Thistlemint Farm

06/03/2025

We’ll be at the Delhi Farmers’ Market tomorrow June 4th. Wednesday 10 am - 2 pm in Courthouse Square. We look forward to seeing folks there.

[image description:

1.Light blue background with Thistlemint Farm written across the top in illustrative lettering. Below is a divider of a sun, squiggle line, crescent moon, and branch with thorns. Main txt reads: “We’ll be at the Delhi Farmers’ Market, Courthouse Square, Delhi, NY, Starting June 4th.” There are color pencil and ink drawings of various vegetables surrounding the text.]

05/02/2025

We are excited to be starting our season at the Oneonta Public Market this Saturday, May 3rd! 9 am - 1 pm in Huntington Park. Thrilled to be in a green space and we love the library!

The Oneonta Public Market emerged from a governing dispute. We’ve joined Middlefield Orchard, Mill Hollow Maple, Max Creek Hatchery, Worms Waste Not, and Greyspire Farm to continue the tradition of a self-governed farmers’ market in Oneonta. This was not something we expected to be working on, it’s been a lot and we are still figuring things out. We are super grateful for our collaborators and look forward to the possibilities.

Fun fact, there was an Oneonta Public Market in 1920!

We will also be doing the Delhi market this season and will post as soon as we have a start date.

[image description:

1.mint green background with Thistlemint Farm written across the top in illustrative lettering. Below is a divider of a sun, squiggle line, crescent moon, and branch with thorns. Main txt reads: “We’ll be at the Oneonta Public Market, Farmers and Artisans, Huntington Park, Deitz St., Oneonta, NY, May - October, OneontaPublicMarket.com.” There are color pencil and ink drawings of various vegetables surrounding the text.

2. clipping from an old newspaper. Across the top reads: “The Star Saturday. October 16, 1920.” Below is a box with an ad that says: “Oneonta Public Market, Saturday, October 19, 9 to 1 p. m., Cor. Main and Market Streets, Mr. Producer: here’s your opportunity to sell your surplus produce of all kinds. Mr. Consumer: Buy here and secure your produce direct and at moderate prices. By both co-operating the Public Market can be made a great utility to each.” Along the bottom is written: “source: https://www.nyhistoricnewspapers.org/“]

04/21/2025

Our 2024 Annual Report is up! Here are a few summary slides, check out the full report for much more detail.

[image description: slides adorned with wood burned art of a thistle, mint, the moon, and a nest containing the following text:

Thistlemint Farm 2024 Third Year Summary
(find the full report on thistlemintfarm.com)

Highlights:
• Despite attending fewer markets, made enough to continue our operation into 2025.
• Built two NRCS-funded high tunnels that allowed us to attend market into December.
• Built a heated table, shed, and deck, further improving infrastructure on the farm.
• Sold or preserved the majority of what we grew, with remainder going to local food bank.
• Connected to accountant who helped us file our annual taxes and revise previous year.
• Connecting with and hearing from local people, businesses, and groups at markets, events, and meetings continues to be motivating and rewarding.

Challenges:
• Injury, sickness, and off-farm work were a particular strain on labor needs mid-season.
• Frequent equipment breakdowns and repairs of market van, rototiller, and mower.
• Had to skip markets mid-year and stop attending one of our markets a month early to compensate for the impact of these strains on our workflow and health.
• Drought and continued pressure from animals, insects, slugs, and weeds affected yield.
• Demands of on-farm labor continue to supersede ongoing and necessary administrative and marketing tasks as well as social lives during the height of the growing season.
• Difficult to keep up with important tasks and responsibilities like grounds maintenance, pasture and woodland management, native planting, political action, and mutual aid.

continued in comments.]

04/10/2025

Big things happening... Small things growing... Horrors ongoing... Work continuing... We'll be back with more updates soon.

[Image description: ten early spring photos from around the farm.

1: washtub full of colorful bunched greens harvested from plants overwintered in a high tunnel.

2: lush green diamond-leafed overwintered spinach plants.

3: tray of soft round pea sprouts with curly tendrils ready for outdoor planting.

