Sprout Farm Newsletter Oct. 31, 2026 closed

Hello Everyone,

Well, it's Saturday night and once again I'm at the keyboard composing my last newsletter of the year. I don't know what next year holds in store for us , so I will cap this at the end of our season.

Jay is reclined and munching on an after dinner snack. Both of us have come down with a cold in the last two days. That made good-byes and 'thank you' a little difficult. We sold out tot he walls this afternoon but we were very happy to see you all. Jay went to the signs on rte 28 and removed the produce signs and replaced them with a single 'closed' sign. He says he's been waiting for years for me to make one like that. It didn't take all that long to paint up. Now I have to add one more that says, 'retired'. That will put a different spin on the word, CLOSED.

Jay is still putting the garden to bed with pelletized lime and rye grass. If the turkeys stay out long enough for the seed to germinate, we should have a nice cover crop this year. Mimi reminded us that this is the time of year to plant garlic and cover it so it will survive the winter. We didn't plant any garlic this fall. We didn't even pull the gladiola corms before they ran the tiller over the rows. I doubt we'll see any glads come up next year. Even if the temps are warm, the new tiller has nice sharp tines unlike the old one it replaced.

We have had some people come by and ask us about the farm. Jay is weighing the various proposals but so far no one wants to run a seasonal farm stand. Back in the late eighties and nineties, we used to drive to Sandwich and get corn at Windstar Farm. When they closed in 1999, we scrambled to find a new source of fresh corn. We found it at Hanson Farm in Bridgewater and later at Sauchuk farm in Plympton. I figured it out today, that's 10K/year for 26 years. The eye doctor says I'm not ready to have the cataracts removed, yet so I will be happy to stay close to home until those are removed.

My fall chores include pulling up the weeds that ran wild all summer and figuring out how to trellis the thornless blackberries. I tip pruned them and the laterals went wild. The tips that reached the ground rooted and now they'll have to be pulled out. Jay still had a chore. He found the break in the waterline that ran up to the garden where we grow the lettuce. That explains why the lettuce was taking so long to mature, no water or rain.

The kitten report: thank you to all of you who have shared pictures of your Sprout Farm kitties. There is no doubt, those are superior cats. I can tell you take very good care of them. Goldie is getting bigger but he is still nursing. He learned to use the cat door in the basement- both ways. I like to know that he knows how to get into the house in an emergence. I think Ziggy and Fluff are going to miss the farm stand season the most. They were the best treat beggars we've ever had. They may get as fat as Twix if we don't cut back on the snacks and Twix is circular fur ball with eyes.

This is the last newsletter unless something develops with new management. If that happens, I will let you know but no emails will be shared without permission. The newsletter has worked well for years, as long as I remembered to use the BCC.

We wish all of you happiness and good health. We hope to see you out and about in the community and so good night and God Bless you all,

Jay and Phyllis Sprout