Whatley Farm

Meet our Farmer: Addy!

Addy (she/her) is Whatley Farm’s field manager and has been an integral part of the team since 2020. Addy is a passionate, thoughtful, and eager farmer.

Addy is a beacon of light on the farm and radiates joy and optimism in her daily work. Her upbeat attitude keeps the whole team chugging along even on the hottest days and her good humor never fails to bring us all to laughter. Her positive attitude, even when the going gets tough, lifts up others and helps us reach our goals with smiles on our faces.

Addy is an incredibly patient teacher and is never too busy to answer a question or to help solve a problem. She guides less experienced farmers with grace and kindness. Her constant learning and growth provides a scaffolding for us all to thrive in our work and climb to greater heights.

Addy is an astounding team player and is always ready to take on whichever task is harder or more logistically challenging — she’s invariably patient and generous as a coworker.

Addy’s work is beautifully detailed and well thought out. She has an eye for detail when it comes to seeding gorgeous beds of greens and crafts lovely bunches of every vegetable imaginable. Unsurprisingly, off the farm Addy is an artist! The beauty she sees in the world is clearly reflected in both modes of work.

The care with which Addy regards the world is admirable and we are truly lucky to call her our fellow farmer!

Here at Whatley Farm we value every member of our community and we strive to support and raise up the voices of our marginalized neighbors. We'd like to draw your attention this week to , an incredible organization serving our Maine community.

MaineTransNet is a community based organization led by transgender people for transgender people. This organization provides peer-to-peer support groups, social and community events, advocacy for the transgender community across Maine, and training for medical, mental health, and social service providers. They engage transgender people and their allies across Maine in the practice of community building and organizing for mutual liberation. Their work is rooted in a deep desire to care for one another which informs how they build systems of mutual support centering accessibility, inclusivity, and hospitality. MaineTransNet views structures of power and oppression as interlocking, and believes in finding leadership among those with lived experience. (reference: mainetrans.net/about)

In honor of Pride month, this week we will be collecting a portion of our sales from markets, on farm in our seedling greenhouse, and from wholesale orders and directing these funds towards . We invite you to shop with us and take pride in supporting our community!

🏳️‍🌈 During the month of June, Whatley Farm is committed to donating a portion of our weekly sales to LGBTQ+ organizations across Maine in honor of Pride Month 🏳️‍🌈

This week, we are contributing to **happening this Saturday from 12-5 downtown on the mall** and we encourage you all to enjoy the celebration post-market!

We invite you to shop at our market stand as well as in our on-farm seedling greenhouse, knowing that some of your sales $$ supports Q***r Mainers!

We take Pride in our community
♥️🧡💛💚💙💜

We made it to June! Happy pride month from our rainbow chard 🌈

The weather is glorious and our harvests are bountiful. Catch us downtown at Tuesday from 8-1. We'll be well stocked with seedlings, salad veggies, braising greens, and good vibes

The sun is out and we're taking to the fields! Today marks the start of our outdoor harvest season and boy is it a beautiful day

The crew spent the morning harvesting greens and salad roots and has jumped into field cultivation for the afternoon (hoeing, hand weeding, and preparing beds for the next planting). We're soaking up the sun! Are you?

Imagine: it's midsummer, the sun is high in the sky, you wander out to your garden and pick juicy tomato after juicy tomato. The bees buzz around you, enjoying the blossoms. You sneak a bite of a tomato and let the juice dribble down your chin. With such a harvest there's more than enough for dinner; you'll have to gift some ripe fruits to your friends...

This week, start daydreaming of tomatoes because our seedlings are about to head off to the markets, destined for your garden beds!

We'll be downtown at Tuesday & Friday from 8-1 and at Crystal Spring Farm on Saturday from 8:30-12:30. Check out our vegetable planting guide for a comprehensive list of our tomato varieties

Anna says: "Everyone should plant white horehound and french sorrel in their gardens!"

Just about all of our herbs are ready to plant, and this week we will also have cucumber and summer squash seedlings available! Our planting guides (link in bio for full guides) include comprehensive lists of the varieties we will be bringing to the markets as well as helpful tips for planting

Sunflowers, scarlet runner beans, and bee balm are other new additions we'll have at the markets tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday

And with popular demand, tomato, pepper, eggplant, and winter squash seedlings will be available NEXT week so plan your gardens accordingly!!

