Capella Farm

Sign up now for Spring & Summer

2012-01-07T13:56:00.000-05:00

Enrollment is now open for both spring and summer CSA sessions. We have a few spots still open for spring so, if you're interested in participating, please let me know soon. That session will begin mid-March and end the last week in May. Summer will begin the first week of June and run through the end of September. For more info., please check out the page titled CSA Info.

We previously had a website that I was maintaining through a program called NVu. It has become too much to maintain both the blog and web site so I decided to post all info. here instead. If you are missing something that used to be available there, please let me know and I'll add it to blogger.

We continue to sell through the Saline Farmer's Market. Today I took collards, kale, chard, eggs, green onions, radishes, turnips, carrots, salad mix, baby choi, mustard, arugula, rosemary, potatoes, kamatsuna summerfest & garlic. I nearly sold out. If you haven't stopped by yet, we'd love to see you there. We're open from 9 - 12 every Sat. through April.

Seeding of additional spring crops and early summer crops will begin next week with a big push toward the end of the month to mid-Feb. Not long after that, planting of tomatoes, peppers & eggplant will begin. I guess I'd better get the seed order together!

Take care and let me know (if you haven't already) if you're planning to participate in either spring or summer.

Saline Winter Farmer's Market & Local Tree Farm & Other News

2011-12-04T21:54:00.000-05:00

Just in case you haven't heard, there's an indoor market in Saline. It's at Liberty School on Saturday's between 9 - 12. You can park within 20' of the door, walk INSIDE, and shop for your veggies, breads, sweets, gifts and other items, all within a very welcoming environment. I have to say that I am really happy to be part of the vendor team at this market. All are really friendly and are hoping the market does well as a whole.

http://annarbor.com/news/saline/new-saline-indoor-farmers-market-will-offer-produce-throughout-the-winter/

Nathan and I have gone for 3 weeks now and traffic is OK but could be better. So spread the word and come on out.

This past week I took black radishes, watermelon radishes, red turnips (with samples of all three), spinach, napa cabbage, carrots, kale, potatoes, aji peppers, some tomatoes, garlic, french breakfast radishes, cherry belle radishes, cilantro, broccoli and eggs.

Next Saturday I plan to offer chard, lacinato kale, radishes, American Purple Top turnips, rutabaga, potatoes, garlic, dill, parsley, eggs, beets, broccoli, spinach or lettuce, carrots, maybe some tomatoes if they're any good, maybe some peppers and maybe something else.

If you plan to be there and have a request, please let me know. I think I have some sweet peppers that are still good. I have lots of habeneros and aji peppers. Peppers haven't been big sellers but maybe they'll catch on.

Other news: You may have noticed the rain. It's a bit much, again. Maybe 2011 will go down as a year in history - I'm hoping 2012 isn't a repeat of this year. So far, the west field is relatively flooded - we may lose some parsnips, salsify and winter savory but other than that, all is out of the field and cover-cropped. The front garden seems fine. We harvested the remaining turnips, most of the daikon and rutabaga on Friday and they seem fine. Some might have frozen but most appear to have weathered down to 17 degree nights over the past few weeks. On Friday, Nick and I harvested a bunch of broccoli from between the hoops. They were still covered in snow but they weren't damaged. Most are side shoots which are just as tasty as the main head. We also harvested a few brussels sprouts stalks which I cooked up last night. They were small but oh so tasty. There are still quite a few (maybe 50) stalks out there along with a lot of broccoli, arugula, beets, carrots (which have been mulched), some daikon, leeks, radishes, etc. The herbs are also chugging along. I think there might even be some calendula still in bloom. It really is amazing how cold-tolerant the plants can be.

Oh yeah - we have 2 baby goats. Finally. Dixie gave birth last Tuesday to 3 beautiful babies. Unfortunately one developed a septic infection and didn't make it. Another was rejected for whatever reason and is now in the house. In doggie diapers. Eating every 5 hours by bottle. But she's super-sweet and likes to follow us around and isn't too loud. So that's that. The third is a boy and he's in the barn with Dixie, drinking all of her wonderful milk and getting fat - which is good. We also kept 4 turkeys this year - one tom and 3 hens. I hope that at least one of the hens will sit on eggs next spring and hatch out about 20 turkeys. Probably won't happen but that would be nice.

Hope you're staying dry and warm and are enjoying the pre-Christmas festivities.

One plug for a local farm - we have been buying our tree for the past few years from Urquhart Tree Farm: /http://www.urquharttreefarms.com/. They're on Jerusalem Road, just west of Parker, on the north side. You can choose from one that they have cut or go out and cut one yourself. It is a lot of fun. Susan has also sold me hay for mulch over the years. I went out one June to pick up the mulch and they were hard at work pruning and planting and irrigating. It takes a lot of work to make a tree grow in the shape most of us seek.

Until next time, take care and enjoy making snow angels (or at least watching the children do it).

The Saline Winter Farmer's Market & pricing

2011-11-19T20:42:00.002-05:00

The Saline Winter Market is now in full swing. Opening day was 2 weeks ago, last week we had a break for a craft show, and the Grand Opening was yesterday. There are a lot of vendors that attend this market - everything from veggies to bread to eggs & chicken to beautiful baskets to goat milk soap and cheese to alpaca yarns and socks to jams to syrups. It's a really nice market. Parking is in a school lot and you just have to walk into the school to shop. So you don't have to fight the elements and if you buy a ton of stuff, it's not far to get back to your car. Nathan will even help you carry things if you buy too much.

I posted a bit last night about pricing, etc. In general, I'm currently going through the costs of various crops and trying to figure out whether to continue to grow as much as we do. For example, I sold parsnips yesterday for $2/lb. That can be quite a few parsnips if you select the smaller ones but two really large ones also = a pound. Those babies have been in the ground since April 6th (ish). They take 30 days to germinate. As you're waiting for them to sprout, the other weeds germinate first. So you weed. Then they sprout and you weed again. And again. Then we mulched to help keep the weeds down. Then we weeded. I would say the beds were weeded at least 4 times x 3.5 people x 2 hours. So right there you're looking at $280 in labor. Then there's the harvest cost - they take a lot of work to dig and wash so that people can see them. We planted 6 rows and a lot of them did well but some were flooded out. Some are small and gnarly. So, I'm estimating about 65% of the crop is prime and marketable. So that's a net of 253' of parsnips @ $2/lb @ 1 lb/ft. An overall estimate of $500 for that crop which took up 390 linear feet of garden space. And that's if they sell. Hopefully they will. Compare that to salad greens which can yield up to $10/lb. and turn over every 45 - 60 days. A 2' bed will yield about a pound, depending on how densely it's planted. I could have planted about 195 linear feet of salad greens in the same space that I had planted the parsnips. That would have resulted in roughly $975 in sales. But the harvest cost would be a bit higher than parsnips (because there are more harvests).

Anyway, these are the types of calculations I'll need to go through this winter. Of course there's the benefit of having variety, etc. which must all be taken into account as well.

In the mean time, we'll keep loading up our boxes and taking them to market. Hope to see you there!

Garlic Planting Time is Upon Us

2011-10-29T22:53:00.000-04:00

We began planting garlic yesterday. We have planted about 50 pounds of garlic thus far and hope to get in another 20 pounds on Monday. If you would like to buy seed garlic, please let me know - you need to plant soon. $8/lb and supplies are limited. 2 years ago we planted the following: German Red (7.5#), Polish White (8 #), Italian Purple (9.75#), and Metechi (5#). Last year we saved the largest heads. This year we did the same. So we now have a mix of the original stock and I cannot tell you which variety is which but they are all tasty.

If you'd like to purchase garlic in bulk, it is still available at $5/lb. Seed garlic is larger per head than the general garlic.

Other than that, we're working hard to get all of the fall clean-up tasks done. We're pulling the drip tape from the field and tilling and sowing winter rye when we can. Where the potatoes once grew, winter rye is now growing. The peppers have been picked from the field and the tender crops (dill & tarragon) have been covered with row cover. We're working on buttoning up the hoop houses for winter. The tomatoes have now been pulled from the middle hoop and it was planted last Monday with winter greens. They won't produce much until mid-Feb. but they're in the ground and ready to go. The newest hoop is now rocking and we're harvesting spinach, baby brassicas, collards, kale and soon, lettuce from there. Carrots and turnips are not far behind.

The day length is currently at a 10h 38m day with every day 2 min. 33 sec shorter until Dec. 21. The seeds that don't germinate soon will wait for a couple of months or more until they feel like stretching their roots, stems and leaves. Those that do germinate will huddle together between alternating days of pure sunshine and gray skies and patiently wait until we return to this period of 10 h 38 m of day length. Then they will once again jump up and shout out - pick me, pick me!

Wrapping up the Season

2011-10-09T21:37:00.001-04:00

The time has come to finally let go of summer. We are still enjoying this warm spell but I know that winter is coming. The days are within 75 days of the shortest day of the year. This is a time when I struggle with pulling the summer crops to make way for the winter ones. There are still tomatoes, peppers and eggplant in the hoops. The experimental summer squash is doing well in there as well - it's taking up far too much room and we have to hand-pollinate the fruits because the sides of the hoop have been down which keeps the pollinators out. No pollination = no squash. So it's been interesting to get to know the reproductive parts of the squash plant. How it is evident when the female fruit is ready to accept the pollen from the male blossom or not.

So, very soon we will pass the turning point on planting. After the end of October, the day length will be too short to stimulate germination. Once the day length reaches 10 hours or less, growth will all but stop and the plants will go into a holding pattern. They won't die (as long as you're planting the right crops) but growth will be so slow that they it's difficult to see. So, if the plants are not at the maturity stage (or close to it) before this point, you have to wait really until early to mid-Feb. before planting begins again. Anyway - we're getting close to this point. To maximize profits, all tomatoes should now be out of the hoops. All peppers should be compost. All eggplant and basil a memory. Soon. It's hard for us and for our members to say goodbye to the fruits of summer. But soon, very soon, I will have to pull the tomatoes and plant the beds in the hoop house.

We hope you have enjoyed the extended tomato and pepper season. This is only possible due to season extension through the hoop houses.

A reflection on the season:
This is our third year of CSA. Every year I learn something new. What stands out now is that the closer the relationship between farmer/member, the better the relationship. Of course this is nothing new in any working relationship. The more we understand of each other, the better. This relationship takes a huge commitment. We know that you take a great deal of time picking up and storing your veggies. And we understand that satisfied members are very patient with us and know that the veggies are not going to be perfectly shaped or sized or clean. They appreciate small carrots in June or July - because small carrots are better than no carrots. They understand that we put members before ourselves in serving new crops. They understand that tomatoes are generally only available at a premium during the months of July, early-Aug. and late Sept./Oct. They understand that sometimes we intentionally don't wash crops because they can deteriorate faster if sitting wet in a bag than if wilting in a bag, later to be rejuvenated with a cold soaking. And they appreciate that we grow varieties here that are not readily available in many stores or even at the markets.

Re. distributions: This year was an especially-tough year to grow veggies. The beginning of the season was terrible. The cold, wet weather really put a hold on working the ground and planting. Then we had very cold weather which all but halted growth. So June distributions were light. Thanks for being patient with us. We hope that the bounty of beans, tomatoes and greens helped to make up for the early season. Mid-season brought on floods and tremendous mosquito pressure. It was VERY difficult to go out on a daily basis and work for 8 - 10+ hours amidst those buggers. Many of you could hardly even pick up your box. We pumped out the water but still lost crops. Thanks for your understanding, again, with these challenges.

In summary: Someone asked how I felt the year has gone. I responded, as I often do, off the cuff. It's been good. Really, it's been better than I had expected, given the circumstances. Of course, if I had provided all of the caveats as herein listed, the person might have understood what I meant. We have distributed probably tons of veggies. (we tracked the poundage this year and still need to input it but it was a lot) Some crops have been bumper crops (beans, tomatoes). Some have been slim (melons, squash). Some have been consistent (greens, as they generally do well). Some have been close-to-hoped (lettuce & carrots). But overall we're very fortunate to have harvested a good amount this year.

Thank you for your interest in the crops and in how it's going. I must give a huge thanks to our consistent workers, Sheryl and Nick. Without their help, we truly would not have been able to serve you weekly. They showed up on time. They covered in my absence. They did a GREAT job. I hope to have such consistent and fun help next year.

And, as always, we thank you, our members. You keep local farming possible. Thanks for your commitment and understanding during the early season and we hope you enjoyed the relative bumper crops of mid and late season. This is what Community Supported Agriculture is all about.

Jennifer & Crew

Inspired by soup stock

2011-09-11T20:33:00.002-04:00

This rainy cool weather chills us to the bone. Friday morning we were hastily picking beans, greens and tomatoes in the rain - trying to get it all in before the weather turned worse. Even though the radar was clear, we had a steady rain. The kind that trickles into your boots, in through the seams in your coat through to your neck. The kind that just keeps seeping through the layers until your inner layers are wet. Sheryl had her rain pants but had left her jacket at home. She worked until she was too cold to go on. So we broke at 11:45 for lunch. I changed my clothes and gave Sheryl a top to wear - she had a sweatshirt in the car to add. Nick called his Grandma who, graciously, brought him a change of pants. We had broth, a hot meal and got ready to do it all over again. Luckily the rain subsided and we were able to work the rest of the day in relatively dry conditions.

Wednesday was similar. That night I pulled a stewing hen (actually just a leg/thigh) out of the freezer and started a broth. I added ginger, garlic, onions, bay leaves, and thyme. Some salt, pepper, maybe something else, can't remember. I cooked it overnight on a very slow simmer. It provided a nice pick-me-up on Friday. The meat was nicely cooked - very tender for a stewing hen.

Tonight I finished the day to find a thawed beef roast on the counter. Dave was still out working with the animals so I thought I'd get things going. There were also 3 packages of pork blade steaks in the sink. So, I decided to prepare the beef for tomorrow night, following a slow-cook recipe from The River Cottage Meat Book. I was left with the bone and fatty pieces so I pulled some soup bones out of the freezer, added the pork bones to the mix and am now making stock.

This brings me to the point. To make this stock, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall recommends certain ingredients. I ran around the yard collecting everything - a few bay leaves, some onions & carrots, parsley, thyme, celery, maybe a leek and whatever else you want to add to accentuate your stock. So I now have the idea about adding a "soup stock bag" to the holiday box. A mix of all of these items that you can throw into a pot and add (or not) some meat to cook down and prepare your own stock or soup. You can use it immediately or jar it up in pint jars to use throughout the year (I process with a pressure cooker). Let me know if this is of interest to you.

Until later. Stay warm & dry and feed yourselves well.

August 3 - Too wet for words

2011-08-05T09:07:00.000-04:00

Last Wednesday afternoon it finally started to rain. The fields were dry. Anything that wasn't irrigated was small. Even the purslane was wilting. It was a nice, steady rain. And it continued. And continued. Around 3 a.m. it was a torrent. In the morning we awoke to a front garden that was 3/4 under water, a rain gauge that tops out at 5.5" which was overflowing, an east garden with some flooding and a west garden with a stream running from the back of the property to the front. I hooked up the sump pumps and was able to drain the front garden within the day but the west garden contains a low spot which collects water from all around. So the water level didn't go down. Thursday night I was hopeful that the rain would hold off but it started raining around 11 and continued. We received another 1 7/8". I am sure that we had over 8" of total rain. The front garden flooded again and the west garden level rose.

So, I bought a gigantic pump. It took 2 days to pump out that water to the front ditch. Fellow farmers who grew up on this land say they've never seen anything like it. I don't know what the future holds but now we're looking at creating some sort of retention pond with an overflow to help keep this from happening again.

Most of the crops will be OK but we did lose a few rows of melons which is disappointing, along with over 200' of fall beets, New Zealand spinach, many of my winter brassica starts and some lettuce, basil and savory. Also some parsnips and other root veggies. Needless to say it is hard to have a loss.

We had seeded a lot of crops in the east garden on 7/23. I re-seeded this past week, just in case they were washed out.

The good news is that the hoop houses are OK and it appears that most of the crops in the fields will be OK too. I'm still unsure because some plants are showing evidence of root rot but we're hoping that almost everything makes it.

I went through the melon patch yesterday and see that there are over 100 melons on the vines now. Hopefully there will be more but at least everyone will receive a water or musk melon or honey dew. We might not all have a melon in the same week but over two to three weeks, all should have at least one, and probably 2. So I'll probably put melons on the honor system (i.e. take one if you haven't had one yet kind of thing).

In the mean time, we have cabbage and a lot of it. I was considering selling the excess but will probably distribute this instead to CSA members over the next few weeks. Since some of the lettuce was washed out, I'm anticipating a shortfall in salad makings in 20 days or so. Maybe we'll have baby brassicas to sub in. If not, keep your cabbage. Wrap it up tightly in a couple of layers of saran wrap and put it in your fridge. It will keep for months this way. Or, you can make sauer kraut or kim chi.

Think sunny thoughts with an occasional rain shower for the rest of the season.

Many of you have let us know how much you're enjoying the veggies and have let me know how they appreciate knowing what's going on around here. If you have any comments on quantities (like you'd like larger bunches or smaller bunches or more onions/week, or whatever) please let me know.

Thanks!

July on the Farm

2011-07-11T22:39:00.000-04:00

I thought I'd update everyone on what's happening:

It's hot. The mosquitos aren't bad. The peas are done. It's time to plant fall broccoli.

That kind of sums it up. But if you are interested in more - here it is.

Irrigation:
It has been an interesting summer growing season thus far. Cold and rainy, hot and dry, flooding, dry and now hot and dry again. Fortunately we had a nice rain today and, even more fortunate is the fact that we have most of the growing area irrigated with drip tape. This is black tape which is connected to a "header" which carries water under low pressure. The tape has small holes every 12" from which a drip is released. The consecutive drips form circles which then expand and finally come into contact with each other and merge out. It's a pretty good system. Not as effective at wetting an entire seed bed but for anything within the 12" radius of the hole, there good water available for the plants. The system requires constant checking because every so often someone punctures the tape while weeding or an end blows off or a leak develops at the connection point. The rented parcel is not irrigated yet. To do so, I need to repair the owner's pressure tank which appears to have rusted out in places. If anyone is good with working with wells or repairing tanks and is willing to give us a hand with this project, please let me know.

