csa thurz

a few less tomatoes tomorrow because i left two buckets inside the fence to go check out andys progress running the "super weedwhacker". when i came back the cows were just finishing up both buckets. agena has vision. go check out his backyard. check out mine! I take no credit - my neighbor Matt ran with it "like it was stolen." start making a plan to eliminate your grass lawn - grow anything else other than an homage to english croquet (croquet party now oct 3rd) "earth shattering event this saturday" according to my friends at web bots. be very excited.

csa mid august

might be a few extra tomatoes tomorrow and definitely a few extra greenbeans. greenbeans freeze well. place n bag, submerge in water - as the water comes close to the top zip it. the water pressure vacuums them. same with tomato sauce. or make a huge spagetti sauce. feeling restless? stressed out? cant sleep? read an article the other day that there is an epidemic of insomnia in the country. whenever i couldnt sleep my dad used to always say that "you always get enough sleep". something about your body always gets what it needs eventually. in the meantime try some of the farms honey in peppermint tea before bed. excercise seems to help everything. or go to a town hall meeting.

csa

hey csaers
what a storm the other night. 75 mph winds coupled with small hail that was described as a ten minute shotgun blast by one of my neighbors. lots of the corn around the farm was stripped of all its leaves and laid down partway. i think it will still make a crop because it was pretty well along but it would have been a bumper crop. the farm seems to have lucked out on the hail part but the winds took out some tomato plants. ridiculous amount of greenbeans tomorrow. google green bean potato chips where you baked them on a cookie sheet. really good if you get tired of them. pack em in pickle jars use old pickle juice. or just give them away. beans difficult to grow in the city because of the bean beetle. pole beans are better than bush - and planting late can help. great site here about turning your yard (or your neighbors lawn) in to a garden. great stuff.

http://www.masterjules.net/gindex.htm

csa

beans have been bitten by bean beatles.still very edible. scar from beetle bite adds some texture. should grow out of it next week. lots of tomatoes - gear up. hopefully some peppers. looks like salsa. habaneros available upon request. miso - use it "as you wish"/ it is alive. dont boil it - kills the organisms. if youre not getting enough live food just go eat some dirt.

csa

a little more rain this week and mid eighties temps. it feels like san diego. beans are starting to trickle in and will soon become tiresome. very tasty though. love em lightly steamed and then cold all week. cukes going off. cant say enough about cuke and onions with rice vinegar but let me try: wow cuke and onions are one of my favorite foods. i dont skin the cukes and add black pepper then eat them all. tomatoes go good in that dish. have you perfected the cooking of the yellow squash? prepared right i think its better than most steak. barb wants everyone to bring back sauerkraut containers (if empty. more kraut coming tomorrow - with carrots) and boxes.

csa thurs

veteran csaers may not recognize these two words: cucumbers tomorrow. cucumbers are white. picked some peppers that were the results of flowers on when i transplanted. peppers should be good in september. grasshoppers eating only two edibles right now - eggplant leaves and chard. eggplants like it one hundred degrees. so do a lot of things i guess. bees love it. goat population is exploding. i remember learning the shepherds motto before buying goats that said "start small and expand until you are out of control." check - check.

csa

tomatoes are picked when they show any color other than green. then they ripen on tables in the garage. didnt grow as fun of tomatoes this year. went for huge production and we will see what happens but from the looks of it plan on making a bunch of tomato dishes. they are looking good. grasshoppers are heavy. implementiong the only sure thing against them this weekend - the only thing that works - chickens and turkeys. very excited to announce the return of the eggmobile starting next week - pics to follow. bought some "electrified poulty netting" that keeps out the badgers and foxes. i think i can offset the cost just on the grasshoppers vs feed. eggs should be great on grasshoppers.

csa

were waiting now on all the summer crops so more of the same but am excited to say that the year of the carrot takes off tomorrow! not way off - just thinnings. jeff kohout pictured above wheres a lot of hats at the farm - he is also an expert on fish farming and is currently designing a legal way to raise black tilapia at the farm. big rains coming tonight and tomorrow.

csa thur

lots of stuff tomorrow, lots of it edible. dont miss this one. a client who shall remain nameless tried to shell the peas last week. these are sugarsnaps - natures candy - eat all. someone else suggested sesame oil when you saute greens. you dont need much with sesame oil and you should add it very late. broccolli might have a worm or two in it. soak in salt water for five minutes or so before eating raw. if cooking i wouldnt worry about it. peanut butter is good in everything. peanut butter/soy sauce great with vegetables with noodles. great cold the next day too.

