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2015 Medway Community Farm Annual Report
Posted 1/27/2016 9:14pm by Marcia Coakley.
Dear Medway Community Farm Friends and Supporters,
 
It is with pride and pleasure that we present the 2015 Annual Report for the Medway Community Farm. We are fortunate to have enjoyed another fabulous year harvesting amazing produce, sponsoring exciting events, and providing inspiring educational programs. We are extremely grateful to our many supporters who purchased shares and products, volunteered, and visited MCF. 
 
We acknowledge the devotion and hard work of our founding farmer, Brittany Sidway Overshiner and wish her every success and happiness as she moves on to new opportunities in her career. Brittany's enthusiasm is contagious and she has inspired many people of all ages. We shall miss Brittany greatly and we thank her for all that she has given to all of us, and for her contributions and efforts that have made Medway Community Farm a success.
 
Happily, Kevin Overshiner will continue as our Farm Manager and we applaud him for leading such a bountiful and extremely successful 2015 season. We look forward to an even more exciting 2016. Thank you, Kevin!

We also recognize the service and leadership of Jeanne Raffa who, as a Member of the Board of Directors and President, served from 2011 to 2015. We salute Jeanne for her hard work and steadfast dedication to MCF.
 
Another very devoted member of the Board of Directors, Joel Morgenstern, resigned from the Board and his leadership responsibilities in November. We recognize Joel for his many years of service, contributions to MCF, and for sharing his expertise.
 
At the December meeting of the Board of Directors, Kathleen Yorkis was elected President, and Marcia Coakley was elected Clerk. Carol Collord continues as Treasurer, and Julie Infanger and Devon Reed serve as Members of the Board of Directors. 
 
As you read our Annual Report please feel free to reach out to us with ideas, suggestions, and feedback. There are many opportunities for your participation with our Farm organization and we look forward to connecting with you this year.

On behalf of the Board of Directors, our Farm Manager, and the entire farm staff, we wish you an excellent 2016 and we hope that you will make MCF an important part of your year.

Most sincerely,
Kathleen L. Yorkis
 
President
MCF Board of Directors
 
 
 


We want to hear from you!

Do you love Medway Community Farm and want to help it grow? Give us your feedback and help us look toward the future. We want to make MCF the best possible version of a community farm and opportunities to participate (on many levels) await you!

- MCF Board of Directors

Volunteers Needed! 9/27 Fall Festival
Posted 9/18/2015 5:36am by Brittany Sidway Overshiner.

(An excellent opportunity to complete your CSA volunteer-hours!)  

The Fall Festival is a great family activity for participants, but also a great volunteer activity for families!  We need help setting up, running and taking down our event on Sunday, September 27th at the Farm (50 Winthrop St).  We are happy to accept help from all ages (we’ve had lots of parents enjoy volunteering with their middle school and high school aged kids!).  An adult should accompany anyone under the age of 14.  Sign up for multiple shifts or just one shift and then enjoy the Festival!  

Saturday Farm Clean Up/Fall Festival Set Up!  

9am-Noon: Help us complete our clean-up/preliminary set-up to-so list!  

Sunday, Fall Festival  

10am-Noon: Set-Up, 10 volunteers  

11:30-2:00: Running Events/Crafts, General Help, 16 volunteers  

1:50-4:10: Running Events/Crafts, General Help, 16 volunteers  

4:00-6:00: Clean Up! As much help as we can get!!!  

Email volunteer@medwaycommunityfarm.org, to sign up!   Please forward to anyone you know who might be interested in volunteering!

Farm to Fork Menu is Finalized!
Posted 8/18/2015 12:41pm by Kevin Overshiner.
Presenting our local, seasonal menu for the 
2015 Farm to Fork Fundraiser.  
All produce for this meal is sourced from our farm.
Beef is provided by Lilac Hedge Farm in Berlin, MA.
Blueberries from Jane and Paul's in Norfolk, MA
Beer is provided by Peak Organic Brewery.
 
