RGG Newsletter Week 14

Greetings!
Finally, some nice weather! After the last three-plus weeks of cool and wet, we are getting some warm and dry - a much needed change. I hope the dryness will remain for the remainder of the year. The warm temps should help everything mature a little faster, despite the rapid loss of daylight. There are numerous tiny heads of cauliflower and cabbage, as well as many green tomatoes, bell peppers (there are quite a few small ones yet), tomatillos and others, that should benefit from the warmer temperatures. I'd like to see many more days of highs in the 70s and lows above 40.


Box contents included: beets, potatoes, winter squash (acorn, delicata and/or buttercup), tomatoes, eggplant or summer squash, Napa cabbage or kale or collards, arugula, thyme, leeks (for some)
Comments on contents:
- Potatoes: we'll keep plugging away at them and hopefully get up to a large amount for the remaining weeks.
- Squash: acorn is the dark, ribbed one; delicata, the long pale yellow/green streaked one; buttercup, the round, blocky, dark green one. We just harvested them; you can eat the squash right away or cure them in a warm dry place for a week or two for improved flavor. There is more buttercup along with buttercup, pie pumpkins and others to come yet.
- Leeks: we simply did not have time to harvest enough of them for everyone. There are plenty out there so you will be seeing a lot of leeks in the coming weeks.

Goodbye: to the summer squash and eggplant. (We'll grow more of both next year.)

Next week we should have: more carrots and/or beets, potatoes, tomatoes, leeks, parsley, winter squash; possibly baby lettuce, beans (!), oregano,
In two-plus weeks: rutabaga, Brussels sprouts, parsnips, cabbage, cauliflower, raspberries (frozen),

How much longer? I think we'll have at least three more weeks, possibly four. Much depends on the weather, though, as you know.

With the all too frequent rains lately, movement of slugs knew no bounds; with no dryness to slow them down, they have been very active in the gardens, chewing on many crops such as peppers and eggplant. Of course they prefer the ripest ones, too, which is one reason for the smaller than normal peppers (better to get them to you a bit smaller than not at all). The slug bait would not have had much affect with all the rain as it dissolves too readily.

What to do with:
- leeks: check out http://www.simplebites.net/spotlight-ingredient-leeks/, http://www.ehow.com/how_5114707_use-leeks.html . I might add that you can use the green parts in soup stock.
- thyme: check out http://www.gardenguides.com/1430-cooking-thyme.html
- Napa: check out http://www.sheknows.com/food-and-recipes/articles/809695/8-things-to-do-with-napa-cabbage


Chicken update:
It is getting close to laying time, seventeen weeks and counting now; they should start laying pretty darn soon. Construction of the mobile hen house is underway. After going over the several options, we settled on one built atop an old hay wagon frame. It should be rather palatial when completed. We'll keep you posted on progress.
  Over the past two months, acting as Mother Hen, I have been trying to train the ladies to be more resourceful as far as finding their own food. I take them on expeditions within their pen area, turning over logs, old boards, etc. to expose edible critters underneath. At first, none of them would accept slugs as food; I would put one on the tip of my finger, they would peck at it and sling it away, surely finding the slime too much to overcome. Now, there are several slug eaters who have learned to gulp them down and several more who like the sow bugs (aka, roly-polies, which are actually crustaceans). Today I actually witnessed a hen snatch a lacewing out of midair. I felt like giving her a gold star. They are learning to be what they are meant to be. Hopefully, this will translate into really nice eggs.

That's all for this week. Enjoy!

Week 13 Newsletter

Greetings!

Here's what we had this week from the top: parsley with sage, tomatoes; chard, kale or collards; tomatillos, hot peppers (serranos and jalapenos), carrots, beets, Napa cabbage or broccoli or cauliflower, melon(s), onions.

Next week we will get more peppers and/or eggplant, potatoes, tomatoes, beets and/or carrots to you along with leeks, some winter squash, arugula and possibly rhubarb. 

We are hoping to go another four to five weeks.

We did get a frost last week which damaged the summer squash, cucumber and melon plants, effectively ending their runs for the year. The tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant plants were somewhat damaged but are more hardy than the cucurbits mentioned above and should keep going, albeit MUCH more slowly than a month ago. We are losing a lot of daylight every day. I am really hoping that the last crops of cauliflower and cabbage make it before the freeze. When these were planted, I was certain we got them in the ground in plenty of time; I am still optimistic but not as certain. 

One of the more obvious imperfections I'm sure you have noticed are the black spots on the tomatoes. I have never seen this before on fruits throughout the season. There are so many things that can affect tomatoes, biotic (insects, disease) and abiotic (moisture, temperature). NDSU has a good publication on this, Disease Management in Home Grown Tomatoes

(http://www.ag.ndsu.edu/pubs/plantsci/hortcrop/pp659w.htm). After reading through this, it sounds like bacterial spot which causes skin deep, scabby, dark spots that do NOT affect flavor of the fruit. (Cut off or peel the skin.) I do rotate crops, I do try to remove and destroy diseased plants, I do try to eliminate weeds, I do try to make the soil fertile with organic materials; I do not and will not spray conventional fungicides to control diseases, though. Next year, I may use plastic mulch and/or grow them in the high tunnels I hope to have operable by next spring. These should help grow a better fruit.

The tomatillo harvest was a good one; there might be another round if the freeze holds off. Spice up some salsa verde with the hot peppers; the serranos are the skinny ones, jalapenos the large ones. The scarring on these peppers is a sign of maturity; if we had enough time, they would all turn red (there were a few red serranos). There will be more bells on the way.

