4th Week of September

Notes from Your Farm:

This week we are happily harvesting ornamental corn as well as tending to the fall crops. The ornamental corn consists of two varieties--Rainbow and Earth Tones Dent. These corns make incredible corn meal when you are finished using it ornamentally. We'll have a grain mill here for your use, if you would like to bring yours back when finished with it. Our family made incredible corn bread with it a few years ago.

Usually the lull between summer crops and fall crops falls in late August to mid-September, but this year, the cool and cloudy days are causing summer crops to begin bearing and peak later. It's been a great season so far and this crop transition is a good time for the farm staff to get some time away from farming. I'll be taking a few days away from the farm this week and next to spend some time with my family. The fall crops will be coming into their own in the next couple of weeks, with arugula, radishes, and winter squash first in the lineup, while the summer crops have peaked and are now fading away. The tomatoes are done, and peppers and eggplants are slowing down but will continue to bear up until frost hits, which is usually around Oct 15th here. How long does the season go? We expect the final harvest to be on Nov 12, 13 & 14. We hope you are enjoying the diversity and variety of the food as we progress through the season.

Fun Veggie Facts:

World's Largest Watermelon 268 lbs
World's Largest Pumpkin 1689lbs --almost a ton

Fall Potluck

Saturday evening October 3rd, 5-9pm
What to Bring: a hot or cold dish, chairs, jackets? We'll provide plates, utensils and drinks.
We'll have a nice campfire at dusk weather permitting.

Pick Your Own Field Highlights:

• Asian Pears: these sweet juicy pears are delicious. A golden color indicates ripeness. Limit 2 per share.
• Stevia: this natural sweetener is 200 times sweeter than sugar, and has no glycemic impact for people with diabetes or who are limiting sugar intake. Pinch off a few nodes and put in your coffee or tea.
• Jerusalem artichokes: beautiful sunflower-type flowers for cutting! They are near the neighbors sheep fence. We will dug some up after frost for their edible tubers, but as Brian Martin said last year, "starts out like a carrot, ends up like a frying pan" in flavor. :-) frost will sweeten them up somewhat.
• Hot Peppers: signs are posted in the row this week. The farther back the row you go, the more capsaicin! the Nippon Taka variety is said to be incendiary.
• Black-eyed Susan flowers: these are beautiful in the kitchen or elsewhere.
• Ground Cherries: check out these tasty little paper-husked treat that have a hint of pineapple. Pick when paper turns golden brown or fruit is on the ground.
• Sungold cherry tomatoes: yes, they have the late blight too--but there are some tomatoes there.
• Heirloom tomatoes: various types located in the first row.
• Pole beans: including Red Noodle and Roma types, down at the low end of the PYO field
• Cut flowers: zinnias, snapdragons, celosia
• Basil: pinch off the tips just above where they branch--not sure, ask Bradley
• Tromboncino Squash Tower: Check out this rapidly growing vine and the bamboo tower that Bradley made for it.
• Summer Savory: this herb located beyond the grapes in the PYO field. Very strong by itself, it is excellent with tomatoes
• Edible flowers: Nasturtiums, and Calendula and Borage are edible and are located also toward the end of the PYO field.

About Some of the Characters:

• Collards: a nutritional phytonutrient powerhouse and loaded with calcium. De-stem, chop and sauté with oil and garlic and serve as a side and see recipe below.
• Arugula: a nutty, sort of spicy green--great addition to any salad and see Arugula Pesto recipe below.
• Asian and Italian type eggplants: the slender Japanese type eggplants are said to be sweeter and milder than the classic Italian types--but, when we did a taste test, they all were pretty much the same in flavor. Their color is fabulous. Coating slices with oil and soy sauce and grilling them is quick and delicious.
• Bell Peppers: these are the most nutritious when raw, and the long Carmen variety is the new favorite here.
• Bintje Potatoes: these are a favorite potato world-wide, but little known here due to their yellow flesh and smaller size. They have great flavor texture and versatility.
• Greens: discard the stems or ribs, and use the leaves sautéed with olive oil, garlic, onion, soy sauce etc.