csa

last year the cabbage moths were so bad that i grew only cabbage from that family out there. tomorrow i am starting to pick the cabbage and when its gone maybe i will have broken the cycle. when they are gone i will plant some brassicas for the fall. in the meantime the chard looks pretty good. hopefully everyone likes it. just lightly steam it and squeeze a lemon over it and tell yourself its good for you. just me tomorrow - barb is going to minneapolis to help her sister move. i will be here by four for sure.

kimchee csa

kimchee tomorrow. korean adults eat on average one pound of kimchee per day. its in everything, even pancakes. it will keep in the fridge for quite a while. nice rains and temperatures this week. i thought of global warming and how the government who was basing its coming "carbon taxes" on the warming of the earth and then faced with the data that the earth is actually cooling due to changes in the sun, started to call it "climate change." al gore, who has huge interests in the groups that we will soon be paying carbon taxes to, is trying his best to adapt to the new strategy. can you imagine being so well connected you could make billions on the sun cycle?

csa

good stuff tomorrow. chard and beets make their premiere. i like beets roasted. skin peels easily when they are done. they are very pretty without the skin but i eat it a lot. beets are the best. a lot of people eat the greens. they taste like chard - same family - but not as good. chard is an aquired taste and everyone should acquire one. i like it steamed with lemon. fried with garlic is great too.

csa thurs

hey csaers.
nice rain last night. well take six more just like that. its amazing the difference between rain and hosewater on plants. rain is "biodynamic". biodynamic gardeners stir water in huge barrels before watering their plants to "align it with the universe" or something like that. plants need much less of it supposedly. barb and watched the calf being born yesterday. textbook delivery from favorite cow joan. eggs are mysteriously off this week. looked for secret nests but couldnt find any. had two days of very low numbers but they were back up today so we should be fine. making miso tomorrow night if you come late.

Barb Here

Ross will be writing more later but I wanted to ask all of you to bring egg cartons if
you have any and any plastic bags you don't need. I don't want to put any more of them
in circulation so I am hoping to just use your old ones. Thanks and see you tomorrow!
Barb

csa

hey csaers
this recipe for optiko cabbage is a favorite around my sister kathleens house. its great. other people eat it raw. beet thinnings in the salad mix tomorrow. should be a small beet on the end - eat all. it is the "year of the carrot" and that also means the year of the beet. learn to like beets. it always rains memorial day weekend and i hope that holds true this year. think rain - make it happen.

csa thurs

these cool temperatures have been very good to the spinach. leaves are large and still savoy. (i think thats the word for the texture of the leaves.) last of the somewhat misshapen greenhouse lettuce - next week we go outdoors for the lettuce. new stuff next week - more of the same tonight. barb was cleaning the eggs last night and said the shells are thin which means i need to go get some more crushed oyster shells to feed them. still very good for your compost pile. If you dont have a compost pile i highly recommend one. i hear some people say they dont want one because it will attract raccoons - a small price to pay for compost from garbage. forget the tumblers.....just put it right on the ground so worms can enter it.

csa

csaers
the timing is a little off on the romaine lettuce. still a little immature tomorrow but still casesar salad worthy. oneof these weeks the romaine will be full grown. lots of spinach tomorrow. brad wilson likes to cook the spinach and add some vinegar. (hes from thedford.) csa recommendation is raw with a rice wine vinegar with garlic and sugar. popeye cooked it though. later greens - chard and kale are great steamed with lemon so buy big bags of rice.

csa thurs

squeezing a half grapefruit with or without sugar on it over greens is tasty if no time to make a salad dressing. best to make a big batch of dressing and keep it in a jar. Hardboiling fresh eggs is best to just crack the egg in boiling water - fresh eggs are hard to peel. if you are making deviled eggs keep in the refrigerator for a few weeks. barb wants to remind everyone to save egg cartons. see you tomorrow.

CSA week 1

lets light this rocket! CSA O9 lifts off with eggs, young romaines and a bag of greens. best csa results are obtained if you eat all greens raw as soon as possible. lots of greens coming this spring and summer. raw with vinegar + sugar or lightly steamed with garlic and lemon.....soy sauce..... over noodles or rice - buy fifty pound bags at the asian groceries. or way better the bulk whole brown rice at open harvest.

