Thursday, September 3, 2009

Todd Essig wrote this piece about the late tomato blight. Check it out
http://trueslant.com/toddessig/2009/07/18/like-selling-spoiled-milk/
It's already September. The tomatoes are beautiful after a season of manic hard work to fend off the late blight.

Important notice for CSA memebers-This Saturday, bring your containers and pick your own Raspberries. (9-5-09) and Sunday (9-6-09). It looks like good weather and there are lots of Raspberries!

Friday, July 3, 2009

July 4th week-end

It is summer and it is July 4th week-end. We are open at the farm on July 4th from 9:00AM-3:00PM. Also, we will be at our Ossinging and Hasting's Farmers Markets as usual on Saturday July 4th. We will also be in Rhinebeck on Sunday July 5th. Hope to see you there!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Welcome to our 2009 season

We started our 2009 CSA season. CSA pick up will be on Thursdays 8:00AM to 7:00PM and on Saturdays 9:00AM to 3:00PM. We are also open to the public on those same days and times. Along with the amazing assortment of vegetables and small fruits that the farm provides, we also offer other products from the Hudson Valley; organic milk, cheeses, meats, and organic bread. The pick-your-own flowers have been planted. Soon we will have a beautiful assortment of to enjoy.

Since watching the move The Future of Food, I have been focused on the unregulated use of GMOs in our country. GMO stands for Genetically Modified Organisms. Other countries are not allowing GMO foods and still others require that labels indicate that the food contain GMO products. The only way to know that food in our country does not contain GMOs is to buy Certified Organic. Certified Organic does not allow the use of GMO seeds.

The following is from the article Spilling the Beans:
On May 19th, the American Academy of Environmental Medicine (AAEM) called on “Physicians to educate their patients, the medical community, and the public to avoid GM (genetically modified) foods when possible and provide educational materials concerning GM foods and health risks.”[1] They called for a moratorium on GM foods, long-term independent studies, and labeling. AAEM’s position paper stated, “Several animal studies indicate serious health risks associated with GM food,” including infertility, immune problems, accelerated aging, insulin regulation, and changes in major organs and the gastrointestinal system. They conclude, “There is more than a casual association between GM foods and adverse health effects. There is causation,” as defined by recognized scientific criteria. “The strength of association and consistency between GM foods and disease is confirmed in several animal studies.”

If you go to newsletter@responsibletechnology.com and look up Spilling the Beans, May 20, 2009. You can read about these studies.

Sunday, May 3, 2009

spring 2009

Welcome!
Pete, Peter, Ian, and the rest of the crew have been planting, planting, planting. The farm looks fantastic. The green houses are planted, new hoop houses are errected, and a new experimental effort with low tunnels is in progress to name just a few of the things going on. We are all excited about the 2009 season.

We are having our 2009 CSA Orientation/Farm Picnic on Sunday May 17th rain or shine from 11am to 2pm. The farm will provide food and beverages sticking with the Eat Local theme. Bring along the whole family and or a friend. Get your questions answered & enjoy a day at the farm. As always we have high hopes for the 2009 growing season.

The following is a copy of the spring letter Pete sent out for those who missed it:

Dear CSA Members, Spring / 2009
We hope all has been well for you and your families. It’s been a darn good winter for all of us here at the Taliaferro household and farm. We are about to start another season and this year will be our eleventh year with the farms CSA program. We’re putting the finishing touches on the 2009 season plans as you read this letter. Thanks to your enthusiasm and generosity over the past years and especially last fall we are in a great position going into the spring. We were able to order our seeds and supplies in good shape. All we need now is some sunny not to cold spring weather. We have been investigating some early-season agricultural growing practices to help force certain crops along. These crops would normally be harvested in late June and late July and we would like to make them available in early June and early July. To push these harvest dates forward we would make use of a handful of different types of temporary (and reusable) structures and materials. These materials and structures would enhance the sunlight and help protect the plants from potentially cold nights (also days) and frost. I’ve tried some of these methods in the past with limited success because it takes quite a bit of micro-managing and I was spread too thin. I couldn’t stay on top of things and we fell short of our goals. As you probably know, both my sons Ian and Peter are getting more and more involved in the farm and have some great ideas. They have also become pretty darn capable. With their input and abilities we should see some successes with these early growing methods. Of course a prayer or two for good weather wouldn’t hurt. In any case, it is one of our goals for the 2009 season to not necessarily start the season earlier but to be able to offer some varieties of vegetables much earlier than normal.
More news is that we are in the process of finishing the addition to the store. We’re basically doubling the size of the store by going around the corner to the west. I’m sure everybody will be glad to have more room to pick up your produce, move about and visit. We will also have a second scale available, hooray! At this point, we have the new structure framed and will be working on the roof as soon as the weather breaks. (continued on back)

One new and exciting item in the store will be a glass door freezer provided by Full Moon Farm (Paul & Laura Colucci) so that we will always have his grass fed devon beef available. Paul Colucci has generously agreed to let Veritas Farms (Paul Alward) sell their poultry out of this freezer also. To continue our quest to work and partner with other local farms and make local foods available we’ll have a new vendor on Thursdays. Popovich Provisions (Joe Popovich) will be selling his local made cheeses, sausages, pates, salads and more. I’ve known Joe for 6 years. I’ve worked along side him at the Rhinebeck Farmers market and indulged in his handmade / homemade foods and I’ve never been disappointed. The farm will also (as always) be trying a few new produce items this season. Some of the items that we are looking to do are fennel, a new variety of eggplant, two additional varieties of summer squash, yellow fleshed watermelon and peanuts to name a few.
I need to mention the use of plastic bags when picking up your produce. I want to let you know that we made some pretty big steps as a group in an attempt to reduce our use of plastic T-shirt bags here on the farm. I can tell you that we made 72% less bags available in the 2008 season than in previous seasons. This is a wonderful thing. I urge you to continue this conservation and we will continue to try and be open to suggestions to conserve. So that’s all the news that is the news. We’re looking forward to seeing everybody. As always your generosity and support are greatly appreciated. As I’ve said before we couldn’t operate the farm without your support. Many thanks from all of us at the farm.
Sincerely, Pete, Robin, Peter, Ian & Delaney (the family that farms)
(PS- To all of you who offered your condolences & sympathy in regards to my mom passing last August, a heartfelt belated thank you. Your gestures didn’t go unnoticed.)

**If you are splitting a share please contact the person that you are splitting with so you both know that you received the letter and that your balance is square between the two of you
Many Thanks for Your Support,
Pete, Robin, Peter, Ian & Delaney (The family that farms)

Thursday, January 1, 2009

Important information regarding our 2009 growing season!

Due to the success of the farms 2008 season, we have already sold over 90% of our available shares for the 2009 season . If you are thinking about getting involved for the 2009 season, do it soon.

To sign up, down load a sign-up form from our web site, fill out and mail to:
Taliaferro Farms
187 Plains Road
New Paltz, NY 12561.

If you have any questions call and leave a message at 845-256-1592 and Pete will get back to you or e-mail Taliaferro@hvi.net.

Spring is right around the corner!

See you soon!
Robin