Picture Perfect Days

These photos were taken during the October Winter CSA distributions. I'm hoping we have equally nice weather for the November and December pick ups! Thanks to Jane Sedgwick and Kathy Martin for their sharing their photography skills with us.

Four more tons of veggies leave the farm!

"Oh! Oh my! Oh! Oh! Look! Look what's in the share!" "I get apples, too?!" These were just some of the delighted exclaimations we heard at the share pick up yesterday.

It was a great day to be at the farm. Lots of happy people, eaters and farmers alike. Nice weather, very managable traffic, lots of really good food, including Stone Hearth Pizza and homemade pumpkin cookies for lunch (thanks to Jane Sedgwick) and homemade apple pie for breakfast (courtesy Jane Hammer and her toaster oven!). We sipped apple cider from Cider Hill Orchards.

Did I mention the very managable traffic? 73% of shareholders (110) car pooled, walked or biked to get their share.



This share had a little more variety in leafy greens than last week's share. Shareholders got either red Russian kale, tuscano kale or Swiss chard. Shares also contained either escarole or collard greens. If you are not sure which greens you took home, use the photo above to help identify yours. Here's how. Double click on the photo. Then mouse over the vegetable in question and its name will pop up. Kathy Martin, Belmont gardener, photographer and Winter CSA shareholder - thank you, thank you for these awesome photos!

Four tons of food in five hours

Wow! What an incredibly successful first Winter Share distribution! Here are some highlights.

The produce we distributed was exceptional in quality and variety. This is the kind of share that CSA growers want to give shareholders every single distribution. Mother nature cooperated fully with us on this one! The produce highlights for me where the Vanguarden green peppers and hakurei turnips; Picadilly's red peppers, fennel and celery and Cider Hill's empire apples. All are fantastic treats at this time of year.

The distribution process was pleasant for all involved. Boxes and bags of produce found their way into cars, trucks, wagons, bike panniers, bike trucks, and strong arms for their ride/walk home. Children declared that they would eat spinach! (Yes, I heard this with my own ears!) The pros and cons of various apple varieties were discussed. Apple cider from Cider Hill Orchard was sipped.

Some awesome photos were taken. Kathy Martin visited and took really nice photos of the share. Jane Sedgwick captured happy children and adults getting their shares and hard working farm women. (I'll post her photos soon.)

Lulls in the distribution work allowed farm workers to take a few nice breaks. We drank cider with Jenny Wooster when she dropped off Picadilly's boxes. We ate a very tasty lunch of potato leek soup, bread, cheese and apples, and apple cranberry crisp. We had time to chat with one another and greet and chat a bit with shareholders. We had our pictures taken and we took pictures of the distribution. After a long day that started before 7 AM for most of us, we left the farm by 4 and went home to take naps! Special thanks to farm intern Liz Green, and helpers Molly Fogleman, Elsbeth Hearn, Jane Sedgwick and Jenny Coates for making the distribution run so smoothly.

Shareholders told us they appreciated the Ride Share program. Folks who couldn't find someone to share a ride with were sincerely disappointed and asked for tips and help in connecting with other shareholders. Several sharers were excited about the raffle for ride sharing/biking/walking patrons: "Formaggio Kitchen?! Kitchen on Common?! Stone Heath Pizza!? We want to win the raffle!!!" It was fun to hear such enthusiasm. Kristin Bray and Allison Goodwin deserve much thanks for making ride sharing such a nice and easy option for the CSA.

-- 60% of shareholders (90 people) walked, biked, shared a ride or had their share bike delivered!

-- 40% of shareholders (59 people) drove alone to the farm to get their share. From the comments I heard, I estimate that fifty percent of these folks had tried, but been unsuccessful in finding someone with whom to car pool.

There were a few rough spots in the day. The morning was quite cold. Our hands and brains worked slower than we'd expected. The wind was, well, windy, and it threatened to blow the tent away until extra cinder blocks were piled on the base. My poor directions to shareholders to "park between the red tractor and the barn" resulted in many folks parking on the Sergi's lot, next to their red tractor - a long walk to the CSA area and a longer walk back to their cars with the 55 pound share. For me, the toughest part of the day was the first hour of the distribution: 60 shares were distributed in 60 minutes. We had determined that we could distribute 15 shares every half hour without overtaxing ourselves, or the parking lot. Shareholders were scheduled accordingly. We aren't sure how things went awry in that first hour.

All in all, this was an exceptionally satisfying day. Now it's time to enjoy the harvest. Bon appetit!

