Sun, Bugs and Buds

What incredible weather we have had this week! As I told my friend, Michele, when we were walking the other morning, days like this are why we live in New England and are willing to put up with so many of those other types of days. Simply glorious! And of course, this brings out the garden lovers as well as a flying pest or two. The carpenter bees are back at work, so I have called Ron at “Rest in Peace Pest Control” in East Longmeadow (413-525-4227) to take care of them again. Carpenter bees drill holes in wood to create nest sites. The first time I noticed the holes, I thought John had gone crazy with his drill. They are perfectly round and about the size of your finger. The bees don’t eat the wood, though. They feed on pollen and nectar, and pollinate flowers and trees. Normally, we would just let them ‘board’ with us, but if you just let one generation after another drill their holes in your wood, it can cause a lot of structural damage. Plus, these bees are quite huge, about an inch long with big black heads, and, they are noisy. They scare our customers when they dive-bomb and fly around them. For the most part, the diving bees are males and have no stinger, but that doesn’t make them any less fearsome. So, (sigh) bye, bye bees.
And now, back to the plants. The abundance of sun has really pushed our growing plants to a new level of lush in the greenhouse. The photo above is from a few days ago but shows some of my favorite annuals. We like to grow the Proven Winner varieties because they perform so well and are almost always awesome. You can click on the photo to get a better look, or, come by the greenhouse and see for yourself.

Best Local Farm

Yesteday was a great one. The Valley Advocate "Best Of Readers Poll" was published. And, guess who was in it??? Check out the whole story here!!!

http://www.valleyadvocate.com/best/detail_08.cfm?pid=5586

Flower Power Truck

We bought a U-Haul Truck from our friend, John Novinsky at Cahillane Downtown Auto in Northampton in the fall of 2005, thinking it would be wonderful to travel to the farmers markets without having to take the seats out of the caravan. Plus, we would be able to bring a lot more inventory to sell.
We were able to entice John's old and dear friend, William Falkenburg, an amazingly talented artist and musician to transform our used U-Haul to a work of art (still in progress). Bill did some of the painting at the farmers markets, much to the entertainment of those who lingered for a few minutes or more to watch and talk and sometimes, take up the brush. This year, he promises to finish the front and the side doors. When we drive down the road, you can bet we attract attention. Bill is gaining quite the reputation in Long Island, where he lives with his lovely and very tolerant wife, Jackie. I was very proud to read this article in "the Hamptons" about Bill, and hope you will check it out as well.
http://www.hamptons.com/detail.ihtml?id=3488&apid=7160&sid=3&cid=52&hm=0&iv=0&townflag=

For your information, when Jackie shops with us, her special favorites are Romanian Art Glass and the Bolga Baskets, made in Ghana.
If you'd like to see examples of either, go to http://www.inspiraglass.com/ for the glass and to
http://www.krugersbaskets.com/home.html for the baskets.

Loving Lavender & Rosemary, too

I was in the greenhouse today just to hang out with a couple of my favorite plants, Lavender, with its beautiful gray-green foliage and aromatic flowers, and Rosemary, darker green and a bit more prickly. We can sell as many of these plants as we can grow, and every year, I tell John, “we need to grow more”. Last year I started a Rosemary Topiary, shaped with a ball at the top. I kept putting a ‘not for sale’ sign on it, but people kept trying to buy it anyway. I finally had to take it out of the greenhouse so our customers would not be upset. I think I will start some more this year. It is pretty easy. Papa Genos has some handy instructions for making your own topiary, http://www.papagenos.com/blog/template_permalink.asp?id=140 and you can come by our greenhouse and get a plant to start with.
Lavender and Rosemary are easy to grow as long as they have good drainage and full sun. In most places, you will need to add sand or gravel to your soil as well as a small amount of organic compost. This is to match the Mediterranean conditions. Sage and Thyme are in the same category and are also amazing culinary herbs. I actually love spending time in the garden with this collection as they all smell so amazing. I often pick them fresh and throw in to my salad with the regular greens.These plants also grow well in containers and if you live in the Northeast like us, you can ensure they make it through the winter by bringing them inside. We often plant Lavender and Rosemary in a terra cotta (unglazed) pot and put that in the ground. The pot keeps the plant moist over the summer. When the weather gets colder, just pull the pot out of the ground and bring the plant in to the house or a protected porch. And, there is nothing like running your hand across the top of one of these plants to release their wonderful fragrance in your home in the dead of winter. I tend to do it at least once a day!

