Editorial: "Dog Days"

The 'dog days' of summer are upon us and Tammy and I will be the first to admit that we're both losing some of our ambition and running low on energy. It happens every year at various points during the season. But, it isn't hard to understand why the beginning to mid part of August often hits us. We're about half way through the CSA season. Just long enough for us to feel like we've put a fair amount of effort into it. But, not far enough to tell ourselves that the end of the season is even remotely near. It's nothing so serious that we contemplate folding up the tents and shutting down. Yet, there is enough to it that we have to recognize it for what it is so we can adjust and move on.

August has its fair share of 'three shirt days' (see last month's lexicon of GFF terms) that can physically take you down a peg or two. The number of crops that require 'diligent picking' (picked every 2 or 3 days to insure continued production) is reaching its peak. There are still things that need planting. There are weeds that have to be pulled. And, we are realizing that other summer projects,some long planned and others newly minted by events or discovered needs, need to be started or completed soon. On top of this, the tug of war for Tammy's time (Wartburg vs GFF) begins again in earnest.

What to do? How do we address this problem?

First, we both know this is a cyclic thing and acceptance that it is okay to be a little tired once in a while goes a long way towards improving how we feel. We each have given ourselves permission over the last couple of days to read a book - even though we know there is much to be done and that we'll pay for it with some rushing around later.

Second, we look for things that can certainly be accomplished with minimal time investment and comparitively low effort. In particular, we identify things that have been languishing just under the 'must do' portion of the list for several weeks. These things have the ability to weigh on ones mind and their completion has an inordinantly high reward level. We like that - helps with the attitude!

Third, we remind each other of the positives as frequently as we can. We're having a reasonably good growing season. We haven't had as many three shirt days as we typically have had by now. We've had some good helpers this year. We feel as if our CSA members have gotten excellent value for the year so far. Some fairly major projects have been completed. There are numerous things we are certain we are doing better this year - even as compared to last year.

I feel a bit better already.

Important Dates

• August 29 - Summer Harvest Festival at the farm starting at 4pm.
• October 4 - GF7 Festival

Thumbs Up, Thumbs Down

We are approaching the midway point for our CSA distribution season - we just completed week 8 and started week 9! It seems like a good time to do a little assessment on some of our farm decisions for the year.

Purchasing a second JD 235 lawn tractor. Thumbs up. Having two tractors with the same attachments and specifications has made work on the farm much easier for us. Specific positives include a better mulching program for the beans/potatoes and some of the peas.

Trying a no-till, mow only strip approach in one of our plots in 2008 - thumbs down. Clearly, we did this one wrong. The weed pressure in that plot is very high this year. Oops. More work for us.

Trying black broilers with the ranger broilers - thumbs down. Unless some of the folks who are eating them tell us otherwise, these birds taste as good, but not markedly better than the rangers. The group we received had a lower percentage of males, thus a lower average weight is to be expected, but the average weight was significantly lower. Thus, the return for our effort and cost outlay makes it unlikely that they'll return.

Setting up stainless counters for cleaning/packing - thumbs up. The efforts of hydrocooling, cleaning and packing are so much easier than they were last year. This is especially important given the increase in lettuce, chard, beets and other crops that need this sort of attention.

Deciding to move our perennials & till the area to control weeds - waiting for green thumbs. The decision still seems sound, but we have yet to find time to do this project. At one point, we offered to entertain some perennial gardeners who might be willing to help and then leave with a few plants. No takers thus far.

Starting all lettuce in trays and transplanting - thumbs way up! We've had some success with lettuce in the past. But, the consistency is much better this way.

Expanding the CSA and removing farmers' market sales - thumbs up. We're liking the fact that we aren't rushing around to do markets four days of the week like we did last year. Three distribution days - with one at the farm - is saner, moves more produce and is more profitable for us. What's not to like? Well, there are some social aspects that are missing - but we can still attend a market if we'd like.

A quick new veg cultivar up/down assessment at this point:

Thumbs up: German Butterball potato, Jaune Flamme tomato, French Breakfast radish

Thumbs down: Monnopa spinach, Red Leprechaun lettuce

Jury's Out: DeCicco broccoli, Red Leaf Vegetable amaranth, Pattison Panache summer squash

Farmers' Market

We were aware that this could happen, so we were not caught completely off guard when it became apparent to us last Friday that had alot of produce that would need picking well before the next distributions on Monday and Tuesday. As a result, we found ourselves at the Waverly Farmers' Market on Saturday morning.

