Green Corner

I cupped the toasty mug in my hands, relishing the warmth after an hour out in the misty New Hampshire countryside. New England weather is usually unpredictable, but for late November the raw and wet weather seemed fitting. I peered out the barn door to the rows of apple trees, the last of their leaves weakly hanging from the tree’s branches. The ripe and juicy apples had long been picked or fallen. No pickers would come today, or again this season. Autumn was almost over.

Behind me a small group of kids mulled about with their own cider mugs, enjoying the last of Auntie Anne’s cider donuts.  I listened as a few of them contemplated whether or not they should buy one of the orchard’s famous pies. They were probably hungry, as we had just come in from picking up fallen apples from one of the remaining rows.

Picking up apples in the cold sounds like it could be tiring. However, the apples had turned mushy over the past couples weeks and their squishy nature made it all the more fun to toss them in the nearby buckets. We’d listen for the satisfying squelch as they hit the plastic bottom. Thankfully, Mrs. Loo had provided us with gloves, so that same liquefaction would not occur in our hands. By the end of an hour, we managed to clear an entire rows worth of drops, slang for fallen apples, and bag them. These would be sent to a nearby farmer who could use them as food for his pigs.

This event occurs once a year, when Exeter’s Farm and Garden Club hosts a trip to a local apple orchard and helps out a local farmer. Farm and Garden started as an ESSO club, so these trips are not only to learn about local agriculture and have a good time, but also for community service. We also host trips to the Exeter winter farmer’s markets where we help to carry goods inside. Afterwards we get to walk around the market. The farmers are always happy to see us and talk with us about their work.

This year we have been transitioning away from ESSO into the sustainability club branch. This means we won’t be completely service anymore and will be able to branch out with other farm focused projects. In the past it has been hard to plan meetings and events for the club because there needed to be a community service aspect and we couldn’t work for farms that were for profit. As most farms in the area are for profit, this severely limited our options. Now that we are unrestricted to volunteering at nonprofit farms we have greater service opportunities. We are also hoping to start an on campus garden this spring!