Storage Options

by Farmer Katie Endicott, Highlands Apprentice

One of our tasks on the farm is to store and preserve the quality of the produce harvested from the fields until we distribute it at pick-ups and market. Since the early weeks of the CSA season at the Highlands, we have been working out the kinks in our system juggling produce from the refrigerated box truck, to our cold room storage attached to the garage, to the historical root cellar in the 18th century barn.

At this point in the season, we have a diversity of produce coming out of the fields that necessitates a diversity of storage needs and requirements. Nightshades including tomatoes, eggplants, and peppers prefer slightly warmer and dryer storage conditions. We keep this group in our cold room storage attached to the garage. The temperature stays around 60 degrees with low humidity. The rest of our produce currently prefers cooler and moister temperatures. This group is stored in the refrigerated box truck that hovers between a 40 - 50 degree temperature and we use damp towels to maintain moist conditions. The box truck needs to either stay plugged in next to the gardener's cottage or stay running while at the pick up area or market to stay refrigerated. When we begin to harvest our winter squashes and storage roots, we will be again utilizing the barn root cellar. These vegetables will be stored in metal bins covered with sand. The root cellar stays at a consistent 60-65 degree damp cellar temperature.

My mind tends to wander to 18th century while I'm in the root cellar. I wonder what the root cellar looked like in its original use and how our colonial counterpart farmers preserved their harvest. I am excited that we'll be returning the root cellar to its original use; simultaneously preserving the harvest and the agricultural heritage of the Highlands.  

Storing Culinary Herbs

by Susan Curry

Pennypack at Horsham grows a variety of herbs to enhance your seasonal cooking in the beds near the Greenhouse.  If there are additional herbs that you wish we grew, kindly let us know.  Following are some tips on how to store the herbs.

ALL herbs can be used fresh.  Once cut, they can be wrapped in a moist towel and stored for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator in a zip lock bag or Tupperware container.  Certain herbs listed in the FRESH column below are best added to recipes without cooking them, or drying them. Other herbs can be cooked, dried or frozen.

DRIED HERBS	FROZEN HERBS	FRESH HERBS
Thyme	In zip lock or ice cubed in oil or water	Cilantro
Sage	Basil	Parsley
Oregano	Mints	Fennel
Coriander (see of cilantro)	Chives	Dill
Dill Seed	Lemon Balm
Fennel Seed

Methods of drying herbs:

• Place in a paper bag sealed with a paper clip, set on the back dash of your car-- 2-5 days
• On a cookie tray in your oven at its lowest temperature (some ovens are too hot)-- 2-4 hours
• In a dehydrator - follow instructions
• Spread on a sheet on a bed in a spare room, with a sheet over it to deter dust --2-4 weeks
• Dry until crisp, then rub the leaves/seeds easily off the branches and store in a sealed, labeled bottle.

Tarragon, Dill and the frozen herbs can also be added to flavor a vinegar or a butter, then kept for up to half a year in your refrigerator.  Some people strain the plant material out of a vinegar after 2 months.
 

Notes from the Edible Classroom

I can't believe summer is drawing to a close.  We'll still have plenty of warm days in the coming weeks and months, but fall is just around the corner.  I was harvesting at The Highlands earlier this week and noticed some leaves are changing already; oranges and reds against a backdrop of greens.  

This week we said goodbye to the last of our 3 summer interns. Robin, who spent her  summer at The Highlands, completed her internship 2 weeks ago and now somewhere in the US on an "awesome" road trip.  Brian and Ross both worked at The Highlands and finished up this week.  In addition to their everyday, "farm work", Ross and Brian helped out in Horsham's EC and provided weekly assistance to the campers from College  Settlement Camp.  Over at The Highlands, Robin led several farm-based educational activities during camper/student visits.  As an aside, for those of you who attended our first ever Farm-to-Table dinner, Robin (a CIA-trained pastry chef) constructed that amazing beet panna cotta with herbed shortbreads!  The interns also attended a number of local workshops sponsored by Tri State Craft.  From Tri-State's website, "We work in a collaborative effort with local sustainable farms to enhance educational and social networking opportunities for farm apprentices."  Here's a link to  Tri-State CRAFT’s website, it's a wonderful organization and provides excellent opportunities for students of sustainable and organic agricultural practices.

The transplanters and direct seeders are still busy at both farms. Scallion seedlings were planted just this week and a few weeks ago I planted 3 rows of Vermont Cranberry Beans Horsham.  This bean can be grown as either a shell or dry bean with days to maturity at 75 for shell and 98 for dry.  I was a bit late for dry beans, but we'll see how the fall plays out.  I'll probably harvest some as shell beans and let half go for dry beans.  

The Plant of the Week is the thornless blackberry!  PFEC folks love their berries, and we are still harvesting those tasty bites!  These brambles are relatively easy to grow, requiring only modest soil amendments.  In fact, once the plants are established, most of the work happens in the off-season.  In late winter - early spring, the canes need to be pruned in order to remove dead wood and encourage spring growth. Here's a short UTube pruning video.  I like this video because it's short (2 minutes) and clearly demonstrates how to properly prune for good health and fruit set.  Check it out if you are thinking about planting blackberries, since pruning will be required in any variety you select.

All the blackberries at Horsham are of a variety that requires trellising.  In the EC, the split-rail fence is a terrific trellis and in the field, an alternate trellis system is used. If you are considering planting a few blackberry canes, please check this link from the Penn State Extension Service.  It provides great info on varieties, trellis requirements and growing tips.  When I was a kid, I remember picking blackberries and getting scratched by the stiff, sharp thorns.  Well, thanks to the efforts of plant breeders, we can now harvest blackberries without gloves and in tee shirts.  Thornless blackberries are a dream come true!  Enjoy the last of our blackberries and think about whether or not your landscape could be enhanced by planting a few of these perennial favorites.

Have a good week.

  

 

Vegan Sushi - Roll Your Own! Beginner Class

Thursday, September 19 - 7pm - 9pm

Resurrection Lutheran Church, 620 Welsh Road, Horsham, PA

Class is $20 and includes all food costs

Bring your own sushi mat or purchase one (about $3) at class