Astronomy Party 8/29 8:00 p.m.

Hey there,

                A big part of why I work hard on our farm and Observatory is due to my desire to connect the community. This last week was scattered with encouraging and meaningful connections, ones I was really needing.  The week brought a bit of life back to me and helped me put what we are doing into perspective.

                Last Wednesday I got the opportunity to join MOFGA for a training workshop and tour of an Herb farm. The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Associations offers a lot of free educational opportunities to observe other organic farms. We are practicing organic and natural methods here with the desire to possibly be organic certified.

                This event was more than just farm training for me. It was an opportunity to see other growers that are in similar situations. It was rather cathartic to listen to the struggles and success of their business. The farm is Wild Few Herb farm in Arundel. They have a beautiful little set up there with some very helpful tea blends. Go check them out!

                Friday was a really exciting day. First, we had a few individuals from the NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) visit the farm. They helped us identify what we can do to improve our pollinator habitats and get some ideas of what to do for irrigation. Our application has been accepted. We’ll find out sometime next spring if we qualify for any grants or services. Hopefully we will at least get a Forest management plan.

                Friday evening, we hosted an Astronomy Pizza party. I’d say it was a real success. There were roughly 25 people that came. Lots of yummy food was devoured. Phillip taught us a little about Astrophotography using the Andromeda Galaxy. Then he aimed the telescope towards Saturn. We got a good show!

                We plan for many more pop-up astronomy parties. As of right now, we will be doing a pop-up tomorrow, 8/29/24, at 8:00 p.m. Phillip will be directing the telescope on Andromeda and Saturn again. I won’t have pizza, plannig to bake some sort of bread though. Let me know if you can join!

                The last connection I had was with my neighbor Gale. She’s been gardening and farming her land for over 40 years. It’s an enchantingly beautiful space. She happens to be a sculptor, welding copper into lifelike figures. I was able to sneak over to her yesterday to bring her some grapes. She was grinding metal, forming the shape of a sunflower for a customer.

                She stopped her grinding as soon as she saw me, pulled up a chair, and commanded me to stay a while and chat. She’s a woman near 80 years old. So full of experiences and knowledge about gardening. Of all the things we talked about, one stood out. No single growing year is going to be the same. They will each come with their own new problems and wins.

                This morning as I weeded, I found a little strawberry. It’s one of the Charlotte varieties we planted in our very first year. The plants that helped us introduce ourselves as growers of food. It’s also a variety we’ll never plant again. It doesn’t produce very much fruit and attracts pests late in the season.

Seeing this berry made me think about what Gale said. Every year is going to be different. We can’t rely on what works this year to work next year. This is the importance of diversifying what we grow and even what we do in life beyond the food. This idea is both exciting and terrifying.

Hope you have a great week and hopefully be able to stop by tomorrow.

Thanks, Gwendolyn

Weeds and Astronomy

Greetings!

                Were you able to catch a glimpse of any meteors during the Perseid Meteor shower? We attempted to sleep out on the deck during the peak. Unfortunately, an unpredicted storm moved in before the shower really picked up. We managed to catch a few very bright meteors prior. I was disappointed to learn the Aurora Borealis was rather active that night as well! Though it’s not the peak, the shower continues to persist through August 24th.

                This rainy weather is blocking out the possibility of any lunar observations this week. Hopefully we get some good weather the next few full moons. They are all Supermoons! Fingers crossed for clear skies next Sunday, the 25th. I’ll be hosting Astronomy club on our observation deck at 7:00 p.m., giving a short presentation and telescope observations. This will be a potluck style gathering. Bring a snack/drink (if you want) and plates/bowls/cup/cutlery.  

                There will be Yoga on the deck Sunday and Wednesday evening at 7:00, weather permitting. Tea Time is at 2:30 p.m. this Thursday. Reading In the Garden with Dr. Carver followed by activities about growing a garden. I’ll have a light snack and beverage, feel free to bring something to share. ALL ARE WELCOME! Books pulled from a 2nd grade curriculum.

                I have added two Sourdough Science classes, one in September and one in October. They are listed on the schedule. If you’d like to attend, please let me know as far in advance as possible. I need to make sure I have enough starters to share. For now, in these classes we’ll learn about the science of how sourdough fermentation occurs. I’m hoping to get my hands on a high-powered microscope so we can see the lactic acid bacteria up close! We’ll also prepare something for you to take home and cook.

                A few less events in September, there are too many things happening across New England that we don’t want to miss out on.  I am getting excited for an event planned for October 16th though. We will be celebrating Dia de Los Muertos (Day of The Dead). Living on the Mexican border led me to really enjoy this tradition of celebrating the lives of those who have passed on. We’ll have a Taco/Nacho potluck, hopefully the telescope operating, and some traditional activities like sugar skull painting.  I’m really looking forward to it and hope you can come! P.S. It’s my birthday too.

                Phillip and I continue to try and conquer the weeds and mulch the living hell out of the orchard. We’ll always take a helping hand in this endeavor. Ideally, we want it well weeded by the end of September. Our plan is to then seed in peas and oats so that they grow and act as a nitrogen fixer/weed blocker. They will winterkill before going to seed. I observed that where we have done the peas and oats before, there are significantly less weeds and big strawberry plants. We are also always looking for mulch/leaves. If you know anyone trying to get rid of some, send them our way!

