into this week's shares -- the last of the regular 2010 season -- it is still awe-inspiring to know that when we plant a seed in the ground, it is backed by the vitality of an entire community: a living network of supporters, everything from the often forgotten soil organisms to the diverse human community of fellow farmers, farm employee's, farm apprentices, farm suppliers, CSA members, farmer's market customers, artisan food producers, cooks, teachers, students, and friends. The food grown on this land becomes a common thread that links us all together, and with every meal we prepare, we also enjoy the pleasure and nourishment that comes from it.  If food is the common thread that links all living organisms, then, as Wendell Berry so well states, "...eating is an agricultural act, and how we eat, determines, to a considerable extent, how the world is used."

This simple but powerful act of taking charge and choosing what goes into our mouths is slowly transforming local and regional food systems. Today roughly 3000 CSA farms exist in the United States which strive to be socially and economically responsible, to educate and empower, while providing ecologically grown food. CSA farms are a viable alternative to the destructive industrial model of growing food, it is a participatory means to securing our food supply for today and future generations.

So it is with heartfelt gratitude that all of us here thank you for supporting and participating in the seasonal journey of Live Earth Farm, and we hope you will stay connected for many more nourishing seasons to come.

Black Elk who once said, "Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were."  So, stay in touch, read our winter newsletters, sign up for the Winter CSA, and join us for the many upcoming farm events and celebrations over the course of next season (stay tuned for a schedule of winter events to be posted after Thanksgiving).

Wishing you all a joyous and peaceful Thanksgiving!

- Tom

below: beautiful late afternoon light on one of our winter crop fields; harvesting for this week's box; and what Brussels sprouts look like when still on the plant.


Side note: There are still a few Winter Shares left, make sure you sign up by the end of November if you want to experience the seasonal offerings of winter.  Stay tuned  about events such as the sheep-shearing in March; if the weather permits, we'll have Community Days planting pear trees or raspberries, or teach you how to prune your dormant fruit trees. - Tom

Are you sure you don't want a Winter Share?
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[rerun from last week]

Are you thinking about it but just feel you don't have enough information? Let me entice you!

In addition to our own winter veggies -- a rotation of broccoli and cauliflower, fennel, red and golden beets, lettuces, our fabulous Brussels sprouts, the trusty cooking greens like chard, collards and kale [kale gets especially sweet and wonderful in winter!], cabbages and carrots, winter squashes (butternut, acorn, kabocha, sweet dumpling, hubbard), root veggies like parsnips, rutabagas and turnips, and the early green garlic -- we will continue to have fresh apples, plus other fruit like pineapple guavas, oranges and lemons, avocados; we'll have mushrooms from Far West Fungi, artichokes from Swanton Berry Farm, sprouts from New Natives, apple juice from Pinnacle Farms, plus one of my favorite winter goodies: celeriac, from Lakeside... and yes, as Tom mentioned, the shares themselves will include one jar of preserved 'summer' each week! Happy Girl Kitchen has put up our dry-farmed tomatoes (both crushed and pickled whole with basil), tomato juice, strawberry jam, raspberry jam, and dilly beans!

We will continue to have the Bread Option from Companion Bakers, and the Preserves Option from Happy Girl Kitchen will will be two additional jars of preserved goodies each week! In addition to the above-mentioned treats, there will be apricot jam, ketchup, salsa, pickled peppers, spicy tomato juice, applesauce, sauerkraut and kimchi! All fabulous, all made with produce from our farm!

Did I talk you into it? If so, just go to our website and click on "Join" or "Become a member" and there will be a sign-up button. Click, and follow the instructions, and you'll be all set. [Yes I know, there are no installment payments for the Winter Season, because it is only 10 weeks total... but if that is the only thing preventing you from signing up, give me a call 831.763.2448 or send me an email; we'll try to work out a payment plan.]

- Debbie

When does this season end? When does the next season start?
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This is the last week of our 2010 Regular Season!

If you signed up for the Winter Season, those deliveries will begin the week after Thanksgiving, Thursday Dec 2nd. [Please note that during the Winter season, ALL deliveries are on Thursdays.] The Winter season is 10 delivery weeks total: the first three weeks in December, then no deliveries for the next three weeks over the Christmas/New Year's holidays, then 7 more deliveries starting the second week of January (Jan 13) and going through the end of February (Feb 24).

***No deliveries the entire month of March - farmers are taking a break!***

If you signed up for the 2011 Regular Season, those deliveries will begin the first week of April, 2011 (so, Weds/Thurs April 6/7). And as usual, will end the week before Thanksgiving again! ;-)
 

Companion Bakers Holiday Pies
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Hey everybody, Erin Justus, the baker who brings us our Bread Share, is going to be making pies to order for Thanksgiving. Going to someone's home for the holidays and want to bring a fresh homemade pie? Or do you love pie but are not a baker? Check this out, from Erin:

"Holiday pie orders are starting! There will be pie pick-ups at the Downtown Santa Cruz Farmers Market on Wednesday the 24th (day before Thanksgiving!), plus pick-ups in Soquel at the bakery, as well as deliveries if people are interested. Sign up! The last few years the pies went very FAST!  Last day for Orders is November 19th!

"Pie varieties are all organic and made with fresh local "Pie Ranch" flour, eggs and great jersey butter! All the fruits and pumpkins are harvested right from our own Farmers Markets. Pies are $18.00 and they are a 10-inch pie.  Here are the varieties:

<>Traditional Pumpkin Pie
<> Pear & Cranberry Lattice
<> Old Fashioned Apple with Lattice
<> Cranberry Walnut Galette (open faced)
<> Apple Galette (open faced)

"Email us back at this address (companionbakers@gmail.com) and let us know your name and order. We will have your pies ready with your name on it!  Payment can be sent to our PO Box or we will except payment at the time of pick up. Thanks and Happy Holiday!"

