Summer CSA: Week 8

Howdy folks,

Wrapping up another epic garlic harvest

In addition to transplanting, weeding, and harvesting we spent the past week bringing in our garlic crop and hanging it in the rafters of the hay loft. Over the next few weeks the garlic will cure. The skins will lose excess moisture and the flavor will become much more potent. We will grade the garlic and hold onto the largest heads for seed garlic to plant in November for next year's crop.

Today our new well pump was installed. We are upgrading from a 1hp pump to a 5hp pump. This upgrade should greatly improve the volume of water we are able to pump and our ability to irrigate the vegetable fields. In addition to the new pump, we are also having a new waterline dug from the well head (located across from the workshop at the front of the farm) to the green house. Previously, the irrigation water traveled through the barn plumbing and out to the fields. By removing this step, we should see less loss in water pressure from the well to the fields. The waterline is going to be installed on Wednesday and Friday. The line will be buried below the driveway and parking areas. If everything goes according to plan, parking will not be disrupted on CSA days. If there is a need to change the parking for CSA pickup, I will send out a special blog post in order to relay that information.

Last week I had a few CSA members ask me for recipes to help use up their zucchini and summer squash, so I am including a few links below to recipes:

Sunshine winter squash looking good.
Winter share sign-up coming soon

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013043-greek-zucchini-fritters
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/3660-zucchini-salad
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/17643/chocolate-zucchini-cake-iii/
http://www.marthastewart.com/1014060/sausage-stuffed-zucchini

This week's share:
- green peppers
- head cabbage
- onions
- lettuce (just one head this week)
- carrots
- summer squash and zucchini
- cucumbers
- choice of cooking greens
- garlic

Tomatoes are just starting to ripen. We won't have enough for the CSA this week but watch out, they will be rolling in soon!

Your farmer,

Zannah

Summer CSA Week 7

Week 7




Cosmos

Zinnia

This week we are hustling to bring in the garlic harvest. The cooler weather will make this epic task a bit easier than what I have experienced in years past. I feel as though the garlic harvest always takes place during the hottest week of the summer, not this year!After we pull the garlic from the ground it is bundled and hung in the eaves of the hay loft in the main barn.. There it will hang for several weeks so that the heads can cure and we end up the storage garlic that you are probably most familiar with. Once the garlic has fully cured we will cut it down and grade it. The largest bulbs we will save as seed garlic to plant in the fall for next years crop. The rest of the garlic will be distributed in your shares throughout the rest of the summer and fall, as well as part of the winter share.
This week we are taking a break from lettuce in the share. We have loads of other delicious summer crops coming in like eggplant and basil. Lettuce really shines in cooler weather and although

The greenhouse is full of fall crops including these beets

 it is 58 out as I write this, the 90+ degree temperatures we had last week did not do our lettuce any favors.
This week we are also hustling to get our a lot of our fall crops direct seeded and transplanted. Once the tomato crop comes in (it's looking really good out there!) our afternoons will be taken up brining in the harvest leaving little time to seed and transplant fall beets, leeks, broccoli, chicories, and roots. This is a big week and I am thankful for the cooler weather.


Small share: Odd week, folks A-L this is your week!


Direct seeding fall greens and roots

In the share this week:
Eggplant
Cucumbers
Summer squash and zucchini
Carrots
Basil
Fresh onions
Cabbage
Choice of cooking greens

PYO:
Herbs
Flowers

Your Farmer,

Zannah

Summer CSA Week 6

Summer CSA Week 6

We are really into the summer harvest now.  July brings heavy cucumber harvests as well as the threat of weed and disease pressure. The plants are heavy with fruit and the air is thick. Must be mid July! Here is a quick pickle recipe to help you use up all of your cucumbers. Follow this link: https://smittenkitchen.com/2014/07/easiest-fridge-dill-pickles/ for some outstanding refrigerator pickles.