                I still have an abundance of small heads of garlic if you are in need. The corn is starting to flower and remaining hopeful we may have some to offer in a month or two. The yams growing below them look like they are doing good too. 

Hope you have a great week and enjoy this cooler weather ahead.

-Gwendolyn

Astrophotography from Phillip over the last couple weeks. 

NGC6910

M45

Sunset Yoga and Future Sourdough Class

Hello,

                I’m having a hard time this week excepting that we are in the construction phase of our dream. We will be in build mode for a few more years. Building of physical structures and ground work aren’t the only things that need to be done, it’s us under construction too.  There is so much to learn in order to get all this to work. I just want to be an expert; I’m reminded daily that I’m not.  

                There are a lot of things I want for this space. In order for it to work it has to be done slowly and intentionally. It’s challenging to pause and enjoy what we have when there is a lot of work to be done. Though, important to stop and enjoy. Hopefully this fall will be a time to celebrate what we have so far.

                Yoga has been moved to Sunset on Sundays and Wednesday. Haven’t updated the calendar but will get that done by tomorrow.  Gathering at 7:00 p.m. on the deck weather permitting. It’s simply an audio recording of a teacher, I will not be instructing. If someone wants to host a class, I’d love that!

                Honestly, no one has come to a single event this summer. It’s really bumming me out. I’m still offering Tea Time on Thursdays at 2:30 p.m. through the rest of summer. Astronomy club offered a few times this month. Check the calendar for more details.

                I decided I want to try and host a cooking class. It will be held October 13th starting in the morning. The class will be focused on Sourdough baking. I’ll try to get a detailed event up by next week. It will be the cost of supplies for the class and a donation to the observatory if you want. I’ve been asked a lot, so I’m trying it out! Have any suggestions of what you would like to bake?

SH2-119 Clamshell Nebula

Thanks,

Gwendolyn

Growth an Good Food

Hola! 

The farm continues to spiral in extreme growth, weeds and planted plants. Accepting the weeds have won this year in some parts of the orchard. Focusing on weeding the annual gardens and the June bearing strawberry plants. Positive note is that where plants have grown a bit out of control, plenty of wildlife are happy. I fear the Pollinator flower seeds I sowed in the raspberry garden has choked out the raspberry canes. They are still young canes. Not losing all hope.  

I’m still in awe of the uptick of wildlife species this year. So many nesting birds have succeeded in growing their families. I even notice a more balanced insect population. However, fungal disease is a problem. It’s looking like our grape vines have been hit hard. We don’t want to cut anything presently in fear that it will spread the disease. Come late fall and winter, the vines will be heavily cut back. Hopefully next year we will be able to battle it with more vigor.  

Had lunch at Il Leone on Peaks Island earlier this week. I tell you this because it was very inspiring and delicious! How badly I want an open-air kitchen here at the farm. Envisioning it all stone and worked into the natural ledge. The other inspiring and beautiful part of the experience was that all the dough is done with a sourdough method, it goes through a multiple day ferment. If you know me, you know I’m obsessed with sourdough.  

We also got a tour of Nauti Sister’s Oyster farm’s new boat. The summer of 2022 I got the opportunity to be an intern. I fell in love with Oyster farming and made/making many connections through it. There are a lot of people doing some amazing things in the seafood world of Maine. I feel so lucky that I get to be connected to it. 

The sea farming interests are connected to the dream an open-air kitchen. I recently attended a pop up for Nor'Easter Oyster Co at Lambs in South Portland. They offered grilled jumbo oysters that I can’t stop thinking about.  

Some very good friends also got a bounty of lobsters from their lobsterman friends this week. The taste of fresh caught lobster is also something I can’t stop thinking about. We are SO lucky here in Maine! 

All this delicious food made with so much intention and thought, most ingredients from Maine. I’m thoroughly inspired and driven to create a space for deep culinary experiences. Those that connect us with the incredibleness of Maine and to each other.  

For now, I’m just processing food for ourselves. The freeze dry machine is running 24/7. Lots of berries and herbs. 

 There was not much opportunity for astrophotography. Busy work schedule and cloudy skies have gotten in the way. Hopefully this coming week will present the possibility. I will be hosting Astronomy Club tomorrow at the Waterboro Library at 4:00 p.m. I didn’t get a big showing at the last meet up. I’ll have both last month’s lesson on Black Holes and this month’s lesson on meteors. We can vote on what presentation depending on who shows up.  

The calendar is updated for the month of August. Hope you can make it to an event! 

Thanks, 

Gwendolyn 

Forestry and Astronomy

Greetings!  

This past week I decided to attend a farm tour hosted by NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service). We’ve been told several times over the last four years to apply for assistance from the FSA (Farm Service Agency). This farm tour helped me see what they do and encouraged me to want to apply. So, we are now in the application pool to potentially get assistance with a number of things; such as forestry management, habitat improvements, irrigation, soil health, a high tunnel, and so much more.  

We are more confident in what we want with our land. With this confidence I’m ready to reach out and find help to make it happen. Really thinking this could be a big leap forward.  

