By Krista Flinkstrom, Nashoba Regional High School Summer Intern, Summer 2017

I love fresh produce. The bunched crops, neat herbs, impressive heads of lettuce, grassy and bouncy pea tendrils, scrubbed root vegetables such as rainbow carrots, turnips, and radishes, unique Asian greens, vibrant Swiss chard, malabar spinach, stringy pumpkin vines, and cute cucumbers are all boxed up ready for packing for the CSA. The beautiful mosaic of colors - from the dark greens, snowy whites, perky yellows, vivid purples, and deep reds - continues to impress me.
Sometimes I wonder how the farmers grow such magical vegetables. I envy their stunning scallions, their root vegetables - the radishes, carrots, and beets - their pristine kale and lettuces, and their abundance of squash. The healthy ethnic crops of chinsaga, lalu, amaranth, jilo, and luffa interest and impress me as well. Compared to my garden struggles of a single radish, moldy squash, and green tomatoes, it seems like these farmers have pixie dust. Yet, the real answer is not magic or luck. The farmers at Flats Mentor Farm devote many hours carefully weeding, spraying organic pesticide, tending, and harvesting their crops. They experience real monetary consequences of a bad crop or harvest. Their skill in growing is one they have practiced and honed. As the fog lifts from the lowlands before the day’s heat sets in, many farmers have already been at work since sunrise.
Reflecting on the these facts, I have come to appreciate farmers more and become less frustrated with my own garden. As long as I can eat fresh produce, I should not be upset whether I can grow them or not.