The cold snap has pretty much brought things to a halt here. The lovely salad greens we have been producing have mostly gone away with the repeated nights of temps in the 20's. I have a few greens in the greenhouses but not enough to sustain any kind of regular schedule. I still have a few potatoes in storage and the cabbage and kale in the fields is still going strong and the romanesco cauliflower is holding it's own but in a very limited quanitity. So things have finally come to a halt and it's now time to take a break, reflect and begin planning for next year.
How did we do? I don't have all of the numbers in front of me yet but thanks to a strong late season I think we did alright. Since we had a longer season the pace was a little more sane this year allowing me to take a step back at times. So from a personal standpoint it was very good year.
The subject of why I farm has come up in several conversations recently. It's not the easiest question to answer and being asked makes me re-visit some of the core beliefs that led me to the farming lifestyle. There are a number of reasons here are a few. I enjoy living my life with intent and striving to be more self sufficient. I like to eat and eat well. I enjoy cooking and love having an endless bounty of fresh produce to experiment with. I enjoy the complexities of farming and like being challenged. I like that it is a very diverse way of life, no two days back to back are the same for me. I like growing food for others to enjoy. I like that it nurtures my soul and provides me with a feeling of self worth. I like that is philanthantropic. I like that is tangible and hands on. Farming is my way of making a differnce in the world and especially in my community. I appreciate that others enjoy the benefits of something I have created. I like being entruprunual. I like to watch things grow. Basically I'm captivated by the complexity of the wholeness that farming captures for me.
That's all for today.
Take care,
Farmer John
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Last night we were graciously treated to a wine tasting / dinner pairing at one of our restaurants we work with, The Inn At Ship Bay.
Nice treat, Thank you geddes and Marianna! The wines were from Patricia Green cellars in Yamhill County Oregon. I have to admit I'm in no way a wine afficiando but I do appreciate it and I love how a great chef can pair food with wine. The duck with foi gras, red wine / plum reduction and candied leeks was to die for and the lamb chops paired perfectly with the earthy pinot's I also really enjoyed meeting Patricia and learning a bit about her wines and farming adventures. I don't often think of wine makers as farmers but you can't have wine without grapes and the grapes must be grown and how they are grown is totatlly reflected in the wine. So from a growers standpoint this was a really interesting tasting. We were tasting pinot noirs from three different years all from the same vines. Each were distinctively unique as the growing conditions were different each year. Of course there are many other factors as well I just found it interesting. We also tasted wines of the same vintage grown in different soils. I was not aware that soil types varied in the Willamette valley. Volcanic vs. ocean sedimentary. The tastes were surpisingly unique. The sedimentary soils contain more minerals as the land was once covered by sea producing a more complex flavor. It brings up an intriguing question for me and that is how can different soil types affect the taste of vegetables? We actually amend with trace minerals and I do believe they affect the way plants grow as well as their flavor.(this is a topic worthy of many conversations we may get to at a later time) Since we farm on different sites I can attest to how plants react in diffent soils and growing conditions but I'm not for sure if I could really detect a taste differnce like you could in the wine. We might have to have a beet tasting!
Another thought I had was you gotta have a lot of juice to be a grape grower. (pun not intended) It takes acerage, time, patience, faith, dedication and apparently a whole lot of money. Patricia's vinyard is about 60 acres. Small or large depending on your view. Close to a couple of million dollars just to aquire the land and existing vineyard. I have no idea what equipment cost's are or what type of labor force you need but I know it's alot and you hav'nt even put out a a case of wine yet. That takes guts. So here's to you Patricia! Thank you for coming to Orcas Island and sharing your private library with us. It is good to be alive.
Keep well my friends,
Farmer John
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Here we are aproaching December and life on the farm remains busy as ever for this time of year. Inventory and sales are stronger than normal and our weelky deliveries have been very consistent. Things will begin to slow down as a few of the commercial accounts we deliver to begin to close down for the winter.
Salad green production has been a highlight. A combination of mild fall weather, good timing and hardy variety choices has given us some of the nicest greens I have ever seen. The trick to growing through the fall and into the winter is to have good timing in the sowing and pick varieties that can withstand the colder tempratures. The idea is to get the greens to harvest size prior to the lower light and freezing tempratues set in. We grow the majority of our winter greens outdoors due to fact that we simply don't have enough space in the greenhouses to meet our harvest demand. So the other consideration is to plant to the needs of your expected harvest. Winter greens are for the most part a one time harvest crop. Generally speaking, six weeks on either side of the winter solstice you will see only minute if any regrowth at all. Other times of the year we may expect to get two or more cuts from one sowing. That said, we sometimes may get a second cut in mid February but normally the greens are so weather stressed at that point they will just bolt as soon as the weather turns. So the reality is that we are simply holding and harvesting crops this time of year as opposed to actually growing anything. This year we are seeing some growth. I would say a little more than normal. Certainly not enough to sustain multible harvests.
All good things come to an end? at least in the context of this subject anyway. We are just about at the end of those nice greens. I have backup successions in the greenhouses and we are actually still transplanting into newly prepped greenhouse beds as I write this. Some of this may be harvestable in the next month but for the most part, the greens that are just going in will be harvested in February. The challenge with the greenhouse's is having enough space to grow the quantity we need. We could wipe the greens out in just a couple of harvests. We just have to make it through December. We take January and the first part of February off. This is when I write seed orders and finalize the over all farm plan. We are back at full speed by mid Feb resuming commercial deliveries (hopefully!?) and mostly sowing flats for transplant and gathering our supplies for the upcomong season. So out of an entire year we are producing and delivering for all but six weeks! Not to shabby.
