(Skip to the bottom if you just want to know what we'll have at market this week.)

One of the major perks of being a farm kid is that – even though your parents discuss the difference between seedcorn maggots and cabbage worm maggots at the breakfast table, and even though one hen or another is always trying to peck your ham sandwich, and even though you can't walk six inches in any direction without someone shouting, Don't step on the lettuce, or Watch out for the asparagus – despite all these major inconveniences, there is this one serious perk – you always get to eat the very first strawberries of the year. I came in from the field today, the boys freshly home from school, and held out my open hand. Wiley saw them first. Strawberries, he shouted, such surprise and delight in his voice it was almost as if he'd invented the berries himself, or as if he were giving them their name for the first time.

Silas was pleased too, but his sense of satisfaction is different from Wiley's. The fruits of the farm are no longer a constant surprise to him. He doesn't participate too often in the work of growing the food, but he's more and more aware of all the effort that's involved – not just the human effort, but the complex processes of soil & sunlight & growth, the time and the mysterious work of ripening.

This past weekend the boys crossed the road with me to go and check on the cucumbers in the high tunnel. Along the way, we observed the two-inch-tall peas on their newly installed trellis. We saw the half-ripe strawberries (I had to work hard to talk the boys out of picking them). We munched a few young carrots, pinky-thick, with a sweet, delicate crunch. As we walked alongside the newly harrowed section of the field, Silas waved his arm in an arc and said, "Imagine what this is all going to look like."

"When?" I said.

"After it's all planted."

So I stood there a sec and I tried to imagine it: the rows of cherry tomatoes as tall as my head, the bright green frilliness of the carrot beds, the late-season kale, dark against the frosted ground. It's sort of what Oona and I do all the time. We plan where we're going to put the cops and we figure out how we're going to take care of them. But this was different. Silas wasn't asking me to plan, to figure, to problem-solve, to prioritize. I took him at his word. He was inviting me to imagine it, and I did so, and for a quick moment (about as long as it takes to eat a strawberry), I was actually satisfied.

"This is Paradise," Silas said, and although it's not a word that's ever had much currency for me, I felt pleased that we had taken good enough care of this 3-acre field beside the highway (a field that for decades had either been neglected or overused) for it to be my kid's idea of the real thing.

But now you've read all this way and you think I'm going to reward you with a tender morsel of information, like the fact that we'll be loaded with strawberries this week at Tuesday Market. Sorry. No luck. That'll be next week and the week after that. Here's what we'll have this week:

Asparagus! (come early)

Cucumbers!

Eggs!

Salad Mix

Lettuce Mix

Arugula

Kale

Spinach

Radishes

Salad Turnips

Garlic Scallions

And maybe Head Lettuce, but the only one who knows that is Oona, and she's already pushed the two-year-old aside and climbed into bed beside him.

Hey, our Salad Mix is quite a project. Every week it's a big improvisation of harvesting all the separate greens, washing and spinning them, assessing their quality and their quantities, and mixing them together in (hopefully) pleasing proportions. So to all you loyal customers who've been eating our mix all winter and spring, let us know what you think. How do you prefer it? A wee-bit spicy? More mizuna or less? Only when the greens are tiny and utterly tender, or even once they've built some character? It's different every time, but we still like to hear what you like!

Hey, shareholders, in case you've been wondering: Pick-up starts the first week in June. We won't fail to remind you as the time gets close. For now, come by and say hi at market. Thanks!

O.K. –Later.

Mia & Adam prune tomatoes in the high tunnel

This little radish will be going to market

Well the big news around here is Blue. After several years of raising dozens of goats, a few turkeys, six-or-so sheep, three pigs, nine ducks, one rooster, and who-knows-how-many hens, we've decided to finally let an animal come inside the house. Blue is our nine-week-old puppy. She's an Australian Shepherd and we are very fond of her, though Oona thinks I am a certified grade-A-fancy nutcase for even thinking of bringing home a baby (of any species) at this moment in our weedy and whiny lives. We will be raising Blue to be a loyal companion and a good farm dog, which at our farm means chasing rats and groundhogs and not chasing chickens. We are excited for the shareholders among you to meet her in June!

