May 30th and June 2nd

Cool Spring

We spend much of our time transplanting May-June.  Almost every minute actually, even though there are loads of other tasks to be done as well.  Before we plant, we dunk each flat into a tank of "nutrient tea".  It's a mix of worm castings, crab shell flour, humates and coral. It smells a bit like a fishy ocean, but the plants love it.  Apparently so does Chicken.

Typically in the spring we cover plants after we transplant them. Sometimes it's to keep them warm and other times it's to keep pesky bugs off of them. Chicken likes to use it as his treadmill. 

Under this fabric, the plants stay cozy and bug free.  It is labor intensive to cover plants (especially on windy days). I admit it is not my favorite farm tasks, but the end result is rewarding. This tat soi, lettuce, chinese cabbage and pac choi are looking very delicious! You will find some of them in your pick up this week!

This pigs are also enjoying their greens! We let them out to pasture this weekend and they had a ball. Rooting, running and chomping on grass. They even had a romp out of the fence...hopefully that will not be the norm for them this summer!

We are excited for this week's bounty even thought it has been tremendously cool and wet.  Time to target your inner rabbit and nosh on some spring greens!

This week's Bounty: lettuce mix, head lettuce, spinach, tat soi, pac choi, scallion, chive, asparagus and parsnips

Farmer's Table: 

Marinated pork chop fried rice with carrots, scallions and parsnips

LRF grass-fed Beef and Parsnip stew

Cajun pork roast with sauteed sweet peppers (some available for sale in the freezer!)

Pork stock (made from the roast bone) with rice and spinach

Dung Po (pork belly) spinach, scallion with rice pasta and homemade plum sauce

LRF grass-fed beef burgers with fresh lettuce and homemade pickles

May 26th and 29th

Planting Frenzy!

The greenhouse is SO FULL, there is barely room to work.  Most of these crops are warm weather plants, just waiting for the temperatures to settle.  (It was 28 here last night!)  I have lots of crops in the ground, but luckily they are all cold tolerant and I was not lured into planting warm season crops when we had those few 80 degree days.  Come the first two weeks of June, all of these flats will be acclimated to the wind and cooler nights and it will be time to get them in the ground!  If anyone has a couple hours to spare during the day, during the week, I am sure I could put you to work!

 

 

The pigs are enjoying their new lifestyle...sleeping on a cozy bed of straw, rooting for grass and laying by the pool side.  They are a gregarious bunch this year.  Hooting it up as they run around and curiously nibbling my pant legs.  They LOVE attention, so be sure to visit them...Just don't touch the electric fence!

 

 

Although it's been a little dry, the plants are looking great, and it's given me a chance to get into all of the fields with the tractor.  Spring is usually run like mad and then come to an abrupt halt when we get 3 inches of rain.  But this year we've just been running like mad.  Going from field prep, to planting and seeding, cover cropping and then running irrigation lines.  In some ways, I feel a little ahead of the game.  I was able to accomplish some tasks earlier than usual, like planting potatoes, and now that I have all the irrigation up and running, I feel ready for summer (although this outrageous wind keeps blowing it all over the place and drying out the fields too fast!)

 

 

I am sure many of you have noticed the apple trees this spring.  Both ornamental and fruiting, the flowers look and smell glorious.  Zach and I were just commenting that it's hard to not just stop and stare at them when we head outside.  This beautiful tree is on my neighbors property.  I think it has the cutest shape and of course the little swing makes it the quintessential tree.  When it fruits, Denis, is gracious enough to share its bounty with the pigs...even though he is a vegetarian ; ) 

Here is Zach sporting the Little Ridge Farm "crew" t-shirt.  He was getting geared up to help me chip a bunch of brush this weekend.  He is anxious to plant the PYO flower garden. and is eagerly waiting for the temps to stay above 40...this week is looking hopeful!

 

 

This Week's Bounty:

From the root cellar: potatoes, carrots, shallots

From the field/hoop house: scallions, parsnips, lettuce, asparagus, chives, sorrel, rhubarb?

 

Recipes:

Parsnip Recipes

Spring parsnip Soup

 

What are scallions?

June 3rd and 6th: SUN!