Planting:
We're on target with the succession planting. Every 10 - 14 days we're planting lettuce and carrots. We planted various brassicas about a month ago and most are ready to transplant now. Dave and I also planted a back-up seedbed of brassicas 2 weeks ago "just in case". So we have back-up broccoli, cabbage, brussels sprouts, etc. etc. etc. Last year I lost most of my fall brassicas to flea beetles so I'm being extra-cautious this year. Direct seeding of crops such as fall turnips, daikon radishes, spinach, etc. will begin soon. This requires pulling out the remnants of other crops and preparing the seed beds.

Trellising:
We trellis all tomatoes, peppers (in the hoops), beans, and cukes (in the hoop). This totals approx. 2000' of trellised crops. We haven't completed the task yet but we're getting there. The beans were trellised 2 weeks ago and are fun to check out. Please don't let the children run through this area - it's tempting but if they accidentally pull on a string, they'll uproot the plants. It's a hallway of beans. They're in the east garden, closest to the goats. The tomatoes in the field are underway and should be done by the end of the week. Cukes in the hoop will be worked on tomorrow. It's a very big job. The tomatoes all require weekly pruning and training. If anyone wants to learn about this process and volunteer for 2 - 3 hours, I would love the help.

Garlic:
The harvest has begun. We harvested about 1/3 of the garlic this morning, before the rain. We'll need to hang it up in the barn where it will cure. We'll begin distributing it this week. It won't be fully-cured which means that it is a bit harder to peel and separate. But it is very tasty. Last year I saved the biggest heads for seed garlic and it paid off. Returning members should notice that this year's heads are quite a bit larger than those from last year.

Potatoes:
We walk the potatoes for Colorado Potato beetles almost daily, sometimes twice a day when infestations are large. We squish the little guys and put the large larvae and adult beetles in water with a little soapy water which keeps them from escaping. It's kind of gruesome. But, it's better than spraying the entire patch which would kill all bugs, helpful or not. I've read that potatoes are one of the most heavily sprayed crops and the beetles have developed resistance to the pesticides, resulting in a cylcle of stronger and stronger pesticides. We hilled the potatoes a good three weeks ago. I actually have an attachment this year that goes on our large walk behind tiller but the first time we went to use it, the housing on the tiller broke off. So, off to the shop it went and we had to hill by hand. This means that I tilled up the soil between the rows, we weeded between each plant and then mounded up the soil (a good 2 - 4") on each plant. We then mulched a lot of them and those that weren't mulched will be hilled again. Big Red (the large walk-behind tiller) is in action again so I hope we can hill mechanically next time.

Lettuce:
One of my goals this year was to provide lettuce every week. So far we've been able to do so. Some is bolting faster than I had hoped so we'll see whether the supply will hold out. If not, the summer cabbage is relatively close to harvest time so you might see cabbage in place of lettuce for a few weeks.

Fava Beans and Peas:
They don't like the heat. The peas are pretty much over. There are still favas on the plants but they're nearing the end as well. I hope you've enjoyed them. It's interesting to experience the favas over their cycle. We started 2 weeks ago with smallish green favas, then they grew and now they're larger and whiter. They're nuttier now and crunchier. I know that some people use dry favas which we have yet to experience. Don't forget, these contain high amounts of protein for a bean.

Spraying:
We only use sprays that are allowed according to National Organic Standards. We sprayed some of the eggplant in the large hoop about a week ago with pyrethrin (chrysanthemum extract). This was to kill the flea beetles which numbered 20+ per leaf. Then we re-covered the plants. We also sprayed thuricide today on the cabbage. This is a bacteria which kills worms (i.e. cabbage worms) and is approved for organic use.. The heads are beginning to form and some are holey and full of poop. So it was time. I will probably follow a 10 - 14 day spraying cycle on the cabbage if the poop is still evident. If I don't spray, we'll have to peel off a good 1/4 - 1/2 of the outer leaves of the heads just to get down to "clean" cabbage. Of course I could serve it holey and full of poo and let you cut around the bad parts but I don't think most people would be up for that. We also sprayed a little copper on the potatoes to deal with a small amount of potato leaf blight. Copper is one of the only fungicides that are approved for organic use but it's use is regulated. You have to show that you're not increasing the amount of heavy metals in the soil which is done through soil testing. I will spray some of the tomatoes with Seranade tomorrow which is another bacteria that multiplies on the leaf's surface and is supposed to keep viruses and other bacteria out. I will try to spray the cucumbers this year with Seranade to see whether it will help keep out Downy Mildew. Downy Mildew is a virus that is transmitted through the cucurbit family by cucumber beetles. Once the cukes get it, deformed fruit will occur and death of the plant will follow within 3 weeks. So, we keep all cucurbits covered with row cover for 42 days (until they begin to bloom) and then remove the covers so the pollinators can do their stuff.

Tomatoes and other Fruits:
It's starting. The maters in the hoop are beginning to produce along with an early planting of summer squash. Soon the peppers will be ready to pick. It's been a bit hot and dry which I think slowed the beans down a bit but they will be coming along soon. By the end of July, we should turn the corner from a large portion of weekly greens to a larger percentage of fruiting veggies.

Animals:
We have a few White Holland turkeys that we'll be selling for Thanksgiving this year. They're still in the big barn but are big enough now to move out to pasture so you should see them around soon. Chickens are fine - easy peasy. Our goats are doing pretty well although we did lose a little boy a few weeks ago. He died of coccidosis which is common. His mom (Sandy) also got it and stopped eating and drinking for 4 days. Fortunately we noticed this the first day she stopped eating/drinking and gave her pedialyte (via a syringe) 2 - 3x per day for 7 days and offered her fresh brush. She is doing better. The little boy's sister is now showing signs of coccidosis so we began treating her yesterday and hopefully she'll pull through. It's tough on babies and she'll only about 8 weeks old.

People:
We're sold out for the summer CSA - thanks to you all! Sheryl, Nick and I are working hard to keep up with the weeds. If you have an hour or more during the day and would like to help out, we'd love to have you. Other than that, we're have lots of fun with it all. Already I hear Nick saying - "remember the day when..." and the list will go on. He's been here about a month. This is Sheryl's second year here and she'd like to start her own business so I will be looking for someone to replace her for next year. If you know anyone who is serious about farming and wants experience at all levels, please ask him or her to contact me. I'd also like a pool of people to call for peak periods. Like now, with the garlic harvest, it would be nice to call in 1 or 2 people for a day or so. It will be the same with potatoes, beans and tomatoes. If you know of someone who is interested, please ask them to contact me.

As always, we hope you are enjoying your veggies. If you have any comments or ideas for us, please feel free to share.

How to Wash & Store & Use Greens

2011-06-13T22:19:00.000-04:00

Hello -
This week's distribution reminded me that I haven't sent my annual e-mail as to how to use greens. It's that time of year. We're not quite to summer yet. The fruiting veggies are a bit off (like 4 - 6 weeks). So, we have a lot of greens. Kale, lettuce, chard, collards, choi, mustard, turnip greens, yukina savoy, summerfest kamustuna, etc. If you have not worked with greens in the past, here's a post I added last year. Basic Greens You can also search the recipe blog for collards or kale or greens or other items and see what I've posted. If you have a recipe to contribute, I can add it to the blog. I need to add one that Kristi Bishop forwarded last week.

If you're picking up your box in the middle of the day, don't leave it in the car. That will be a problem. At minimum, take it into work and keep it by your desk. I don't refrigerate things (yet) so if you keep them in a coolish place, that's best. Best case scenario is to take the veggies home and place them in your crisper drawer.

If you don't have a salad spinner, you might want to buy one. I don't always wash items as they can keep longer if they aren't wet and sitting in a box for distribution. If it's really dirty, we'll wash it and try to dry it as much as possible. So, you will receive greens that might be a bit wilted. A good way to pep up your veggies is to soak them in cold water for 15 - 30 minutes, spin them in the salad spinner and use them. If you're going to cook with them right away, just let them drip dry and cook. The extra water will help them steam a bit. If you're not cooking with them right away and plan to store them in the fridge, it's best to spin them and place them in an airtight container. I use zip loc bags but others have raved about Tupperware containers. I also like to store veggies in the salad spinner.

For greens, it's up to you. Many people soak, spin and bag their greens the day of pick up. I find this a bit time consuming. We generally keep our greens in the fridge and then, when we use them, we'll cut them up, wash & soak for a bit in cold water then cook. It's generally not a big deal to cook wilted greens as they're going to wilt in the skillet anyway. Try to remember that these are really fresh, even if they are a bit wilted.

For lettuce, soak whole in cold water for awhile, spin and store in either the salad spinner or in your crisper in plastic bags. If you don't get it dry enough, it will start to deteriorate. If you have a choice in order in which to consume veggies, I'd start with lettuce and then move to the heartier greens. We generally have greens every night and I'll pull out the salad spinner which contains washed lettuce (as much as a week or so from picking). You might need to trim the ends off of the lettuce or pick a few leaves out but it keeps pretty well this way.

Another item that might be worth buying is a cuisinart. We have a smaller version but, as we do a LOT of food preservation, I wish we had a larger version. But it works. This is good to use when making pestos, relishes, etc. Also, many members have raved about the benefits of a veggie shake maker. The name escapes me right now (Veggi mite?). But it's a super-high powered blender which is capable of reducing greens to a shake in a minute. A great way to use your greens and get your vitamins and minerals in. Many people combine a bit of fruit with the veggies to enhance the flavor.

I hope members will work with and enjoy the veggies. They won't always look like those that you buy from the market. They're not sitting under sprinklers, in coolers. We know that part of the eating experience is the visual presentation. But we hope that you can overcome small holes, blemishes, some wilting, etc. and still work with the veggies and try them. They aren't selected for size or visuals. We are pretty selective about what we distribute but it's not based upon what the veggie looks like. We taste the veggies before we pick them. Sometimes we cook them to try them before we serve them. So, if you can, please try what's in your box. You can also find other ways to use it, such as soup or stock.

The veggies are grown with true care and are picked, in most cases, the day of or day before you pick up your share.

The share size will increase with time. For the next couple of weeks it will be smaller than later in the season. The first week and a half was a bit smaller than last year but it is "growing" with time.

Thanks to you all.

Upcoming Events & Update

2011-05-22T22:42:00.000-04:00

Hello again -
It's been too long since I last posted.

A few announcements:

For summer members: If you haven't received an e-mail announcing the beginning date for distributions, that means I don't have you on my distribution list. Please let me know and I'll add you to the e-mail contact list.
Violet kidded on Mother's Day. (Violet's a goat). We helped her birth a very small boy and a nice-sized girl. All are doing well and they're fun to watch so if you have time when you pick up your box, check them out.
Speaking of goats: They're enclosed by electric wire. So, don't touch the wire. Also, if you try to pet them, don't put your arm behind their horns. Sometimes they twist their heads and your arm will be wrenched - not good. In general, you should probably be with Dave, Nathan or me if you want to see the goats.
Chickens - we have them. Our flock is kept for egg production. They love table scraps. Meat, veggies, fat, bread, etc. No raw peelings because it is reported that they can choke on things like potato peelings or cucumber or carrot peels. Nothing that has been sprayed with chemicals (as we're raising them organically). They love to be fed and will run up to the fence if you call "heeeere ... chick chick chick, heeeere chick chick chick" in a slightly high voice. It's kind of amusing to see them waddle and run. FYI - we do not raise meat birds for sale - only for our own use.
Turkeys - they're coming this week. We'll be receiving the White Hollands this week. I'll post separately about turkeys and pricing and how to reserve one in another post.
Veggies. I sent out an e-mail this past week about the beginning of distributions. We will start Wed., June 1 and Sat. June 4. The veggies will be on our front porch in wax-coated boxes. There will also be herbs and maybe other veggies on a table. The white board will tell you what to do. If we have extra stuff, it will be on the table to the right. Sometimes the extras are in a box - depends on space. Just check the white board and you'll know what to do. I always try to be around during pick up to answer questions but I know that on June 1 I will be gone for part of the evening so Sheryl will be here to help you get into the rhythm. On June 4 we'll have a work day so I might be busy in the field but you can track me down. If you're interested in a tour, please come at 11:30 to pick up your box and I can take time out to give everyone a tour.
Entry/exit. We have a horseshoe driveway. Please enter from the west entrance and exit from the east. Last year I had people enter/exit opposite (east to west) but I think this will work better. Please drive slowly. We have young children and many members also have young children and they like to run around in the drive. So please, max 5 mph when you pull in. I always feel badly telling members to slow down upon entry.
Half-share members: you should have received a separate e-mail earlier this week which provided your share partner's name. We don't prepare a half-box. Most 1/2 share members pick up every other week. If you are able to arrange with your partner to split your box every week, great. Otherwise, figure out who will pick up the first week and go from there.
The first distribution might be a little light. It's been very rainy and cold this spring.
If you're interested in being a fan of this blog, please sign up. I don't know what that does for us but I like seeing the # go up. :)
We still have about 8 memberships available for this summer. If you know anyone who's interested in joining, please pass on our info to them.

Event Info:

June 4 - work day from 9 - 12. Tour for those interested: 11:30 - 12. Potluck lunch - 12 - 1:30 or so. This is peak transplanting time. Maybe potatoes (second wave). All of the warm-weather crops will be ready to go, weather permitting. This means beans, squash, summer squash, okra, New Zealand Spinach, flowers, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, etc. etc. etc. Get ready for successive deep knee bends. Bring your gloves, a hat, sunscreen, water bottle and insect repellent. If you're staying for lunch, bring a dish to pass. All ages are welcome. Come for any part of the day (work, tour or lunch).
June 18 - Hoopalooza. Yes, it's true. We're building a third hoop with the help of Repasts Past & Present (Selma Cafe). I had reported earlier that it would be a 30 x 144 but now I believe the plan is to build a 30 x 96 which will be portable in 2 stations. Will see. The date is not set in stone as Jeff McCabe is still working on finalizing his 20 in 20 schedule. The build will go from 8 - 6ish and will be followed by dinner for anyone that would like to stay.

Other updates:

I'm working hard at getting the new parcel prepped for planting. It's a piece of ground that hasn't been worked in a long time - maybe never? There are a lot of weeds which include crab grass and Canadian Thistle. So, it will be interesting to see how it all goes. The wet conditions don't help either. I know that the conventional wisdom would say to kill everything with round up and start from square one. We're not going to do that. I'll probably have to buy a lot of moldy hay to mulch with and do a lot of tilling - increased costs up front but the soil will be healthier in the long-run. I tilled down there yesterday and saw a Kildeer sitting on her nest (2 eggs). Also a nice garter snake population which is great. A few toads. Lots of Starlings, Red Winged Black Birds and Crows. We hope to start planting there this week, if the rain holds off.
We have a full work crew. Nick Clark and Jason Hogans have joined Sheryl Sopoliga and I to provide nearly 3 1/2 full time employees here on the farm. It's great to have the help! It's also presenting new challenges as I am now filing quarterly returns and submitting taxes/withholding to the IRS for our employees. An interesting new learning opportunity ... to navigate through the tax laws and filing requirements.
One thing I've really wanted is to upload a slide show on our website - or at least on this blog. If anyone can do this for me, I would really appreciate it. I am looking for a person that can come over to the house, sit at our computer and do it - not tell me how to do it. I just don't have time to figure out something new. Thanks!
Judy Durfy brought out new bees this past week. She and her husband have 2 hives here on our property. Unfortunately both hives died this past year. One almost made it. She thinks they were alive as close as 2 weeks before she came out. She said the fact that April was so cold created great stress on the bees. Apparently if it isn't about 40 degrees, the honey in the hive doesn't flow and the bees can't access it. So they starve. She thinks it was a hard year on native honey bees. She's right. Generally at this time, I find lots of bees on dandelions but didn't see any until she brought out the new hive. When a new hive is inserted, the queen been must mate. Judy said she has to fly out of the nest, do her dance with the drones, mate, and then fly back to the new hive before a bird eats her. Wow. I think they did their thing because I'm seeing bees go in and out of the hive. But I guess it takes 30 days to know if they will survive.

I think that might be enough for now. I could report more but I risk providing too much info.

Dave says the Woodcock are doing their dance across the street in the large field. We are seeing Wood Ducks fly out of the woods almost daily. The Bluebirds are here. We have even been hearing (and saw) the Baltimore Oriole which I don't remember seeing here before. The toads are waking up and are quite active in both hoops. The soil is black and rich and strong.

As always, take good care and enjoy the heat. We look forward to the start of distributions and hope you look forward to seeing what's happening here.

Planting Update

2011-04-10T22:21:00.002-04:00

Finally we got a break in the weather. Last year I had much of the early crops planted by the end of March/beginning of April. I prefer to direct seed when possible. The plants that grow are stronger and they don't suffer transplant shock so they're not slowed down. But, the weather did not cooperate this year - frozen ground can't be worked and wet soil will only clump up if worked which is difficult for seeds to emerge from. So Sheryl and I have been seeding flat after flat. We have celery, celeriac, kohlrabi, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes, basil, lots of flowers, etc. in flats in the small barn and inside the house. We're getting close to capacity. We also have nursery beds of brassicas in the small hoop - chois, kales, chards, collards, cauliflower, broccoli, sprouting broccoli, early cabbages, etc. The cold frames are full of onions and leeks. The seedlings are starting to take over.

But, as far as I know, you can't transplant peas (on a large scale) or onion sets, or favas, etc. So I've been a bit worried about the weather. Now for anyone that knows me, this is not new. I spend a lot of time thinking about the condition of the soil - is it too wet, is it too dry, is it healthy - you get the picture. And even more time thinking about whether the plants will grow in time to meet their expected distribution date. Somehow, it always works out. It may not be the exact plan I had in mind but it works out.

But, I digress. The news is that we planted over 1200' of onions, 1400' of fava beans, 900' of snow, sugar and pod peas, and some garbanzo beans this weekend. It's a great feeling. The ground was still too wet to pull out the tractor but we were able to hand till strips in the east garden along with the higher parts of the front garden to get it done. We have carrots and some beets in the hoops which may make it for the spring season but there's enough to carry over for early summer. So, we're back on schedule. Next up - lettuces, transplanting of the brassicas, planting nursery beds of summer squash and melons in the hoops and transplanting peppers, eggplant and tomatoes in the hoops. We'll also be working on the new land down the street - plowing, discing, tilling, etc. to get it whipped into shape as quickly as possible.

Time is running out to do the taxes.