Thanks for being a part of the farm and appreciating all the work that goes into bringing about the harvest each week,

Scott



Not your grandma’s collard greens
A meatless collards recipe featuring peanut butter

Ingredients:
bunch of collards
1 onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, minced
1 carrot, diced
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tomatoes, peeled and diced or 1 14 oz. can of diced tomatoes
2 chipotle peppers in adobo, chopped
1/4 cup of smooth peanut butter
1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar

Method:
1. Thoroughly clean each collard leaf, remove ribs and stems. Tear each leaf in half.
2. In a large pot or Dutch oven, sauté on medium the onions and carrots in the olive oil, until lightly brown, about ten minutes.
3. Add the garlic and cook for one more minute.
4. Add the tomatoes and chipotles.
5. Add torn leaves to the pot and add four cups of water.
6. Bring water to a boil, and then turn heat down to a simmer.
7. Add the vinegar and stir in the peanut butter.
8. Cook greens for an hour and a half, or until they are the texture you prefer.
9. Serve with pepper vinegar or hot pepper sauce such as Tabasco.

What? You say you want meat? Well, take the above recipe, swap 1/2 pound of smoked ham or bacon or turkey for the tomatoes, carrot, chipotles and peanut butter. Add them to the pot after you cook the onion and garlic. Add six cups of water, bring to a boil and cook for half an hour. Add the greens and vinegar, and cook for another hour and a half. You might want to add a teaspoon of cayenne as well. If you have any leftover ham or smoked turkey after Thanksgiving, collard greens are an excellent vehicle for their smoked goodness. Of course, collard greens are also appropriate the day of the big meal, too.
--adapted from http://homesicktexan.blogspot.com/2008/11/collard-greens-facebook-and-twitter.html

3rd Week of September

Notes from Your Farm:

This week we planted crimson clover in with the squash to establish a winter cover for when the squash vines die, took town the tomato twine and started to remove the stakes since the tomatoes are on their last legs, took up some of the irrigation lines and stored them in the barn upstairs, removed some of the plastic mulch in which the onions had been growing, and did some more hoeing of the fall crops. Our neighboring organic farmer had an abundance of potatoes this year but lacked for sweet peppers, so the potatoes you see this week are thanks to Promised Land farm and she is pleased to have sweet peppers from us. It's great to have a neighboring farmer to pull together with. We are also pleased to be harvesting the first arugula today. This nutty, sort of spicy green is a great addition to salads and fun to munch on by itself.

Date for Fall Potluck:

Saturday evening October 3rd 5-9pm - food, fun, fire.

Piqued by Pawpaws:

Mid-September means pawpaws, and if your interest was piqued by the mention of them last week, now is the time when they ripen. There are groves of them along the Susquehanna, and also in the County park. Look for green mango-shaped fruits lying on the ground and a heavy tropical banana aroma in the air. Most people prefer them in the soft green stage, but like bananas, they will speckle and turn dark as they ripen more, ending up black and burnt-caramel flavored if allowed to progress that far. Interestingly, they are the only temperate fruit in the custard apple family, which includes tropical delights such as: cherimoya, soursoup, guanabana. The native Americans tended and harvested groves of pawpaws locally, but settlers destroyed their pawpaw patches to eliminate food sources for the native groups. Pawpaws are indigenous to all states east of the Mississippi except for perhaps northern New England where it gets to cold for their winter survival.

Fall time is Fair Time:

When the air turns cooler and the walnut leaves are dropping, it is fair time. The Solanco Fair is this week in Quarryville, Thursday and Friday, and next week is the Lampeter Fair, Wed-Fri. Both are great places to go to see vegetables, fruits, nuts, tractors, antique tractors, and livestock--cows, goats, sheep, pigs and more.

