metro farming

Farm Produce

2010-08-24T09:25:00.004-04:00

Fantastic photograph by Beer Brain

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

2010-08-20T10:40:00.003-04:00

This beautiful Eastern Tiger Swallowtail is missing one of his tails. Probably had a close call with a bird, but he seems to be doing just fine without it. The flower here is called Obedient Plant (Physostegia virginiana), and it's one of my favorite late season perennial flowers.

Tobacco Flower

2010-08-15T21:00:00.002-04:00

Who knew Tobacco plants had such pretty flowers? Not me! I've never seen a field full of Tobacco plants growing down in Virginia or the Carolinas, but it must be quite a gorgeous sight when the crop is in bloom. My crop consists of just three plants but they are coming along quite nicely. They really give off a strong Tobacco smell, something else I wasn't aware of. I'm looking forward to my first attempt at curing the leaves at the end of the season.

August Harvests

2010-08-14T09:23:00.003-04:00

Who says Friday the 13th is an unlucky day? Not in my garden!

Seed Saving 101

2010-08-12T10:36:00.006-04:00

Saving tomato seeds is very easy and a great way to continue growing your favorite variety of heirloom tomatoes for years to come. By saving the seeds from the best fruits of the season, you are assuring the continuation of excellent fruit production in the coming seasons. You are selecting the best from your own particular growing conditions, not some generalized hybrid seed meant to be grown anywhere.

Here is all you need to do...

Squeeze the seeds from a tomato into a clean jar. Remember, use one of your top quality specimens.

Add some water to the jar...

Cover the jar with plastic and poke some holes in the plastic. Place the jar on a shelf out of direct sunlight for several days.

After three or four days a layer of mold will have formed on the surface of the water, and you will notice that the seeds have settled on the bottom. Use a spoon to remove the mold from the jar.

Now gently run water into the jar and carefully pour off the rinse water. The seeds will stay on the bottom of the jar as long as you pour the water off gently. Keep doing this until the water runs clear and all that is left is clean seeds. Pour these seeds onto a coffee filter. You can also use a paper towel, but the seeds tend to stick to paper towels.

Place the coffee filter on a plate and set it back on the shelf to dry for a few days. When completely dry, you can now store the seeds for next season. I usually just wrap them up in the same coffee filter and then put them into a white envelope. Make sure you label the envelope with the name of the tomato variety and the year you saved them.

Tomato Report

2010-08-08T19:20:00.009-04:00

I have not heard a single complaint from a Mid-Atlantic tomato gardener this season. Excellent Spring conditions followed up by a hot dry summer have resulted in near perfect conditions for growing tomatoes. I had a small case of Blossom End Rot show up on my early Schimmeig Creg fruits, but that seemed to correct itself with some fertilizer applications. No sign of the dreaded Late Blight that so devastated the crops of 2009. I'm looking forward to the final push of late season fruits as we wind down to the end of a wonderful growing season. Here is a collection of the best examples of my tomatoes so far this season...

garden peach

assorted cherry tomatoes

dr. wyche's yellow

harfeuer

german red strawberry

santore roma

Giant-Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)

2010-08-04T10:16:00.005-04:00

This is one of my favorite sections of the garden. I planted this Giant Hyssop here about six years ago and it faithfully returns every season to reward me with tall sweeping fronds of gorgeous lavender colored flowers. Throughout the day these flowers are swarming with bees of all types... from tiny little bees to the biggest Bumble Bees, it is a non-stop frenzy of activity. The path leading to my garden hose is right next to this row of Giant Hyssop, and I walk right past this party of bees several times a day. The bees are so engrossed in their pollen gathering activities, they never give me a second glance. In fact, did you know that when a Bumble Bee is collecting pollen you can actually pet it? Years ago I used to show my kids how to "pet the bee". They would watch in amazement as I would find a Bumble Bee and gently reach out and stroke it's back with my index finger. I've never encountered a Bumble that seemed to mind it a bit.

Now these guys below are a different story. While they don't seem to mind me getting close to them with my camera, I don't think they would tolerate being touched.

Dr. Wyche's Yellow

2010-08-03T09:51:00.003-04:00

This is the first year I have grown this variety, and this is the very first fruit I've harvested. Haven't tasted it yet, but it sure is a beautiful tomato! I am certainly going to save some seeds for next year.

DR WYCHE'S YELLOW TOMATO (Solanum lycopersicum) was developed by the late Dr. John Wyche who owned the Cole Brothers Circus. Produces meaty, rich tasting yellow-orange one pound tomatoes. Heavy yields even without elephant manure, which is supposedly what the good doctor used in his garden soil!

Where did July go?

2010-08-01T10:53:00.005-04:00

Wow! I just realized that I didn't put up a single post in the month of July! Seems like the Summer is flying by. It has been very hot and dry here in the Mid-Atlantic region, with an occasional severe thunderstorm to stir things up with sudden heavy rain and high wind. Four inches of rain on a recent Monday morning!

I've been taking lot's of photographs of the garden even though I haven't been posting them here. Just to catch up, here are images of delicious produce from the garden that were all harvested during the month of July...

Tomato Update

2010-06-19T08:30:00.001-04:00

Saturday night harvest

2010-05-22T22:17:00.001-04:00

New Tomato Beds

2010-05-18T22:14:00.002-04:00

I built a couple new raised beds for Tomato plants. These are 9' by 3' each and they are on the only section of my property that gets full sun. After last year's issues with Tomato Blight I decided it was time to move the tomato plants to an entirely new location to help reduce the possibility of re-infection from any residual spores. The tomatoes will do really well in this spot with full day sun and a nice warm brick wall behind them. I'll do a row of Basil in front of a back row of my Amish heirloom plants.

Harvest Baskets

2010-05-15T20:20:00.002-04:00

I'm experimenting with some harvest basket designs. The bottoms are new galvanized hardware cloth, but everything else is salvaged... Antique Pine for the box and Rhododendron branches for the handles.

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-09T22:08:00.002-04:00

Here in the Mid-Atlantic region the long accepted rule of thumb is that summer season plants can safely go outside on Mother's Day weekend. Not this year! We have had many very warm days so far this Spring, but this weekend has been very windy and downright chilly. The forecast is for a low of 38 degrees for the next two nights! I covered my cold frame with two layers of canvas drop cloths to try to keep in some of the heat from today's sunshine. I also covered my potted Tomato plants with plastic trash bags to protect them from tonight's chill.

Happy Mother's Day to my mom who is in sunny warm Florida !

Wheat Grass

2010-05-08T14:20:00.003-04:00

I wanted to cultivate Wheat Grass indoors over the winter months but I never got around to it. Last weekend I sowed some seeds in several large pots outside and within a week's time I have shoots almost ready to harvest. I don't have a juicer. I plan to simply chew on these grasses to extract the juice. This is not a very common way to ingest Wheat Grass juice because most people don't like chewing on a mouthful of grass for several minutes, but it doesn't bother me at all. I actually enjoy it. After the juice is extracted, you simply spit out the remaining grasses.

Wheatgrass refers to the young grass of the common wheat plant, Triticum aestivum, that is freshly juiced or dried into powder for animal and human consumption. Both provide chlorophyll, amino acids, minerals, vitamins, and enzymes. Claims about wheatgrass' health benefits range from providing supplemental nutrition to having unique curative properties.

The Benefits of Wheat Grass

Botanical Interests Wheat Grass Seeds

Herb Garden

2010-05-07T10:06:00.003-04:00

The Herb bed seems to have exploded with greenery in the past week. The Oregano and Mints are growing vigorously, while the Thyme appears to have lost energy over the heavy winter. I have added new Thyme plants to supplement the older patches of Lemon and English Thyme.
I've added several new Sage plants, as well as a row of Dill. Lot's of medicinal and culinary properties in this herb garden!

Solly Brothers Farm

2010-05-05T10:04:00.005-04:00

Solly Brothers Farm
707 Almshouse Road
Ivyland, Pa 18974
215.357.2850

Open everyday 9-6

Local produce, pies, preserves, pick-your-own

They start selling their own produce in June

Lancaster's Eastern Market

2010-05-03T09:40:00.009-04:00

Lancaster's Eastern Market
by Jean Fitzgerald for Metrofarming

Eastern Market

MetroFarming visited a wonderful farmer's market space in Lancaster County during this past weekend. We were invited to the practice run for the 2010 Eastern Farmers Market at 308 E. King Street which opens officially on May 29th Our primary contact was Douglas Smith, Director of the Eastern Farmer's Market in Lancaster. The market is incredibly easy to find for out-of-towners, and the people running it are just as accessible. Parking nearby is convenient; we were a 1/2 block around the corner on a shady, unmetered street.

What makes Eastern Farmer's Market in Lancaster special and worthwhile to all of us? It is a non-profit market that was established for the purpose of providing low-income individuals and families residing in the city of Lancaster with a cornucopia of affordable, fresh food and produce. It was also created to give local, low-income and other neighbors an opportunity to sell their own local, home-garden and farm wares. Most significantly, the individuals and families who have begun to participate are collaborative, creative, mindful, enthusiastic, organized, and very clearly becoming successful entrepreneurs. It was interesting to perceive how the unique rural qualities of Lancaster County combine with the varied inner-city residential cultures & urban demographics. Lancaster is an extremely vibrant, colorful, beautiful city in all of its parts.

We mingled with a great number of hard-working and dedicated vendors at The Eastern Market and were grateful to be extremely well-received by everyone we met, from Eastern Market board members, to administrators of the organization, contributing local produce growers and meat vendors, neighborhood culinary specialists, Lancaster County craft and natural soap artisans, to a booth providing educational and media materials regarding a specific, critical, current environmental issue.

There were also an inspiring number of collaborators and pro-bono supporters who attended the event helping to prepare and sell food, guide patrons on product ingredients, communicate ideals, issues, and farming techniques, and basically just assist their friends and family by showing up to have fun, celebrate life and farming, and to set-up and close-down booths. The rest of us grew in knowledge, health and wellbeing, good cheer and even awe as we browsed, sniffed, ate, asked, listened, and filled our baskets for subsequent enjoyment... and eventual nostalgia for the savory and tender experience that Lancaster is.

I descended upon a gregarious and engaging family vendor displaying a rich array of Middle Eastern cuisine. Hamid Hamid is a long-time vegetable grower, originally from Jerusalem. The ecstasy his market customers enjoy, he emphasized, is the result of tasting the exquisite, singular quality of his produce, including a rare and delicate cucumber, and unfailingly delectable eggplant that is solid and thick when it is cooked and has a wonderful texture and taste. His zucchini is extremely fine as well. Although Hamid admitted to importing some of his superlative produce from other continents- he is eager to introduce a local crop as well and for that purpose, is sharing land with a local Amish Farmer. $4.00 will buy you a belly-full of delicious falafel. I personally experienced the joy of connecting with Hamid and his wife Nowal; they were full of stories from the Middle East, the recounting of which was evidence of great humor, bliss and yes, sorrow; and still, we now also have memories of the fine treat of our moment together in the day.

Lime Valley Mill's produce

Bryan Campbell, an Eastern Market board member, introduced us to the beautiful produce of Allyson and Dale Brian as he made his weekly purchase; this time mustard greens. Allyson described her farm to us, Lime Valley Mill , with straight forward speech and energy; their livestock is not given antibiotics unless they are sick and they do not use growth hormones either. So reassuring and hopeful to hear. Although they are not currently certified organic, they follow all OMRI standards and do not use non-OMRI pesticides. On 118 acres, 6 acres are used for produce, and the rest is pasture-land for livestock, farming animals and field crops which include corn, beans, wheat, barley, alfalfa, and orchard grasses. Their meat offerings to the community are beef, pork, and lamb. Allyson is a significant contributor to this Farmer's Market and will welcome all inquiries and new customers. We plan to visit Lime Valley Mill in the near future, and greatly look forward to becoming repeat customers.

A tantalizing ingredient of this market is its diversity - global cultures, individual participants of all ages, and the support of a low key, but committed group of young people from the community who lend the entire organization their many helping hands. They are examples of an awakened and very conscious, conscientious generation who will influence many lives around the world for the better. And from my perspective, corporate, civic and institutional leadership will find that the long journey home to greater integration in society and the provision of key infrastructure to end destruction of the earth's precious environments will be led by just such young people as these. Collaborative groups like this group who are nurturing the local, inner-city customers and budding micro-entrepreneurs in the downtown city of Lancaster, Pa. are making a huge difference behind the scenes and in the battlefields of every farming and wildlife environment around the world.

Another young local has been instrumental in entertaining the young people who walk with friends and parents to the Eastern Market. We watched Rob Seitz, manager of Art in Action at local Lancaster schools, help neighborhood children create art for the market by designing and painting fruits and vegetables on poster board. Everyone we met Saturday is involved in farming in some way and Rob is no exception: he is part of a farming co-op with 8 friends just 25 minutes away from Eastern Market.

Etayehu Zeneba of Gursha Organics

Our beautiful new friend Etayehu Zeneba of Gursha Organics is another vendor at Eastern Market, grows herbs and lettuces in her backyard garden; her very delicate looking, but strong hands deserved the jewels of the soil she held out to me: gorgeous chives and fragrant oregano made us best buddies immediately. The lunch that Etayehu prepared for us was an Ethiopian vegetarian platter of lentils, vegetables and couscous that was wonderful along with a refreshing jar of home-made mint tea with honey. Etayehu also provides the greater Lancaster community with her food specialties from Ethiopia at a much touted local natural foods store called Expressly Local Food.