I spent a little time hiking the 30 plus acres we acquired this past year. It’s a mess and challenging to walk through. I’m looking forward to getting in there and cleaning it up so we can all enjoy it. Really hopeful that the NRCS will provide us with a forestry management plan that will be conservation focused.  

This meeting also got me stirring about how I can best educate myself on our land. I want to know how to manage the forest and relay that information to others. Kicking around the idea of going back to school for another degree, one that will be in alignment with what we are trying to do at the farm. Not sure what that is yet. Phillip starts his Astronomy degree classes in a couple weeks. His drive towards wanting to learn more in order to teach has inspired me to want to do the same.  

This week is pretty slow. I have some events on the calendar, please reach out if you plan to come. This coming Sunday, 8/04, is the new moon. I’m going to try something new that day. I will be giving my monthly Astronomy club presentation followed by telescope if the weather allows. This is open to ALL! We will have a potluck style spread as well. This will be monthly, likely the Sunday near the new moon. Bring a chair, bowl/cup/cutlery, and a treat to share.  

Feel free to drop by one day this week. Grab some garlic out of the small green house. Check out the improvements we’ve added to the deck. It’s all ready to be rented out for events. If you know anyone looking for an outdoor space, tell them to check out the Event Space Rental page. We will be using all the profits to go towards our Observatory goals.  

Phillip has taken a few Astronomy photos this week with his new camera. Imagine the photos we will get with the 24-inch telescope!  

M63 Sunflower Galaxy

M52 The Whirlpool Galaxy

Peak Summah

Hello! 

It is peak summer!  We have so many wild flowers blooming. All the pollinator feed seed mix I tossed a couple years ago is really taking off. Elated to see an abundance of pollinators enjoying themselves.  

Our goal is to grow food for humans. More importantly, the goal is to create an inviting and balanced Ecosystem for all. The uptick of wildlife and plant species is everything I could ever want. The plants are filled with the homes of birds and bugs. The dragonflies are in abundance swooping in and out of the orchard. Frogs and toads fill the pond.  

It still has a few more years before we have balance. It’s encouraging to see it getting so much closer. Hard to see the failures and inconsistencies. We have a lot of invasive species and diseases to compete with. These are the reasons why a lot of farms spray. We promise we won’t though. 

The beetles are enjoying the leaves of all the plants. We’ve instructed the kids to catch them and feed them to the frogs. The frogs are very aware of who feeds them. They emerge from hiding spots as the children come with their jars filled with twenty or thirty beetles. The bullfrogs instantly gobble the beetles up as they hit the water. 

Unfortunately, still not getting a lot of rain. Which is bad for plant growth, great for weeding. That’s what we will be doing for the next couple weeks at volunteer time. Let me know if you would like to come help!  Weeding this year mean more space for strawberry plant growth!

Phillip has gotten the sail shade up! It is much more comfortable during the mid day heat wave now. We have two shades up, there is the capability of a third shade if wanted. The deck is available for rent. Check out the details on the websites Event Space Rental section.

All the garlic is harvested, I think. If you want any, just head into the small greenhouse. Take whatever you like. Pay what you want.  

The yams and corn are growing nicely in the big greenhouse. Fingers crossed they remain protected from all the things that love eating them. My brassicas and celery have been found by a rabbit I believe.  

The grape vines we planted in the first year are rather filled with bunches of grapes! There are also a few bird nests within the vines. We look forward to having you forage grapes in a couple years. Wine making is also in the list of things we would like to do with this fruit.  

Tea Time this Thursday at 2:30 on the deck. Reading The Tree Lady: The True Story of How one Tree Loving Woman Changed a City Forever followed by activities about garden design and plant adaptations. Will have a light snack, feel free to bring one to share or not.  

Lastly, tonight at 6:00 p.m. we are having a get together with the Portland Ferment Club. All are welcome! Come share your favorite ferment food or drink, homemade or not. Bring a chair, bowl, cutlery, and a cup. Looking like clear skies to do Telescope observations after 9:00. Full Buck moon will be visible by 9:30.  

 

Continue enjoying your summer, it’s going so quickly!  

-Gwendolyn 

P.S.  

Thinking of hosting a 4th Astronomy Club opportunity here at the Farm. Similar to what I do at the library but with the Telescope available too and a potluck. Planning to do it on or near the New Moon. Will be for everyone. Look out for that update. Let me know if you have ideas or thoughts!  

Garlic Available

Greetings! 

Hope you are staying cool and enjoying some summer activities. We’ve been enjoying the lake A LOT!  

Phillip’s  Astro-photography photos this last week 

Veil Nebula

Pelican Nebula

Elephant Truck Nebula

I managed to harvest a little less than half the garlic out of the orchard this week, still a lot more needs to come up. The stand will continue to have a functioning credit card machine and cash/check box. All produce is by donation for the rest of the summer.  

You are welcome to come harvest the ones in the ground or take from what is drying in the smaller greenhouse.  The heads are on the smaller size, likely because of lack of water. Hopefully by this time next year we will have a second water source to irrigate the orchard. Two years ago, we tapped our only well dry for a short time. It’s made us hesitant to water such a large space again.  

