And so it is that we are rooted here. We are at the crossroads of I-84 and I-684, 60 miles north of NYC, with easy metro access, facing the realities of suburban sprawl, maintaining the comforts of country living.

Certified Organic Growing of a full variety of vegetables, herbs and flowers for direct sales has been the thrust of the farm operation since the late 1970’s. What began as a thriving farm stand at NYC Greenmarket has spread out to continue at Union Square, and serve the local Brewster Farmers market, maintain a local wholesale delivery, grow an on farm CSA and a roadside stand. We remain limited to 3 acres while we expect access to greater acreage in time. In this, we have become an intensive operation. With a high tunnel in hand, we expect our growing season to expand from March through November. In general, the winter season finds a little time for R&R but must keep up with wrap up accounting for the purposes of taxes, seed orders and preparation of applications for Organic Certification and market spaces. Early growing season begins February, March and April with seeding and plant propagation in our “Grow box” and 20’x50’ heated greenhouse. Fuad, our grower and field manager, Kamau, accomplish this. Fuad, from Bangladesh, schooled at UCA, Santa Cruz in what was the only Organic program available nationwide at the time. He has been on Ryder Farm for over 10 years since. While seeding continues throughout the season, in April we are tilling the ground. Preparation began the previous fall with cover crop planting following the application of rotted manure in a manner consistent with “green” manure application according to certification standards. For this we have invested in a shiny new manure spreader. And so goes the mowing with a brush hog then rototilling with our 40hp ford tractor and attachments. The direct seeding of early crops and the transplanting of frost hardy crops commences in the field as the transpotting of young hot crops…tomatoes, peppers, eggplants et al is done in the 20’X100’ hoop house. With May 26 being our last frost date, June commences the all out planting of everything from the greenhouse as the market season opens with early greens and perennial herbs and flowers. From here we try to keep up with successive planting and cultivating…that is weeding with hands and hand tools and feeding with direct nutrient application to the soil at the plant as well as foliar backpack spraying as we keep up with harvest and marketing. We have a staging area and walk in cooler for cleaning and packaging and holding produce. We have a 12’ box truck for marketing. At the farmers markets we set up a table to the backside of the truck. For the past 6 years Kenny has been the tried and true Union Sq. market partner. Other jobs on the farm vary and include maintenance of our 15’ perimeter deer fence (electric on the bottom), tractor maintenance and the like. My husband, John of all trades, underpins this growing operation with mechanical and construction ability as well as work on the greater farm and farmhouse. We enjoy all of the accruements including a crawler dozer, a 55 hp 4wd tractor, a 1955 Ford 9n, a sawmill and a well stocked library of growing reference. The workweek finds Tuesday and Friday harvest days as long and necessary. This leads to a flexible and potential 4-day workweek. While we have not developed an official apprentice program, we offer the full experience of seasonal market farming/gardening. We expect a 40-50 hr workweek. I prefer live-in help, providing room and board and a negotiable weekly stipend of $150-$250 on the books. There are several living accommodations, on an as available basis. They include a room in the house, bungalows, a camp trailer or a tent if you are so inclined. I do bulk shopping and prefer family style dining with preparation by those who are inclined, but well understand individuality. . Among our phrases we say, “Flower children love to work in the rain” and “If it’s not fun, it’s not worth doing”. While we are a fun loving community and enjoy making music in the likes of John’s studio, we are serious about our intent. Please do not apply if your lifestyle includes late nights and alcohol use. Commitment from mid-May to mid-October is preferred but we often appreciate even short-term help.

There you have an encapsulation of our little slice of heaven. If this sounds like a match for you please do reply. On site visits are always encouraged, I understand that they are not always feasible.