4th Week of August

This Week at the Farm

Many summer crops are finished and there is a bit of a lull here until the fall crops come into bearing. You’ll notice that the harvest is lighter this week as we look ahead to cool-season eating. A new thing we are harvesting is leeks, see more information about them below. This week we devoted a lot of our attention to watering to compensate for having only 3/10ths of an inch of rain during the last month or longer—you can see how brown the grass is. It’s quite a sight to see
the rows of seedlings taking off as a result of the water. The edamame (edible soybeans) will be ready in a couple of weeks and we are watching them eagerly.

Did you know?

Organic blueberries contain 50% more antioxidants and also contain significantly higher level of phyto-nutrients than conventionally grown blueberries
--data from Rutgers research appearing in the Journal of Agricultural and food chemistry

The Allure of Leeks

This mild mannered member of the Allium family is probably not as familiar to you as its cousins, garlic and onions, but deserves notice and a place on your table. Leeks are particularly honored in Wales, and Welsh warriors wore leeks on their helmets to aid them in battle. Who knows what a leek might do for you? :-) Preparation: trim off the rooted end and discard the thick outer layer and leaves which are generally too tough. Slice end to end and rinse the layers if desired.

Leek and Potato Fritters Recipe

(From www.leeks.com.au: website of Australia’s vegetable grower of the year. It also has additional recipes and fascinating video clips of how vegetables are grown in the land of Oz.)
Serves: 4
1 large potato peeled and chopped
2 medium Leeks, sliced
4 eggs, lightly beaten
½ cup dry breadcrumbs
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
½ cup canola oil
sour cream

Boil potato until soft, about 15 minutes. Mash and set aside. Cook leeks in boiling water for 3 minutes and drain. Stir together with potato, eggs, breadcrumbs, and cheese. Shape into little patties. Heat oil in a large fry pan and cook in batches for about 2 minutes each side. Serve immediately with a dollop of sour cream.

Thank You

Thank you this week to Elizabeth Swope and all of the trainees who formed an excellent harvest team, and special thanks Elizabeth for all the irrigation work this week to keep the crops happy!
Scott

Upcoming Events

September 19
Homefields Golf Tournament
Homefields, our benevolent landlord and host will hold its 12th annual Golf Tournament Sept 19th at Crossgates Golf Course, Millersville. To participate, pick up a copy of the flyer here at the farm or see their website at: www.homefields.org. Proceeds benefit Homefields.

September 26
Shareholder Celebration of Fall Potluck
Watch for more details!

November
You’ll be able to start ordering Goodwill at Homefields Farm Holiday Gift Boxes for coworkers, family etc.

Mid-November
End of weekly harvest, beginning of self-harvesting for shareholders.

4th Week of August

This Week at the Farm

Quite the glorious weather we are having this week! We sense the shift towards fall and the changing crops indicate this as well. We seeded the first winter cover crop seed this week, a mix of rye, crimson clover and hairy vetch. This blend will protect the soil from erosion during the winter, add organic matter to the soil and even add nitrogen from the atmosphere.

Did You Know?

There are 3 separate organizations at the Homefields Farm:

1. Homefields--the non-profit owner and landlord of the farm
2. Goodwill Industries-- operates the CSA farm program
3. Community Services Group-staffs the two groups homes on the property

Better Off

When I look around the county or the country, we have many blessings to count here at the farm this season. The southern end of the county received crop-destroying hail two weeks ago, and Angelic Organics CSA of the Real Dirt on Farmer John Fame in Illinois had so much rainfall
they had to excavate large pits in their fields to collect and pump water out so the crops didn't drown. Many other farms have had extreme weather challenges that put our long dry spell in perspective.

What's Ahead?

As summer crops peak and taper off, the fall crops beckon: pumpkins, winter squashes like butternuts, acorns and spaghtetti, leeks, hopefully baby beets and baby carrots, follow-up plantings of cucumbers and beans, and of course all the fall brassicas: turnip, radish, rutabaga, broccoli, kale, collards, cauliflower and cabbage, not to mention fall favorites cilantro and arugula.

Simply in Season

We have the excellent Simply in Season cookbook here that follows the seasons with timely and tasty recipes that are quick and easy to make. It is for sale here at the distribution area along with a fun Children's version.

Compostables

We welcome all untreated/unsprayed plant materials on our compost pile behind the greenhouse. If you are looking for somewhere to go with your autumn leaf collection or summer vegetable scraps, we are glad for them. No animal waste or meat products please.

Thank You

Hats off to Brian Martin, Farm Operations Specialist, this week for putting together an irrigation tape rewinder that will help us reuse a lot of tape next season!

