February In The Garden
Sweet Farm was originally founded in 2016, beginning it's life as a farm animal sanctuary. But it became clear almost immediately that our food and climate systems are so deeply intertwined that it was impossible to tell just one part of the story. To really create change, we realized it was essential to include other important pieces of the puzzle, and by 2017, the Regenerative Agriculture program was born. For those of you who have visited the farm in person, you've seen our fields of flowers and veggies, grown in a way that gives back to the soil and the planet. Each month, we'll be sharing monthly updates with our supporters, near and far, on what we're growing, how we're growing it, and what you can do at your own homes to create positive change through gardening.
It's February, and if you live in a wintery, northern growing zone like we do you are probably looking at a gray and snowy outdoors and feeling jealous of the gardeners in the Southern Hemisphere who are showing off their leafy greens and soon-to-fruit tomato plants on your social media platform of choice. But don't let it get you down. Our growing season is closer than you think!
Here in New York, February is actually when you want to start certain seeds indoors. Peppers and most herbs should be started in late February, with tomatoes following close behind in mid-March. (The Farmer's Almanac will give you start dates for your zip code.)
But you may be thinking to yourself: I don't have a greenhouse so I can't start any seeds! Well good news, a home seed starting setup is easy to do and can fit any size space. Full kits come in different shapes, sizes and price points. We like the clean, modern lines of this Tabletop Light Garden which can easily fit on a shelf or counter. Do you have more space and a desire to go big? Check out this larger 3-Tier setup with some serious lights. Live in an apartment with limited space? We've had great luck with a sunny corner and an affordable grow light kit. Whatever your setup, you can still get your hands in the dirt this month.
Winter Is For Beans
Most months of the year, our kitchen is overflowing with fresh veggies that were recently picked in the garden. But in the winter months our kitchen farm cart always feels a little bare. This is the time of year we turn to dried beans as a delicious, healthy and beautiful reminder of what our garden gives us.
Did you know? One half-cup serving of cooked dry beans contains large amounts of protein (~8g), iron, phosphorous, magnesium, manganese, potassium, copper, calcium, and zinc. And there's so many different kinds to choose from. One of our favorite dried bean producers is Rancho Gordo in California. You can choose from their huge selection of beans, or get on the waitlist for their popular Bean Club. Their quarterly shipment is one of our favorite packages to receive in the mail.
Become a Seedfluencer
We mentioned last month that we are getting ready to start sharing our favorite Sweet Farm grown seeds with you. In the next few months, we'll begin selling seed packets of our favorite heirloom varieties, grown with love at Sweet Farm and shared with our community, with all proceeds going to support our nonprofit work.
But it's not just our seeds we want to share! Are you an at home gardener, with a favorite variety of heirloom seeds? If you've grown and saved your own seeds, and have extra to share then please reach out. We'd love to find your extra seeds a happy home in our community, and share your seed saving work with the world as a Sweet Farm Seedfluencer!