Mint Tea with Honey

We were drawn towards a serenely perfumed scent emanating from the Peace of Soap booth, belonging to Tandi Book. Tandi was handing out samples of her hand crafted soaps made with locally sourced ingredients. A hot bath later that day using one of Tandi’s soaps was a sublime pleasure bordering on transcendence.

After the market closed, Douglas Smith introduced us to the Lancaster Eastern Market's first neighborhood co-operative, garden plot. It is a small lot with beautiful and unusual raised beds built from Osage Orange wood, as well as various brick, stone and cinderblock-lined beds. The land has been loaned to the Eastern Farmer's Market by a Good Samaritan in the community. It has been designated The Alley Garden; and another neighbor is donating his own previously farmed soil and compost with excellent PH and nutrient-rich minerals. The community lot has been cleared of trash and debris, some rain barrels donated by locals, and customer-farming/vendors of the Eastern Market are eagerly watching the delicate green of sprouts just beginning to show new growth of carrots, spinach, onions, squash, cucumber, cilantro, arugula, chard, green beans, black beans. Hands that previously were unaware of the magic of mulch are getting dirty and the individuals involved will benefit from a new hobby or, in some instances, the beginning of a life-long passion.

Franklin & Marshall College's Department of Agriculture has been involved in soil testing for The Alley Garden, as has the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. The services of each has been enormously helpful and appreciated.

The Alley Garden

Many thanks to Douglas Smith of the Eastern Farmer's Market. His effective leadership, operational skills, patience and great kindness to constituents builds relationships and tears down walls. We were greatly impressed by the raised beds he has built at The Alley Garden and the knowledge base that he has developed in the evolution of the Eastern Farmer's Market in Lancaster and that he so willingly shares. Thanks in advance to Bryan Campbell, board member, for his insights and competence on an on-going basis regarding the New American Slow Food Movement and social justice "with access being key". We look forward to future dialogues and becoming equally fluent on these urgent, many-layered issues.

Eastern Market

Lime Valley Mill

Fresh Spring Greens...

2010-05-02T17:14:00.003-04:00

Picked right from the garden, washed & chopped and into a salad within minutes. I drizzled on a Lemon vinaigrette... Fresh squeezed Lemon juice, Olive Oil, fresh chopped Garlic, Fresh Oregano, and some crushed Red Pepper. Heaven!

Funk's Greenhouse

2010-05-01T23:07:00.002-04:00

Spent the day driving through Lancaster County to visit some beautiful Amish farms, an urban community market and garden, and even found a stunning wildflower preserve. The photo above is a wonderful family run greenhouse operation on the banks of the Suquehanna river near Millersville, Pa. The Funk family sells hundreds of varieties of plants and vegetables, including 50 varieties of tomatoes, some of which are very unique heirloom varieties. Even though I have too many tomato plants started already, I couldn't resist buying Red Candy (a sweet grape tomato), Dr Wyche's Yellow, Garden Peach, and German Red Strawberry (an Oxheart variety). I'll just have to find room!

Turnip Greens

2010-04-28T10:03:00.004-04:00

Before I started growing Turnips, I never gave their green tops a second thought. I planted several rows last Fall and after an early hard frost I thought I had lost the crop. Thankfully I didn't dig them up. I left them in the ground and to my delight, they greened up vigorously in the early Spring as soon as the snow melted. When the rest of the garden is nothing but rows of sown seeds waiting to grow you learn to use what is available at the moment, and in the early Spring this has been Turnip Greens for me. I am now finally able to harvest things like Radicchio, Arugula, Mustard Greens, and Chinese Cabbage; but for many weeks it was nothing but Turnip Greens. While I am enjoying my new level of variety, I have discovered the joys of these simple and often ridiculed greens.

Turnip Greens are loaded with vitamins A, C, and B complex, as well as a good source of the minerals potassium, magnesium, and calcium.

These green are wonderful in soups. I have used them several times in Miso Soup. I also like to steam them. Throw a pile of chopped Turnip Greens into the steamer and layer on top of them some sliced Carrot, Celery, and then some nice fish such as Tilapia or Lemon Sole. Sprinkle on some Red Pepper flakes or diced Jalapeño if you like a bit of heat. Let this steam for about ten minutes, or until the fish is just cooked. Serve with a squeeze of Lemon. Fantastic!

... and many thanks to my buddy Ronnie who sent me a link to a unique variety of Turnip, Seven Top, that doesn't grow a harvest-able root. Instead it concentrates all of it's energy on a great tasting top! I think I'm going to give this a try next season.

Turnip: Seven Top

The Cost of Genetic Modification

2010-04-26T09:15:00.002-04:00

From Natural News website...

Bayer admits GMO contamination out of control

(NaturalNews) Drug and chemical giant Bayer AG has admitted that there is no way to stop the uncontrolled spread of its genetically modified crops.

"Even the best practices can't guarantee perfection," said Mark Ferguson, the company's defense lawyer in a recent trial.

Two Missouri farmers sued Bayer for contaminating their crop with modified genes from an experimental strain of rice engineered to be resistant to the company's Liberty-brand herbicide. The contamination occurred in 2006, during an open field test of the new rice, which was not approved for human consumption. According to the plaintiffs' lawyer, Don Downing, genetic material from the unapproved rice contaminated more than 30 percent of all rice cropland in the United States.

"Bayer was supposed to be careful," Downing said. "Bayer was not careful and that rice did escape into our commercial rice supplies."

The plaintiffs alleged that in addition to contaminating their fields, Bayer further harmed them financially by undermining their export market. When the U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the widespread rice contamination, important export markets were closed to U.S. producers. A report from Greenpeace International estimates the financial damage of the contamination at between $741 million and $1.3 billion.

Bayer claimed that there was no possible way it could have prevented the contamination, insisting that it followed not only the law but also the best industry practices. The jury disagreed, finding Bayer guilty of carelessness in handling the genetically modified crops. The company was ordered to pay farmers Kenneth Bell and Johnny Hunter $2 million.

"This is a huge victory, not only for Kenny and me, but for every farmer in America who was harmed by Bayer's LibertyLink rice contamination," Hunter said.

According to Hunter, the company got "the wake-up call they deserved."

Bayer is still being sued by more than 1,000 other farmers from Missouri, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.

Blueberries

2010-04-25T20:34:00.004-04:00

I need to find a way to cover my Blueberry bushes so the birds don't steal all the berries. My plants are loaded with flowers!

In response to this post, The Giving Garden sent along a nice photo of a relatively simple way to support a netting system to keep the birds away from berries... (click the image to see a larger version) Thanks Giving Garden!

the first transfer...

2010-04-25T19:30:00.003-04:00

Transferred the seed starts into the cold frame. I moved all of the herbs I had in the cold frame into the herb bed, the Lemon Balm, Catnip, Basil, and Stevia. The Vegetable seedlings will do nicely in the steamy heat of the cold frame for the next 3-4 weeks before I transfer them over to the summer crop bed.

Charlann Farm

2010-04-17T21:45:00.006-04:00

Charlann Farm
586 Stonyhill Road
Yardley, PA 19067

Fresh Produce grown right on our Farm! Sweet Corn, tomatoes, peppers, zuchini, cucumbers, beets, pumpkins, gourds, and many other vegetables in season...also at the Lower Makefield Farmer's Market on Thursdays June - October.

details on Local Harvest

what's growing mid-way through April...

2010-04-16T10:50:00.008-04:00

Here in the Mid-Atlantic area we have had near perfect Spring weather for gardening. Just the right amount of rain (ok, maybe a bit too much at times), gorgeous sunny days, and not too cold nights. All of this after a Winter of heavy insulating snow cover had added up to excellent conditions for the Spring veggies.

My Cold Crops are coming in nicely from the seeds I put down a few weeks back. I've got about a month left before I will turn this bed over to the Summer crops and the next month will provide an abundance of fresh Bok Choi, Arugula, and Turnips...

The Wintered-over Kale is still looking good...

I recently moved the Swiss Chard out of the Cold Frame and into the herb bed...

The early starts in raised beds have almost doubled in size since I planted them. Each of these beds have sown seeds of Carrots and Onions in the back rows that are all sprouting nicely.

Chinese Cabbage...

Mustard Greens...

Collard Greens...

and Baby Bok Choi from seeds are my favorite Spring crop...

more medicinal herbs...

2010-04-15T10:11:00.005-04:00

Here are a couple more medicinal plants I am growing in the garden, to be used in herbal tea blends.

Catnip (Nepeta cataria)

From the Non-Timber Forest Products Program at Virginia Tech...

The leaves of Catnip have traditionally been chewed as a remedy for alleviating toothaches. The inhabitants of Southern Appalachia have used it since the eighteenth century as a remedy for cold. Tea made from catnip has been used to relieve intestinal cramps and gas discomforts. Recent researches show that consumption of teas containing catnip has anti-cholinergic effects. Catnip has been used for relief of insomnia and prevention of nightmares, and has a mild anti-spasmodic effect and is used to treat cramps. The juice from the leaves was used to stimulate menstrual flow. It has been used in the treatment of children’s ailments, such as colicky pain, flatulence and restlessness. The herb has also been used as a cold remedy, for hives, as a diaphoretic, a refrigerant and an anodyne. (Please refer to the Dictionary of Modern Herbalism by Mills for further information on these terms.) Poultices made from catnip have commonly been used for toothaches, though they can be applied to any part of the body. They have been applied to sore breasts of nursing mothers and to the neck for tonsillitis. The flowering tops of catnip yield up to 1.0 % volatile oil, 78 % being nepatalactone, the main attractant to cats. Thymol extracted from catnip has beneficial antiseptic uses on the skin and in the nasal and pharyngeal
passages.

It is important that you exercise caution when considering using catnip products for medicinal purposes; seek professional advice before using them.

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis)

From the University of Maryland Medical Center's Complementary and Alternative Medicine Index...

Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis), a member of the mint family, is considered a "calming" herb. It was used as far back as the Middle Ages to reduce stress and anxiety, promote sleep, improve appetite, and ease pain and discomfort from indigestion (including gas and bloating as well as colic). Even before the Middle Ages, lemon balm was steeped in wine to lift the spirits, help heal wounds, and treat venomous insect bites and stings. Today, lemon balm is often combined with other calming, soothing herbs, such as valerian, chamomile, and hops, to help promote relaxation.

strawberry leaf tea

2010-04-13T10:43:00.006-04:00

I have always dried my own herbs for culinary use. I savor my dried Oreganos, Basils, and Thymes throughout the winter months. The flavor of these freshly dried herbs is far more intense than anything that can be purchased at the grocery store. I have never really focused much on the medicinal use of herbs, even though one of my favorite reference books is Back to Eden, the herbal medicine guide written by Jethro Kloss in 1939, and revised and updated many times since. The book has sold over 5 million copies since it's original printing, and while it contains many outdated remedies, it also contains hundreds of tried and true common sense ways to use herbs to improve and maintain optimum health.

Last summer the CSA I belonged to, Pennypack Farm, had a Medicinal Garden that some of the members were working on as a special project, and it inspired me to focus on learning more about growing herbs with specific medicinal properties, and learning more about possible uses for some of the plants that already grow in my garden.

In reading Back to Eden, I discovered that Strawberry Leaves have a very beneficial quality to the entire digestive system, They are considered a tonic and a diuretic, and help to cleanse the stomach and intestines. Over the weekend I picked some Strawberry leaves from the garden and thoroughly washed them before dehydrating them in the oven. In a few hours I have a nice batch of dried Strawberry leaves to use as an herbal tea. The taste is a bit grassy and dull. Nothing at all like the fruit. I added some fresh Ginger and a small piece of Cinnamon to improve the flavor of the tea. I plan to continue to pick more of these leaves through the season, as well as harvesting some Blueberry Leaves, which I have discovered have even greater beneficial qualities than the Strawberry leaves do. My goal is to have at the end of this garden season, not just a nice supply of culinary herbs, but also a wide collection of medicinal herbs to last me through the Winter months.

Back To Eden

the zen of legumes...

2010-04-12T21:34:00.003-04:00

Jean Fitzgerald's recent essay on Mindfulness and Eating really gave me pause for thought several times in the past few days. I have been focusing more intently on the process, or art, of preparing food. The concept of an Alms Bowl and only consuming a specific and finite amount of food at each meal has also struck a nerve with me and my tendency to keep eating without conscious thought to the need to stop short of expansive regret.

I thought about the art of process this morning as I prepared some Black-eyed Peas. Every Monday morning I try to prepare a new batch of legumes to have for the week ahead. I rotate between Garbanzo beans, Lentils, Black Beans, Pinto beans, etc. so I don't get bored with the same thing week after week. I'm not a fan of canned beans. Way too much sodium in them and I don't like the slimy liquid that surrounds the beans inside the can. I think that is the biggest reason I was never a fan of any type of bean. I always thought of them in the context of that slimy liquid in the can. Upon recently discovering the joys of preparing dried beans from scratch, I am now a devotee of the legume. Home cooked legumes are no comparison to canned in my humble opinion, just like home grown vegetables are no comparison to store bought.

But everything worthwhile has a price and preparing legumes at home requires a little more time, patience, and commitment than the convenience of opening up a can. Most beans require overnight soaking, so if I want to make them on Monday morning I must remember to get them ready on Sunday night. Beans need to be washed and picked through to get rid of any small foreign objects that might have gotten in with them by mistake. There is an opportunity here for quiet reflection and meditation on the importance of quality sustenance and healthy eating as we methodically pick through the beans and wash them before soaking. Waking up on a Monday morning knowing that I have planned ahead and have a pot of soaked beans ready to cook is a simple way to start off the week with a positive outlook.

