Week Eight 

 

Hey Members! Week Eight is upon us.  Is anyone else out there really surprised that it is nearly August?  I am finding that hard to believe.  Is anyone else out there a bit worried that it's going to start getting really hot and dry in August? ... Kidding! I am kidding. 

 

I took the photo atop the newsletter Wednesday morning around 7 am - that rainbow preceded the brief rain shower we had.  And although it hardly delivered any moisture it was so pleasant to be out harvesting in the rain - especially with the sunlight hazily shining behind us.  

 

Before farm news, we have an introduction from one of our current WWOOFers, Katie Clements.  Katie volunteered at Wellspring last year as well, and it is great to have her big smile and positive attitude back this season for a few weeks.

 

*** Last minute Thursday morning addition!  We got 2.5 inches of rain last night!! Unfortunately with the very hot and dry June and most of July the damage is already done, but at least the crops and I are definitely breathing easier today.  This means we can stop irrigating for a week, and also that our perennials are a lot more likely to survive this crazy season! 

WWOOFer Intro 

 

Hi! My name is Katie Clements. I'm a 20 year old WWOOF-er from Middleton Wisconsin. Currently, I'm going to school at Edgewood College, in Madison, to get my undergraduate degree. I'm going to be a Junior. I am interested in healthy, local food, and sustainable agriculture because I have been raised with it by my holistic nutritionist mother and because I see the need in this country for a drastic change in our food system. As I learn how to farm while I am here, I hope to add to the already growing movement of young farmers, and change the food system from unsustainable (environmentally and socially) to a sustainable food system that nourishes our bodies and communities and is in harmony with the environment. My favorite part so far about WWOOF-ing has been harvest days: it has been so much fun to meet community members who come volunteer on the farm, as well as pick a whole lot of food that makes people happy and healthy. Some of my interests besides farming include reading, writing, biking, backpacking, hiking, horse-back riding, cooking, herbal medicine, and spending time with friends.
Farm News 

 

Whelp.  This week again we have just been following the irrigation and weeding, weeding, weeding and trying to stay out of the heat.  It looked like Monday was going to be our only day in the near-hundreds this week, but then Wednesday came along and threatened to hit 98!  So we started at 6 and called it quits after harvest.  Tuesday was beautiful - 70's and 80's and mostly cloudy skies.  In case anyone is in contact with the weather gods and goddesses, please let them know we could use some more of that business.

 

We haven't been putting on our rain boots and stomping in any puddles, however.  By my calculations, our total measurable rainfall from the last time I wrote to you is about 1/10th.  We had a shower on Sunday night, a shower on Tuesday morning and one on Wednesday as well, but nothing that really registered at the 10th inch mark.  Things aren't looking any perkier in the field, is partly what I'm getting at here.  

 

The heat is taking it's toll as well - remember that blossom drop I mentioned a few newsletters ago?  It's likely affecting the  tomatoes, as well as, recently the green beans.  There was an email going around one of the farmer list-serves I belong to this week about how the majority of the farms in our area are seeing their green beans plants grow beautifully with healthy foliage and flowers, and then not create any bean pods.  I am seeing that here as well for the first time in my farming career.   What it means for tomatoes is that we may get a good flush for the next week or two, then have a bit of a lull.  What it means for the beans is that we might not get much off of our first few plantings, but I've got at least 9 successions out there so at some point this season we should see some beans! 

 

There are a couple of bright spots among the continued struggles. We DO have a head of lettuce in the box again this week, and a big huge thank you goes out to our friends and Wellspring Board Member Paul Thomas and his wife Linda for that.  The Thomas's generously donated something called the Scare Crow, which is a sprinkler equipped with a motion sensor.  When the sensor detects a creature (like perhaps a ground hog) it sprays water in the direction of the movement, thereby scaring the critter back into the woods.  They are still eating a lot of other things, but I set it up to protect the lettuce so we could have another round of beautiful heads in the boxes.  Hurray!  Additionally, aside from the blossom drop the tomatoes look beautiful and the heirlooms are starting to ripen.  The pepper plants look gorgeous as well, and there are green fruit on their way to becoming red. 


What's In the Box and Where Does it Go? 

 

Crop                         Fridge?      Notes/Varieties

Head Lettuce                Yes    Red or Green Summercrisp
Carrots                         Yes
Fennel                          Yes
Garlic                            Yes
Zucchini or Patty Pan     Yes
Parsley                         Yes       In a jar in water 
Basil                            No         In a jar in water 
Tomatoes                     No 
Broccoli                       Yes    (or cuke/eggplant/beans) 
Cucumber                   Yes        (or broccoli/eggplant/beans) 
Eggplant                      Yes   (or broccoli/cuke/beans) 
Beans                        Yes      (or cuke/eggplant/broccoli)

A few explanations: 

 

Fennel - A Farmer Favorite!! This fennel is a lovely sight to see this week.  Though I personally think fennel grown in the fall is cosmetically more beautiful, this summer round is full of flavor.  Fennel (a relative of carrots, dill, celery and many other plants in the apiaceae family) can be prepared in so many different ways.  Sometimes people decide they don't like fennel before having it on the grill, or thinly shaved in a beet salad, or caramelized on the stovetop and covered with shredded parm.  Just the other night in a local restaurant I sampled a friends pickled fennel that was served with her garlic shrimp.  I have included a recipe below, and some links to some other options as well. 

