Year: 2013

Hey Everyone-

We are at full sprint this week trying to work between rainstorms, shower and heavy mist…

What’s in Upic?

Peas

Flowers

What’s in  the Share this Week?

Carrots

Beets

Lettuce

Chard

Kale

Chickories

Summer squash

Kohlrabi

Cucumbers

Rain, Rain, go away…We are done with rain here at the farm -or more accurately, the humidity. There actually hasn’t been too much rain in the past week (less than 2 inches by our gauge) there just hasn’t been enough sun and enough wind in between  to dry off the leaves of the plants. Nothing is worse for most of the crops we grow here than constant moisture.

A vegetable farm is like a exotic plant collection. We have species native to central India (eggplant), the mountains of Peru (potatoes), the meditereanean (arugula, cabbage, kale) and Africa (watermelon). Each crop we grow evolved in a drastically different environment from the majority of the other crops around it. Because of this most of our work as farmers involves trying to level the playing field or adapt what we expect from our Maine climate to make this short season work for all of these well travelled species. While these crops hail from many environments, very few are products of the rain forest -which is what we have been living in the past week! The forecast look better for the coming days and hopefully the wind will blow this tropical stuff out and get us back to the cold, dry summer we have come to expect around here.

The Upic Field Opens this Week with Peas…here’s how it works:

This is the official opening week of our Upic field with snow and snap peas as well as a few flowers. We are asking that you limit your pea picking to 1 pint this week to ensure that everyone can enjoy this crop. We will have pint boxes in the field. If you are new to the CSA and the upic field here’s how it works…

Here’s the skinny on how Upic works. We prepare, plant, and weed this ½ acres plot just for you, the members of the farm. Growing there you will find green beans, herbs, flowers, and most notably this week, peas. These are crops that are particularly rewarding to harvest and can add a lot of value to your share as they often are great accompaniments to the “field crops” we harvest and wash for you each week.

The important thing to understand about this field is that it belongs to everyone who has a share in the farm. There are 275 shares this year and we try very hard to plan each planting so that everyone will be able to enjoy every crop. The idea is that all of these crops are compliments to the field crops and not necessarily staples in and of themselves. While we would love to be able to plant enough Upic basil for everyone to make pesto for the winter or sow enough beans to share with your neighbors, it’s just not possible in the space we have to work with. Those of you that split shares, we ask that you be particularly aware of your picking quantities.

With the exception of these first couple weeks we will not suggest amounts for you to take from the upic field. The idea is that we all take our share and consciously leave behind enough for everyone else. The upic field has always been our grand experiment in community spirit and in thirteen years of CSA growing all over the Northeast we have never been disappointed.

Carrots on the Menu

We have our first carrots of the season this week. Sweet and crisp this first variety is my favorite of the season. The crew harvested about 450 lbs in the rain yesterday, deepening our already close relationship to mud.

Cabbage is New England Soulfood

Try this classic cole slaw recipe. I’ts from Los Angeles’ famous pantry diner and is what all other american slaw recipes aspire to…You can use any cabbage (savoy, green, chinese) and it never hurts to shred in a few carrots…

What’s in Upic?

Peas

Flowers

What’s in  the Share this Week?

Carrots

Beets

Lettuce

Chard

Kale

Chickories

Summer squash

Summer is on and with the solstice just past we will start to see some more diversity in the share over the next few weeks. Look for carrots, summer squash, and peas in the upic field as we move into July.

Animals Have Jobs

The farm is a place of function. Everything and everyone has to be a working piece of the larger machine. This is especially true for all of our animals. Unlike pets, farm animals have to earn their keep. The sheep graze the hilly and heavy parts of the farm that are not fit for growing vegetables, converting grass in food.  The pigs turn winter bedding in the barns into compost and plow through the perennial weeds in the fields all while growing big and bacony (spell-check does not think bacony is a word). We also have a pair of barn cats that have worked hard for over ten years, keeping the mouse population under control. Jack, the male of this pair plays mascot to anyone who will give him a ear scratch around the farmstead.