The Sandhill Cranes are flying over daily. We are seeing more beetles and earth worms. The frogs are creating quite a symphony. I noticed a large ant in the soil today. I checked on the beehives and I think they made it through the winter (Judy and Randy will need to come out to really check as they're their bees). Yes, the earth is yawning and is ready to jump out of bed.

Until next time. Take good care. Try not to get sunburned. Enjoy spring as you jump around.

Spring Distributions begin Wednesday!

2011-03-21T08:13:00.000-04:00

Happy Spring, 2011!

Spinach!

I think we can now safely say spring is here! The daffodils are starting to bud out, the apple trees are starting to wake up, the crocuses are in bloom. And what a storm last night! Lightning, thunder, 1.1 inches of rain. All accompanied by a perigee moon. It was beautiful this morning, just before sunrise - low on the horizon, shimmering in the haze.


Lettuce with mustard in background

Here are some pictures from the hoop. For those of you participating in the spring share this year, get ready. The greens are very sweet and robust. Try things raw that you normally would cook - I think you'll be surprised.


Lacinato, Siberian and Red Russian Kale

Last night we had a little kale. We generally remove the ribs of the kale and compost them or feed them to the animals but they're so tasty right now. We saute the greens, as usual, and then I saute the stems. Here's the picture. They take a little more time than the leaves so I do these either before and add the leaves or take the leaves out and cook them after. Yum! Allie said they taste like broccoli and she's right.

Kale stems - yum!

Want to support Dexter Schools or UUAA?

2011-03-14T09:53:00.000-04:00

Hello all -
We are in the midst of the spring season. Continual planting, re-potting, planning, etc. The spring season will start next Wednesday, March 23, and it will be fun!

If you or anyone you know is interested in participating in our summer season AND would like to support either Dexter Schools or UUAA, I will be donating a share to both up-coming auctions. The Dexter Community Foundation Auction will be held at Ann Arbor Country Club this Saturday, March 19. The Educational Foundation of Dexter Auction The UUAA Auction will be held at the UUAA Congregation March 26 at 4:00. UUAA Annual Goods & Services Auction

More info. to follow re. plantings and happenings on the farm. If anyone would like a tour, this is a good time to come out. Just give me a call and make sure you wear your boots!

Spring CSA Now Closed

2011-01-30T09:34:00.001-05:00

Thanks to all who have signed up to participate in our first spring CSA! We are now closed. If you haven't sent in your deposit yet, please do so within the next week.

We still have space available for summer. If you'd like to participate, please e-mail me and send in a deposit of $100. Any questions, feel free to e-mail or call.

We have planted carrots, beets, spinach, choi, turnips and mustard in the hoop. We've also started some flats of kale, collards, onions, parsley, etc. in the house. There are nursery beds of onions, leeks and collards in the small hoop. We're in the ground!

We're also working very hard on the planning process for this upcoming growing season. Charts and spread sheets and notes and seeds are strewn about the house right now. We've got the wish list of equipment and tools drawn up. Of course it will need to be paired down - it all adds up quickly. We've got the list of box supplies started. Plans for a cooler are in the beginning stages. So much to do. But one of the first things on the list is to finalize and enter the seed order - not a quick task when you're considering 5 different catalogs and Dexter Mill and Downtown Home and Garden.

OK - back to planning. Let me know if you'd like to stop by and take a tour. Winter is a good time for us to host tours as there's a bit more free time. You might not be able to see the dirt but you can still get a good idea of what's going on.

Working on Planning and Organizing

2011-01-10T09:29:00.000-05:00

It's January. We've now had a good 30+ days of freezing temperatures with one break of two 40 - 50 degree days about 1 1/2 weeks ago. We had so much snow the week before Christmas that we were able to make a full igloo. This hasn't happened this early for many years. Before the warm spell, the children were cross country skiing every day.

When the snow melted, we once again had full view of the plants in the gardens. The lettuce and spinach that were pretty small in November are still alive and appear able to take on the challenge of toughing out the winter. We'll see. Yesterday I picked up some row cover that I'd left in the west garden and it was amazing - any plants which were under it were still nice and green and the ground was soft and moist. Even some dill in the herb garden, which had been covered by a pile of row cover (maybe 4 layers) was still green. I actually picked a sprawling head of Napa Cabbage and red choi from the west garden and we had it for dinner. It's interesting how the growth pattern of the plants change when the temperatures change. I'm noticing that with the chard in the hoop - much of it is hugging the ground, as if to duck out of the wind and freezing temperatures which blow through every night.

The hoops are nice and cozy. Sheryl and I finally covered the ends of the small hoop with "new" plastic. It's actually construction-grade stuff that I saved from our original wood-frame structure that I built 2 years ago. It will suffice until we re-skin the entire structure after the snow melts. We also cleared out all of the plants from last year and I've been irrigating in there for 3 days now with drip irrigation. The soil was very dry so it takes time to re-hydrate everything. Within the next few weeks the planting will begin. I was feeling a bit guilty about not getting to the task of enclosing the structure earlier and one friend reminded me that it's helpful to let the soil temperatures drop so that fungi and pests are reduced. Even though the temperatures climb to 50 - 70 degrees during the day, they still drop below freezing at night. In the morning and well into the day if the sun doesn't shine, the soil surface can be crusty and the plants are sometimes frozen. If it's above 15 or so, the plants don't freeze. Even if they do, they persevere.

Crops from the hoop now being harvested:

Red Russian Kale - especially sweet right now.
Siberian Kale - also extremely tasty.
Lacinato Kale is finally sizing up and we've started to harvest it.
The collards are doing well - had a bit of powdery mildew but I've been keeping it trimmed and it appears to be battling off the fungus. Very tasty as well.
The chard (3 types) also has a very different taste. I usually experience a bit of bitterness with chard - way in the back of the mouth. But now it is much smoother and actually very sweet as well.
The carrots which I planted last summer, before the hoop was constructed, have taken off and are very tasty.
I've been thinning out the choi, mustard and lettuce. Right now the plants are 2 - 4" tall so I'm treating the thinnings as micro greens and mixing them into salads, along with baby radishes, leaves, roots and all. Very tasty.
There's some lettuce that we transplanted from the field a while back that is now starting to size up. We're still picking this leaf by leaf but it won't be long until it starts to head up. There's some nice romaine in there that is especially crispy and full-bodied.
The spinach is starting to form it's main leaves. I'm guessing 2 weeks or so until we begin to harvest.
The mache is taking it's time. This is the first time I've grown mache so I'm not sure what to expect from this crop. It's maybe 3/4 cm tall and was planted October 31, along with the spinach, choi, etc.
The veining in all of the greens is more apparent. As I've said to some, if you don't like greens this time of year, you never will. Really, they're so tasty.

A couple of weeks ago I planned the menu for the spring CSA which runs for 10 weeks and will start March 23. I'm pretty excited about it. I'm planning on 8-12 items per box which will be some combination of the following:

Napa Cabbage
Beets
Choi (red choi and joi choi and tatsoi)
Kale
Carrots
Collards
Chard
Spinach
Salad Mix & Head Lettuce
Chives
Cilantro
Thyme
Parsley
Mint
Rosemary
Radishes
Turnips
Mustard
Arugula
Nettles
Purslane
Kohl Rabi
Peas
A few flowers

Most of spring production will come from the hoops - some, such as nettles, from the woods. Some from the herb garden, etc. The Spring CSA is limited to 20 spots and we have about 14 people signed up so far. So, if you're interested in participating, please let me know.

Until the spring CSA starts, I'm selling veggies to people that inquire. The list of what's available is above and we also have quite a few eggs right now. Judging on the condition of the plants, I expect to have a lot of greens in about a month and might go back to the Farmer's Market. When the sun starts to shine consistently and the days grow a bit longer, those mini-leaves will go crazy! If you need a fix of greens before then, give me a call and stop by and I'll sell them by the bunch - $3/bunch. I also have a few pumpkins and acorn and butternut squash that I could sell.

Wrapping up 2010 & Looking to 2011

2010-12-08T09:18:00.003-05:00

Last week I finally accepted the fact that yes, the ground will freeze once again, and soon. We had a nice couple of weeks of cold then warm and the ground was vacillating between an inch or so of mud and frosty crust. I wrapped up the last of the hoses, Sheryl blew them out, and we finished buttoning up the new hoop. The doors are now on, baseboards secure, and the trenches along both sides are filled. We have beautiful chard, kale, lettuce and collard plants and greens along with seedlings of spinach, mache, lettuce, mustard, radishes and cilantro. I still intend to transplant some parsley and maybe a few celery plants to the large hoop - I think I can chisel it out of the ground. The small hoop still needs new ends but we'll get to that, hopefully soon. When the sun is shining, it's really quite lovely to spend a bit of time in the hoop.

We've had a much-enjoyed lull in action here over the past few weeks. The extended season ended the 1st week in November, the Thanksgiving boxes went out the third week in November, the turkeys were processed and distributed that same week, and Thanksgiving came and we celebrated. We generally have a large gathering for this holiday as both families come together, along with friends who are near by. This year we had 27 gathered around our tables to enjoy each other's company and a meal that we all participated in preparing. We all have much to be thankful for.

It's now time to get back to business and here's what we're up to:

Ann Arbor Farmer's Market - Dec. 10 - 7 a.m. - 1? - Molly, the market manager for the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market, came out last Friday to check out the farm. New vendors apply to participate in the market. In November, the board accepted our application and Molly's visit was the last step in the process. So, this Saturday I intend to be at the market with a few veggies. There is still choi that I can sell. It has frozen but I picked it yesterday and let it thaw before cooking - still crunchy and tasty! In addition, a few of the brussels sprouts grew over the past month so I now have something to harvest. Maybe a few bunches of kale or collards from the hoop, maybe some carrots. Not a lot, but it's what we have and it would be good to sell it rather than leave it for the deer. I'll stay until it's sold so if you're in the area, stop in and say hi. I probably won't have a large sign so you might need to search a little.
Planning the CSA season (seasons!) for next year. I'm going to break it up as follows:

A spring share for 10 weeks. This will run between the weeks of March 23 and May 23 and will cost $250. I will limit this to 20 shares and will offer first to those who indicated interest in a winter share. Pick up will be here, at the farm, on Wednesday evenings only (4 - 6:30). I still need to plan for what will be in the box but it will most likely be heavy on greens along with some onions and maybe spring garlic, etc. A few herbs may also be available.
A summer CSA for 20 weeks. This will run from May 30 through October 10 and will be $600. The summer shares include veggies, herbs and flowers, as available. I will offer 3 pick ups this year - Monday and Wed. from 3 - 6:30 and Saturday from 10 - 12:30. All pick ups are here, on the farm, unless you hear otherwise.
An extended season for 3 weeks the weeks of October 17, 24 31. Price and # of spaces will be subject to what's available in the field at the time.
A holiday box the week prior to Thanksgiving. Again, pricing and # of boxes will be determined a month or so before the distribution.
Next winter I might offer the winter boxes in January, Feb & March. For this year (2011), I'll sell items through the AA Farmer's Market, assuming we have enough to sell. A booth costs $25/trip so, in order to participate, I need to have enough bunches of greens to cover the cost of the booth plus and any other expenses such as labor that goes into going to market.

Planning the crops for next year - the seed catalogs are starting to come in. I've received catalogs from both Seeds of Change and Johnny's and am starting to pour through them. My new crop this year will be fava beans - based on a request from a member last year. Would you like to see an additional veggie or a certain variety of a veggie? Please let me know. Things I won't plant are any invasive species or sweet corn. The first for obvious reasons and the second because the corn just goes to the raccoons.
Planning what will be in the box for next year. This winter I'm going to try to set up a menu, per se. I'm going to try for a more varied veggie offering for next year so you don't get 6 weeks of the same thing in a row. No matter what you'll still receive a core group of veggies but I'm going to try to alternate root crops more along with fruiting veggies so maybe you'll have beets and summer squash one week and carrots and eggplant or okra the next. The only challenge with this is that half members might miss a week of something but in the end, it always seems to even out. (Please remember, we don't prepare half a box. If you're a half share member, you either pick up a full box every other week or figure out how to split your box with your share partner).
Working toward certification - I still have the idea to submit the paper work for Organic Certification. I like the idea of it but need to make the time to compile a lot of paper work.
Working on the books - It's been a while since I spent any time on the accounting for the business so I need to get back to that. I am curious to find out the bottom line re. turkeys.
Preparing for various winter conferences. Washtenaw Community College will have another career fair this winter and I plan to participate in that. Hopefully I'll get lucky and meet a few future employees. We generally also attend the Local Food Summit and MOFFA and FSEP conferences along with local gatherings. I heard there's an annual organic veggie conference on the west side of the state. If you hear of another conference that sounds interesting, please let me know. These are great venues for me to meet other growers and learn of various techniques and strategies.
Thinking about a new distribution shed - maybe you'll pick up again from the front porch or maybe there will be a new building near the hoops. We'll see.
Volunteering at Bates Elementary and UUAA for various committees and in the classroom.
Playing a bit of tennis through AA Rec and Ed. How fun.
Chasing Hannah around - also fun.

Until next time, stay warm, enjoy the holidays, and let me know if you have early spring fever and would like to pull a few weeds in the hoop or plant a few seeds.

Nearing the End of the Season

2010-10-20T21:58:00.027-04:00

It's already October 20. It seems as though the season has been one deadline after another - planting, harvesting, distributing, transplanting, weeding, tilling, planting. It's been one big circle. But, in between the deadlines we have so many great memories for the season. This was my second full season as a CSA farmer and it was jam-packed. We started early with planting of the seedlings in February, erecting of the small hoop (in the mud) in March, transplanting the seedlings and moving to the small barn in march, planting in the small hoop in April, and planting in the field in April, May, and every few weeks since. We've had a lot of activity here over the season. New members, our first and most-excellent employee, Sheryl, our also excellent intern, Kristina, some great part-time workers, other customers.

Our children get so excited when they see a member on the porch picking up their veggies. Often-times, Nathan (7) would guide a tour around the farm. Hannah (3) was very excited to pick basil and cherry tomatoes and bag them (or anything else) up for members or "for the peoples". Allie (5) was very serious about tending to the flowers and picking them for "the customers". Of course, they are all so excited when any member with children arrives - it's a mini play date for them and we really enjoy the camaraderie that you all bring when you visit. Of course, Dave and I love to hear about how you're using the veggies and how it's working for you. Many, many, many great comments throughout the season. Thanks so much.

I've moved from preparing 60 boxes per week to only 11 for the extended season which is quite a change. Today was the first day and all went well. In addition, I'm working on planting the hoop houses. About 1/2 of the large hoop has been planted in collards, kale, chard and carrots. There are still some peppers in there as well. Soon I'll plant spinach and mache, and transplant some lettuce, etc. in there. Onions, beets, more carrots, sweet peas, etc. will be planted in January and February for harvest in March and beyond. I'm debating about whether to plant the small hoop over the winter or to give it a break and plant again in late spring. It still needs new plastic.

We finally have taken the next step with irrigation. I invested in a drip system Trickle Eeez this past week and have installed much of it in the large hoop. Unfortunately they were out of the "round" header (or supply line) so the rep brought out some "flat" hose which is round when inflated. It's solid hosing that you poke a hole into in order to attach drip lines for each bed. When it's inflated, it's under pressure. So, poking a hole in a hose under pressure results in a geyser. Sheryl and I were soaked! The rep brought us out some round supply line today and I'll work on installing it Friday. I hope it results in a better system with minimal leaks.

Much of the fields have been harvested and cleaned up. All potatoes are out of the field along with much of the dry beans. The eggplant, squash, peppers and okra were all pulled a few weeks ago. Those areas have been tilled and we broadcast either rye or wheat. It's starting to sprout. We have a nice stand of both rye and wheat in both the east and front gardens (looks like grass). I hope this will help suppress the weeds and will also serve as fertilizer in the spring.

I still need to pull the pole beans, tomatoes and some cabbage and maybe get those cover-cropped before this weekend. I cut off the beans at the base and leave the root structure in the soil as this helps build soil fertility by leaving the nitrogen fixers which are attached to the roots in the soil. I'll feed the bean plants to the goats - they love it - along with any other yummy and nutritious plant debris.

Speaking of the goats - Dixie still has not given birth. I really think she might be carrying 4 babies because she is just huge. Her bag (udder) is very full although it's not glossy yet so maybe she has a few more days or a week before she goes into labor.

The turkeys are growing nicely. Anyone who has been here lately has most likely witnessed either Dave, the children or I chasing the turkeys out of the gardens. Yesterday, while I was gone for a few hours, the turkeys got out. When I got home, there was a message from our neighbor reporting he had to chase the turkeys out of his corn field two times. I went out and found them milling around our back yard. So I herded them into their paddock and counted. One was missing. Counted again. Still short. Which color. Counted the brown birds, then the white. Confirmed via my notes in the house. Yep - a white bird was missing. So I went to search. Our neighbor said I should check the lane by the corn field - said a dog was chasing the birds around. Sure enough, I found a pile of tail feathers. A short distance into the field, a little down. Then a beagle showed up, cute as can be, with a mouthful of feathers. I kept searching and about 20 feet later I found the poor hen. I think she had a broken leg and she had been defeathered in places. I hoped that she would be OK. But, in the end, I decided to put her down. I am sorry that she was chased and ended up dying as a result but am still happy that she was able to explore and forage as she did. Sometimes those turkeys are on the roof. Often they're in the paddock with the goats. Sometimes they're trying to eat our cover crop seeds. Her gullet showed mostly grass with a few Jacob's Cattle beans and some rye and some grain. That's good.

Many people debate about the ethics of eating animals. I can understand why people choose not to eat meat. Every time we kill an animal, we pay homage. We work hard to ensure the animals have a good life with free access to the outdoors and tasty food. We hope they'll be able to forage. So, the fact that this hen was killed by a predator does not upset me greatly. I would rather have this outcome than to eat a bird raised in a turkey producing facility housing 100,000 + birds. Yes, we could probably pen them up more closely. But you'd be surprised at how much pressure 30 turkeys put on even a 100' x 100' grassy area. We kept them in moveable pens for a few months. When the tornado took out the pens about 2 months ago, we moved them to the larger grassy area. The grass is now under great pressure - it's very short and is browning out. So, they naturally seek to escape. They can fly and fly they do.