Pick Your Own Field Highlights:

• Stevia: this natural sweetener is 200 times sweeter than sugar, and has no glycemic impact for people with diabetes or who are limiting sugar intake Pinch off a few nodes and put in your coffee or tea. Jerusalem artichokes: beautiful sunflower type flowers for cutting! They are near the neighbors sheep fence. We will dug some up after frost for their edible tubers, but as Brian Martin said last year, "starts out like a carrot, ends up like a frying pan" in flavor. :-) frost will sweeten them up somewhat.
• HOT Peppers: signs are posted in the row this week. The farther back the row you go, the more capsaicin! the Nippon Taka variety is said to be incendiary.
• Concord Grapes: they don't ripen uniformly on the bunches, so just pick individual grapes that are ripe and eat or take with you.
• Black-eyed Susan flowers: these are beautiful in the kitchen or elsewhere.
• Ground Cherries: check out these tasty little paper-husked treat that have a hint of pineapple. Pick when paper turns golden brown or fruit is on the ground.
• Sungold cherry tomatoes: yes, they have the late blight too--but there are some tomatoes there.
• Heirloom tomatoes: various types located in the first row.
• Pole beans: including Red Noodle and Roma types, down at the low end of the PYO field
• Cut flowers: zinnias, snapdragons, celosia .
• Basil: pinch off the tips just above where they branch--not sure, ask Bradley
• Tromboncino Squash Tower: Check out this rapidly growing vine and the bamboo tower that Bradley made for it.
• Summer Savory: this herb located beyond the grapes in the PYO field. Very strong by itself, it is excellent with tomatoes.
• Edible flowers: Nasturtiums, and Calendula and Borage are edible and are located also toward the end of the PYO field.

About some of the Characters:

• Arugula: a nutty, sort of spicy green--great addition to any salad and see Arugula Pesto recipe below.
• Asian and Italian type eggplants: the slender Japanese type eggplants are said to be sweeter and milder than the classic Italian types--but, when we did a taste test, they all were pretty much the same in flavor. Their color is fabulous. Coating slices with oil and soy sauce and grilling them is quick and delicious.
• Bell Peppers: these are the most nutritious when raw, and the long Carmen variety is the new favorite here.
• Red Zeppelin Onions: beautiful red storage onions.
• Greens: discard the stems or ribs, and use the leaves sautéed with olive oil, garlic, onion, soy sauce etc.

Arugula Pesto

1 bunch arugula, stems removed (about 4 ounces)
2 3/4 teaspoons of coarse or Kosher salt
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground pepper to taste

Fill a large bowl with ice and add water, set aside. Fill a medium sized saucepan with water and the 2 1/2 teaspoons of salt, and bring it to a boil. Add the arugula and as soon as the water returns to a boil, remove the arugula with a slotted spoon and place it immediately into the ice water to stop the cooking process.

Transfer the arugula to several layers of paper toweling or clean kitchen towels and allow to drain. Roll up the towels and squeeze as much moisture as possible from the arugula.

Place the arugula in a blender jar and add the oil, 1/4 teaspoon of salt and the pepper and puree until the mixture looks like thick pesto. There will be a small amount of oil on the surface. Use immediately or transfer the mixture to a jar with a tight fitting lid if you are going to store it. This will keep for at least 5 days, refrigerated. Before using, stir the pesto to incorporate the oil accumulated at the top.

Serve the pesto over some freshly cooked pasta or boiled potatoes.

2nd Week of September

Notes from Your Farm:

This week we've been working on hoeing and cultivating the fall brassica field. Brassicas are the cabbage family: broccoli, cabbage, kale, collards, Brussels, turnip, radish... Organic growers are always trying to outsmart the weeds, and timely hoeing along with cover crops is one of the best approaches. The farm crew enjoyed an evening away from the crops Tuesday night at the Barnstormers game. Thank you shareholders Tony Mauriello and Linda Woodward of A & L Ventures LLC for inviting us. Yesterday afternoon's rain came less than an hour after finishing seeding oats and hairy vetch for a winter cover on some of the fields.