Happy planting to all from your Whatley Farmers

Treats this week: Whatley hats & spring radishes!

Swing by the downtown tomorrow between 8am and 1pm to pick some up along with your usual Whatley Farm groceries

Have you been planning your garden? We have more seedlings available this week that are ready to be transplanted outdoors! If you haven't already, check out the planting calendar (linked in our bio) to help you decide what to plant and when

We’re so excited to return to outdoor markets starting tomorrow! Find Ben Williams and Addy at our market booth downtown in Brunswick at Friday from 8am until 1pm selling our storage root crops, fresh harvested greens, and seedlings for you all to transplant into your home or community gardens

On Saturday, both Bens, Max, and our new market worker Sarah (!!) will be at Crystal Spring Farm on Pleasant Hill Rd for the Land Trust Market from 8:30am until 12:30pm. We look forward to kicking off a fruitful season and to seeing all your faces under the sun

For a comprehensive list of the seedlings we will have available this week, check our last post. Refer to our planting guides linked in our bio or on our website for information regarding transplanting our seedlings into your garden. Check out ‘s planting calendar to see their recommendations for May planting. You can find it on their Instagram and Facebook as well as their full year guide in PDF form through the link in our bio

Thank you all for supporting us through the winter! We've finally made it through the coldest months and this weekend is the last

Our market crew has been preparing for the transition outdoors and are excited to see you all under the sun for the first next Friday May 3 from 8-1 downtown on the green! And at .me for the first Land Trust farmers market on Saturday from 8:30-1!

We also have some exciting news to share: we're transitioning our CSA market-debit shares from handkept books to fancy new "debit cards" with art by

If you're already a CSA member with us, we'll transition you to the cards next time you shop with us. And if you're not yet a CSA member with Whatley Farm, it's super easy to start now! Ask us at checkout for your own, or gift a loved one access to local organic ingredients

Be sure to check in with your favorite Winter Market vendors this weekend about where to find them through the summer. Not everyone will be at our local markets. We'll miss our winter vendor neighbors. And we look forward to welcoming new faces to the summer markets

Fingers crossed for a sunny market season!

Have you been enjoying the warm weather lately? Our plants certainly have! At long last, our spring greens are ready for harvest!

This week the team talked lettuce and bok choi as we accounted for, and then harvested lots of leaves for the . If you come by, you'll find us well stocked with arugula, spicy greens, some mini lettuce heads and bunches of bok choi!

We look forward to seeing you

Meet Our Farmer: Ben Williams!

Ben (he/him) is Whatley Farm’s cultivation manager and has been working on the farm since 2021. He brings consistency, resiliency, and a jovial attitude to our team.

Ben’s unending curiosity brings so much to the table and makes him an exquisite conversationalist (and a multilingual one at that!). He delights us all with his love of language and amazing ability to play around with words. At a moments notice, Ben can famously recite entire lines from songs, books, movies, and television.

Well read, Ben is always good for a quality book swap or recommendation. With his encyclopedic knowledge and worldly experience, the occasional monotonous and repetitive tasks on the farm fly by when working alongside him.

Ben’s birder eye and observational prowess lends an extra layer of awareness to the ecosystem of our farm. Though he’s quite humble in his skills, Ben’s ability to identify winged creatures is wholly impressive. You might spot him off the farm with a notebook and camera in hand, seeking out rare and beautiful species!

It’s not surprising that Ben was a teacher in the past: his supportive and patient nature makes him a great mentor on the farm. Despite his countless skills, he is never pretentious and is always willing to meet folks wherever they're at in their learning journey. We’re so grateful for his presence on the farm.

Par(sley) Par(mesan) Par(snip) for the Course:
Our spring parsnips are here at long last and we have another delicious recipe for you all! Put parsnip french fries on your menu this upcoming week and watch them disappear before your eyes

If parsnips alone are too sweet for you, add matchstick slices of celeriac to the recipe. We also suggest frying up some thinly sliced leeks along with it all! (We won't have any leeks at market but check out the and stands to supplement your grocery bag)

Happy munching!

Meet our Farmer: Anna!

Anna (she/her) is Whatley Farm’s greenhouse manager and was the farm’s first hire back in 2020. She has established herself as a reliable, hardworking, and incredibly knowledgeable team member.