We have another robust share this week.
- Lettuce
- Cucumbers
- Fresh onions
- Choice of cooking green
- Fresh garlic
- Fennel
- Beets
- Napa cabbage
- Summer Squash and Zucchini


There are many programs that occur at Powisset Farm in addition to the CSA and farm stand. This week we are highlighting the 4-H Club:

Planting the 4-H garden at Powisset Farm

July marks a time of transition for the Powisset Farm Hens & Hogs 4-H club as we say goodbye to two graduating high school seniors, both off to college in the fall. Our club co-leader, Kim Benner, is also stepping down after four years of enthusiastic and dedicated service (James will be in DC). The club welcomed a number of new members this year, bringing our total to 15. They hail from Dover, Needham, Sherborn, Southborough, Walpole, Wellesley and Westwood. While club members are heavily involved with our pigs and chickens, they participate in the larger life of the property through farm chores, hikes, cooking projects and special events. The summer months mark the time when club members who will show a pig work closely with their animal to develop skills for the show ring. You’ll likely see one or two practicing on the Powisset pig pasture in July and August.

The next 4-Hclub enrollment period is in September. For more information, contact Melissa Gilbert at mgilbert@thetrustees.org or (508) 785-2818.

Your farmer,

Zannah

Summer CSA week 5

Howdy Folks,

It is week five(odd week) of the summer share. The crops are really cranking on the farm right now. Transplant, weed, harvest, repeat. The weather has really been idyllic. After the many challenges of last years drought it is so satisfying to look out on the fields and witness so much abundance. The cucumbers have really hit their stride this week. You will be getting 4 pounds! Salad season is definitely upon us. We are also flush with lettuce this week as we have several plantings that have matured at the same time.

I'd like to give a shout out for broccoli raab. It's related to the mustards and spicy greens that we grow. It is fantastic sautéed with garlic (also in the share) and spread on pizza. It also pairs well with Powisset Italian sausage.


In your share this week:

Lettuce (3 heads, it's salad season!)
Cucumbers
Summer Squash and Zucchini
Napa Cabbage
Bok Choi (
Broccoli Raab
Fresh Garlic
Cilantro
Choice of Cooking Green
Radishes

pollinators abound at Powisset

If you have grown weary of bok choi and aren't quite sure of what to do with four pounds of cucumbers here is a recipe that will help you use both:  http://www.justasdelish.com/bok-choy-kimchi-with-cucumbers/

The flower garden is beginning to fill in and in the coming weeks we will have flowers available as part of your share. This week, flowers are available for purchase by the bloom. Clippers are available at the farm stand.

Zannah, your farmer on behalf of the crew

 

 
 

Summer CSA Week 4

Howdy folks,

***Reminder: ***

The farm stand and CSA are closed today for July 4th. The farm stand and CSA will be open for regular hours Thursday: 10 - 6 and Saturday 10-4. As always you have the choice of which day you would prefer to pick up you share.

Half share folks:

This is an even week so if your last name starts with M-Z this is your week to pick up.

We are jumping into summer with our first harvest of cucumber and summer squash this week. We are still harvesting a lot of leafy greens this week but you will see your share start to have fewer cool weather leafy greens, like arugula, and more hot weather rock stars. The fresh onions look fantastic as do the tomatoes which are beginning to set fruit. It will be several more weeks before we are harvesting ripe tomatoes but the unripe green globes are becoming more pronounced every day.

In this weeks share:
- Broccoli
- Lettuce
- Garlic scapes
- Bok choi
- Cucumbers
- Summer squash
- Choice of cooking greens
- Scallions

Power weeding lettuce!

Know your 2017 Farm Crew!:

Tim (Field Crew):

Tim graduated from the Berklee College of Music where his focus was jazz drumming.　 He loves physical activities - especially biking and skateboarding.　 Tim hopes to never work for the Man.

Emily (Field Crew):

Emily just graduated from Williams College.　 In the fall she will start a masters' program in Chemistry at the University of Cambridge in England.　 She's an avid rock climber and ultimate frisbee player.

Paul (Field Crew):

Paul is from Needham and he's a rising junior at Wesleyan University, where he spends most of his time on the campus farm.　 When he's not working at Powisset he helps out with family programming at the deCordova Museum in Lincoln.

Jeff (Field Crew):

This is Jeff's second season on the farm crew.　 Jeff loves playing with puppies and he is studying mechanical engineering at the University of Vermont.　 Jeff would like everyone to know that he gave up a lucrative marketing job to return this year. "Seriously," explains Jeff, "it was a great gig.　 Alas, the farm called." 　