CSA 09

hey everyone. next thursday is the kickoff for csa 09. Pickups this year are out of our garage - we have eight spots left and so if you are in please let us know by monday, payment plans available - cancel anytime. refunds forthcoming if we get shut down as i've learned there is legislation before congress that would effectively criminalize organic farming. the bill HR 825 or is it 875? - was introduced by a congresswoman whos married to a guy with close ties to monsantos legal department. its beyond ridiculous. watched a great documentary under an hour of how cuba basically started organic gardening everwhere. its here - http://www.powerofcommunity.org/cm/index.php

csa preseason

hello all
this is a spring fever email to you guys. csa this year is big. more gardens, including a large squash and melon patch and an employee or two should make this year cant miss. We raised the price but added a week and we are adding more products as well. big emphasis on greens of all kinds early. barb wants to make this the year of the carrot.

hey everyone
I am pretty sure we are being whisked in to something called the North American Union. our new money is going to be called the amero. Lets party!
tomorrow - lots of stuff. cook it, eat it. let your food be your medicine and your medicine be your food. In keeping with our brothers and sisters from mexico and canada csa comes with a chorizo if youre hungry tomorrow and a margarita if you bring kids. i heard open harvest is moving to indian village so you all still have to come to so-so (south of south st) for good vegetables all winter. croquet party is saturday. november 1st - african goat roast. kids welcome but must be 12 to enter croquet tourney. first bracket goes off at 2:00.

Thanks a lot for joining csa...this has been a great year and it has been a pleasure....See you tomorrow, at the tourney and next year!
Barb

csa thurz

hey fellow aliens - tomorrow is a cant miss. tomatoes not as juicy as they were in july (bc they're picked green or because as suite lou says the temperature has dipped below 50?) good greens tomorrow despite goats eating off kale and spinach while i was in the bush. glad there is a picture of the green bean tunnel in its glory before the goats bustout. great africa trip. gardens everywhere. tomorrow afternoon at the ross theatre myself and the three candidates for senator debate a film about ethanol at two oclock. There is a question and answer - possibly a cant miss if you can get there. free to the public. i have been asked to give comic relief to the subject of ethanol. is that possible? yuck. cant wait to hear johanns.....defend it. boxes on porch for early csaers tomorrow.

CSA 9/25/08

With 3 more weeks left, the tomatoes have made quite the triumphant return...and please don't worry, you will have plenty of green beans tomorrow as well. I am taking a break from the greens so Ross will be able to tell you to saute them with garlic and onions next week. Ross also makes a triumphant return tomorrow so make sure to stop by.
B.

CSA-Solo-Extended Dance Mix

Hey Kids-
I know this is going to surprise you, but a lot of green beans tomorrow.
As the temps cool, not quite as many tomatoes as in weeks past. The temperatures added to the fact that the grasshoppers are now eating the green tomatoes may forebode the end of their appearances at csa. The goats escaped but did not go far...just into the garden where they ate most of the greens. I will suss it out tomorrow, but if we have greens they will be turnip greens, collards and chard. Kale is a goat's favorite snack apparently. Bell Peppers seem to be doing nicely as well as the basil and lemon basil.
I need to wait for the Anaheim peppers to turn red but they are doing great so get your chile relleno recipes together for next week. Ross is having a great time in Kenya. They have built a greenhouse on the farm and his next project is a new fish pond.
Carpula: Redux?
See you tomorrow!
Barb

CSA-Solo

Hey Kids-
Ross is en route to Kenya to teach at a bio-intensive farm. Luckily, for the country, he will not be instructing on fencing or animal containment. The cows seem to favor anywhere but the 65+ acres they have. Tomorrow you will be getting some white peaches and apples along with the normal stuff. Still tons of green beans. The greens this week will be a mixture of turnip greens and mustard and we will have both the french breakfast (red and white) radishes along with more daikons. I am sorry that the blog has not been updated. We have had some computer issues... but I will do it next week.
See you tomorrow!

Barb

csa thurz

tonights blog was going to be how to keep your family safe during a greenbean hurricane. While its not quite stage five yet the key advise is to keep it light - if that means singing the more you eat the more you toot song then by all means. they freeze great. parboil, place in bag, submerge in water to force air out. seal bag just above the water. big beans the best. no french thin ones around here. posted a picture of the chicken trailer from last year just to pay homage to one of the greatest technologies of all time. i wish so much that i had it up and running right now because they would wipe the grasshoppers completely out. grasshoppers sampling almost every other tomato. see you tomorrow.

csa wednesduh

we are barbless tomorrow - she is flying to tennessee to drive a truck home with her brother tim who is moving back to star city after two years in nashville. my idea for tomorrows is to make a stew out of the whole box. maybe add an onion or two. i think you would end up with a greek dish if you had oregano. if you see a few small holes in the greens tomorrow let it be a reminder that we share this mortal coil with grasshoppers. eat your greens. (unradiated) g hoppers also starting to eat the black tomatoes. a lot of the tomatoes riper than usual tomorrow. i would say do them up asap. severe greenbean storm warnings for next week - some tomorrow but this is about to blow up. green beans are great in spaghetti sauce. if anyone wants to go to the ron paul speech in minneapolis tuesday night please let me know. signed, your friend of liberty.