On the vegetable front, we are very excited about the cucumbers in our high tunnel. They are delicious, and the skins are so tender that even I – despite my weird hang-up about cucumber skins – just chomp right into them. The vines have grown so fast they're already way taller than us, just a few weeks after transplanting them. We'll have about 50lbs at market this week, but come early if you want them. Last week they were almost gone before I even managed to take a picture. Don't worry, Oona's neutral expression in this photo has no relation to her good opinion about the cucumbers. She is merely thinking, What the %*@$ are you doing bringing a puppy into our house?

Here's what else we'll have at Tuesday Market:

Asparagus (make sure to come early)

Salad Mix

Baby Arugula

Lettuce Mix

Spinach

Garlic Scallions

Tender and Delicious Kale

Collard Greens

Salad Turnips

Radishes

Sorry to all you die-hards out there (most of you 5 yrs old and under), but we'll be skipping shaved ice this week. I figure since it's supposed to be as cold and wet as last week, and since I would not let my own children have shaved ice last week, and since I tried to talk the twelve kids who did get shaved ice out of doing so, that it's OK if we leave the rig at home at let the ice get just a little bit colder in the freezer, all in preparation for that glorious 85-degree Tuesday that's sure to come soon, right? Maybe when the first ripe strawberries are ready in a couple of weeks!

So here's a somewhat strange request: I'm looking to do a photo project about people & families cooking food from the farmers market in their own kitchens. If you're a regular market shopper and cook yummy meals featuring market ingredients and wouldn't mind if I came over and munched on the food while placing my camera disconcertingly close to your dinner, please let me know.

OK, have a wonderful week. Hope to see you at market!

–Ben

We hire four full-time employees per year, plus some occasional extras when needed. We seek workers with the following characteristics:

• Desire and ability to work fast and hard under various adverse conditions
• Good problem-solving skills and ability to think on your feet
• Sense of humor and generous group spirit
• Desire to learn
• Ability to work in groups as well as alone
• Interest in animals & children
  

All workers are involved in almost every aspect of the farm operation, including:

• Field prep
• Greenhouse production
• Planting
  
• Crop cultivation
• Harvesting
• Washing and processing
• Irrigation
• Marketing and customer interaction
  
• Machinery operation
• Daily animal care for our goats and chickens (sometimes we have lambs and pigs)
  

In exchange for their labor, workers receive:

• An hourly wage of $9 - $11/hour
• Free produce and goat's milk, plus some cheese, meat, & eggs, when available
• On-the-job training in a wide range of agricultural skills
• Usage of workshop, tools, and sauna
• One week-long unpaid vacation
• Workers' comp
  

For the 2012 season, we seek two workers who are relatively new to farming, and two workers with at least one full season of experience on a production-oriented farm. Although some positions are for workers with experience who will take on more responsibilities, our ideal crew all work well together, respect each other and take on responsibilities by the middle of the season. Job requirements as follows:

Experienced Position with Specialization in Management of Greenhouse, Seeding, Harvest, and Crew

(March 1 - November 15th) – $10-$11/hour, depending on experience

This position requires excellent skills in observation, organization, instruction, and communication. Applicants must show a familiarity with many aspects of crop production, from seeding to cultivation to harvest and processing. Ability to follow directions and to think and act independently are equally important. We are looking for an applicant who is easy-going but not shy about telling people or plants what they need to do. Familiarity with spreadsheets is highly desirable. At least one full season on a production-oriented farm is required.

Experienced Position with Specialization in Machinery Operation and Maintenance

(March 15th through September, October, or November)  – $10-$11/hour, depending on experience

The person who fills this position will spend as much time alone on a tractor as they do with the rest of the crew. Applicants must have experience with tractor operation and general familiarity with tools and machinery. Applicants will need to demonstrate an ability to easily attach 3-point hitch implements and to perform basic maintenance operations. Strength, resilience, and excellent problem-solving skills are a must for this position. Construction and welding skills are also desirable but not required. At least one full season on a production-oriented farm is required.

General Farm Crew

(April or May through September, October, or November) – $9/hour

The ability to work hard and to learn are more important than previous farm experience for these positions. Applicants should be in good physical shape and ready to spend week upon week performing repetitive tasks under variously adverse conditions (heat, rain, dust, pollen, cold, etc.). Applicants must be able to move & think very quickly, to lift 50lbs with ease, to follow directions, and to accept & learn from constructive criticism. Applicants will need to have shown in previous jobs consistency, reliability, and a good work ethic.