The end result is that we have fewer birds that make it to market which results in a more expensive end product. Is it sustainable? I have yet to do the math for this year. We lost money last year. I hope we'll at least cover the cost of feed and the chicks this year. I really hope we'll at least make $100 or $200 for all of the labor (Dave has to go out every night and herd them in - they roost on the fences, trees, chicken pens, etc. and it can take 30+ minutes just to get the turkeys into the barn. If you don't, the raccoons might eat them). We'll see. We like the idea of sharing meat with people. We know how the animals have been cared for. We know they're eating non-gmo food. We know they haven't been treated with hormones and only with antibiotics if they are really sick (like when Dixie had mastitis 2 years ago). So we hope to be able to continue raising a limited number of meat birds and meat goats for years to come. We'll have to see whether the market will support the true cost of this endeavor.

Until next time, take good care and keep warm.

Egg Info.

2010-10-07T21:28:00.000-04:00

Kind of interesting. This helps to explain why store-bought eggs just don't measure up, even though they have the "organic" label.

http://www.cornucopia.org/2010/09/organic-egg-report-and-scorecard/

Thanks, Angela, for posting.

And the Food Preservation has begun

2010-09-19T20:01:00.003-04:00

I finally started canning in earnest today. I have put it off for as long as I can but now that frost is looming, I decided I'd better get moving before the tomatoes are finished. So I took a box of tomatoes and made about 8 pints of ketchup along with a couple of quarts of fresh salsa. The salsa included one Ghost Pepper, one Fatali (a habenero) and one cayenne. It is spicy. I read my friend Angela's blog posting and followed her advice and wore gloves when cleaning the peppers - that was lucky! The minute I cut into each of the first 2 peppers, I started to sweat. This was just from the scent - and no I wasn't cooking them. Unbelievable! I also made about 10 pints of hotdog relish (equal parts cabbage, green tomatoes, onions and some peppers, along with sugar and some spices) which we really enjoy on an egg sandwich or as an ingredient to make either tartar sauce or french dressing. The children also like to eat the relish as a side dish, which doesn't happen very often. It might not sound like a lot but it sure does take time. I think if everyone made their own ketchup, a lot less would be consumed.

I plan to can about 50 quarts of tomatoes in the next week - we'll see what the garden produces.

I've been lazy about beans, greens and broccoli this year. Last year I froze about 50 bags of beans. In the back of my mind I keep thinking that we can always eat kale from the hoop over the winter. Hopefully that will be the case because the beans are not producing like they did when it was 80 degrees out so I kind of missed the time of plenty.

CSA members - get ready for mustard greens again along with turnips and leeks.

If you haven't bought tomatoes and are still looking for some, please let me know. I think I've given all members the tomatoes you've requested so I'm going to open up sales to the general public now (after our family is set).

Crop Report - Fall is here!

2010-09-08T08:07:00.003-04:00

September has brought shorter days and cold nights. Consistent night-time temperatures in the 40's will slow down all fruit-bearing vegetables. This includes okra, peppers, tomatoes, beans and squash. Soon we'll be back to the root and cold-weather veggies. For now, we can still savor the last of these tastes as we look forward to leeks, turnips, beets, lettuces, mustard, greens, kohlrabi, etc. Hopefully the brussels sprouts will size up in time for the Thanksgiving box along with the broccoli, cauliflower and late cabbage.

I planted spinach a couple of times in the past month. Some of it is still out there. I think there's a rabbit that's munching away when I'm not looking. Fortunately we have the New Zealand spinach which is coincidentally growing in the large hoop so if the spinach in the field doesn't amount to much, there's that for a back up. I'm currently preparing to plant the hoop and spinach will be one of the main crops grown in there over the winter.

The pie pumpkins produced very well. We had to move some of the vines so that we could build the hoop but most of them made it to maturity which is great. We harvested those on Tuesday and I pulled the vines to get ready for the next crop. I'm also harvesting all chinese cabbage (Napa) from the hoop to prepare for the next crop. There's a lot of Napa out there. It's also in the west garden and is forming some nice heads out there. Watch out for cabbage worms - I'm trying to wash it but they might sneak past our soaking.

Most of the potatoes have now been harvested. There are still about 1 1/2 rows of German Butterball taters that haven't quite completed their growing cycle but all of the Adirondack Blue, Russian Banana Fingerlings, French Fingerlings and Kennebecs have been harvested. Many have been distributed. We have about 200 # in the barn that are curing and will be distributed over the coming weeks.

Many of the butternut and acorn squash have also been harvested and are curing. The spaghetti squash is almost fully distributed as they don't keep as long as the other winter squash varieties.

There are a lot of red onions still in the field; they haven't quite stopped growing and they're best to store in the field for now.

The roma tomatoes are finally kicking into high gear - it's as if they know the frost is coming and they all decide to mature at once. I planted two plantings about 20 days apart. The first were relatively large plants. The second were quite small. They're in two different fields but they're still maturing at about the same rate. Maybe it's related to the sunlight.

I have had a few people tell me that they'd like to participate in a winter CSA. I think I'll experiment with 10 members for this first year. The distribution might be from the Farmer's Market in Ann Arbor - not sure about that yet. If you do want to participate, please let me know. Please understand that this first winter of growing will be a learning experience for us.

I'm going to post a survey to try to find out how your experience has been with the summer veggies. Please let me know if you have any comments. Thanks!

The Story of our Newest Hoop

2010-09-01T08:26:00.013-04:00

Saturday, August 28 was quite a day here on the farm. It was the culmination of a lot of work put into figuring out how to erect a new hoop house, funded in a way that would make sense for our operation. Back in February I learned about the USDA grant program which is administered through the Natural Resources Conservation Service. I first heard about it through the forum on Local Harvest. Everyone was chatting about whether they had been approved or whether they thought they'd be approved and what they could even apply for. Farmers from different states were reporting wide variations about the interpretation of program rules . I went to the NRCS site that evening and found out that the deadline for application was in 1 1/2 days. Time to move. The next morning I called the local office which is close to Baker, off of Jackson Road. I went into the office to pick up an application and ended up with the opportunity to apply. We chatted about the rules and, at the time, they thought that the hoop had to be erected in a place that had been planted the year before. I wanted to erect it in the east field, which is in the first year of crop production but had previously been in hay. So we went on our way - apply again next year was the result.

In mid to late March, I started hearing about the applications that had been approved. Many were for hoops placed on virgin ground. Finally, in mid-April, I called back. It seems that the rules had been clarified after I had applied and a person can site their hoop wherever they want. Luckily, they encouraged me to complete an application because there were rumors that not all of the Federal dollars had been allocated. So I applied. It was a long process. If you've ever gone through the SBA (Small Business Administration) loan process, you know what I'm talking about; the rules and regs can be difficult to navigate, even for the lender. Finally, in late-June, everything came together and I heard from Steve Olds that the application had been approved and that the powers that be had been able to fund it as well. Woo Hoo!

In the mean time, back in March, I met Jeff McCabe and Lisa Gottlieb through the Local Food Summit in Ann Arbor. I learned of their loan program and considered applying for the spring build but I was concerned about taking on debt at that time. We had a small hoop and I didn't have all of our CSA memberships sold and the labor expense was starting to kick in along with equipment expenditures, etc. I didn't think it would be a good idea to add debt payments to the mix. So, I thought I'd apply for the fall build. As things go, I was fortunate to meet a lot of the young farmers via the Local Food Summit. Washtenaw Community College also hosted a farm job fair and Victoria Bennett invited me to speak, along with others, about farming. I met more farmers and community members there and was very fortunate to make the connection with our current only part time employee, Sheryl. And the ball was rolling. The sun came out, the snow melted, people came to tour the farm, people signed up, and, finally, after months and months of planning and planting and tending, distributions started at the beginning of June. Big sigh of relief - we had enough food to fill everyone's boxes and more.

But back to the hoop. Jeff & Lisa grow food not far from our house. So every once in awhile I'll stop over to see how things are going and vice versa. I like to make the rounds to other farms when I can. One day Jeff reminded me that the application for fall hoops was approaching. I hadn't known about it - somehow I forgot to add myself to his e-mail list. So, I applied for funding for the difference between the grant and the cost of the hoop and in late July learned that the request had been approved. I also applied for assistance with building the hoop and that was approved. Soon Jeff was calling me to schedule the build. Wow. This was really happening. We scheduled it for August 28. I scrambled around to finish up the final documents with the NRCS, building dept, etc. Dave, Sheryl and I worked to get this place ready for the build and the after-party. And the day came.

August 28 started as a cool day. There wasn't a cloud in the sky. The wind was just enough during the day to help keep us cool and died down in time to pull plastic. The volunteers turned out. And we built. And we cooked. And we ate. And, as the moon rose, we played.

Lisa wrote a beautiful photo essay that you can check out here.

Thank you so much to everyone. A special thanks to Dave and Julie Montiero De Castro (my sister) and Nancy Leist for preparing so much food and working so hard to help prepare for the party. Of course, our deepest gratitude goes to Jeff McCabe and LisaGottlieb who made a loan to help fund the structure and brought out the volunteers to build it and coordinated the after party and the bands to celebrate it along with their efforts. Thanks to Hullabaloo and Prophetic Synesthetic Kinetic Collective for providing fun and beautiful music. Thanks to Dan Vernia and Rob Kangas for roasting the pig. And of course, thanks to all of our members. Without you there would be no need for a hoop.

I'm still debating on what to do with the greens that we grow this winter. If you're interested in a winter CSA, please let me know. The cost would be roughly $20/week and would include lots of greens and root veggies. I'll probably run it from early November through April with a 4 week break from mid-December until mid-January. It's in the planning stages. I'm also considering taking the produce to market this winter which might be a nice way to connect with the larger community.

Pending Work Day

2010-08-08T18:25:00.002-04:00

Hi all -
I am rescheduling the work day which was planned for August 28. It will now be this coming Saturday, August 14. Plan for lots of weeding, maybe some potato harvesting, and possibly planting of lettuce, etc. We need help cleaning up the fields and preparing for the visitors which will be coming August 28!

On August 28 we will be erecting our new hoop with the help of Repast - Jeff McCabe and Lisa Gotlieb's entity. Via funds raised from Cafe Selma, they lend money to farmers to help with the construction of hoop houses. To date, they've built 5 or so hoops in the greater Washtenaw county area. Woo Hoo! I applied for assistance with our hoop and they generously approved our request. So, they'll lend the difference between the USDA grant funds and the total cost of the hoop (which we'll repay over 3 years). We will also pay $500 toward their equipment fund. They'll buy equipment which can be leant out to farmers as they need it. They'll supply the labor and expertise to erect our new hoop. We'll provide lunch for all.

All in all, should be fun and we can't wait! I'm waiting to figure out the details but I know that on August 28 it would be helpful to have a few people (or more) to help with getting the food out, setting it up, etc. Much will be prepared 1 or 2 days in advance so if you have time to volunteer for advance food duty, that would be great too. Dave will be coordinating food prep and serving and I'll be focused on the build.

At any rate - all are invited. If you're not working on the build and just want to show up for lunch, please bring a dish to pass. It's a great way to meet other members and community members that are interested in supporting local farmers. I'll probably post a link soon to Repast's site where you can sign up to assist with the build.

Thanks!

Garlic

2010-08-02T13:38:00.005-04:00

The garlic has been harvested and is hanging to cure in the small barn. It's beautiful. We're selling bunches for $5/bunch. The bunches are tied together in swags and consist of 15 or so heads per bunch.

We bought the garlic from 2 Sisters Organic Garlic in Iowa and here's their descriptions, along with their photos. Check them out at www.2sistersgarlic.com Great customer service, timely and they know their stuff:

Organic German Red Garlic - Spicy and Aromatic! A large plant with tall scapes (a delicacy in June!). German Red can produce large bulbs with some red color in the wrapper. The cloves have a brownish skin. The taste is hot and spicy, making it an excellent garlic for dehydrating to powder, or for those wanting to get all the garlic flavor possible from each clove. It can produce between 8 and 12 cloves per bulb.

A Consistent Top Producer For Us!

Organic Polish White Garlic - Flavorful!

An old world artichoke softneck. The large, round bulbs have a cream-colored wrapper with a real punchy taste that is mild when fresh, and builds without heat as it is stored. Polish White also has large cloves compared to some other softneck varieties, making it easy to use.

Polish White is the best variety for dehydrating and making homemade garlic powder in our experience, as it makes a very fine powder. We think pure Polish White powder or a mixture of Polish White and German Red garlic is far superior to the garlic powder you would buy in a grocery store.

A Consistent Top Producer For Us!

Organic Metechi Garlic – Lori’s favorite! AKA Metichi. This fiery little bulb is packed with high-powered garlic flavor. This purple stripe hardneck probably originated in the Republic of Georgia. The bulbs produce a few very plump cloves which store well. It is beautiful...if there were a garlic beauty pageant, Lori thinks this one would walk out wearing the sash and crown.

A Consistent Top Producer For Us!

Organic Italian Purple Garlic - Classic Italiano! The perfect-flavored Italian hardneck, also called Gambino and "Easy Peel." It produces large bulbs with easy-to-peel cloves that are perfect for Mediterranean cooking. Widely grown in the Ohio Valley and Northeast, but grows in a variety of places.

Let me know if you'd like to buy some - it's very tasty.

Blog Comments, etc

2010-07-28T07:38:00.002-04:00

Hi all - I've changed the settings on the blog. If you would like to comment on a posting, you will need to join as a follower. I was finding that people I've never heard of, sometimes from across the world, were posting links to sites that we do not know. So, I thought I'd add an extra step and hopefully avoid a little more spam. So, please join up and comment. Let me know if you have any problems or suggestions.

Great work Day & new Hoop Coming

2010-07-17T20:49:00.003-04:00

Thanks to Sarah, Pete, Sejica, Phil, Jenny, Anny, Francisco, Gerrie, Linda, Carl, Kris & Kurt for spending a good chunck of your day with us today. Kristina, Ginny and I worked with everyone today. We swept the potatoes for potato beetles and the tomatoes for horn worms. They found a huge horn worm which might now be a pet? We harvested the remaining items for today's distribution & made the final prep for everyone who picked up today. We then moved on to weeding - no small task this time of year - did a little planting and then harvested some onions. The Stuttgarts are looking beautiful and are now laid out to cure in the barn, alongside some garlic. The herb garden is back in shape, the cabbages are visible, new parsley and snap dragons are in. Very productive day.

We'll have another work day in mid-August and another one again in September so if you'd like to stop out, please do. Children are welcome - I can tailor jobs for them - as long as you oversee them. It's pretty fun, generally.

Overall, the garden is doing very well. We have gotten so much done over the past two weeks. We've spread 3 or 4 loads of mulch. Much of the cabbage, peppers tomatoes and onions are now mulched. The tomato cages are in. The beans are trellised for a second time, the tomatoes have been retrellised and the peppers have been tied up in the hoop using a new trellising system that I went in on with Jeff McCabe (thanks, Jeff, for sharing your knowledge and this technique). The arugula has been pulled, the spinach has been tilled under, the first couple of plantings of lettuce have been turned under, etc. These areas are ready for fall plantings which will include radishes, spinach, more beets, more carrots, fall lettuce, fall arugula, turnips, etc. We're also getting ready to start seeding for the plants that will go into the hoop this winter.

I have been meaning to tell everyone this very exciting news: we've been approved for a grant through the USDA which will assist in financing a new hoop house. The grant (yes, it's a GRANT!) will cover approx. $5,000 toward a 30 x 96' hoop. The hoop is projected to cost between $8 and $10,000 so we'll have to finance the difference. Depending upon how the hoop is used, estimates are that the payback will be between 12 - 24 months. I'm sure that also depends on whether you're looking at gross or net numbers but I'll report back after some time. However you look at the numbers, it's very exciting and a bit daunting. I'll move to full-time production. The hoop (both) will not be heated. Crops such as bunching onions, lettuces, mache, spinach, chinese cabbages, carrots, and of course kale, chard and collards, will do well in the cold climate of the hoop. I have heard the biggest challenge will be the lack of sunshine in December/January. We plan to offer a limited CSA and also to sell wholesale to either restaurants or retailers. We're also considering participating in a new co-op which sells to institutions.

There's always something going on here. For the immediate future, we're focused on preparing for the main harvest. As soon as the tomatoes, beans and second planting of summer squash comes in, it will be all that we can do to just pick the produce. So whatever weeding we can do now will help position us for the upcoming mountain of veggies. If anyone knows a high school-aged person that would like to work for 3 or 4 weeks helping to harvest, please forward their info. to me.

Enjoy the bounty - it's coming!

Survey Results

2010-07-10T21:47:00.004-04:00

OK - the results of the survey are in. 37 people voted and 32 said that the quantity is just right. 1 person said they wanted improvement in quality/cleanliness and the rest voted that the quality/cleanliness of the vegetables is what you expected. So, overall, it's a good result.

I will send out another survey later in the year. It will be interesting to see the results at that time.

If you have any further comments, please let me know. One idea is that we could have certain items available for additional purchase - a quasi farmer's market. For example, I know some people like a lot of lettuce - we could sell additional bags for those that eat a lot or if you're having a party, we could make additional items available. I know some people divide their share with multiple households so maybe this would be of interest.

Thanks for your feedback!

Purslane & Welcome to Kristina

2010-07-09T20:48:00.004-04:00

First of all I'd like to welcome Kristina. She is a student with the Sustainable Ag. program at UofM and will be working here for the next few weeks as part of her work/study program. She started last week and is not afraid to tangle with the many weeds that have grown with this favorable weather. She is helping Dave, Sheryl and I to keep things moving. Thanks!

Also, thanks to Kristina, we have purslane in the box for tomorrow's distribution. We'll also pick some for Wednesday's boxes. After that, we'll probably offer it as an optional item on the extras table. If you only pick up every other week and would like some, please let me know and I'll pick some for you. Anyway - Kristina has had this in the past and cooked up a panful for us for lunch today. We always try to eat some veggies so that we can all taste what we're growing. I had never had purslane. It's kind of like Lambs Quarter - yeah you can eat it, but why would you? Both are surprisingly excellent! Also, I've read quite a bit over the last few years that the plants that grow locally as "weeds" such as dandelion, purslane, lambs quarter, etc. contain many anti-oxidants, vitamins and minerals which are very benefcial.

Here's how to prepare it:

Remove the purslane from the bag. Cut off the roots. Remove any hay that might be in there. Soak to clean.
Cut up the stalks in 1 - 3" pieces. Use the whole stem - no need to take the leaves off of the stem. The stems are a bit crunchy but they're not woody.
Preheat a skillet with a little oil. Add a bit of garlic or onions or both and saute.
Add the cleaned and cut purslane.
Sprinkle in a generous amount of salt and pepper.
Saute until wilted and slightly darker green (maybe 6 - 10 minutes on med. heat).
Serve.

