March is creeping in!
I feel like my age shows when I make comments about how “I can’t believe it’s already March!”, or “the kids are getting so big so fast”, or “wow, this sure is some nice weather we’re having”. And yet, I can’t stop myself because it’s the shared human experience that makes us both believe and comment these things. So, at the risk of sounding “old”… I can’t believe March 1st is Saturday! The warm weather, and brighter sunshine have me itching to get my hands in the dirt by starting seeds for this year’s garden. Of course our heads are swirling with all the things that need to be done in the last few months of “winter” before we kick off our first full summer of programming with The Specialty Crop Collaborative. *We are currently enrolling farmers and Farmer apprentices in programming. Check out our website with more details and to complete interest forms HERE.
Our two main foci are finishing the north shop for classroom space and getting seeds started so we have strong seedlings to transplant into the garden. Of course, there are a million small tasks and jobs and secret to-do items that we don’t share out loud; there is a fine line between being hard workers and being crazy to attempt to do so much. So we quietly file that secret list away in our minds (primarily Katie’s) and work away at completing as much as we can as we’re able.
If you’ve been poking around our website, you might notice lots of changes, edits and design choices. When we find ourselves with some downtime or office hours that aren’t designated to other things and the cold weather prevents us from being outside, we chip away at the site, fleshing out the details and working to make an engaging interface. How are we doing!?
In mid-February, Katie, Chris and board member, Ian attended the South Dakota Specialty Producers Association’s conference and had some interactive networking time with specialty producers from around the state and several speakers from the greater Midwest. It’s always encouraging to meet with our colleagues working in the state to bolster our feelings of belonging to something bigger.
We have been invited to host booths coming up to share the farm, our mission and our vision with those attending the events. The first is a Farmer Meet and Greet with the South Dakota Specialty Producers Association, this Saturday, March 1st at Prairie West Library in Sioux Falls, SD from 1-4pm. Participants will get to meet the specialty producers in our area doing great things and have a chance at several door prizes including some rad sage-colored coozies (from our favorite specialty producers-spoiler alert, it’s us) and a one night farmstay at The Specialty Crop! The second booth is at the Family-Friendly Disability Resource Expo put on by Fun & Friends on Saturday, April 26th at the South Dakota Special Olympics building from 9:30am-2pm. We are beyond honored to have been invited to participate in both and would love your help in spreading the word and boosting these events and organizations by coming to check it out! Both events are FREE and FAMILY-FRIENDLY.
It’s not terribly often that the temperature is 52 degrees on February 26th, so I’m off to enjoy some winter sunshine and tackle a few small farm chores while the weather is favorable. If you find yourself in the neighborhood, please do stop by.