We are now hiring for our 2012 season. If you are interested in applying, please fill out this application and return it to us by email or mail. At this moment (late December), we haven't hired any crew for the 2012 season. We will not hire any applicants without meeting and working briefly with them. Two references from previous or current employers are required.

Hours

Work hours are 7:00AM - 5:30PM, with numerous exceptions. Here are some of the exceptions:

• We begin work at 6:00AM on Tuesdays May-September and during periods of high heat
• Each crew member works on their own one Saturday morning per month
• Each crew member works until 7:30 or 8:00 one day per week
  
• The crew works until 7:00PM one or two days per week during the planting season (May/June)
  
• We begin work at 8:00AM in March/April and October/November
  

Housing

In general, we do not provide housing to our workers, but our farm is located right in Northampton, where rentals are abundant. If we hire you and you are moving from out of the area, we can provide some assistance in finding a place to live.

All Town Farm Workers receive their own office (see below). Large workspace! Excellent ventilation!

1. alternate weeks that you and your co-shareholder pick up the share, or
2. come together in the same vehicle (unless it's a bike) to reduce confusion and traffic at the farm 

We also ask that you only split your share with one other household -- please no 3-way splits.

A note on splitting shares:

Our experience suggests that splitting shares works really well for individuals & families who already know each other and communicate frequently. When the families don't know one another, the communication sometimes breaks down, and we at the farm end up feeling like we're putting more work/vegetables into a single share than is economically feasable for us. Please respect our limitations in terms of labor/infrastructure and only split a share if you can realistically follow the above guidelines. Thanks!

JUNE

Arugula, Bok Choi, Chard, Chinese Cabbage, Dill, Mixed Braising Greens, Kale, Lettuce Mix, Head Lettuce, Radishes, Scallions, Spinach, Salad Turnips, Pick Your Own Parsley

JULY

Beets, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Chard, Cilantro, Cucumbers, Dill, Fennel, Kale, Head Lettuce, Onions, Scallions, Summer Squash and Zucchini, Pick Your Own Basil, Pick Your Own Flowers, Pick Your Own Snap and Snow Peas

AUGUST

Beets, Canteloupe, Carrots, Chard, Cilantro, Cucumbers, Dill, Asian and Italian Eggplant, Kale, Head Lettuce, Onions, Green Peppers, Hot Peppers, Summer Squash and Zucchini, Slicing and Heirloom Tomatoes, Watermelon, Pick Your Own Cherry Tomatoes, Pick Your Own Tomatillos, Pick Your Own Herbs, Pick Your Own Flowers and Sunflowers

SEPTEMBER

Arugula, Beets, Bok Choi, Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Chard, Cilantro, Collards, Asian and Italian Eggplant, Garlic, Kale, Leeks, Head Lettuce, Onions, Red Peppers, Hot Peppers, Winter Squash, Slicing and Heirloom Tomatoes, Pick Your Own Herbs, Pick Your Own Flowers, Pick Your Own Cherry Tomatoes and Tomatillos

OCTOBER

Beets, Bok Choi, Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery Root, Chard, Cilantro, Collards, Kale, Leeks, Head Lettuce, Lettuce Mix, Onions, Parsnips, Daikon and Red Heart Radishes, Spinach, Sweet Potatoes, Winter Squash, Turnips

Pick your own crops are offered throughout most of the season. These include flowers and sunflowers, culinary herbs, snap and snow peas, cherry tomatoes, tomatillos. As a shareholder, you can come and pick these crops during daylight hours any day of the week but Saturdays (the farm's day off).

In addition to the weekly produce variety, we have a small farm store where shareholders can purchase local foods such as fruit, salad dressings, honey, maple syrup, local meat. We sell our own eggs & meat when available.

Please note: our CSA shares do not include any berries or other fruit (including PYO), although we do occasionally offer our market berries for sale in the farm store.

All shareholders receive 10% off our products at our Tuesday Market farm stand.

Finally, we love it when our shareholders walk or bike to the farm. We encourage you, if possible, to plan ahead a little and get your exercise and your vegetables all at once. On the other hand, we never make anyone feel remotely guilty about driving to pick up their share.