The cooking process is simple. Most beans require only a gentle simmer in water for thirty minutes or so to produce wonderfully plain cooked legumes that can be used in any variety of ways. I often prefer to enhance them in simple ways. This morning I simmered my Black-eyed peas in water and a bit of Olive Oil, a small can of Tomato Sauce (Hunt's No Salt Added), a couple Bay Leaves and a generous amount of Red Chili flakes. The peas soak up all of these flavors and the result is really delicious!

The result is a simple bowl of peas to keep in the fridge all week for an accompaniment to breakfast, lunch or dinner. But it is much more than that. I value this simple bowl of food because I invested time and preparation into it. My time has value, so the food has value to me. I appreciate it a thousand times more than I ever could some peas that came out of a can. A hundred cans of Black-eyed peas will always be exactly the same. No two batches of peas I make at home are ever the same. I am not a precise cook. I rarely measure. One week I might simmer my peas in four cups of water, the next week it might be five. One week I might simmer them for 30 minutes, the next week I might forget about them and discover they have simmered for over an hour. The added spices change each week with my moods and tastes. Every batch is a unique and personal statement. The result of a simple art of preparing food.

Eating in the Now...

2010-04-10T11:28:00.008-04:00

Writer and Artist Jean Fitzgerald has contributed this wonderful essay on the Mindfulness of food and daily living.

I credit Thich Naht Hahn, the Nobel Peace Prize winner, for 'saving' my life. After I read his two books The Miracle of Mindfulness, and Anger, I understood that Mindfulness, concentrating on doing one thing at a time, and doing that one thing with full attention and focus, is something that I have to work very hard to achieve, and must PRACTICE for the rest of my life.

When I am creating art, I am mindful. When I watch a beautiful, artistically created film, I am mindful. While alone and reading, I am mindful. At most other times of the day, especially when I am communicating with others or eating, I am not mindful. I am not, as contemporary philosopher Eckhart Tolle expresses it, Living in the Now. I am busy thinking of several things at once, interrupting someone else's flow of spoken words, finishing their sentences, and eating like a very, very hungry wolf. I often stand to eat, or eat while I watch a movie or while I am talking on the phone.

By not bringing my entire attention to bear on the act of eating, I am robbed of essential experiences. I am not focused on smelling my food, chewing my food, or even, really, tasting my food. I am not aware of my breathing and swallowing. I overindulge until I feel pain in my upper GI tract, just below my chest. My stomach enzymes are unprepared to receive the onslaught, nor is my mind grateful and appreciative, moment by moment, of an awareness of sensory bliss. Finally, I am not prepared to STOP eating, to stop drinking. I've eaten so rapidly and mindlessly that I want to continue chewing, and it is a revelation to recognize that I could chew for hours, even if after dinner, for example, I am consuming snacks of some kind. When I stand to leave a restaurant, I feel awkward, stiff, as if I should be wearing flowing robes to cover and hide my stomach. The athlete that I used to be is chagrinned and dismayed at the difficulty of unfolding belly and legs from underneath the dining table. There must be an alternative approach to food and eating...

I typically don't know where the food I eat was grown or processed, how much salt or sugar is in it, or what effect it is having on my body. For example, one of my favorite foods currently is Tom Yum soup. I order it at Thai restaurants, Vietnamese restaurants, and Chinese restaurants. I recently discovered that the paste used to make this delicious lemongrass soup has 3300 mgs of sodium per serving. (from Maesri brand label) No way!!!! Panic. Well, there must be a different possibility so that I can still have Tom Yum Soup; I'll have to make it myself without all the salt. I am confident that I will find the means to preparing my own low sodium paste.

Thich Naht Hahn states:

Our anger, our frustration, our despair, has much to do with our body and the food we eat.We must work out a strategy of eating, of consuming to protect ourselves from anger and violence. Eating is an aspect of civilization. The way we grow our food, the kind of food we eat, and the way we eat it has much to do with civilization because the choices we make can bring about peace and relieve suffering.The food we eat can play a very important role in our anger. Our food may contain anger. When we eat the flesh of an animal with mad cow disease, anger is there in the meat. But we must also look at the other kinds of food that we eat. When we eat an egg or a chicken, we know that the egg or chicken can also contain a lot of anger. We are eating anger, and therefore we express anger.

Today we are not ignorant of commercial methods used to confine chickens that provide us with eggs and their meat, and Thich Naht Hahn goes on to detail these familiar agricultural techniques. In his view, by robbing chickens of natural light, the space to move freely and to rest, as well as the ability to peck at the soil to find food, chickens are driven mad with frustration and suffering. The farmers chop off their beaks to keep them from pecking one another to death while living in these miserable conditions. Thich Naht Hahn promotes utilizing and eating only organic farm produced food: eggs, milk, meat, fruit and vegetables nurtured with a conscientious, compassionate, morally aware and honest heart. He regards body and mind as one. The impact of how we eat, and what we consume, upon our well being and health is inseparable. Many people are beginning to realize that what happens to the body also happens to the mind, and vice versa. Modern medicine is aware that the sickness of the body may be a result of sickness in the mind.

He goes on to comment:

Eating is a deep practice...Our eyes are bigger than our stomach. We have to empower our eyes with the energy of mindfulness so that we know exactly what amount of food we really need. The Chinese term for the alms bowl used by a monk or nun means "the instrument for appropriate measure." We use this kind of bowl to protect us from being deceived by our eyes. If the food comes to the top of the bowl, we know that it is largely sufficient. We take only that amount of food. If you can eat like that, you can afford to buy less. When you buy less food, you can afford to buy organically grown food.We try not to consume things that nurture our anger, frustration, and fear.

Today, I may not experience the physical or emotional pain of eating food that is not grown organically and conscientiously. My stomach may not have been injured yet by mindlessly over-consuming. These effects appear to usually be cumulative over a great deal of time, except in individually unique situations where perhaps the individual has been unaware of great harms being contributed rapidly and/or that they possess a particular physical abnormality or weakness. But at some point in time, each of us will have a moment of reckoning with the urgent requirement to take good care of our bodies and our minds. Then comes the retrospect; A wealth of moments that can exist as spiritually creative and deep awarenesses, moveable feasts, have been lost, just for a lack of enthusiasm for practicing Mindfulness earlier in our lives.

This morning I made (on low heat so as not to lose important vitamins) a dish with lentils (buy bulk, it is cheaper and you don't have to ingest BPA's from cans which give you estrogen - the wrong kind) and chopped organic garlic, a small bulb vidalia onion, fresh chopped beets and carrots, parsley, and mint, and a half a teaspoon of raw honey. I cannot tell you how delicious it was; I could drink the sweet, reddish juice it made! No added sugar, no added salt. Because it was a labor of love, I mindfully ate a half a bowl, and put the rest of it in the fridge for dinner.

Namaste. Consume with me, mindfully and with attention to one thing in the moment, and please let me know your results.

The Miracle of Mindfulness

Anger: Wisdom for Cooling the Flames

the miraculous

2010-04-09T10:57:00.002-04:00

It could be assumed that after years of gardening one might become complacent about the whole process. Certainly, tasks like weeding and digging are chores I could do without, but the entire growth process from seed to harvest has never lost it's magic for me. No matter how many times I sow seeds in soil, I am always astounded by the miracle of germination. On Easter Sunday I started my seeds, and now only five days later I have mini plants! Each variety growing at it's own individual pace. These tiny plants are going to feed me abundantly throughout the next six months. Squash seedlings looking enormous next to the tiny Wild Arugula shoots. The heirloom Tomatoes still holding out below the surface of the soil. I always find it interesting that seeds that are saved from home gardens take much longer to germinate than commercially packaged seeds, and I would like to find out why that is the case. Is there something added to commercially prepared seeds to enhance germination? I'm not even referring to commercial Hybrid seeds, but even high quality organic seeds such as those sold by Renee's Garden seem to germinate much quicker than the seeds I save from home. For several years now I have been growing some heirloom Italian Roma tomatoes from seeds given to me by my friend Robert, who lives in Upstate New York. These seeds are always the last to germinate, so slow in fact that the first year I grew them I thought they had failed to germinate because all of the other seeds that were sown at the same time were well under way by the time these Roma's decided to poke their heads above the soil. If anyone has an answer to the reason for this difference in germination rate I would love to hear your comments on the subject.

Hooray for Heirloom Apples!

2010-04-07T10:29:00.002-04:00

Laura Pedrick for The New York Times

...a nonprofit group called Renewing America’s Food Traditions (RAFT), which works with Slow Food, has declared this the year of the heirloom apple.

The Apple Grower: A Guide for the Organic Orchardist (Chelsea Green's Master Grower Gardening Series)

The New Book of Apples: The Definitive Guide to Over 2,000 Varieties

Leeks

2010-04-07T09:37:00.004-04:00

It's been several years since I've grown leeks in the garden. Seems like the large number of tomato plants always win out over leeks for garden space. I love leeks and this year they are back in!

Leeks (Allium porrum)

Leeks belong to the lily family, along with their close relatives onions, garlic, scallions, shallots, and chives. The leek is a striking and graceful vegetable. Broad, flat, dark leaves cascade like a fountain around the contrasted white of its base. Milder and more refined in flavor than onions, leeks produce a pleasing aroma and sweeten as they cook. And there are no tears while cutting a leek.

Cooking tips:

-Leeks may be cooked whole; try braising or baking.

-Steam or boil leeks for 10-12 minutes. Top with butter, a dash of salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese.

-Substitute leeks for onions in recipes and notice the subtle flavor changes.

-Puree cooked leeks for a soup base.

The above information is from the wonderful book...

From Asparagus to Zucchini

Easter tradition

2010-04-04T21:06:00.003-04:00

It's become part of my annual Easter tradition to get my seedlings started. It symbolizes rebirth and renewal as well as dovetailing nicely with the timing for the safe date to plant outside here in Zone 6, which is May 15th. What better way to celebrate Easter Sunday than to sow some life giving seeds? So after dinner with my family, I set out 72 seeds starts... my Amish heirloom seeds that I saved at the end of last year's harvest, some heirloom Roma tomatoes a friend has saved from his mother's Italian garden, as well as some Cherry Tomatoes, Wild Arugula, Eggplant,Patty Pan Squash, and some French Breakfast Radishes.

Spring has now officially arrived!

not-so-quiet food....

2010-04-04T09:47:00.002-04:00

KFC's newest creation....Bacon and Cheese sandwich on "Fried Chicken" bread. 32 grams of fat and almost 1400 mgs of sodium

The Double Down

Quiet Food

2010-04-01T08:51:00.005-04:00

I don't own this book but I stumbled across it while doing some research for a story on the spirituality of farming and eating. The quiet food concept seems to be an offshoot of the slow food movement with an emphasis on reverence and mindfulness towards the cooking process and food consumption.

"It introduces us to the possibility of making cooking and eating into an exquisite meditative occasion - an antidote to our fast food culture. Ultimately our enjoyment of things depends on the quality of the attention we give them. Cooking and eating are no exception. "Quiet Food" is about food that has been paid reverent attention".

Quiet Food: A Recipe for Sanity

Last day of March...

2010-03-31T10:22:00.009-04:00

Here's a sampling of what is growing in the garden on the last day of March..

First and foremost are the baby seedlings that have sprouted in spite of some torrential rains we have seen here in the Mid-Atlantic region. The next few days are forecast to be sunny skies with temps in the high 70's, so these seedlings should really start taking off...

Next are the crops that Wintered over, thanks in large part to the heavy cover of snow we had for most of the cold season. Much of what I seeded in the Fall died off due to an early hard frost in late November, but the plants that survived did quite nicely under the deep insulating blanket of snow that lasted from early January through early March. When the last of the snow finally melted it was a pleasure to find Spring greens already growing vigorously.

Arugula...

Mache (Corn Salad)...

Turnips...

And finally, I always buy a flat or two of cold crop seedlings from my local garden supply so I can get a head start on fresh greens while waiting for my own seedlings to mature.

Chinese Cabbage...

Collard Greens...

Mustard Greens...

Southern Community Gardening

2010-03-30T10:11:00.005-04:00

Last weekend I had the pleasure of traveling to Raleigh, North Carolina to document a friend of mine who cooks for her church. I am doing a story on New Southern Church Cooking. While I was there I drove about 50 miles west of Raleigh to the small rural town of Cedar Grove to visit the Anathoth Community Garden. This is a gorgeous and idyllic little community garden project run by members of the Cedar Grove United Methodist Church. They had a nice greenhouse filled with Strawberries, Chard, Beans, and other crops. Most of their outdoor beds seemed to be dug in and well under way. There were four laying hens freely walking their enclosed area in search of grubs and insects, and a bee hive in the corner of the field that was already buzzing with active honey bees.

There is a very interesting essay on the Anathoth website that describes their philosophy towards sustainable agriculture as it relates to Christianity. I think this same idea could be embraced by all churches, regardless of denomination. The spiritual connection to gardening and eating is an ancient one that most modern churches have fallen a way from.