Farming and Selling

Farming is not for the faint of heart, because, in its essence it depends on one thing that is totally out of our control – the weather. We need the proper amount of sun and heat, and rain and cool to succeed in this venture. Too much or too little of any one of these can wipe out months of hard work and effort. But, farming is in the blood….for the farmers I know, it is a passion, and something they wouldn’t consider giving up. I call it an addiction, and laugh when I tell people I do consulting and other work to support my farming habit.
I do like the growing side of things. And there is nothing better than walking from the cold outside in to the greenhouse in March. The color and the fragrance, the warmth and humidity, the earthy smell of wet soil soothe and awaken my spirit. But, to be completely honest, it is the retail side of our business that really excites me. I grew up in retail. My dad & his friend owned a pharmacy. When I was a young kid, the drug store had a soda fountain, and I was a 2nd grade soda jerk. Had so much fun hanging with the teenagers who were the real soda jerks. Hot fudge sundae, anyone? Later dad bought another store in a different town. No soda fountain there, but we were the place to go for special occasion gifts. Back then, people gave chocolates or cigars or perfume or dusting powder to grown ups, and candy and puzzles or games to kids. I absolutely loved helping someone find just the right perfume or candy or cigar variety, and then wrapping the gift with special care. So, over 30 years after leaving the family retail business I found myself back in business. I still thrill in helping a customer find a gift they will feel great about giving to a friend or loved one.

Farmer John

Here is a picture of John in his greenhouse. This is the place he most likes to be, other than the golf course!

Omasta History

In my first posting I promised to provide more info on John, his family and the farm, and so here it (finally) is.
The farm (Hickory Dell) has been in the Omasta family for three generations and is one of very few working farms remaining in Northampton, MA. In the 1930s, Paul Omasta, who emigrated from Slovakia earlier in the century, purchased the land as a homestead for his growing family. Along with vegetables and livestock, he raised broad-leaf tobacco, a popular crop at the time, used for cigar wrappers.
Over the next 50 years, Paul and his three sons and their families continued to work the land, growing a variety of crops and raising beef cattle.
My husband, John studied forestry and agriculture at the universities of Maine and Massachusetts, and assumed ownership and management of the farm in 1981. Until 1996, he worked full time at the University of Massachusetts, while raising beef, producing/harvesting hay on the family farm and two additional hay fields, and growing and selling bedding plants, vegetable starts and cut flower bunches from a roadside wagon. In 1998, we built a farm stand, put up a large hoop house to supplement the two small houses already on the property, and purchased a tractor for field crops. In May of 1999, the 20 by 40 foot Hickory Dell Farm Stand officially opened. In 2000, we added a 12 by 20 foot addition including a rest room, sink area, and cooler. We began to stock more gift items in addition to our selection of garden pots and decorations and Peruvian imports (we began raising llamas in 1996, as a replacement for the beef cattle). The farm was open 4- 5 days a week from April through October for the first few years, and then, in 2002, when I left my corporate job, we increased our store hours to 7 days/week and extended our season through Christmas. Over the years we have tweaked and adjusted what we grow and what we sell, and in 2006 decided to focus on growing ornamentals. We specialize in new and unusual, and specialty annuals and perennials.

Getting Started

People have been telling me for well over a year that I should write a blog about our life on the farm and the trials, tribulations and total joy involved in trying to make a living from the land.
I am not even sure yet how this all works so if you happen to 'bump in' to this space, please be forgiving of mistakes.

I came to live on this farm through marriage, though I am the grandaughter of an Italian immigrant who supported his family by taking care of the amazing gardens on the estate of a wealthy WASP family on the Massachusetts coast.

I will share more of my history as well as that of my husband and his family farm on my next post. I hope this will be the beginning of a long and entertaining story!