It is so hot. And dry. It sprinkled some rain here last night but just a sprinkle. Farming gets tougher here in those conditions because we need to exert more attention and energy to keep plants watered and alive. Irrigating is complicated here: neither of our two wells hit enough gpm/water pressure to make them able to irrigate large areas at a time. Thus, it's a high maintenance system. Wish us luck, and know that everything we do is to provide food and flowers for you!
We had a little media blitz during the past two weeks. NBC 12 interviewed Dan about how to get crops to grow in the summer that actually prefer spring and fall weather. The strategies he describes are what we've been working on since we started the farm more than 13 years ago. Watch it and learn a bit!
Solar United Neighbors interviewed Janet about why we invested in Solar power here on our farm. They will make a short film to help spread the word about the benefits of using solar power for electricity on farms. We'll share the link when it's complete.
Meanwhile, we farm and grow food! Lavender bloomed last week and we loved it. Tomatoes are now rolling in and we've started the Spring carrot harvest. Eggplant harvest started rolling last week and sweet peppers are ripening up.
Need to check on or make changes to your pick up dates? Log in here.
Bread Share members: You get a SEPARATE email to customize your bread share.
Spring and Fall are heavy on GREENS and ROOTS. The vegetables that, botanically speaking, are actually fruits (things with seeds inside them) take a longer season and more heat to mature. So, those items increase in availability as the summer heats up.
Chop up those greens and make lots of salads! Wilt the greens and serve them with any meal: with eggs or in an omelet for breakfast, as any number of delicious salad types for lunch, and combined with oil, salt, fat, and protein for dinner.
A quick recipe round-up from our family's meals during the past week: (google and choose your fave recipe!)
- Dice and saute Summer Squash or Zucchini and toss with Quinoa and herb seasoning blend of your choice
- Slice Cucumbers and toss with Rice Vinegar and sea salt
- Make Quick Fridge Pickles with Cucumbers using Mrs. Wages Kosher Dill Pickle seasoning mix, available in most grocery stores. (It's easy and ingredients are actually decent! Just mix powder with vinegar and water, slice cucumbers, put in jar, pour liquid over top.)
- Steamed Beets (don't peel! cut into chunks in the size you want)...keep them in the fridge and add them to salads alllll week. Great with cheese and nuts.
- Massaged Kale Salad - choose your favorite dressing and then add anything! Top with Tahini Dressing and toasted Chickpeas.
- Asian Slaw with Napa Cabbage
- Make Salads interesting by adding chopped fresh herbs (Parsley and/or Dill) and GRATED RAW BEETS (plus cheese and nuts if you wish).
- Sauteed Summer Squash with our Scallions plus sausages
To Customize Your Share:
Each time you are scheduled to have a share, you'll receive an email from us 2 days prior. It should have subject line "Time to Customize Your Share." The software will create a default share for you (based on your indicated preferences and what we have available to harvest) and list those default contents in the email. The email also contains a link saying "Want to make changes to your share or add extras?" Click on that link to customize your share! Customization ends at 6am on the day before your pick up day.
For Pick Up:
- Same for cooler(s) at pick up locations with any cold items that aren't vegetables (eggs, fermented vegetables, etc...See below for more info.)
- Preparation ideas and recipe suggestions are in your email. Also check out our Pinterest Page for lots of recipe ideas, organized by vegetable.
EGGS: Ring-a-Bell Farm in Pamplin offers their eggs for sale through us. Their chickens live on pasture and are fed supplemental non-gmo feed from Sunrise Farms. Their eggs are fabulous and we trust their farming practices completely. You can purchase their eggs in our self-serve FarmStand at our farm and you can order them through the Harvie system "Extras" when you customize your share.
With blessings on your meals ~
Janet, Dan, and the whole Broadfork crew (Julie, Alisa, Jen, Clara, Tabea, Christina, Jackson, and the farm kids)