Very yummy - surprisingly. It's a bit like spinach and would probably be good in a stir fry. Enjoy!

Here's what "On Food and Cooking - The Science and Lore of The Kitchen" (Harold McGee) has to say about purslane (by the way - this is an excellent book if you're interested in the technical side of food):
"Purslane is a low-lying weed with fat stems and small thich leaves, which thrives in midsummer heat on neglected ground. It's a European native that has spread throughout the world. One nickname for purslane is pigweed, and the 19th century Englishman William Cobbett said it was suitable only for pigs and the French. But people in many countries enjoy its combination of tartness and soothing, mucilaginous smoothness, both raw in salads and added to meat and vegetable dishes during the last few minutes of cooking. There are now cultivated varieties with larger leaves shaded yellow and pink. Its qualities are similar to those of the cactus pad because both have adapted in similar ways to hot, dry habitats. Purslane is notable for its content of calcium, several vitamins, and an omega-3 fatty acid, linolenic acid."

Here's another interesting excerpt from the same book: "Cactuses, purslane, and other plants that live in hot, dry environments have developed a special form of photosynthesis in which they keep their pores closed during the day to conserve water, then open them at night to take in carbon dioxide, which they then store in the form of malic acid. During the day, they use the energy from sunlight to convert the malic acid to glucose. Pads harvested in the early morning therefore contain as much as 10 times more malic acid than pads harvested in the afternoon. The acid levels in the pads slowly drop after harvest, so the difference is less apparent after a few days."

Note: We harvested the purslane at around 2:30 in the afternoon.

Beneficial Insects/ our new employee, Sheryl

2010-06-20T20:34:00.006-04:00

We are now moving into the swing of the season. Most of the plants are in - we planted about 1000 feet of winter squash, cucumbers and summer squash in the past week. Much of it has been mulched - thanks to Anny and Trisha for helping out yesterday on on work day! We also laid about 1000' of row cover which will keep out the squash vine borer and the cucumber beetle as well as the flea beetle. The first two can kill the plants by either laying their larvae near the stem which then tunnels into the vine or by spreading a deadly virus. The flea beetle will suck the juices out of a seedling so that's also lethal. After about 42 days, we'll lift the row cover and let the pollinators move in and do their thing - resulting in fruit. By that time, hopefully, the plants will be strong enough to withstand the onslaught of the beetles and we will have the time to patrol the rows and watch for the borers, carefully cut them out, spray inside the stem with a little pyrethrin, and cover the wound with soil.

We walk the potatoes every morning and evening, patrolling for potato beetles. Luckily we don't have too many. Maybe 3 - 7 plants per row will be infected. We squish the little ones and put the adults or huge larvae in a jar with soapy water. I don't want to spray these plants. They're supporting a nice bunch of flea beetles but they won't kill the plants. If the potato beetles take over, they will completely defoliate the plants. But, I see many many daddy long legs, lady beetles, hover flies, and predatory beetles. These are beneficial and we need to protect them to have balance in the garden. There's an occasional toad or tree frog. I even saw a lace wing today - a first. So I do everything I can not to spray or interfere chemically or even with neem oil or diatamaceous earth.

If you can see it, this is a ladybug larvae eating an aphid. They look like mini-alligators. Note the orange spot on the back.

That said, I'm getting ready to pull out something for the okra - it's getting attacked again by flea beetles and aphids and this is the second planting so if the seedlings take a dive again, it might be too late to re-plant so that will mean a lost crop. It's a balancing act.

Sheryl joined me about a week and a half ago as our first employee. I am so pleased to welcome her and have her working with us. She's a student at Washtenaw and is thinking about pursuing a degree in nutrition at EMU. She has taken the Organic Gardening Certification classes offered through Washtenaw Community College and also has worked for a greenhouse for a few years. This is her first job working in the field and I think she likes it so far. It's tough work - sometimes tedious, often hard and hot and buggy. So if you have a chance to meet her, please thank her for her help.

I have also been lucky to have the help of Ana - a volunteer that has been working regularly over the past 6 or 7 weeks. She recently retired from UofM and is volunteering at a number of places. She is originally from Romania so she brings perspective that I do not have and that I appreciate. She helped us plant potatoes, weed the onions, harvest the veggies Friday, and much more. She takes the bus to Scio Church and Maple, walks here, works for 4 - 6 hours, walks back to the bus stop, and goes home to, presumably, melt in the tub. She says she does it for selfish reasons - a work out - but I really appreciate it! Again, if you have a chance to meet her, please say thanks.

More later. Please think about the wasps in your garden and household. They're voracious consumers of mosquitoes and other pests. Many lay their eggs into worms (parasitize worms) in order to reproduce. If you kill all of the "bad" bugs, the "good" bugs won't have anything to eat or a way to reproduce. Makes you wonder who the "other' is.

Garlic Scapes & reminder about Work Day

2010-06-14T22:23:00.004-04:00

Just when I told a member last week that the variety of garlic that we planted hasn't produced any scapes - here we go! This is new for us as we haven't grown garlic in this quantity before and have never cooked with the scapes.

Diana Dyer and her husband have a garlic farm and she posted the following link which I'll share:
http://www.ehow.com/how_2325835_use-garlic-scapes-shoots-recipes.html
It gives some good ideas on how to use them. In addition, I hear garlic scape pesto is good but I haven't made it yet - I assume the recipe is the same as any other pesto but I'll have to check it out.

Get ready - there's a lot of scapes to go around this week!

Also - I removed the row cover from the summer squash that is in the east garden and the plants are blooming. It shouldn't be long before we have some zucchini and yellow squash! It's a shorter row so we won't get a lot at first but the second and third plantings will follow.

Reminder: There is a work day scheduled for this Saturday from 12 - 4. Please let me know if you plan to stop over. It will go on, rain or shine, unless we have thunder and lightning.

Rain, again

2010-06-06T20:35:00.002-04:00

Not to sound like a broken record, but we had almost 3" of rain last night. Fortunately, the tornado that hit Dundee did not roll through here and I don't think we had severe wind. The hoop is intact - there's evidence of a gully wash toward the entrance but that area isn't planted and all appears OK in there. The front garden was immersed in water - 3/4 of it at least. I was really worried about the garlic because it doesn't like standing water. The east garden had a few puddles but is OK. The west garden - from which we are eating currently - was covered 50% by water this morning. Much thanks to Victoria and Bob who brought over pumps! We've been moving water to the orchard much of the day. There's a lot of water so it will take some time. But the plants are not uprooted and it should work out. There is no standing water in the front garden now. Hopefully it will dry up and the garlic will be OK.

I'm hoping that it will be dry enough for me to walk in there and harvest on Tuesday or Wednesday for this week's distribution. Today I went in barefoot - if you wear your boots or shoes, they just sink in the mud and it's twice as much work to walk than if you go barefoot. But, there are creepy crawly things in there and, when they swim alongside your toes, it's kind of surprising.

If I can find our camera, I'll post pictures.

Distributions start this week

2010-06-01T13:28:00.002-04:00

Hi all -
If you have not been receiving e-mails from me over the past few weeks, please let me know. I've sent out several related to a mini-distribution that we had last week along with some general info. re. pickups, etc. If you haven't received them, I need to add your name to the distribution list.

The 2010 Capella Farm CSA season officially starts this week! I'm beginning to prepare the boxes now for tomorrow. Pick up is from 2 - 7 on Wednesday and 11 - 2 Saturday.

I'll post more info. on the What's In The Box page.

When you come, please check off your name on the list showing that you picked up your box and returned your box from the previous week. Again, some people find it easier to bring their own carrying case with which to take their produce home and they leave the box here. Up to you.

See you soon!

Bees are Here

2010-05-31T08:41:00.006-04:00

On Sunday Judy Durfy brought over another hive and stocked both hives with bees. If I haven't told you, Judy and Randy Durfy are beekeepers and maintain about 10 or so hives which are placed on organic farms throughout the area. Last year they located a hive here and stocked it with Russian honey beess which are a bit smaller than their Italian cousins. Judy and Randy have a theory that, because the Russians are a bit smaller and build a smaller comb, they may be able to keep the thrips out which may increase longevity for the hive. We didn't get a chance to find out if they wintered over because apparently they did so well that they ran out of room and swarmed in mid-October.

The workers will start to make honey immediately but until they do, Judy fills some boxes in the hive with sugar water so they have something to eat.

This year Judy was planning to stock the two hives with another variety of bee. But, when one of her neighbors called to report that there were two swarms in her dwarf lilac at the base of her driveway, she changed her plan and sprung to action. She smoked the swarms and captured them in two boxes and brought them here the next day. She reports that there's a 50/50 chance that a captured swarm will swarm again but hopefully they'll stick around and our hives will be full and she'll be able to harvest a little honey. Another factor that impacts honey harvest is that when a new hive is set, they have to leave a certain amount of honey in the hive for the bees to feed on over the winter so many times they don't get a big harvest the first year. We'll see.

Hannah looks on as Judy shows us the combs that the bees made last year. When that hive left they took all of the honey with them. So Judy left the combs for the new hive - a little less work that they have to do. If the combs were not here, the blanks would be there and the bees would get to work.

We have a lot of bees in the area. If you get a chance to walk under one of the locust trees in the driveway, listen over-head. It almost sounds like a swarm - there are so many different types of bees working the trees now. Judy and Randy love our location as there are many locust trees, bass wood trees, and other pollen sources for tasty, clear honey. It's interesting to hear them refer to different types of honey - like buckwheat or locust or dandelion - and the value associated with each.

Big Planting Weekend

2010-05-30T20:03:00.003-04:00

Memorial Day Weekend always marks the official start of the summer season here in our neck of the woods. It's the day most people use to mark the "last frost date". So, in veggie gardening, it's the day when you can safely plant out tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, beans, etc. I have pushed things a bit this year and planted many of these plants out 1 - 2 weeks ago. So, I thought I'd be in good shape before this day arrived. But alas, there was still much planting to be done.

On Monday I planted a lot of beans - pole beans (snap) and a couple of types of dry beans. Wednesday was the mini-distribution. On Thursday we transplanted eggplant and covered it with row cover along with some of the cucurbits. The cover keeps the flea beetles off of the egg plant and the squash vine borer and cucumber beetle off of the summer squash and melons. We spent much of Friday and yesterday weeding the west garden. It's looking much better.

We also transplanted many flowers that we had started in flats along with some that I purchased from Jana Field. This morning we worked on the potatoes - it takes time to till and hill all of those taters. I did find one potato beetle out there so soon we'll need to start regular sweeps of the patch and pick off those buggers. We broke up the hard pack around the tomatoes, beans and lettuce. We also planted many more flowers along with okra, the 4th planting of lettuce, New Zealand Spinach, and summer turnips. Most of the sunflowers are now in along with edible nasturtium and marigolds and the cutting flowers.

The beans that were planted last Thursday are up and some of the beans planted Monday are already popping through - the next rain will really bring things along.

We still need to get the strawberries in the ground along with the San Marzano tomatoes, many more peppers and more squash, melons and cukes.

All is going well and we look forward to the start of distributions this week. If you want to check things out when you're here, please feel free to walk around.

Recycling Opportunities

2010-05-23T21:12:00.004-04:00

Here's a list of items needed around here as well as ways you can help recycle and reuse the packaging you receive weekly:

1. Every week you'll receive a box of produce. Please return the box the next time you pick up. They're pretty expensive to replace.
2. There will be rubber bands and occasionally a wooden box containing tomatoes or other items. If you can return these that would be greatly appreciated, especially the pint sized wooden boxes.
3. For those that like to shop/go to garage sales: I use a lot of stainless bowls to gather and wash items as well as display them. If you find any large stainless bowls in a thrift store for $2 - $5, or less, and can buy them, I'll buy them from you.
4. We also accept egg cartons to use for our eggs.
5. You probably don't need to return the plastic bags from your boxes.
6. I might use pillow cases or sheets to keep the produce hydrated. If so, please leave that here when you pick up your box.
7. If you have scraps, you can bring them for the chickens. No moldy food or citrus peels or any skins that aren't organic. Also no potato peelings or carrot peelings or other stringy stuff that isn't cooked. They can choke on stringy, fibrous peels. They love meat fat, meat, veggies, bread, dandelions, etc.

If anyone has other recycling ideas, please share them! Thanks!

Mini Box

2010-05-23T20:49:00.005-04:00

Hi there -
Thanks to Julie, Maddie and Libby for coming out this afternoon! We weeded and covered the baby arugula, chinese cabbage and kohl rabi with row cover to protect them from the flea beetle.

This week marks the first opportunity to buy a box of produce. Things are still maturing so we'll start the official CSA distributions next week, June 2 and 5. We have one more box available so if you're interested, please let me know. They're available for $20 and will be ready for pick up on Wednesday between 4 & 6.

When you come to pick up, please enter using the east entrance (closest to Zeeb) and leave using the west entrance. Park in front or on the grass by the cement driveway. Please return your box the next week.

The box will include:
1. Nettles or lambs quarter
2. Kale & buds
3. Collards & buds
4. Lettuce
5. Salad mix including baby chard, arugula and beet greens
6. Mustard Greens
7. Herbs including chives, rosemary, thyme, lemon balm or mint
8. An edible flower arrangement (flowering kale, chives and thyme)
9. Maybe an iris

Here's some info. on nettles:

Nettles are rich in iron and are said to build blood. Peterson's Field Guide to Medicinal plants and Herbs says it is used as a "blood purifier," "blood builder," diuretic, astringent; for anemia, gout, glandular diseases, rheumatism, poor circulation, enlarged spleet, ... The leaves are approved in Germany for supportive treatment of rheumatism and kidney infections. Root preparations approved for symptomatic relief of urinary difficulties associated with early stages of benign prostatic hyperplasia. Unbelievable one plant could help with so much. We like them because they're tasty. Also, when you clean them, if you don't wear gloves, they stimulate blood flow to the fingers which helps with arthritis. It is also said that they're packed with antioxidants. Ways to use nettles:
If the stems are in the bag, use them unless they're really woody. This goes for all distributions. Taste the stem (don't taste nettles without first cooking)and if it's sweet, cook it. You'll save time by not having to take the leaves off of everything and will have more to eat. If they are woody just take off the leaves. Wear gloves if you don't want to "get stung". Wash, spin in salad spinner and use as follows:

1. Saute - they taste a little like oysters - really! They cook down a lot but one or two bites is still very very tasty and worth the effort.
2. Drink in a tea - place a 3 or 4 leaves in a cup, steep for 5 minutes, and drink.
3. Blanch, plunge in ice water, and then drain and make a pesto with them. I'll post a pesto recipe on the recipe blog.

See you all soon.

Rain & Crops

2010-05-13T13:14:00.005-04:00

As I posted last week, rain is on my mind. Over the past 7 days we've had 3.62 inches of rain. That's a lot. The good news is that I think the potatoes are OK. I dug up a few two days ago and they are growing. The leaves are just below the soil's surface so hopefully they'll pop up soon. The bad news is that there's some flooding in the west garden.

On Tuesday, instead of watching the pond rise, I packed up the children and went to IKEA. I love that store for the design aspect of the furniture. I'm always trying to make too much stuff fit into a certain space so, space-saving designs are very appealing. Anyway, on the way, I watched the water. The fields which were freshly planted - parts of which were under water. The businesses with drainage ditches in front - some flowing, some not. But the new developments - they had well-sloping drainage ditches, with nice culverts directing the flow, all down hill, one after another for a good 1/2 mile, across a few older homes, all to a low spot where an older cape code sits. The house is back from the road and, at the time, the water hadn't reached the foundation but I think the owners probably needed a canoe to get to the front door.

So now here we sit - water rising even though the rain has stopped. While I want to do everything I can to protect our crops, I don't want to make my problem someone else's by pumping it out to the ditch. So I decided to move some of the water around on our property. This morning I went out and bought a sump pump and some 1" PVC and I'm now pumping the water out to the orchard. Hopefully, a good amount will sink in and the trees will take it up. Some will wind its way slowly out to the ditch. A quasi rain garden, I guess. When the level is down enough so that the newly planted spinach, cabbage and chard is no longer under water, I'll stop the pump and let the rest of the water seep in naturally.
The hoop house is rocking. I'm really happy that we took the time to trench the sides, add the drain tile and back fill with stone. Drainage is working and, to date, we haven't had any problems with excessive water in the hoop.
Can you see the tomato buds forming?

Of course, the goats don't mind the rain at all. They're happy to be out in the tall grass. Dave and I finally finished sectioning off part of the front pasture and hooking up the electric fence so that the goats could move out of the middle paddock. So watch out - the fence is back on. Make sure you ask which sections are hot. If you touch a live fence, it will hurt but you shouldn't be seriously injured. Still, it's not fun to be zapped.
And that reminds me - Saturday I was opening up the hoop and the pole (which I tell everyone to avoid) came back and bopped me in the forehead. So, 3 sub stitches and 7 top stitches later, I now have a Potter-ish look. FYI.

I still need to work on the share partner matches. With the weather as it has been, I'm tending to think that distributions will begin the first week in June instead of the last week of May. If things heat up, I might keep to the end of May but I'll let you all know.

Work Day Update

2010-05-07T20:53:00.003-04:00

Hi all - Last weekend we had a great turnout. Lori and Ana helped plant over 1800 feet of potatoes. Then on Saturday Kathy and John and Corina and Chris helped to transplant a lot of (maybe 500?) plants of chard and lettuce. Then on Sunday Jenny, Christine, Melissa, Marnie, Mary, Jeannie, and Sue helped with so many tasks - spreading chips in the orchard, pulling weeds in the garlic and pulling invasive garlic mustard and feeding both to the goats, transplanting more cabbage and beets, preparing beds in the hoop, etc. On Tuesday Kathy came back and we got 300' of spinach and 300' of carrots seeded. We also expanded the herb garden. I also planted some more arugula along with tatsoi, joi choi, various radishes and more spinach. So, many volunteers with so much accomplished. I really appreciate everyone's help.