csa

honey tomorrow. barb is spinning it out right now. very tasty. bees doing well which means that they must not be too exposed to too many genetically modified crops which is the most current explanation for the colony collapses. I think the prince of england even said as much. maybe he has a soft spot for bees. GM crops are almost so destructive its almost indescribable. Google it if you have the stomach for it. You might as well im sure youre eating them. tomorrow lots more tomatoes and other items. Picture included of a raised bed put up by andy agena. A beauty. This is the way to go. You can grow almost all your food in an incredibly small plot. the farms of the future will be very large gardens - robert rodale.

csa thursday

hey guys.
has fall come early this year? love these temps. lots more tomatoes today. went to a barbeque the other night and talked about the different ways to put up tomatoes. i think the best is just cook them down and then freeze in bags. add spices....later or before freezing for winter salsa or spaghetti sauce. its great to jar them up too and that way you dont lose them when your freezer goes on the fritz as ours did last year. remember to add basil to sauce at the last minute even after turning the heat off. (same with parsley). bean tunnel is finally flowering! beans should be pouring in from here on out. barb in case you hadnt heard this is one of the best bean pickers ive ever seen. see you tonight.

csa thurs

the only thing that i know for sure is there is going to be a lot of tomatoes. maybe make a sauce. eat or freeze. fancy chefs peel and core for dark red sauce. i just cook all. fresh sauerkraut.crunchy. make some polish dogs for it. incredible. some eggplants. lots of small eggplants and i think i saw the bean tunnel flowering today so lots of different stuff coming but tomorrow mostly tomatoes but lots of them. give them to neighbors. included at top is video on gardening on the white house lawn. i know ron paul would grow one and probably write a cookbook too. does give a cursory idea of how to transform your lawn in to a garden. if you decide to do that i am the dumptruck guy dropping the compost on your driveway.

csa thur

hey everybody
we lost loose the goose this week. must have eaten something - llamas develop ulcers that can be fatal. looked all over the body and found no signs of anything except her testicles. he will be missed. cant believe lucy was a male. from the looks of louise's coping corner it is a profound loss. i share louise's champain. tomorrow lots of tomatoes. let them ripen on the counter not in the sun and eat them when they are near perfectly red. they blow up if you dont eat them then. cukes lemon basil/basil and squash. not sure why and when the bean tunnel decides to flower but when it does it will be raining string beans. eggplants coming on finally. was worried about them. good germination on the round two of beets still no sign of the carrot replant but plenty of beets coming later. lost most of them and carrots this spring. going to add sand to some of the lower beds. also think squash hills need sand.

csa thurz

hey csaers
we have called off the collards tomorrow which makes tomorrow a cant miss. cabbage butterfly is beyond out of control. massive insects at the farm right now. grasshoppers - only eating basil right now. huge weird green bugs that look like robots flying around everywhere and they are territorial so they buzz by your ear all the time. bees and bumblebees now everywhere. honey in a few weeks. tomorrow cabbage, lots of stuff. probably carrots. the carrots are so old because they jsut sat their all spring. same with beets. mixed bag tomorrow. tomatoes starting to take off. looking good. bean tunnel taking its time blossoming. eggplants finally looking good. have to get here early to get one of those though. im predicting the collards will be back in the fall.

csa thursday

barb said to me tonight "hey maybe we should take a break on the collards tomorrow"and i said no way. collards are hitting their stride right now. tomatoes tomorrow and a few beans and other stuff. lots of beans and tomatoes in the near future. i am starting to believe that there will be a lot of cucumbers but as you guys know there probalby wont be. had the best ones ever the year before i started doing csa since then theyve all basically wilted. cuke and onions is the summers best offer. theyre still looking good. and squash. you will either get a zucchini or a lebanese white squash tomorrow. lebanese white are also great grilled or sauteed with olive oil and salt and pepper - also great stuffed with meat after scooping out seeds - then baked. tomorrow basil is holey due to grasshoppers - cant believe they eat it. these are the first tomatoes. they will get much better/ see you tomorrow.

