Freshly Doug Vegetables

Produce Stand - Sept, 30, Oct 1, 2 and 3

2011-09-30T13:47:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Dave and Sonja Austin. They are harvesting honey from the hives that they keep on our place. After I took this picture, Sonja shared some honey comb with me. Yum, I had never eaten raw honey that way. Not sure how the honey harvest is going to go for them, but they provided the produce stand with some awesome local honey ... very reasonably priced. Best of all, fresh and local.

So, there will be honey, priced between $6 and $9 a jar, depending upon the size of the container. We also will stock creamed honey.

Sophie, a close friend, figured out how to recycle her woodworking sawdust and old candles. She made them into fire starters. They work really well and burn about 20 minutes. Great deal at 75 cents each or (as she says with a grin) two for a $1. Great idea, since she and her hubby Dick love to do woodworking projects. She is also a fabulous knitter.

Veggies currently stocked include beets and beet greens, swiss chard, cucumbers, kale, zucchini, crookneck squash, patty pan, scallopini, red and white potatoes, winter squashes: buttercup and delicata, spaghetti. If you like butternut, you will love buttercup. Anne and I spent this a.m. harvesting most of it. So, it's good, fresh and nutritious! Also, if we have some thing listed and you don't see it when you stop by, feel free to give me a call. We think vine ripened is best.

The goal is to keep the stand open Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday from 11 ish to dark through the end of October. (Unless we sell out, then we'll take the signs down and close 'er up.) But if the nights cool down to into the low 30's, it will slow or stop veggie production. Can't complain, though, it has been a magnificent late summer! Make it a great day!

Harvest Jubilee Comments

2011-09-26T09:19:00.000-07:00

Wow! We had a great time visiting with everyone who stopped by! If you participated in Harvest Jubilee, thank you for supporting local farms and agriculture!

Our produce stand was sold out (I think we had over 300 lbs of food on sale!) Sold out ... until this weekend, Sept 30. The rain is supposed to ease up toward the end of the week ... we hope! LOL There will be spuds (Red and white), kale, beets, carrots, cucumbers, spaghetti squash, swiss chard, and odds and ends of a few types of squash and anything else that's ready.

Produce Stand Open - Saturdays Only or by Custom Order

2011-09-08T14:26:00.000-07:00

Hi there - Wow! We are being overwhelmed by the produce ... finally! Just wanted to let you know that we will stock the stand on Saturdays. So, if you are planning a visit to the produce stand on any other day ... please call ahead, 425-220-3903. It seems that the produce lasts longer when it's in the garden. So, we are leaving it in the ground or on the vine as long as we can. So, if you can't make it out on a Saturday, we will put together custom orders ... and remember not everything on the list will be available all the time. (See prior blogs for price listing.) Make it a great day!

Price List for Produce Stand

2011-08-30T13:41:00.000-07:00

Wow! Every time we go out into the garden this time of year ... it's full of surprises! Last week the cucumbers were on and this week the green beans are ready! So, here is the list of what we have in the produce stand: spuds (red and white), zucchini, patty pan squash, garlic, cucumbers, green beans, yellow wax beans, onions, kale, swiss chard, lettuce ... we will also do custom orders. Sometimes we have a few of something or it keeps better left in the garden. Not everything on the list is available all the time.
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Apples  $2.50 lb
Beans (Green) $2.00 lb.
Beans (Dry)
Beets $2.00 lb.
Broccoli $2.00 lb.
Cabbage $1.25 lb.
Carrots  $2.00/bunch
Celery   $1.50 lb.
Chard (Swiss) $1.00/bunch
Cucumbers  $1.25 lb.
Garlic $5.00 lb.
Herbs (Parsley, Basil, Sage, etc.) (Refrigerator) $1.00 bag
Kale $1.00/bunch
Lettuce (In Refrigerator) $2.00/bag
Onions (Green)  $1.00/bunch
Onions (Bulb)  $1.25 lb.
Peas (Sugar Snap) $1.20 lb.
Potatoes  $1.20 lb.
Squash   $1.50 lb (unless otherwise marked)
Zucchini $1.50 lb.

TA DAH! The Produce Stand is Awake!

2011-08-20T20:14:00.000-07:00

Wow, a dream come true! Finally, we now can provide friends and families an opportunity to get on the "Buy Local" wagon! We unofficially opened on Wednesday last week, but today we actually got the refrigerator plugged in and have unwashed lettuce and chard in it.

Another purpose for the stand was to provide an outlet for those veggies that ripened between our CSA harvests. The cucumbers and the zucchinis were the worst behaved. Those zucchinis! My word! Turn your back on them for a second and they've changed from a cute, tasty little guy to something you want to put wheels on and drive around the yard. You laugh, but you know what I mean!

So, here's the inside. Not much to look at yet. There are both red and white spuds, garlic, new red potatoes, some nice zucchini and the lettuce and chard in the refrigerator.

It looks empty now, but wait ... there will be reasonably priced green beans, cauliflower, beets, onions, a big variety of squashes and lots of other good stuff ... and later in the season, local honey. All grown on the Farm. In the lower left corner of this picture is the old antique scale ... the white thing ... we can't get it to balance ... maybe because it's a "money" scale and not a vegetable one. Make it a great day! LOL (Oh, almost forgot. Since it's on the honor system, the plan is to keep the produce stand open every day that we have produce. We'll get it stocked with fresh produce by 11:00 a.m. and keep it open until 6:30.)

Farm to Fork Dinner. Is It Really Over?

2011-07-20T08:40:00.000-07:00

Wow! Pretty good when the hosts even have a great time! Yup, I'm talking about our Farm to Fork Dinner event that we had on July 16. We so enjoyed visiting with everyone.

The picture is of the band that we had playing, Cabin Fever. They are really a great group, good music and friendly. Our guests wanted to sit around and listen to them play after their awesomely delicious meal. But, we had asked them to start playing a little bit too early. They played and sang for about four hours. It was wonderful toe tapping fun!

After all of the turmoil it took to get ready, including trying to figure out how to keep the insistent swallows out of the dining area; all of the favors we pulled in from family and friends, equipment breaking down, produce not ready, it deserves repeating: "We had a great time and it was because of all of the nice people who attended." We can't ask for anything better than that! And, yes of course, we will do it again!

Why? Because of the wonderful group of people that we met. And how blessed we are that all were so gracious. Don't even think it's about the money. Someday, it will have to be, but not yet. Everyone totally understood that Mom Nature really does affect what we eat and when we eat it. Aside from the fact that the food wasn't produced on our farm, it was still awesome! Goes to show that local and fresh is what it's about! Thanks to Chef Devra, author of Cavemen, Monks & Slow Food and her assistant Jade. Chef Devra developed the halibut recipe just for our event and she was kind enough to put it on her blog for all to share. The vegetable recipes (that everyone was raving about) were from Debra Daniels-Zeller's Cookbook, The Northwest Vegetarian Cookbook. Thank you to both of these sweet ladies for helping to make this event spectacular! Speaking of sweet, dessert was from Stanwood Cupcakes.

If you didn't attend, you missed out on fabulous door prizes donated by Chef Devra, Authors Debra and Kathy, Discover Cooking With Lavendar.

Next year we'll plan for later in the season and the meal will be "Chef's Surprise!" or "Gardener's Surprise!"

Check out the picture that Amber took of our Pasek Cellars wine table. It was one of those days that started out rainy and windy, then around 3 p.m. the sun came out and provided our photographers with perfect lighting! Take good care!

