Two commercial farming families are talking a good year for crops and were especially pleased with the recent unseasonably warm weather for taking up their yield.
Elaine and Glenn Wells of Wells Farm in Robinsons are finishing up with their farm market this weekend and are hoping to have their entire crop in within days.
“It’s been a great growing season, with co-operative weather, and the rain came on time,” Elaine said.
She said some parsnips, carrots, turnip and late cabbage are expected to be in storage by sometime next week.
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The farm operates with one full-time employee and two part-timers. The Saturday farm market ran from the end of July up to now.
Ernest and Walter Romain of Romain’s Farm in Port au Port East had a good season “crop wise” and were especially happy with seeing all the people who have come out to the pumpkin U-pick.
“Some people made it a real family outing, doing pictures in the greenhouse with the pumpkins, out in the field picking their own and kids sitting in tractors and on hay bales,” Ernest said.
He and Walter started the U-pick for just that purpose and the two are glad to see that’s the way it’s working out. Thankgiving Day weekend was an especially busy one.
The best part was that with the amount of sun this summer, 95 per cent of the pumpkins ripened to a bright orange.
As for other crops, the farm had a great year for potatoes, turnip and carrots.
This week, the farm workers were still taking up late cabbage and carrots.
Some of the cabbage has grown almost too well, but he said it will still sell to restaurants that make a lot of coleslaw.
Ernest said the vegetable bags for school fundraisers went really well this year from Stephenville Primary School, to schools in Burgeo, Corner Brook, Stephenville Crossing and St. George’s to right at home in Port au Port East.
“Any time to can sell over 50,000 pounds of product in one week, it’s a good year,” he said.
