Last week, a heavy frost covered the Chimacum Valley. It was a sight to behold, with bushes and grasses in an early morning white. This of course meant that there were things for the farmers to attend to and navigate as the proof of a change of seasons greeted the morning commuters.

The first thing was that some of the harvests had to be adjusted so as to let leafy greens thaw out. Instead, produce that was normally harvested in the afternoon, such as beets, got a morning visit from our hard-working (and a bit chilly) crew. The beet stalks at this point were still stiff before lunch time, being easier to cut, but cool to the touch.

In a nearby field belonging to our neighbor Finnriver, the horses were adapting to the chill too. They started the day lying on their sides, and a white horse in particular was looking asleep. As the morning went on, they went into a kneeling position, and by the time it was warm, they were up and about as usual (although still a bit huddled together). It can be fun to look around and see how the animal life is meeting any given day in the outdoors.

Another difference that went into the frosty mornings was that more people focused on packing orders early in the day, rather than harvesting from the field. This meant a full house in the order packing area, with more people than usual sharing the pallet jacks, scales and task list. This was another fun change because during the warmer weather, people often break out into several small crews in order to be efficient in gathering crops from the fields. Last week, due to the frost, the farmers had a couple parties in the packshed!

When change happens on the farm, people adapt. Whether it means an extra layer of pants or some funny moments watching the neighbor’s horses feeling the same way as the harvesters, the frost in the valley gave us a bit of time to be together, look back on the summer months, and make sure the kettle was on in the break room. Stay tuned for more updates from Red Dog Farm, and thanks for reading.

~Erik