Anna is generous and big-hearted. She frequently shares the delicious treats she discovers and makes with us and is the face behind the recipes we share. Anna is skilled and creative in her cooking but she feeds us all in so many other ways too.

On the farm, her curiosity and excitement about the plants is infectious. Anna delights in the daily joys of farming and she beautifully ties her knowledge of plants to her knowledge of mythology and the history of pharmacology. We always have things to learn working alongside Anna.

Anna’s fiery determination and her clear-eyed view of the world make her an incredible advocate for the rights and justices of her community. She shows up repeatedly for us all.

And on top of it all, Anna has great taste in music! Tunes by Santigold and Flower Travellin Band often soak through the doors of the greenhouse when she is working. Anna spreads her aural sunshine to all of the plant babies that are the source of this sustenance for the farm and beyond

Wild Maine weather strikes again and we’re dreaming of warmer days. As a throwback to the warm summer markets, we’ll be bringing samples of our roasted peppers to the market on Saturday! We have a wide range of peppers to taste: Sweet Italian and Krimzon Lee (a hot italian pepper that has sweet fruit and spicy seeds), Poblanos, green chiles (mild Anaheim and medium Sandia), hot and medium mixes of small chiles, and Jalapeños! All of these roasted peppers are regularly available each weekend, kept frozen in our coolers behind the checkout. Try some samples this weekend and decide what types you’d like to stock up on to tide you over until summer ripens this year’s crop.

Hope you all are staying warm and dry today!

We are hiring!!

Whatley Farm is seeking part-time help at farmers markets. Work year-round on Saturdays for extra-income, discounted and free produce, vendor perks and a fun time. This could lead to a full-time permanent position for the right person. If you are interested, even in every other Saturday, please email us at [email protected]

Recipe Alert!

Did you know rutabaga is in the brassica family? Originally a hybrid between cabbage and turnips, this veggie sweetens as it cooks and its mellow flavor has hints of carrot

Will delicious rutabaga noodles and hearty rutabaga muffins be on your family's menu this week? Pick some of this root veggie up at our stand in Fort Andross between 9-12:30 on Saturday and try these tasty recipes!

It's been warm out lately but we're preparing for another cold snap. Stay cozy with some soup!

Spanish Radish & Potato Soup is on the menu. It's simple to make and tastes like grown-up mashed potatoes! Who could turn down such a delicacy?

After you pick up some of these black sheep of the radish family from our stand this weekend, stop by our good friends on the other side of the market for some soft pretzels to dunk in your dinner! Best served with some grated Nonamé cheese from

Sign up for our farm newsletter and find the recipe in your inbox on Friday! You can follow the link in our bio and hit the "Sign Up" button on our website

See you at the market 👋

Have you tasted the rainbow yet? We grow three different kinds of daikon radish, and they're all waiting for you at the tomorrow from 9-12:30! We will also have garlic, glorious technicolor beets, purple topped turnips, carrots, rutabaga, parsnips, celeriac, watermelon and black Spanish radishes, napa cabbage, parsley, cilantro, and salad greens (yes we still have mâche!), along with frozen roasted peppers in all levels of heat and sweet, garlic scape pesto for your everything delicious, and frozen raspberries!

💜 Purple daikon is fairly mild and perfect for quick pickles, or use them kind of like potatoes - roasted, scalloped, in soups, or roasted as part of a root medley (with or without a slab of beef, a pork roast, or a chicken on top!)

💚 Green luobo is a little sweeter and spicier than the purple, and can be treated the same way, though it is traditionally used for fermentation. Try it in a homemade kimchi!

❤️ Red king daikon is the sweetest and juiciest of the bunch, delightful sliced on a charcuterie board or chopped in a salad. Cut into thick coins, they are perfect for topping with hummus, miso or any other dippy thing you desire.

To celebrate these gorgeous roots, Anna made fried daikon cakes. A little like latkes, a little like Chinese dim sum turnip cakes, a lot delicious. A great introductory way to add daikon to your life! Make sure to subscribe to our email list via the website and keep your eyes peeled!

We don't let a cold snap stop us from eating colorful salads and neither should you! We are still flush with beautiful rosettes of mâche, and Anna has highlighted it in a couple of salads with a seasonal citrus vinaigrette. The first is a take on salade Lorette, which is traditionally made with roasted beets and batons of celery, but is made crunchy and fresh with raw celeriac and chioggia and gold beets, which are all delightfully sweetened in storage. The second features the crew's current favorite cheese, a brie-style goat cheese that gets all gooey and delightful in the oven, and is complemented by earthy roasted red beets and toasted walnuts. If these sound good, make sure you're signed up for our emails by tomorrow (just visit our website!), because we'll be sharing these simple yet delicious wintry concoctions.