4: trays of seedlings glowing in sun - mostly onions.

5: Lauren and mische in the field on hands and knees helping baby garlic through the mulch.

6: little green strawberry plants visible in a narrow line after raking aside straw mulch.

7: shipping container delivered backwards being skillfully turned around after being lifted into the air by an experienced towing professional.

8: Lauren on a small Kubota tractor smiling while lifting a pallet of high tunnel metal.

9: view of high tunnel and fields below glowing checkerboard cloud cover amidst strips of blue sky.

10: sunrise over hills in clear blue sky casting pale yellow glow on frosty fields and high tunnel.]

03/03/2025

Spring feels right around the corner! Wanted to share some of the art we've been making.

There are only a few days left of our Winter Art promotion - check out our previous post for more info and comment your favorite vegetable on any of our posts for a chance to win an original art piece of one of our bestselling card designs. :)

Also check out the member show at from 3/14-4/4, we'll have a couple of these pieces on display.

There's a lot of uncertainty for the future on many levels, but the necessity of robust local food systems as well as the power of expressive arts remain. Sending gratitude to everyone doing their part to act and organize against threats to people and ecosystems here and around the world.
[Image description: ten art pieces done with various media, including mosaic, paint, and digital illustration.

1: mosaic by Lauren with shards of colored tile, upcycled glass, and rocks abstractly depicting the skeleton of a vegetable plant decaying into the surrounding dirt.

2: watercolor painting by Tania of a market display of radish and pints of snap peas and sungold tomatoes.

3: gouache painting by mische of green forested summer hills beneath white curling clouds and blue sky.

4: Black and white pencil and digital lettering by Robin depicting branched and thorny words "EAT YOUR VEGETABLES."

5: digital illustration by Tania of us at market wearing masks and selling vegetables to customers.

6: watercolor, pen, and colored pencil mixed media art by Lauren of abstract swirling fennel plants.

7: watercolor painting by mische of a cute eastern hellbender salamander in a clear watered riverbed.

8: watercolor painting by Tania of a spring market display featuring strawberries, bok choy, kale, garlic greens, and carrots.

9: gouache painting by mische of colorful autumn hills receding into the distance.

10: acrylic painting by Lauren of various flowering grasses in vibrant color on a red background.]

02/06/2025

Presenting our first ever Winter Art Sale!

For a limited time only, you can buy 10 of our original vegetable and farm-related artworks on our online storefront. Folks who are interested can share this post to be entered into a raffle to win an original 10 x 12 watercolor painting! All of our hand printed and cut greeting cards are also 15% off with the code WINTER. Sale ends 3/6. https://grownby.app/farms/thistlemint-farm/shop

Thank you for valuing food and art!!

Edit: it's come to our attention that if your profile is set to private we cannot see that you shared the post! If you could leave a comment or DM us letting us know you've shared we will be sure to add you to the raffle. Sorry about that!
[Image description: graphic and five photos showing framed original pieces and nine greeting card designs.

1: graphic made using cut paper with the following information: Winter Art Sale, 10 pieces available plus 15% off greeting cards, share this post to enter a raffle for an original watercolor painting of celosia and marigold flowers.

2: several framed art pieces on a shelf, one of pink and purple dahlias, one of a line of irregularly shaped carrots, and a circle of a variety of vegetables arranged in an ornamental pattern.

3: nine greeting cards displayed in a grid of various seasonal designs available for sale.

4: more pieces on a shelf, including a canvas painting of sungold tomatoes, a line of mixed flowers, and a painting showing bees pollinating tomato flowers.

5: pieces on shelf including painting of purple celosia and yellow marigold, a pen drawing of a sunflower, a watercolor fennel bulb, and a painting of nasturtiums being pollinated by hummingbirds.

6: last framed piece of a farmscape with orange sky, vegetable fields, and greenhouse.]

01/29/2025

Stopping in to send our overdue winter season's greetings and another big thank you to everyone for your support this growing season!

We had our last Farmers' Market of the season on Dec 21st, the solstice - hard to believe that it's already Imbolc, and we'll soon be sowing seeds in soil again. The snow and cold has been some relief to us, and we are beyond glad to be able to continue our operation into the 2025 growing season. Find us back at markets this spring!