A Theology of Eating Anathoth web site

The Amish & The FDA

2010-02-12T10:40:00.002-05:00

FDA Agents Invade Amish Farm
by Deborah Stockton (Via PASA Southeast)

Kinzers, PA – At 9:40 a.m. last Thursday, February 4, only a few miles from
the scene of the Nickel Mines Amish massacre of 2006, another drama against the Amish began as agents of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) came onto the property of Amish farmer Dan Allgyer, without permission, claiming to be conducting an investigation. Agents Joshua Schafer and Deborah Haney, from the Delaware FDA office, drove past Allgyer’s “No Trespassing” signs and up his driveway almost to his barn, where Allgyer happened to be outside. Allgyer approached the car, the agents got out and Allgyer asked them why they were there. They produced a piece of paper, asked Allgyer if he was Dan Allgyer, which Allgyer confirmed, asked him his middle initial and phone number, entered the information on the paper, told Allgyer they were there to do an inspection and started reading the paper to him, saying it gave them jurisdiction to be there. The agents – Schafer did most of the talking – said they had a right to be there because “you produce food for human consumption.” Dan asked why they believed that and they said, “Well, you have cows. You cannot be consuming all the milk you produce.” They further stated, “If you get a milk truck in to move all this milk you sell milk to the public, therefore we have jurisdiction.” Dan said, “This is a private farm, I do not sell anything to the public.” As they continued to harass him about doing an inspection, Allgyer said, “You can sit in your car. I will call my lawyer.” The agents remained standing. Allgyer called his attorney who advised him to have the agents call him. When Allgyer told them to call his attorney Schafer replied, “You are the owner and you have to speak for yourself.” They pressed him to talk and Schafer asked, “Are you refusing us an investigation? Allgyer replied, That’s not what I’m saying.” They kept repeating, “Are you refusing an investigation?”Allgyer kept saying, “Call this guy” – meaning his attorney. Allgyer said they must have asked him six times. One of them said, “Even if you do not say so, you are still refusing an investigation.” Eventually Schafer said, “If you refuse an investigation will you answer some questions?” Allgyer said, “I’d rather not.” When the agents continued to push him Dan said, “Is that a question? Sheepishly, they said. ‘Yes.”
Allgyer said, “What did I say about questions?’ They replied, “Well we’re going to write this up as a refusal to have an investigation and give it to our higher officials.” Dan felt they were threatening him at this point. After that, they got in their car, drove out the driveway and parked on the neighbor’s property watching Allgyer. A visitor, Ivan, who had been on the farm, though not part of the conversation, left in his truck soon after, and the FDA agents proceeded to
follow him in their car, even when he stopped at a convenience store to use
the facilities. After forty or fifty miles, Ivan called 911 and told the police he was being followed. The state police – in two cruisers – pulled the agents over. Ivan pulled over as well. Ivan said the police told him that the agents explained they were FDA agents and they had the right to follow him because they were conducting an investigation on the farm he left. They thought he had product and they wanted samples of the product. Ivan responded by opening the back of the truck and revealing it was empty.

The agents photographed the inside of the empty truck and gave Ivan a paper,
claiming they had a right to inspect his truck. He told them they were
harassing him. The state trooper said they had a right to follow and pull
him over but they were in an unmarked car so Ivan would not have had to pull
over. As with Allgyer, the agents asked Ivan some information which they wrote on
the paper they produced, then handed it to him. Ivan asked them, “Why are you writing up a paper on me when you have no cause?” They said, “We have a cause, because you left the farm.” They claimed he had a load off the farm and they wanted samples.
Ivan said, “I didn’t know who you were.” An agent replied, “You saw us at the farm.”
Ivan said. “That doesn’t make any difference, I didn’t know who you were.” Ivan pointed out that he was at the farm but did not hear what they said. He was twenty feet or more away from them and was not involved in their conversation. Ivan said the police told him they would record that the agents had been following him. A spokeswoman for the FDA (reached at the phone number on the paper the FDA agents gave to Allgyer) said the FDA has no comment at this time because it is an ongoing investigation. Dan Allgyer will meet with his county sheriff in the near future to
apprise him of this incident.

Happy Holidays!

2009-12-26T13:58:00.003-05:00

Happy Holidays to everyone!

I am currently taking some time off from blogging... but soon after the new year I will be back in full force starting the plans for early spring crops.

I still have lots of root veggies in the ground... nicely protected by a cover of snow. With any luck I should be able to continue harvesting these crops well into the winter months. It is only a few short months till early cold crop season!!

Happy New Year to all of you! Stay warm by the fireplace... the seed catalogues should start arriving any day now.

CSA week 23

2009-11-03T10:23:00.001-05:00

I thought this was going to be the final pick up, but it turns out we will have one more next week! This has really been a fantastic season, and I highly recommend joining a local CSA if you are able. I will write more on this topic and a season summary next week after I pick up my final share.

The Autumn Garden...

2009-10-29T10:59:00.006-04:00

Sometimes I think this is the most beautiful time of year in the garden, maybe it's because I am trying to hold onto something I know is quickly fading away...

high bush blueberry

oregano

cool season crops

sage & carrots for thanksgiving

nearing the end...

2009-10-28T09:37:00.003-04:00

CSA week 22

We are really getting down to the end of the CSA season, next week will be the final pick up. Sad in a way, but I have timed my Fall crops just right and I am very close to being able to start my own harvesting of Arugula and Baby Bok Choi. I am hoping to have a steady harvest of fresh greens well into the Winter months.

October Harvests

2009-10-24T19:26:00.001-04:00

Still harvesting some wonderful root vegetables!

The Last Fruit share....

2009-10-21T09:59:00.002-04:00

Fruit Share. week 12

With great sadness, I picked up my final fruit share of the 2009 season

Here is the description of this week's share provided by North Star Orchard

Emperor Apples (Almost solidly red, but with a dull skin...there's no 'shiny' to them!) - These are possibly the hardest apples we've ever met. Unless you cut them with a knife, the first bite can be hard to achieve, but after that you'll be fine. They have a nicely balanced sweet flavor, and are quite juicy considering how hard they are!

Eclipse Apples (mostly dark red and shiny) - Don't let the color fool you; these babies are quite tart. Super-juicy though, with a flavor that reminds me of really fresh apple cider. You can eat these or use them to cook with. I understand they make a wicked-good apple dumpling.

Golden Russet Apples (golden and russeted!)- This is a classic, 400+ year old antique variety. Hey, if they look this weird and have been around that long, there must be something awesome about them....and there is! Golden Russet have an amazingly complex sweet flavor and a very unique firm texture. They're really unlike any other apple...but people who know them line up to get their hands on them! Great for snacking, if the kids are suspicious because of their appearance ...well, lucky you - you won't have to share!
(Caution: these kind of look like Asian pears! A good identifier is that they still have their full stems!)

Niitaka Asian Pears - Note: These are different from the 'Olympic' you received the past two weeks! Niitaka have a texture and flavor somewhat in-between that of Hosui and Olympic. They have a pleasant crunch, and their mildly sweet flavor is a great counterpoint to serve with curry or other spicy dishes and on salads containing spicy greens and/or strong cheeses. They also stand up well to cooking. These will keep for a very long time in your fridge...likely even to the New Year!

... and one personal note, those Golden Russet Apples (they are in the left side of the basket) are the tastiest Apples I've ever eaten!

Here is the entire season of fruit from North Star Orchards

CSA updates...

2009-10-18T22:35:00.004-04:00

Veggie Share . Week 20

Fruit Share. Week 11

harvest cards...

2009-10-04T17:32:00.002-04:00

I am making a very limited edition of Harvest Prints from the photographs of the 2009 season. Hand made cards on acid free heavy card stock. The cards are 5" X 7" with an individual photograph on the front and a blank interior. The backs are signed and dated. I have made up a few dozen of these for personal use and thought I would offer them to readers of this blog. These are nice individual pieces of mini-art to collect, or would certainly make a thoughtful gift to a fellow gardener. $10 each, and that includes postage for first class mail.If you would like one, just browse through the blog and pick out your favorite photograph. I have made up cards for most of my favorite weeks of the Pennypack CSA photos, as well as several nice shots from my own garden. Just tell me what you want, and if I don't have it made already, I'll make up a new one. I have a Paypal account, and would prefer to use it for payments just to keep things simple.

Reach me at MetroFarming@gmail.com

Thanks again for reading and following this blog throughout the season!

October beginnings

2009-10-01T15:14:00.002-04:00

Worm's eye view of the cold crop seedlings. Nice to have an entire bed of things sprouting while everything else is slowly withering away.

CSA Monday....

2009-09-28T20:45:00.003-04:00

veggie share, week 18

Scallions, Green beans, Bok Choi, Kohlrabi, Red Jalapeños, Garlic

fruit share, week 9

Descriptions of this weeks fruit share from North Star Orchard..

Stellar Apples (yellow and smooth) Wow..crunchy! Juicy! Flavorful! 'Round here, we like these way better than Honeycrisp. The combo of sweet flavor and crisp and juicy texture make these a real winner!

Razor Russet Apples (greenish/yellowish/russeted) Not to be confused with Asian pears...these are indeed apple-shaped! Slightly sweet and juicy with a great texture. These are one of our favorites for snacking.

Hosui Asian Pears - Super-sweet and yummy! Eat these right away or store them in the fridge to eat later in the week. I eat these skin and all; there's really no bitterness to the skin as there is in some other Asian pear varieties. Have a napkin handy!

Magness Pears - A sweet and juicy 'European' pear. These will need time to get a bit soft though, so let them sit on your counter for a few days until you can dent them with a finger. This can take 3 to 6 days, so you've got plenty of time to eat your other fruits first.

Salsa Verde

2009-09-27T21:15:00.006-04:00

Earlier in the week I hand picked some Tomatillos at Pennypack Farm. There were no more regular Tomatoes being offered so I decided to try these as there were plenty of them out in the fields. Once I brought them home, I had no idea what to do with them. Several people suggested making a Salsa Verde, and after looking up a few recipes found that this looked like a fairly easy way to work with this strange and unknown fruit.

I started out by roasting about twenty Tomatillos, and a couple mild green peppers. I did this on a small grill rack directly over my gas range...

I love the smell of fire roasted vegetables...

Once I had finished roasting the Tomatillos, Peppers, and some Green Onions, I combined them into a food processor with a couple cloves of Garlic, a bit of Vegetable Oil, some Fresh Lime juice, and some fresh Parsley. (Should have used Cilantro but I don't have it in my garden). Most recipes call for some salt, but I didn't want to add any.

The finished salsa was very good, although next time I make it I'll use a pepper with a bit more kick to it. There is no heat at all in this one...

Walk through the garden....

2009-09-24T19:10:00.007-04:00

Where did September go? Seems like yesterday it was Labor Day weekend, and now here we are a week away from October! Summer over, and Fall officially here. Amazing!

One of the peppers I grew this year were Tabasco Peppers, and I never picked any of them. I've been using my Thai Dragon Peppers to cook with. Earlier this week I cut down my entire Tabasco plant, loaded with fruit, and hung it upside down in a nice sunny spot to dry them. I still have another plant in the ground that is loaded with flowers and small fruits. I'm hoping I can coax along another harvest. I should have plenty of these nice dried Tabasco peppers for winter cooking...

Right after Labor Day I removed all of the Tomato plants from my main raised bed, and prepared the soil for Fall Crops, which consisted of nothing more than just turning it over and removing all remaining tomato plant debris. I let the bed rest for a couple weeks and on Monday of this week I seeded in rows of two varieties of Arugula, an Italian Arugula (Renee's Garden) and a Wild Rocket (Franchi), some Purple Top White Globe Turnips (Burpee), French Breakfast Radishes (Botanical Interests), Mache Corn Salad (Botanical Interests), and some Baby Pak Choi Green Fortune (Renee's Garden)...

By today, just about every row has germinated. We've had perfect weather for starting seeds... warm and humid with nights in the high 60's. Couldn't ask for better conditions to get the Fall garden off to a great start. Here is a close up of the tiny Arugula sproutlings...

For me, one of the best things about the last weeks of the season is enjoying the Herb Garden. Everything seems to gain an intensity of fragrance and flavor, and maybe that is simply because we know these are the last of the season's fresh herbs. In another month it will be nothing but dried herbs till Spring! I've still got plenty of Basil, Oregano, Thyme, and more Lemon Grass than I know what to do with. I have got to remember to dig up a couple of the Lemon Grass plants and bring them inside this year. They are tender perennials that do not survive the Pennsylvania winter.

One last photo. I have been posting occasionally about the amazing Strawberry season I had this year, and the story continues. Here it is a week from October and I am still finding beautiful fruit on a daily basis!

Hope you all enjoy every minute of the gorgeous Fall weather ahead. I am looking forward to some road trips into northern Pennsylvania and upstate New York to see the spectacular foliage and hunt down some late season farmer's markets.

Pennypack Farm...

2009-09-23T09:32:00.004-04:00

Some photos from Pennypack Farm in Horsham, Pa. This is the CSA where I get my weekly vegetables

picking blackberries

fall season crops

the herb garden

CSA updates

2009-09-22T23:11:00.003-04:00

Week 17

Week 8

Pennypack Farm...

2009-09-16T00:06:00.002-04:00

CSA updates...

2009-09-15T09:15:00.004-04:00

Wow... Week 16 of the vegetable shares from Pennypack Farm! As you may know from previous posts, each week I have taken a portrait of everything I have brought home from the farm. Not always something I have felt like doing after a long day, but I haven't missed a single week yet. I had a feeling that seeing the documentation of a full season of produce from a small farm, on a week to week basis, would be an interesting study. Maybe you have to be an obsessed gardener like me to appreciate this photo study. The set of 16 weekly portraits can be seen here... Veggie Shares 2009. Five weeks to go to complete the season!

Here is the fruit share for this week. I was particularly amazed by the pear shaped apples and I can't wait to try them...

Descriptions of this week's fruit share from North Star Orchard...

Liberty Apples (green with some red blush). Tart and very crisp, we like these better than Granny Smith as they have more apple-ly flavor, plus they're tart and crunchy. Use them for fresh eating or in cooking. They're great in apple cake!

