Mighty Food Farm has been changing gears for the winter season. Robin Rielly, along with friends and neighbours of Wild Oats Market of Williamstown, Massachusetts, took a tour with farm owner Lisa MacDougall last week to take a look at the seasonal transition in a newly-built greenhouse.
Wild Oats funded the greenhouse build at Mighty Food, 549 Cedar Hill Road, in order to source locally-grown kale year round. The greenhouse took the summer to build, and is the newest addition to the farm's four winter grow spots.
"At our annual meeting with the produce buyers at Wild Oats, they said ‘We want kale over the winter,'" MacDougall said. "I responded, ‘build me a greenhouse and I will grow it for you.' This is one of the coolest parts of our relationship with Wild Oats: Now providing greens year round."
When MacDougall began growing winter produce several years ago, her farm crew built temporary structures with PVC pipe and plastic sheets. Now the farm has infrastructure to continue increasing winter production.