Thank you appreciating the food and supporting our work here!
Scott

Recipe

Spicy Roasted Eggplant
(from the Simply in Season Cookbook)
1/2 cup packed fresh cilantro sprigs (chopped)
1/4 olive oil
2 T lemon juice
2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
pinch of cinnamon
Stir together.
1 large eggplant (cut in 1/4inch slices)

Brush cilantro mixture on both sides of eggplant slices and transfer to greased baking pan. Broil eggplant 5-6 inches from heat until golden and cooked through, about 10 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste.

Calendar

Saturday, August 23, 10 am
Water Conservation at Home
Water conservation inside the house and out, including cisterns (rainbarrels), presented by Matt Kofroth, Watershed Specialist with the Lancaster County Conservation District. Sign up if interested on the sheet.

Saturday August 23, 3pm to dusk
Backyard Fruit Growers Summer Tour and Meeting
This event is open to BYFG members and Goodwill at Homefields farm shareholders.
The agenda will be:
3:00 meet and greet
3:30 tour
5:00 Auction of donated items—plants, posters, jams, fruit and garden items.
6:00 potluck meal—bring a ready to serve dish
7:00 Fruit growers Q & A sharing session
7:30 Bud grafting of stonefruit demonstration
What to bring: folding chairs or blanket to sit on, a dish to share, items to donate for the BYFG auction. Water, plates, utensils and cups will be provided by BYFGers.

September 19
Homefields Golf Tournament
Homefields, our benevolent landlord and host will hold its 12th annual Golf Tournament Sept 19th at Crossgates Golf Course, Millersville. To participate, pick up a copy of the flyer here at the farm or see their website at: www.homefields.org. Proceeds benefit Homefields.

September 26
Shareholder Celebration of Fall Potluck
Watch for more details.

Mid-November
End of weekly harvest, beginning of self-harvesting for shareholders.

2nd Week of August

This Week at the Farm

The weather curmudgeon will only say that we didn’t really get rain this week and could definitely use some…enough said. Three cheers for drip irrigation. Many thanks to Jeff and Del for doing a superb job of picking beans this week. Brian Bixler did a wonderful job filling in with the mower for the vacationing Eric Rooney.

The tomatoes are going gangbusters--we may have some extras... The spader is repaired and is working well to prepare the soil for your fall crops and the bell peppers are starting to come into their own. The little orange variety is called Yummy, and lives up to its name despite being a pipsqueak of a pepper.

Life with less Plastic

As we put our fresh veggies into bags each week, a lot of plastic bags are used here on the farm. If you’d like to help with our efforts to create less waste, one way is to put items into reusable tote bags or an insulated box or cooler. We will continue to provide both produce bags and the shopping bags realizing that some items need the individual bags and that sometimes its just nice to have the shopping bags here.

Did you know?

Buckwheat is an excellent cover crop for preventing weed growth, bringing up nutrients from the subsoil, and attracting beneficial insects.

Serving Suggestions for the Harvest

Melon: Chill and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper
Watermelon: Chill and sprinkle with a bit of salt of desired
Beets: Boil until tender, slip the skins, serve slightly warm or roast instead
Eggplant: Slice and put on the grill or skillet—brush with olive oil and soy sauce
Onions: We have some wonderful Red Zeppelin storage onions ready this week—keeps 8 weeks
Cucumbers: Great for munching on plain, but also in tomato/cuke salads (See the easy pickle recipe below)

Thank you for appreciating the work that goes on here to bring fresh food to your table.

Scott

Upcoming Events and Recipes

Saturday, August 23, 10 am
Water Conservation at Home: inside the house and out, including cisterns (rainbarrels), presented by Matt Kofroth, Watershed Specialist with the Lancaster County Conservation District. Sign up if interested on the sheet.

Saturday, August 23, 3pm to dusk

Backyard Fruit Growers Summer Tour and Meeting
This event is open to BYFG members and Goodwill at Homefields farm shareholders.

The agenda will be:
3:00 meet and greet
3:30 tour
5:00 Auction of donated items—plants, posters, jams, fruit and garden items.
6:00 potluck meal—bring a ready to serve dish
7:00 Fruit growers Q & A sharing session
7:30 Bud grafting of stonefruit demonstration
What to bring—folding chairs or blanket to sit on, a dish to share.
Water, plates, utensils and cups will be provided by BYFGers.

Friday, September 19

Homefields Golf Tournament
Homefields, our benevolent landlord and host will hold its 12th annual Golf Tournament at Crossgates Golf Course, Millersville. To participate, pick up a copy of the flyer here at the farm or see their website at: www.homefields.org. Proceeds benefit Homefields.

Overnight Pickle Recipe

from Kitazawa Seed Company (they have many great Japanese recipes for vegetables) http://www.kitazawaseed.com/

Ichiyazuki is a salt pickling and is the easiest, fastest and most popular way of pickling. Basically, vegetables are washed, sliced, salted and placed under a weight for about a day. You may prepare this in the morning and serve pickles at dinner. Raisins or chilies may be added for desired flavor. Salt is rinsed off the vegetable before serving. The vegetables are good for only 1-2 days.

