Exciting Progressions in the Greenhouse!

14 varieties of bell and hot peppers. Will become 55 flats many for the Wilmington flower market

As of today: The additions to the greenhouse are 2800 tomatoes for second planting. Sunflowers. First basil. Profusion zinnias for the stand. About 130 flats at this point

Snow in April?!

The "onion snow" came and went...

The whacky weather over the past week has been interesting. A late snow like we got on this past Saturday can be known as an "onion snow". This is a term specific to Pennsylvania originating from the Pennsylvania Dutch. It refers to snowfall that occurs after the spring onions have been planted, and comes right as they are sprouting. 

(Snow covered Barn)

The forecast for this week is looking much better with lots of sunshine, warmer temps and some rain. We're going to keep trucking along with production in the greenhouse and hope the warm weather sticks around. 

(Seedlings in greenhouse)

We have a few exciting things coming up for SIW. Our next Crop Mob with the Delaware Center for Horticulture is on April 30th. If you're interested in joining the fun please email siwveggies@gmail.com. Once the work is done, we'll have lunch from Talula's Table! The dates for our Field to Fork dinners have been posted. You can find the dates, chefs, chefs and pricing here. We're also extremely excited that we're inching closer to opening day on June 1st as well as our annual Farm Tour on June 16th! If you would like to attend any of the upcoming SIW event's please email us at siwveggies@gmail.com. 

(Fields of SIW at Spring)

One last note, we still are taking sign ups for our CSA. If you are interested please email us at siwveggies@gmail.com. Enrollment will be open for a short time longer so don't miss out!

Greenhouse is "growing" strong...

The greenhouse is GREEN!

There is so much growth to report on! The first rounds of tomato plants are getting stronger, and taller by the day. Soon they'll be moved outside to get acclimated to the weather.

Jamie the resident greenhouse guru is also busy growing a plethora of starts for the Wilmington Flower Market! SIW grows starts for the Flower Market every year. Since 1921 the Wilmington Flower Market has been raising funds for a wide range of charities throughout the state of Delaware that support children. If you'd like to support a good cause and get your hands on some of the SIW starts head to their website for information on the big sale!

The fig trees are growing nicely as well as the zinnias. The stand will have shorter zinnias this year (12-18inch length stems) which will be perfect for any bouquet to decorate your home with! The sunflowers have been planted also.

The lettuces are poking their heads up as well. Making for some gorgeous color in the greenhouse. The sweet candy onions are coming along nicely, they look like chives right now!

The praying mantis have hatched and are growing. The praying mantis is used as a natural pest control method on the farm. Waiting for the nests to hatch has proven to be an event on the farm!

We're excited that Spring has arrived and can't wait to share more updates on the greenhouse and growing season's progress! 

Spring is on the way!

With the warm weather we are having this week we've seen a lot of growth in the greenhouse...

The tomatoes are coming along well in the greenhouse. In just a few short weeks they'll be moved outside next to the greenhouse to go through a process that is called hardening off. The process of hardening off is to prepare plants that have been started indoors (the greenhouse) for the change in environmental conditions they will encounter when permanently moved outdoors. This strengthens the plants to be able to withstand any dips in temperature since we are having some pretty unpredictable weather these last couple days. 

Soon enough the greenhouse will be full of trays of tomato seedlings that will be transplanted outside to begin producing those HG tomatoes we all love! Stay tuned to see how they're progressing.

In fact HG is in the high tunnel preparing for the tomatoes right now...

The first glimmers of what’s to come…

We are just seeing the first tomato sprouts poke their heads up from the soil. You know all those HG tomatoes everyone loves? Well this is the beginning sign of them. This is where the magic starts to happen! We grow over 100 varieties throughout the summer here at SIW.

The tomatoes journey is well on its way. In a few short weeks they’ll begin to look like the tomato plants we all recognize. We will keep you updated on their progress here on the blog so you can see what we’re up to on the farm. Soon it will look like a green forest of tomato plants in the greenhouse. We’ll let you know where the tomatoes are headed after their time in the greenhouse so be sure to check back.