Intro to the PYO HERBS

 

 

This PYO herb garden is free with your summer share.  Please enjoy!!!  Herbs are labeled and there are scissors on the sill by the back door of the barn. 

Thyme and Sage

Tarragon for fish and chicken

An upper for your cat, or a calming tea for you.

Lavender scones...or a sachet for your drawer.

A spring herb that adds a nice celery flavor.  A little goes a long way for flavor.

 

 

In an attempt to keep mint from taking over the garden, I have a pot of it at the base of the rock wall.

 

There are three blueberry bushes (pictured in the foreground) at the end of the herb garden that are also for PYO.  (Please do not harvest from the fruit trees or the rhubarb).

 

This photo shows the best place to cut herbs and flowers so they will regrow.  Just above the "v" on the stem, 3-6" from the ground (depending on how tall the plant is).

 

 

This week's Bounty:

lettuce, spinach, tat soi?, carrots, chives, rhubarb, scallions, asparagus for half shares!

 

The Farmer's Plate:
lots of spinach : )  Spinach salads, sautéed spinach with eggs, spinach on pizza.

From the "Chow" on Scallions:
Green onions/scallions “stay small and do not form big bulbs”; she adds that the regular cooking onion (Allium cepa) may also occasionally be sold as a green onion or spring onion if it’s harvested early, before the bulb fully forms. Used raw, green onions/scallions add a bit of texture, color, and a milder taste to your cooking than regular onions, as in this recipe for guacamole. They are also delicious grilled whole.

“Chives are a completely different species. Use chives to add oniony flavor (with a tiny hint of garlic) without having to put big chunks in your dish, like in these soft-scrambled-egg and prosciutto bundles. Chives are also good raw as a garnish over things like deviled eggs.

Leeks are firmer and more dense than scallions, with a milder flavor. Recipes usually call for the light green and white portion of the stalk (but we like to save the green tops and throw them in the pot when making stock). Leeks are best in cooked preparations, like CHOW’s Savory Onion and Leek Tart or Carrot, Leek, and Parsley Mash.

 

May 15th and 18th: Agribon

2012 Summer Harvest Shares!

Greetings friends!  Well, here we are a the beginning of another farming season!  As always, I am looking forward to it.  And looking forward to meeting all of you new shareholders this week--welcome!

As some of you know I sit down to write this blog before every pick up.  (Sometimes quite literally.)   Each year I try and give you a picture of what is happening here, what I am seeing, doing...so you can be a little closer to knowing how your food grows.  It is fun for me.  It keeps me in the moment and forces me to take way more photos than I ever would and apparently online I am "funny"--my blogger alter ego I guess.  (Don't expect too much, I am really not that funny.)

So anyway, this year I thought I would focus on the tools that I use here.  From beer to the John Deere, I thought I would introduce them to you one by one.  This week's tool is Agribon, also known as "remay".  It is a spun fabric of varying weights, lengths and widths that is placed over the plants for heat gain, frost protection, sun protection and/or insect protection.  It is an essential part of my farm here right now, almost everything I have planted out in the field is covered with it since it has been so cool and wet. 

I use pvc conduit to make hoops which hold the fabric up and off the plants so they don't get abraded if it is windy or frosty.  Under this little tent, grow the plants all cozy and protected.  The cats love to get under here and run up and down the "tunnels" of remay or wrestle each other right on top of it.  And Simon?  Well he likes to pretend he is a hurdler...except he never seems to be able to quite clear the full span.  Needless to say, I have lots of duct tape on it covering lots of holes trying to make this stuff last at least one season, but preferably three.

Sometimes, remay does not like to cooperate.  I use these little red pins to hold the edge of the fabric down.  It's a light and easy tool except when the wind blows, it tends to rip the fabric or pull the pins out of the ground.  This photo is taken at the end of the day Sunday...nearly all the remay has been blow off.  Lovely.  Working with remay on a windy day is fun, if you are into flying a kite.

Open Farm Day

Saturday May 19th

10am and 2pm tours

This Week's Harvest: spinach and lettuce mix from the hoophouse, scallions, chives and sorrel from the fields and carrots overwintered from last year.  Rhubarb and asparagus are right around the corner, but I don't think I'll have enough for everyone this week.