We continue to be incredibly grateful that we are not alone in our grief, actions, or dreams. May what we do together now to support food systems and local ecosystems anchor the promise of a livable future.
[image description: ten winter outdoor photos featuring snow, frost, and our new high tunnel structures.

1: view of high tunnel on a blue sky day amidst glistening textured snow featuring winter plant stem glowing with fuzzy frost.

2: high tunnel and fields and hills with an even, light layer of snow on a gray cloudy day.

3: silver frosted hayfield on a misty morning with gold underglow from the winter grass.

4: frost patterns on greenhouse plastic creating crisp spikes and swirls of crystals.

5: frost patterns showcasing feathery branches and curls.

6: bush branches laden with globs and dunes of snow shimmering from streaming sun through trees.

7: sunlight in bright blue sky catching chunky frost crystals surrounding wintering plant stems.

8: snow clinging to the bark and branches of bare winter trees.

9: snowy farm fields with plant stems poking through in lines with snowy blue hills beyond.

10: view of snowy farm from afar on a gray day, with farm truck and high tunnels and fields visible.]

11/01/2024

Hello! The moves inside for the winter starting this Saturday Nov 2nd. Find us with our fresh, tasty vegetables and homemade greeting cards .pac 9am-12pm. The first two weeks, we will be in the Mainstage Theatre on the lower level, behind the Atrium. You’ll see signs when you arrive.

[image description: Dark teal background with light text on the left side reads “Thistlemint Farm Winter at the Oneonta Farmers’ Market Saturday’s 9am-12pm. The Foothills PAC. 24 Market Street.”on the right is a photo of colorful winter vegetables featuring three varieties of kale, rainbow chard, carrots, and sweet potatoes.]

10/29/2024

Friendly reminder that the Oneonta Farmer's Market moves inside for the winter. Find us at Foothills Performing Arts & Civic Center from 9am to 12pm starting this Saturday.

It's that time of year when market moves from outside to our winter home .pac

09/24/2024

Hi there! The veg are shining this time of year. Thanks everyone for coming out and appreciating them every week ☀️

Our last Delhi Farmers' Market will be this week, Wednesday 9/25 - we would love the chance to see you and say goodbye and thank you for the season!!

We will continue with veg aplenty at our local Oneonta Farmers' Market! we will be outdoors at Dietz St and Wall St from 9 am - 12 pm until the end of October, and then indoors at the Foothills on Market St from November.

To say it's been a tough season doesn't quite cut it! We're admittedly still straining ourselves, and in the context of multiple ongoing global crises, we continue to be confronted with all of our mundane contradictions that normalize busyness/business in the face of past and present ecocide and genocide. As the weather changes we plan to keep asking and evaluating how as farmers and artists we can keep growing food, maintain ourselves, and maybe most importantly honor our commitments to regional communities and collective solidarity movements.

[image description : ten photos of early autumn displays filled with various fresh vegetables.

Continued in comments.]

07/14/2024

Hi folks! We have been pretty quiet on here this growing season, and to tell the truth we've been overwhelmed! Although the veg and you all continue to be wonderful, amidst injuries, infrastructure delays, disorienting weather, and equipment breakdowns this spring, we are struggling to follow through on our commitments and responsibilities to the veg, the land, and each other.

To try and set ourselves up for a less stressful and more abundant fall, we will not be attending the Delhi Farmers' Market this week, July 17th, or next week, July 24th. We are truly sorry that this is such short notice, and most won't see this in time or at all. We wouldn't make this decision unless we felt we absolutely had to, and we take responsibility for our part in overcommitting ourselves... 🥲

We will still be in Oneonta on Dietz St every Saturday from 9am-12pm, and you can order veg online for pickup at the farm through our website. We are sincerely sorry for any incovenience this causes to folks who come visit us at market. Thank you for your support and understanding, we will be back in Delhi before you know it!
[image description:ten photos of the farm in late spring and summer showcasing sky and fields.

continued in comments.]