Choice of vegetables such as nappa, cucumber, young radish leaves, mizuna, mustards, turnips and leaves, etc.
Salt
Raisins, chilies - optional

For Chinese cabbage, wash nappa leaves. Sprinkle salt on leaves and massage salt into leaves (especially white mid ribs). Place nappa leaves in a deep pan or bowl. For sweet or hot flavoring, add raisins or chilies on the side of the leaves. Sprinkle salt on top of the nappa. Place a dish that will be able to sink down and place it on top of the nappa. Put a heavy weight on top of the plate. Another pan filled with water placed on top of the plate may be used as weight. When you are ready to eat the pickles, wash the leaves and squeeze out the water. Cut leaves into 1/2" lengths.

Daikon tops, radish leaves, takana or mustard leaves. Follow the like nappa process described above. It is preferred not to use raisins or chilies for these spicy vegetables.

For cucumbers, they can be lightly peeled. Cut lengthwise in half and cut again 1/2" crosswise. Sprinkle with salt and massage and follow like nappa described above. Cut to desired size before serving.

1st Week of August

This Week at the Farm

Mid-July to Mid-August tends to be hot and dry. This coincides with us trying to start transplants and seeds in the field for fall crops—it can be quite a challenge to get them off to a good start. This week we’ve been transplanting fall brassicas—broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels, and cabbage. We avoided a die-off of brassica transplants from the hot dry wind, that had just been planted yesterday via some very quickly installed and operated drip tape irrigation thanks to Brian Martin. The spader, which is like a tractor-mounted roto-tiller had the bearings go out on it yesterday, and there is never a good time during the growing season for equipment to break down, but it will hopefully be operating by early next week to resume fall seeding of crops. The
tomatoes are doing really well this week and will probably be at their peak yield two weeks from now. Deciding which melons are ripe in the field is more of an art than a science, and if your melon was not quite ripe last week, we are sorry and hope they are more ripe this week. If you have not tried the sweet onions fried in a skillet with some butter until caramelized you are missing out on something special! We have the variety "Candy" this week, and it lives up to its name, possibly surpassing the Walla Walla in sweetness.

Serving Suggestions for the Harvest

• Melon: chill and sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper
• Watermelon: chill and sprinkle with a bit of salt of desired
• Beets: boil until tender, slip the skins, serve slightly warm or roast instead
• Eggplant: slice and put on the grill or skillet—brush with olive oil and soy sauce
• Onions: Walla Wallas in particular, but others as well—brown in the skillet with some butter and enjoy the sweet mild flavor with almost any meal
• Cucumbers: great for munching on plain, but great as tomato/cuke salad

Did you know?

The world Record watermelon weighs 262lbs. A few plants of this Carolina cross are growing in the Pick Your Own Field. Come see how they do here at Homefields!

Enjoy!
Scott

Upcoming Events and Recipes

Water Conservation at Home
Saturday, August 23, at 10 a.m.
Water conservation inside the house and out, including cisterns (rainbarrels), presented by Matt Kofroth, Watershed Specialist with the Lancaster County Conservation District. Sign up if interested on the sheet at Homefields or email Scott at sbreneman@yourgoodwill.org.

Homefields Golf Tournament
Friday, September 19
Homefields, our benevolent landlord and host will hold its 12th annual Golf Tournament on September 19 at Crossgates Golf Course in Millersville. To participate, pick up a copy of the flyer at the farm or see their website at: www.homefields.org. Proceeds benefit Homefields.

Chard Stuffed With Risotto and Mozzarella
(From the NY Times via Shareholder Sara Salfrank)
Time: About an hour
6 cups vegetable broth, more if needed
1 cup arborio rice
Large pinch of saffron
2 lemons, zested
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, more for garnish
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 big chard leaves
1/2 pound mozzarella cheese
Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling.

1. Cook rice in vegetable broth, starting with one cup; add broth in stages, using about 3 cups total, until rice is barely tender. Reserve unused broth. Dissolve saffron in juice of one lemon. Add to rice, along with butter, Parmesan, zest of one lemon, salt and pepper to taste. Allow rice to cool a bit. Recipe can be made up to an hour in advance at this point, but do not refrigerate rice.
2. Poach chard leaves in about 2 cups remaining broth for about 30 seconds. Take out, drain on a dishcloth, and cut out the hardest part of central stem. Reserve cooking broth.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. With wet hands, form 6 balls of rice 2 to 3 inches across. Dig a hole in ball and insert a piece of mozzarella. Wrap each ball in a chard leaf.
4. Put balls in a close-fitting oven pan, with enough reserved broth to come about a half-inch up sides of balls; bake 15 minutes. Serve balls topped with a little more broth, more lemon zest, Parmesan and olive oil.
Yield: 6 servings.