A look at the October 18 share

Double click on the photo above and you'll be taken to my Flickr site where the identity of the veggies will be revealed. Special thanks to Kathy Martin and Skippy for these wonderful photos.



Here's the entire share, including the five apple varieties from which shareholders selected one 10 pound bag. The apple varieties are braeburn, gala, fortune, mutsu and empire. All are from Cider Hill Orchard in Amesbury, one of the most beautiful orchards I've ever visited. It's also the only orchard I know of with wind turbines!

What's in the share today?

From Bruce and Jenny Wooster, Picadilly Farm:

Carrots, 5 pounds. These are a variety called "Bolero", which we grow especially
for the sweet flavor and exceptional storage. The carrots may need another rinse, but many of the nutrients are in the outer layer of the carrots - unless it is your preference, they do not need to be peeled.

Potatoes, 5 pounds. These white "Superiors" are a solid producer of tasty spuds.
They come in all shapes and sizes, and we grade them only minimally. After you store your potatoes, check them occasionally, to be sure they're not getting soft or sprouting, which would tell you it's too warm.

Sweet potatoes, 4 pounds. Your 4 pounds will come as two large (did I say large?) sweet potatoes! The skins are surprisingly tender when cooked. We love to slice them, add sliced apples and cinnamon, and bake covered at 350 until cooked. Yum!

Winter squash, 5 pounds. This month, the squash varieties are "delicata", "sweet dumpling" and "acorn". Expect 4-5 pieces total. Of all of these, the delicata
(cylindrical and yellow) are the most perishable, so I'd suggest using these first. The acorn (the dark ones) and sweet dumplings (round, ridged and yellow) will keep longer. All winter squash are interchangeable in recipes. To use, cut open, scoop out the seeds and pulp, and bake face down until tender when pricked with a fork. Cook the seeds just like pumpkin seeds (see below). If you see a small soft spot in one of your squashes as the weeks go by, cut it out and cook the squash right up.

Pie pumpkin, one. To cook a pumpkin, either slice in half and bake in the oven like a squash; or peel,remove seeds and pulp, chop into chunks, and boil or steam. The seeds are delicious roasted. Rinse off the pulp, pat the seeds dry, marinate if you'd like (soy sauce, garlic, ginger), then bake at 250 degrees for 50-60 minutes, stirring a few times and take care not to let them burn (they are likely to burn at higher temperatures).

Onions, 2 pounds. Yellow onions. Not a high yielding onion crop this season - we have just enough for two pounds for each month's share.

Beets, 2 pounds. They'll keep all winter, in a plastic bag in the fridge! Like
carrots and other roots, beets also have lots of nutrients in the outer layer. I often leave the outer layer on. Try beets grated raw into a salad (just put the unused portion back in the fridge).

Red peppers, one pound. Last of the season! Though these italias are long and pointy, they are super-sweet and not hot. If your peppers are not fully ripe, put them in a bag with an apple, and leave them in or out of the fridge. They will fully color up. Peppers freeze well, too - chop and place in a container, freeze for cooking later.

Daikon, one bunch or one large piece. In Japanese, daikon literally means "large root". Daikon are the most widely grown veggies in Japan, so we though we'd give them a try. The crop looks and tastes nice, the flavor a bit sharp. Try grated into salad, or try the pickle recipe below. They'll keep for a few weeks in the fridge.

Overnight Chinese Daikon Radish Pickles, from www.allrecipes.com
1 1/2 C chopped daikon
3/4 tsp salt
1 T Rice vinegar
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp sesame oil (optional)

Toss daikon with salt. Cover and refigerate until 1-2 T of water is released, about 30 minutes. Drain and rinse the daikon, removing as much salt as possible. Pat daikon dry, and return to the bowl. Add remaining ingredients, stir. Cover and refrigerate for at least 8 hours. A day or two is even better.

Leeks, a bunch. I love noting that leeks are in the lily family; it only adds
to their elegance. They have a slightly milder and more refined taste than their onion cousins. The usable parts include the white stems and the pale green parts. The dark green leaves can be used for making stock. Cut leeks in half and wash thoroughly, to remove all the soil and grit that can get between the layers. Besides in the ubiquitous potato-leek soup, leeks are also delicious whole - braised, baked or grilled. They freeze easily - chop, put into a container, and freeze.

Celery, a bunch. The celery we can grow is best for cooking, because it is less watery than what we find in the supermarket. It will not keep as long as the traditional celery either - store it in a plastic bag in the crisper drawer of your fridge. It will still cook fine, even if it gets a little rubbery. This celery if very flavorful, and the tops and leaves are delicious in stock.

