What Mariquita Farm Members Can Expect From Us

by Andrew Griffin

Italian Parsley

For the price of a share of the harvest, Mariquita Farm agrees to grow a wide variety of crops. The varieties of fruits and vegetables that we grow are chosen for their flavor, nutritional content, and beauty and because they respond well to organic farming practices. We do not need to grow varieties that have been “improved” to hold up to long distance shipping or their capacity to withstand herbicide applications and we do not grow “GMOs” or genetically modified organisms. We are growing for you, our neighbor, not for export. We take pride in growing many heirloom vegetables that have been forgotten as mass-market/ export oriented agribusiness has replaced the family garden. We take pride in growing your food organically with no chemical pesticides, herbicides or water-fouling chemical fertilizers.

Mariquita Farm will take you on a food tour of the world as you eat your way through the seasons. Expect to see strawberries and English peas in the spring. We will have French fingerling potatoes and a galaxy of Italian and French herbs and vegetables in the summer. Basil usually is ready by early June and tomatoes make their first appearance in the harvest box by late June. We’ll have Native American beans, squashes, corn and peppers in the summer and fall. As the days shorten and nights grow cool we’ll add Asian cooking greens and cabbages from time to time. A variety of apples will sweeten up the fall. The weekly harvest is presented in a balanced fashion so that the share holder is neither overwhelmed with too much of any kind of food or left wanting and we give our people lots of recipe support on line, via our weekly newsletters, and through occasional cooking classes.

After 30 years in agriculture, I can say that the only “sure thing” in farming is that nothing is ever a “sure thing.” Weather, bugs, politics and earthquakes all play a role in keeping our lives unstable. But there are several things I take on faith, and my faith has been rewarded over time. If you treat the earth and soil well, if you apply study and diligence to your task, and if you don’t take more from the land than you put in, you will receive an ample harvest. And don’t hurry Mother Nature. Everything has its time. We don’t try to plant early or late to capture a high price in a tight market; crops planted in their season will grow the best, taste the best, give us the best yield, and assure all of us the most satisfaction.

Copyright Andy Griffin 2010