 

Basil - This week's basil is in a bit of a different format than previous week's because one of our successions is on it's way out the door.  In a normal season we can pick the tops over and over again, and the plant gets really big and bushy.  Last season we were able to give out almost a half pound for a few weeks in a row just off the tops we picked.  This year it's been, believe it or not, too hot and too dry and the basil just isn't happy.  The next round still looks really good, and we've got more on the way so this isn't the last of it.  

 

This is what's called Rooted Basil, and we've left the roots on so that it will keep longer for you.  If you put this in a jar or a vase in water on your countertop, the basil should keep at least two weeks.  I've heard reports in the past of it keeping as long as a month, and continuing to sprout new leaves as well.   If you don't want the plant around, just take off the leaves and put them in a plastic bag.  
 
Basil doesn't like to be wet, so this stuff is unwashed, which means its going to be a bit dirty when you pull it out of the bag.  If you give it a rinse before setting it in a jar in your kitchen it should be fine. 

 

Tomatoes - We had two pretty nice picking off the hoophouse early this week and everyone will get 2-3 depending on their size.  A word of caution - some of them are very ripe.  These are once again the red and pink slicers, the field tomatoes are coming along nicely aside from the potential blossom drop I keep bringing up.  Another bright spot! 
 
Garlic!  (This note is from last week's letter.) The garlic is considered "fresh" at this stage, because it has been pulled from the ground but not yet dried (or cured).  This means there is still some moisture in the bulb, which you'll notice when you go to peel it.  The layers of paper haven't dried down yet, so they are still thick around the clove.  This has a milder flavor then the cured (dried) bulbs you will be receiving later in the season.  Please keep it in the fridge if you won't be using it right away - it will likely keep just fine on the counter but just in case, since it isn't fully cured, it's good to put it in the fridge.  

The Either/Ors - Once again this week we have more either or's than I'd like.  But I think that's just going to be a trend this season.  

Next Week's Anticipated Share Contents: Lettuce, Carrots, Golden Beets, Fennel, Scallions, Tomato, Basil, Zucchini, Cuke or Eggplant 
Next Cooking Class: BEETS!

 

Thursday, August 9, 6-8 p.m. - Seasonal Produce Cooking Class - Beets - at Wellspring Organic Farm

 
Wellspring offers a series of monthly cooking classes based on veggies ready to be harvested from our garden that you will see in your CSA box! 
Featured veggies for the month of August are beets. Local chef, KC Thorson, demonstrates four recipes which are sampled by the class. All students also receive wine to drink and recipes to take home.

 Menu for the evening: 

* Beets Appetizer with Blackberry Chevre 
* Easy Pickled Beets 
* Garlic Sauteed Beet Greens 
* Sweet Beet Sorbet

 
Cost: $20 till August 7 - $25 after. www.wellspringinc.org or (847) 946-5565




Storage Tips 
 
This week the major storage items are probably surrounding the fresh garlic which should be stored in the fridge, and the rooted basil which should be stored out of the fridge.  See above for details. It is also my personal preference not to refrigerate tomatoes, as the flavor is significantly altered when you do.   
 
Recipes 
 
Caramelized Fennel with Parm from the Brain of Farmer Alissa
Variations of this recipe are all over the internet - this is the go to that I use. 

1 bulb fennel, quartered and sliced thin 
some onion, sliced thin
olive oil 
salt and pepper 
some Parmesan or Pecorino Romano cheese for grating 
 
Heat the olive oil on medium in a medium sized, oven safe pan, I use cast iron.  Add the onion and fennel and saute for a while - maybe 30 minutes?  You want them both to have softened and achieved a lovely light brown color.  Sort of a caramel-color, if you know what I mean. After they are cooked to your desired level, grate a whole bunch of cheese over the top of the pan and stick the pan under the hot broiler for a few minutes until the cheese is a bit browned. Remove and serve! 
 
Alternately you could try:
 

I do realize that many of these recipes call for 2 fennel bulbs, and I also realize that it's probably annoying to supplement your random fennel with another fennel from the store, especially if you aren't much of a fennel eater to begin with!  Things are farm from perfect in 2012...

Everyone's got their favorite pesto recipe but here is a good one which also includes a tip for freezing it (omit the cheese). 

From Simply Recipes


Food Photos 

red lettuce wk 7 
red lettuce
 
green lettuce 
carrots wk 5 
carrots 
fennel wk 20  
fennel 
parsley wk 20  
parsley  
 
Tomato wk 8 
tomato  
 
Squash wk 12 
zucchini  
 
Cucumbers wk 5 
cucumber  
 
eggplant wk 7 
eggplant 
 
 


 
In This Issue
WWOOFer intro
Farm News
Box List
Cooking Class
Storage Tips
Recipes
Article Title