2024 Year in Review at Home Sweet Farm
What a year it’s been at Home Sweet Farm! As we reflect on the highs and lows, there’s so much to share about our progress, lessons learned, and plans for the future. Here’s a recap of the year:
The Strawberry Patch
We kicked off the year with a big project: planting 600 strawberry plants. With the help of some dear friends, we prepared the beds, and these will be ready for U-Pick in June. We’re keeping it intimate with just 50 customers allowed to ensure everyone has a chance to pick the freshest berries. We can’t wait to share this experience with you all!
Haskap Setback
Unfortunately, I made a rookie mistake while planting strawberries—I forgot to plant my Haskap bushes! As a result, I lost about 70% of my plants this year. It’s a tough blow, but I’m already planning a better strategy for next year.
Dealing with Rain & Pests
It was a wet year, and unfortunately, with all that rain came an explosion of slugs. These little guys were especially destructive in my asparagus patch, which resulted in misshapen, slug-marked spears—not something I could sell. The asparagus beetles didn’t help either. But that’s farming, and every year is a learning opportunity!
Weeds were another challenge, and I spent a significant amount of time covering growing areas with weed barriers to minimize the work of pulling them by hand. The rain didn’t help here either, but we’re adapting for next year.
The Chicken Crew
On a brighter note, the best part of 2024 was having chickens around me all year. I introduced six chickens into the orchard as natural pest control, and it worked wonders. They’ve not only helped with bugs, but I also got fresh (true free run) eggs and manure for the soil—talk about a win-win! In 2025, I’ll be expanding to 16 chickens, with four of them in the asparagus patch to keep those pesky beetles and slugs in check. There will be more eggs for sale this year.
The Bounty of the Farm
We had a great harvest of vegetables Haskaps, blueberries, kiwiberries, pawpaws, and raw honey this year, with the real stars being our pawpaws, kiwiberries, and raw honey. These products flew off the shelves at the marketplace and direct contacts, and we were thrilled with the support from our community.
Challenges with Online Orders
While we launched an online store, we found that many customers were still hesitant to place orders through it. Most of our sales came from the marketplace and direct interactions with customers. I also had some customers who missed out on pawpaws this year because I couldn’t keep up with the high volume of messages—this is something I deeply regret.
Moving forward, I want to streamline the process and make it easier for both customers and myself to manage orders. This year, when pawpaws are in season, I’ll be sure to reach out to our customer base with a simple order collection system, so no one misses out.
Looking Ahead
There’s so much to look forward to in 2025. With the strawberry patch, the chickens expanding, and a better system for online orders, I’m excited to make this year even more successful than the last.
Thank you for your continued support—whether at the market, on our website, or through direct orders. I couldn’t do this without you, and I look forward to serving you again soon!