This is an exciting time around the farm because it signifies the start of the growing season for us. New life is emerging and that means spring is right around the corner!

And the Year is on...........

2016

The days were cold and nights were long,

But now the days have come along,

To bear the warmth to make things grow,

And here's our story for all to know.......

The weather is still cold with bursts of warm air here and there but we still have the lingering chance of snow. The farm may seem sleepy from the outside but the fun is just beginning for us. 

The greenhouse is where it all starts, literally.   Jamie has begun the very first seeds to go in soil, tomatoes. Right now the seeds have been carefully placed in soil in trays.  Each variety has been labeled with care and watered thoroughly.  The seeds like to be kept between 75-80° at this stage in order to germinate.  As soon as seeds begin germinating and stems start to show above the soil, it's critical to provide a strong light source once germination begins. The greenhouse does just that!

In order for the greenhouse to provide the proper shelter and environment for the seeds some care needs to be taken. Ernesto and Dan are hard at work replacing the plastic on the greenhouse. All of the plastic including the flooring is carefully removed revealing the frame of the greenhouse. 

They then begin lying the new flooring and move to covering the outside frame. This process is completed every 3-5 years. The plastic breaks down over time and can develop tears, holes, and weak spots, which let in the outside elements. New plastic will allow more control to provide the best chance for successful seedlings. 

Ernesto, Dan and Jamie are getting the greenhouse in tiptop shape for the upcoming growing season. They even have some help from the resident farm cats…  

Stay tuned to see the progression of the seedlings and what else is in the works...

THANKS for a great season!

It's been a great season from the greenhouse to the market!  And we're extremely grateful for your support.  We couldn't have done it without you!

Marv, Brent, Debbe and all of our staff love bringing you the best produce we can.  So, when you're tucked away in the late winter months, think of us as we're planting little seeds that will become something very special for you in the spring.

 

A special thanks goes out to our staff who worked so hard this year.  We don't have pictures of them all, (because they were so busy working), but we really appreciate all you did to make this year a success and hope you'll come back next year for MORE FUN!

We look forward to a great 2016 - 2017.  Hope you all stay warm over the winter,  and that you and your families have a wonderful Thanksgiving and Christmas season! We'll see you back at the market the first week of June!

To Market, To Market to Buy...

VEGETABLE PLANTS!
Many of these plants went to the Wilmington Flower Market for this week's events.

 

 

Over 6,000 plants were delivered: H.G.'s delicious tomatoes, cucumbers, all sorts of peppers  - and much more!

The volunteers at the Farmers Market were working really hard to get everything ready for this week. 

Besides beautiful plants to buy, 

there are so many fun things to do.

Rides, fun food to eat, and simply a pretty place to pass some time. Not to mention, you can't get much better weather than what we're expecting this week.  Great time of year to just get out and walk!

Come on out and support some great charities!

Full Greenhouse to Full High Tunnel...

Peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, eggplant, scallions, lettuce gooseberries, and flowers!

The greenhouse is bursting out all over!

 

Eggplant!

New Mystery Plant (Anyone have any guesses what this is? Post answer below and win prize!)

Our Tomato Forest

 







 
 
We are getting the fields ready to plant all the deliciousness found in the greenhouse! Nothing like freshly tilled soil!

We've brought many of those wonderful tomatoes out of the greenhouse and put them in the ground!  First in the High Tunnel.

                                              

Then out into the fields. H.G. guides the operation along while the co-pilots take the tomato plants from the greenhouse and plant them one at a time in the ground.  Do you see that brown wheel in the middle to the left of Marv?  It pokes holes in the ground every 22 inches and then they place the tomato gently in the ground!

And, as soon as the stand opens on JUNE 1, you will have amazingly delicious tomatoes on your table!  If you want to keep track of the tomatoes growth keep an eye on our tomato crop progression page.  And, this post contains our new mystery plant.  If you have a guess what it is, please post below.  Guess, win, and claim prize at the stand! Anyone can play!