And now... a word from our apprentices!
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Ahhh Fall! Now is the time when all the perennial plants and trees start to retreat back into their roots, taking all of their hard-earned nutrients from this seasons growth down with them, to hibernate and fuel another season when the sun shines high in the sky again. I feel like those trees I walk under every day.  I am starting to retreat back into myself, reflecting on all of the knowledge and experience gained from this season of hard work, good food, lots of fermenting, and best of all, friendships forged in the strength of the soil.  As I prepare to move on to become Farm Manager at Everett Family Farm, I feel so grateful to have had the chance to help steward this wonderful piece of land.  Tom and the crew that works here have all helped me out tremendously, from teaching me more about the art of driving a tractor to plant disease ecology and slaughtering animals.  And of course, I remember the celebrations, with all of us coming together to celebrate the whole reason we work so hard: growing and sharing the best food possible.  When I start farming in a new place next year, my roots will be well fed from this years knowledge, and I will be able to spring forth with renewed strength and vigor.  Thank you all, and thank you Live Earth Farm!

- David Evershed


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Hi there! My name is Anna and I am a new apprentice at Live Earth Farm. I just started in October, but I already feel very much at home. It has been great working with the team and falling into the rhythm of the farm life: putting the beds to rest, taking care of the animals, nurturing brand new chickees, seeding for the spring, and preserving the food all in our spare time.

I most recently completed an AmeriCorps position as a garden educator at Full Circle Farm in Sunnyvale. In fact, most of my background is in agricultural education. But I reached a point where I wanted to be in the fields working and feeling the earth more than just teaching. So here I am. And I couldn't be more excited for everything to come! My boyfriend, Jeff, and I are co-creating the new Young Farmer Program at Live Earth Farm in which we will be managing a small CSA for local offices. This is a great way for us to learn the whole process of running and maintaining a small-scale farm operation while also expanding the bounty of Live Earth Farm. You can check out our program on-line at www.liveearthfarm.net/youngfarmers.

I look forward to seeing some of you on the farm! Until then, have a great winter.

- Anna Vinitsky


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Oh what a year it's been at Live Earth Farm!  From goat kids to baby chicks, and lambs to new doggy tricks, Live Earth has provided a wonderful learning opportunity for me this year.  I have enjoyed farming this season and am very excited to rest a little and prepare for the new season to come. I am staying on through the winter to help create the Young Farmer Program with Tom.  My girlfriend Anna and I will be growing food for local offices to expand Live Earth's markets, and give us an opportunity to have more independence and decision making so we will have the experience to operate our own farm. This is a great opportunity and I am very excited about it. Thanks Tom! And thanks to all the Live Earth Farm supporters out there. If anyone works in a business office or knows someone that is interested in receiving shares at their office, our web page www.liveearthfarm.net/youngfarmers will be up soon (we are still putting it together) or you can email youngfarmers@baymoon.com and we'll give you more details. There is a five-person minimum per office to establish a delivery there. See you around the farm.

- Jeff Boesch









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Hello Everyone! Wow, the end of another season is here. Indeed, there is much to be thankful for at Live Earth Farm. As we slip out of another season and into the shorter, colder winter months here on the farm, I hope to share with you all a few strong memories and learning experiences that have taken place this season. Some of the most memorable, as well as amusing moments on the farm include our animals. For us interns, every day starts with chores.  The four of us have established a smooth rotation in which every person is responsible for the care of an animal group each week - either chickens, goats, sheep or baby chicks. Now, it's a running joke here between the apprentices that 2010 proved to be the year in which the farm got it's proper nickname - "Live Birth Farm". The package of Premier fencing delivered in the spring addressed to "Live Birth Farm" proved to be a serendipitous foreshadowing to all the changes and new life forms that have flourished on the farm this past season. Live Earth has always had animals, but this year there seemed to be a particularly abundant explosion of new life frolicking on the land. With that influx of new life came many new challenges and creative thinking opportunities for us all to integrate such new life onto the farm. Just to get an idea, this year we raised 200 laying hens, welcomed 8 new sheep and 11 baby lambs into our apricot orchard, integrated 18 goat kids among our existing herd of 10 mothers, raised Chella the infamous protector of the farm - and just recently we began brooding another flock of 200 laying hens. Whether we're moving chicken fencing, milking goats, tail docking lambs, washing eggs or hurdling ourselves over electric fences to evade "Rambo's" (our enormously ugly ram) charges in the sheep pen - our animals definitely keep us on our toes.  However in this year's whirlwind of animal care has also come an enormous respect for the purpose of these animals among our larger organic food operation.

You all know just as well as I do that Live Earth specializes in the growth of over 50 different kinds of organic fruits and vegetables. What you might not know is what an integral role the animals play in improving the health of the soil and integrity of the land on which we grow food.  Our animals act like tractors mowing down grass on our fields and lightly till our land in search of food - eating nasty bugs, snail pests, and taking down evil weeds. Yet most importantly they are constantly providing the most nutrient-rich natural fertilizers (for free) all day long on our land. After working with these animals (which at this point are just an extension of our happy farm-family) all season long, I want to thank them for not only all the incredible products they provide for us - including meat, eggs, milk and wool - but to mostly thank them for the ways in which they help our land too. Plus, they never cease to amuse me on a bad day. I welcome you all to come check out our dynamic collection of animals here at Live Earth. Thanks for an incredible season and I'll see you all next year!

- Taylor Brady


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And lastly... a shot of the whole crew, left to right: Scoobie, Taylor, David, Cella, Max, Anna and Jeff!

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