Tuesday, June 30, 2015

June 30th and July 3rd

Glorious!

The farm is bursting with color and size!  Look out for enormous heads of lettuce this week.  I am having a hard time keeping up with the harvest and trying not to overwhelm you guys.  New veggies are coming on every week and the long season/warmer crops are looking promising!  Yeah!!!!  (I do hope this set of thunderstorms miss us this week, just in case any of you had an in with the thunder god).
 
 
Peas!  Yes, we have peas this year...and it seems as though we will have some sugar snap peas too.  I know it may not be enough to put up for the winter, but a sweet sample just the same.  I seeded a super tasty variety, but they are not crazy productive.  Next year, maybe I will try a more productive variety.  It's tricky though, with strawberry picking and everything else to do, it's hard to find enough harvest hours.  It takes us 6 man hours to harvest 50 lbs.  Fifty pounds may seem like a lot, but to share that with everyone on a pick up day, drops it down to one pound per full shares and a half a pound for halves....just to give you an idea : )
 
 
It's snow!  It's ice!  No, it's just remay.  This protective sheet is 50'x200' and is tethered down with sand bags.  It has stayed on quite well this year despite all the wind (thank goodness!) and is keeping our melons, summer squash, zucchini and cucumbers warm and safe from beetles.
 
 
However, the plants underneath are starting to flower/fruit (that is a good thing) and must come out of their protective shell.  Wish them luck as they journey from the cushy life to the real world.


The baby turkeys have arrived!  (I didn't have a pic of the turks, but I had this cute one of Simon....)



This week's bounty: lettuce, kale, hakurei, kohl rabi, tat soi, broccoli (for those who did not get it last week), shell peas, carrots, basil, dill and cilantro
 
KOHL RABI--makes a great slaw and crudité for your 4th of July meals!

Sunday, June 21, 2015

June 23rd and 26th

Summer is Here! 

...and so are the Devon cows!  Ten steers arrived Saturday afternoon from Wales, Maine.  We let them settle in their round pen for a few hours and them released them into their pasture.  They certainly tested their boundaries, but thankfully there were no escapees!  A big THANK YOU to the Breton-Tuplin's who let us rent their pasture.  They are a huge help...I could not do it without them!
 

 ..and so is the rain!  Near 1.5", yes!!!  I think the crops, livestock and farmers alike were rejoicing!!!


...and so are the strawberries!!!  PYO opens this Tuesday at noon for meat and veggie shareholders only.  (Sorry, we are not open to the public.)  Come pick some yummy berries while the piggies watch you in the distance : )
 
 
This week's bounty:
lettuce, parsnips, carrots, hakurei turnips, purple kohl rabi, radish/arugula?, chard, sugar snap peas, spinach, scallions, rhubarb and strawberries!
 
 
The Farmer's Table:
*pulled pork on a potato roll, carrot and beet salad
*amazing lettuce and arugula salads
*strawberry rhubarb crumble (a Smitten Kitchen recipe)
 
Shareholder's Table:
I parboiled the radish tops along with the asparagus and carrots, then grilled over the fire. 
5 star!

Sunday, June 14, 2015

June 16th and 19th

Enjoying the Moment

On a rare evening, when work was complete for the day, I relaxed in the backyard with Simon and my cats, Leroy and Puff.  The humidity had dropped, the air was scented with Beach Rose and alive with the sound of buzzing bees dining on comphrey.  Blue birds and Phoebe fledglings flitted in the peach trees and in the distance I could see the pigs romping in their new pasture.  Nice.  So very nice.
 
 
Puff obviously had a hard day's work and he knows how to relax.
 
 
Every morning I head out to feed the pigs and this is usually how I find them.  Piled up, legs on top of one another, some snoring, some laying there with one eye opened, but all totally at peace.

And then I call, "Good morning, Piggies!" and they all perk up, snorting and yawing from a good night's sleep.
 
The farm is feeling vibrant despite the lack of rain.  (Yes, some of you may have been getting rain, but we seem to be in a black hole here and have only received mere tenths to your inches!)  Dang it.  I suppose if I had to choose between this and Texas, I would choose this.  We have been slowly irrigating, but we don't have much water so we have to be ultra conservative.  Plants are bright and productive, although we may have a year of "baby" veggies.  Without the extra water, some plants are looking a little shorter than normal.  Alas, there are lots of veggies ready for your eating pleasure this week, we do hope you enjoy!!!
 
 
This week's bounty: lettuce, spinach, arugula, radish, scallions, yokata na, asparagus, carrots, parsnips.
 
 
The Farmer's Table:
*Stir fry with Sunnyside Chicken,  sweet peppers from our freezer and tat soi
*Our London Broil with caramelized shallots and arugula
*Smoked turkey soup (from leftover turkey) on a bed of spinach and pac choi
*Potato pancakes (nearing the last of 2014 taters) with scallions and Winter Hill yogurt
*Hamburgers with Spring Day Blues and loads of greens and pickles made by a share holder
 
 
Yokatta What?  It's an Asian green, eat it just like you would tat soi or pac choi (sautéed, grilled, soup, stir fry, pizza, pasta...)