Thanks to everyone who attended and participated in the Garden Party. I think it was a fun time (despite the relatively frigid conditions) and hope you agree. Special thanks to the Simon Rowe Trio and Ogg Creek String Band for making great music and making us dance. Next year, we should do it earlier in the day and/or year and set the date much earlier. 

Recipes 

Pico De Gallo – 2 cups

2 large tomatoes, cut into ½ inch pieces

½ white onion, finely chopped

½ to 1 serrano chile (or chile of your choice,) minced

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice (from 2 to 3 limes)

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro

Coarse salt

*Combine all ingredients in a nonreactive bowl, adding 1 tablespoons salt; let stand 5 minutes.  Season with more salt to taste.

Napa Cabbage Salad with Peanuts and Ginger – 4 servings

2 tablespoons unseasoned rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1 tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger

3 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

½ head napa cabbage cored and cut into bite size pieces

1 bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, thinly sliced

¼ cup coarsely chopped cilantro, plus sprigs for garnish

¼ cup coarsely chopped roasted unsalted peanuts

*In small bowl, combine cabbage, bell pepper, cilantro and peanuts.  Add dressing to taste, and toss to combine.  Serve immediately, garnished with cilantro sprigs.

Quick Marinated Yellow Squash Salad – 4 servings

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Coarse salt and freshly ground pepper

2 yellow squash halved lengthwise and thinly sliced crosswise

1 shallot, thinly sliced crosswise

1 to 2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves or ¼ dried (or herb(s) of your choice)

*Whisk together lemon juice and oil in a large bowl.  Season with salt and pepper.  Add squash, shallot, and thyme.  Toss to combine.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

Adapted from Fresh Flavor Fast by Martha Stewart

 

Week 12 Newsletter

Greetings!
Welcome to the new format. We hope this blog style format will suffice as well or better than the Publisher to PDF we have been using. While the look of it may not be as slick, the functionality may improve. You can comment, ask questions, share recipes, etc. There should also be many more images for you to gaze upon.

Now for some content. 

What's in the box? Tomatoes; Beets; Napa cabbage, Broccoli, or Cauliflower; Melon; Cucumbers or Summer squash; Peppers or Eggplant; Beans; Parsley.

With over four inches (!) or rain over the last week, and the beans to pick, we did not attempt to dig potatoes or carrots; the roots I hope to get into the boxes next week, weather allowing. The beans are pretty much done for the year.

There were two classes of melons: watermelon and non-watermelon. If you got a non-watermelon melon, it is a good idea to wait until it has a nice floral smell before cutting into it. I decided it was a better idea to pick the melons before they ripened on the vine because so many have been damaged by one pest or another just as they start to ripen. Better to ripen on your counter than get chewed up in the field.

I am sorry if there were a few too many passengers on your produce. I do try to manage the pests but sometimes they get away. Timing is critical with pest control; harvesting usually takes precedence over spraying. I hope you are not put off by critters; perhaps consider them as a testament to the vitality of the gardens.


For next week, we should be able to get some greens back in the boxes, kale, chard and/or arugula. (We have more lettuce greens coming soon.) I hope to get onions and/or leeks as well as thyme, sage and/or oregano cut soon. I hope to have time to start harvesting the winter squash and pumpkins soon as they should be cured a couple weeks before eating.

Party News

It looks like a good turn out for this Saturday's Garden Party. If you have not RSVP'd and would still like to come, go ahead and do so as soon as possible. Also, use this blog to tell us and everyone what dish you will be bringing. We are going to supply a bunch of roasted veggies, chips and salsa (homemade), and a leg o' venison, lemonade, and the Simon Rowe trio!

For those of you from Fargo-Moorhead planning on taking Highway 75, be aware that the highway is closed just south of Shelly; they are replacing the bridge over the Marsh River. There is a simple detour. The gravel road just before the construction is 113. The quick way is to take 113 west a quarter mile then north on the next gravel road (102), then left at the blacktop. Proceed west toward the Red and look for 1008 marker just before the bridge (we'll probably put out some signs, too). However, they recently started rebuilding a stretch of 102 and I do not know when they'll finish. So, here's another way. Instead of taking 113 west, follow it east, then north on the next gravel road (104). This will takeyou to CR 3on the east side of Shelly. Take 3 west, across 75, and toward the Red. (Post a comment if you have questions about these directions.)

That's about it for now. See you Saturday?

Red Goose Gardens offers a seasonal Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program. Here is how it works: We grow over 60 kinds of vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs near Shelly, MN. Local households buy shares of what we produce. Once a week, we harvest 6 to 12 kinds of produce, pack it into boxes for our shareholders and deliver them to drop sites (home delivery is also available) in the Fargo - Moorhead area, Grand Forks, Crookston, and Mayville.

 

We're throwing our annual Harvest party!

 

September 18th 

4:00- ?

at the Farm
(Red Goose Gardens)

We are excited to invite you, our friends and members to celebrate the harvest. Please join us for good company, good food and good music. The Simon Rowe Trio will be playing from 6 - 9pm. Following the music we will build a fire.

Bring a blanket or some chairs, perhaps some beer or wine, and even a tent if you like!

We will set up a juice bar and cook up a few of our favorite dishes. Please bring a dish to share as well. There will be a grill available.

Please use the comment tool to share with others what you are bringing. I, however, would be happy if you all showed up with dark chocolate brownies!