Well the long awaited day has arrived! We are off to California for a few days of rest and relaxation. Hoping the weather cooperates...if it doesn't we will make do. Just good to get away for a few days. Going out to see family and have some fun, might even get some culture squeezed in around BBQ'in with my brother in law.

Disturbing news floating around Montpelier right now.....seems NECI is in the process of trying to rent or get into as many kitchen spaces as possible in downtown. Bad for the local restaurant owners, good for NECI. Questionable for the landlords. Instead of independently owned restaurants, each with it's own character we get 4,5,6 NECI managed sites. Having worked for them for many years I do not think this will benefit the local economy. Still need to put some thought into this but it smacks of corporate dining...........

Snow on the way but not that much...still thinking early spring.

Good Morning, A quick post here. Busy getting K8 trained and up to speed to take care of the farm for a few days. When I get back the season starts....full steam ahead. Market today in Montpelier plenty of Tangletown Beef Barley soup and Caramelized onion and cabbage soup with Butterworks farm's beans. Some really good local stuff. I will have horseradish sour cream for the cabbage soup too. Plenty of spinach and salad as well.

Now onto farm stuff...it's been tough to resist the urge to start seeding flats but I started in Feb last year and it was just a bit too early. Going to seed like crazy the first week of March though. The greens are waking up in the greenhouses and things are looking quite good. IPO the farm's head mouser passed away this winter. Romeo is going to have to step up this year. He's our new 25lb mouser. If your up to the farm you will meet him. He is attention "starved"....

Public radio is supposed to be at the market today getting some sound bites for a program they are doing on winter growing and season extension. They have interviewed a few of us daring naive growers who tempt mother nature during the winter months. Should be a good program. I will keep you posted when I get a date for it. Soup business is going great guns. Going to be an extra busy fellow this year but I also have some help on the farm. I will post again real soon with other goings on. I have to go get ready for market. Joe

Whoohoo I have another follower! That brings me to 10. Nice to know someones out there reading. I know, I know....a few of you have told me you read the blog just don't follow it yet. I guess not having an obsession is good, or maybe not. Anyhow where the hell has this winter gone? Sure it's February but we only have about 3 inches of snow and I have not gotten any planning done yet, let alone some type of budget. Marketing is all done though. I think that's what I like the most. Greenhouses are looking great and this is the day things start growing again. So I will have plenty of spinach and salad at market this Saturday along with some really tasty soup. Thinking Free Range chicken vegetable and Butterworks Farm Black Bean. Plenty of hot soup to eat with real nice cheese crostinis as usual.

On a sad note our cat IPO was put to sleep this week, 20 years of hard mousing. Good cat who earned her keep. I can hear the vermin rejoicing in the spinach beds already.

Incredibly they are forecasting 6 days of sun. It's going to be cold but the sun and the intensity of it after the 4th of Feb. means the greenhouses really get cranking. Plenty of fresh salad and greens for the next few months.

Soup business is doing well. Volume has slowed a bit but that's ok, boy does it consume allot of my time. Red Hen is getting great feedback on what I am making for them and it's going over real well at market. Intervale Food Hub is offering to there CSA members as well. Allot of potential. Just need to find my own kitchen and maybe stick a few seats out front.

Looking at planning and pretty excited (as always) about the upcoming season. Still need to get seeds and supplies bought but the taxes are done, the college financial aide for my oldest is not.

Well soup and harvesting to be done today so have to go. Hope to see you at the market this Saturday. Oh, one last thing the CSA only has 6 shares left. I am sticking to only 15 full shares again this year. Worked out well for everyone involved and allot of you are coming back this year. A few new faces so far as well. Joe