  
Passed Hors d' Oeuvres:
 ¬ Potato, rosemary and caramelized onion pizzettes 
¬ Swiss chard cakes on mini brioche with sweet pepper marmalade
¬ Eggplant croquettes with lemon nasturcium aioli
¬ Cucumber rounds piped with beet hummus
 
Plated First Course:
¬ Ginger carrot soup with honey thyme yogurt and pine nuts
 
Family Style:
¬ Roasted beet salad with husk tomatoes, herbed goat cheese,
marcone almonds and fig glaze

¬ Middle Eastern spiced beef with slow roasted tomatoes and peppers
Vegetarian Option: Zucchini noodles with eggplant meatballs, slow
roasted tomatoes and peppers

¬ Smashed potatoes and roasted green beans with an olive tapenade

¬ Veggie breadsticks, zucchini muffins and herbed spiral bread
 
Dessert Buffet:
¬Chocolate beetroot kale cupcakes
¬ Zucchini cobbler bars
¬ Blueberry gallettes with lemon verbena whipped cream
¬ Red Barn Coffee & Tea 
 

 

In the true spirit of the local food movement we are collaborating with Krista Maloney, Medway resident, Medway Community Farm CSA member, and gourmet chef, owner of Sweet Pea's Catering, to create a fresh and fabulous event that will highlight the delectable potential of the summer's bounty.  The evening will include passed appetizers and champagne, an open bar with beer provided by Peak Organic Brewery and wine, a delicious four course meal, live music, provided by Little Jed and the Phat Daddies and dessert.
 
Held among the old apple and beech trees on our farm, just steps from the field where the produce we will be serving is growing, the setting provides a romantic and nostalgic feeling that is not to be missed.  Come to feel inspired (and satisfied) by the possibility of food and community, and support our education and hunger relief mission.  
 
This is a night of indulgence that you can feel really good about.  
 
Date: Saturday, August 29th
Time: 6-10pm
Location: Medway Community Farm
Ticket Price: $100

 

 

You must be 21 or older to attend this event.

 

Tickets limited to 100, first come, first serve.

 

Details for the event are here: Farm to Fork Tickets: Get them while they last!

 

 

Volunteer Harvesters Needed, Monday, July 27th from 9am-Noon
Posted 7/25/2015 4:37pm by Kevin Overshiner.

Last week we were able to donate nearly 1000 pounds of food to the Boston Area Gleaners, a nonprofit organization that coordinates volunteers to come and harvest extra produce on farms around Boston and then distributes the produce to local food pantries.  They are a fabulous organization making sure good food gets to people who need it!

We are hosting our second gleaning day on Monday, July 27th from 9am-noon.  We'll be harvesting cucumber, zucchini (wear long sleeves - they are spiky), summer squash, peas and scallions.  Email volunteer@medwaycommunityfarm.org to RSVP.  Or just come by.  Even if you can only come for an hour, your help would be greatly appreciated.  Please no children under the age of 14 unless they are supervised by an adult.  Parking will be by the farm stand.  Check our facebook page for updates about construction and best ways to access the farm.

We also donate weekly to the Medway Food Pantry and Ashland Food Pantry.  We are looking for someone who could deliver the produce on Wednesday to the Medway Pantry any time between 2:00 and 3:00pm.  Please email volunteer@medwaycommunityfarm.org if you are interested!

Brittany celebrates our largest donation since the start of the farm, 6 years ago!

Here is the letter of gratitude we received from the Boston Area Gleaners after this visit:

Hello Brittany,

Thank you for taking the initiative to contact us to glean at Medway Community Farm on July 15, 2015. We were able to harvest a total of 235 pounds in 10.50 cases with the help of 3 volunteer gleaners. This donation consisted of:

Peas, sugar snap: 75 pounds in 2.50 cases.
Scallions: 160 pounds in 8.00 cases, in addition to (our estimates): cucumbers: 500 pounds in 10 cases. and summer squash/zucchini: 240 pounds in 6 cases.