Adam's Pearmain Apples (goldish-green russeted variety with some pink blush). This is a classic antique variety, and it sure packs the flavor! I wouldn't call it tart, necessarily, but it's certainly not sweet. Sugary-tart perhaps, with an intense and aromatic flavor. Addictive!

Encore Peaches (yellow with red blush) Allow to soften for 1 to 3 days on the counter.

Sugar Giant Peaches (dark red outside, white inside). Our last variety of white peaches for the year. Savor every bite!
Allow to soften for 1 to 3 days on the counter.

Hosui Asian Pears - Super-sweet and yummy! Eat these right away or store them in the fridge to eat later in the week after you've finished your peaches. I eat these skin and all; there's really no bitterness to the skin as there is in some other Asian pear varieties. Have a napkin handy!

Seed sharing...

2009-09-14T14:18:00.003-04:00

Is anyone interested in sharing and or trading heirloom seeds this Winter? Add to comments of this post what seeds you are saving from your garden. I am mostly interested in seeds from gardens in Southeastern Pennsylvania, and especially vegetables with a long heirloom history.

But please tell me what seeds you are saving regardless of your location! Maybe we can start a small network of seed sharing...

went to a garden party...

2009-09-13T22:04:00.002-04:00

I went to a garden party yesterday, and as I was talking to someone they pointed just over my shoulder, and when I turned around there was this beautiful Mantis right at eye level. I barely had to move an inch to take this photo...

CSA September!

2009-09-12T10:50:00.003-04:00

Who doesn't love this time of year?....cool crisp air, and fantastic tasting harvests of fruits and vegetables! I've got 6 more weeks of CSA shares to look forward to. The Apples and Asian Pears coming from North Star Orchard have been incredible, and the veggies from Pennypack Farm never fail to impress me.

veggie share, week 15

fruit share, week 6

Seed Saving Time!

2009-09-11T09:04:00.004-04:00

Many thanks go out to my friend Albert Yee for the reminder to save seeds! It is more important than ever after this really dreadful growing season. Any quality fruit that made it through this year of bad weather and Late Blight is surely a keeper and something you will want to grow again next season. It's important to make sure you save seeds from the best picks of the harvest.

I'm saving seeds from the three most successful varieties I grew this year... Harzfeuer, Schimmieg Creg, and Hahnstown Yellow.

There are several ways to save seeds... I have a friend who just squeezes the seeds onto a paper towel and lets them air dry. He has mailed them to me and I have grown them very successfully. These are the Santore Romas I grew last season. I started them again this year from seed and because I lost track of my plant labels as the seedlings got bigger, I ended up without planting any Santores in my garden this year. (Huge lesson learned!! Keep track of your seedlings!)

Earlier in the season I found a really excellent blog post on how to save seeds. It seemed really simple and foolproof so I saved it...

How to Save Seeds

It's a cold miserable rainy day here in Philadelphia, much like the season started. The perfect day to begin saving seeds for next season!

final harvest....

2009-09-10T10:23:00.003-04:00

final harvest 2009

The final harvest of the year is always bittersweet, but this year I am sort of glad to be finished with the dismal tomato season. Last season I was still picking wonderful tasting fruit all through October. Yesterday I decided to pull out all of the tomato plants and get ready for a full crop of cool weather veggies.

Today I have a slow cooker full of sauce simmering for the next 12 hours or so. I used up about half of the harvest, including 4 lbs of plum tomatoes I got from my CSA this week. About a gallon of sauce for the freezer, and plenty of green tomatoes for pickling. Plenty left for sharing with friends and lot's of great tomato salads for the next week.

Here is the bed all ready for seeding with cold crops like spinach, arugula, bok choi, broccoli, etc. I have plenty of seed packets left over from Spring, so I'll just use what I already have on hand.

CSA updates...

2009-09-03T22:28:00.003-04:00

Just realized I have been forgetting to post the weekly CSA photos....

CSA Week 13

CSA Week 14

Herbes de Provence

2009-09-02T11:41:00.004-04:00

Herbes de Provence is a traditional blend of herbs grown in the south of France. I've been drying my own herbs for several years now, and often give baggies filled with extras to my neighbors and friends. This year I decided to go with a bit more inventive and creative approach with a unique culinary blend to give as gifts. I found these great little containers on the internet.They really look a whole lot nicer than sandwich baggies.

This blend consists of Basil, Oregano, Thyme, Tarragon, Lavender, and Orange & Lemon peel. There are so many uses for Herbes de Provence, but I generally add some to a good Olive Oil and create an amazing marinade for chicken or steak.

It is also the perfect herb mixture for Chicken Soup. You can tie it up into some cheese cloth so you can remove it later, or just throw the herbs right into your stock for a more rustic soup.

Edit* Since a couple people have commented on these really cool containers, here is where I got them, and did I mention they were only 75 cents each? I have only purchased one order from this company, but I was satisfied and will order from them again...

Specialty Bottle Supply

Schuuflie Boi

2009-08-26T10:56:00.005-04:00

Shoo-fly pie is a traditional Pennsylvania Dutch molasses pie that gets it's name from the required "shooing away" of flies attracted to the sweet molasses and brown sugar that make up the bulk of this pastry. These pies are sold just about everywhere in southeastern Pennsylvania, including most supermarkets, where you will mostly find a dried out miserable version not worthy of being called Shoo-fly.

Shoo-fly pie is easy to make at home and worth the effort. Like any home made pie, that first still warm from the oven piece is something that can never be duplicated in a store bought version. A real Shoo-fly pie consists of three layers after it comes out of the oven...a dry crumb layer similar to coffee cake, a moist cake-like layer similar to gingerbread, and a gooey bottom layer similar to what you get in a Pecan Pie. The amount of gooey-ness in the pie can vary depending on cooking times and oven temperatures, and you will sometimes hear the term Wet Bottom to distinguish a gooey bottom pie from a typical more cake-like pie. Wet or dry, a home made pie is always best!

Here is a recipe from a 1960's Amish cookbook...

Pennsylvania Dutch Shoo-fly Pie

Crumb Topping:
4 cups flour
1 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp spices: salt, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, cinnamon, mace
1/2 cup shortening (no butter)

Syrup Filling:
1 cup molasses- dark
1 cup hot water- and i level tsp. soda dissolved in the hot water
3 eggs

Stir syrup and let cool. Have two 9 inch pie shells ready. pour syrup filling into crusts, dividing portions equally. Sprinkle crumb topping over syrup mixture, dividing topping mixture evenly between the two shells. Leave a little "air" in the center of the pies to allow for expansion and to prevent mixture from boiling over. Bake 1 hour in 350 degree oven.

Serve with coffee...

and if you are feeling ambitious, the same cookbook has this recipe...

Shoo-Fly Pie (Schuuflie Boi)

Pie Dough:
8 lbs flour
6 tbsp salt
4 lbs shortening
4 qts water
Mix 5 minutes on dough machine adding water gradually

Liquid:
20 lbs barrel syrup
6 1/2 qts boiling water
stir well

Crumbs:
4 lbs flour
2 tbsp soda
2 tbsp salt
2 lbs shortening
4 lbs brown sugar
8 tbsp cinnamon

Roll sugar fine- mix well, 2 1/4 cups liquid to each pie, 11 oz crumbs to each pie. Bake at 350 degrees until crust turns light brown.
Makes 48 pies.

drying time...

2009-08-24T13:38:00.004-04:00

Oregano

This is the time of year I start harvesting my herbs in order to dry them out so I can continue using them through the winter. Freshly dried herbs from your own garden can be just as good as using fresh cut summer herbs, and in some cases even better. Some of the herbs I dry have an even more intense flavor dried than they do fresh, especially Oregano and Mint. Drying your own herbs saves a ton of money, and provides a winter's worth of culinary spice that far exceeds store bought herbs.

There is nothing to it... just cut a nice bunch, wash off any dirt or insects, then tie with a string and hang them upside down in a well ventilated place out of direct sunlight. In a week or so they will be ready to crush the leaves and store in a jar.
I have some great ideas for herbal blends this year, a take on Herbes de Provence, and when I am finished drying this season's harvest I'll post the recipes for what I put together.

Lavender & Chives

french babies...

2009-08-23T14:15:00.004-04:00

I get so excited about tomatoes, I tend to forget about the other crops I grow. I planted French Baby Carrots and Detroit Red Beets in one of the new raised beds I built this year. That area of the yard doesn't get full sun, so the Beets didn't get very big, and some full sized carrots I grew haven't matured at all. But the French Babies are wonderful! Beautiful little carrots averaging around one inch long, but many of them are little marble sized balls. They are sweet and delicious! Next year I am going to cut down on the number of beets and double the amount of baby carrots!

Saturday morning tomatoes....

2009-08-22T13:05:00.007-04:00

Even with the terrible growing conditions and battling the Late Blight menace, the small crop of tomatoes that have made it to the harvest basket this season have been gorgeous! These are all local heirlooms from Amish Land Seeds and I have posted about my belief in the importance of growing local stock many times. Everything I grew this year has a long history of proven growth in Southeastern Pennsylvania gardens.These gorgeous results just confirm this philosophy for me, and I can't wait to see what these varieties will do in a summer of ideal growing conditions.

Everything I have been picking so far has not only looked beautiful, but has tasted wonderful. I think my favorite so far for taste has been the Harfeuer. The Schimmieg Creg is the hands down winner for appearance. I haven't tasted a Howard German yet, the one shown below was just picked this morning and it is the first harvest of the season. The surprise of the season have been the yellow tomatoes shown below. I didn't order any yellow tomatoes from Amish Land Seed, so there must have been an errant yellow seed or two among my seed packets. (not at all unusual for a small home based seed saving company) I checked the Amish Land Seed website and I think these are Hahnstown Yellow. The closest resemblance I could find to the photos on the website. They are really nice little fruits and I would definitely grow them again!

Harfeuer

Howard German

Schimmieg Creg

Hahnstown Yellow

Cari Chay

2009-08-21T09:53:00.013-04:00

It's easy to fall in love with a gorgeous eggplant at the farmer's market... the only problem is what to do with it when you bring it home. You can always make a wonderful eggplant parmesan, or add it to a pasta sauce that includes the tomatoes you are trying to find inventive uses for. But this beautiful grapefruit sized Asian Eggplant had Curry written all over it. I was going to use this eggplant in a tomato based curry until I remembered a simple Vietnamese Cari Chay (Vegetable and Tofu Curry) that I had seen in one of my curry books.

This is a simple curry that is just a Coconut Milk broth spiced with Indian Curry Powder and sweetened with Palm Sugar. There are no hot spices or curry pastes in this dish...

Start by frying some onions, garlic, and sweet peppers in oil...

When the onions are golden brown, add the Curry Powder and Palm Sugar. Allow this to fry for another five minutes while the palm sugar melts and slightly caramelizes...

Now add the Coconut Milk, and a few splashes of Fish Sauce. Bring to a slow boil...

Now add diced Tofu...

Add diced Eggplant and some fresh Thai Basil. Cover the pot and simmer on low heat for about 15 minutes, or until the Eggplant is tender...

Serve over Jasmine Rice and enjoy!

world's greatest sandwich...

2009-08-20T23:04:00.007-04:00

simply the best

It need not be said that the world is full of fantastic sandwiches... the Hoagie, the Hamburger, the Banh Mi, the Philly Cheesesteak... but the hands down winner for world's greatest has to be the simple Tomato Sandwich.

Maybe it's because this delicacy can only really be made during the short but sweet weeks of summertime tomato harvesting. The incredible taste but a lingering memory for the remainder of the year. Who in their right mind would make one of these with a wintertime hothouse tomato? (ewww)

The freshest bread of choice... (classic old school white bread is actually preferred), thinly sliced tomatoes directly from the garden, a layer of just snipped basil leaves, and the defining ingredients... a thick slathering of Mayo and a good sprinkle of Jane's Mixed-Up Salt. It's how I've made this culinary masterpiece since I can remember.

summer bounty

2009-08-19T11:43:00.002-04:00

lazy way Marinara...

2009-08-18T12:36:00.008-04:00

Last night I brought home three pounds of hybrid tomatoes from my CSA, and decided to make a batch of Marinara Sauce because it doesn't look like there will be any large abundance of tomatoes this season for canning or freezing. I typically start making sauces with my tomatoes much later in the season after I am literally sick of eating them fresh. But this season all bets are off as we all know, and after bringing home six pounds of tomatoes yesterday it just seemed like a good night to make some sauce!

Every ingredient in this Marinara Sauce came straight from Pennypack Farm and was cooked on the same day as harvest. (all except the Garlic and Anchovies) Couldn't be any fresher!

Start with a slow saute of Onions and a few cloves of Garlic. Nice low flame...

Add some dice green Pepper...

Now a few Anchovies.(Do it! Even if you hate Anchovies. It adds a nice complexity and slight saltiness to the sauce) Stir them around until they melt...

Now begin adding diced tomatoes. This is where the lazy factor comes in. I don't peel my tomatoes. I simply cut off the top, squeeze out most of the seeds over a bowl, and then dice them. Peeling tomatoes is an added step I usually avoid. I do not mind the texture of skins in my pasta sauce, and I am a firm believer that most of the nutrition of fruits and vegetables is in the skin. I never peel potatoes or carrots, and I would only peel tomatoes if I was making a concentrated paste or very traditional sauce.

Fresh Basil and Parsley...

Course chopped and added to the simmering tomatoes...

