Save the Honeybee

Hi, folks. There's a petition going around requesting that the EPA ban Clothianidin, a pesticide that is suspected of contributing to the massive honeybee die-off we've been experiencing in the U.S. Clothianidin is already banned in several countries, including Germany where it is produced (there's something very odd about that). So if you like apples, blueberries, and pumpkins, all of which depend on bees for pollination, please consider signing the petition.

First Harvest

My friend Denise and I dashed out into the pouring rain and harvested kale for dinner tonight, our first harvest from the garden. We took just one or two leaves from each plant and filled the colander.

Our daughter Annelise painted the kale marker as a birthday present for Alex. We'll put it out when the rain stops.

Alex prepares to cook the kale that he himself planted.

In general, the garden is looking stupendous. The recent heat and rain have really gotten everything growing, including, of course, the weeds.

Weedy but happy.

The really tall stuff on the left is the potatoes, half of which I managed to bury a bit more yesterday before I ran out of soil. Oops. I'm still trying to decide whether to get more soil for the other three rows of taters. On the right, you can see our bean tunnel. Made out of two cattle panels, it is just high enough for Alex, at 6'4", to walk through. We are working on covering the paths with cardboard, and I'm slowly weeding the beds, laying down paper between the plants, and covering it with straw to provide both weed barrier and moisture retention. You can see this in the front central bed of peppers.

Here's Alex's favorite recipe for kale:

Alex's Central African-New England Kale and Sardine Stew

2 T olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
salt and pepper to taste
2 colanders full of fresh kale leaves, chopped
1 can skinless, boneless sardines in olive oil
1/4 cup raisins or currants
1/4 cup pine nuts
cayenne pepper to taste
parmesan cheese

Over medium heat, saute the onion and garlic until transparent, and season with salt and pepper. Add the kale and cook it down. Add the sardines, raisins or currants, pine nuts, and cayenne. Serve hot over brown rice or pasta and top with parmesan cheese.

Alex recommends vinho verde with this dish.

Catching Up

Whew! 97 degF here in Beverly today. It made me wilt, but the garden is loving the heat.

The farmers' market is over. We did about as well this week as last. Seedling sales are done; we're donating all the remaining seedlings to the Sustainability Guild for use in urban gardens around Dorchester. I just have to do an inventory first so that I can run my expenses properly.

The Great Chile Experiment is begun. I pulled up the peas last week and harvest the last pods, then planted two NuMex Espanola Improved chile peppers in the newly cleared EarthTainer. Then I harvested all the kale from another EarthTainer and planted two NuMex Sandia chile peppers in there yesterday morning. After today's heat, the bush beans finally gave up, so that EarthTainer is next on my list to be cleaned out. I need to select a tomato to go in there, but which one? A Sun Gold, a Juliet, a Stupice, a Valencia, a Brandywine? If I let the kids decide, they'll choose a Sun Gold. I think I'd rather have a Brandywine. They take for-freaking-ever to come ripe in the field. Perhaps they'll be faster in the greenhouse.

The garden is fully planted now. It just needs weeding, watering, and harvesting, which should begin quite soon. The kale is growing full and bushy, and I have teensy 3-inch-long zucchinis. In this heat, they'll be ready to eat in a week. We tried digging for new potatoes on Father's Day, but they're still about the size of the last segment of my pinky finger. I need to bury those potatoes more. Maybe this weekend, when it's cooler.

This evening, I went out to turn on the irrigation and hand water the few areas that don't yet have drip tape or well-developed roots that reach the existing tape, and I discovered that the garden has been colonized by fireflies. So I finished the watering, slapping at mosquitos the whole way, came in, and wrote a poem about it.

It feels like the mad rush of spring is finally over and we can settle into the long summer routine: weed, water, eat, repeat.

Farmers' Market a Success

We went to the Beverly Farmers' Market today, not really knowing what to expect. Would we sell anything? Would we sell everything? It turned out to be right down the middle. We sold about half of what we brought and grossed $128. Minus the $30 fee for the space and the growing expenses, that's not a lot of profit. It was tremendous fun, though, chatting with the homemade pasta vendor to my left and the soap vendor to my right. Many people asked about our farm and were surprised at all that we had to offer. I loved them moments when someone would walk up, read a sign, and do a double take.

We'll go back next week, then run our expenses to see where we stand. I think that unless we have a serious bumper crop of veggies, we won't be returning to the market. However, I think we made some nice connections and can set up relationships where we grow only pre-ordered seedlings.

