ATLANTIC, IA – Bridgewater Farm lost thousands of plants in last week’s hailstorm; the farm was  devastated. This is a loss not only in the Atlantic area (Bridgewater Farm is a produce vendor at Produce  in the Park), but across the state; Bridgewater Farm is Iowa’s largest organic farm. The losses were so  significant that Channel 13 News out of Des Moines did a story on the damage. The farm’s Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/BridgewaterFamilyFarm/, links to the story and shows many photos of the destruction.

Dale Raasch indicates how tall these tomato plants were before the June hailstorm hit Bridgewater Farm.jpg

Looking through photos of thousands upon thousands of destroyed plants can leave one asking, “What  could I possibly do to help?” Bridgewater Farm has an answer. The community is now being invited to  help with replanting this Wednesday, June 16, at 9:00 AM at Bridgewater Farm (2409 Brown Ave., Bridgewater, IA 50837). There is no need to RSVP for the volunteer day, but participants may want to bring a dish to share at the lunch potluck, along with a lawn chair.

Volunteers should wear clothes that can get dirty. Bridgewater Farm is expecting a few news stations to attend the event.
Produce in the Park thanks customers for supporting Bridgewater Farm and understanding that the farm  may not have as much produce as they’d expect at the farmers market over the next month or so, as  they rebuild and regrow.