All that's let is a very slow simmer. Maybe a splash of really good Olive Oil and a touch of Balsamic Vinegar. The entire sauce can be pasta ready in less than 30 minutes if you are in a hurry, or you can let it simmer and thicken a bit and then put it into the fridge or freezer. This sauce is just as good the next day or thawed from the freezer as it is fresh. Enjoy!

CSA to the rescue!

2009-08-17T21:49:00.004-04:00

CSA Week 12

Just when I was getting really bummed out about the state of the tomato season, my CSA had a really nice harvest of fruit today. In previous weeks, everyone was limited to one 3 lb. unit of tomatoes. Today we were allowed to take two units! So I got three lbs of Heirloom Ox Hearts for slicing and salads, and three lbs of hybrids. I made an excellent Marinara sauce with the hybrids, and I'll post photos of the sauce making process tomorrow...

Late Blight Blues...

2009-08-16T13:14:00.005-04:00

I've been feeling pretty damn smug about escaping the wide spread Late Blight that is attacking Tomato beds throughout the Northeast. I was certain that my small suburban garden was well out of reach of any airborne spores that might be flying around, and the fact that I was growing only plants started from my own seed starts. I have been obsessively checking my plants every day, and all of my fruits look nice and healthy, even though they are way late in the ripening department.

To my dismay however, I have been watching a couple plants deteriorate very quickly in the past two weeks. I have been cutting off withering leaves on a daily basis, but the plants have just increasingly withered and yellowed. They also have developed lots of brown spots on the leaves and stems.

This morning I found this tomato sitting on the ground....

Here is the row of plants that have quickly grown sick. Notice how nice the plants behind them look in comparison...

So, while I hated to do it, I yanked out the entire row to try to prevent this blight from spreading. I put the plants into a garbage bag and into the trash. (never put any diseased plants into the compost pile)

The Tomato Season of 2009.... sigh.

Sambal Balachan

2009-08-16T11:34:00.005-04:00

It is amazing what the addition of one ingredient can do to the complexity and flavor of a simple chili sauce. In a previous post I described the process of making a basic Sambal. A reader from Malaysia commented that she usually adds Balachan, or Shrimp Paste, to her home made Sambals, and that it was a very popular condiment in her country.

This sounded intriguing to me and I thought I would give it a try. Balachan is made from tiny shrimp that have been salted, dried, pounded and then left to ferment in the hot humid conditions of southeast Asia. It is sold in it's raw state of ultra pungent, rotten fish smelling goodness. It can be used directly as is if it will be added as a cooking ingredient or marinade, but if it is going to be added to a finished sauce or salad dressing, it must be cooked first. I found a great way to do this in one of my Asian cookbooks.

By cooking the Balachan in a foil packet, you eliminate most of the very strong smell that is given off by the process. And I say most of, because even this method of cooking the Balachan fills the air with a not entirely unpleasant, but very strong and distinct odor. Both of my sons wandered into the kitchen asking what the heck I was cooking? I can't imagine what the house would have smelled like if I had not used this method...

...about 4-5 minutes over a low flame turns the Balachan into a deep roasted brown color...

..add about 1 tsp of the roasted Shrimp Paste to a basic Sambal paste (Red Chili Peppers, Salt, Lemon Grass) Process in a food processor or use a traditional mortar & pestle method...

The addition of Balachan dramatically changes the flavor of Sambal. Like all Sambals, this is extremely hot and should be used sparingly. The addition of the salty and fishy Shrimp Paste nicely balances the heat of the Chili Peppers. Even my oldest son, who is a notoriously picky eater, tasted this and while he didn't love it, he agreed that it was pleasantly unique.
My younger son held up the jar of raw Shrimp Paste and taunted his older brother by saying, "You just ate this stuff !?!"

5 Minute Sambal

Note- Balachan is also known as Blachan, Belachan, Terasi, Trassi, Kapi, and Ngapi

What's for Lunch?

2009-08-14T11:28:00.003-04:00

Blogs are buzzing about USA Today nutritionist Elizabeth Ward's suggestions for finding "healthy" food on the road, which is mostly the same old tired attempts at finding healthy choices from the menus at McDonalds and Burger King, KFC, etc., clearly suggesting that people are too stupid or lazy to seek out food sources other than fast food restaurants. (or heaven forbid, pack a home prepared cooler of real food)

Steer Toward Healthy Road Food

Just for kicks, let's take a look at the ingredient list of two of Ward's healthy suggestions...

McDonald's Scrambled Eggs-

Pasteurized whole eggs with sodium acid pyrophosphate, citric acid and monosodium phosphate (added to preserve color), nisin (preservative). Prepared with Liquid Margarine: Liquid soybean oil, water, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, salt, hydrogenated cottonseed oil, soy lecithin, mono-and diglycerides, sodium benzoate and potassium sorbate (preservatives), artificial flavor, citric acid, vitamin A palmitate, beta carotene (color).

KFC Grilled Chicken-

Fresh Chicken Marinated with: Salt, Sodium Phosphate, and Monosodium Glutamate. Seasoned with: Maltodextrin, Salt, Bleached Wheat Flour, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and Cottonseed Oil, Monosodium Glutamate (MSG), Secret Kentucky Grilled Chicken Spices, Palm Oil, Natural Flavor, Garlic Powder, Soy Sauce (Soybean, Wheat, Salt), Chicken Fat, Chicken Broth, Autolyzed Yeast, Beef Powder, Rendered Beef Fat, Extractives of Turmeric, Dehydrated Carrot, Onion Powder, and Not More Than 2% Each of Calcium Silicate and Silicon Dioxide Added as Anticaking Agents. Contains Wheat and Soy.

How Yummo !! Doesn't everyone use Rendered Beef Fat when they make grilled chicken at home? Show of hands please...

If you want an eye opening and stomach churning experience, check out the official ingredient statements from some of the major fast food chains...

McDonalds Ingredients

KFC Ingredients

Burger King Ingredients

Taco Bell Ingredients

Wendy's Ingredients

5 Minute Sambal

2009-08-13T11:14:00.004-04:00

My first real introduction to Sambal was during a trip to Amsterdam. I had lunch at a little restaurant called Sampurna that serves traditional Indonesian Rijsttafel

Rijsttafel , a Dutch word that literally translates to "rice table", is an elaborate meal adapted by the Dutch from the Indonesian feast called nasi padang. It consists of many (forty is not an unusual number) side dishes served in small portions, accompanied by rice prepared in several different ways. Popular side dishes include egg rolls, sambals, satay, fish, fruit, vegetables, pickles, and nuts. It was the one and only time I have experienced Rijsttafel, but the wonderful variety of tastes, especially the various Sambals that were on the table, have led me to experiment with Indonesian style cooking and flavors.

I currently have several varieties of hot peppers growing in the garden that are perfect for making Sambals, my Thai Dragon and Tabasco peppers are going to be excellent choices, but they have not yet turned from green to red. I do however have plenty of Red Cherry Peppers. While I am not sure if these are a traditional pepper to use in a Sambal, I decided to give it a try. I adapted several different recipes for basic Sambal that I found in Asian cookbooks I own. Here is the ingredient list I ended up using...

4-5 Red Cherry Peppers
1 tsp chopped fresh Lemon Grass
6 leaves fresh Thai Basil
3 cloves fresh Garlic
1 tsp fresh minced Ginger
2 tsp Sugar
2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar

Put all of the ingredients in a food processor and grind into a fine paste...

Takes no more than 5 minutes to have a very spicy condiment that can be enjoyed on just about anything. Wonderful when added to a bowl of plain old rice! The flavor of the Ginger and Lemon Grass really come through and balance out the heat of the peppers. I recommend using it very sparingly at first if you are new to Sambals because the heat can get very intense depending on the type of peppers used.

Don't forget that there are hundreds of varieties of Sambal from many culinary regions of Asia. Experiment with other ingredients. If you prefer a milder version, just remove the seeds from the peppers before processing the Sambal.

Wikipedia has a great page with more about Sambal

Tomato Report

2009-08-12T12:53:00.009-04:00

Seems everywhere you turn, the garden talk is about how bad the tomato season is. The early season weather was cool and wet, gardeners had to wait until very late in the spring to set out plants, and now Late Blight is reeking havoc on tomato crops throughout the Northeast.

My own tomato crop is at least three weeks behind last year's in terms of fruit maturity and ripening schedule. I am also seeing smaller plants, quite a few yellow leaves, and about half the amount of fruit this year as compared to last year. Last season, with fewer plants, I was swimming in tomatoes by this time. I was eating tomatoes at every meal, and giving bags of extras to my neighbors and family.

Things could be much worse, however, and I am very glad I decided to go with the tomato varieties I picked. Way back in mid-Winter, I did some research and found a small owner operated company in Lancaster, Pa., Amish Land Seeds. This is a small, one woman operation that provides hand selected heirloom seeds from the Amish and Mennonite farms throughout Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. They have a fantastic website with excellent photos and descriptions of all of the seed varieties they sell.

I think that several factors helped me out tremendously this year and helped salvage what could have been a total crop failure. First, I am growing only seed started heirloom tomatoes that were developed to grow successfully in my own region. I have always been a fan of starting my own tomato plants from seed, but many years I will also buy some starts from my local garden supply center if I see something interesting. Even in the poor growing conditions we have had, my plants have maintained nice steady growth and reasonable fruit production. The few tomatoes I have harvested so far have been delicious!

I am completely sold on this idea of growing locally developed heirloom varieties, and I am looking forward to seeing how well they do in what will hopefully be a better weather season next year and in years to come.

Here are photos I took this morning of the varieties I am growing. Looks like I should be getting some nice harvests in the next few weeks...

Howard German (Amish Heirloom)

Glicks 18 Mennonite (Mennonite Heirloom)

Harzfeuer (German Heirloom)

Schmmeig Creg (German Heirloom)

Amish Land Seed website

*Edit*... When I wrote this post I had not seen this fantastic Op-Ed in the 8/8/09 New York Times...

You Say Tomato, I say Agricultural Disaster, by Dan Barber

Barber spells out many of the things that have contributed to the current harvest problems...

It’s important to note, too, that this year there have been many more hosts than in the past as more and more Americans have taken to gardening. Credit the recession or Michelle Obama or both, but there’s been an increased awareness of the benefits of growing your own food. According to the National Gardening Association, 43 million households planned a backyard garden or put a stake in a share of a community garden in 2009, up from 36 million in 2008. That’s quite a few home gardeners who — given the popularity of the humble tomato — probably planted a starter or two this summer.

Here’s the unhappy twist: the explosion of home gardeners — the very people most conscious of buying local food and opting out of the conventional food chain — has paradoxically set the stage for the worst local tomato harvest in memory.

So what do we do?

For starters, if you’re planning a garden (and not growing from seed — the preferable, if less convenient, choice), then buy starter plants from a local grower or nursery. A tomato plant that travels 2,000 miles is no different from a tomato that has traveled 2,000 miles to your plate. It’s an effective way to help local growers, who rely on sales of these plants before the harvest arrives. It’s also a way to protect agriculture. If late blight occurs in a small nursery it’s relatively easy to recognize, as straightforward as being able to see the plant, recognize its symptoms and isolate it before it has a chance to spread.

... and there is a great follow up to the Barber Op-Ed on Slow Food's Blog...

So, when we start thinking about what next to grow in our gardens, let’s search out place-based varieties, buy plants from local farmers and nurseries and buy seeds from regional seed companies. This will ensure those seeds are adapted to our particular climate needs

Slow Food USA blog

CSA Week 11

2009-08-11T23:57:00.003-04:00

My Pennypack Farm CSA share for this week included really wonderful Sweet Green Peppers, Kale, Onions, Cabbage, Cucumbers, and three varieties of Tomatoes.

Philadelphia Farmers Markets

2009-08-10T11:43:00.003-04:00

As we approach the height of the harvest season, here is a list of Farmers Markets in the City of Philadelphia...

Reading Terminal Market: Open Monday-Saturday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m.12th & Arch Streets, (215) 922-2317

The Italian Market: Closed Sunday afternoons and Monday. 9th Street between Catharine & Wharton Streets, (215) 922-5557
Second Street Farmers’ Market: Many unusual farmers, including goat cheese farmer and organic growers. Open June-mid-November, Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. 2nd & South Streets, (215) 568-0830

South & Passyunk Farmers’ Market: Small market with produce, flowers and plants. Open mid-May-Thanksgiving, Tuesday from 2-7 p.m. South Street & Passyunk Avenue, (215) 733-9599

South Street West Farmers’ Market: Apples, peaches, organic growers, baked foods, preserves and more. Open June-mid-November, Wednesday from 3-7 p.m. 16th & South Streets, (215) 568-0830

Clark Park Farmers’ Market: Organic produce, flowers, bedding plants, herbs and baked goods. Open June-mid-November, Thursday from 3-7 p.m.; Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. 43rd Street & Baltimore Avenue, (215) 243-0555

Cliveden Park Farmers’ Market: Baker and a produce vendor with cider, jam, canned goods and vegetables. Wednesday from 2-6 p.m. Chew Avenue & Johnson Street, (215) 568-0830
12th Street Farmers' Market: Small market with produce and flowers. Open June-mid-October, Tuesday from 3-7 p.m. 12th Street between Walnut & Locust Streets, (215) 568-0830

Fitler Square Farmers’ Market: Small market with organic produce and flowers. Open May-mid-November, Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. 23rd & Pine Streets, (215) 568-0830

Firehouse Farmers’ Market: Located in a former Victorian Firehouse; offers produce, meats, dairy products, flowers and breakfast. Open year-round, Tuesday-Saturday from 8 a.m.-7 p.m. 701 S. 50th Street at Baltimore Avenue, (215) 724-7660.