Today I took advantage of the rain and ran a bunch of errands. I finally made it to Selma Cafe - Jeff McCabe and Lisa Gottlieb host breakfast from their home every Friday from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. (maybe 6:30?). The proceeds are then lent out to local farmers for hoop house erection - season extension. It's fantastic. Great music, homey atmosphere (it is their home) and all local and organically-grown food. Allie and Hannah enjoyed blueberry waffles and I had eggs and bacon and toast. We got there late - 9:30 - so they were out of asparagus and the other yummy current veggies. But it was still great to see so many entrepreneurs and supporters of local ag. After that was a whirlwind of other errands. If you're looking for any veggie seedlings make sure to get over to Dexter Mill - Jana Field supplies many of their seedlings. I've purchased from her for many years via the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market. I don't think she grows organically but she does a great job with offering huge variety and I don't think she grows any GMO seed. The Mill also has a beautiful selection of annuals and perennials. Also, Matthei is having their annual plant sale this weekend.

Keep your energy focused on good drainage for the potatoes - may they pop out of the ground quickly.

The end of May is approaching quickly. The plants are still small but a lot will happen in the next 3 weeks.

I'll be working on matching half share members within the next week so you should receive an e-mail by next Thursday about who your partner will be.

The worries of a farmer

2010-05-07T20:38:00.002-04:00

It seems like a lot of people wonder what day to day life is like here on the farm. What's it like to be a farmer. What's it like to do what we do on a daily basis. It's a lot of coordination and planning. It's a lot of communication and juggling. It's a lot of being flexible to changing your plan when rain comes, or doesn't, or plants have an attack of something, or the children need something. Right now, it's a little about worrying. As the growing season shifts into gear the worries of nature come back - hopefully not in a flood - but gushing back just the same. We planted potatoes last Friday. That night we had .3 inches of rain, the following night, 1.3 inches. Nothing significant since but today, 1.4 inches. So now I sit and think about those little potatoes that we so carefully prepared the ground for. We cut them into the right size. We hand dug each hole and made sure their eyes were up. We tucked them in at just the right depth. But, if the water sits there for just a bit too long, they'll rot before they can grow. We'll see. Hopefully in a few days their leaves will pop through and all will be fine. If not, it's early and we still have time to plant again.

For all of the plants that have been planted, I have no worries. They're up and healthy. A few might succumb to wet conditions but, unless there's massive flooding, I'm really not worried at all. They look great.

Potato planting & tour

2010-04-29T19:49:00.003-04:00

Hi all -
I sent out an e-mail but for anyone not on the distribution list: We were planning to plant potatoes Sunday from 12-4 but the forecast calls for rain and thunder showers. So, we're moving the date up. If you can come out tomorrow, April 30 from 9 - 12 or 2 - 4, let me know. Otherwise, Saturday from 12 - 3. We'll still have a mini-work day on Sunday from 1:30 to 3:30 with a quick tour at 3:30.

Besides potatoes we also have other crops to seed as well as some transplanting and mulching and, most likely, weeding under the row covers.

If you do come, it's helpful to bring gloves.

Let me know if you plan to be here so that I'm ready for you. Thanks!

Naragansetts now pre-sold

2010-04-24T10:44:00.003-04:00

Update: The Naragansett turkeys are now pre-sold. We still have 11 White Hollands, 10 White Giants and 8 broad breasted bronze turkeys available. Some have asked whether they can let their friends know about our turkeys. Sure - they're for sale to anyone who wants local turkey.

We will fill orders in the order received. We should know definitively about the # of turkeys that make it to market (Thanksgiving) about a month before so, if we're short, we'll let you know as much in advance as possible.

Thanks!

Turkeys are Here

2010-04-20T08:57:00.004-04:00

White Hollands out for a stroll last fall.

Turkey poults, 5 days old.

Our little cuties arrived last Thursday and they're doing very well. Of 45 birds, we still have 44 and they look great. The first week is tenuous for baby turkeys - they're susceptible to pneumonia if it's drafty, they need to learn to eat and drink, the temperature must be consistent in the brooder. So, when we have a cold snap, it can be difficult for the equipment to keep up. But, the brooder that Dave and I built two years ago is working well. We found the design online and made a few modifications. It's basically a 4' x 4' piece of plywood, with 12" plywood sides and 2" x 4" legs that keeps the structure off the ground about 18". There are two heat lamps in it - one (or both) connected to a pancake thermostat which is adjustable to your temperature of choice. The interior is lined with sheet metal, to help decrease the risk of fire. Currently we have it sandwiched into a corner of the stall where we're keeping them and it's covered with a blanket so that it stays warmer and cuts out drafts. In a week or so, we'll probably be able to take away the blanket. If I'm remembering correctly, the design for this brooder says it will house 200 + baby birds. So, 45 is no problem. They run around and peck at things and eat and drink and sleep. Soon they'll be strutting and trying to fly.

I input a table on our website which discusses the varieties and the price for each. Click on the page titled Our Poultry and you'll find a bit more info. To recap - we have White Hollands and Naragansetts, both heritage breed turkeys which are listed as threatened according to the ALBC, Broad Breasted Bronze, listed as study by ALBC, and White Giants which are the biggies used in commercial production.

So far we've pre-sold 7 birds. The Naragansetts are going quickly. But there are still plenty available so let us know if you're interested in buying one.

Plants are growing!

2010-04-14T21:36:00.002-04:00

Hello all - I've been putting off posting until I have pictures but that might not happen soon so I thought I'd go ahead and provide an update:

1. We've sold most memberships for this year. If you're still thinking about joining, please do so quickly. I will close it at 45 members and may take more in mid-June, after things are clicking along.
2. Thanks to Keely Kaleski who came out a couple of weeks ago and helped plant for a bit. We formed nursery beds in the hoop house and got some chard planted. Thanks also to our neighbor, Tom, who has been working here part time for the past few weeks and took great care of our plants and animals while we went to South Carolina for a few days over Spring Break.
3. In the west garden we have: Stuttgart onions, red onions, sugar snap peas, 2 types of carrots, 3 types of beets, chard, another 2 types of peas, early cabbage, early broccoli and, everyone's favorite, collards. In the hoop we have tomatoes, peppers and cukes along with nursery beds of 3 types of chard, broccoli, cabbage, a few lettuces, onions, shallots, a little summer squash, shallots, and, more kale. I always try to kid about the kale and collards but, honestly, these plants are huge producers of nutrient-rich greens. They grow quickly, are tolerant to fungus and bugs, winter over, produce broccoli-like buds, etc., etc. etc. We hope you will develop a strong affinity for these plants but we know it can take a while. One member bought a veggie juicer last year (the one that pulvarizes the veggies and you end up with a drink) and found just the right mix between apples or other fruits and leafy veggies that she had to have a veggie shake a day. Other members easily took to sauteing the greens and eating as a side dish. Others used them in quiches and froze them or made kale potato pancakes. Still others didn't eat them at all. That's OK. If that happens, just take whatever item it is out of your box and leave it on the extras table and take something from that table. As the season goes on, more and more will be on that table - blemished tomatoes or peppers or huge zucchini or extra greens or strange pumpkins or extra herbs. It all evens out in the end and there's no need to take something that you don't want.
3. The last 2 days have been big work days here. We have been fortunate to have Matthew and Molly working and they'll work again tomorrow. Both have worked on farms in California - Molly growing basil and peppers and other specialty crops and Matthew working on a few veggie CSA/market farms. I met Matthew at the Local Food Summit. They will be moving to northern Michigan on Saturday to begin a care-taker/farmer position at a farm. So, one more day of information sharing and lots of work. The tomatoes are staked in the hoop house, more veggies are planted, tomatoes have been potted up, flowers are in flats, etc. Things are moving here.
4. A few suggestions re. kitchen equipment. If you don't have a salad spinner, you might want to buy one. I find that, for all of the salad greens along with the leafy veggies, a salad spinner is very helpful to prepare meals more quickly. Also, a cuisinart is very helpful. This will allow you to make quick pestos with the basil or mustard greens. I also use it in food preservation quite a bit - especially with relishes or green tomatoes. Also with salad dressings, etc. etc. etc.
I know there's more but I'll post more later along with pictures.

Don't forget - May 2 for potato planting from 12 - 4. We'll have a quick tour at 3:30 if you're interested in seeing the farm.

The Hoop House is Up!

2010-03-22T09:17:00.002-04:00

Drum Roll, please....we have plastic! The weather cooperated this weekend and we were able to stretch and secure the plastic on our 16' x 96' hoop house. Much thanks to our neighbor, Douglas Madaras, builder extraordinaire, who spent a few days here over the past two weeks and my father, Merlin, who helped dismantle this in the fall and re-set it this spring. It's not 100% complete but is very close. I'm going to go to the Habitat Store today to look for some screen doors to add and we need to put up some aluminum along the bottom foot to keep out the air (or plastic) but other than that, we're in business. Dave even got in there yesterday with the tiller. I'll set out some tomato plants in mid-April and will be planting some cold weather plants in there soon.

By the way - planting in the field will be going on this week and next. If anyone has time during the day and wants to get into the dirt, let me know. I'll be out there working.

Here are some photos of the peppers and tomatoes that have now been transplanted into 3" pots. Many more to plant - tomatoes, eggplant, flowers, etc.

Genetically Modified Food

2010-03-07T13:08:00.004-05:00

OK - so they said it would solve hunger world-wide. We'd be able to grow more, more effeciently, with less inputs. The FDA would protect us, right? Unbelievable.

Dave and I attended the Michigan Organic Food and Farm Alliance Conference yesterday and heard from Jeffrey Smith, author of "Seeds of Deception" and "Genetic Roulette" among other books. I can't spend a lot of time writing right now but, suffice it to say, GMO is bad. It causes: 1. 55% mortality rate in fetal rats, 2. Dramatic increases in allergy rates, 3. Blue balls in rats. The gene is passed through the food to your intestinal tract. It continues to survive there.

Will write more later but, please please please, try to buy non-GMO food. This relates to corn, soy, even sugar. Ask the manager at the store if they can stock n0n-GMO food. Buy organic, if you can, as GMOs are prohibited in organic growing.

If we can get 5% of the nation to do this, maybe we can be successful with getting the producers to notice that this is an important point to consider. Europe did it - they now have labeling and GMOs are not allowed. We can do it too!

2010 Veggie List

2010-03-03T14:17:00.004-05:00

Hello all - I've updated the vegetable list on the website. These are the seeds that have arrived thus far. I know there will be a few others - like some Cherokee Trail of Tears Black Beans (an ARK variety) and another variety of onions and lettuce.

We haven't made any progress on the hoop house. Not surprisingly, with the snow last week, no one volunteered to come over. I don't think we could have gone out there anyway. Maybe we could try to work on the hoop house Sunday, March 14. Let me know if you're available.

This weekend is the Michigan Organic Food and Farm Alliance Conference. Dave and I will both attend on Saturday - should be a good one.

Yesterday was the Local Food Summit at the School of Natural Resources in Ann Arbor. What an excellent event filled with so many local farmers and community members committed to promoting local food. Here's an excerpt from an article from Ann Arbor.com:

"The Local Food Summit continues today in the Dana Building on campus, where the discussions that started last night will continue in breakout sessions and committees. The goal of this summit is to work toward The 10% Campaign - a push to increase the percentage of locally-grown food in Washtenaw County. Today, county residents source less than 1 percent of the food they eat locally, but organizers hope that their efforts will be able to increase that to 10 percent, resulting in over $90 million “in new direct economic activity.”"

First Work Day & Hoop House

2010-02-21T19:08:00.007-05:00

Hi there - here's to the enthusiasm of new members! Robin & Steve and Erin & Ben came over last Saturday for a tour and to lend a hand. Robin, Erin, Hannah & I planted 7 flats of tomatoes, peppers, and broccoli. The guys worked on trying to ream out the posts for the hoop house. After 3 hours of: trying to pound out the clay with a sledge; going home for a power washer and attempting to hook it up with frozen hoses; trying to ream them out with a paddle drill; they finally stopped, after clearing 2 of approx. 50 pipes. The next day: Dave borrowed Mike's (Stadium Hardware) hammer drill and dropped it; tried to fix it, took it back; rented a small jack hammer from A-1; the two of us jack hammered away for about 2 more hours and cleared maybe 3 more pipes. Finally, Dave went to Bob's who pulled out the right tool and Dave cleaned out the rest in about 2 hours. So, that job done, we were ready to erect the hoop house.

Now everyone who has been around for awhile knows how excited I've been to get to this job. We thought it might happen in October or November but Thanksgiving was around the corner and most of you also know that around that time, I do every job to the house that has been delayed throughout the year - paint, mud walls, hang ceiling fixtures - whatever. So, the hoop house was on delay. Then the freeze came. Then I came up with a machine that would supposedly do the trick even if the ground was frozen. No time. So, with winter break upon us, we set the goal of erecting the house. With two new members volunteering to come out, I thought it would be helpful if Dave could get some help with those pipes. It started the ball rolling on Saturday. Finally, on Friday we went out to set our corner posts. 4 corners in. 2 so damaged from using the make-shift pipe insert which was supposed to "protect" the pipe that they will probably need to be cut in order to accept the hoops. So, we had to call the factory. It's been a long time since I've called a factory where the first person I speak with can actually answer a question - even longer still that the person can walk over to the "Manager of Installation" - who's on a machine in the plant and has to come down to talk - to confirm that what she's telling me is correct. Jaderloon, folks - if you need a greenhouse, give them a call. They took about an hour out of their day to ship us 2 $10 parts. So, end of story, they sent us the proper post driver and we have now erected 13 hoops and only have about 9 more to go. Woo hoo! There's a lot more to go before we can get the plastic up and secured but hopefully it will be done in 2 -3 weeks, in time to move the seedlings out and get things moving.

So, for anyone who has thought about coming out to help, please give a shout. I'll figure out a job to do and it will be one that needs to be done and you will help move things along. Thanks again Robin, Erin, Steve & Ben.

2010-02-12T17:53:00.001-05:00

Sandy had 3 kids today! Nathan, Grandpa Gerry, and I helped in the delivery. All are standing, nursing and seem well. Now we're just waiting for Dixie to deliver.

2010 Turkeys

2010-02-09T09:27:00.005-05:00

When I first started researching the cost of heritage breed turkeys, I was surprised to see them for sale at $7.50 - $10/pound. How can that be when you can go to the market and buy them for $0.39/lb before Thanksgiving? Are they crazy? Now, after raising them and actually accounting for the costs, I understand. We raised Naragansett turkeys 3 and 4 years ago. Before that we raised Broad Breasted Bronze. We had one tom B.B.B. which dressed out at 38 lbs! He was fully mature (about 2). The 6 - 8 month birds were between 18 & 25 lbs. The Naragansetts (heritage breed) dressed out between 14 & 22 lbs. at around 7 or so months. Not bad. This past year we purchased 7 Blue Slate and 10 White Hollands, also both heritage breeds. Now, most people know that I'm all for raising animals that are sustainable. I like the goats because they are healthy, require less land to graze, make it to market relatively quickly, etc. It is said that the heritage breed turkeys can forage nicely, can reproduce naturally, and aren't as inbred as some of the "commercial" breeds, thus may have fewer health problems. I don't know what happened, but of the 7 Blue Slates, only 1 made it to market. Of the 10 White Hollands, 7 made it. The Blue Slates were weak from the start, lost eyesight, and were not very adventurous. So, we won't order them again. The White Hollands did well. But, in the end, they dressed out at a max of 15 lbs for the toms and 8 for the hens. It costs approx. $10/chick. Processing is $7.50/bird. So, as you can see, it's impossible to sell a bird for about $2/lb. when they are so small. If you add in solely the cost of feed, it cost us $5.89 to raise 8 turkeys this year. I sold them for $4.50/lb because I had told people that would be the approx. cost (which it would have been if they had reached a higher weight). So, we had 2 turkeys for Thanksgiving. If I subtract out the gross proceeds from the costs, the result is that our 2 turkeys cost us $226 or $7.63/pound. Of course, the labor and overhead are not factored into any of this. So, I now understand why some people are charging $7.50 - $10 per pound for turkey. I will say that the taste of White Holland is the best we've had - they were tender, juicy and excellent. Those of you who bought the birds this year might want to comment (there were only 3 people) individually but I heard comments that concurred that these were the best tasting turkeys ever. All of this said, I realize that not all people can afford meat at $6/pound. So we'll raise some of the giants. Their feed conversion ratio is higher than the heritage breeds - they're too heavy to fly so they don't expend as much energy as others. Since they grow larger, we can charge less per pound. We realize that we can't offer birds at $0.39/lb. but we hope to be able to offer healthy meat at a price point that is affordable, thus sustainable.

What happened in 2009?

We ordered 2 breeds that looked cool. There is quite a bit of info. out there on the White Holland. But we couldn't find much on the Blue Slate. I think there's a reason for that - sometimes people don't raise certain breeds because they just don't do well. So, we won't buy Blue Slates again.
We "pasture raised" the birds. What does this mean? Dave built a very nice enclosure for them and we put them out in the goat paddock. It has a corrugated roof and is made from ash slab wood from our forest. It's surrounded by poultry wire. Every 3 days or so, he went out and moved the pen so that the birds would have fresh grass and a fresh supply of bugs. When we could, we let them out for exercise. They'd spend 3 - 4 hours walking around - flying up on the roof, looking at themselves in the windows, pooping all over the place. Our neighbor did her best to keep them out of her flowers - it's kind of like shooing away a squirrel from a feeder - they just keep coming back. Turkeys love to look at themselves so they're drawn to doors and windows at the house. The dog likes to bark at them. It's all very amusing if you can keep your sense of humor. Every once in awhile we'd have to go out and herd them back from the road or out of our other neighbor's garden (she doesn't really like turkey peck marks in her tomatoes). If they get into the lettuce, forget it! We didn't clip their wings so they could go anywhere. Before dinner, we'd have to herd them back to their enclosure.
One Saturday morning Dave went out to let them out for their weekend walk and 4 were dead. A raccoon had found them and the birds had stuck their heads through the enclosure in an attempt to escape. So that was bad. He reinforced the enclosure with smaller wire so that they couldn't stick their heads through and we didn't have another occurrence. But, we're always mindful of the risk of predators. It's said a weasel will finish off a whole flock; we hear the coyotes at night; the hawks circle the chickens during the day. We try to keep losses to a minimum but realize that we are part of nature.
One turkey looked to the sky a bit too long during a rainstorm.
One turkey walked into the woods never to return (a Blue Slate, of course).
And 3 chicks died within 3 days of delivery - two Blue Slates (we did receive a refund for those).