Your timely and generous donation will help nourish many hungry families in the greater Boston area. Most of this load will go to our distribution partners, Food For Free in Cambridge and the Greater Boston Food Bank, and they in turn will distribute the produce among 600+ pantries, shelters and meal programs in and around Boston.

Fresh produce is one of the first items people have to forgo when they become food insecure. But it is probably the most important part of anyone's diet in order to remain healthy. These choices especially impact the elderly and the young. According to Project Bread, Massachusetts has one of the widest income gaps in the nation (tied with Arizona for first place), and more people in the Boston area are food insecure now than at any time since this data has been recorded (2013 Status Report on Hunger).

With your donation of fresh produce, you helped us put a significant dent in those figures, and, with your continued support, we will continue to build this important new supply chain that enables the recovery of fresh nutritious produce from the waste stream and redirecting it to our neighbors in need in the Boston area.

To the Harvest!
Duck Caldwell, Executive Director
Matt Crawford and Dylan Frazier, Gleaning Coordinators

 

Newsletter time!
Posted 6/28/2015 9:01pm by Kevin Overshiner.

Follow this link to check out the newsletter! As soon as I figure out how I'll make the whole thing available right away so you don't have to click through. Worth the dig though! Lots of fun information and great pictures.

http://conta.cc/1IDw1kI

Here's the sample to get you to click through, more where this came from!

Brit stands in front of an acre of buckwheat with our first fresh onion of the season.

Official Honor System Farm Stand Opening - June 11th
Posted 6/6/2015 8:12am by Kevin Overshiner.
The quick and dirty version:
 
Honor System Farm Stand Opening - Thursday June 11th 2-7pm
Featuring: Harms Family Farm Maple Syrup, Bushel & Crumb Pie Tasting, Farm Tours

The big picture stuff:
 
This is an exciting blurb to write, lots of momentum, hope etc, all the good stuff. Our farm stand will be opening next Thursday, June 11th on the honor system. As a CSA member you might say, "But Kevin, our family is already a member of the CSA! Why in the world would we need more vegetables?" Because you might have a BBQ and need the little extra squash, because you didn't get enough of your favorite item, or maybe you could use this information to inform others, spread the word!

The stand will be stocked some time after lunch, starting at around 2pm week days and will be open until 7pm. Weekend hours are 10:30 until the veggies are gone. Leave cash or check in the metal box bolted to the stand, we empty it daily. An attendant will be at the helm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday (most produce will go to the Medway Farmer's Market this day) and Saturdays.

For our exciting seasonal opener we will have Bushel & Crumb holding a pie tasting to get you psyched about their new pie share here at the farm, Luke Harms will be down selling his famous maple syrup from Harms Family Farms (just the one visit this year!!! don't miss your opportunity for syrup!!), we'll have restocked our own honey from the farm, and we will be giving farm tours on the hour at 3, 4, 5 and 6pm. Come for the treats and stay for the tour, you'll have the opportunity to ask us questions and to take a closer look at this excellent place we call farm.

Keep it close to home! Bring cash or check.
 
More information about our guest vendors is below.

Bushel & Crumb


Join us on Thursday, June 11th, for a free tasting of Bushel + Crumb pies. Bushel + Crumb will be offering Medway Community Farm members a pie share this year as an add on to your veggie share. Pie share members will receive one sweet and one savory pie a month, fromJune 18th through mid October. The pies feature all locally grown fruits and vegetables as well as local dairy, eggs, and grains. Pie shares are a delicious way to further your support of local farms! 
 
