coming soon!
6th Annual Pumpkin Festival
Sunday, October 12th 2008
10-5 rain or shine
Family fun! View poster
no admission charge — plenty of parking
buy in bulk —
store for winter!
At the farmstand
Fall strawberries!
Pumpkins and gourds!
Winter squash and potatoes — buy bulk and store for winter!
A-Z: beets, cabbage, carrots, cauliflower, collard greens, garlic, gourds, kale, lettuce, peppers (sweet and hot), potatoes, pumpkins, salad mix, winter squash
Fall mums & harvest decorations!
Beautiful selection of mums, sedum, & decorative cabbage and kale . . . wonderful variety of gourds, pumpkins, and cornstalk bunches
Flower sale
Perennials now 50% off
Farmers' market
Norwich, Saturday, 9-1
Meet the Field Manager: Luke Joanis
One of our dedicated farmers, Luke Joanis is committed to cultivating a harmonious symbiosis between healthy families and the earth through organic farming. Luke is the CCF field manager who leads seven other like-minded fieldworkers, some of them aspiring farmers as well, to provide fresh organic produce to our local communities. He came to Cedar Circle in 2003 after working for a year on an organic farm in Wisconsin, and two years as a produce manager for Whole Foods Markets. It was through these experiences that Luke became aware of the organic and sustainable farming movement. At age 27, he strives for self-sustainability. A fine carpenter, he is building himself a cabin from recycled material. “Construction is still underway,” he says with a smile. Luke currently lives without electricity or plumbing, and has a class-4 trail for a driveway.
When asked what an ordinary day at CCF looks like, he says,
Each day begins with a galaxy of possibilities! There is an ever-changing list of priorities, so I couldn’t tell you exactly what we’ll do tomorrow. We have seeding schedules, harvesting timelines and such, but because we work in tandem with nature, we need to remain flexible. For example, the sun may be out and we’ll need to harvest one crop and cover another, or the rain will come and each plant will react differently.
On any given day, Luke is urgently riding his rusty banana-seat bike around the farm, carrying shovels and rows of drip tape. His passion can be seen in every greenhouse, in every row of vegetables, and in every beautiful piece of produce he sends off to the farmstand and farmers market. Questioned on where his p assion comes from, Luke becomes straight-faced and responds,
These plants are my babies. I feel responsible to care for them from seed until customers pick them from the shelves. I believe everyone deserves to have access to fresh-picked, local, organic produce that’s ripe and in season.
Luke is constantly seeking ways to make a difference.
Cedar Circle Farm encourages all of its employees to become active and learn about the politics of food. According to Luke,
Will and Kate run the farm like a huge family. They teach and encourage everyone to be innovative, and support trying new things as they present themselves. My hands are unbound by chemicals and bureaucracy, and in their place are living soil and ideas. We also get to grow the same food that we’ll harvest and eat which is magical in itself.
Outside of farming, building his cabin, and sharing each season’s challenges with the crew, our CCF field manager plays Ultimate Frisbee, pitches a mean horseshoe, and is 4th Kyu in Aikido. Thanks, Luke!
Since this was written in 2006, Luke married Christina Roth in 2007, and they now live on the farm.