So, that's the turkey tale of 2009.

What's up for 2010?

I wonder about letting the birds out. I know that they'd gain weight faster if they weren't flying around and using their energy to spar with each other for the attention of the hen (the toms start this at about 10 days old - strutting around, looking all puffed up). But, they also wouldn't be as happy. When they're out, they cluck and chat and goof off. Quality of life vs. quanity.
We're going to raise 4 types of birds this year. The White Hollands will be $6/lb., Naragansetts will be $4.50 (or maybe 4), Broad Breasted Bronze about $3.25/lb. and White Giants $3. Maybe the giants will be less but they won't be more. Again, the larger breeds are generally huge. We like this especially for ground turkey - it's much easier to get a good amount of ground meat from one large turkey than 3 small ones.
Maybe we'll save 3 hens and a tom so that we can raise our own chicks next year. We tried to hatch 9 turkeys 2 years ago and only 3 made it out of their shell. They were cute and lived in with the goats. They would hitch a ride with the goats. One day, the hen got under a goat's foot. So we were left with 2. Anyway, we had fun letting the chicken hens rear their chicks last spring and I've read that people have good luck with turkey poults in this manner so maybe we'll give it a try.

If you'd like to reserve a turkey for this fall, please let me know - tell me if you want a heritage breed, the approx. size bird you'd like, send a $10 deposit per bird, and I'll write you down. The deposit is refundable if we don't get a bird to you. They will arrive the week of March 22 and will be processed before Thanksgiving (hopefully 3 - 5 days before).

Goat Meat - Nutritional Information

2010-02-09T08:47:00.004-05:00

We're preparing to process our first goat for meat. Despite our efforts not to name our goat kids, they all have names. A family from Midland bought Brown Foot about a month ago. By now, hopefully he has gotten to know their milking goats and is expecting some kids of his own in 4 1/2 or so months. Dixie's first kid, which Allie has named Lars, is now in training to walk on a lead and, hopefully, be a nice buck (is there such a thing?). We'll keep him for future breeding purposes and to someday show. White Ear is headed for the processor within the next week or so. I bought some goat meat from Monaghan's (Kerry Town meat market) a couple of weeks ago. I bought a partial slab of ribs and a shoulder roast. I didn't par boil the ribs - just barbecued them. They were a bit tough for us. But the shoulder roast was excellent - tender and not gamey as we were a bit afraid of. We slow roasted the roast in the convection oven. So, now that the taste test is over, we will process White Ear and fill up the remaining space in our freezer. I know some people ask how we can eat the animals that we raise. My response is that I have a hard time eating animals that are raised by someone that I don't know or can't visit. Here we know what they're eating, what they're breathing, what they've taken if they are sick, if they were ever sick, etc. We know what we're eating. We appreciate that the animals help complete the growing circle here on our farm.

The following is an excerpt from article by Jean-Marie Lughinbuhl, “Meat Goat Production in North Carolina”, 1997, Last modified February 28, 2000. It was published through the North Carolina State Cooperative Extension.

Comparison of Goat Meat to Other Meats (3 oz roasted)
Animal Calories Total Fat Saturated Fat Protein grams
Goat 122 2.58 .79 23
Beef 245 16.00 6.80 23
Pork 310 24.00 8.70 21
Lamb 235 16.00 7.30 22
Chicken 12 0 3.50 1.10 21

In addition to the health benefits of goat meat, goats require less land to raise than beef as they are excellent foragers. If they had their way, they'd eat up to 60% of their diet in scrub brush. Depending upon the quality of the pasture, 10 - 14 goats can be maintained per acre and goats are processed between 6 and 12 months of age. It takes about 2 acres of pasture per grass-fed cow and up to 2 years, depending on the breed and whether the feed is supplemented with corn.

Food Preservation

2009-12-27T14:45:00.004-05:00

Most of the year I am busy planting, weeding, mulching, picking, and trying to keep up with household chores and the children. In order to ensure that we'd have some home-raised vegetables during the winter, much of the fall was spent trying to preserve the veggies. I think I spent about 30 days during September and October cleaning, dicing, canning, freezing and drying. Here's a list of what was put up this year. I'm sure we won't quite make it until late April or mid-May, when the veggies will be growing once again but it will be close:
- About 1 1/2 gallons of tabasco sauce. Now, there are three types and I gave quite a bit away for Christmas so we're probably down to 3/4 gallon. There's the green tobasco (a mix of jalapenos, pablanos, and mole peppers), the red tobasco (chile, ripe jalapenos, and thai peppers) and habanero peppers (all habanero, all the time). Depending on your mood, we have a spice level to please.
- July - 7 quarts of pickles
- August - 36 bags (about a pound each) of green beans - blanched and frozen, 9 pints of relish
- September & into October - 12 bags of beans, 2 bags of broccoli, 16 half-pints and 13 pints of ketchup, 60 quarts of tomatoes, 8 pints of green tomatoes (canned) and 3 quarts of green tomatoes (refrigerator), 9 half-pints of chutney, 21 pints of salsa, 11 half-pints of relish, 12 half pints and 4 pints of apple butter, 8 bags of apple sauce (frozen), 14 half-gallons of apple juice
- October - a quart of oven-dried tomatoes preserved in olive oil and a quart-size bag of oven-dried tomatoes in the freezer
December - 12 bags of kale, 10 bags of brussel sprouts, 5 bags of chard, 20 small heads of cabbage (wrapped in saran wrap and in the fridge), a gallon size bag of turnips (fridge)

There are still carrots and parsnips in the ground so we can dig those as well. We also have about 5 quarts of sour kraut left from last year and probably 50 quarts of '08 tomatoes (I did a lot of tomatoes last year).

Garlic

2009-11-16T10:24:00.002-05:00

The garlic is in the ground and mulched! We purchased about 30 pounds of garlic from 2 Sisters Garlic Farm which is a Certified Organic from located in IA. It was shipped to our home and planted last Sunday, Monday and Tuesday. Thanks to Carla and Mike for helping out and to Nathan, who also helped me plant.

The varieties planted are: German Red (7.5#), Polish White (8 #), Italian Purple (9.75#), Metechi (5#) and Siberian (1/2#). We look forward to garlic scapes in the spring and some nice cloves in July/August.

Wrapping up 2009

2009-10-21T21:41:00.007-04:00

Well, we're nearing the end of the growing season for 2009 but I still feel like there's so much to do. For instance, I'm still going to transplant some kale and chinese cabbage - it will provide a start for next year's greens. We need to pull out all of the existing vines (tomato, squash, etc.) and compost them or burn them. We need to spread poo - there's always that this time of year and luckily our manure spreader is nearing completion of repairs. And, of course, we need to disc, till, soil test, and fertilize as applicable, the new ground for the hoop house. Then maybe we can plant for winter! I'm really looking forward to going out there in January and working the soil - pure bliss for me! A dream now but hopefully reality soon. If we get it up and anyone wants to come out to work for a day, please give me a call. I often take trips to greenhouses in the winter and while this isn't quite a greenhouse, hopefully it will simulate the experience.

Back to the present. As many of you know, I'm always worried that things won't move along but, somehow, all seems to work out. That said, who knows what we'll have in about 4 weeks for the holiday distribution. The brussels sprouts are starting to head up. It's been so cold this year that they're really taking their time. Of about 60 plants out there, there are 3 that are ready to pick. But they should move along in 4 weeks. The broccoli and cauliflower are taking their time as well - it's hard to know if the cauliflower will make it before the big freeze but the broccoli continues to make shoots. The heads of cabbage that are out there look OK now - they might be a bit small but we should get something out of them. The young beets in the front garden are looking promising and I'm hoping that they'll be of some size in a month. Who knows about the young rutabaga and kohl rabi. The carrots and parsnips look great out front - I haven't pulled any yet but the carrots are Scarlet Nantes and Scarlet Keepers - super sweet, long carrots. I was disappointed with the Danver's Half Long which I've been distributing much of this season - they are sweet and tasty but are small (as the name implies) so next year I'll probably skip these or just plant the remaining seeds. Of course, there's always the greens - kale, collards and chard. I think we live on these and I know many of our members have become converts which is so cool!

Here are some pics of Steve Schultz plowing our goat paddock. The landscape has changed. I'll post more pics of the garden as it is now soon.

I'm receiving daily or every other day inquiries as to joining for next season. So, I'm now forming a list. I will give priority to members from 2009. If you could let me know by December 1 if you intend to join again, that would be helpful. After that, I will start taking new members as secured by a deposit. I know that we will be listed in Edible Wow this year so I expect that we'll receive additional inquiries from that exposure as well.

If anyone knows someone who's looking to work here, please let me know. I also receive inquiries from students looking for practical experience and I'm happy to have them here. I know I'll need some dependable, consistent help this next year - it's not always easy or relaxing, but it's definitely rewarding work and I think it's fun!

2009-10-02T14:53:00.000-04:00

Chili Peppers & Scoville Ratings

2009-09-26T15:35:00.003-04:00

As you know, we grow some hot peppers. The thai peppers just started to ripen and the habeneros are now ripening as well. Dave and I are getting ready to make some more tobasco sauce because, you know, 1 1/2 gallons just isn't enough. It will keep for a long time - our last batch kept in a glass jar in the refrigerator for 3 years and seemed to get better as time went by. We've been talking about Scoville ratings so I thought I would pass on this post from a website I found. Our habeneros are Scotch Bonnet - be careful with them & enjoy!

http://www.ifood.tv/blog/chiles_scoville_ratings

There are two ways of classifying chile peppers—by their heat and shape. In 1912, pharmacist Wilbur Scoville invented a test to measure the hotness of peppers by diluting the pepper until the heat was just perceptible on the tongue. The Scoville rating is measured in multiples of 100; he rated a bell pepper 0, while a Japanese chile came in at 20,000 on the Scoville scale.

Scoville Chile Heat Chart
Variety	Rating	Heat Level
Sweet Bells; Sweet Banana; and Pimento	0	Negligible Scoville Units
Mexi-Bells; Cherry; New Mexica; New Mexico; Anaheim; Big Jim	1	100-1,000 Scoville Units
Ancho; Pasilla; Espanola; Anaheim	2	1,000 - 1,500 Scoville Units
Sandia; Cascabel	3	1,500 - 2,500 Scoville Units
Jalapeno; Mirasol; Chipotle; Poblano	4	2,500 - 5,000 Scoville Units
Yellow Wax; Serrano	5	5,000 - 15,000 Scoville Units
Chile De Arbol	6	15,000 - 30,000 Scoville Units
Aji; Cayenne; Tabasco; Piquin	7	30,000 - 50,000 Scoville Units
Santaka; Chiltecpin; Thai	8	50,000 - 100,000 Scoville Units
Habanero; Scotch Bonnet	9	100,000 - 350,000 Scoville Units
Red Savina Habanero; Indian Tezpur	10	350-855,000 Scoville Units

Make hay while the sun shines!

2009-09-01T22:00:00.008-04:00

Well, we are in peak harvest and, thankfully, the boxes are full of a variety of produce. Last week we had onions, garlic, potatoes, chard, carrots, peppers, okra, eggplant, melons, turnips, beets, beans, tomatoes, summer squash, herbs and flowers. I'm probably forgetting something - needless to say, it's a lot of fun this time of year!

The good thing about a polyculture farm is the variety. As we talked about at the onset, sometimes certain crops just fail. In farming, I am reminded daily to make hay while the sun shines! As all know, we had broccoli and a little cauliflower for a short time before Black Rot set in and we had to pull the plants in June. (luckily we have the West Garden for the fall crops) Then we had 3 or 4 great weeks of cukes before Downy Mildew set in and halted production. Now it appears that we are up against Late Blight for the tomatoes. I pulled about 12 - 15 plants (of the 100 +) today in the west garden which I suspect have Late Blight. I'll probably pull more tomorrow. So far, we've only seen Septoria Leaf Spot on a few of the romas. I have done quite a bit of research on this disease and, from onset of the disease, a plant can die within 6 days so it's imperative that you move quickly. From what I've read, it's widespread on the west side of Michigan but I haven't yet found out the progression throughout the rest of the state. Of course, heat and sun can slow the progression but we haven't had much of that lately. So, lesson of the day? If you want to put up some tomatoes, get them while you can. You never know if they'll be here tomorrow.

p.s. - I pick tomatoes and offer them in varying stages of ripeness. This way, they'll keep longer and hopefully will crack less. So, if you see them on the table with a little green on part of the tomato, or even 1/2 green, take a few. They'll ripen throughout the week and you'll have an ongoing supply of ripe, tasty tomatoes.

Other notes: The beans are about done - we might get a few more - but peas are now starting so we should have sugar snap peas in a few weeks. The summer squash is nearing its end as well but the winter squash and pumpkins are starting. We'll be harvesting the Adirondack Blue potatoes this week. The beets and summer turnips are in their glory along with the chard, collards and kale. The eggplant is slowing but the carrots are cruising. So, in a nutshell, we're again turning the corner on the seasons.

Hope you're enjoying peak harvest!

Peak Harvest

2009-08-23T15:21:00.003-04:00

As members know, we've been enjoying the summer harvest for a few weeks now and we're now moving to peak harvest time in Michigan. The beans, summer squash peppers, eggplant, carrots, etc. have been producing heavily over the past few weeks. The cucumbers did well for 3 - 4 weeks but have stopped now. We've been able to harvest a few melons. We dug the Yukon Gold potatoes today and filled a little more than a 5 gallon bucket. The winter squash is now starting to mature.

Over about the past week and a half we've had Powdery Mildew move in to the squash plants. We are spraying with baking soda and dish soap (1 tsp. baking soda and 1 tsp. dish soap per quart of water). This seems to be helping. Also, the squash vine borer (SVB as it's known in the list serves) has moved in. At first sight of infestation of these guys, move quickly. Inspect the base of your squash vine (winter or summer) daily. When you see the sawdust-like excrement at the base of the stem, cut into the stem. Start with about a 1/4 inch incision at the point of entry, moving outward from the root base, maybe 2" long. Keep going until you find the grub. Sometimes there are a lot of grubs - 4 - 5. Sometimes there's just one big grub. Find it and dig it out. Then spray with pyrethrin. I sprayed into the stem at the point of incision. On a few of the stems where I felt infestation was severe, I sliced the top half of the vine off and dug around to kill the grubs and then covered the wound with soil. In the past I've had about a 50% success rate but this was after the plants started to wilt. This time it's about a 75 - 80% success rate.

Early July

2009-07-02T19:44:00.007-04:00

It's been awhile since I've posted here so I thought I'd provide an update.

Plants:

We're still harvesting the greens - kale, collards, swiss chard, and lettuce - on a regular basis.
Last Wed. I handed out some onion blooms. Some people took them and some didn't so we had leftovers. Wow! I sauteed them in a few table spoons of oil and sprinkled a bit of salt on them and they tasted like onion rings. We just ate them as a snack but I know you can use them as you would an onion. We rarely have these so if you see them on the table again, I recommend trying them. They're seed pods that grow on the tip of the onion and need to be removed as the onions grow. All plants don't make them.
The mustard is still growing as well although it's starting to go to seed. If you'd still like some mustard, I'm happy to pick a bunch. It's still really good for pesto and you can stock your freezer with a few batches until the next batch in the fall is harvested. The blooms are really strong and add a lot of zip to your pesto.
The peas have been in for a few weeks now! The snap peas and shelling peas are excellent and are still growing well due to the cold weather. There aren't as many blooms on the plants as in weeks past so they may be slowing but the taste is outstanding! We pick these 1 - 2 times per day and save them in the fridge until distribution day. Enjoy!
The rutabaga, turnips and beets are small but we're picking them if they reach any usable size. As soon as the temps turn upward, they'll probably be bitter. So, we hope you're enjoying them as well.
We just started picking a few carrots. Woo hoo! They're also small but will keep growing. If you use them soon after you receive them (1 or 2 days) you may find that all you need to do to "skin" them is wash with a green scrubbie to rub off the outer layer. If I use them the same day as I pick them, this is all I do. But, if they're in the fridge for awhile, the skins get a little tougher. Also, I'm sending them with the greens on. You may want to cut off the greens the day you receive them so that they don't pull moisture out of your carrot.
The broccoli is starting to head up. I cut one head on Wed. and have 3 or 4 to cut for tomorrow. So, I think I'm going to hand these out on the honor system - take a head if there is one. If you get one this week, don't take one next week, unless I have a ton that matures. There are about 30 plants of broccoli out there but they're not all maturing at once and I don't want to cut the heads prematurely. After we get the main harvest, we'll continue to get shoots of broccoli which are good but aren't the head form that you usually buy. Again, this is our summer crop and we'll have another crop in the fall.
The kohl rabi is almost done (I have 4 more plants to pick) but we'll have more in September.
The tomatoes, beans, zucchini, peppers, cukes and melons are all coming along. There are blooms on some of the plants and some small tomatoes and peppers. With a little heat, these plants should move along and we should have new veggies in the box soon.
Let me know if you still are enjoying the lettuce. Some of the plants are nearing the end as well.
I said I wasn't going to plant corn this year but we planted a little anyway. It's only about 3" tall so let's keep our fingers crossed for a few ears of corn in September.

Bugs:

There are some cabbage worms on the collards. I haven't noticed them on the kale yet but I'm sure there are some. Occasionally there will be bugs on other plants. I've had some people wonder whether you need to wash your veggies before you put them in the fridge. I don't and haven't had a problem with them going crazy and crawling all over. I think they probably go close to dormant in there because it's so cold. I just wash them before we make dinner.
I stated that there were aphids on the dill but I think these were lacewing eggs. The lacewing is a beneficial insect.
We've seen quite a few lady bug larvae along with adult lady beetles. We're also now noticing the brachanoid wasp which is very exciting! I think we actually had some parasitized potato beetle larvae but I wasn't sure so we still put the buggers in soapy water when we found them. They say if you find a parasitized worm (horn worm or cabbage worm) you should leave them alone so that the wasp eggs will hatch.
The Nicotiana plant is working as a trap plant for the potato beetle! Those of you who planted the little seeds by the potatoes will be happy to see this.
The row covers are still in place and I hope they'll keep the cucumber beetles away. Again, these beetles transmit a bacteria that causes the plants to wilt and die. We're uncovering the plants every few days so that the pollinators can move in and then we're re-covering them a few hours later.
I just saw our first praying mantid yesterday. It was in the thyme. Yeah! To encourage these in your garden, don't use pesticides, don't buy non-native species and leave some plants from year to year (don't till everything up). Our herb garden is a good place for them to place their egg sacks.
In general, we've been fortunate to see many many more beneficial insects in the garden then pests. Go bugs, Go!