What a Difference 20 Days Can Make!

2011-06-24T16:39:00.000-07:00

Okay! Happy Days! We are in full swing for planting, planting, planting. Just wanted to share these pictures with you. The top picture was taken June 4. This area is what we call our small garden, just east of the barn. Last year we attempted to plant in this area, but because of the late wet spring, we (I) tried to cut some corners by not tilling the entire garden ... ouch! Big mistake! Mr. and Mrs. Slug and their 7 million offspring thought we were providing dessert! Anyway, big overgrown mess! But, we have a little tractor, a dedicated equipment operator, and six yards of Cedar Grove Compost and voila! Food Heaven!

And 20 days later ... From left to right: Shell peas, sugar snap peas, Romanesco (a type of broccoli), two rows of onions, a variety of lettuces, two rows of spuds, and a row of two varieties of kale. Nine rows total, each 60 feet long. Now, remember, this is our SMALL garden. Wait til you see our Main Gardens!

June 24, today

New Chicks on the Block and Bucket O' Roots

2011-05-04T19:57:00.000-07:00

Aren't they cute? These are the four new chickens that Sheila and Brad brought to our farm a couple of weeks ago. We think they are a really nice addition to our farm. Even though they are chickens, black chested, white polish banties (?), ... I think, they eat like little piggies! We think we have two hens and two roosters. So far everyone is getting along well, but that could change when the hormones kick in. (It sure did with the bunnies! Another story.) Thank you Brad and Sheila ... they are really fun and have great personalities.

Guess what this next picture is. If you think it's morning glory roots, you would be right! This was, in Anne's words ... a "bucket o' roots." Not what the Colonel had in mind. We, (Anne) dug these out of the flower bed. After shaking the dirt off the roots, we put them in a black garbage bag and estimate that the roots weighed about 20 to 25 lbs. If we tie the bag up real tight, they shouldn't escape! We know that we didn't get all of the roots, but what a good dent! Along with slug patrol, we will also start a morning glory patrol. Thus avoiding hostile morning glory take overs! Which with morning glory, it could happen over night. In order to save a lilac and a day lily, we took cuttings from each because their roots were hopelessly tangled with the morning glory.

So, what happened? After digging and digging at the roots, toward the end of last season, I gave up ... oops! NOT good! But thanks to Anne and Doug's help, we're hoping to keep the flower bed semi weed free. Doug spread some new bark nuggets down, so we have a great start. Plus, weeding the flower bed keeps us busy while we're waiting for the gardens to dry out!

Make it a great day!

July 16, 2011 - Farm to Fork Dinner

2011-04-28T15:40:00.000-07:00

Farm to Fork

Buffet Style Dinner

July 16, 2011

4 to 7 pm

We are sooooooo excited to be hosting our First Annual Farm to Fork Dinner. Here's the latest:

Dinner will be served buffet style in three shifts: 4pm 5pm and 6 pm.;
using as many of our farm's veggies as available and may include (weather permitting):
Halibut mixed with grated spuds; Salad; Fennel Carrots; Romanesco w/Northwest Berry Vinegar; Dessert, (Strawberry shortcake is planned); Wine or Hard Cider ... still in the early planning stages ... check back for updates.

Vegetables (yes, from our farm ... grin, grin, smile, smile, happy, happy, oh, pleeeeeease, Mother Nature be good to us) using recipes from The Northwest Vegetarian Cookbook, by Debra Daniels-Zeller www.foodconnections.blogspot.com. Debra will be on-site to sell and autograph her book;
Chef Devra, (www.quirkygourmet.com) will be using an open grill to prepare some of our
dinner;
Dinner will be served on the ground floor of our partially renovated heritage barn;
We have assigned times for dinner, but you are welcome to spend the entire evening on our farm enjoying the wildlife, serenity, and sunset;
We will also have local crafts people on-site with their art work;
You will have the opportunity to take a Self-Guided Tour of our WSDA certified organic farm;
Music; (live or DVD, To be determined as of this date 4/16/11);
Door prizes; (lots of door prizes!)
Cost of the dinner: $45/person;
Still in the early planning stages ... hope you can join us!
Further questions or to purchase tickets: Feel free to e-mail me at: bydenmythyme@hotmail.com

Thank you for your interest in what we
hope to be a really fun, educational event!

Please RSVP by June 30

Nearby Stilly Flood Waters ... NOT on our property.

2011-04-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

We drove down the road a bit, just to see what was going on with the flooding, plus we could see flood waters from our house. AND the Stillaguamish flood WATCH was changed to flood WARNING. The picture above is looking west to Marine Drive. The intersection of Norman Road and Marine Drive was closed off.

The picture below was taken standing on the bridge just west of Miller Road. Note the branch stuck in the gate.

And, it rained all day today. We did some weeding and worked on staying dry! LOL Happy weekend!

March 11, 2011

2011-03-11T11:25:00.000-08:00

Our thoughts and prayers for the people of Japan, and all over the globe.

Eggstraordinary!

2011-03-09T13:53:00.000-08:00

Eggsellent! Ha! Spring is on it's way! Hallelujah! After a fairly, nonrainy, warm weekend, look what our little two year old buff orpington surprised us with on Monday, March 7! Her first egg of the season. What a sweet way to start the week!

Okay, so we did take the egg out of the pen and wash it, it was then that we realized ... picture! We should have taken a picture while the egg was inside the chicken tractor with her!

Then on Tuesday, she laid another egg! This is definitely a good sign!

And, you ... make it an eggsellent week! (Sorry, I can't resist the "Punsy" scheme.) Take good care.

Still Winter?

2011-02-24T07:06:00.000-08:00

Yup! Took these pictures today, Feb 24, 2011 without the flash, shortly after Doug went to work. BRRRR. We're staying warm and cozy here. Will spend the day working on taxes, doing dishes, laundry and continued reading about permaculture! (The plan was to start opening up the raised beds and get started with some really early spring planting ... ah, well ... maybe next week.)

Got our organic certification renewal submitted to WSDA, ordered more organic asparagus crowns (for the second raised bed of asparagus), 3 lbs. of organic onion sets, and some organic sun flower seeds. All ordered from Irish Eyes Garden Seeds. We already have a big stash of certified organic seeds from last fall and last year ... uh, just can't help myself ... I love seeds!

Happy day!

Does Starbucks Deliver?

2010-12-13T12:08:00.000-08:00

No flood waters on our property. Whew! Lots of standing rain water and we aren't able to make a Starbucks run to Stanwood. (Nor was Doug able to get out for work.) But we're good! We took this picture this morning from the living room window looking northwest. The picture below was taken from upstairs using a zoom. Also looking northwest. While it appears that the flood waters are up against the homes in the background, the water is in the nearby pastures and seems to be receding pretty quickly.

Since these pictures were taken, the sun has come out and our biggest worry is to get motivated to do something other than stare out the windows. Roads should be passable later this afternoon. We can then stop trying to figure out a way to get to Starbucks, i.e. hitch hike a ride on the Burlington Northern Truck that was seen driving up and down checking the railroad tracks, wondering whether or not a bicycle would get through flood waters easier than a car, or break out a VIA and call it good! (No, we don't have stock in Starbucks ... yet! LOL) Make it a great day and thank you for your thoughts and kind words. Not to worry, we and all of our livestock are a-okay. XXOO

Hare's to you!

2010-12-06T11:53:00.000-08:00

This is Moby, a gift, and one of seven bunnies. He is very adaptable and didn't seem to mind one bit being posed for this Christmas card picture. And, yes, we did reward his good behavior with most excellent treats!

