Spring is here and we're opening May 5th

Wow, how the winter months flew by. They've been busy ones here in Greenbank, the weather allowed us to do a lot of outdoor work. No complaints on the temperature either.

We're currently cleaning up for spring - the Markham farm and market will be opening Saturday May 5th. Stay tuned for some new developments.

It has been a busy winter for learning with numerous workshops attended on a wide variety of topics. I've just completed our second Environmental Farm Plan workshop where we analyze our farm and farming practices to see how they measure up to Best Management Practices. The workshop is based on helping us improve our impact on soil, air, water and biodiversity. It was good to see the progress we've made since we last completed one 5 years ago. The On Farm Food Safety workshop was along the same lines but geared toward best practices for food safety. Be on the look out for some new posters around the farm. I've got some interesting ones.

Jim was able to attend a behind the scenes tour of Busch Gardens, Virginia while attending the North American Direct Farm Marketing Association conference in Williamsburg, Virginia. Although Busch Gardens is a little out of our league, they're putting in a new roller coaster at the cost of $30 million, it was interesting to see how the big guys operate. We were also able to meet up with our fellow marketing friends from across the USA and Canada. Conferences are always energizing for us and this one was followed closely by our provincial conference in Niagara Falls. So, now we need to absorb it all and put what we learned into practice.

Hope to see you again this season. Let us know how we're doing, suggestions and comments are always welcome.