A few things on the schedule this week. Volunteer time on Tuesday morning, Thursday afternoon, and Sunday morning. We’ll be doing a lot of weeding and harvesting the rest of the garlic. Tea Time on Thursday at 2:30. Reading The Boy Who Grew A Forest: The True Story of Jadav Payeny. Followed by activities about the importance of plants. Astronomy Club is at the Limerick Library on Friday at 4:00 p.m., discussing meteors this week. Lastly, on Sunday 7/21 at 6:00 p.m., we are hosting Portland Ferment club on the deck. Bring your favorite fermented food or drink to share, cup/bowl/cutlery, and a chair. The full moon will hopefully be visible sometime after 9:00.  

Hope you are able to come snag a little garlic or make it to one of our events this week! 

-Gwendolyn 

We still have Strawberries

Last week's reality check continues to resonate in my mind. I recognize I made the mistake of comparing our farm to the other You Pick places in the area, where strawberries are grown in a mono crop. Seeing their closures because they felt their strawberries weren't up to par for their customers made me do the same. I am so self-conscious that someone is going to come here and be disappointed. Actually, one person did come and didn’t like what they saw.  

We aren’t a mono crop strawberry farm though. It is a forest that we tend to, a full circle ecosystem teeming with diversity. It presents its’s challenges and requires a lot of labor. The rewards are unending though. I’m choosing to change my perception and not compare ourselves to other farms or try to be like them. I’m proud and happy we have a lot of people who support us in this. Thank you!! 

With that, we are open every day this week Sunrise to Sunset. All self-serve at the stand in the parking lot. You can forage a few strawberries still. There are field peas and sugar snap peas coming in, the tendrils and flowers are great for salad. Sugar snaps are randomly growing with the grape vines on the greenhouse side of the orchard. Field peas are back by the picnic table by the small greenhouse. Garlic Scapes and lettuce is available as well.  

I’ll be at the Waterboro Library today, 7/01/2024, at 4:00 p.m. for the Astronomy Club. I have a presentation on galaxies.  

Tea Time on Thursday at 2:30 p.m. Reading Gregor Mendel: The Friar Who Grew Peas and discussing plant heredity. I’ll have tea with crackers or bread. Feel free to bring a snack to share but no pressure.  

Check the Calendar for volunteer time! 

Hope you make it out, 

Gwendolyn  

 Image taken by Phillip Last night of the North American Nebula , NGC7000 with the Redcat 51 apochromatic refractor telescope.



More Than Just Strawberries

We desire a lot, have big expanding dreams. A month ago, our hopes were through the roof on how many good strawberries there would be, the crowd of people that were going to forage them. Phillip started plotting the purchase of more greenhouses and expanding our growing spaces down the hill. Then, we experienced two brutally hot days reaching 100 degrees this week.  

This week was a reality check. The strawberries essentially melted in the heat, the ripe and unripe. We are still assessing the damage. Not all the berries are lost, but a huge chunk is gone. Mourned and quickly got over it. Changed our expansion plan this year. Rather than building more green houses, we are going to focus on our water sources. We think in coming years we can combat the heat with better irrigation. Also, continuing to vigorously weed and deeply mulching the orchard for the rest of the summer.  Come Volunteer! 

This set back has also allowed us to realize how we want to put energy into our other visions beyond the food aspects of our farm. We introduced ourselves as strawberry farmers a few years ago. Yet, we are so much more.  

Our Observatory dreams are potentially coming true in the next year or two. We reached out to a company that uses a robot to construct 3D printed concrete structures. They have given us a quote to construct the building that will house our future 24-inch telescope. The cylinder building with dome top will be connected to the deck we currently have. It seems like it’s a doable project in the near future! 

Yesterday's Strawberry Full moon was spent a lot differently than my vision a month ago. We didn’t harvest any strawberries. Instead, we focused on the other aspects of our life and the farm that we want to grow. It was our monthly Astronomy Club meet up at the Limerick library. It was so much fun.  Next meet up is July 1st at 4:00 p.m. at the Waterboro Library. Our topic is galaxies! 

Phillip and I also enjoyed a charter around Casco Bay with the lovely Nauti Sisters Sea Farm to celebrate his birthday. I continue to hold on to my vision of connecting land farm and sea farm. So grateful to have made connections and friendships in the ocean farming world.  

It was hard week and an encouraging one all at once. We will continue to dream on and work hard to make it all work together the way we envision it. Thank you for your continuing support and encouragement. We know big things are ahead.  

-Gwendolyn 

Strawberry Season!!

Hello! 

Strawberry season is in full swing. The garden needs a lot of love. We have goals of having it thoroughly weeded and mulched within the next month. It is our belief that the hard work now will make the coming years far easier and more manageable. 

Unfortunately, we aren't able to forage for individuals this year. Our plates are very full. The orchard maintenance is our top priority. We do have commitments to the Cornerstone Market on 202 in Waterboro Thursday-Saturday. Head to their store to find them for sale. And buy all the other delicious things they have to offer.  

We are open from sunrise to sunset every day. Remember it is VERY HOT mid day.  Check social media for day-to-day updates. Head to the small stand in the parking lot down low for instructions, boxes, and payment. $3.00 a pound. Cash/check preferred. No change. There is a card reader if cash is not available. Bring your own container. Quart boxes are available in the stand.  

Here is a map.  

Current Conditions 

Blue- Wendy strawberry is producing a lot and seems to be ripe. A good place to start.  

