Field Trips. Media. More Sprouts!
Debbie wants to show me a classic example of a farm stand turned
community fixture, turned tourist attraction. So I agree to meet her at Bishop's Orchards Farm Market, off of Exit 57 in Guilford.
Bishop's has been in business since 1871.
The business apparently started as a farm stand, evolved into wholesale, and soon after their centennial, I-95 came along.
Rather than bemoan the minor annoyance of loss of land to the interstate artery, it would
appear that a cagey Bishopian generation decided to leverage location with commercial opportunity. Voila! We soon have a mini Stew Leonard's in sub-suburbia.
I get there a little early, wander around on my own. My only purchase is a copy of the State-sponsored DVD, "Working The Land, The Remarkable Story of Connecticut Farms & Farmers." We taste a few of Bishop's fruit wines. Debbie buys a couple, because, honestly, some are quite good.
All in all, I'm impressed with the store,
the crowds, and the loyalty of their customers. I leave knowing that my work is cut out for me. But I'm energized knowing that there seems to be a willingness among consumers to seek fresh products and unique experiences.
Earlier, I receive a call from Tony Cronin, Business Editor of The Day newspaper. He wants to fact check an article he's written about my farming venture for his Sunday, 6/6 front page Business Section column.
We make it out to the farm about 7:30. Too late to really do anything but walk the silent field. There's an evening haze; sort of feels like the fog a few miles away, on the shore, is sitting in a gate, waiting to be released. Soon it will rush up the country roads, I imagine, spilling over the field, bathing my young plants in briny moisture from the sea. Never need to put salt on my vegetables, I muse. Nature's done it! In reality, I realize that the land here has its own micro-climates, that mist and fog is not limited to the sound, is not the province of rickety yacht clubs and bleating light houses. In fact, I'll bet there's fog hiding behind that stand of trees right over there, or maybe inside this big ancient dairy barn.
When it coms to being lost in the fog, the mind - at least my mind - can be like this. In the evening, in the middle of a country corn plot, I dig my finger into a row of popping corn that I just planted a few days ago. The first seed I extract has two hearty growths coming from it. One I suspect is a root, and the other the shoot. My Jane Goodall training has just become useful in helping with plant terminology. However, since I cannot get this nifty little film clip on gravitropism to properly download, here's a link on the subject, along with my own germination progress photo:
file:///Users/bengreenfield/Desktop/corn%20germination.webarchive
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