It is entirely possible that - as long as the tomatoes are in peak production - we will continue to attend the Saturday market. As a general rule, we only sell items that fit the requirements that a) they must be picked to keep production up, but will not store until a CSA distribution date or b) there is excess well beyond that which is required/desired for our CSA members.

We welcome this opportunity since it indicates that we are having a reasonably good year for production of many crops. It also provides us an opportunity to educate more persons about local foods. And, of course, the cash infusion at this time of year is also useful.

More Farm Improvements

We have been blessed with wonderful help this season. This has enabled us to make some improvements on the farm that directly impact how well we get our work done. In turn, you receive higher quantities of produce, better quality of veg and generally happier encounters with your personal farmers (because Rob is less grumpy - but don't worry about that too much - he is even-tempered - always mad).

Thanks to Dad Faux, we now have a wall of shelves at our disposal. Thanks to the completion of the roof, we can now work on turning the 'truck barn' into a useful farm asset. This first move provides us with places to store seed starting supplies, containers, coolers, crop covers, cold frames and numerous other items. Up to this point, things were stored using a stratifying method (most recently used items towards the front and most accessible). This is NOT highly recommended.

Also, we now have a shelter that helps keep predators away from a small (25) Muscovey duck flock at night. It also provides the duckas with some shade on hot sunny days. We call this thing the Duckn Cover. Why? Well, when purchased, it was called a Chick Inn. But, there are no chicks in it. Do you really want more explanation than that?

Pork Buy

The pork is currently at the locker and will soon be ready for us to pick up. At last count, we had enough people to distribute the three hogs and then some. If you were one of these people, expect a contact email from us by August 19 at the very latest (hopefully sooner). If you think you contacted us about pork and do not hear from us, please let us know.

We will distribute based on who contacted us first. Those that were later in the list will have to wait until the next hog buy that is already reserved and due later in the year.

Our truck is usually VERY full on Tuesday and on Thursday when we make our distributions for the CSA. There likely will not be any extra room in the truck for quite some time on these trips. So, we are asking participants to pick up at the farm at their earliest convenience. There will be three hogs in freezers and that makes space pretty tight.

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Bison Buy

Our initial supplier is unable to provide us with our order at this time, so we are exploring the possibility of buying from a new grower. Cost is slightly higher, but we are impressed with their methods and approaches to growing these animals. Those who expressed interest will hear from us as soon as we know that we can make the purchase. In the meantime, please be patient.

Summer Fest 2009

Our mid-summer festival gives everyone a chance to see what the gardens look like when they are bursting at the seams with produce. The long summer days give us plenty of light to view gardens, feed turkeys and play games. This is not a work day event - this is celebration time only!

This gathering is a potluck style food event. Bring something to grill and/or something to pass (salads, snacks, etc). We usually have lemonade, iced tea and water available for beverages. We respectfully request that you limit alcaholic beverages. For more background on our festivals, take this link.

Bring lawn chairs, favorite games, etc. We have a decent number of plates and silverware available, but if we have a larger turnout, we may need more, so bring tableware if that is easy for you to do. Temperatures are often cooler in the country, so you might want to have a jacket available just in case.

Saturday, August 29 from 4pm until some point later. For directions to the farm, please go here and scroll to the bottom of the page.

Tom Sawyer Days

We have had two successful TSD's this season with small, but enthusiastic, groups of workers. We thank them for their efforts and their support. Other TSD's have been cancelled due to lack of interest or (in one case) weather.

The August 1 Tom Sawyer Day was cancelled due to lack of interest. We would ideally like to provide one more TSD prior to the school year start. But, we're not certain that enough persons would participate to go through the process of arranging it.

Why do we want to do Tom Sawyer Days?

1. This provides CSA members and other interested persons with opportunities to see how the farm works and get a better understanding of the kind of things we have to do to get produce to you.
2. Attendees have a chance to inspect our processes, fields and farm. This is all a part of our efforts to be accountable to you.
3. TSD's give us an opportunity to educate and bridge the disconnect many people have between their food and the land.
4. Tammy & I - and members of the CSA, etc have a better chance to learn more about each other. Something that is not always possible if there is a line of people picking up produce at the pick up point.
5. It's always easier to work at someone else's home or job than it is at your own, because you know you can leave it!

Please note that the primary purpose of getting huge quantities of work done is not on this list - though it is also a goal of the Tom Sawyer Day. We always appreciate that which is accomplished.

If you have opinions about TSD's and have interest in adding a TSD to August, please let us know.

Vol 5 Issue 8 - August 2009

Featured Varieties

CSA members are starting to see some of these varieties in their shares and we would like to encourage you to try and enjoy these. In each of these cases, these are varieties we have come to appreciate and rely upon at the farm. We have been able to persuade a number of people to try each of these and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive for each. So, while this is our writing and interpretation for each variety, you don't have to take our words for it - a number of our returning members have given these their stamp of approval!

