Greetings from the Garden! This week’s CSA box has lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, onions, garlic, potatoes, carrots or beets, and herbs Field Notes Ken cleared up areas of the garden and fields and transplanted several flats of greens since last week. As the days shorten he fits in all the harvesting – there are still tomatoes, cukes, summer squash, and other crops that require regular and frequent picking. With the heat he tends to get …
Greetings from the Garden! This week’s CSA box has lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, potatoes, zucchini, onions, garlic, parsley, and a new crop of winter kohlrabi Field Notes. Ken is clearing space. He is clearing out crops and plants as they finish and making space for fall plantings of spring greens. He is in planning mode as we get ready to move the mobile high tunnel off the tomatoes and onto fall greens. …
Greetings from the Garden! This week’s CSA box has tomatoes, potatoes, celery, cucumber, zucchini, onions, garlic, carrots, melon, basil and parsley Filed Notes. Ken is always thinking ahead! Monday he started moving chicks and chickens. He has several batches of chicks at varying ages. He is making room for the newer hens in one of the portable coops. The young roosters – cockerels – will go in the north coop. He has moved the larger …
Both Ken and I like pesto. Depending on what green herb we have in good supply Ken may make basil – parsley, or dill or cilantro or a blend. Yesterday he started with basil and parsley – this is an Italian flat leaf variety He cleaned garlic and ran the green herbs and garlic through the food processor with olive oil. He packs jars, tops with some olive …
Ken has been perfecting his broody hen management this season. The result has been several hatches of chicks. At first he put them together, but it seemed the older ones were picking on the younger ones. So now he has several small outside enclosures with chicken wire and fiberglass fence posts. There are the tiny chicks There are the chicks that a renegade hen hatched out …
Greetings from the Garden! This week’s CSA box has tomatoes, potatoes, zucchini, cucumbers, kohlrabi, onions, garlic, peppers, sweet corn, parsley, and basil. Field Notes. The tsunami of tomatoes has crested; early varieties are about done. Later varieties are still going strong. It has been an interesting season – cooler nights meant later hot weather crops and heavy dew meant more work to prevent molds, fungus and blights. Ken has moved up those seedlings pictured last …
Greetings from the Garden! This week’s CSA box has tomatoes, potatoes, onions, garlic, cucumber, zucchini, kohlrabi, lettuce, basil and parsley. Field Notes. People often wonder what I mean when I say nearly every week that planting continues. Well this week I have a photo of several of the fall greens. Ken finds that in August it is often easier to start greens indoors where he can regulate temperature and moisture. Another advantage of transplanting …
When growing food, one always has some less than perfect fruit or vegetables. With apples some drop, some have flaws, some have insect damage or bruised portions. Once an apple has hit the ground, I steam juice it. Cooking apples in a steam juicer will pasteurize them. Of course we also make fresh apple juice from other culled apples. Processing apples in the steam juicer takes one and a half hours of cooking time. …
Greetings from the Garden! This week’s CSA box has tomatoes, potatoes, celery, lettuce, cucumber, zucchini, onions. garlic. kale, corn, basil, and apples Field Notes. Ken is getting the short season fall crops in now. The long season fall crops are doing well. He got the year’s compost mixed for next season. And in his spare time it’s mowing, weeding, and harvesting. Weeds that aren’t mowed will drop seeds for a new crop …
Ken loves stone fruit like cherries and peaches. They top the Environmental Working Group’s Dirty Dozen list of food with high pesticide residues, so I only buy organic. Last year a friend got a couple boxes she had ordered; there was extra so I got some. This year I begged her to order some for me. Ken loves canned peaches, and people often ask how do I can peaches. First make a syrup. This …