There are times when we put great effort into crops only to have them perform poorly. Blighted tomatoes this year are an example of that. Peppers, onions, eggplants, scallions, and beans are examples of crops that have had excellent growth and yields. Overall, we have been incredibly blessed with a great harvest in spite of difficult conditions for vegetable and fruit growers all over the Northeast. Like walking in someone else's shoes, there is no way that you can fully understand the labor of love that goes into what you see here, but I hope that the weekly updates share in a way that brings trust and understanding. Thank you very much for your encouragement and appreciation for things that have gone well and for being understanding when crops do not do as well as hoped.

Date for Fall Potluck:

Saturday evening October 3rd 5-9pm - food, fun, fire.

Edible Acres: Pawpaws, Kiwi, Persimmons and More

Tucked here and there in the farm landscape are various unusual edible plants that are ornamental as well. Why grow them? They are usually plants that need very little care, and are not bothered by pests or diseases. Pawpaw trees are over by the sheep fence, make their own pesticide in the leaves, and the fruit tastes like banana-vanilla custard.

Persimmon trees are out by the trees at the back of the property. The fruit is like a soft-gooey apricot with a bit of cinnamon. The beautiful vines that you see on the pergola and the split-rail fence straight out through the middle of the farm are hardy kiwi vines. There are fifty species of kiwi vines around the world--the type that you see in the grocery store is large and fuzzy, but the vines at the farm are referred to as hardy kiwi and are grape-sized and do not have fuzz. Unlike fuzzy kiwi, they ripen and are winter hardy here and do well without special care in the winter. If there is a downside to them, it is that they take a number of years to start bearing. None of these have fruited yet. Delayed gratification is good, right?

Pick Your Own Field Highlights:

• Jerusalem artichokes: beautiful sunflower type flowers for cutting! They are near the neighbors sheep fence. We will dug some up after frost for their edible tubers, but as Brian Martin said last year, "starts out like a carrot, ends up like a frying pan" in flavor. :-)
• HOT Peppers: signs are posted in the row this week. The farther back the row you go, the more capsaicin! the Nippon Taka variety is said to be incendiary.
• Concord Grapes: they don't ripen uniformly on the bunches, so just pick individual grapes that are ripe and eat or take with you.
• Black-eyed Susan flowers: these are beautiful in the kitchen or elsewhere.
• Ground Cherries: check out these tasty little paper-husked treat that have a hint of pineapple. Pick when paper turns golden brown or fruit is on the ground
• Sungold cherry tomatoes: yes, they have the late blight too--but there are some tomatoes there
• Heirloom tomatoes: various types located in the first row.
• Pole beans: including Red Noodle and Roma types, down at the low end of the PYO field
• Cut flowers: zinnias, snapdragons, celosia
• Basil: pinch off the tips just above where they branch--not sure, ask Bradley
• Tromboncino Squash Tower: Check out this rapidly growing vine and the bamboo tower that Bradley made for it.
• Summer Savory: this herb located beyond the grapes in the PYO field. Very strong by itself, it is excellent with tomatoes
• Edible flowers: Nasturtiums, and Calendula and Borage are edible and are located also toward the end of the PYO field.

About some of the characters:

• Asian and Italian type eggplants: the slender Japanese type eggplants are said to be sweeter and milder than the classic Italian types--but, when we did a taste test, they all were pretty much the same in flavor. Their color is fabulous. Coating slices with oil and soy sauce and grilling them is quick and delicious.
• Bell Peppers: these are the most nutritious when raw, and the long Carmen variety is the new favorite here
• Carrots: roasted, raw, boiled, or steamed, you can't go wrong
• Red Zeppelin Onions: beautiful red storage onions.
• Greens: discard the stems or ribs, and use the leaves sautéed with olive oil, garlic, onion, soy sauce etc.

COLLARD GREENS WITH HAM HOCKS

collard greens
2 lg. ham hocks
1 med. onion
Salt and pepper to taste
1 tsp. crushed red pepper
Remove leaves from stems of collard greens and discard stems. Wash thoroughly insuring all grit and grime has been removed from the greens. Wash ham hocks and boil with chopped onion until almost done. (Do this ahead of time making sure meat has cooked long enough.) Add greens, salt, and pepper and crushed red pepper to ham hocks. Bring greens to a boil, reduce heat and cook until greens are tender. Serve with your favorite meat dish or cornbread.