Dutch Country Farmers’ Market: Six vendors selling produce, deli goods, hot sandwiches, pretzels, Jewish breads and rotisserie meats. Open year-round, Wednesday from 9 a.m.-3 p.m.; Saturday from 8 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thursday and Friday from 8 a.m.-5:30 p.m. 2031 Cottman Avenue, (215) 745-6008

Lancaster County Farmers’ Market: More than a dozen booths, including fresh and smoked meats, pretzels, produce and baked goods. Open year-round, Tuesday from 7 a.m.-4 p.m.; Friday from 7 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday from 7 a.m.-4 p.m. 5942 Germantown Avenue, (215) 843-9564

Chestnut Hill Farmers’ Market: More than a dozen vendors selling cut-to-order meats, produce, dairy and ethnic cuisine. Open Thursday and Friday from 9 a.m.- 6 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m.-5 p.m. 8229 Germantown & Southampton Avenues, (215) 248-3336

Palmer Park Farmers’ Market: Small market with large variety of produce. Open June-November, Thursday from 2-6 p.m. Frankford Avenue & E. Palmer Street, (215) 568-0830

Lincoln High School Farmers’ Market: Approximately six farmers offering organic produce, goat cheese, fresh fruit and Amish baked goods. Open June-October, Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Roland Avenue near Ryan Avenue, (215) 733-9599

Ridge & Girard Farmers’ Market: Small market with produce grown by area teens, as well as fresh cut flowers, Lancaster County fruits and vegetables, herb and flower seedlings. Open June-October, Friday from 2-6 p.m. Ridge & Girard Avenues, (215) 733-9599

Park & Grange Farmers’ Market: Small market with Lancaster County fruits and vegetables. Open June-October, Thursday from 2-6 p.m. Park & Grange Avenues, near Broad & Olney Streets, (215) 733-9599

Freedom Square Farmers’ Market: Small market with locally grown fruits and vegetables, Amish baked goods and barbecue chicken and ribs. Open June-October, Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Germantown Avenue & Wister Street, (215) 733-9599

Lancaster Avenue Farmers’ Market: Small market with organic produce and breads, flowers and pastured meats. Open June-October, Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Lancaster & Powelton Avenues, (215) 733-9599

Spruce & 33rd Farmers’ Market: Small market featuring organic produce. Open June-October, Thursday from 12 noon-6 p.m. 33rd & Spruce Streets, (215) 733-9599

This list compiled from about.com

Here are some additional markets sent in from Angie... Thanks Crafty!

Fairmount Farmers Market
Thursday afternoons, from 3 to 7pm
22nd and Fairmount Ave

UPenn Farmers Market
Wednesdays from 10am to 2pm
36th and Walnut Streets,
Cafe Bon Appetit

Drexel Green Farmers Market
Tuesdays through October 27, 2009
11 am -3 pm in front of MacAlister Hall
33rd and Chestnut Streets

Schuylkill Farmers Market
Wednesdays, from 3:00pm - 7:00pm
Schuylkill River Park
S 25th St & Spruce St

Corrections and/or additions to this list would be greatly appreciated. Leave them in comments and I will update as needed.

Produce Care

2009-08-09T11:37:00.000-04:00

Besides the fantastic vegetables and fruits that I get on a weekly basis, another great thing about being a CSA member has been the newsletters I get from Pennypack Farm and North Star Orchard. Each newsletter always contains well written information about the struggles and rewards of farming, suggestions for cooking the weekly harvest, and other valuable news and information.

Today's newsletter from North Star Orchard contains this great article on storing and caring for fruits and vegetables once you bring them home...

Many folks don’t give much thought to what they do to store produce. If they were taught to put it in the fridge, they do. If they were taught it should go in the fruit bowl, they do. But sometimes what we’re taught and/or what we habitually do with produce we bring home is not the optimal thing to do in order to keep it fresh and tasting its best. So how do you know what to do?

There is actually a bit of science behind this. I know I just probably lost some of you already, but please try to bear with me. A vegetable or fruit is a living thing. As such, it respires (takes in oxygen) and respires (gives off carbon dioxide and heat), even after it is picked. Additionally, produce gives off moisture (transpiration). For most produce, refrigeration slows all of those things down, which will keep it fresher and tasting better for a longer period of time.

Slowing transpiration (loss of water from the produce) is what using ‘crisper’ drawer or plastic bags/containers are all about. If you think about it, produce is made up of a lot of water. When produce starts to lose that water, it becomes limp or wilted or floppy. Some produce has thick skin, like apples, squash, and citrus; those items lose water at a slower rate than more delicate items like lettuces, various greens, and even carrots. Left loose in the fridge (and sometimes even in the crisper drawer), those items get floppy in no time at all. Keeping delicates wrapped or packaged tightly will ensure their freshness for a long time. Fresh lettuces and greens should easily keep for a week or more if you store them in a tight plastic bag (pushing out all the air).

Of course, there are other things to consider, such as chilling injury, which can destroy flavor …but only in certain items. As most folks know, if you chill a tomato down to the temperature most refrigerators run at, the flavor is gone…kaput! This is just another in a long series of reasons why grocery store tomatoes don’t taste like anything. Other produce items which are sensitive to chilling injury include peaches, eggplant, and basil. That isn’t to say you can’t refrigerate them…but you must do so with caution (except for tomatoes, that is….just say no!).

So how is one to know? Well, if you don’t know, ask! Your tastebuds and wallet will be glad for it. In general, you should:

Never refrigerate: tomatoes, dry onions, garlic, bananas, or potatoes (and you don’t need to refrigerate ‘winter’ squash such as acorn, delicate, buttercup, etc., although you can if you really want to.)

Refrigerate briefly (i.e. remove and use within 2 or 3 days if possible): cucumbers, eggplant, melons

Refrigerate: most everything else (AND keep them tightly wrapped or packaged up so you don’t lose moisture!), including apples, Asian pears, citrus, beets, greens and lettuces, carrots, etc.

SPECIAL NOTE ABOUT STONE FRUITS (peaches, plums, and nectarines): In general, let them sit out for a few days until soft. Then, either eat them, cut them up and freeze them (with a bit of ascorbic acid to prevent browning) or put them in the fridge. You can store firm peaches and plums in the fridge for a little while and then bring them out to soften up, but the longer they are in the fridge (like if you forget about them for 2 weeks in a dark corner), the more likely it is they’ll be mushy and flavorless when you soften them up.

And that ‘paper bag’ thing? Skip it! The notion of using a paper bag to ripen things up started as a way to try to get those grocery store peaches and apples to soften up and taste like something. But in general, if you’re getting those items fresh from a local farmer, rather than from California, Argentina, or China, those peaches and tomatoes should be ripe enough to soften up just fine in a day or two or three just sitting out there all by their lonesome. No paper bag needed! They’ll be prettier to look at in the process, and you’re less likely to forget about them (only to come return to a sticky mass of goo in that paper bag on the counter. Ick).

North Star Orchards

Into The Open

2009-08-08T10:57:00.001-04:00

I had such an enjoyable day yesterday at the Vegetable Party sponsored by the National Constitution Center, as part of the current Into The Open exhibit.

The weather was absolutely perfect and there are few more stunning locations in Philadelphia than the lawn of Independence Mall. I sat at my table all afternoon in full view of spectacular Independence Hall off in the distance...

I met so many fascinating people during the day. Everyone who came up to talk was genuinely interested in local organic gardening and learning something about the Metrofarming concept.Thanks to everyone who signed our guestbook!

My friends Anne & Tony, who live in Jenkintown, donated a jar of their home cultivated local honey for me to display on the table. There is something irresistible about a jar of honey, it is like liquid sunshine. A woman who stopped by mentioned that she participates in a center city community garden and she is the beekeeper for the garden. As we were talking, I happened to notice a few honey bees on the flowers I brought with me. The woman said, Oh they might be my bees... hello babies!

I had several people come up to the table asking what that wonderful smell was? I had all of my dried herbs spread out all over the table and the hot sun was activating the oils in the herbs so that the air all around my table smelled like Lavender, Mint, and Oregano...

I met some great people who were also participating in the event. The folks from Philadelphia Orchard Project were at the table right next to me, and Greensgrow Farm was demonstrating some amazing solar powered hydroponic growing techinques...

The Constitution Center's in house chef, Derek Steel from Max and Me Catering was presenting live cooking demonstrations using locally harvested vegetables, including a delicious corn salad and a tomato and basil salad using fresh cut basil from Greensgrow Farms hydroponic system that he snipped minutes before he made his salad. As fresh as it gets!

All in all, a very rewarding day. Thanks to the National Constitution Center for inviting me to participate in the event. The staff who ran this event were wonderful, constantly checking to see if we needed water, cookies, etc.

Vegetable Party details

Into The Open exhibit details

DIY Scrapple

2009-08-05T11:34:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I happened to Tweet about making a Scrapple sandwich and I got the typical "eww, scrapple!" responses. Most people outside the greater Philadelphia area just don't get scrapple, and probably for good reason. The modern day Scrapple product sold in plastic wrapped bricks in every Philly area grocery store is a poor representaion of old school Pennsylvania Dutch Scrapple.

The ingredient list on a typical store bought package of Scrapple will include Pork, Pork Hearts, Pork Skin, Pork Liver, etc. I own many old Pennsylvania Dutch and Amish cookbooks, and none of them include organ meats in the Scrapple recipes. While I have never been shy about eating any of these piggy parts, and one of my favorite Vietnamese Pho varieties includes all of the major pork organ meats, they are not something I want to consume on a regular basis for obvious reasons.

So truly old style Scrapple is a much healthier product than modern day grocery store varieties. You can find a variation of the following method for making Scrapple in The Joy of Cooking. I also adapted it from my 1960 version of Amish Dutch Cookbook.

Here are the step by step instructions for making Scrapple at home...

First, Butcher a Hog. (just kidding!)

Actually, any Pork bones will do, but I buy a large Pork Shoulder(hormone & preservative free of course), and then butcher it into cutlets and cubes for curries and stir fries. This is a really cost effective way to buy pork. The nice hefty shoulder bone is now put into a large stock pot with 2 quarts of water, with a large sliced onion, a couple bay leaves, and some whole peppercorns. Let this simmer a good hour, until the meat is falling off the bone...

Remove the bone from the pot and pick off the meat. Finely chop and set aside.

Drain the liquid from the stock pot. This is what you will use to cook the Scrapple with...

Now combine 1 Cup of Corn Meal* with 1 Cup Cold Water and 1/4 Tsp of Salt...

Now put 4 Cups of the Pork Stock into a large pot, bring to a slow boil, and slowly add the cold Corn Meal mixture. Boil this mixture for 2-3 minutes. Then set the flame to very low and if you can, elevate the pot off of the heat source. I use my Wok grid, which raises the pot a couple inches off of the cooking surface. (The older cookbooks suggest a double boiler for this stage of cooking)

Now let the Corn Meal cook, or Steam, for about 30 minutes on this very low heat. Stir occassionally. After about 10 or 15 minutes, add the chopped Pork, some diced Onion, Sage, Red Pepper, and Salt & Pepper to taste. Let everything get nice and thick and happy. If you are thinking hey, this is just Polenta!, you are more or less right. It's Polenta cooked in Pork Stock!

Now pour the slurry into a bread pan. Cover with foil and put it into the Fridge. That's all there is to it!...

Once it is completely cool you will have a wonderful home made Scrapple! Slice it about 1/2 inch thick and saute in butter until golden brown...

This is absolutely delicious! Try it sometime...

(*) Note- You can substitute Oat Meal for Corn Meal and get a similar and equally traditional result. It is only Scrapple if you use Corn Meal. When made with Oat Meal it is called Goetta according to Joy of Cooking, or Ponhaws according to the Amish Dutch Cookbook.

The Great Pumpkin Failure

2009-08-04T10:28:00.000-04:00

I have wanted to grow pumpkins for years, but I have never wanted to give up the room in my beds that pumpkins or melons need to spread out. This year I decided to experiment with growing some pumpkins in a very large container at the base of my enormous Oak tree and let them grow around the stone retaining wall. I thought that if it worked, this would be visually beautiful as well as providing me with pumpkins for the Fall.

Well, this has turned out to be a miserable failure and now I am trying to figure out what went wrong. The vines started out growing very vigorously, reaching almost 12 feet in length after just a few weeks. There were lots of flowers and I was so excited when I saw tiny little pumpkins developing...

But gradually the leaves closest to the container started to yellow and wither, and most of the small pumpkins just shriveled up and fell off of the vine. I decided to radically prune back the vines to about five feet and I cut off all of the damaged leaves. This seemed to re-stimulate grow, and I got a whole new batch of flowers, but the yellowing leaf syndrome has continued...

Here is what the leaves look like when they start to fail. They get a powdery white all over them and then turn yellow and just wither...

So having absolutely no experience with Pumpkins, I am going to throw this one out there to any experts for some feedback. Does this look like a disease that is unrelated to the fact that I am trying to grow pumpkins in a container? Or do you think this is stress related? I have used some organic Fish Emulsion/Seaweed fertilizer a couple times, but I have not followed any specific feeding program for Pumpkins. I planted them in a Mushroom soil mix, the same soil I used in my Tomato beds.

I would be grateful for any thoughts or comments...

Editor's Note....

Wow! Within minutes, Colleen Vanderlinden advised that this is Powdery Mildew Fungus, and suggested a natural baking soda based spray to help fight it... Thanks Colleen!!