Of all our animals, none take their job more seriously than Nell the border collie. If any of you have ever come across one of these dogs you will know they are diagnosably focused on their “job.” Nell is lucky to have a couple hundred sheep to focus her energies on and will happily drop anything at anytime to work. She routinely moves 75 ornery ewes up to a mile through the fields to new pastures with only one person along for the ride, mostly to remind her where she’s going with her flock. We used to think our fencing was just to keep the sheep where we want them but we’ve found it also does a great job keeping Nell from putting in for overtime pay.

 What’s in the Share this Week?

Broccoli

Beets

Scallions

Strawberries

Chard

Kale

Kohlrabi

Cabbage

Here we are in week four of the CSA season and hopefully all of you are settling into the summer’s produce, turning our food and your inspiration into great meals. The peak of our week here on the farm is the harvest day, when we cut, pull, bunch, and pack all of these crops for you to take home.  Taking produce out of the fields is just the last in a long series of steps that started last fall at the end of the season.  Each winter we weave together the different crops to try and make each week’s harvest into a meal. This means matching up chinese cabbage, which takes eight weeks in the field to mature, with lettuce mix and bok choi which take only four weeks, and beets which take at least ten. This planning is a combination of experience, hope, and an ability to surf the chaos that is mother nature’s gift to us. This year has been pretty good so far (hopefully you agree…) with lots of crop diversity and quantity.  Each year we have great successes but we also have a few losses. This winter we thought to try a new spring crop and planted 1200 row feet of broccoli raab (like broccoli but with lots of leaf). Our hope was to add even more diversity to the harvests of June.  Shortly after planting we had a week of cold temps and the whole crop went to flower early. Broccoli raab is meant to be harvested in flower but when the plant have only four tiny leaves there is not much to harvest! Next year we will try a different variety and hope for a better break in the weather. In the mean time we get to enjoy this field of yellow.  The bees are loving all the nectar the flowers are pumping out.

Kohlrabi is Green this Week

Like the purple kohlrabi last week? You’ll love this green one. Old world style, this crop gets Brunswick’s German expats really excited. The farm crew eats them like apples in the field -sweet and creamy. Try them with salt and vinegar or just go johnny appleseed style…

Beets with Greens…they taste good.

This early beet is prized for it’s tender tasty greens. Eat them any way you would chard or spinach (the beets are mighty tasty too).

Chinese Cabbage…Think Cabbage But Lighter

Some call it Napa, we call it awesome. Anything you do with cabbage this crop can handle. We shred it into soup, make coleslaw with it, stir fry, etc.  Many cultures eat this stuff like Americans eat french fries. It’s a great vehicle for peanut sauce (recipe).

Salad Turnips Are the Best

Really, they are. Once you eat one you will not be able to stop, even if your mother calls long distance. Sweet and creamy, they are turnips only in name. If I had to survive a 1800’s winter in Maine I could do it with these turnips. The crew had a great time harvesting them in yesterday’s rainstorm…

What’s in the share…

Strawberries

Kohlrabi

Lettuce Mix

Chard

Chinese Cabbage

Beets with Greens

Salad Turnips

June is light and leafy, fresh and green.  The first few weeks of the summer will prime the proverbial pump of our summer diets lots of leafy greens.  Some of you are well-versed in world of greens while others may be having a stare down with those bags in your fridge wondering where to start.  We are here to help!  We encourage you to jump in with both feet and find your food muse amongst the leaves of chard, kale and spinach. Start simple and combine these greens with things you and your family already like to eat.

1. Salads of course – and making your salad into more of a meal by adding other veggies, nuts, chicken, legumes or other proteins.  (See below for dressing recipe.)  We find that if we have a delicious dressing already prepared, we are way more likely to eat a salad for a quick lunch.
2. Stir fries and sautés. I’ll include some more on this next week.  For now try this video how to…
3. Is pesto a favorite?  Lightly steam your chard or kale, and throw it in the blender or food processor with garlic, onions, basil, or other herbs, toss it on pasta or pizza with oil or butter, and cheese.
4. Bacon.  We heard from a mom this week who cooks the bacon in a pan, and then adds in the greens.  Her children devour every bite!
5. Spanikopita.  We’ve been making variations on this for years.  I use kale, chard, or spinach, I use whatever cheese I might have, and I rarely use the filo dough due to time constraints.   Sometimes I’ll top it with bread crumbs, roasted sunflower seeds, or even crushed up tortilla chips.  We call it kale pie.  I like to steam the greens and then puree them in the food processor.  And lots of basil.
6. Smoothies!!  Green smoothies are all the rage these days.  If you’re not doing it already, then get on the trend! Throw your greens in the blender along with fruit, juice, and you’ll be powered up for the day!
7. Here’s a funny article about fashionable kale and another about a reluctant kale eaters conversion into the fold (with recipe).
8. The internet of course has all the answers we need.   Here is a list of recipes on Vegetarian Times with kale.
9. Facebook?  We have not been very active on our facebook page – but I have to admit it is a great way to share recipes.  We will put some recipes on there – so I encourage you to “like” us if you are so inclined, and to share recipes with each other – especially since we are all working with the same ingredients from week to week! https://www.facebook.com/crystalspringcommunityfarm

