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Dear Greg,

Open Friday 3-6 - March 26th.
Opening for the season on March 31st.

The snow finally melted off our front fields. The first few carrots we dug were a bit mushy after freezing over the winter. A few hundred feet down the row, we hit the jackpot. Dozens of crisp, sweet carrots ready to be dug, washed and eaten.
As happens if you're patient, a young, willing and able crew just appeared on the farm to help with the harvest. The Proctor Academy project week is in session and a small group of students is learning about agriculture in New Hampshire. Yesterday, they visited Springledge Farm for a tour and an hour worth of work. Half the crew helped fill pots for planting annuals and perennials, Proctor Pickers

and the other half helped pick and wash carrots. Many thanks to Matt Mackenzie and the students for their interest in local agriculture.
       We sent them home with a bag of fresh carrots and washed up the rest for our Friday Market.
       Here at Springledge, we grow the variety 'Sugar Snax'. Carrots are a biennial plant, which means they complete their life cycle over a two year period. The first year, they grow the carrot root, storing energy in that root for the following season. In the second year, the carrot plant uses the stored energy to grow a flower stalk, which then sets seed and the whole process starts all over again. The carrot is in the same family as Queen Anne's Lace, parsnips and dill, thus the flower is an umbel.
     Carrot Umbel

One of the Proctor students asked yesterday "How do they grow those bagged 'baby carrots'?". Here is what we found on Snopes.com concerning the rumors and facts about bagged carrots.
We'd rather have the fresh dug varieties.

Carrot Umbel

This week at the Friday market:
Fresh Springledge Spinach
Beef from Star Lake Farm
Warm Artisan Bread from The Good Loaf
Rocky Cannoli's Pies
Fresh Springledge Micro Mix & Pea Shoots
McNamara Dairy in Glass Bottles from Plainfield, NH
Honeycrisp Apples from Carter Hill Orchards in Concord
Freshly Dug Carrots
2010 Maple Syrup from Springledge Orchard (Bill & Ki Clough)
Pansies and spring bulbs
Hey Nancy...Walpole Creamery Ice Cream is back!

Muddy boots