This picture was taken through the kitchen window. You can see all of the projects that we're working on ... or will be this spring! We didn't quite get six inches of snow, but it was close! Doug went to work one day when it was 12 degrees! BRRRRRR!!!! Those "...teen" temps revives renewed appreciation for those of you who live in Montana, or Calgary, AB! (Or any of the Northern Tier areas for that matter!) Break out the woolies and enjoy your day!

What Happens When the Earthworm Crosses the Road?

2010-11-09T11:46:00.000-08:00

It makes a profile that looks like a twig or in some cases a branch. Interesting. It took a few winter storms for one of us to actually get out of the car and take a look at the "twigs." We don't have a lot of trees around us, so it was a mystery where the "twigs" were coming from. Not twigs ... Just for perspective, the coin ... seriously, is a quarter. So, what's amazing about the earthworm, is the shear numbers of them. The OTHER thing that is so amazing is that once in a while ... Grand Poppa goes on vacation.

This guy did NOT want his picture taken, and was very motivated to get away from the camera. It surprised me how fast he could move. Very camera shy!

This actually isn't the biggest earth worm that we have seen. Hopefully, this winter, we can get a picture of GREAT Grand Poppa ... (or GREAT Grand Momma? I can't tell.)

It's nice to know they're out there working away improving the soil in such huge numbers! It must be a family trait ... NONE of them would smile for the camera! Make it a great day!

So, What Will Happen to All Those Veggies?

2010-11-01T14:09:00.001-07:00

So, what will happen to all those veggies, you ask? Well, shares will be sold through CSA (Community Supported Agrigulture) and our CSA customers will have the choice of having their certified organic vegetables delivered to them OR they may pick up their produce here on the farm.

However, we are adding another element ... a beautiful, well-built, take us serious, produce stand. We decided to add the produce stand so that more families will have access to high quality, healthy food at affordable prices.

Built by Brandon, Doug put skids under it and arranged to have a tow truck company come out and move it. Why didn't we build it on the site? Oh, because we thought we should move it away from the road in the winter, so people wouldn't expect it to be open. But then, it ended up being too heavy to be portable. So ...

Wa La! Isn't it cute? After all that hard work, it looks like this produce stand has been there for years! The idea is for it to be as self-servicing as possible. When we're open, people will be able to drive up, park in front of it, look in through the front opening. If they see something that they want, they can step inside, pack up their produce, weigh it, and pay for it all through an honor system.

We still have some more finish work to do on it, i.e. sealing it up, painting, laying flooring, decorating, etc. ... yay for winter!

We'll announce in the spring dates and hours of operation.

Oh, don't you just love it when dreams (goals) come true!

So much for taking a winter break! LOL

New for 2011 Season!

2010-11-01T13:39:00.000-07:00

This picture was taken from our second floor. If you look toward the horizon on the far right (north) was our 2010 garden. The hoop house with the green peppers in it is still standing. The two brown areas to the left (south) of our 2010 garden are our expansion areas.

Center garden has about 300 bales of grass hay around it. The grass hay will be hand spread over our "trashings" (not real trash, just aged dead weeds, vegetable trimmings, etc. We don't call it compost because the "trash" isn't being regularly turned or held at required temperatures for three or more days.) and of course, alpaca manure. This will sit until spring, minimum of six months, if not more. Then, in the spring, weather dependent, it will be turned under and the area will be prepared for planting.

The far left (southern most) garden was spread with aged cow manure, and it also will sit undisturbed through the winter.

So, we have three 70x260 foot areas! Yay! What fun will that be????? And, you ask, what will happen with all those veggies? Wa La! Coming soon, to a farm near you ... a Produce Stand!

Make it a great day! And stay warm and cozy!

2010 Season Ends

2010-10-24T13:40:00.000-07:00

Dear Diary:

October 16 - Frost

October 17 - Frost

October 19 - Assess Frost Damage

October 20 - End 2010 Season

Whoa! That was fast! All of our veggies were slowing down, and we were pretty well running out of our staples, carrots, green beans, etc. We were hoping to squeeze ONE more week of deliveries out of the garden. But the quality as well as the volume dropped off just as fast, and the frost put the BIG SKIDS on ALL of our crops, particularly our warm weather crops. As quickly as our spinach popped out of the ground, we were sure that there would be several harvests, we did have one small harvest. As for the corn, even though the silk was dry and brown, the kernels inside didn't form very well and therefore didn't ripen.

Our growing "pains" (snigger, pun intended) were weather related. For instance, we had our tomatoes covered, in a hoop house, with the ends open. (I in my ball cap, dreaming of beautiful, sweet, juicy tomatoes.) Then BAM! A couple of days of warm weather and high humidity was all it took for the wilt to set in. Within a few days the entire crop was infected. Yes, I did grab about 14 green tomatoes off the vines (what I could carry at one time) and put them in the greenhouse to ripen. They did ripen, and they didn't have much flavor, similar to cardboard. (And, yes, when I was a curious kid, I did chew on a corner of some cardboard. No flavor and salt wouldn't have helped it.)

We'll keep posting throughout the winter. We do have some exciting plans for next year that we want to share with you. i.e. garden area expansion, produce stand, etc.

(This picture is what we think may be a "hybrid" between a dog and a coyote. The picture was taken through our bathroom window a couple of weeks ago.) Happy trails! XXOO

Got Spinach?

2010-09-30T10:11:00.000-07:00

This is just too cool! In the foreground is spinach and in the background (at the top of the raised bed) is a variety of choi. You would NOT have believed how quickly the seeds popped out of the ground ... it was within a few days of planting it! Now that's exciting! We're still waiting for several varieties of leaf lettuce, which was planted on the very same day, in another bed to show itself. May have to replant that.

The corn is trying to ripen. Maybe it will and maybe it won't. If we could just get a few really nice warm days, we MIGHT be in business! In the foreground, the zucchini, and other summer squashes are still producing. Slowly and steadily! (And, uh, yes, that is fog in the background. On the news yesterday the warning for Stanwood was "ZERO visibility due to fog.")

This year's harvest, despite all of the whining, netted approximately 2,000 lbs in a nice variety of vegetables! We've had years where we've had twice that ... but we are thankful for what we did harvest this year ... it has been tough on every farmer we've talked to.

So the season is winding down ... whether it winds down slowly and we are able to harvest corn, and the newly planted spinach and choi ... or it drops off fast ... we'll just have to wait and see what mom nature has in store. Which is half the fun of gardening, isn't it? Anyway, like I always say: "There's always next year!" And, THAT, my friends is another chapter! Make it a great day!

Got Rain? Got Mud!

2010-09-19T15:57:00.001-07:00

So, back to reality and the harvest! The zucchini pictured in the bowl toward the top is the biggest one that we've harvested this year. That should say something about what a slow year it has been for us. We just aren't getting the sunshine and warmth to bring on the bounty of years past! While being grateful for every teeny tiny little veggie that we are blessed with, the small harvest does put a BIG, HUGE damper on how much is available for sharing. ("Damper?" .... uh, no pun intended!)

What a picture! Doug's muck boots. He said he was four inches taller and weighed ten more pounds by the time he was finished harvesting!

It's the worst thing to have to walk in the garden when it's so wet. Can you tell how compacted our footprints are? When each one of those foot prints dries, the clay soil will be so compacted that the areas where we stepped will be as hard as a sidewalk. Bad, bad, bad for the little plants and their root systems. Hark, though, there is always hope! Using cover cropping and allowing the soil to dry out before it's tilled will bring it back. (OR, we may just let it may sit fallow for the year to give it a rest. We'll see. )

All in all, though ... we have harvested a LOT of great food this year and at least we're getting something! AND, I would do it all again in a hearbeat! So, you make it a great day!

