Greetings from the other side of the Flat Fire.  I want to thank our farm team for their steadfast loyalty through these past few unpredictable days.  We extend big love and community to the people and animals who lost their homes.  We are grateful for all of you who reached out in this difficult time.  We are feeling much better today and have been happily harvesting your food.

Next up, Allie, our 2025 apprentice!

Allie, one of our incredible apprentices, reminds us to slow down and appreciate the wonderfully unique things we grow. Nature truly is the ultimate artist and Allie captures its beauty perfectly.

Finding joy in the small things

Hi my name is Allie and I’ve been working at Rainshadow since April 26th of this year. That probably doesn’t seem like that long to most of you, but to me it’s been 17 weeks of deep happiness, new friendships, a plethora of life skills I can add to my “holy shit I did that” list, and so much more. Before coming to Rainshadow I was a full time touring musician. My sisters and I started a band back in 2012 and were lucky enough to have some success and travel the world. I loved my job but i couldn’t stop thinking about my dreams of being outside more and having my hands in the dirt. Every time I’d come home from tour the first thing I’d do would be to run to the grocery store, grab some veggies, and make some sort of ferment before every last drop of my energy was gone and I’d face plant into bed for a week. I made a decision to quit the band not knowing what it would do to my life and both of my sisters lives. I just had a dream and a deep belief that I needed to be doing something different and so I jumped. I’ll never understand timing and the universe and how things come together but geez I’m happy I landed here when I did.

As I write this I’m sitting on my little stoop outside of my room at the farm covered in the remains of an all day chicken and turkey harvest. First thing I’ll say is: Wow turkeys are heavy. Second is how overwhelmed I am in this moment with just how incredible all of the people I work with are. Literally tearing up as I type. I wish you all could have seen the absolute grit and heart and care (I could name a thousand more words for today) that all of those women put into making that experience as quick and kind as possible. It’s a privilege to get to work along side these badass women. And that last sentence truly doesn’t do the feeling justice. I could go on and on.

This farm and these people bring me so much joy and as a closer I’d like to share some photos I’ve taken of the things that made me go “OH MY GOD DID ANYONE SEE THIS!?”

I am in complete awe at every tomato harvest. How does this even exist as something we can eat?? Stunning.

Did you even know a flower like this existed??

The tiniest swirl on a cucumber plant!

This to me looked like a painting.

Chef hat tomatillos!

Morning harvest with our Tuesday farm crew!

What to expect this week:
Tomatoes
Arugula
Kale
Eggplant
Summer Squash
Kohlrabi
Turnips
Tomatillos
Beets
Hot Peppers
Shishito Peppers
Carrots
Bell Peppers
Cucumbers
Celery
Basil
Leeks
Onions
Daikon Radish
Parsnip
Celeriac
Salad Greens