Well thanks to Lor Nor, Emily (aka e blankie, a buddy from the PCT), her partner Tony, and our WOOFER Jenna, we have jumped ahead to where the farm should be 9 days from now!

 We have created & mulched 100 squash/melon mounds, completed 400 row ft of trellis, weeded all 40 rows, planted numerous rows of berries, broccoli, lettuce, spinach, chard, kale, peas, onions, and much more!

I do not know where to begin expressing how grateful we are for all the support . All in all we are looking ready to have a great year. Rain pending of course!!!

But, tomorrow we shall begin to receive our much needed precipitation. The weather outlook is calling for almost 5 straight days of rain and potentially more. March will be a wet one! So come on down help and keep your fingers crossed for snow in Yosemite and rain down by us!

The weather gods are shinning down on us  finally. We received a good 24 hour rain that thoroughly soaked the ground! Our 700 potatoes are happy I am sure. As the Super bowl approaches this afternoon it looks as though we may get another storm!!! Although we are still in a severe drought this week is looking up and all you can really do is take it one day and one week at a time.:) We have also updated our CSA member information, so take a look at it and let us know if you are interested in joining us this year. -Glikin-

Well life on the farm is just grand! Currently we are removing many of the old structures and plants left over from last year’s growing season and prepping the beds for this coming spring. The only thing we really need right now is rain! We have received just 2 days of precipitation over the last 3 months! That is not good or normal! Keep your fingers crossed b/c we desperately need some water. This week we put into the ground about 1500 strawberry crowns and hopefully will be planting our raspberries, blueberries, and other assortment of berries in the coming weeks. Let me know if you are interested b/c I will need all the help I can get. Our friend Santiago has also offered to donate a rooster to test our coop J exciting! Well I must get back to work outside so, till the next blog…which will be soon!

Andrew takes us on a walking tour of how we are progressing at Raw Roots Farm...enjoy!

We planted three varieties of potatoes in late March before heading out to Virginia for a month. With just a little drip irrigation on a timer, and lots of good vibes, the plants were still alive when we returned in May. I hulled the plants twice and weeded them a few times throughout May and June. By the end of June I decided to go in and "rob" the plants of their new potatoes, which are just the ones growing closest to the surface. Here is a photo of the harvest! We are now looking into a lot of different varieties to try in September for a late fall harvest!
~ Lauren

    It was so great to see so many amazing people at our farm for our first official work party! On Saturday, March 2, we held a Hoop House Construction Party and about 25 people came. They were either new friends from Catheys Valley, or older friends from Yosemite. The inspiring thing for me was to watch our friends, while constructing, spark up conversations with new people and begin to expand their community. One of our main goals as a farm is to provide a place for people to come and connect to one another over the process of growing food- building community through food! This was so apparent on Saturday! Check out some of the photos below of the process. We set up a time lapse and when the building is completely done I will post that as well. Oh, and Glikin and myself are still slowly getting both houses finished.

    Towards the end of December, my parents, Robert and Pamela, came to stay and help out with some house and land projects. We got a bunch accomplished, including the building of our first cob structure! The four of us put this little bench together in two hours. All that remains to be done is a little trimming and plastering!

Andrews parents, Gene and Susan also came out for a working visit in the beginning of February. With their help, we finished a lot of fire clearance, mulched some beds, and got a few more projects done on the inside of the house! Here is a photo of Gene and I working on the yard.

Towards the end of the month of February, we noticed a different tune coming from the birds in the morning. Low and behold, western bluebirds! What a treat it is to now see these beautiful birds flying around the farm.

~Lauren

    So...while getting our land ready to cultivate, we have had some wonderful animal visitors! In the late spring we saw some turkeys on the land and then in early July there was a Western Screech Owl hanging out on a perch on the backside of the house. We also saw a large barn owl on a few occasions flying down to the creek in the back yard at dusk. There were also many sightings of the Red-shouldered Hawk, we seem to hear or see it almost every day. We have numerous Anna's Hummingbirds living in the Eucalyptus tree and dining from our feeders. This winter, we have also been visited by the Red-Breasted Sapsucker, such a pretty woodpecker.

       This summer and into early fall we saw on numerous occasions a young bobcat roaming our land. One night, as we sat outside watching the sunset, we got a chance to watch the bobcat stalk and pounce on prey in the back field. It was such a great experience.
 
    As the seasons come and go, I'm sure we will get familiar and new visitors to our farm. We will try to keep our list and photos updated with the animal visitors we have.

~Lauren