Carol Messina Carol Messina

Cover Crops and Fall Gardening

October in the Garden

Autumn has settled in, the air is crisp, and our fields are golden with the last light of the growing season. This month, we’re celebrating the close of another fruitful summer, planning ahead for winter and spring, and rallying support for an important part of farm life—our hay supply!

Read More
Agriculture Carol Messina Agriculture Carol Messina

SO. MANY. TOMATOES.

At Sweet Farm, this year we grew 50 types of tomatoes. And now our Pay-What-You-Can Farm Cart is bursting with delicious, colorful options. We’ve given tomatoes to all our friends. And we still have more! If you’re like us, you need some ideas of what to do with all this abundance.

Read More
Sustainability Carol Messina Sustainability Carol Messina

The Surprising Climate Pawprint of Our Pets

We all love our furry companions — they're family. But did you know that our beloved cats and dogs have a surprisingly large climate pawprint?

According to a study from UCLA, the meat consumption of dogs and cats contributes to up to 30% of the environmental impact of meat production in the United States. That’s equal to the annual emissions of 13.6 million cars.

Read More
Agriculture Carol Messina Agriculture Carol Messina

Picking and picking and pickling…

August in the Garden

Here in our microclimate of New York State, it was a slow start to harvest season. We had a cool May, and a rainy start to summer (seriously, SO MUCH RAIN!) and we were getting impatient for things to ripen.

GARDEN NOTE: Make sure you keep harvesting your cucumbers or they will stop making fruit!

Read More
Rescue Carol Messina Rescue Carol Messina

Rosie’s New Friends

We recently let everyone know that our young and playful LaMancha goat Rosie, lost her sight. We had to move her to a smaller pasture, but didn’t want to have to separate her friends from the herd…so we rescued THREE NEW FRIENDS for her!: Lucy, and her babies Fawn and Hershey.

Read More
Sustainability Carol Messina Sustainability Carol Messina

Planet-Friendly Summer Plans

Summer is finally here, and it's time to bask in the sun, enjoy the outdoors, and embrace all that nature has to offer. However, it's also essential to remember our responsibility to protect the environment and promote sustainability even in our leisure time. With that in mind, here are some tips for having a sustainable summer:

Read More
Rescue Carol Messina Rescue Carol Messina

Welcome, Ben!

The day after Elliot passed we received a plea to take in a 4-year-old Yorkshire mix pig (same as Elliot!) named Ben, who had been saved by local rescue when he was a baby. The rescue cared for him for 4 years, but now that he is grown up, they saw the need for him to join a proper sounder of big pigs where he could learn and form lifelong friendships.

We agreed to give Ben that home, in honor of Elliot.

Read More
Sustainability Carol Messina Sustainability Carol Messina

Thoughtful Choices to Feed the Future

Did you know that nearly one-third of the world’s cropland is used to grow feed for livestock? The lamentable deforestation that we hear about so often is actually happening in order to create grazing land for cattle and soy fields for their food. In fact, only 7% of the world’s soy crops are for human consumption. Ask yourself: Why can we feed 26 billion farm animals, but we can’t feed 8 billion humans? At Sweet Farm, we’re committed to reducing this imbalance.

Read More
Agriculture Carol Messina Agriculture Carol Messina

Full Swing

May in the Garden

Why do we choose to grow heirlooms?: flavor, nutrition, biodiversity, history.
The USDA changed growing zones - have you checked your new zone?
Garden starting - what to look for when buying starts for your garden.

Read More
Sustainability Carol Messina Sustainability Carol Messina

Happy Earth Day!

EARTH DAY 2025 - Renewable Energy

April is always a special time at Sweet Farm, with our rescued animals excited for the return of lush grass, planting season hitting full swing, and the excitement that our garden will soon be churning out delicious veggies for all. But this April brings an extra buzz of excitement as this year’s Earth Day focus is Our Power, Our Planet” — a call to harness renewable energy to build a healthy, sustainable, equitable, and prosperous future for all; a cause that’s deeply rooted in our mission to create a more compassionate and climate-friendly world.

Read More
Agriculture Carol Messina Agriculture Carol Messina

So much to plant in April!

April in the Garden

Spring is here and it is in full swing! We are still a few weeks away from our last frost, but there are so many things that can go in the ground now! Here in growing zone 6, we are already planting so much, and prepping our garden for all our warm-weather crops like tomatoes, corn, peppers, and annual flowers.

Read on to learn what else we are doing in the garden this month...

Read More
Sustainability Carol Messina Sustainability Carol Messina

Spring Cleaning!

Spring is finally at our doorstep! And while the urge to fling open our windows and clean the whole house is strong, it's important that we stop and think about whether what we are using to clean is actually cleaning or making our homes dirtier. Scroll down to see some simple sustainability swaps!

Read More
Agriculture Carol Messina Agriculture Carol Messina

Cool Weather Crops and Supporting Pollinators

March in the Garden

Here in the Finger Lakes region of Upstate New York, the ground is just starting to thaw. We are seeing sunny days with melting snow, interspersed with colder days with some snowflakes floating around as if to remind us that the winter isn't completely behind us yet.

Read More