--adapted from www.cooks.com

Great year for Sweet Peppers

This has been an awesome year for peppers:

the long red Carmen pepper is especially tasty.

Farmers at the Ball Game

Shareholders Tony Mauriello and Laura Woodward invited us to take a break from farmer for an evening and enjoy a game of Barnstormers baseball! Thank you Tony and Laura.

1st Week of September

Notes from Your Farm:

Ahh, the glory of fall...warm sunshine, cool temperatures, perfect for cool season crops. This week we are harvesting carrots, picking awesome Carmen and Apple variety sweet peppers, getting the last round of green beans, and egged on by eggplant. Eggplants are turning in a superb performance this season, the best in years. We are starting to plant fall cover crops to protect and enrich the soil during the winter. One of the best is daikon radish, also known as tillage radishes. These do a better job of aerating the soil than large tillage equipment, mineralize the soil by pulling nutrients up from the subsoil with their 36 inch roots, and give almost 100 percent weed suppression over the winter as they grow.

Eggplant Note:

In spite of the many different shapes and colors of eggplant that we grow, they all taste and are used the same.

New Date for Fall Potluck:

Saturday evening October 3rd from 5-9pm

Cookbooks:

We have some excellent cookbooks here for sale that are a great match for seasonal and local eating.

• Simply in Season Cookbook: Has recipes in order for Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter crops.
• Farmer John Cookbook: From the quirky Farmer John of the "Real dirt on Farmer John" movie fame. His Angelic Organics CSA is one of the best known in the country.
• Simply in Season Children's cookbook: Fun, easy, and quick to prepare recipes to do with children.

Pick Your Own Field Highlights:

• Concord Grapes: they don't ripen uniformly on the bunches, so just pick individual grapes that are ripe and eat or take with you.
• Black-eyed Susan flowers: these are beautiful in the kitchen or elsewhere.
• Ground Cherries: check out these tasty little paper-husked treat that have a hint of pineapple. Pick when paper turns golden brown or fruit is on the ground.
• Sungold cherry tomatoes: yes, they have the late blight too--but there are some tomatoes there
• HOT Peppers: range from mild to wild the farther back the row you go. Some varieties are maturing to red, but green is ok to pick too as you wish.
• Heirloom tomatoes: various types located in the first row.
• Pole beans: including Red Noodle and Roma types, down at the low end of the PYO field
• Cut flowers: zinnias, snapdragons, celosia
• Basil: is ready, just pinch off the tips just above where they branch--not sure? ask Bradley
• Tromboncino Squash Tower: Check out this rapidly growing vine and the bamboo tower that Bradley made for it.
• Summer Savory: this herb located beyond the grapes in the PYO field. Very strong by itself, it is excellent with tomatoes
• Edible flowers: Nasturtiums, and Calendula and Borage are edible and are located also toward the end of the PYO field.

About some of the characters:

• Asian and Italian type eggplants: the slender Japanese type eggplants are said to be sweeter and milder than the classic Italian types--but, when we did a taste test, they all were pretty much the same in flavor. Their color is fabulous. Coating slices with oil and soy sauce and grilling them is quick and delicious.
• Bell Peppers: these are the most nutritious when raw, and the Apple variety has incredible flavor according to farm staff.
• Beans: this is the final week that we will be picking beans--they are somewhat mature now--feel free.
• Carrots: roasted, raw, boiled, or steamed, you can't go wrong
• Ailsa Craig Onions: these mild sweet onions can be used now or kept for storage

Summer Pepper Salad

1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 medium cucumber, seeded and chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
8 ounces crumbled feta cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil

DIRECTIONS
In a large bowl, mix the green bell pepper, red bell pepper, yellow bell pepper, cucumber,
parsley, feta cheese, and olive oil. Chill at least 30 minutes in the refrigerator before serving.

--from allrecipes.com