Codman Community Farms

Hosted at Codman Community Farms!!!

The Middlesex County Beekeepers Association is offering a 5 week course in the basics of beekeeping which is designed to interest not only seasoned beekeepers but those individuals interested in starting this fascinating hobby.  You will learn the latest techniques of helping beehives survive mites, disease, and a Middlesex County winter.  You will also learn about  beekeeping equipment, hive management, buying and installing bees into a hive, where to place a hive, and harvesting honey, propolis and beeswax.  A sixth class will be held in the field and we will open an overwintered hive – time and date TBD.  Your registration fee includes a text on beekeeping, Keeping Honey Beesby Malcolm Sanford and Richard Bonney.

Class size is limited to 20 students.

Rick is the President of the Middlesex County Beekeepers Association and Owner of New England Beekeeping.

The class meets 5 Wednesdays, beginning on February 2, from 5:00pm to 7:00pm at the farm:  Codman Farm, 58 Codman Road, Lincoln MA.  There will be a sixth class, date and time to be announced.

Cost for this class is $90 for farm members and $110 for non-members.  Sign up online here or send your payment to:

Codman Community Farms, 58 Codman Road, Lincoln MA 01773

Questions:  info@codmanfarm.org or 781-259-0456.

Enterprise Farm is teaming up with Codman Community Farms in Lincoln for a 2011 East Coast Farm Share pick up starting in January.  In the winter they build their boxes with a combination of local storage crops (apples, onions, potatoes, carrots, etc.), local hot house grown produce (spinach, salad mix, greens, etc.) as well as produce they source from a tight-knit, ever expanding, network of small organic farms along the east coast (PEI, Canada to Florida–all within 1,000 miles).  You’ll see things like tree ripened citrus, green beans, fresh greens, eggplant, avocados, tomatoes, and much more.   Enterprise Farm puts together fresh, healthy shares all winter to hold them over until they can start farming their own 80 acres in the summer.  You can check their old newsletters to see what comes in the boxes on a weekly basis.

This is a 20 week share from Wednesday January 5 until May 18th.
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There are 2 share sizes:
A small share feeds 1-2 adults or a family with small children, who cook at least 3-4 times per week.  For the 20 week season, January 5th until May 18th, it’s $575.
A large share feeds a family of 4 or 2 adult vegetarians who cook at home at least 3-4 times per week. For the 20 week season, January 5th until May 18th, it’s $775.

To sign up or for more information email farmshare@enterpriseproduce.com.

On Monday, November 1, from 7:00pm to 8:30pm at the Lincoln Public Library in the Tarbell Room at 3 Bedford Rd in Lincoln, MA, professional organic farmer and director of the Real Food Campaign, Dan Kittredge, will give a free public lecture, addressing methods of building vitality in soils and crops and understanding the complex relationship between soil conditions, crop nutrition, and human health. The event is co-sponsored by the Real Food Campaign, Northeast Organic Farming Association/ Massachusetts Chapter (NOFA/Mass), Codman Farm, and Jones Farm.

The talk is an introduction to a five-session course on Nutrient Dense Crop Production that will be held at Jones Farm in Chelmsford, located at 246 Acton Road (Route 27).

The course runs from 9:30a.m. to 4:30p.m. on Sundays: January 9, February 20, April 17, June 19, and August 28. It will be taught by Kittredge in a classroom-style setting, with discussions and hands-on practice and demonstration in the field. In 2011, the same course will be offered in seven other locations all over the Northeast, including two other courses in Massachusetts: at Brix Bounty Farm in Dartmouth and at Simple Gifts Farm in Amherst.

“The approach that I teach in my courses helps to integrate scientific principles in simple, common sense ways that empower growers to significantly improve their crops. For me, it’s about looking at food and plants in a new way – providing the ideal environment for a plant’s genetic potential to manifest itself,” said Kittredge.

Local farmer, Phil Jones, who is hosting the course, says he learned about these innovative methods from Kittredge. “I’ve farmed most of my life organically, and since I started working with the nutrient density approach one year ago, my understanding of the way crops and soil work together has never been so clear to me. Since I started implementing these principles on my farm, I’ve seen a tremendous increase in the flavor and yield of my crops as well as a decrease in pests and disease. I know I can produce a lot more food of superior quality on the same land, and it makes me feel very hopeful for the future of farming,” said Jones.

The price for course registration is $300 and it includes twice monthly newsletters and comprehensive soil test analysis & consultation with Kittredge. The newsletter includes a calendar with year-round prompts for actions that integrate different practices for ideal results, information on plant concoctions and sprays to facilitate specific growth and development attributes, and charts, graphs and audio links to presentations, articles and supplementary reading options and answers to FAQs.

Thanks to all of you who came out for our annual Harvest Feast.  We had a lovely evening with the community–eating good food, enjoying great music and supporting the farm.  If you pledged at the event to donate towards new fencing for the cows, please click here to donate to that initiative.

As a reminder, we are raising $9000 to build a new fence for our cattle pasture here on the farm.  During the summer, our cows have ended up going through rotted fence parts and visiting other parts of town.  We’d like to keep our neighbors happy and our cows even happier, by building them a safe place to graze.  Please join in supporting this effort by donating here.  A gift of $500 gets you a plaque on the fence.  If you have any questions, please contact Jen James at 781-259-0456 or jen@codmanfarm.org.

Thank you for supporting the farm in the heart of Lincoln!

Hey everybody!

Come down to the farm this Sunday, October 3rd, 2pm to 5pm for a family event.  We’ve partnered with T.W. Foods in Cambridge, to have an old-fashioned pig roast with tasty fixin’s.

The Dirt Naps, a local bluegrass band, will be playing for us while we hang out on the farm.

Just $5 per family –this afternoon promises to be fun for everyone.

Seating is limited–you must sign up in advance by e-mailing Jen (jen@codmanfarm.org) or calling her at 781-259-0456.

This event is rain or shine–see you there!