Pie flavors and ingredients change with the season and reflect the freshest fruits and vegetables available baked into creative and boldly flavored pies. A taste of the pies you might receive include: 
  • Spinach, green garlic, and goat cheese tart (June)
  • Apricot almond frangipane tart (July)
  • Tomato, basil, and mozzarella tart (August)
  • Cardamom-spiced plum crumble pie (September)
  • Butternut squash, caramelized onion, and sage tart (October)
The share is available in two sizes. Large pies (9”) are perfect for families, with 6-­‐8 generous slices each, while small pies (6”) are just right for singles or smaller families, with 2-­‐3 large slices.
 
For more information about the pie share, visit www.bushelandcrumb.com 
 
We hope to see you at the farm on June 11th!
 
Harms Family Farms

Luke and Sonya make some of the best maple syrup we have ever had here at MCF, I get several gallons every year to make sure our pancakes have good company throughout the year. Don't miss out because they will only be here just this once in Spring of 2015!

Thanks for reading, happy eating!

Week 2
Posted 5/4/2015 7:51pm by Kevin Overshiner.
Here it is week two and I almost miss a share e-mail. Geez. Brit just made some excellent sushi for dinner with braised mustard greens and baby radishes inside and on the side. Needless to say it was delicious, as many of her extra terrestrial creations are prone to be. Becca and I finished working at the adams st field, where we spread compost for our potatoes and brock. Becca was up to the dance, we use two tractors in tandem as the first tractor scoops soil into the spreader while we roll it out over the field using the second, meanwhile, the first tractor is now chiseling the field following the spread. Sound confusing? We are happy to have this new field, it is different than the soils we have been working at Winthrop and Lovering St. I like noticing the way the soils all react to us differently in how long we've been able to care for them and how we've done in taking care. Winthrop is the eldest, with well worked soils in period of recovery and still producing mightily, Lovering (aka Chicken Brook Farm) is our second field in it's third season and I am looking forward to the compost we were able to give the onions and carrots. Planting onions was an excellent project, we managed to get more than we planned to in and I snuck in an extra 100 feet of fresh Ailsa Onions for my wife, because it's her favorite. Thanks to the coolbot we're in good shape with our root cellar for keeping them fresh. And the newest to us is Adams, plowed and put in cover for 2014 and getting it's first cash crop in 2015 with Broccoli and Potatoes, though I am certain I will have to monitor the suspicious holes in the hill near the road for activity I am looking forward to the experiment with our new spot. We spread compost for the potatoes there because it looked hungry for it. When a field asks to be fed you are certainly punished for not complying. This I have learned from Brittany, if it looks like it needs it, you better fork it over, so we did. Spreading compost is a good task to learn the fields a bit. We need to treat the work differently as a result of it's minor hills and undulations so close to the road, every field has it's own rhythm. I was happy to get it done today because now Brit can lead harvest tomorrow while I get the beds prepped for planting on Tuesday and Wednesday, and doubly glad because the new potato varieties are looking to be a real adventure. That, and we get to fire up the Cub for the first time this season...

Anyway, that's enough for now. It's time to go get Morgan at the train, we're thrilled to have him back for a third season. We feel spoiled having such good friends to farm with.

What's in the share?

Baby Radish - so fresh, so pretty, really super good.
Scallions - we roasted whole bunches on the grill before last weekend's Revolution game with our friend's Chris and Christy, and their hilarious son Graham. Little bit of olive oil and throw them on (with their heads chopped off, we wouldn't want to eat scallion hair would we?)
Spinach - Overwintered from last November, excellent slightly wilted on a pan as a pizza or egg on bagel topping.
Kale - Red Russian, spring kale, goodness to betsy I'm excited, I haven't even sampled it yet, talk about foolish self control.
Bok Choy - Wilted with the baby radish tops they would be a dynamite side to sushi rice, which is outstandingly easy to cook.
Arugula - Fancy Stuff, teeny tiny outrageously tasty morsels, just eat the whole bag while you cross off your name for the pickup.
Mini Head Lettuce - Late Spring means for gourmet greens, I'm serious about this. When normally we'd have medium to mature head lettuce, we have mini gourmet heads that stand out in your salad.