If you are seeing powdery-looking patches on the foliage of your plants, you most likely have a case of the very common powdery mildew fungal disease. Here is a simple spray for controlling the spread of the fungus. It won't get rid of the fungus on leaves that already have it, but it will prevent it from spreading to the rest of the plant.
Ingredients:

1 gallon of water
1 tablespoon of baking soda
1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon of dishwashing liquid
Mix the ingredients together and add them to a spray bottle. Spray your plants weekly, preferably on overcast days to prevent it from burning the foliage.

Fruit Share Week 1

2009-08-03T20:50:00.001-04:00

Today was the first delivery of weekly fruit shares from North Star Orchards, and as you can see, the quality of the fruit is fantastic! I was amazed at the amount as well. Everything looks so great in the new hand made Amish baskets I bought along the roadside during my incredible weekend in upstate New York. An Amish woman and her adorable little daughter were sitting in their buggy along the side of the road with some baskets and home made jam for sale. I couldn't resist getting this larger basket that I will use to harvest veggies from the garden. The smaller egg basket will be perfect for storing garlic on my countertop.

These weekly fruit shares get delivered right to my Veggie CSA, Pennypack Farm. Everything is bagged up and waiting for those who signed up for fruit. Couldn't be easier! As I was getting my veggies today, I even heard a few people asking themselves why they hadn't signed up for a fruit share.

Here is the haul from week 10 from Pennypack Farm...

Weekend in New York

2009-07-31T11:32:00.000-04:00

Gifts from the Garden

I'm leaving town tonight to visit some good friends for the weekend in the Thousand Islands region of Upstate New York. I'm really looking forward to a nice relaxing weekend. One of the great things about visiting friends in the summertime is that the question of what to bring as a gift of appreciation for your hosts is a no-brainer... everything comes straight from the garden!

Yesterday I picked some hot cherry peppers and stuffed them with sharp provolone cheese and prosciutto ham. They went into a large glass jar and then I filled it with some good Olive Oil, some additional sweet and hot peppers, and some fresh Oregano and Basil from the herb garden. These Cherry Poppers will be perfect for munching on while the house full of great chefs prepares dinner. (Everyone who will be staying at the house this weekend is a talented cook, and we all have a wonderful time preparing meals as a group production!)

This morning I went out and harvested some Detroit Red Beets, some Baby French Carrots, and some Cherry Tomatoes. These will be perfect in any type of salad we choose to make.

My weekend hosts are avid gardeners themselves, although living in upstate New York, they have had even cooler conditions than I have experienced here in the Mid-Atlantic, so I know they will appreciate anything that I can bring them straight from the soil. I had really expected to be bringing some nice ripe tomatoes with me, but I still do not have anything to harvest. (Except of course the container grown Cherry Tomatoes)

Detroit Red Beets

Baby French Carrots

Crazy Summer

2009-07-29T23:37:00.001-04:00

This photo is the perfect visual proof of the crazy summer weather we have had here in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states. Cool and rainy and windy conditions have resulted in reduced and delayed crops, especially Tomatoes. It is almost August 1st and I still do not have a ripe tomato! These conditions have also contributed to the devastating spread of Late Blight that is reeking havoc on Tomato and Potato crops.

And yet, there is always something that will manage to thrive when other crops are suffering. This season that applies to Strawberries. I typically do not have much success with Strawberries because they do not get enough direct sun in May, and then it gets too hot by the time June rolls around. This year has been more like London weather around here, and as a result, I am currently swimming in berries! Not even the rabbits can keep up with the abundance and so I am enjoying a nice bonus on a daily basis. I picked these berries this morning.... July 29th. I have never picked berries this late in the summer, and there are plenty more green berries out there.

So while I patiently wait out the arrival of red tomatoes I will continue to enjoy the pleasures of picking Strawberries in what will soon be August!

CSA Week 9

2009-07-27T23:56:00.000-04:00

More spectacular produce from my CSA!

Just got notice that the fruit shares are going to start one week from today!!

Sunday in the garden...

2009-07-26T15:32:00.000-04:00

I was tending to the Tomatoes this afternoon and panicked when I found a small green tomato that was half rotten. I'm so worried about Late Blight that I immediately thought the worst until I realized it was just a case of Blossom End Rot, which is not unusual in the weather conditions we have been having this season. Seems to be the only tomato that is suffering. I checked out all of the plants and couldn't find any other cases of any rotting fruit. I'm crossing my fingers keeping a careful watch.

I've been meaning to get some Fall season crops started and finally had some time today. I sowed some Arugula and Baby Bok Choi seeds in some small clay pots. I'll transfer these in early September after I harvest the carrots and beets in the new raised beds...

The Carrots seems to be doing well, but I know if they got more direct sun they would be much bigger...

The Beets don't seem to be as adversely affected by the lack of all day sun...

Late Blight Arrives!

2009-07-25T11:35:00.000-04:00

Late Blight has arrived at Pennypack Farm, the CSA I belong to. Here is the news sent out by email yesterday from the farm...

Late Blight Arrives in Horsham
By Farmer Andy

Recall the horrible Irish potato famine of the mid 1800s - when thousands starved and countless others fled for a better place to live (and eat). None of us were around at that time, but by all accounts this was a disaster of the highest order. Basically, much of Ireland had become dependent on potatoes as their food staple and when the crop failed one year, there was not much to eat.

The cause of this historical famine is known as late blight. It is a fungus that attacks potatoes and tomatoes, and over a period of several weeks, kills its host and launches spores into the air to find new victims. It spreads quickly and thrives under cool, moist conditions. The kind of conditions we have been experiencing throughout the spring and into the summer.

There is no sliver bullet for late blight. Conventional growers use a number of highly powerful and toxic synthetic fungicides to stop the spread of the disease, but for us in the organic farming world, there are few options. We must remove any infected plants and treat all others with an organic copper fungicide, which helps slow the disease. Hot, dry weather, the kind we usually have at this time of year is our best ally. But, in the current moist conditions, this fungus is thriving.

We have been vigorously scouting our tomato and potato crops this week and removing diseased plants. So far, we have not found any evidence of the late blight on our potatoes, but it has infected approximately ten percent of our tomato crop. These plants have been disposed of and all others treated with the copper.

At this time we simply do not know what affect this will have on our overall tomato crop. I would expect, at the very least, a smaller harvest than in past years and it is unlikely that we will be able to offer tomato canning shares this season.

However, we are hopeful that by removing the diseased plants and treating the others, we will still have a reasonable tomato harvest in the coming weeks. We will keep you posted on updates on this situation as they become available. Thank you in advance for your patience and understanding.

CSA Week 8

2009-07-20T22:36:00.000-04:00

Summer Squash, Turnips, Onions, Cabbage, Carrots, Lemon Cucumbers, and I bought some fresh eggs just laid this morning!

A Vegetable Party !

2009-07-14T10:21:00.000-04:00

The National Constitution Center has invited Metro Farming to participate in A Vegetable Party on Friday, August 7th from Noon- 4PM at Independence Mall, and we are inviting you to come out and join the fun!

This event is part of the Into The Open exhibit running from July 15 to September 7th

The Edible Schoolyard/Yale Sustainable Food Project Model Schoolyard Garden

A Vegetable Party
Friday, August 7, 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
FREE
The public is invited to join in a celebration of edible education on Independence Mall. Visitors will learn about the origins of the food Americans consume, and the principles of modern ecology, as the Center showcases the efforts of local urban farmers, chefs, and activists who are working to inform students and the public about what we eat and where it comes from. Participants include The Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative at the University of Pennsylvania, the Pedal Co-Op, and Slow Food USA .
This event is inspired by the work of Alice Waters and the Yale Sustainable Food Project. Waters, a renowned chef, created this project in response to the lack of nutritious food served in California public schools. As part of Into the Open, a model garden, located in front of the National Constitution Center, will feature local seasonal vegetables and flowers. Campers attending the Center’s American Adventure Summer Camp will help plant and tend to the garden throughout the summer.

Into The Open

National Constitution Center

CSA Week 7

2009-07-13T23:30:00.001-04:00

Turnips, Zucchini, Jalapeño Peppers, Onions, Lemon Cucumbers, Beets, Herbs

Photography as Sequence

Giant-Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum)

2009-07-11T22:56:00.000-04:00

Every summer the Bumblebees go crazy for my ~~Russian Sage~~ Giant-Hyssop and I love to just watch them buzz from flower to flower...

Summer Squash Curry

2009-07-10T10:59:00.000-04:00

Yellow Summer Squash looks so good at the farmer's market, you bring it home and then think "what am I going to do with it?". Well, my simplest recommendation is to just quarter it and then steam it and serve with some butter and a little salt & pepper. Absolutely delicious! But if you are looking for something with a bit more kick, then you could give this easy curry a try. The basic ingredients for this Thai style curry are Red Curry Paste and Coconut Milk...

Start by cooking some sweet onions in some butter (ghee) and oil...

When the onions have begun to break down, I add some freshly grated Nutmeg and Cinnamon...

Now equal dollops of Chili Sauce and Red Curry Paste...

Let this cook down. The Curry paste needs to fry to release it's flavors...

three or four diced Summer Squash...

Garlic Scapes or minced Garlic...

Some chopped Mushrooms...

Chopped fresh Basil...

Let everything simmer together for a few minutes...

Now add one can of Coconut Milk...

Gently simmer on very low flame for about 10 minutes. Do not bring the Coconut Milk to a boil...

Serve over steamed rice with some Tandoori Naan on the side...

Note- With the Chili Sauce and Red Curry paste this has quite a bit of heat and spice to it, but not what I would consider overpowering. It is a gradual heat that comes on slowly. Back off of the amount of Chili Sauce if you want less heat.

CSA Week 6

2009-07-07T09:40:00.001-04:00

Goodies brought home yesterday from my CSA, Pennypack Farm in Horsham, Pa.

Collard Greens, Basil, Cabbage, Lemon Cucumbers, Green Cucumbers, Yellow Summer Squash, and Zucchini.

heavenly scents...

2009-07-06T11:51:00.001-04:00

This is a wonderful combination of herbs for drying. Lavender and Mint. Select the Lavender after it has flowered, and the mint just before it flowers. In my herb garden that is happening simultaneously. Just hang them together in a cool dark place, or dehydrate them in a convection oven as I do to save time.

The scent of the Lavender and Mint combination is incredible. I used plain old Spearmint here, but you could create some really interesting combinations with some of the hundreds of varieties of mints that are available at garden centers these days.

Lavender flowers and leaves make a nice tea, especially when mixed with mint. Lavender is also used in aromatherapy for stress relief and to fight depression.
Sprinkle some of these dried herbs into a hot bath or just keep them in a small dish in the bathroom or bedroom.

go bee go!

2009-07-05T13:01:00.001-04:00

tiny bee pollinating one of my future pumpkins...

Turnip Miso Soup

2009-07-05T10:08:00.001-04:00

A friend of mine asked me what I do with Turnips. My quick answer would be that I simply steam them and then toss with a little butter and black pepper. How can you go wrong? But here is another way to use Turnips in a Miso soup where the diced Turnips substitute for Tofu and the Turnip greens substitute for the seaweed that would typically be found in Miso soup.

The only thing you will need for this soup is some Miso paste, some chili sauce, and some chicken or vegetable stock. For Miso soup I would normally use a vegetable or mushroom stock, but all I had on hand was chicken stock...

Start by cooking down some onions and garlic (here I am using Garlic Scapes) in some oil...

Then add about a tablespoon of Chili sauce. You can skip this if you want a milder tasting Miso. This Chili sauce will definitely add some heat to the soup...

After the onions have turned translucent, add some diced yellow squash and turnips...

Then add chopped Turnip Greens...

Let these ingredients cook down a bit...

Add about a cup of stock and a good dollop of Miso paste...

Add water as needed and gently simmer until the vegetables are tender. Do not allow Miso soup to boil... just a low gentle heat...

This is a wonderful version of Miso soup... Enjoy!

Happy 4th of July!!

2009-07-04T20:22:00.000-04:00

I can't think of a better way to spend the Fourth of July than to putter around the garden, enjoying the sunshine and freedom! Thank you USA!

While waiting for the fireworks to start I cut some Oregano stalks just before they started to flower. This is the best time to dry them, as this is when they have the most intense flavor. If you wait until after they have flowered, they will lose quite a bit of intensity.

dried oregano

I have a dehydrate setting on my convection oven. I just spread the Oregano stalks out on a cookie sheet covered with foil, and in about an hour at 160 degrees, the Oregano is completely dried out. You could just as easily hang the herbs upside down in a dark dry place and achieve the same results in a couple of days.

All you have to do when they have dried out is pull the stalk gently through your hands while holding over a wide mouth jar or bowl. I now have enough dried Oregano to last until next summer, and I plan to do this with all of the herbs in my garden.

These are perfect for herb butters, infused oils, and herb vinegars. Look for future posts on how to use fresh garden herbs for these and other gourmet creations.

free grounds...

2009-07-01T23:00:00.001-04:00

I've mentioned this before on this blog, but it is worth a reminder that you can walk into any Starbucks coffee shop and ask for used coffee grounds for the garden. This morning I scored two nice sized bags! Adding coffee grounds to your garden soil adds Nitrogen and acts as a pest preventer...

thank you Starbucks!

Walking around the garden tonight I noticed the first real tomato on one of my seed started Amish heirlooms...

Amish baby

... and a rare sight in my garden. A juicy red strawberry! Almost every ripe strawberry gets eaten by the squirrels and skunks, so finding a ripe one for myself is a real treat!

a rare find

CSA Week 5

2009-06-30T10:57:00.001-04:00

Brought home Collard Greens, Fennel, Turnips, Zucchini, Lemon Cucumbers, Summer Squash, and Lettuce.