Gone Fishin!

2010-09-18T20:25:00.001-07:00

Fishin' buddies, Sheila and Brad in the cabin of their C-Dory. Captain Brad driving the boat thus ensuring that the ladies had a good time fishing to their hearts content!

What a wonderful way to spend a day! Just love livin' here in the Pacific Northwest. We spent Friday morning trolling around 'The Shipwreck' and Possession. Visiting and laughing the entire time. No sign of any fish other than a few herring, including the ones we were using for bait.

It seemed like there were more seals than fish! We either saw SIX seals or the same one at least SIX times. In spite of the seals, Sheila, proved she had the better rigging. She caught a couple of fish that were released. Not a bite for me though, even though I was using fresh herring and a white flasher similar to a favorite one that was lost due to novice knot tying. Seriously, though, I thought the color coordinated outfit would bring in the fish to at least have a look at my fashion statement!

Gracious hosts made for a fun, inspirational day ... not to mention feeling spoiled. So, it didn't matter that the salmon rejected the bait offered! (Just a matter of time, though ..... and place .... and the right bait! Big smile.)

Getting there!

2010-09-09T19:22:00.000-07:00

This is soooooo exciting! We are getting there! This is a picture of PART of our harvest for this week's delivery. Swiss chard in the plastic bags. The veggies don't look perfect, but boy do they taste good! Fresh, local AND organic ... doesn't get much better than that! It's going to be fun to see how far into the fall/winter we can go ... since we got such a late start this spring. This weekend we'll be planting cabbage, brussel sprouts, broccoli, radishes and chinese cabbage in the raised beds.

Birds, Apples and Anxiety

2010-09-09T18:50:00.000-07:00

Actually, this is kind of gross. But, doesn't this apple look yummy ... never mind the scratch marks on it. I do believe that those scratch marks have been caused by hungry starlings. They seem to be foraging pretty hard this year as it's the first time that we have had a bird problem with our apples. Our trees are about six years old.
So, if you turn the apple around, wa la! Yuk! We have almost an entire tree that looks this way. This was an almost ripe apple. When we find an apple like this, there's usually a wasp or two feasting as well. We (Doug) has been making apple crisp from the few from this tree that can be saved. The green apples are being overlooked by the starlings, robins, etc. (SHHHHH) Since we are certified organic food producers (and lovers of wild life) there won't be any shooting going on. But there is a plan underfoot involving a stuffed penquin and a bird of prey ... one of many winter projects.

Beets Me!

2010-08-30T11:54:00.000-07:00

Check out this beet!!!! It wasn't going to seed either. So, after all of the whining about the weather ... there were a lot of vegetables that did really well ... peas, carrots, onions, lettuces. Did I mention beets did really well too?

We're looking forward to bumper crops of zucchini (yes, zucchini!), cucumbers, green beans, tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. Corn and winter squashes are still "iffy."

We were surprised that out potatoes, usually a staple in our garden, didn't do that well. We think it was because of the wet spring. Still taste awesome. Homemade hashbrowns ... ymmmy.

Oh, yes, uh, back to the beet, one of our CSA customer does canning with her mom, so this beet was sent home with her. Weighing in at least a lb, it should fill a pint jar. Can't wait to hear back from her. How fun is this????!!!!

9/9/10 - This beet is a Detroit Dark Red, which is an heirloom variety. It was cut up and enjoyed and it wasn't woody. Have you ever had grilled beets? If you don't like beets, try slicing them about 1/4 inch thick, brush with a tiny bit of olive oil, salt and pepper and grill away!

Two Surprises!

2010-08-23T17:25:00.000-07:00

It's so amazing to me how quickly time whizzes by! Didn't I just update this blog last week? Uh ... NO! That would be last month? Really?

So, here's some small farm news! We met up today with Sheila at Smokey Point Plant Farm. She brought us a copy of the newly released book "The Northwest Vegetarian Cookbook" by Debra Daniels-Zeller (foodconnections.blogspot.com).

Yay! New veggie recipes! I like it and will share the recipes with our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) customers. It helps answer the question: What am I going to do with 12 bazillion pounds of beets (or insert veggie of choice) ??!!!! The recipes look great! Can't wait to try them using our fresh produce. (Oh, here's a small point ... Whispering Winds Farm is listed in the book as well. AND, there is a picture of our heritage barn in the book too!)

This great book is available from the author through her blog or Amazon. Yes, I am blatantly marketing this book ... timely topic to go with fresh tomatoes!

Yes, Virginia, there are ripe tomatoes in our hoop house! The second surprise! Happy Day! Yay!

Bountiful Beginnings ....

2010-07-17T21:14:00.000-07:00

Isn't this a pretty picture of our veggie harvest this week? In alphabetical order: beets, carrots, garlic, lettuce, green onions, shallots, sugar snap peas. And out of the picture are parsley, dill and peppermint. We've been having great weather for these crops.

Bottom picture, not only are they pretty, but they taste great too!

Ah, this is what it's all about!

Planting ... Oh, Yay! Finally!

2010-07-08T22:46:00.000-07:00

Gosh, it's hard to believe that two weeks ago it was rainy and cold ... today was spent turning soaker hoses off and on, throughout the garden.

So, here we go, off to a rough start, but being an optimist, we will at least get something to grow!

The bottom picture is of one of the two hoop houses that Doug, with Bob, Angie and Kellie's help put up over the last two weekends. As soon as the hoop house was up, we planted three varieties of tomatoes in it.

In front of the hoop house (the bottom picture) are potatoes, and in front of the spuds are brussel sprouts, cabbage, broccoli and the little dead looking things way in the lower right corner are Chinese cabbage and baby Choy. (Alas, the tender little greens seem to be a favorite of the millions of flea beetles!) Hopefully, we can take care of their nesting grounds and larvae by putting the ground cover over the top of them.

The top picture is looking east and is of the second hoop house, which is full of peppers and eggplants. They were looking pretty droopy today ... I think they were shocked ... like the rest of us ... at the heat. Soaked them with water and they perked back up.

We're trying spring lock on the plastic this year, (from Steuber's out in Snohomish) also Doug put perlins between each plastic pipe so it should strengthen their ability to withstand the wind. Although, while we were installing the second hoop house the wind gods did pay us a visit. You would have laughed to see us running around trying to hold the plastic down before it shifted out of place! In all of the running around, we didn't panic ... it was a mission! (We did it ... remind me this fall to pick up the plastic and not let it sit on the ground all winter ... arrggghhhh ... what a mess ... my head band was covered in mud!)

These hoop houses do have a lovely creaking sound when the wind is moving around them. So, we will see how long it takes before we hear (or see) the plastic fluttering! Seriously, I had a nightmare about seeing half of the plastic blowing in the wind. With luck, (and Doug's ingenuity) they'll make it to November this year!

Make it a good one!

And the Good News Is ... !

2010-06-13T17:41:00.000-07:00

And the good news is we have a second "cover crop" growing in our main garden ... and we didn't even need to plant it! (Uh, you guessed it, they're weeds, but don't they look awesome! LOL) The bad news is that main garden is slow to dry out, so other than a few spuds and a few brussel sprouts ... and LOTS of weeds, we're waaaaaaay behind in the "main garden" planting race! You know, the race against time! Can't go with just one day of warm dry weather, needs to be at least three and four would be better.

