European Voluntary Service in Cloughjordan Community Farm: December

Every day Goi and I have breakfast in Ena's beautiful kitchen. Right in front of the table's kitchen there is a large window. While we have breakfast we can see the weather outside the house. How difficult it’s to know that you have to work with the cold! This month my blood has turned into coffee!

What did we harvest in December?

In this season, cold and frost continue affecting the plant growth. Everything on the farm goes at slower time. Kale still predominates in the harvest of each week. We still have many kale in the field that grows independently of the weather.

Salads are herbaceous plants that correspond to the spring season but thanks to the polytunnels, in December we can harvest them. The spicy salad is growing very well and the mild salad grows a bit slower.

3rd polytunnel with salads

2nd polytunnel

We continue delivering cabbages, beets, carrots, onions and potatoes which are stored on the farm. We also continue to harvesting celery.

There were some new vegetables for harvest. In December we picked up French chervil, Baby Red Pak Choi and Jerusalem Artichokes which could be “the aliens of the Community Farm” due to its strange shape. For Christmas, we also harvested spinach, rainbow chard and licks.

Baby Red Pak Choi

Working on the farm

Inside polytunnels we planted lambs lettuce also known as corn salad and spring onions.

Lambs lettuce in 2nd polytunnel

Good work!!

On the fields we prepared berries soil (raspberries, blueberries, red- and blackcurrants and gooseberries). We weeded around each plant to improve roots grow and avoid the competence between berries roots and weeds roots. We added fresh compost around the plant. We also pruned the twisted and bad branches to improve the harvest and for the best quality of the fruits. Finally, we reserved some berries branches to plant later.

Berries field

Gooseberry

Cara is always a good helper

Fresh compost around the plant

I promise I was clean in the morning!

December’s skill

Team work

Last week was difficult to work without the EVS. I realized the importance of team work on a farm. Maybe you can work alone in a farm but if you have people who work with you, the farm will have better quality production. As a Chinese proverb says:

"If you walk alone, you will go faster, if you walk accompanied, you will go further"

Free time

This month we visited Dublin again. While we travelled on the train, we saw one of the most beautiful sunrises!

The trip was special because the city was decorated with Christmas lights and we could feel a familiar atmosphere in the streets. The city was full of people shopping (a bit stressful for me used to Cloughjordan’s calm!). The highlights of the visit were: too many people running and shopping and also many Spanish people!