Weather We Like it or Not

Consider your vocation. What is the biggest unknown variable that controls the outcome of all that you do. If you make things maybe its the chain of supplies or the price of materials, if you work with people maybe its your clients, or if  you work for a large company maybe its those in management above you. If you are a farmer this big unknowable is the weather. Every winter we spend the cold months in the office pouring over the last years crops, putting together a plan for the season to come. Frost dates, rainfall patterns and high temps are all noted. We look at hundreds of new varieties of vegetables bred for earliness, or heat tolerance (and hopefully they don’t forget flavor!).  All of our fields are mapped by which ones warm early, dry out when the rain stops or flood first when the downpours come. The pasture rotation for the animals relies of low fields staying green in the dry months of August and July and the high fields producing grass early in May before we run out of last summers hay in the barn. All of this planning and thinking is based on averages. What has happened over the years we have been here guides us in what may happen in the year to come. With ten years on this farm we feel like we are just starting to get a handle of the set points that make up the extremes that lie on either side of what we call normal. And the hope is that we make the appropriate informed guess for what mother nature is serving up for the months ahead.

Piglets Take Over the Barns

Most of the sheep are on pasture and just in time as our piglets have arrived this week and have taken over on ofd the barns. How’s this for a daily schedule: eats, root and sleep, repeat. Come say hi when you puck up your share.

Organic Eggs and Maine Mushroom Shares

We still have shares available for both organic eggs and mushrooms. Add some local zing to your produce. Here’s a link with direction on how to sign up online…

Farm Camp!

Week of June 24th has a few openings.  This week of camp will be our traditional farm camp week, but with an added bonus  of fun movement, stretching, and mindfulness.  Ages 8 and up!  More info on our webpage:

http://crystalspringcsa.com/farm-camp/

What’s in the share this week…

Kale

Chard

Baby Bok Choi

Spinach

Lettuce Mix

Radishes

Greetings from the Farm!

(lots to read here…at least scroll through all the way to catch any “headlines” that you may need!)

Welcome to our new members this season!  And of course to our returning members, welcome back!  This is our tenth (10th!) season of growing organic produce for our CSA members at Crystal Spring Farm.  Some of you have been with us from day one.  The relationships that we have fostered over the years with you are our true foundation.   The soil and fertility are right up there – but nothing surpasses the role that you, our members, play in keeping this farm active and productive.

When we arrived at Crystal Spring Farm our son Griffin was a babe in arms.  He turns ten years old this week, so we have lots of celebrating to do in this year of tens.  More to come on this in the weeks ahead….

But, for now, down to business…what has been going on at the farm?

What a spring we have been having. While I have heard a lot of grumbling about cool temperatures, wind, and general “it’s not warm enough!”  I have to say, as a farmer, I have been loving the past 6 weeks. This spring has been a dream in so many ways. First we are coming off a real winter. That is a winter with cold temps (several stretches with consecutive sub-zero nights), snow (multiple heavy events with long ground coverage) and and general discomfort. No, I’m not a masocist but I do know that when I am uncomfortable outside that the bugs and diseases of last summer, who don’t have the luxury of coming inside (I hope) are really suffering and hopefully dying back in large numbers. Secondly, this spring has been an almost perfect rising scale of temps and day length. As  you may recall, the past 3 springs we have been hit over the head with crazy warm days in March and or April only to be walloped again by cold blasts in May. These kind of drastic, unseasonable changes are very stressful to plants which grow in response to these two variables. Long stretches of warm days entice extra tender foliage or encourage early flowering which are then burned off with the sudden return of cold days and nights. Any of you who were looking for your favorite early apple varieties last year will know what I’m talking about. The last reason to love this spring that the gradual increase in temps has forced us farmers to throttle back our planting schedules. When we have frosts coming most nights we have to plant in little bits and pieces, making sure that tender greenhouse plants have a day or two to adjust to the cold. Rather than go crazy and plant everything as fast as possible, all the while feeling desperately behind, we have been able to work a steady pace. And while we are surely tired after setting out 1200 row feet of broccoli, we are not tired and stressed, which a great thing.

