April 24th, 2019

 Over the last week, as the days have warmed and our plants have put on some real growth, we have begun to reap the rewards of a return to fresh food.  One evening a couple of days ago, I was putting in a little office time while Joy was preparing a meal.  Believe it or not, it was the aroma of the salad which hit my nostrils and awoke my appetite.  It was almost as if I could smell Spring and the vibrance of life.  The arugula led the way with it’s pungent aroma, with tatsoi, baby salad greens, and some garlic chives playing important support rolls.  And oh my goodness the flavor!  Upon eating my first mouthful, I was immediately transported back to my first little garden I planted out in the mountains of Colorado.  My Colorado garden was my first foray into what would become my career.  While I didn’t realize it at the time, the freshness of the food triggered in me an insatiable need to always be around food, not just any food, but the food I dug right out of the ground from seeds I had planted.  In growing the little kitchen garden, I sowed the seeds of life which would bring me back to the farm I grew up on.  It triggered memories in me of all the farm fresh food I ate as a child.  The joy one gets from walking out one’s door and plucking dinner right from your own back yard.  While at the time it wasn’t as clear  what my life path was going to be, it was clear to me I needed to do this work.  It certainly wasn’t clear to me that  I would have this opportunity to do work I love and share it with a community of people who love food and farming , which is you!  This work can beat you down at times , at times it can be frustrating but in the end there is nothing I would rather do more.  There is no place I’d rather be more than in one of my gardens, hands in the cool earth. There is no work I would rather do than the good work of feeding my fellow humans.  So here we go, week one of this twenty eight week journey.  Through the wind, the rain, the heat, the cold we will show you what Wisconsin can grow.

~Farmer Rufus