Genuine Faux News of the Farm
Vol 4 Issue 5 - May 2008
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Genuine Faux News of the Farm Vol 4 Issue 5 - May 2008 |
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Do you want to have some fun? Take a trip. Go to a grocery store in that new location. Ask one of the stockers where they display the local produce. Watch the wheels spin, the smoke come out of the ears, and see how many different ways they can say, "Wha?" Not too long ago, Tammy and I took a trip to Florida for a professional conference. As non-Floridians, we have this preconception that they have a plethora of citrus. We also tend to believe that their warmer weather would result in more local vegetables. But, what did we find when we went to the store? Spinach from Mexico, potatoes from Idaho, nectarines from Latin America and oranges from.....California. Yes, that's right. California. This is wrong on so many levels that it hurts my brain to think about it. 1. You can't eat money - but it's a driving force in the non-local food economy Why weren't there oranges from Florida in the store? Many grocery store produce managers simply select what they want for produce on a computer screen from wholesalers. The wholesalers buy produce as cheaply as they can so they can get their markup and cover transportation and warehousing. Where the product comes from is only a small part of the equation. Besides, who cares where the orange came from, it's still an orange - right? 2. We're treating food as a tradable commodity rather than a vital resource As a culture, we have become so disconnected with where our food comes from and so spoiled by its availability that we see nothing wrong with selling soybeans to Russia at one price and then importing soybeans from Chile for seed. Wouldn't it be better to hold onto seed rather than expending all of the energy, etc to bring in seed? Similarly, many fruit growers in Florida receive better wholesale prices if they export out of the state, leaving local stores to import the same product. And I thought it wasn't polite to play with my food. 3. Best soil in the nation - and we'd starve Florida is known for citrus - so you'd think every grocery store in Florida would have Florida citrus. Iowa is known for its deep, rich topsoil. The 'line' on Iowa is that it is a strong agricultural state - we feed the world. But, if the food delivery complex were to fall apart right now, we couldn't feed our own state's population. |
Our farm helped to feed 42 families through the CSA last year. We also helped to feed others via market and other sales. Let's guess that for the growing season, we helped to feed 200 people. There are roughly 100,000 people in the Cedar Valley. So, we need 500 farms in the area like ours to provide produce for everyone in the Cedar Valley during the prime growing season alone. With demand like that, there should be a thriving local food market with numerous growers in the area enjoying working with growing things and making a reasonable living. But, there isn't and it needs to be fixed. We need your energy - and let's make it happen. Many food producers feel that the market TELLS THEM what they should produce. And, as far as that goes, it is true as long as there are producers waiting for the market to give direction. You need to motivate a larger portion of the market to demand local foods and sustainable agricultural methods.
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4 Issue 5 - May 2008
This may seem like an odd newsletter item - but it is important. We are getting VERY busy at the farm. Both Tammy and Rob are trying to juggle many thoughts, plans and tasks in their fragile minds. So, please.... If you want to reserve plants, chickens, spots in cooperative buys, etc etc. Send it to us via email, or provide it to us in some form of writing. We try very hard to keep track of everything but simply cannot do it. Rob tends to carry a notebook with him. Ask him to write down what you are requesting in the requests section of that book! It is less likely to get lost. Tomatoes and Peppers and Eggplants, OH MY! The time is coming when we will have vegetable plants available for purchase. Our price in 2008 will be $1.50 per plant, $5 for 4 plants or we will charge $1/plant for orders of 10 or more plants. Our plants are sold in 3" or 4" pots and most are heirloom varieities. We like to prevent the roots of our plants from balling up around the edges of the pot - and they may be a bit smaller than some plants you see for sale. However, we believe this reduces transplant shock and these little guys will rapidly catch up and possibly pass root bound transplants. Come to the farmers' markets and select your plants. Or, if there are varieties you really must have, pre order them so we set them aside for you. If you would like to see what we have available this year, please go here. Yes, we have a den with fox kits on the farm. Cute, yes. Chickens in danger, yes. Here's hoping we can encourage them to move on. Thanks to Kip Ladage for some wonderful shots. Visit his web site here!
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page 2 Garden Report for May 9: We have had very limited windows for tilling. But, have been able to get 8 rows of onions (each are 3 wide and 55-60 feet long) into the ground. These plants like the wet weather in order to get established. Thus far we have yellow storing, white and yellow sweet onions in. Otherwise, we have put in some rhubarb for future year harvests. The over-wintered spinach and red leaf lettuce are finally putting on some growth. Expect to see some of this at the Waverly Farmers' Market on Saturday May 10. Asparagus is just starting May 8. Tree leaves are budding out. Oddly, the oaks catching up to the maples. Creeping phlox are beginning their bloom and the brown thrashers have returned to the farm. This has been a difficult Spring for farming. Our neighboring farmers are getting very frustrated with fields that just will not dry out enough for them to get their equipment out and seed in. They are not alone. The continued wet weather, preceded by cool weather and low soil temperatures have prevented us from getting our early crops in as we had planned. As with other CSAs in Iowa, we find ourselves looking at delaying first deliveries. It's just the way it is. But, we'll still have a good season, just not an early one. The 2008 Iris Festival is scheduled for Memorial Day, just as it has been for each of the last two years. Iris are typically at their peak during Memorial Day and it doesn't look like this year will be an exception. Even though last year's weather reduced our iris population drastically, there will still be some blooms to view this year. Please go here to read about our Iris Festival and consider joining us for the potluck, games and bonfire that follow. Our first Tom Sawyer Day in April was chilly, windy and followed a downpour of approximately 6 inches of rain the day prior. As a result, a hardy few attended. Nonetheless, some tasks were completed - including the assembly of two new carts and the sorting and drying of some bulbs and other plant matter. Our thanks to Ed, Ben and Chris for their willing hands. TSD II is scheduled for May 10 from 2pm to 6pm. For information about Tom Sawyer Days, click the link. Please RSVP if you plan to attend so we can plan to make the event a good one for you. There is a possibility that we may reschedule this event for a nicer day if the weather fails to cooperate once again. |
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Vol 4 Issue 5 - May 2008 What Summer Means for the Website Perhaps the title should say - what the growing means for the website. Clearly, there will not be enough time in the day to continue producing newsletters with the volume and quality you have seen over the winter months. That said, you should still expect that the newsletter will continue to be a vital communications medium with the farm. We use it to let you know what is going on here. So, there will be fewer links to outside sources and perhaps fewer 'entertaining' stories and much more garden reporting. Expect a few more typos as I spend less time editting. The growing season also means that the bulk of web time will be spent handling parts and pieces of the site that are necessary to let buyers know what is available. On the other hand, the recipe and variety pages may become static for a while, as will the library and links. We still are pleased to receive feedback and notification if something isn't quite correct. Corrections just might be slower in coming. Here's to spending time outdoors!