When do we start pick-ups?

Every year we plan on starting the first week of June. This year, interestingly enough while we have been throttled back in our schedule by cold temps we are looking like we may be ahead of schedule to start. The next week will tell us alot and we hope to be able to announce our first pick-up days very soon. Look for an email with specific information soon.

New Member Orientation

New member orientation day Sunday, June 2 at 10am or 3pm at the farm.

Our annual new member orientation will be held Sunday, June 3.  Two sessions to choose from, 10am or 3pm.  A casual opportunity to meet your farmers, tour the farm and get a first glimpse at how it all works. If you are new and can’t attend please don’t fret, we will be on hand at every pickup to answer questions and show you the ropes.

Video Teaser -Kale chips 101

Here’s a quick step by step video from NY Times columnist Mellissa Clark on how to make kale chips.

This has been a favorite recipe of adults and kids alike for many years and we thought we’d send it out just to whet your whistle. Don’t worry we don’t plan on burying you with kale this year -but it doesn’t hurt to have some variations up your sleeve for this versatile vegetable.

New Farmers…

We have a great farm crew this year. Apprentices Kristin, Conor, and Sydney have been here for the past six weeks and are deep into the day to day of growing food for all of you. We also have superstar farmer from years past Bethany, working part-time as well as Kira, a new face also part-time. As the summer progresses we will have a few more folks on the crew as well and hopefully you will have a chance to get to know everyone over the weeks of distribution ahead.

Egg Shares

Egg shares will be available again this year. Sparrow Farm in Pittston will be offering the same fresh organic eggs from pastured hens as last year. Karen and Ted at Sparrow do a great job and their eggs always have bright orange yolks and tall-standing whites -signs of happy chickens and fresh eggs. The shares are one dozen a week and will be available every week for 21 weeks starting the week of June 10th with a cost of $105 ($5/week). If you currently buy organic eggs you know what a great deal this is and add in the knowledge that these dozens are from a local family farm that has their hens on pasture. To purchase an egg share follow this link.

Mushroom Shares

Wild and cultivated (not certified organic) local Maine mushrooms delivered each week with your CSA share. Varieties will change each week depending on the season with preparation instructions and recipes included. The share is a 1/2 to 3/4 pound each week and will run for 18 weeks until late fall. To purchase a share follow this link. For more infomation about Oyster Creek Mushroom follow the link…. http://www.oystercreekmushroom.com/. This share will begin the week of June 10th.

Medicinal Herb Share

Local farmer and herbalist Lucretia Woodruff is offering herbal medicine shares to be delivered in the fall. These are locally grown and prepared remedies. For more information and purchasing directions go to this link.

Community Share

This program is in cooperation with Midcoast Hunger Prevention Program who matches us up with local families that may not be able to afford a CSA share. Your donations are matched by us to offer shares at the farm in Brunswick. Last year we had three families who participated. The farm matches these contributions dollar for dollar. Last year we were able to share the CSA with five local families through community shares. Follow this link to purchase a share.

Farm Camp – Junior Counselor Opportunities!

Farm camp weeks were in high demand once again this summer.  We have a few slots available for kids ages 13-15 who want to gain hands-on leadership experience with younger children while spending time outdoors doing farm activities, games, arts, and fun times.  For more info see our website http://crystalspringcsa.com/farm-camp/  or contact maura via email maura@crystalspringcsa.com or 729.1112

**Some weeks are nearly full for junior counselors, week of July 15th and July 29 have more availability.

One Farm Camp Week Open…

We also have a few openings for our Yoga Farm Camp week, June 24-28.  This program follows the traditional farm camp line up, but we add in some great stretching and movement in the morning to energize & some fun mindfulness games & activities…building self-awareness & self-care. Here’s the link to more info