The Farm at South Mountain

My camera refused to do anything but flash a “memory full” message at me, so I finally uploaded everything. This led to a realization that I’m at least a month behind in posting photos. Also that many things that are so fascinating at the time are just not that interesting when viewed weeks after the event. And that I compensate for poor camera skills by taking dozens of shots of each subject.

pecan tree leafing out

Out of the photographic chaos I was able to extract some decent pictures of a recent trip to The Farm at South Mountain, a former cattle ranch/pecan orchard which is now a combination organic farm, restaurant, and outdoor activity area.

Maya's Farm

Maya’s Farm takes up the center of the property, growing organic vegetables for restaurants and farmers markets. Needless to say, the farm is always my main interest when I visit.

 

rows and rows of beautiful lettuce

 

fluffy, feathery dill

At various times of the year there are gardening classes, plant sales, farmers markets, even wine tastings. There's a small shop with a well-edited selection of cooking and garden items. I love the casual restaurant where you can pick up a sandwich on freshly baked bread, a salad made from farm vegetables, and imaginatively decadent desserts to carry out for a picnic under the century-old pecan trees.

rustic gateway

It was unusually crowded the day we visited (it happened to be Easter Sunday), but it was still like a trip out to the peaceful countryside instead of only a 10-minute drive from the center of downtown Phoenix.

 

a simple and lovely vignette at the shop

As it heats up here and my garden shrivels to nothing by early summer, Maya’s Farm will somehow keep on going. I’ll go there and walk among the rows of tomatoes and peppers and wait for fall.

 

Katrina