Other good news is that we have our raised beds planted with lettuce, carrots, beets, garlic, onions, radishes, peas, herbs, asparagus for next year and we slipped some canteloupe in one and have it under reemay for protection. We'll see how that does. AND, we've had two very small veggie deliveries ...

One thing about it, when we do get our seeds/starts in the ground, they'll hopefully make up for lost time and grow like gang busters ... right? Can't help but be optimistic! We'll get there! Looking forward to a great growing season! Have a wonderful day!

Got Rain?

2010-05-29T18:24:00.001-07:00

This is a holding tray that over the past couple of days filled with rain water. We did have about an inch of water in the bottom of the tray prior to the rain. Getting ready to plant more lettuce. Here's where procrastination paid off ... didn't loose any seeds. The trays are now out of the weather, ... in the barn ... under lights. (This is such a waste ... we'll need the water in July/August. And thus are the laments of a gardener!)

You wouldn't believe how much standing water we have! These pictures don't let you appreciate the slogging around the back yard. Best stay off of it.

Just more water at the base of the main garden ... we're getting a much later start than we anticipated. Potatoes are under the burlap, pac choi is the little bit of green that can be seen in one of the rows.

Ah, spring, and to think the day before we mowed thru this spot! This is the pond that forms at the lower end of our main garden. When this is full, the garden doesn't drain as well. (See the above picture.) We think this is more water than we had in January and February! (These pictures were taken on May 28. The ducks are happy and ready to move in. LOL!)

Yes, I think his tractor's sexy!

2010-05-08T18:33:00.000-07:00

What a beautiful day today! Looks like we will be ready to get our spuds in ... and a whole bunch else! Ground is cold, but dry!

Happy Mom's Day!

Researching ...... and Waiting!

2010-05-06T19:16:00.000-07:00

Waiting for what? Waiting for the yard/garden to dry out, weather to warm up, wind to stop blowing for ... 5 minutes, please! Didn't I read somewhere where April's average temperature was lower than January's? HMMMMM.

Enough with the whining! (Sorry, can't help myself, gotta lot a garden' to do and I'm ready! YAY!)

On with the reason for my blog ... for those of you who are a part of our CSA. This year Seeds of Change offered 'stevia' seeds. Some thing new ... I'll try it!

Quickly ... Stevia is a plant native to South America. It's MUCH sweeter than sugar. True! I pinched a small piece of a leaf from one of the starts in the greenhouse, and as Cisco Morris would say OOOOOOO LA LAAAAA. Wow! It was really sweet. According to this article, it's been around for a long time! (Author's note: I don't know if Cisco has ever tasted stevia ... I just like the way he says OOOOOOOO LA LAAAAA when he's all excited!)

Anyway, at one point there was some controversy over Stevia's use in the U.S. The controversy seems to be subsiding a bit. If you would like to read an FDA comment, go to the FDA site and search 'stevia.' A couple of short blurbs will come up. Apologies, couldn't get the direct link to the comment(s) work.

Looking forward to a great weekend! Make it a great day!

Ready Set Grow! .... Hopefully!

2010-04-13T20:20:00.000-07:00

Don't know about you and yours, but the spring storm that hit a couple of weeks ago, knocked our socks off, not to mention knocked over the fountain. If you look at the Dec blog, you will see the fountain standing!

We not only got hit hard by the wind, but it's been so cold that the veggies are having a hard time getting started. Even the cool crops that like the cold weather. AARRGGGHHHH!

Just because we're getting off to a slow start, isn't slowing down the planting! We've got onions, lettuce, beets, garlic, garlic chives, carrots and peas planted. We'll be working on spinach and radishes this next week.

Oh, and my WSDA organic inspector will be meeting with me in the a.m. Looking forward to a good report card! (As a side note: Our vegetable growing operation is listed on the state's website. Every business that is certified organic by WSDA is listed by county on the State's website. We're proud to be a part the program and our customers can be confident that we are growing the best veggies that Mother Nature will allow!)

So, since we are getting started on our planting, I will be more diligent about keeping our blog updated. We have a lot of new projects happening. Feel free to e-mail me at bydenmythyme@hotmail.com if you have questions about what we are doing.

December .... already? What Happened????

2009-12-06T13:56:00.001-08:00

Wow! Seems that after this busy summer, winter hybernation hit me hard and fast! (Like in early fall.) Unlike the fruits and veggies, we haven't completely shutdown, just slowed down ... a lot! Which is nice. We are enjoying the swans and eagles that have migrated to our area.

Doug is working on an "alpaca tractor" a larger version of a chicken tractor, building more raised beds, and getting bids for the repair of the foundation of our barn. (Plus, he has a full-time away from home job!)

Bob (winter intern/farm hand/) is coming over a couple of times a month, weather permitting. He's helped clean out the raised beds, plant elephant garlic (a variety of leeks), carrots, hyacinth bulbs and last week we pruned a few fruit trees.

We will be getting the green house prepped, whipping up some seed starting mix, and planting flower and celery seeds shortly. (YAY ... I'm excited!)

Met with Timi and Donna on Friday, 12/4. Timi is putting together a bus tour, Come Junk With Us for the Farm Chicks Antique Show in June. She put together a tour bus to go to the Funky Junk Sisters in Puyallup. Holy Cow, that was fun! She had Jay (her husband) follow the bus with his pickup so if anyone bought something that wouldn't fit on/in/or under the bus, it could put in the pick-up. And, yes, I did buy something ... a Speed Queen Deluxe wringer washer! I love it! Many thanks to Jay for helping get it home. And to Timi, thank you for all of your hard work in putting the tour together. It was great fun! (Don't know what I'll do with the washer ... but I won't be changing it in any way ... it may become a salad spinner ... or set it up and actually use it. It's in that great of shape.)

Girlfriend Kathy and I went to an open house at Dusty Cellars Winery on Camano Island on Saturday, 12/5. It was their first weekend of the month open house. My first wine tasting, thank you, Kathy! Fun! It was interesting to talk to someone else who is transitioning a well-loved hobby to a great business!

Make it a great day and Merry Christmas to you and yours!

August 27 Delivery

2009-08-25T12:14:00.000-07:00

Tomato jungle ... after being pruned twice.

You can't see them really well, but there are a whole lotta green tomatoes in there! We've been finding a red one here and there.

This week's delivery (Week 10) will include leeks, onions, variety of squash with zucchini included in the variety pack, red potatoes, spaghetti squash, cucumbers, green peppers, eggplant, parsley and basil.

Spaghetti Squash - Preheat oven to 350. To prepare, rinse the outside off. Cut in half length-wise (blossom end to stem end), scrape out seeds. Brush the inside half that you are cooking with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Turn the spaghetti squash upside down in a 9x13 baking dish. Make steam vent holes in the top side. Place in oven for about 45 minutes. When done, you will be able to scrape the inside out and it will be stringy ... similar to spaghetti. It doesn't taste like spaghetti, it just looks a little like spaghetti. Top it with your favorite toppings. Olive oil, butter, parmesan cheese, parsley or basil. (If you have enough room in your oven to cook both halves ... that's what I do ... energy savings and leftovers!)

Eggplant are still looking weird ... small and deformed ... but, they still taste the same. Peppers are coming on great!

FREEZING TIP: Did you know that you can dice onions and green peppers and put in serving size (usually 2 cups) quart freezer bags (flatten for better storage space). Later in winter, you can just go to your freezer and grab a bag of one or the other or both and add directly to your spaghetti sauce, chili, soups or stews without even thawing?