Purple- Charlotte strawberry. Small but very sweet. Have to look through the weeds we have yet to get to. If making jam, they are worth it.  

Grey- Darselect strawberry is at the end of the rows near the rock wall and sprinkled in between the Charlottes. They look decent right now. 

 Light Blue- Cabbot strawberry is large, easy to pick, and just beginning to come into season. I’m currently freeing it from the strangles of clover. They will be easier to find once they are fully in season.  

Green- Honeoye is so very ripe. A good starting point. You could sit and forage here. The juicy ripe ones are good for jam or fermenting.

Red- Flavorfest if coming into season.  

Orange- Sunset. Planted this year. A few berries, a little bit of a hunt.  

Yellow- Sparkle. Also planted this year and a bit sparce but available.  

Pink- A very wild raspberry patch. Maybe berries soon. Feel free to take a peek.

When I have time, I’ll add all the other species of plants we have in these zones. First, I need to free it all from the weeds. If you like weeding, check the calendar for Volunteer hours.

Last but not least, I will be at the Limerick Library Friday, June 21st at 4:00 p.m.. This week we are exploring what a Galaxy is. I’m doing some research and throwing together some points. Feel free to do the same and bring what you found to the club! I want this to turn into a group effort. All are welcome!

Thanks!

Gwendolyn.

Update

Greetings! 

Phillip and I have continued to work hard on weeding the orchard and mulching the walkways. I’ve done a lot of planting. This week several herbs went out; basil, oregano, thyme, and rosemary. Cilantro, dill, and cumin have been seeded as well. Mostly all the early summer annuals have been planted in the ground too.  

There are MANY green strawberries out there, a few starting to turn, and a handful of ripe ones. We are predicting the opening for You Forage in the next two weeks. This year we have a shed we’ve put up to act as a kiosk. This will be your first and last stop when you visit the farm. There will be information about where and what to forage. We will have quart containers; I strongly encourage you to bring your own. Once you are done foraging, this is where you will weigh and pay.  

This week I will be at Parson’s Memorial Library at 2:30 for Astronomy Club!! This lesson will be roughly the same as the one I presented at the Limerick and Waterboro library. I hope you can join. We’ll be discussing telescopes.  

Check the website calendar for other opportunities to come hang at the farm. There is sunrise yoga on Sunday. Volunteer opportunities are on Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday. If there is another day you’d like to stop by, feel free to reach out and ask.  

Looking forward to seeing you soon! 

-Gwendolyn 

Update

We have planted all of the perennials and a majority of the annuals. Yam slips should be arriving in the next day or two, those will be planted in the big greenhouse.

Phillip and I are working hard at weeding and mulching the whole orchard. We want it to look top notch when you come to forage in a couple weeks.

The strawberry plants are producing A LOT of flowers! I hope you are ready to forage for so many pounds. Pease spread the word! We will continue to update when the orchard is open.

I’ve made some changes to the calendar. I have chosen to eliminate the Community Farm concept and changed it out for simple volunteer time. There will still be some activities for kids and refreshments. Discount on produce if available.

Volunteer hours are Sunday and Thursday afternoon, 3:00-5:00 pm and Tuesday morning 8:00am-10:00am. RSVP if coming.

I’m also starting sunrise Yoga on Sunday mornings. It’s not a class per se, just a gathering. We’ll try to start by 6:00am, free to come earlier to get the full sunrise experience. I’ll have an audio recording from my yoga app, unless someone feels drawn to guide us.

All of this can be found on the calendar!

Weekly Update

Spent the first half of the week moving mulch into the orchard pathways. Sowed a lot of seeds.  Phillip picked up our order of 15,000 strawberry crowns from Nourse Farm; Darselect, Sparkle, and Sunset varieties. We had some temperatures in the mid 20’s, so waited for it to warm up a little before planting the babies. So far we’ve planted roughly 6,000ish. The goal is at least 1,000 a day to finish.  

Come to the farm this week and help if you like. Or just hang out. 

Tuesday/ Thursday/Sunday- 10:00am-12:00am and 2:00pm-4:00pm 

I’ll have some short kids activities for Community Farm on Thursday and Sunday. 

Next week my attempt at hosting an Astronomy Club begins. We will be gathering at the Waterboro Public Library on May, 6, 2024 at 4:00pm. Check out the Calendar for more dates and locations.  

Sunday is Cinco De Mayo. Considering a Mexican inspired potluck? 

 

Solar Eclipse and other future events

Head on over to our calendar page to see what events we have coming up!

Starting next month I am hosting Community Farm Time every Thursday and Sunday afternoon.

We will start with tea, a snack, and a small lesson geared towards elementary age children, though all are welcome. Thursday’s lesson will be focused on science and conservation. We will read a little and do a STEAM based activity. Sunday’s lesson will be focused on math in art. We may look at an artist’s work and find an aspect of math in it. Followed by a simple art project.

After the lesson we will work together on a small chore; weeding, harvesting, planting, and so on. Feel free to just hang out if you don’t want to do the chore. It’s just nice to get the community together!

Looking forward to growing with you!

