Winding Up Spring

This spring’s weather has kept things interesting, although they have been less interesting here than they have been elsewhere. Just to the north of us, the talk all spring has been of drought; not far to the south of us, the talk has been of floods. After the last few years, we have learned not to complain about the weather - I almost had to shout down a visitor last weekend who insisted on making negative comments. On this farm, we work hard not to anger the weather-makers, and stick to vague statements like, “Well, I guess it could be too hot, and that wouldn’t be so good,” or, “Gee, the rain has sure made the crops grow.”

Cool weather has certainly slowed some crops down, but it has made for some fantastic harvests of radishes and spring turnips. Our spring-seeded cover crops of barley and peas have made the most of it, giving the spring weeds a run for their money. The thistles that have plagued parts of our farm for years have had a hard time keeping up, and stand poised to go into flower; we’ll chop them down along with the cover crops as soon as we get our mower repaired. Hitting the thistles just as they move into their reproductive phase does as much damage to them as possible, and the cover crops that have stretched the thistles’ resources will add to the health of the soil.

This spring has seen some real progress on the farm. We changed our transplant production system from soil blocks (cubes of soil held together by the roots of the plants) to open flats to cell trays (little pots all hooked together). For years, soil blocks produced beautiful transplants, but they are labor-intensive to produce and don’t work well for mechanical transplanting; the cell trays provide us with a low-skill, very fast way to produce the 150,000 transplants we grow each year.

We borrowed a transplanter from our friends at Featherstone Fruits and Vegetables that has allowed us to double the speed at which we can get plants into the field, which has just about revolutionized the way the farm operates. Black plastic for soil warming was laid early and we were in the process of achieving good weed control well before the melons, tomatoes, and peppers were planted into it.

Weed control operations in general have happened in a very timely fashion, thanks in large part to the capable crew we have this year. A capable crew lets me break away to do the tractor cultivating. A total of three tractor drivers on the farm also means that when the weather is right, one of us can be driving the transplanter, another can be mowing or tilling, and a third can be cultivating or seeding.

Just in time for the solstice, things have really warmed up. The tomatoes in the greenhouse have taken off to a shocking degree, and you can almost hear the broccoli growing.

Farm Happenings

Weather: Cold and grey turned to hot and steamy by Wednesday afternoon. A half-inch of rain fell on Tuesday and Wednesday nights, which the plants just loved.

What We Did: We started off last Friday to mow cover crops, but the mower broke and we are waiting on parts now. Emily, Sanna, little Ben, and Zane rotated through thistle-whacking duty. Chris seeded carrots, beets, and salad greens. Big Ben, Zack, and Sarah planted potatoes up on the ridge; planting them late has seemed to help avoid disease and insect pressure. Big Ben, little Ben, Inga, and Sanna transplanted the winter squash on the rental ground, across the creek – our first crops in those fields, which we have spent two years preparing. Big Ben drilled buckwheat in the fallow fields at the rental ground, for soil building and weed control. Zach and Ryan cleaned out the bins we used last year to harvest and store root crops and cabbage, so that those are ready to go for the fall’s big harvests. Somebody transplanted out the Brussels sprouts and more broccoli and basil, but I can’t remember who. Chris subsoiled beds for the fall storage crops; we’ll plant rutabagas in the next dry spell. Bekah didn’t get any glamour jobs, but kept things moving along nonetheless. Chris used the tine weeder to kill weeds all over the farm when things dried out just enough after Tuesday’s rain and before Wednesday’s.

In the Kitchen

To store this week’s box… it all goes in the fridge. Remove the greens from the radishes. Everything should go in plastic bags in the crisper drawer.

An aromatic salad green, Arugula has a wonderful, peppery flavor. When grown under the cool conditions we have been experiencing this spring, the peppery flavor is especially delicious and mild, and the nuttiness shines right through. In the packing shed, Sarah said the tank full of arugula smelled just like a jar of peanuts.

Grilled Steaks on Arugula

3 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
4 oz arugula (about four cups)
1 lbs steak
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese

Whisk together, the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste to make vinaigrette. While grilling the steaks, dress the arugula with the vinaigrette, mixing gently to coat. Arrange on serving plates. When the steaks are cooked, place them top of the arugula. The peppery flavor from the arugula will infuse the steak, while the steak’s juices will nicely flavor the greens. Use a vegetable peeler to shave curls of cheese onto the steak, drizzle with a little more olive oil, and serve.

We didn’t have enough Red Oak Lettuce to go around, so a few boxes got Curly Endive instead. Curly endive holds up well to heavier salad dressings and light braises.

Roasted Fennel

Fennel bulbs
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar

You can also do this on the grill. Preheat oven to 400. Slice the fennel thickly, and coat lightly with olive oil. Add some balsamic vinegar to your taste preference. Lay the fennel slices in a single layer on a cookie sheet, and roast until the fennel is thoroughly cooked and starting to brown.

The French Breakfast Radishes have just thrived in this cool weather, and they were truly a joy to harvest on Wednesday morning with a cool fog gathered over the valley. These are best just enjoyed whole, or sliced and dressed with lemon vinaigrette. I like to get a little extra crispness by soaking them in ice water for ten minutes before serving.

Peppermint is a relatively recent addition to the herb scene, having been first found in a field of spearmint, its much more common cousin, in England in 1696. The leaves of this week’s peppermint may be a little dirty. We usually try to keep the dirt on our farm, where it belongs, but the oil glands on the leaves that hold the peppermint flavor will burst when the leaves are washed, and the flavor components can break down if you wash them too long before using. It makes a nice addition to strawberries and other fruits when chopped finely, and of course makes a nice tea.

Peppermint Water

With the hot weather, drinking water is important. A little flavor make it easier to drink more. And making it yourself is much less expensive than buying the bottled metromint from the co-op.

2 quarts filtered water
20 peppermint leaves

Chop the peppermint leaves coarsely, or tear into pieces, and add to the water. Refrigerate overnight, strain out the leaves, and store in the refrigerator.

This is the last week for asparagus; we picked the last of it on Monday and rototilled the patch to control the weeds. Now we have to let it store away energy for next spring’s revival.