Not into mâche? We'll also have spinach, arugula, and limited amounts of spicy greens, lettuce mix and baby kale on offer this Saturday at the , along with all of our candy-sweet beets and other roots, garlic, fresh herbs, cabbages and frozen goodies like roasted peppers, garlic scape pesto and raspberries. Don't forget your reusable bags for bulk greens!

At long last, our farm crew is all back together! The lovely part of slow winter growth is that we farmers have ample time to tend to ourselves

Slow growth is still growth and our plants are looking fabulous! Swing by the on Saturday from 9-12:30 and pick up fresh greens and herbs from our stand along with hardy storage roots perfect for a cozy roast

Gorgeous gorgeous greens! 🍃

We are BACK from our holiday break and have our full lineup of spinach, arugula, spicy greens, baby kale, lettuce mix and MÂCHE for the (BYO containers for mâche). We also have plenty of cilantro and parsley and all the tasty roots and adorable cabbages for your snow day soup needs, plus frozen goodies like roasted peppers, garlic scape pesto and raspberries. Come get some from 9-12:30 tomorrow!

We're winding down here at the farm in preparation for our vacation shutdown next week. This is the last Saturday of the year that we'll be at !!

As you plan your holiday baking, keep us in mind; Anna baked up some delicious beet gingerbread cakes we've still been dreaming about and we'll let you in on the recipe! Subscribe to our newsletter today if you haven't already and find the recipe waiting in your inbox tomorrow

A small harvest of mache greens will be making their way to our bulk greens station at the market so be sure to swing by early to snag some (although we start selling at 9, folks line up well before that!)

Mache greens historically are planted after the corn harvest and are a rare winter treat. With silky soft leaves, they taste a little nutty and a little sweet. We love whole heads of them tossed in a simple vinaigrette. They would pair great with hazelnuts and citrus
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We're pretty lucky here at Whatley Farm that we endured minimal damage in this week's storm. Just an extended power outage and some windblown doors and fences. Our thoughts go out to those who are are still struggling to bounce back. Check in on your neighbors

The storm took out the power here at the farm but all our structures seem to be in tact! We're running on generators and people power to get your veggies to you on Saturday

Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts!

We stopped harvesting this afternoon to enjoy a brief sun snow shower on the farm! While we endure the ups and downs of winter weather, we’ll continue to harvest from our supply of greens growing inside the farm’s high tunnels.

These high tunnel greenhouses are heated with passive solar, meaning warmth in the greenhouses is generated entirely by stored radiant energy from the sun. With these greenhouses and our multiple layers of frost protective row cover, we’re able to keep greens alive and growing through the frosty months of winter.

In spite of these efforts, we are approaching the shortest, coldest days of the year where the plants slow down and demand tends to surpass the rate at which the plants can grow. While we’ll do our best to keep up a steady supply of fresh greens, the next few weeks will likely be the last of abundant spinach, spicy greens, arugula, baby kale and lettuce mix.

Plan on joining us this Saturday to enjoy fresh, local greens in December! We’ll also have the usual roots, alliums, herbs and more. See you at Fort Andross from 9:00-12:30!

It's harvest day at the farm! We've been picking greens, bundling herbs, restocking roots, and packing everything up to meet you at the Brunswick Winter Farmers Market on Sunday (9am-12:30pm at Fort Andross)

Heads up, there are only THREE markets left in 2023! We will be around this weekend, next weekend, and the day before Christmas Eve (but not on December 30th). Catch us while you can!

At our booth, you can expect to find three colors of terrifically sweet carrots, three kinds of winter radish, purple top turnips, rutabaga, celeriac, parsnips, multicolored cabbages, bundled leeks and celery, garlic, onions, SPINACH, lettuce, spicy (mustard) greens, baby kale, arugula, cilantro, parsley, and lemongrass

Hidden away in our coolers we have packages of a variety of frozen roasted peppers, garlic scape pesto, and RASPBERRIES! Ask us about them at the checkout, we'd be happy to help you stock up on these tasty treats

We're looking forward to seeing you all soon!