Hope you're having a great day!

Air card down ... and out ... got a new one!

2009-08-20T23:45:00.000-07:00

Yup, our blog was off line for more than two weeks ... took us that long to figure out our air card stopped working ... arrggghhhh ... diagnosing a computer problem is much harder and more frustrating than pulling weeds!

In the meantime, to our CSA subscribers ... the eggplant this week was small ... they should get bigger as the season continues. We planted several varieties, including the big "egg" shaped ones. Their growth is slower than we would like, but we still have 4 to 5 weeks of growing time left. And, ha, ha, they're all under cover in the hoop house ... yay! So, hopefully, they'll start doing something. Feel free to share recipes. (We slice them real thin, then stir fry lightly in olive oil ... they're great with the zucchini and onions.)

AND, we picked the William's Pride apples about a week earlier than they should have been picked. This weeks delivery should be a bit sweeter, if not, let them sit, they should ripen up nicely ... if you got one with blemishes, (oops) just cut it away and enjoy what's left (please).

There was a great picking of peppers this week ... and they will continue to get better and better ... the more we pick a peck of peppers ... the more we get ... (sorry, couldn't {LOL} help myself.)

Update:

The spaghetti and buttercup squashes are coming on nicely ... they should be ready for next week's delivery. (Got a pumpkin that's turning orange ... yay, again!)
No sign of any butternut squash ... they're in there somewhere ...
Lots of carrots, another whole row of carrots that we're pouring the water to, should be ready in about two weeks.
Another picking of beets will be ready soon, possibly next week.
We will dig Yukon Gold spuds for next week's delivery ... our test digs turned up some hollow ones ... so that might be an issue.
Lots of green tomatoes ... no red ones ... not even red cherries ... patience.
We're starting to see a lot of ears on the corn ... and yes, the local corn is starting to come on ... more patience.
The Chehalis apples are doing well and should be ripe within the next week or two ... will run our taste test ... they're real close.
Wait til you see the size of the onions ... holy cow, they're awesome!

As a side note: Last year we had saved some potatoes and squashes to deliver mid-winter ... just as a bonus ... but our storage facility (the old uninsulated milk room off the barn, which we had used in years past) didn't hold up to the unexpected long-term freezing that we had. So, this year, at the end of the season we'll be gathering up and delivering some extra potatoes, yellow storage onions, and winter squashes for our customers. If this extra delivery is a storage problem for you, please let us know ... the extra that our CSA customers can't use will be donated to the Stanwood food bank.

Also, we do guarantee our product, so if you receive something that is not up to your standards, please let us know and we will replace it.

Whew! Not usually this long winded ... well, okay, sometimes ... but two weeks is a mighty long time to be off line! Thanks for your patience! AND, YOU have a great day! Keep smiling.

August 1 Open House

2009-08-09T17:40:00.000-07:00

Wow! After all of the heat the week before, we couldn't have asked for a more beautiful day for an Open House on August 1. There was a cool breeze blowing and the temperature was just right for being outside.

Faces were painted, bunnies were well petted, the alpacas were hand fed, rows of veggies were identified and there was plenty of food for everyone. A few veggies were sold. Door prizes were won. Sandy and Dirk won the $20 Starbuck's card and Brad Z won the hat.

The horse and wagon rides by Richard, Vanessa, Wendy and Toni (of Ferrytails, specialty pet treats) were just the right length to leave us wanting more. They did a great job and the Shire draft horses were well-behaved. It was obvious that the horses are well loved and cared for. Our "teamsters" also brought along a mare and her three month old foal. The foal is as tall as it's mother's shoulders ... and they do grow up fast!

A great day to be alive!

If you and your family attended our open house, thank you so much for your support. We appreciate you taking the time out of your busy schedule to come to our farm. It was good to see you and visit with you. We enjoyed your company and hope that you will come back again next year. If you didn't make it, we hope that you can drop by next year ... take care and have a wonderful day!

Photo Album from the Farm

2009-08-04T20:36:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is the same corn that was "knee high by the 4th of July!

August 6 Delivery

2009-08-04T14:36:00.000-07:00

Oh, my gosh! It's unbelievable to go out in this garden! During the heat of last week we watered every other day. It's paying off this week with lots of "fruit."

Can you guess which crop we will be picking this week? Yup, slicing cucumbers! Along with leeks, green beans, sugar snap peas (I don't know how they did it, but the peas survived the heat), zucchini, a variety of small squashes, patty pan, crookneck, and scallopini and red cabbage. If the lettuce can hold up without becoming bitter ... there may be another cutting. (Iffy)

Update: Green peppers have set fruit ... lots and lots of green tomatoes living in the jungle they formed ... they're happy. We planted several varieties of eggplants, i.e. large bulb, pickling, and white. They are slow to set fruit, we're getting one tasty taste per eggplant. So, we will be letting them get bigger before picking them. WANTED: Your favorite eggplant recipe. Please share via e-mail.

Corn picture: If you look really closely at the white spot near the center of the picture ... that's corn silk. Yay! It's forming ears. (Yes, the black spot is a fly that just wanted it's picture taken.) There has been some discussion as to whether or not some of our corn is 10 OR 12 feet tall! We'll post pictures and you can be the judge. We're estimating a picking of corn toward the end of Aug first part of Sept. (After the harvest, if you would like us to save you some corn stalks for fall decorating, let us know and we'll save you some.)

Take care and thank you to all who received an early delivery last week. It helped us get through the hot spell!

July 30 Delivery

2009-07-29T06:55:00.000-07:00

Still the best garden that we've had in this location! We'll be harvesting for delivery the following:

Onions, leeks, Romaine and leaf lettuce, broccoli, red cabbage, Sugar Snap Peas (no shelling), Green Beans (yellow, burgandy and green), zucchini, parsley and basil. And possibly a picking of Satsuma plums ... oh, and Swiss Chard ...

We didn't think the peas would make it through the heat, but they're looking and tasting great. When we harvest the zucchini we will be stripping the plants - we've got large, medium and small sizes. Hopefully next week we'll have consistant sizing.

The corn is taller than I am, the tomatoes, eggplant and peppers are setting fruit. We did see a lone spaghetti squash ... good grief! This is awesome!

Stay cool ... take heed of the heat warnings. We're on an early morning schedule for the rest of the week and hopefully won't be working too much past 1 p.m. Have a great day!

July 23 Delivery

2009-07-20T12:39:00.000-07:00

Wow! Are we ever having the best season! Mother Nature is making up for the last couple of years. The last two springs were pretty wet which made it hard to getting some veggies to grow. Boy, not this year! Yay!

This week's delivery will contain kale, lettuce, peas (probably just one picking ... since peas don't like the heat), green beans, carrots, cabbage (both green and red), small onions, and "iffy" about the zucchini ... We'll make sure that they get plenty of water this week ... and we should have some. Other "iffy's" are broccoli and swiss chard. So, get ready to enjoy this wonderful harvest!

The hoop houses are holding up really well ... the tomatoes are doing great ... the eggplant doesn't seem to like all of this hot weather ... they are blooming, but they are not setting "fruit." Wait and see game for them. The peppers are beginning to bloom as well and they are setting "fruit."

Don't forget about the open house on August 1 - it would be great for you to see how everything is looking. Take care and make it a great day!