Tolli Sweet Peppers

These peppers have been one of our favorites for the past four years. Tolli Sweet peppers are carrot shaped and are typically 4 to 6 inches long. They turn red much earlier than most peppers and produce a large number of fruit per plant. These peppers have a mild sweet taste that does not "talk back" as much as many bell peppers do. Use these fresh on sandwiches or cooked in sauces. Or, just eat it fresh. The combination of high, reliable production and excellent taste makes this a favorite for us at the farm.

Rosa Bianca Eggplant

Eggplant is underappreciated to begin with. This makes it even harder to convince people that these round, purple and white fruits are as good as we think they are. Production from these plants are somewhat lower than the standard purple varieties and the plants are a bit more finicky with respect to the weather. But, if you like the taste of portabello mushrooms, then you will love the Rosa Bianca eggplant. If you are looking to introduce eggplant to a skeptical crowd, this is the one that is most likely to gain some grudging acceptance - which potentially leads to future acceptance and even requests. Try this cut into rings and put into a grilled vegetable mix.

Chioggia Beet

Beets are another vegetable that so many people have decided to dislike. We have learned that sometimes it is a matter of what variety is being tried. Rob is a typical 'picky' eater and was fairly certain that beets would not become something he would eat. That was true until we tried the Chioggia! The red and white rings tend to bleed out when boiled, but will remain if roasted and the outer skin is a very bright red (as opposed to a more typical dark maroon).

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Black Krim Tomato

This tomato falls into the black/purple tomato category. These tomatoes tend to ripen a bit earlier and are prone to cracking and splitting. Their shoulders are greenish/purple and the blossom end is rose colored. Even the inside shows a little bit of a dark black or purple coloration. In otherwords, they are so ugly that they are beautiful. But, don't judge a tomato by its looks unless you go by the rule - ugly is better! The taste is hard to differentiate from Cherokee Purple and the plants appear to be more reliable for us. Once we convinced members to try these in 2008, they were the first tomatoes to disappear off of distribution tables from that point on.

Staff Writer: Ima Turkey

A recent foray into the pasture found a variety of produce prepared by our local farmers at the Genuine Faux Farm. I was, at first, rather skeptical given the presentation. A scruffy looking guy in a red hat was just tossing things over the fence! To make matters worse, our usual chef (Tammy) neglected to provide us with our usual delectable mix of organic grains. Of course, there was nothing for it but to inspect the items provided, even though I was sure it was just an incredible hoax.

First up was a yellow summer squash, which I later learned was the variety known as Pattison Panache. I found the squash to be firm and moist with seeds that were still quite soft and easy to consume. This was followed by a zucchini of the Raven variety. The skin on this zucchini is a solid greenish black and the flesh is less stringy than other zucchini. All sizes of this zucchini maintained an excellent taste. I suspect they would be good in things like breads and on the grill, but why ruin good produce by cooking it?

Dessert was a few ripe, red tomatoes. My fellow patrons were quite rude, however, as a game of rugby broke out the moment the first tomato crossed over into the dining area. Yours truly was eventually able to get a taste and found it to have a fine quality that inspired me to enter the fray, despite the fact that this was quite uncivilized.

In short, we found the dinner to be quite acceptable despite the atmosphere. While Tammy is much better looking, the scruffy guy should feel free to reappear at any moment.

Wanted

We do have some use for several things on the farm that may be cluttering up garages or closets in your home. Please note that we aren't asking you to sacrifice things you might have use for. We also realize that several of these items are a 'shot in the dark' with a low likelihood that someone has them. However, we have learned that silence does not promote connections that can be mutually beneficial. In nearly all of these cases, it would be best to ask us first before dropping them off.

Our thanks for the boxes and containers kindly given to us. We will do our best to use them wisely and well!

• Plastic cat litter buckets (no more than 5-10)
• Green pint baskets (often used for berries - as many as we can get)
• Clean grass clippings for mulch/compost (talk to us first)
• Coolers (48 quart Coleman)
• Fence posts
• White towels
• Wax boxes for produce

Vol 5 Issue 8 - August 2009

August Produce

The next month holds a nice variety of produce for your shares. August into September are typically some of our strongest distributions.