Parsley, a bunch. We grow this flat-leaf variety for its nice flavor, and its ability to withstand some cold weather. Store in a glass of water in the refrigerator, and it will keep for some time. Wash it right before use.

Fennel, a bunch. This little-eaten food is actually quite versatile. Use the bulb
and the less woody parts of the stems in any way you can imagine - raw, sauteed, in soups or roasts. Use the feathery leaves like dill, as a seasoning. Fennel pairs well with beans, citrus, and Italian-seasoned foods.

Spinach, 3/4 pound. We're actually leaving the spinach outside of the box, so it doesn't get smooshed.Fall is the season for spinach, as the cool nights really help sweeten the leaves. We've washed this once, but it will need more washing. We don't dry the spinach - for longest storage, wash and spin (or pat or air) dry the spinach, and then store it in a plastic or glass covered container in the fridge until you are ready to use it.

From Gretta Anderson, Belmont CSA:
These veggies haven't been washed, just quickly dipped in cold water to get the field heat off of them.

Swiss Chard, a small bunch. Delicious lightly sauteed in olive oil with garlic.
Chop up the stems first and throw them in with the garlic, then add the chard leaves and saute until tender. Add to pasta. Throw in some olives. Mmmmm.

Lettuce, one head Last of the season. A crisp, sweet head of a romaine-type lettuce.

Escarole, one head. Cook it like Swiss chard and add some cannelloni beans and a dash of balsamic vinegar to finish it. Or try this recipe:

Escarole Sauteed with Black-eyed Peas
1 tsp olive oil
4 medium garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 head escarole, washed and chopped
15 oz cooked black-eyed peas
1 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1/8 tsp table salt, or to taste
1/8 tsp black pepper, or to taste
1/8 tsp hot pepper sauce, or to taste

In a large pot, heat oil. cook garlic over very low heat until very soft.
Stir in escarole and peas, increase heat to high and cook until escarole wilts. Stir in vinegar. Season with salt, pepper and hot sauce. Serve.

From Chris Yoder, Vanguarden CSA:
These veggies haven't been washed, just quickly dipped in cold water to get the field heat off of them.

Asian greens, one head/bunch. Eat raw or stir fry.

Green peppers, one pound. Add to your stir fry or lettuce salad.

Hakurei turnips, one bunch. Cook the greens as you would Swiss chard. Eat the sweet turnips raw, in salad or add to your stir fry for a lovely treat.

From Cider Hill Orchard:
Apples, about 9 pounds. I talked with Glenn Cook, owner of Cider Hill, and asked how he selected the apple varieties you'll find in the share tomorrow. He said he told the farm crew to "pick what's peak right now". And boy, did they! We packed the apples into bags today, sampling just a few as we worked. These are some mighty tasty apples! Most of these apples should be used in the next few weeks. Ghe varieties in the share include,
Braeburn: crisp, tart, will store for 4 months (this is the variety we will try to send with the New Amsterdam Project bike delivery shares, as well as the large driving cooperatives.
Gala: firm, sweet & tart, for fresh eating
Fortune: large, for fresh eating
Empire: best for baking!
Mutsu: for fresh eating, best for cider & sauce. Ripe when yellow.

Bringing the harvest in

This week Liz and I have been getting ready for the winter share harvest tomorrow morning. I walk the one acre field at least once a day inspecting our vegetables. Together we redesigned our wash station. Today we planned what would go where: Should the bags of apples go over there? Or should they go over there? How about the boxes? The pre-bagged leafy greens, the apple cider? Where should the signs be placed? Do we have enough plastic grocery bags? (we don't! donations are welcome!) Just in case you think we were completely focused on the first winter share, we weren't. We did other things this week, too. Put in more cover crops, harvested the last summer CSA share, carried weeds that had gone to seed out of the field, attended a crop planning workshop at Waltham, ate lunch at the Tacqueria.

This got me to wondering what happens on other farms just before a big harvest. So I asked Jenny what the week before a winter share delivery looks like at Picadilly. Here's what she wrote:

We started the ball rolling on Tuesday, harvesting carrots, beets, potatoes all day. Over a ton in all, lugged in in 25 pound 5 gallon buckets. Washed in the barrel washer, and cooled to 35 degrees by 5pm. Wed until Thursday mid morning, we're busy with our regular CSA and Co-op harvests. Thursday late am, we sort through the already harvested and cured squash, pumpkins, sweet potatoes and onions in the greenhouse, to pick out what we'll use for the shares. By a drizzly Thursday afternoon, we're going full-force in the field, harvesting spinach, daikon and celery. Friday morning, we'll harvest leeks, parsley, fennel and red peppers (the last pepper harvest of the season, as we're expecting killing frost over the weekend). By early afternoon, we'll be an assembly line of 5 folks, bagging and boxing. Between our two apprentices, Susie managed the Thursday harvest, and Kate will manage Friday - all while Jenny is busy getting out our other CSA and Co-op shares on the truck. Bruce will take charge of the packing on Friday afternoon. Antonio and Adelina, a married couple from Mexico with 3 children, fly through bagging roots, while pop music blares from a lousy radio in the backround. Bilingual jokes, demands for more crates of potatoes for the packers, not enough spinach. Antonio's brother, Lucio, will go harvest "dos tombas mas". We hope to finish 150 1 1/2 bushel boxes full before the crew signs out at 5pm. Jenny or Bruce will get up 12 hours later on Saturday, to load the truck and get out the door by 6:30 or so. We really do need to get some better lights out in the barn! The electrician was here scoping it out today, so we'll be better prepared by the November share. He'll also hook up our second "new" (to us) cooler, which we'll promptly fill up and use as a root cellar for spuds and other roots. Harvest looks phenomenal, and we're psyched to get rolling on the "extended season"!

We are all really looking forward to sharing the harvest with you!

Winter Share Excitement

You'd think we would all be ready for a nice long rest after the tough growing season we've had this year. But just the opposite is true: there's growing excitment among the farmers involved in the multi-farm winter share. This fall has been wonderful growing weather. We have some fabulous vegetables. And hungry and appreciative winter shareholders ready to eat them!

I had a couple of fun conversations today with Jenny Wooster. Jenny and Bruce of Picadilly Farm are supplying the bulk of the winter share. Today she called and asked about peppers. "Would winter shareholders like peppers? Red peppers? 'Cause I've got some lovely ones." In another happy phone call, "How about fennel? It's just beautiful and tender and we've enough for everyone." And the last call, "We're not putting the spinach in the box, it will get smooshed. Does that work for you?"

Red peppers, fennel, spinach touched by the chilly New Hampshire nights are unexpected treats. Asian greens from Vanguarden will be another nice surprise in the October share. I think the Swiss Chard and tuscano kale at the Belmont farm will make their way into this first share. These were not crops we planned for the winter share, but there they are: growing well and just begging to be picked and taken home, along with the sweet potatoes, carrots, beets, pie pumpkin, onions, leeks and more traditional winter fare. What's not to be excited about?!

Bedtime

We took the last of the tomatoes down today. Moved tomato stakes to their winter resting place. Mowed the pepper and eggplants. Used the disk harrow to chop up the plant debris and get the field ready for winter rye.

It was a bit odd, though pleasant, putting the farm to bed on such a summery day.

October garden

Much of my field is in cover crop now. Oats and field peas are growing where I'll plant first next spring. Winter rye will be sown early next week. Leafy greens that I'm growing for the Winter Share are lovely. Kathy stopped by to take photos. She makes the field look like a piece of art. Hmmm, maybe it is!

The kohlrabi and broccoli were planted a bit late and the fertility in their beds isn't so great. I'm not sure they will size up enough to harvest for the October winter distributions. We'll see.

Tomatoes in October

Something that hasn't yet changed - we are still harvesting tomatoes! Not many. Last week the harvest was only 128 pounds. San Marzano and Juliet paste tomatoes apparently don't mind the chilly temperatures as much as our heirlooms and hybrids. Next week,the tomatoes along with the other summer crops that have stopped producing (eggplant, peppers, basil) will be disked and the beds planted in winter rye.

Winter Squash

So much change on the farm in the past three weeks!

An oat and field pea cover crop has germinated on about a quarter of the field. It's growing well in beds that hosted winter squash, watermelon, carrots, beets, summer squash and cucumbers this summer. Oats were also undersown in the kale and collard greens that will be in the winter share. Next week more beds will be prepared for winter and sown in winter rye.

Winter squash was harvested early September. Using clippers, we snipped the squash from vines and piled the squashes into one long row in the field. We moved squash into the harvest bins we'd placed in the tractor's front-end loader. A team of three people made quick work of the harvest: One person drove the tractor (slowly) down row of harvested squash while two people moved the squash into the harvest bins. We unloaded the squash in the hoop house to cure. We've been distributing it in the CSA share for a few weeks.

We brought in 1,600 pounds of butternut, sweet mama, sunshine and delicata squash from 780 row feet. A little more than 200 pounds per 100 feet. Pretty good. Now, who's going to eat all this squash?!