General notes:

If you're finding things wilted at all, you can generally rehydrate by placing a moist paper towel in with your greens.
Generally I refridgerate the veggies after I pick although I'm finding that this can dehydrate things a little faster than if I just cover them with a damp sheet. So, I'll continue to experiment with the best way to keep it looking as if it were just picked (which it probably was). Please let us know if you have any comments.
We've been using the tops of the turnips, rutabaga and beets as our vegetables in chicken stock. It's pretty tasty.
Apparently you can eat the carrot tops. I haven't tried this but plan to throw them in the next time I make stock. Let me know if you've eaten them before and how you used them.
We're keeping close to even with the weeds. Cyntha, Mike and Carla came out last week to help with weeding and planting of pumpkins and jack-o-lanterns. Kathy came out Wed. and helped me prepare the distribution. Thank you all for your help! We also bought more mulch so we're getting ready to weed a bit more and spread the mulch.
If you have any questions about the veggies, you can always refer to the veggie list which is posted on our website. Sometimes there's some good info. there that I copied off of the seed pack.
I'm still trying to figure out how to blog about recipes. I haven't figured out how to get the posting to list alphabetically instead of chronologically. If anyone know about this, please help.
If anyone has access to moldy hay, please let me know. I'm not looking for manure as I find that sometimes if we bring manure here from another farm it contains stuff that I don't want. But, moldy hay or hay that's been sitting around too long is good for mulch.

We hope you have a safe and fun 4th of July!

Plants are growing!

2009-06-07T18:34:00.011-04:00

All we can say is, "Wow"! Thanks to all who have been helping out around here. We couldn't have done it without your help. Yesterday Suzanne, Gerry, Dorothy, Chris, Corina, Terry, Carolyn and Royla joined us for some hard work. We planted many hills of cukes and winter squash. We planted potatoes and sunflowers. We weeded out some rows and planted other flowers. And we covered up many plants with row cover to hopefully protect them from the onslaught of the cucumber beetles which will be coming soon. I thought you might enjoy some pics of the plants growing. If you have time when you pick up your veggies, feel free to walk around and look at what we've done! Also, please feel free to feed the chickens any scraps (including meat fat, but not bones or chicken) when you stop by. They love it!

Photos shown: Black Simpson lettuce, 2nd year kale (much of the source of the "various blooms" in the box), Chinese cabbage, squash covered by row covers in front garden, sunflower patch in front garden, snap peas, gladiola sprouts, onions growing in front garden, zucchini squash growing under row cover in west garden, okra seedlings, tomato plants interplanted with basil, pepper plants in west garden.

Row covers in and First Distribution out - woo hoo!

2009-05-31T20:53:00.005-04:00

Everyone has received their first full share - we hope you are enjoying everything. There were a few things included in Saturday's share that weren't in Wednesday's share - broccoli raab and chinese cabbage, to be specific. As crops mature, they will be handed out so, as much as I'm trying to make everything even, it might vary from day to day. In the end, I'm sure it will all balance out.

Mary and Bob Wessner came over today and Steve and Mary Kolasa came over earlier in the week. We got a lot done! We have about 25 hills of summer squash, some muskmelon and watermelon, cukes, more onions, sunflowers and zinnias, beans, more tomatoes, more basil, more carrots and brussels sprouts. Thanks for your help! We still need to plant all of the winter squash, potatoes, more sunflowers and fl0wer seedlings and I'm sure other things. In addition, the weeds are taking off along with the veggies so pretty soon we might have to have a weeding day. This might be something you would like to do one evening as I can point you in the right direction and leave you to your thoughts with the weeds.

We also installed some row covers over the cukes, squash, melons and eggplant. This should help with the flea beetle and the cucumber beetle. These beetles decimate the eggplant and the cuke beetle can kill the plants by spreading a bacteria from plant to plant (fusarium wilt). So, hopefully this will help. Hopefully we won't have a problem with the squash vine borer - keep your fingers crossed on that one.

Have a great week! Let me know if you have any good recipes that you'd like to share. I'll be working on a recipe blog in the near future.

Here is a recipe recommended by Julie Campbell - her 6 year old gave it two thumbs up so I'm sure it's tasty. I don't know if the link will work but give it a try.
http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=88998006253&h=vQJap&u=57vXF&ref=nf

Start of Distributions!

2009-05-25T08:49:00.004-04:00

Distributions start this week! The options are Wednesday evening between 4:30 - 7 and Saturday morning between 9 & 12. If that doesn't work out, please let us know. Unless you tell us otherwise, we'll assume you'll pick up your share on the same day each week. Please let us know at least 3 days in advance if you need to change your pick-up time. If you haven't responded yet, please do so below. That way others can see when things are scheduled. So far I know 3 people will pick up Wed. and 3 will pick up Saturday. We're trying to keep the #'s roughly even for each day.

I'll put together a list of the items that should be in the share for the week. They will include lettuce, kale, collards, mustard greens, spinach, maybe some broccoli raab, thyme, oregano, chives, some lilly of the valley, maybe an iris, maybe some rhubarb and maybe some nettles. I'll probably put the nettles, rhubarb and flowers in an optional bin. If there is something in the package that you do not want, please place the item on the "overflow table". If there's something there that you'd like, please help yourself. We'll figure out what to do with leftovers - maybe they'll be held over until the next pick-up (day-old veggie pile) or maybe they'll go to the chickens or, if we have a lot, I'll figure out how to donate excess produce to Food Gatherer's or another organization.

We got a lot done on Wednesday and Saturday - thanks to all who came out! This last week, we planted about 100 tomato plants, 200 pepper plants, a nice row of Okra, some flowers and herbs. We still have about 200 tomato seedlings that we started from seed along with quite a few flowers also started indoors. Would anyone like a tomato plant? Those will go in over the next 2 weeks along with beans, cukes, summer squash, sunflowers, etc. etc. etc.

Re. Future work days:
We're going to change the time to 9-12 (unless you want to come earlier, just let us know). It's too hot now to work in the afternoons.

See you this week! I probably won't be here Wed. evening so if I miss you, I'll see you next week.

Help wanted!

2009-05-17T16:44:00.011-04:00

See 3rd paragraph re. first distribution!

It's hard to believe that we're nearing the end of May. There's a chance of frost tonight but, hopefully, after this, it will be clear sailing until mid-September. This means that we're going to go full on for planting - tomatoes, peppers, tons of seeds, potatoes, etc., etc., etc. If you haven't been out yet to work, please try to be here between 1 & 4 either May 23, May 30 or June 6 (even if you have been out, your help will be welcome :) ). If you're not into planting, you could come sometime during the week to help me lay things out - place stakes, run string, prep the rows, write out labels, get the water to the west garden, etc. Just let me know. I know there were a few people who prefer to work during the week, in the evening. That's certainly an option - just give us a call or send an e-mail and we'll work it in. There's lots to do!
Thanks to Royla and Gerry who came over this week and worked to help me start the chicken tractor. It was a lot of work! It's on wheels and has made it from the small barn to the driveway by the house (without falling apart). Hopefully I'll finish it this week and 1/2 of the hens and their one significant other will move into the apple orchard.

Plant update: Things are starting to look official around here. We've thinned out the plantings in the hothouse and moved them into rows outside. We just started eating spinach and a little lettuce along with the kale that was planted last fall. The spinach, kale, collards, mustard greens and lettuce will be ready to harvest in the next 2 weeks. Maybe some radishes as well, along with thyme, oregano, lemon balm, cilantro, and, if the weather stays cool, nettles. So, we'll start distributions May 27 & 30. I think we'll have enough for a starter. I'll send out an e-mail next week and ask you to let me know if and when you'll be picking up your share (Wed. eve. between 4:30 and 7 or Saturday mornings between 9 & 12). For those who are sharing a share, I'll label your box with both names and let you figure out who's picking up the box for the week.

We're looking forward to the start of the distributions! We've been working diligently to try to help things grow around here.

FYI - we're seeing toads in the hothouse daily and the bees are more prevalent in the yard and are busily working their new hive. No sign of dragon flies, garter snakes or praying mantis yet but we're waiting for them to come out as well.

1st week of May

2009-05-06T20:17:00.004-04:00

Plants are growing and bees are buzzing. Judy & Randy Durfy received their bee shipment on Saturday around 6 p.m. They drove to the drop off in Milford, picked up 2 hives, brought one here and placed them in the hive, and then drove to Trenton to place their 2nd hive. The workers are busy getting to know their new home and are exploring the area. They are in the woods, about 30 yards south of the driveway by the back small barn - you can't miss the yellow hive.

All of the chinese cabbage, broccoli and cauliflower has now been transplanted from the cold frames to the front garden. The back garden has all sprouted (planted almost 2 weeks ago now). The flea beetles have found many of the brassicas. They do some serious damage very quickly so watch out for 1 mm black beetles (small holes in the leaves). I think we've saved the plants though. Nathan sprayed many of the veggies with deer repellent today (putrified egg spray - it stinks!). He was concerned about the rabbit that lives in the Forsythia bush. We planted some ginger today - let's see what happens - and transplanted some of the kale and collards out of the hot house. Other than that, the garlic is about 4 - 6" tall now, the onions are between 6" and 1 foot, the plants in the hot house are growing nicely and things are coming along. I think deliveries will begin May 27 or in 3 weeks. We may have a small amount May 20.

Something to think about: we've been eating stinging nettles and dandelions lately. The nettles make an excellent tea. We've learned they are one of the most nutritous veggies around - increased blood flow, packed with vitamins, good for rhumatoid arthritis, etc. etc. etc.. They are really tasty sauteed with a little garlic and a little salt - they have a buttery flavor and taste a little like lobster. Nettle pesto is also really good. Also, fried dandelion flowers are really a nice surprise. The children loved them! They were a bit heavy (deep fried) but if you don't eat them all the time, what a treat! If you'd like a recipe for either, please let me know.

We've also learned that dandelions are a very important food source for honey bees. The honey bees don't go for the fruit tree blossoms - mason bees and bumble bees do that. The honey bees go for other nectar sources, dandelions being high on the list. So, if your neighbor gives you a hard time about not spraying your weeds, tell him/her that your doing your part for the honey bee.

On Monday and Wednesday next week I will need help constructing the tool shed - 1 - 4ish. No experience is necessary. Please let me know if you are available. Or, if you'd like to come in the evening or on the weekend, give me a call.

Thanks & have a great week!

It was hot but we did it!

2009-04-26T18:01:00.009-04:00

Suzanne. The crew on Sunday. The children enjoying the water. Julie & her helpers.

The rain held off, the storms went north and, despite mechanical difficulties (no tiller), we are happy to report that the bok choi, cauliflower and most of the broccoli have moved out of the cold frames into the main garden. Thanks to the ground prep and planting squad of Bob, Mary & Dorothy! Chris, Corina and Suzanne proved that they could withstand the heat by working in the hot house for a long time weeding, installing tomato cages and mulching. Then, thanks to the patience of Sara & Bruce, we have a planting template rope (plants are properly spaced) and the back garden now is irrigated. Julie came over on Thursday and, while watching 3 little ones (one on her back for a substantial period of time) planted carrots, tomatoes, spinach, lettuce, arugula and fennel. Things are moving along. We still need help with planting of the garlic, asparagus, and more seeds. So, if you have some time this week, give me a call and we can talk about when the weather might cooperate with your schedule.

Planting Schedule and Work Parties

2009-04-19T14:59:00.006-04:00

Hello all - the plants in the hot house are coming along! Even the onions that were planted from seed :). We're waiting for the peas to all pop out and the beets and chard to finish coming in but all looks good.
Now that we have a hot house, the growing options have expanded. I couldn't resist buying tomato plants from the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market Saturday. And I'll be planting a few things like basil that I normally wouldn't consider starting until the end of May.

In thinking about work opportunities, please keep in mind that Emily is coming every Monday and Wednesday from 1 - 3:30. So, if you'd like to come by, these are standing times at least until the harvest begins and we re-evaluate. We are going to try to follow the cycles of the moon this year to schedule our planting. So, here are the dates we have thus far. Of course, if there's a torrential rain or the soil is too wet, we may have to postpone for a few days.

Planting Schedule:

April 23 (cukes, spinach, lettuce, zucchini, okra, radish, fennel, carrots)
April 26 (basil, arugula, lettuce, yellow squash, cabbage, flowers, garlic)
May 24 (okra)
May 30 (cukes, winter squash, sunflowers, pie pumpkins, flowers, squash, dill, kale, onions, brussel sprouts, dill, beans, summer squash, tomatoes, peppers)
June 6 (rutabaga, radish, parsnips, carrots, potatoes, anything that didn't go in last week)
June 10 (beans)
June 24 (dill, cabbage, onions, pumpkins, yellow squash, mustard,collards)
June 29 (snap peas, kohl rabi, broccoli)
July 5 (onions, beets, turnips)
July 22 (chinese cabbage, pak choi, lettuce, cabbage, peas, dill)
July 26 (lettuce)
August 5 (radishes)
August 18 (lettuce, broccoli raab, bok choi)

Based on this plan, we'll especially need help on the dates that follow. Help can be planting, watering, child watch, preparing rows, mulching, etc.:
April 23 - 1:00 - 4:00
May 30 - 1:00 - 4:00
June 6 - 1:00 - 4:00 (this is potato planting time which is a good crop for little hands to work - relatively easy to plant)
June 24 - 1:00 - 4:00

We'll also have a fall harvest party to dig potatoes, bring in the colder crops, etc.

Please call if you plan to work - even a few hour's notice is fine. I would like to make sure that when you arrive you're not waiting for me to pull things together.

Enjoy Spring - I think it's finally here!

Hot House Update

2009-04-11T19:58:00.009-04:00

Day 4 of construction and we're close to completion. Thanks to Emily, Gerry Kangas and Dave for helping build the "structure". Dave and I stretched the plastic for the roof this evening. I don't know if it will be mobile but it will be toasty for the plants! The remaining 3 walls will go up on Monday. The lettuce and turnips have germinated and Allie and I found 4 peas poking their heads through. Also, the carrots are beginning to sprout in the cold frame. Woo hoo!

Greenhouse

2009-04-08T16:57:00.003-04:00

Well, the end of May is quickly approaching and I'm starting to think we need to speed up the growing process. So, Emily and I started a greenhouse today. It's going to be big - 40' x 50' and will hopefully be mobile so that we can wheel it to the area where tomatoes will grow. We'll see.

If anyone is able, we're going to try to work on it again tomorrow and, depending on how far we get, possibly Friday as well. Tomorrow I'll be out there on and off in the morning and will work straight for a few hours between 1 & 3:30. It would be great to have a couple of people to help stretch the plastic!

Update

2009-04-05T16:41:00.005-04:00

Well, we're here waiting for up to 6" of snow! Unbelievable. I am glad the seeds are in the ground though. They'll slow down but I still think they'll jump out of the ground as soon as we have a few days of consistent 60 degree weather. Keep your fingers crossed.

We've got a few exciting announcements -
1. We're very pleased to welcome our first intern/volunteer. Emily Rose Magner has volunteered to work here for a few months before she continues her studies in sustainable agriculture. She'll be completing her degree at Sterling College in Vermont in the fall and hopes to gain a little more experience with farming before she goes. She comes with a wealth of experience - I don't have her resume so I don't want to mis-state her experience but when you meet her, ask her about her prior experiences with CSA's, wilderness training, herbal medicine, cooking, etc. We're going to try to set a weekly schedule of Monday and Wednesday from 1-3 and she's starting tomorrow! If anyone would like to come over during those times, please let me know.
2. Judy Durfy, the bee lady, called Friday. She's going to stop by this week to determine the best place to set her hive. She'll be receiving 2 shipments of bees on April 20 and will bring one over as soon as they arrive. So, we'll have some honey bees which we're really excited about! I'll let you know where the hive is.
3. The Chinese cabbage, cauliflower and broccoli have germinated in the cold frames! As soon as they're about 4" tall, we can set them out in the garden. This will probably be in a few weeks so let's hope the ground isn't frozen!
4. We're working on plans for a tool shed, mobile turkey hut and maybe a fruit stand. If anyone wants to build, let me know. We sawed the logs and have quite a bit of lumber to work with now. The sawing took 5 days, not the estimated 1 1/2. So, Dave's in good shape now. It's really heavy.
5. Dixie came down with a slight case of mastitis this week. Our vet came out Monday and she's now on penicillin. But, the kids are still nursing and doing fine so all is well in goat land.

Hope all is well - we have 9 followers on this blog which is fun. If you haven't signed up and are having troubles doing so, let me know.

Keep warm -
Jennifer, Dave, Nathan, Allie & Hannah

Update on the crops

2009-03-28T17:40:00.000-04:00

Chris and Corina came over today and we spent about 3 hours together planting, raking, making stakes, etc. We planted 5 types of onions, collards, peas, pak choi, lettuce, arugula, beets, and broccoli raab! Thanks, Chris and Corina for your help and presence! Next up, transplanting flowers to pots and starting the tomato seeds. Let me know if you want to stop by.

Work Opportunity

2009-03-27T20:34:00.000-04:00

If anyone wants to do a little planting, I plan to be in the garden by 10:00 tomorrow morning (Saturday, 3/28). Let me know if you're coming so I'm ready. We do need more string - kite string is great to use, if you have extra. If not, no biggie.

Planting Update

2009-03-27T20:15:00.001-04:00

Well, we've now got a cold frame of carrots and a cold frame of broccoli, cabbage and Chinese cabbage started. The seeds should germinate quickly in there and then we can set out the cabbage and cauliflower starts. Those were planted Tuesday (3/24).

Tonight, 3/27, I was able to plant some snap peas, kale, swiss chard, rutabagas and turnips. Hopefully tomorrow we'll plant green onions, collards, lettuce and different peas. It's great to get started! Although it's supposed to rain/snow in the next few days, the seeds should be off to a good start.

It was a beautiful night here. The spring peepers were peeping away in the swamp behind our woods. The sun was warm and we could hear the woodcocks singing.

Breaking Ground

2009-03-26T18:38:00.000-04:00

On Monday, Steve Schultz came over and plowed the new garden and expanded our existing plot. What a sight to see all of that black dirt! Now we "just" have to break it all up and till it about 5 times before June. Woo hoo!