Kurt (Field Crew):

Kurt grew up right around the corner in Dover.　 Kurt is in college where he is studying sixteenth century Lithuanian woodcuts.　 In his free time he enjoys basket weaving and basketball.

Jared (Apprentice):

Jared is a "homegrown Natick boy with big dreams." 　He first farmed during a summer in Northern California and got hooked. 　

Phil (Apprentice):

Phil lives in Jamaica Plain with his wife and their cat Leroy.　 Leroy is an orange, stripe-y cat with whom Phil and his wife are obsessed.　 Phil would like to tell you about Leroy.

Diane (Apprentice):

Diane is the proud mother of the entire farm crew, as well as one biological son.　 She has an extreme love of nature, most recently hunting for waterfalls on the weekends in New Hampshire. 　 Diane is also more than slightly enthusiastic about Mountain Dew.

 

Andrew (Assistant Manager): Andrew grew up in western Mass where he assisted on his families dairy farm. Andrew has been involved in vegetable production since 2010 helping run several organic farms in Massachusetts and eastern New York.

Zannah (Manager): Zannah has been farming in eastern Massachusetts for 9 years. Though managing a farm is all consuming this time of year, Zannah does manage to sneak in a long bike ride or romp in the woods with family whenever possible.

 

Zannah, on behalf of the Farm Crew

　

Powisset Upcoming Events & Programs

Friday marks our first Friday Farm Dinner of the season! We are psyched to have Chef Didi Emmons with us for the entire season. Castle Island Brewing will be servng/selling their beer and The Railroad House Band will be providing the entertainment. Friday Farm Dinners will be held every other Friday through September. Check them out on our web site here!

This Saturday marks Opening Day for the Powisset Cafe! The Cafe will be open on the 1st and 3rd Saturday of every month through CSA season (ending Oct 21st) from 10-2pm. We will be serving breakfast, lunch and coffee/tea. On the menu this week you will find lemon scones, veggie frittata, farro salad with turnips and greens and cherry hand pies (which we were delighted to test out yesterday) and of course coffee & tea! These goodies will be made with as much farm fresh produce as possible! So stop in after CSA pickup or make a day out of it and come on by! 

Calling all Photographers!

You are invited to enter the 2017 Powisset Farm Photo Competition!  Register & bring in your photos by July 10th. Exhibit & Voting will take place from July 13-August 8 in the barn. A “Meet the Artist” wine and cheese reception will be held on August 13, 4:30 -6:00PM, where the winners will be announced. All photographs must be taken at Powisset Farm (anywhere on the 100 acre property). Photographers of all ages, and all skill levels are welcome. Come be part of the fun! For complete show guidelines, and to register, email toddimmick@gmail.com or pick up a registation form at the farm!

Summer CSA Week 3

 

**THE CSA AND FARM STAND WILL BE CLOSED TUESDAY JULY 4TH**

Howdy folks!,
Happy week 3! Just a note, we will not have CSA pickup next Tuesday. Enjoy the 4th of July!

Small Share members: Last name starting with A - L pickup this week

In this weeks share we have:
Lettuce
Broccoli
Spicy greens
Cooking greens (your choice of one bunch of kale, chard, or collard greens)
Scallions
Radishes
Beets
Bok Choi
Garlic Scapes

This week I want to highlight radishes. Fresh radishes have a crisp, peppery bite that I quite enjoy. I put them on salads, dip them in hummus, eat them sliced on hearty bread with butter and arugula, or pile them onto fresh fish tacos. (Pick up your local catch from Jordan's Seafood -- he's at the farm on Tuesday afternoons.)

For those who don't love the spiciness of radishes, I suggest quick pickling them. The pickling process mellows the bite but maintains the fresh crispness of the radish. Pickled radishes are fantastic on sandwiches, salads, or just out of the jar.

Once again, remember, no CSA pick up on the 4th of July. So, this week pick up a delicious ready-to-bake strawberry rhubarb pie from Bushel and Crumb in the farm stand! It will make a fantastic addition to any 4th of July picnic.

Your farmer,

Zannah