July 16 Delivery

2009-07-13T09:12:00.000-07:00

Here we are ... going into our 4th week of deliveries and we're looking at zucchini blossoms! We will have a zucchini picking this week. (If we wait til next week, we probably wouldn't be able to carry them to the car! LOL)

Peas and green beans are blooming - so those pickings may need to be divided. So, if you don't get peas, you should get green beans. All depending on the weather.

So, for our July 16 delivery we will have green onions, lettuce, broccoli, zucchini, kale and herbs. (Kale freezes really well. After blanching it, pat dry, put in a zip lock bag, press flat and label with "Kale" and the date and you've just saved yourself some food dollars for this winter. Sara's mom included kale in spaghetti sauce recipe. Sara said it was really good.)

Side note: We made a new cabbage moth net. The old one had a hole in it ... the four that were chased and caught ... got away! So, that was it! We dropped everything that we were doing and made a net twice as big as the old one! July 10 cabbage moth tally (one day) - Doug - "0" (he was at work); Char - "2;" Sara - "8."

Make it a great day!

Cabbage Picture

2009-07-06T15:48:00.000-07:00

This is one of the cabbages growing in our garden. Should be just the right size for harvesting in a couple of days. If you look close, you can tell it's enjoying the cooler weather. :)

We haven't been able to catch the little critter(s) that is munching on the outer leaves. We're not sure if it's cabbage moth larvae. Still under investigation.

One of our organic pest control methods is to catch white cabbage moths in a net. (They lay eggs on cabbage, broccoli, most brasicas. Then the larvae munch away.) Cabbage moth score: Sara - 6; Doug - 4; and Char - 3

July 9 Delivery

2009-07-06T14:57:00.000-07:00

Please note: After many measurements and consultations, it was determined that the corn is in fact "Knee High by the 4th of July!" Yay! Yay! Yay! AND, the great thing is, it didn't matter whose "knees", short or tall ... there is corn in every size! (The sighs of relief will happen when the corn is harvested, in the bag and delivered!)

Hope you had a great Fourth of July! We spent the evening with family at home, and just plain enjoyed the weather. What a difference a day can make!

And getting to the point: this week's delivery will consist of green onions, lettuce, leeks, kale, cabbage and a variety of herbs. Click here to search for fennel recipes. This is the first year we've grown fennel - it tastes like black licorice - I haven't used it in a recipe yet, but Rob says it's good in stir frys. Let me know what you think.

Also, the roasted kale recipe from Sandra was great! The trick is to have the oven pre-heated to the required 350 degrees and cook 5 min. per side and go easy on the olive oil.

It's a great day! Welcome rain!

Updated Garden Picture - Taken June 29, 2009

2009-06-29T21:49:00.001-07:00

Wow, you can sure see a difference from the June 9th picture to the one that was taken today, June 29th. What a difference 20 days makes! This picture was taken looking east. So, from top to bottom, growing well are Winterbor Kale, red cabbage, Red Russian Kale, Lucinato Kale, green cabbage, broccoli and so on. The rows are 60 feet long and we have about 51 or so rows planted.

Tomorrow we'll be planting more green beans, acorn squash, chinese cabbage and transplanting romaine lettuce. Oh, that's after we fix the hoop house that houses the tomatoes. (Tammy, Sara and I were able to put the plastic sheeting back over the green peppers and eggplants... roped it down tight ... we'll see how long it lasts.) Make it a great day!

July 2 Delivery

2009-06-28T20:37:00.000-07:00

Yay! We've begun our 2009 Season deliveries! That's two weeks ahead of schedule. (This picture was taken a couple of weeks ago.)

This week's delivery will be similar to last week's, lettuce, green onions, kale, as well as beets, parsley and basil. The basil will be enough to season a few dishes. (The basil was transplanted a bit later than it would have liked ... so it went into shock. It's recovering ... slowly.) We do have more planted ... so hopefully we can provide enough to those of you who like to make pesto.

Sandra G provided this kale recipe to share: Wash and dry kale leaves. Place them singly on a cookie sheet. Brush each leaf with a little olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Place the cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven. Keep an eye on it. When you think it's ready, take the cookie sheet out of the oven. Turn each kale leaf over, put back in oven. Continue cooking until done or crisp without burning. She says it's really, really good! Sounds good, I can't wait to try it!

AND for those of you who would like to preserve some kale for this winter, from the Ball Blue Book of Preserving:

Using young, tender green leaves. Wash thoroughly and cut off wood stems. Blanch 2 minutes and avoid matting leaves. Cool. Drain. Pack into can-or-freeze jars or plastic freezer boxes, leaving 1/2 inch head space. Seal, label and freeze.

Because kale is such a nutritious vegetable, we did plant ... a lot! So, get ready to put some up for your winter enjoyment and hopefully, to save on your winter food bill. Enjoy your day!

Hoop House Down ... but not out!

2009-06-28T20:05:00.000-07:00

Well, that was quick. We knew the hoop houses were temporary, but not THAT temporary. Last week we had a pretty strong wind blow through. It completely blew the plastic off the tomato house and broke two of the front PVC pipes, right at the base of the hoop house on the right. So, the wind was pretty strong! It won't be difficult to fix them ... we just need to replace the two broken PVC end pipes and recover them with the plastic sheeting. The hardest thing will be to untangle the rope that lashed the plastic down.

Today we had another strong wind ... so we took the plastic off the second house and will be waiting for calm weather to put them both back together. Shouldn't take much, since the frame work is all done. It's warm enough that the veggies should be okay for a few days. Make it a great day!

Kale Recipes

2009-06-24T21:35:00.000-07:00

Rinse thoroughly to remove sand; remove thick stems and shred leaves into 2inch chunks. Rinse leaves again, but do not dry.
Braise: Heat 2 tsps canola oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add kale or Swiss Chard, toss until wilted. Add ½ c. dry white wine or dry vermouth. Cover, reduce heat and cook until wilted, about 5 min. Uncover and cook until liquid is reduced to a glaze. Sprinkle 2 tsps balsamic (or rice) vinegar over the greens.

And, if that doesn't sound yummy ... check out this website: Allrecipes
or go directly to this link

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Sweet-and-Savory-Kale/Detail.aspx

Enjoy! Let me know what you think.

2009 Season Opener

2009-06-24T20:57:00.000-07:00

And, so, it begins! Looks to be a great 2009 season for veggies. Here we have Butterhead lettuce, Red Russian Kale, Winterbor Kale, and the purple veggies are Purple Kohlrabi. And of course, Walla Walla sweet onions. (And as this is being written, the wind is whipping our hoop houses all over ... you should see it, scary!)

Kohlrabi can be eaten after peeling either sliced raw or lightly steamed.

Last year was the first year that we began eating kale. We had definitely been missing out. Our favorite way to eat it is to wash it, leave it wet, julienne slice it, put it in a warm pre-heated pan with a tight fitting lid, add some olive oil, salt and pepper, stir it all together and steam it for about 15 minutes. It cooks down quite a bit, so you'll have to play with the amount to begin with.

Hope you enjoy the pictures. Sara, Tammy, Doug and I have worked hard to bring this garden along for your healthy eating pleasure.

(As noted earlier, the wind is blowing really hard right now and our hoop houses don't like it much ... we'll be putting them back up! Hope the tomatoes don't mind spending a night out! Can't do anything until the wind calms down. Ah, farming ... just when you think you've got mother nature under control, she puts you in your place! LOL???) Make it a great day! Char

Hoop House Part III - Finished with Plantings

2009-06-22T20:16:00.000-07:00

Here are the two completed hoop houses. And, yes, I must admit that they have been completed for a while. I wanted the pictures to show the plants, the weed cloth and the watering system.