-Gwendolyn

Hello,

It's been a challenging week for Maine. We chose this state because it IS the safest place in our country. Our communities saftey was disrupted by the growing mental health crisis and the ease of obtaining assult style weapons. We've been close to mass shootings living in Florida and Texas. This madness making its way to the peaceful state of Maine has pushed Phillip and I to try and take a bigger stand to bringing resolution to these issues.

On a lighter note, we had an awesome time watching the moon rise and eating pizza with friends new and old this last Friday. We are learning how to host events and hope to get better each time. I"ve got a lot brewing in my mind about the future.

One very special event is the upcoming Solar eclipse! Mark your calendar on April 8th, 2024 at 3:30 p.m. for a viewing party here at the farm. Working on some projects to do to learn about eclipses and how to view them safely. I'm partnering with the Parsons Memorial Library to host these educational opportunities. We may be doing those gatherings at the library leading up to the Eclipse, weather is very tricky in March. Big goals of having an event tent up by April to expand our potential.

We were able to get the trellis's up for our Everest grapes, there are a thousandish of them. The grape vines really vegetated this year and need some taming. Our goal is to have every vine strung up by the end of next week. If you'd like to help in that adventure, lemme know.

There may be a carrot harvest soon, thinking next week. If they look promising, I'll have them posted for sale.

The farm is awake for just a few more weeks. The last 10 hour day is next Tuesday! I'm ready for the reset.

Events:

Experimenting with more days and topics! Introducing Art on Sunday afternoons. Goals of getting a space exploration one on Tuesdays.

Friday, 2:00 pm- Nature science Tea Time, Leaves and Needles. Bring Paper or nature journal.

Sunday, 2:00 pm- Art Tea Time, The movement of diagonal and zigzag lines. Looking at;

Thomas Hart Benton Country Dance 1929,

José Cúneo Perinetti Ranchos Orilleros 1932,

Jacob Lawrence Children at Play 1947.

Bring paint, brushes, paper, glue, and scissors.

Astronomy:

Simplifying this section as I figure out how to learn about astronomy myself. Narrowing down what to focus on.

Star- Eltanin can be this weeks focus. Find it by locating Vega first, high in the west after sunset, the star shining brighter than all. Vega is about a fist and a half above Eltanin. This star is considered the nose or an eye of the constelation Draco.

Nebula- On Halloween an hour after sunset look to the Northern sky above the little dipper to find the constelation Cygnus. Find the constelations brightest star, Deneb. After finding the alpha star, take your gaze to the east-northeast. Here you can find The Cocoon Nebula. It is an emision/reflection nebula, it is reflecting light from other stars and emiting light from its ionized gases. Directly to the west is a Dark Nebula (blocks light) called Bernard 168. It is also called The Dark Cigar due to its shape. The two nebulas apear to be like a comet with a dark trail.

Planet- Jupiter will be at Opposition (directly opposite of the sun) on November 3rd. Best viewing this evening because of its brightness. It rises in the East after sunset moving southeast and then setting in the west as the sun rises. The constalations that surround it are; Aries above, Cetus to the lower right, and Taurus to the lower left.

Constlstion- Taurus will be the focus. Look to the East-Northeast in the evening. In this group find the star cluster Pleiades in the upper right. This cluster of seven stars was used by several ancient civilizations to help with telling what time of year it is. Seeing this cluster at different points alloud them to know when to plant, sail, and celebrate. Taurus's brightest star is Aldebaran. It has a hugh of red and represents the eye of the bull.

Moon- Waning Gibbous. First quarter November 5th.

Astroid- Midnight on Wednesday search for Astroid Vesta 4 towards the feet of Gemini and just south-southeast of the waning gibbous moon.

Space Flight News:

Spacex aims to launch Starlink sats on a Falcon 9 rocket on 10/30

Intuitive Machines announced they are aiming to start lunar missions in January,

10/15

Dear Reader,

Your support has a lot of meaning to us. It keeps us looking towards the goal. Building something from scratch with little previous knowledge or experience is daunting. It’s had a lot of discouraging moments in its infancy. We want a lot of big things that will take time and trials to achieve.

The last weeks have honestly been difficult for me. I had high hopes for abundant harvests of sunflowers and yams. The deer had the abundant harvest instead. My feelings are mixed on the matter. I’m disappointed that all my hard work seems lost. Yet, understanding of the deer and their needs. This area was theirs just a year ago. Finding balance with the wildlife is going to take time and a lot of energy. We worked hard to get the electric fence in better shape. Glad to say, we haven’t seen them this week.

Another bummer is the loss of our honey bees. All 4 boxes are now vacant. We see honey bees flying around, just not sure where they have made a new home. It’s something we half figured would happen. Hope they have a nice life somewhere else.

I’m fighting these feelings of being bummed and trying to focus on all our abundance this year. I remain positive towards our future in growing food. I also greatly recognize that I need help. We want to hire someone part time and will continue to offer volunteer for food times. If this interests you or if you know someone wanting seasonal work, please reach out.

We’ve connected with some really great people we can’t wait to collaborate with on creating events. My goal is to have a rough calendar planed by mid winter. If there is something you’d like to offer don’t hesitate to ask; such as movement classes like yoga, teach a skill set, host a party, and so on.

EVENTS

Tea Time- Tuesday and Friday at 10:30.