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Rhubarbade
Puree' rhubarb in food processor or juicer. Strain through cheesecloth lined strainer, pressing solids. Let stand for several minutes, then skin froth from surface. Strain again. For every 2 cups of rhubarb liquid, add 3/4 cup of sugar and 6 cups of water. Stir until sugar dissolves. Serve iced. (2 cups rhubarb liquid brings 2 quarts of rhubarbade) A to Z Cookbook. NOW AVAILABLE: From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce (3d Edition) by the Madison Area Community Supported Agriculture Coalition. Highly recommended to everyone who wants to get more out of their shares! Price is $18 (below the recommended retail of $19.95). Email us to order.
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| Vol 4 Issue 5 - May 2008 It is time for us to give everyone a quick summary of our 2008 CSA procedures. We anticipate first deliveries will occur in mid-une. We will let you know when our first week is imminent. Similarly, we will let you know if there will be any deliveries earlier than this point. We anticipate running until mid/late October (20 weeks). Cedar Falls/Waterloo shareholders will pick up on Thursdays from 4 to 7 pm at the Waterloo Farmers' Market in front of the Hy-Vee on University near the KMart. Waverly shareholders will pick up on Tuesdays from 3 to 6 pm at the Waverly Farmers' Market at the 200 block of 1st Ave SE. Tripoli shareholders will receive separate instructions as facts become known. At present we have 31 members at the Waverly pickup, 16 at the Waterloo site and 4 in Tripoli. We do use our shareholder email distribution list to send out announcements if needed for pickup announcements. Your Email address is VERY important to us. It helps keep us in touch with you - and it keeps you informed. The anticipation for fresh produce from the farm is getting stronger - we know that. But, at present, wet field conditions and cold weather have slowed planting. We are doing our best to get things going - but you can't do what the weather won't allow you to do. We expect that we may start a little later this year. But, we also see indications that once it starts, it we should have fairly strong production. We are working towards sustainability on many fronts. In an effort to reduce the use of plastic bags, we are doing a number of things: 1. We are collecting cloth bags that we will have available for CSA members to use if they forget their own bags. This only works if you bring them back for others to use! If you have some bags to donate to the cause, please do so. 2. We are having another set of GFF bags printed. These bags will be slightly bigger and will be made with organic products. Watch these pages for more details. As with our prior cloth bags, they will entitle the bearer to discounts at our farmers' market table. |
page 4 There is very little space left. If you have not signed up yet, do so now. It is possible that we will be forced to turn people away this season! Go here to download a form to mail in.
Our biggest nemesis in our early gardens was the rabbit. And we tried several approaches to exclude them from our vegetable crops. We even tried reasoning with them - after all, rabbits have this nasty habit of taking out very young plants - even if more established options were available. Unfortunately, the average education level for members of rodentia is fairly low, so we resorted to fencing. Rabbit fencing has smaller holes closer to the ground to keep rabbits and other critters from crawling/hopping/walking through. We had carefully placed timbers around the perimeter of the garden and then erected a fence that tied into those timbers. We reasoned (and correctly so) that this would make it difficult for critters to make a quick burrow under the fence. We entered the gardening season feeling as if we had prepared well for the inevitable rabbit population explosion in our neighborhood. And, we might have been....UNTIL.... The neighbors noticed the cute little bunnies in the bunny nest. Aren't they cute? Would you like to pet them? No thank you. The neighbor's dog noticed the cute little bunnies just outside their bunny nest a week later. Aren't they cute? Would you like to taste them? "Yes, I would," said the dog. Run bunnies! Run! Run dog! Run! Look! A fence, I bet we can get through it because we are still small. Squeeeeeze... pop! Two baby bunnies in the garden. Utopia! Veg everywhere! See the bunnies. See them get fat. They cannot not get back out of the garden. They are safe, the puppy dog cannot get in. The humans cannot chase them out. The humans cannot catch them. Sigh. Anyone for organically raised rabbit? Eventually, we removed the fence, chased the rabbits out and replaced the fence. We really outsmarted those critters this time, didn't we? |
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Vol 4 Issue 5- May 2008 page 5
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