I love the change of seasons.

Try this "recipe" http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/grilled-scallions-with-lemon-108401

Thanks for reading. Pardon the spelling mistakes, no time! Got to go fetch Morgan still.

Spring Break Volunteering!
Posted 4/16/2015 12:14pm by Brittany Overshiner.

Hello Farm Supporters!

We're so happy it's finally behaving like spring outside, and we've got a lot of catching up to do with this late start to spring planting.  We need some help making improvements to our Education and Community Garden Plot areas and are looking for volunteers to help!

Kids Under 12 must be accompanied by an adult.

Click Here to Sign Up!

or email: bsidway@medwaycommunityfarm.org

Dates and Times:

Tuesday, 4/21, 2:00-6:00pm

Wednesday, 4/22, 2:00-6:00pm

We're excited to complete this phase of our Seeds of Change Grant and be ready for a great growing season!  We hope to see you on the farm.

Greens for Sale to Celebrate March 17th!
Posted 3/16/2015 11:16am by Kevin and Brittany Overshiner.

11am - 6pm, March 17th, extra on sale 11am - 6pm March 18th!  

Anyone out there craving fresh greens? There nothing like the crunchy sweetness of a local salad after a long New England winter. We’ve got just what you need.  

Spinach and Claytonia on Sale at Medway Community Farm!

Also: eggs, honey, maple syrup, greeting cards and green t-shirts!  

Claytonia is the PERFECT green to eat on St Patrick's Day (balance out that heavy, boiled dinner!) Claytonia grows wild in California. It’s tolerance for cold conditions make it available outside all winter long in their warmer climate. During the gold rush miners used to eat Claytonia to stave off dysentery and scurvy – it’s got loads of vitamin C! – giving it the nick-name “Miners Lettuce”.  

What could make a better salad ingredient on a holiday themed with green and gold than Miners Lettuce?   Greens will be harvested and stored in bags in coolers in the front entryway of the Farm Community Center – use the honor system!

Spinach is $3 for a ½ lb bag and Claytonia is $4 for a 5oz. bag.

We accept cash or check.   As always, be careful pulling in and out of the farm driveway.  

We need to clear out these over-wintered crops to make room for plantings in our hoop-house for the Spring Share!  

Enjoy! Your Farmers, Kevin and Brittany

Tags: claytonia, farm, greens, harvest, miners lettuce, sale
Pie Shares Available at MCF for 2015
Posted 3/14/2015 10:39am by Kevin Overshiner.

 

 
Local pie company, Bushel + Crumb will be offering their unique Pie CSA at Medway Community Farm this summer. The “pie share” offers members one sweet and one savory pie a month from mid-June through mid October. Bushel + Crumb pies feature the highest quality, Massachusetts grown fruits, vegetables, dairy, and grains. Pie flavors and ingredients change with the season and reflect the freshest fruits and vegetables available baked into creative and boldly flavored pies. A taste of the pies you might receive include: 
  • Spinach, green garlic, and goat cheese tart (June)
  • Apricot almond frangipane tart (July)
  • Tomato, basil, and mozzarella tart (August)
  • Cardamom-spiced plum crumble pie (September)
  • Butternut squash, caramelized onion, and sage tart (October)
The share is available in two sizes. Large pies (9”) are perfect for families, with 6-­‐8 generous slices each, while small pies (6”) are just right for singles or smaller families, with 2-­‐3 large slices.
 
For more information about the pie share or to sign up, visit www.bushelandcrumb.com  We must reach 12 shares in order for the pie share to be offered at the farm, so sign up today! And if you're curious how the pies taste, Bushel + Crumb bakers Simca Horwitz and Lauren Wetherbee will be offering a free pie tasting at a Medway Community Farm event this spring. Keep your eyes out for more details.
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