Adding Tuesday this week for Garlic planting. Come help me plant garlic through out the whole orchard. Will provide refreshments

Friday- discussing Roots and Stems

Working on lesson plans to start space themed Tea times on top of our nature themed one. Possibly adding a cooking class eventually too!

ASTRONOMY

Earlier in the week look to the Southeast an hour or so after sunset. There will be a carbon star called 19 Psc. It is the color red because blue light is scattered away by its atmosphere. Here is more in depth info on Carbon stars.

https://lweb.cfa.harvard.edu/~pberlind/atlas/htmls/cstars.html

To locate the red star find Pegasus, it’s higher in the southeast. The stars form a large square on the lower left side. Take your gaze to the lower right of the constellation to see seven stars forming a circle. This is the Circlet of Pices the Fish. The southeastern most star is called Lambda. 19 Psc, the carbon star, can be located just north-northeast of Lambda. Below Pices is the planet Neptune. It has a blue hue and appears flat.

In the Eastern sky a couple hours after sunset locate Jupiter in the Aries constellation, it’s the brightest object. East-Northeast of the planet is the star cluster Pleiades in Taurus. Between these two celestial bodies is a faint glow, that is Uranus.

Venus can be seen in the East near the back paw of Leo in the predawn hour, one of the brightest objects. Observe with a scope over the next week and see as it becomes more illuminated. It’s coming to what is called dichotomy, half lit. Observe through twilight.

This is a good week to see what is called gegenschein, meaning "counter shine" in German. This is the glow of the sunlight bouncing off the dust located in the second Lagrange point. This happens to be the location of the James Webb Telescope. This light is best seen at midnight in Spring and Autumn and in a low light pollution area.

Monday, observe Jupiters moons Ganymede, Europa, and Callisto transit over the Gas giant starting after 10:50 pm.

Tuesday, check out the moons of Saturn. Turn your scope to the south around 10:00 pm. It’s the brightest object in this region of the sky. Tethys, Dione, Rhea, and Titan can be observed through out the night.

Wednesday, view the waxing crescent moon in the southwest sky after sunset. South of the moon is Antares, a brighter reddish light. To the east is Sagittarius’ Teapot. Above that is Aquila, which houses the bright star Altair. This bright star forms a triangle with the stars Vega and Deneb which are higher than Altair.


SPACE FLIGHT

Not much going on this week.

10/09

Greetings!



If you have ever tried to garden, you know that one of the greatest struggles can be weeds. We’ve known ways to mitigate the weeds; such as mulch and plastic walk way covers. In order to cover the space of the food forest it was a huge expense to purchase these materials. We’ve called around to local wood cutters and mills. Signed up for chip drop about 50 times. We received a couple yard through those means. Just a mere fraction of what we need.

We started to lean towards purchasing plastic for the walk ways. I just hated this idea, yet know its an effective weed blocking method. I decided to make a wood chips wanted sign as one last try at getting free/cheap mulch. Within a week trucks full of wood chips began to arrive! We now have hundreds of yards! Plans of mulching volunteer parties during the first part of November.

Feel free to stop by and enjoy the changing of the leaves. I’ve added a sign by the road to welcome you in!

EVENTS THIS WEEK

-Tea Time Friday at 10:30. Subject: Spores

-Harvesting the yams on Saturday, the 14th in the afternoon. The Annular Solar Eclipse starts after 12:00. If skies are clear, we can do some star gazing and pot luck dinner after. Let me know if this interests you.

ASTRONOMY

Monday- The moon is going to be farthest from the Earth, 251,900 miles away. This is called apogee, it happens at 11:42 pm. After 8:00 pm, Jupiter rises and will be bright and visible all night. It is coming close to opposition. This makes it ideal to view its moons through a telescope. On the west side of the planet sits IO. To the East is Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto will be significantly far east. Watch the moons move in their orbits through the night. See the great red spot, most visible after midnight.

Tuesday- Rise early, an hour or two before sunrise. Venus, the waning crescent moon, and the bright star Rugulus will be present high in the East.  In the evening, Pluto is with the stars of Sagittarius.

Wednesday- In the pre dawn hours Comet Hartley 2 can be seen with a telescope passing through Gemini by the Lion Nebula. The constellation begins to rise after Midnight. It is coming to its closest point to the sun, this is called perihelion. This closeness will make the comet slightly more illuminated each night.

Thursday- Twoish hours before the sun rises, the crescent moon can be seen in the Eastern sky. It may look brighter, as the suns light is bouncing off Earth and shining on the moon. There is an opportunity to see the zodiacal light this morning. This glow will exist along the Eastern horizon. This occurs when small particles in the inner solar system are illuminated by the sun. Particles come from comets and dust storms from other planets, like Mars.

Friday- A couple hours after sunset, take your focus to the Southern sky. Saturn is there with its moon Titan visible through a scope. In the southwest part of Aquarius, there is what’s called the Ghost of Saturn, Saturn Nebula, or NGC 7009. It’s called a ghost because it looks very similar to a hazy Saturn. The nebula has an elongated shape making it look like rings.

Saturday- New Moon, making it a great night for a very dark sky. There is a an annular Solar Eclipse. The moon so far away that it’s unable to completely block out the sun. We can see a partial eclipse begin to occur around 12:15 and peak around 1:20.


