SEASONS GREETINGS TO ONE AND ALL!

        This season, we are excited to offer you the chance to give a CSA share as an incredibly special and unique gift to a loved one, a family member or a friend who loves fresh veggies, would like to eat more fresh vegetables and / or likes to support the health of the inividual, the community, and the earth.

        This coming season will also mark the beginning of a new stage of development for the farmers, as some of them 'graduate' into the next phase of self-sufficiency. This step is new and exciting, and the early purchse of CSA shares again allows the farmers to start of the season right, with resources from you, thier supportive community.

        ACT NOW for EARLY BIRD SPECIALS!

        If you purchase this gift before December 10th, are guarenteed to receive in the mail before Dec. 25th:

•  Our CSA bag (as pictured above),
•  A customized gift message
• And a welcome packet containing more information about the farm, the farmers and pick up sites.

         If you purchase the CSA share before December 31st, the price will be reduced by 10 percent from 2013 prices. You again have the oppurtunity to purchase a single or full sized share for either the summer season, the fall season, or both! (July through October).
Please link to the website www.cultivatingcommunity.org to purchase your holiday CSA gift through paypal, or call the ofice at 207-761-4769 with any questions.

The harvest is celebrated, the cover crop is planted....

      Two weeks ago we celebrated the end of our season, and what an amazing season to celebrate. It seems like you can breathe in the spring, when the land is being distributed, and then you can breathe again in the fall, when the cover crop is planted, yet in between is a whirlwind of breathless activity; planting weeding, loading trucks rushing to markets, packing CSA's and administering to the countless details of the farming season. And yet, as miraculous as it is, everything gets done, and perhaps more importantly, every season is more successful, more managable and memorable than the last. And even though this group of farmers and helpers and consumers have converged only recently from countries and continents far and wide, before you know it, you have community and shared lived experience.

We want to thank all of you who have supported us through this season and who have made this remarkable community possible.

We danced to show our happiness with the weather and the whole season.

Riding a hayride at the Harvest Festival on the beautiful farm

See you next year, happy winter!



A view from the other coast: Refugee farmers in Seattle

Here's a great story about Somali-Bantu farmers trying to make a living farming on the other side of the country, in the outskirts of Seattle.  The story does a great job of sharing the joys and struggles of trying to succeed as a small farmer in a completely new country, and has some clear parallels to experiences here in Maine.

http://daily.sightline.org/2012/10/09/betting-on-a-farm/

We love to see stories like this out there, as they remind us that we're part of a national movement to support refugees who want to contribute to this country's agricultural future, and to be part of the food movement that is reshaping how we eat.  Let's keep working together!