Dear friends, neighbors, customers, supporters and suppliers of our farm:
The 2016 growing season is over for Mulberry Farms. Thanks to the fine support we have received from the community, it has been a success as our first 100% fully operational year. We enjoyed great support for all channels of business:
- Our farm stand
- Our u-pick berry operation
- Our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture)
- Our sales to kids summer camps
- Our sales to other retail channels
- Our sales to the best organic wholesaler in Maine, Crown of Maine
To recap the year, we had about seven acres in production and produced a lot of great product. Our own taste tests and customer feedback make us especially pleased with:
- Strawberries – told by many they were the best they have ever eaten
- Corn – our Luscious corn (2nd crop and later) was delicious (1st crop Who Gets Kissed was weak)
- Tomatoes – both cherry and fully sized tomatoes were absolutely excellent, especially from the hoop house
- Cantaloupes/Musk Melons – again told by many they were the best they have ever eaten
- Delicata Squash – delightful, delicious, no-peel squash
- Cipollini Onions – the best, sweetest onion on the planet
- Lettuces – heads and lettuce mix robust tasting
Our crop disappointments were:
- Brussels Sprouts – totally failed crop
- Potatoes – tasty, but very low yield and still fighting “wire worms”
- Green Beans – very late maturing
- Celery – never fully matured
Other big accomplishments in 2016 were:
- MOFGA Organic Certification in May
- Farm stand completed in April
- Walk-in cooler under barn completed in March
- Completion of our first heated hoop house in March
- Outbuildings in place during winter 2015/2016
2017 will be a year of continued growth. We intend to do the following:
- Add a heated hoop house next to the one across the street from the farm for more early tomatoes and cucumbers and to start seedlings
- Add two smaller unheated hoop houses on the south facing fields to produce more crops earlier
- Add a little over three acres into production, bringing the total to just over 10 acres with an emphasis on increasing production in asparagus, corn, Delicata squash, melons, pumpkins, lettuces and strawberries
- Grow our CSA from 20 members to 50 members and offer three levels of membership. Call, email or facebook message us if you have an interest.
Our plan in general is to grow each year in manageable amounts so that we can supply Raymond and neighboring communities, including our seasonal visitors, with quality, organic product that you can trust. Additionally, we are pleased to help build a sense of community in the East Raymond, Gray, New Gloucester and Poland area, where neighbors get to know each other as well as the farm and farmers that supply them with fresh produce.
Follow us on facebook, or just watch the farm as you drive by. Don’t be afraid to stop and say “hello” if you see us in the fields. We promise not to make you weed with us.
Farmer Frank and the year-round farming team
Deb, the ever patient wife
Mike, Mike and Meghan