Recipes and Veggie Notes:

Please note past recipes are listed by alphabetical order on the blog home page!

Scallions (aka green onions, spring onions, salad onions...) are a bit milder than an onion but a little stronger than chives.  You chop the entire plant (minus roots) and use it raw on top of salads or soups or cooked in stir-frys or whatever you wish.

Sorrel:  Sorrel is a lemony perennial herb that mixes well with spinach.  There are lots of recipes on line for soups and salads using the two together.

Spinach and Sorrel Chopped Salad with Pecans and Goat Cheese

(or use Sarah's nice soft cow cheese for sale at pick up!)

Spinach and Sorrel Chopped Salad with
Pecans and Goat Cheese
(2 servings, original recipe by Kalyn)

2 large handfuls baby spinach, washed and dried
1 large handful young sorrel leaves, washed and dried
1/4 cup toasted pecans
2 slices goat cheese (Chevre or Montrachet type), crumbled

Dressing:
1 T white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp. Dijon vinegar
1/2 tsp. honey
2 T olive oil
pinch salt

Coarsely chop spinach and sorrel and combine in large mixing bowl. Put vinegar in small bowl and whisk in mustard and honey. Add olive oil, whisking constantly, until dressing is well combined. Toast pecans in dry frying pan for 2-3 minutes over high heat, until barely starting to brown. Toss spinach and sorrel with dressing. Arrange on salad plates and sprinkle pecans and goat cheese over.

This printable recipe from KalynsKitchen.com.

Week 7, July 6th and 9th

PEAS!!!

Usually when I think of peas I think of cool spring weather and the beginning of some weight in the farm share. This year, I think the weight they are giving us is in perspiration from all the heat!!! Happily though the peas are still sweet and seem to be surviving, even though they are a cool weather crop.

How Do I eat Peas? The peas on the left in the above photo are SHELL PEAS and the peas on the right are SUGAR SNAP PEAS. Shell peas, you shell and eat the peas inside; sugar snap peas you snap off the top and eat the entire pea. I had several folks ask, "why can't I eat the pod of the shell pea?"...it's just genetics, their shell is kind of tough and stringy, it's not because I laced them with some crazy chemical : )

Both can be eaten raw or cooked. I like to throw the shell peas in pasta and just let the heat of the pasta cook them a bit...or in salads...The snaps I eat raw like a snack.

What is the nutritional value of peas? Green peas, botanically classified as a fruit (I didn't know that!!! Did I mention that I do have my BS in Botany?) have been used as vegetable, for cooking purposes, since ages. They can be described as the small, spherical seeds or the pods of the legume Pisum sativum. Green peas are mainly cultivated during the cool season i.e. from the start of winters to early-summers. Apart from being very rich in protein, they hold a high nutritional value in the form of vitamins and minerals too.

Shell Peas growing on the vine. These guys grow low, like a ground cover, and are harvested by hand plucking them off the pant while I crawl on my knees from plant to plant...


Sugar Snap Peas grow on a tall vine (up t0 7 feet tall) and need to be trellised. These too are hand plucked from the plant, but I am able to stand up for most of this harvest (whew!).

Baby Turkeys on the loose!!! These guys are only 3 weeks old, but it has been so warm, I decided to let them out a little earlier than usual. They are LOVING it!

They wanted me to tell you that they taste great for dinner, lean and juicy...order one now!

$40 deposit, $4.25/#, ready the end of October

This Weeks' Loot: All you can eat salad bar (lettuce), radish, hakurei turnips, cabbage, shell peas, sugar snap peas, baby beets, scallions and new potatoes!

Next week's Loot: Lettuce, radish?, snap peas, kale (for real this time), carrots...

Recipes:

Instead of recipes this week, I will give you a few tips and then you are on your own...because I am going to the pond for a swim : )

Scallions: these are an early onion, light in flavor, eat the whole thing (except the roots) raw or cooked.

Cabbage: "Tendersweet" this is a new variety for me. It claims to be "Exceptional flavor for taste-conscious consumers. Tender leaves are very thin, sweet, and crisp - perfect for coleslaw or stir-fries."

Have fun, Enjoy and Thank YOU!!!

PS Lots of raspberries to pick, strawberries are done.