We're now down to only one or two of the following:
Tomato, Juliet
Pepper, Yankee Bell
Winter Squash, Kabocha
Summer Squash, Yellow Crookneck

And we sold out of Little Leaf cucumbers, Mexican oregano, and Sugar Pie pumpkins, of all things.

The greenhouse seems oddly empty now. That won't last; I still have squash, pepper, basil, and tomato seedlings in desperate need of larger pots. But not many. I should finish those up in a day or two. And then I'll have a couple months' respite from potting... until it's time to start in on fall seedlings. Meantime, our focus will shift to the garden and keeping ahead of the weeds. Will trade seedlings for a few bales of straw. ;)

Beverly Farmers' Market Today

We'll be at the Beverly Farmers' Market today selling seedlings. Most of the seedlings will be tomatoes, but we still have some cucumbers, summer squash, cantaloupe, watermelon, and peppers. It looks like we are only one of three veggie farms at the market, but there will also be meat, seafood, bread, pickles, soaps, and lots of other goodies. The market starts at 3pm and ends at 7pm. It's right at Beverly Depot, so if you're along one of the North Shore commuter rail lines, it's an easy ride in. Come by and say hi!

Heat and Light

Today, just as Alex entered the greenhouse to coordinate our crazy weekend schedule, the fan came on by itself. It's powered by a single solar panel on the roof of the greenhouse, but it has never come on before. Alex surmises that the recent downpours cleaned off the panel enough to make it usable. I also wonder if it is connected to a thermostat somewhere, since it turned itself off about 20 minutes later, after I'd opened the vent. Regardless, I'm delighted. We have a greenhouse ventilated by solar power.

Also, tonight, I spotted the first fireflies of the season. Summer must be here at last.

World Peas

Today, I donated most of our remaining herbs and flowers to World Peas for their Pick Your Own herb and flower garden. The person who came to pick them was driving a Prius, and she'd already picked up three flats of flowers from another donor, so we had quite a time trying to cram everything in. As it was, we missed three little paper sets of various species of basil, a few Mexican oregano, and absolutely all of the cilantro. Still, all the marigolds, zinnias, and sage are gone, along with the mature basil. Between that, the Harborlight sale, and delivering all but the very last of my orders, I have space - blessed, blessed space - in the greenhouse again, and I've been slowly refilling it with larger pots: peppers, squash, melons, and lots and lots of tomatoes.

I am somewhat hampered by the fact that all my compost is thoroughly waterlogged by the recent downpours - my own fault for leaving it out in the wheelbarrow and an uncovered bin. Then again, if you have rain, make compost tea. I have gallons of it now and have been happily feeding it to all the seedlings. My rain barrels runneth over. Also a happy consequence of the rain: the Rose Finn potatoes finally sprouted! Tomorrow, I'll start burying them again.

MicroCSA?

A friend came by today and complimented me on the garden. Our conversation went something like this:

Her: Did you plant a lot of tomatoes?

Me: Oh, yes. I have thirteen out there so far.

Her: Are you planning to sell tomatoes?

Me: I don't know. It depends on how many I get.

Her: Well, if you do, I want to be the first on the list. I love tomatoes!

And that got me thinking... should we offer a microCSA? It seems rather premature to make plans like that. I have no idea how the garden will produce this year. We've already lost half the carrot and beet crops. On the other hand, the potatoes are performing way above my expectations. The corn is growing like gangbusters, as are the squash and pumpkins. What will we do with a bumper crop? Can it? Freeze it? Give it away? Sell it?

My friend may have hit upon a simple solution: a list. We could make a list of people who'd be interested in our excess produce. We could even make a list of what excess produce, in particular, they'd want. And then, when excess produce makes itself available, we can email those folks and offer it to them.

Also, we don't necessarily need to sell it. I'd be happy to exchange foods. For example, if we get tons of tomatoes but our zucchini crop fails, I'd happily swap. I don't know how to can food, though I'd love to learn. If you're planning to can this season, I could give you food in exchange for getting some canned food back or for some lessons or help canning. Like making pesto? I'll give you basil to get some pesto back. Sweat equity works, too; come weed the garden one afternoon and walk away with fresh produce.

If any of these possibilities interests you, let me know. And if you'd rather just pay money, let me know how much you'd expect to pay so that I can price things accordingly. Please send your responses and inquiries to info@highgroundmicrofarm.org.