The one on the left has two sixty foot rows of tomatoes. And there are actually tomatoes growing on the vines. (Big Smile) This is great news for us! We haven't been able to grow a good tomato crop for two years. (arrrggghhh)

The hoop house on the right has two sixty foot rows of eggplants and two sixty foot rows of peppers. The eggplants are growing and doing well, the peppers are still in shock over being transplanted a bit later than they would have liked.

These hoop houses are a big deal for our farm production. The past two years, due to the weather conditions, we were unsuccessful growing tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. The evenings ended up being colder than what the plants liked, and the wind coming off the water was a bit too cool for them.

So, waaaa laa, we think (and hope) the hoop houses have solved the wide swing in the temperatures. These hoop houses will be taken down each October and put up again in the early spring. We're hoping to build a stationary hoop house sometime this season.

Also, the main garden is doing great! I'll be posting pictures ... soon. We're ready to harvest lettuce, kale, kohlrabi and green onions. Make it a great day!

Hoop House Part II

2009-05-25T15:28:00.000-07:00

Wa la! One completed 20 x 60 foot hoop house! It's meant to be temporary and easily moved, so that's why it looks like a big plastic bag over PVC pipe. Since there are no holes in the plastic sheeting, it should last for a long, long time! (That is, if it doesn't blow into the neighbor's pasture!)

This picture was taken before we planted 25+ tomato plants inside. As soon as they recover from the shock of being transplanted, I'll post a picture. They're doing well and are happy to be in out of the wind and cold.

If you look to the right of the hoop house, you will see a 10 x 60 foot PVC frame set up. Future home of eggplant and peppers.

As a side note ... we have most of our main garden planted! Hurray for nice weather! Take care and make it a great day ...

P.S. You're going to love the "before" and "after" pictures of our garden! Thanks to Doug, Sara and Tammy for making it happen!

Countrified Market and Open House - August 1, 2009

2009-05-14T13:26:00.000-07:00

Yeehaw! Gotta do a little side step here away from the hoop house building to let you know about our Countrified Market and Open House. (Rain and wind are keeping us off track!)

We're excited! The event is scheduled for August 1, 2009. Which is the same weekend as the Stanwood Camano Fair. So, what do we have to do with the Fair? Nothing, really. Our farm is not affiliated with the fair, but as farmers, and country people at heart, we want to encourage you to attend the fair. So, you are welcome to park your car at our place and ride a horse drawn wagon to the fair (for a roundtrip fee to the teamster for the care and feeding of his horses.) Parking at our place is free.

The fair food is fun, but it's the crafts, the produce, ag information and above all the sense of community that drew us to the fair. When we were city people dreaming of the country life, the fair provided us an opportunity to be surrounded for one day by all things agricultural. We loved it and the fair kept our dream of country life alive. And we made it!

So, we want to open our farm for one day, to those citified, urban fair-goers who want a ride in a horse-drawn wagon, a bite of a freshly harvested carrot, green bean or some other seasonal veggie, and/or an opportunity to buy a countrified craft. Or just to be able to fly a kite as high in the sky as it will go!

This should be a great extended family event! Aunts, uncles, grandpas, grandmas, children, teens, tweens, moms, dads, everyone. So, mark your calendar for that weekend!

And in the middle of the planning we are planting vegetables, building hoop houses and just generally having a great time! Who cares if the weather still feels like November ... the cool season crops love it! Make it a great day! More to come ...

Hoop House Construction - Part I

2009-05-03T17:08:00.000-07:00

This is sooooo exciting and great fun to see the progress of this project. Since Mother Nature has gotten the best of us for the past couple of years, i.e. no or limited tomatoes, little or no peppers and no eggplant! This year we decided to try a couple of temporary hoop houses. We call these hoop houses because we won't be regulating the temperature other than to lift the sides if it should get too hot inside of them.

This picture is of our small garden. We are going to put the two temporary hoop houses here. This garden dries out first, so we are able to prepare the soil earlier. We tilled up last year's "residual" (technical term for weeds and dead veggies), then spread and tilled in 4 yds of Cedar Grove Compost.

Then we laid down 4 ft wide weed cloth from Gempler's. This will serve us well for the season, i.e. we won't need to weed around the base of the plastic pipe. Oh, I might mention, that the white thing on a pole stuck in the raised bed on the right ... it's one of our organic pest control methods. It's a net for capturing cabbage moths. Although we did get a lot of exercise, we're going to supplement netting with remay.

This is the spot for our 10 foot wide hoop house. It will be used for a variety of tomatoes. The tomatoes will be planted directly into the ground and there will be two 60 foot rows.

Three foot rebar posts are then pounded two feet into the ground. One foot of rebar is above ground.

A 20 foot plastic PVC pipe is then bent from one rebar post to another rebar 10 feet across from the first. These two end pvc pipes are 60 feet apart.

And, here we go! 16 - 20 foot PVC pipes forming the skeleton of our first hoop house. We still need to put the ropes across the top, the tie downs in and the plastic over the top. We'll also be laying weed cloth down inside the hoop house.

Nice job, Doug and Sara. Now if the wind will die down enough to put up the plastic, we'll be in great shape. More to come ... and you have a great day!

April on the Farm, Part II

2009-04-22T21:05:00.000-07:00

Welcome to Part II!

Here are our six raised beds that were built by Doug and I in 2005. This picture was taken this evening, looking North. The beds are built out of concrete blocks and the blocks are filled with sand. They are about 20 feet long and 3 feet wide. For not being mortared, except for the sand, they are holding up really well. A draw back of these raised beds is remembering to keep them WATERED well during the summer months. They tend to dry out pretty fast. In the background is our small garden with compost ready to spread. We're putting two temporary hoop houses in this small garden.

Planted in our raised beds are carrots, beets, spinach, radishes, lettuce, parsley, chives, fennel, dill and cilantro.

This picture was taken looking northeast. The red carport is going to be moved and replaced with a permanent high tunnel and on the other side we will be building more raised beds. We (Tammy and Sara and I) spent today cleaning out all the dandelions around the beds. They look beautifu!

Blog to you soon,

Char

April on the Farm, Part I

2009-04-22T20:11:00.001-07:00

Welcome to our first blog!

It's been a long, long winter! Glad spring is finally here. And with spring comes new adventures! Gosh, I can't believe that I am actually setting up a blog and will be able to share our farm happenings with you. (Thank you Timi for the encouragement and support! This first blog is dedicated to you, my friend!)

So, what's happening here on the farm? Well, we're getting ready for another Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) season. We're finding it extremely rewarding growing food organically, sustainably, and locally for our family and friends. (And reasonably priced.)

From year to year it's been a surprise as to which vegetables will like the weather that we are having ... and which need to be replanted. Which can actually backfire ... in one picking last year we had 90 lbs of slicing cucumbers because I replanted three times. It took a long time for the soil to warm up!

This year to help our plants deal with mother nature, we are going to install a couple of temporary hoop houses in one of our gardens and a permanently placed high tunnel for vegetable starts.

We will keep you updated on our veggies' journey through the season.

See April on the Farm, Part II for pictures of our raised beds.

We (Tammy and I) have been working really hard to get the farm cleaned up, and (cough, cough) weed free! Well, maybe not completely weed free! But close. Since our produce is certified organic our tolerance for weeds is high.

And Sara started this week too. Just this afternoon we must have "doug" up 14 lbs of morning glory roots!

On to another day! Check out the pictures in Part II!