SPACE FLIGHT NEWS

-A Russian laboratory module on the International space station has sprung a leak. Not a lot of info has been shared on this subject.

-SpaceX plans to launch several rockets this week. A Falcon 9 launch will cary a batch of Starlink sats from Cape Canaveral pad 40. A Falcon Heavy is planned to launch on October 12 carrying a NASA space craft to the metallic Psyche Astroid. The spacecraft will reach it’s orbit in 2029. Learn more about this mission here.


https://science.nasa.gov/mission/psyche/

10/01

Hello!

This week was pretty uneventful at the farm. Not much to update on. I am working on creating a survey to present to you. Starting to brain storm about how to make the most of this coming year. We would love all the input and ideas we can get! Keep an eye out for that.

Tea Time will be this Friday at 10:30. We will be learning about the first types of plants. All are welcome.

Astronomy



A new term has been coined called "Noctalgia" which mean sky grief. This word refers to the loss of dark skies with the increase of light pollution. If we continue to pollute the air and shine our lights so brightly, our access to Astronomical observations become very limited. I encourage you to read this short letter about the subject. Also check out DarkSky Maine to learn more about what you can do.

https://arxiv.org/pdf/2308.14685.pdf

https://darkskymaine.com/#:~:text=Dark%20Sky%20Maine%2C%20a%20501c3,while%20maintaining%20dark%20skies%20overhead.



-Monday, the 2nd view Astroid 29 Amphitrite in the Pices Constellation with a scope or binoculars around 3:00 am. The Pleiades cluster will be just north of the waxing gibbous moon when it rises late in the evening in the constellation Taurus.

-Tuesday, the 3rd Look above the moon after it rises around 10:00pm. There you will see the star Algol, the Demon star. This star changes brightness due what’s called Eclipsing Binary System. This is where stars are close to each other and block the light when moving in front of the other. Over the span of 3 nights compare it with surrounding stars Gamma Andromedae (similar shine to Algol) and Epsilon Persei (shine of Algol when eclipsed).

-Venus can be seen an hour before sunrise just above the horizon. Mercury can also be see briefly before being shined out by the sun. View through a telescope to compare their illumination.

-Thursday, the 5th set your telescope on Jupiter as soon as it rises, 8:30/9:00 pm. Witness the moons Ganymede and Io pass over the planet. This will happen through 11:00ish pm.

-Friday, the 6th is Last Quarter Moon. Great time for deep sky observing. On clear crisp nights look to the Northern sky to find the Andromeda galaxy. The Andromeda constellation can be found  northwest of Taurus and the Pleiades and northeast of Pegasus.   

-Saturday, the 7th will be the peak viewing night for the Draconids Meteor Shower. After the sun set will be the best time to see a meteor. They can be seen all over the sky. The constellation Draco (The dragon) is the meteor showers radiant point. The stars Eltanin and Rastaban can be found in the head of the Dragon, the best point of the constellation to focus on. They sit high in the sky making it easier to view the shower in the evening rather than in the pre dawn hours. The meteors are a product of the comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner. The comet was first observed in France at the Nice Observatory by Michel Giacobini in 1900. Discovered again  in 1913 by Ernest Zinner in Germany.








Space Flight News

-October 4/5 Arianespace scheduled to launch their Vega rocket out of French Guiana with 12 satellites aboard, most for various Asian countries for Earth Observations to help with forecasting. SpaceX plans to launch a Falcon 9 rocket out of Case Canveral carrying a batch of Starlink sats.

-October 6 Atlas 5 Rocket to launch demonstrations for Amazon’s Project Kuiper broadband constellation.






www.seasky.org

www.earthsky.org

www.astronomy.com

spaceflightnow.com

9/24

Welcome to the weekly update!

I’m a little busy/tired today so keeping it brief.

This last week in the garden I took out all the tomato  and melon plants. Replaced them with brassica seedlings. Hopefully the harvested tomatoes turn red eventually. The peas and oats that were sown in the spiral garden next to the house have sprouted, thankfully not too many turkeys got to the seeds. Hopefully the don’t go for the tasty sprouts.

Fighting the deer, they have been winning. I started to rearrange the electric fence today to try and prevent them a little more. We’ve just been too busy to fix it. Our yam plants are being munched on quite a lot. I don’t think they could handle much more pressure. Planning to sow spinach, cilantro, arugula, lettuce, and radishes in the green house this week.

Phillip and a neighbour were able to get the the accessible parking spot and ramp done.

We aren’t in need of volunteers this week. However, it is a full moon week and would love to have people over for watching the moon  rise.

Come on over Wednesday-Friday. Moon visible around 6:30 on Wednesday, 30 minutes later the following days. Pizza and face paint Friday evening. If you’d like to join, let me know! I’ll have crusts and simple toppings.

TEA TIME Friday at 10:30. Come have a snack, tea, and discuss plant anatomy and care. Curriculum geared more towards 2nd grade, ALL are welcome though! Feel free to bring anything to share but not needed if you don’t want to.

Unfortunately that’s all I have time for today. I encourage you to visit Astronomy.com to learn about what you can view this week and spaceflightnow.com to learn about what happening in space travel.

Have a wonderful Full moon! Again, feel free to come over for a visit one evening this week. Just give me a heads up.

Thanks,

Gwendolyn