Most deliveries during this month will include summer squash, zucchini, cucumber, pepper, tomato and basil. We will continue to alternate swiss chard and kale depending on how quickly each crop regenerates. Beets will appear on and off throughout the month. Green beans will continue as long as we can keep the plants picked. Lettuce may have a break or two this month, but should come back strong in September and October. Peas are nearing the end of their season for us, though there may be one more shot at shelling peas. Broccoli side shoot production should begin to peak at the end of the month and cauliflower may be ready end of August as well. We'll pick onions as they are ready and potatoes are due to come out of the ground starting mid-month.

Sweet Corn

As you may have guessed, we were unable to garner enough interest to make a weekly delivery from Schmidt Sweet Corn possible for us this year. However, Steve would be quite happy to deliver a large amount to us once or twice this season. The first target date week is the week of the 16th of August (next week). This corn is excellent for freezing and fresh eating and is his best tasting variety.

Steve typically sells his corn at $5/dozen. However, if we get enough interest we can all receive a discount for our corn. Please let us know very soon if you are interested. We will also attempt to compose an email to everyone who gave interest to the prior sweet corn possibility.

CSA Observations

We're approaching the midway point for the CSA distribution season. So, we thought we'd throw out some observations or feelings about how we see this year going.

* The new approach for signs at pickup (vs the chalkboard or paper menus) seems to be working far better than the old approach. Now all we need to do is come up with a waterproof/erasable set of signs. We can do it, just need to set the time aside.
* We have been pleased with the variety and amount of produce made available to our CSA members. Of course, there are always improvements to be made - but we're feeling pretty good about the way this year has gone thus far. This is saying something since we tend to be among our harshest critics.
* The truck is very full on Tuesday (Waverly) and Thursday (Cedar Falls). Last Thursday's pack was a bit of a challenge, but there were many tweaks we could have done to fit more in. However, we're wondering how long it will be until we reach a point where it won't fit. And when that happens, we wonder what we will do? Tune in and find out at a later date.
* With the CSA model, one of the difficulties is the budgeting of income from the beginning of the season for expenses throughout the year. For those who don't understand, subscribers pay at the beginning of the season unless they have a pre-arranged payment plan. This results in one big payday for the year, from which farm expenses must be paid throughout the remainder. We are hopeful that we will have a nice pepper/eggplant/ tomato season that exceeds CSA needs. Each of these crops are a reasonably good cash crop that can bring in extra $ in late summer and through the fall.

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Extra Produce

At this time of year, we are often in possession of produce items that are in excess of reasonable distribution amounts for our CSA members. Rather than constantly set distribution amounts well above what most members can handle, we try to keep the amounts in the range of bountiful, yet not uncomfortably so.

For example, last season we picked over 1700 tomatoes in each of four consecutive weeks. Even with 115 members, that still puts us at around 15 tomatoes per member per week - without even considering the different share sizes.

As in prior years, we will provide you with the opportunity to order additional produce if you are interested in canning or freezing. As of August 14, the peak for tomatoes started. If you are interested in tomatoes, we will sell them at $2 per pound. Please send us a note with an amount you would like and we will return your email with a note as to when we can fill your order.

You may have also noticed that we periodically have a sign indicating that we have additional green beans. It is more difficult to predict bean production simply because we have to consider available time in addition to crop readiness. So, be on the lookout for this sign if you want extra green beans. However, if you are very interested in a batch of these, email us and we will attempt to fill an order.

There are very real possibilities that we may have excess of peppers, eggplants, potatoes and winter squash as the season continues. And, as always, we have alot of basil.

2010: A CSA Odyssey

Believe it or not, Tammy and I are already considering what must be done to prepare for the 2010 CSA season. The first announcement is, of course, the fact that we intend to return to run the CSA again next season.

Sign up for 2010: Again, we expect that we will again take signups and deposits for next year starting in September. The deposit amount is yet to be determined (it was $25 last year). We give our current CSA members some time to reserve their spots in the CSA prior to opening subscriptions up to all comers. We feel that current members deserve the opportunity to return without fear of all slots filling as part of their reward for the support shown to us this season. Stay tuned for details that will be made available on the web, via email and at pickup locations.

CSA Sign up limits: We will cap our CSA at 120 members next year (we have 115 this season). We feel that this number reflects our best return for the farm considering the amount of land, equipment and labor available to us. In other words, we are comfortable that we can provide fair value for this many shares even if there are difficulties with the growing season.

Share Sizes: At this time, we believe that we will simplify our share size structure somewhat and go to two share sizes (standard and large). Current CSA members with single size shares this season should feel free to converse with us about this change.

Distribution Points: At present, we anticipate the same distribution points and times. However, the numbers may dictate changes and we will make those decisions as they are necessary. Also, if we find that we cannot haul all of the produce needed to the Thursday pick up location in one vehicle through the month of September, we may need to make a change based on that knowledge as well.