csa

hey csaers
whats the haps? new stuff tomorrow - collards look better - i think i let them get dry waiting for last wednesdays rain that didnt come thus violating one of the tenets of gardening - water plants when they are thirsty. lots of different greens tomorrow. basil.....should have tomatoes next week. basil without tomatoes = pesto.
lots of baby goats born at the farm this week. goat favorite bina popped trips and is working overtime keeping them all fed. Lucy the llama babysits baby goats during the day under this tree. need a picture of that its hilarious. cucumbers looking good and well poised for wilt virus. they are in a new spot this year though.
had a question about broccolli going bad in the fridge and the smell ruining you for csa for the rest of the season. no stranger to rotting brassicas i would advise to eat sooner and not to place veggies in sealed plastic bags. want to plug a cant miss rock and roll show at ll 00 pm saturday night - the self righteous brothers are back breaking the ladies hearts for a one night stand at the zoo bar street dance.

csa tday

tomorrow - cole slaw. happy ron paul day everyone. just heard that the whole world could fit in to the state of texas with ten feet between everyone. not sure what to think about that but interesting, possibly embarrassing. i think one of the weirdest things going on is the tax on carbon dioxide - a life giving gas. carbon dioxide levels are rising in great amounts and everyone is going to be taxed on it. Kind of hilarious to watch al gore say this stuff with a straight face. unstoppable mosquito repellant - listerine mouthwash watered down and sprayed on your clothes.happy holidays

csa thursday

hey guys
tomorrow more peas, kohlrabi, brocolli and greens, eggs. collards are of course the green made famous in the south. It can grow all summer. ive found the leaves get tougher and a little paler as the summer goes on but still very tasty. kale and chard do well in the heat as well. anyway eat your greens.
one of the things i am doing to treat the cabbage moth (and worm) is to spray the plants with diluted molasses. its a win win because the moths dont like it and molasses has lots of good stuff in it for the plants - they seem to love it. gonna spray it on everything. molasses is also very good for you - it lowers the ph of your blood. almost everyone is acidic. molasses - blackstrap unsulphured from open harvest bulk section is extremely cheap and great for you - one tablespoon a day. heartburn, acid reflux......all go right away.
supergalactic cherry tomato plant competition is heating up. a picture of brad wilsons is posted here with his welded cage (you can climb it.) he is shooting for five thousand.

csa

crop failure - daikon radishes. just wanted to give you guys the heads up that if you are hankering for a daikon you want to look elsewhere this month. not sure what happened they looked great and then you pulled one and they held their shape until you bit into one and then they turned into kind of a liquod soap in your hand and mouth.....suffering - first planting of beets. yellowing - soybeans.
on the plus side most everything else looks good. predicting a banner year for cucumbers. they say you have to plant cucumbers on the exact day of the moon cycle (first quarter - cancer) or they wilt. this year we got that right - it rained the next day (of course) and they are looking really good. tomorow lots of greens. use soy sauce and a small sprinkle of sesame oil on cooked greens. over rice. must go asian with diet. seriously. lots of peas tomorrow. broccolli also starting. weird lettuce from sweden - dont know the name of it good with rice vinegar, lemon and sugar dressing. possible kohlrabi.

csa

hi guys
not going to talk about this weather. im seeing bing cherry red over the farm on radar and well just leave it at that. we picked the lettuce and some other greens tonight. tomorrow well pick peas (off the ground?) lots of greens. i made collards for my friend scott who "doesnt like cooked greens" and he had two helpings. i love them. i usually just saute them in olive oil and salt. over rice great over noodles too. add anything else you think might be good in there. very cheap nutritious food.
im sure you guys have noticed that the eggs arent as plentiful the last few weeks. i have been using the "egg mobile" an explanation of it is at the bottom of this site if you havent sen it. it is an incredible idea with the sole problem of predators. the other day i saw a fox eating a chicken and in my same field of vision was our dog taking a nap. would have been a great photo. so i moved the trailer and the next day lost two to a hawk. the countryside is also overpopulated with bird dogs and before csa even started one of them dug a hole under the fence and casualties were very high.
the egg mobile is so great though but perhaps they need a chicken herder to stay with the coop all day. it would be a great job i think for someone that likes to read. and the coop would have to be very big to make it worth hiring someone to watch over it. or maybe train a dog. next year maybe
for now i have moved all the birds back in to the coop and will build "chicken runs" (movie recommended). this am i bought more birds from the chicken lady who lives south of sprague. shes the coolest. eggs should be better next week. probably another six tomorrow. see you then.

severe thunderstorm watch

dont want more rain but sources close to the story say it may be inevitable. lots of greens tomorrow, possibly preribboned by hail tonight. collard greens are perfect size and taste kind of like apples raw - curly kale and swiss chard. we call kale curly kale only now based on a scene from the movie in america - recommended. big romaines. pick up some anchovies and the rest and do a caesar table side with the eggs.