While I was looking up an item for this article I came across a couple of interesting factoids. At this time of year as the sun rides low in the sky the suns rays have to travel twice as far to penetrate the earths atmosphere. I did not know that. Also if you get a chance, google the Greek goddess persephoni. As we are in the persephoni months it is an interesting read. Another interesting factoid came from KUOW"S weather guy Cliff Mass. Puget sound's foul weather climax is pretty much right now. Historically this is when we would see the worst weather of the year and then things would generally be on the upswing. I've lived in the PNW many years and I was not aware of this. Interesting and inspirational. Kind of like when the days actually start getting longer again and it stops getting dark at 4:30.
Today is the 1st of December It is snowing and all is well in my world.
Keep well,
Farmer John
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Thanksgiving.... my favorite holiday. I celebrate not with the traditions of the original meaning but with my own personal feelings for all that I have to be thankful for. My life revolves around growing the best food available and using those ingredients to eat well and seasonaly. It's the basis of my existence. Thanksgiving is a special time for me and this year is no different. I have so much to give thanks for. Being healthy first and foremost. Having a loving and beautiful family. Good friends and being able to live a life with intent that provides me with a sense of self worth and accomplishment. I am indeed living the "good life" Simple as that.
This years fall crops have been the best I have ever grown. Thanks to some kind weather, good planning, accumulated knowledge and perhaps a little luck. The harvest's just keep coming and we have had a higher demand for product than in years past. There is so much talk about eating local and seasonaly these days and I think more people are giving it real consideration and thought and are taking action accordingly. I'm hoping this is a trend we will see continue.
I am a market farmer. I rely on people to buy food from us. I also am a believer that the world would be a better place if we had more home gardeners. This is a good time of year to start planning your own garden. I talk of this often and some people say "if everyone had a home garden you would'nt be able to make a living" I do not believe this is true. This last week perhaps proves my point. There are just a handfull of farmers in our county. Of course we have many items that overlap but often we all have our own specialty crops. Most of us buy or trade crops from each other on a regular basis. It's just about impossible to grow everything so it's nice when you can get something you don't have from one of your fellow farmers or community members. I think the same if we had more gardners. It would simply increase the variety and diversity of local products available to us all as well as ramp up the excitement about local food. So I don't view it as competition but rather see it as a positive for the eat local movement in general.
T-Day menu: Here is what's for dinner at our house. We are making an effort to put as many things on the table as possible that we grew or purchased from one of our local farms.
Free Range turkey
mashed potatoes with calvados gravy
sauted baby braising greens
broccoli with ming tsai's chili aioli
beet salad with walnuts and feta served over fresh fall arugula
wood fired braised brussel's sprouts with warm bacon vinagrete
carmelized baby golden beets
corn niblets
winter squash sweet pie
corn bread stuffing with pork sausage
garden fresh salad
cranberry sauce
For dessert?
Sidney Coffelts pie berry pie with fresh whipped cream
Charly Robinsons minced meat pie
Katie Blaines lemon tart
I have a very short shopping list. Just a few staple items, some citrus fruit, cranberries and libations. The turkey was ordered from Homegrown Market, The brussel's sprouts came from Blue Moon Produce on Waldron Island and the corn...well.... uhh...mmmm dare I say Costco. well, at least it is organic and hey, I'm not a fanatic. I shop there on a regular basis for staple and bulk items. My point here to put the emphasis on making use of as many local items as possible within reason, not to live by it without budging.
I wish you all the best and a safe and festive holiday season.
Keep well,
Farmer John
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We were hit with the first big windstorm of the season this weekend. Came in late Sunday and lasted mosted of the day on Monday. We did OK. Could have been worse. Just a little damage to the greenhouse doors. The doors are the weak link. The wind always seems to bang them around a bit. This time there was a litte damage to some of the metal framing. It was actually bent! I don't know how hard it was blowing but Bellingham had a 94 MPH gust and it felt like we had a couple in the 70's to me. I can normally tell. That's about the time the house starts to shudder. Maybe we could just call it good with that one eh? I hate the wind. I hate the noise it makes, It makes me cranky.
Ironically the wind and weather ebated as quickly as it arrived and we had a lovely afternoon. I was able to bring in the delayed greens harvest avoiding an early morning scramble for today. All in all I cannot complain about the weather at all. It's been pretty darn nice. The greens sure have appreciated it and they are looking lovely. I harvested 40lbs yesteday in no time at all. It's such a pleasure when it's all working right. It's been a prosporous shoulder season here at the Rock. Making up and exceeding our short fall from the wet spring.
It aint over yet folks! One more market this Saturday the 17th at The Oddfellows Hall from 10:00 till 2:00. We'll have salad greens, potatoes, lovely braising greens, beets, turnips, kale, cabbage, broccoli, parsley and a few other misc items. Gift certificates and t shirts will also be available. Hope to see you there. Last market was a huge success I'm hoping for a good turn out this week too!
Here we go again! The first seed catalog just arrived in the mail this weekend. This is good and bad. The one we received happened to be from our main supplier Johnny's so it was well appreciated. However that means we'll be getting barraged here shortly with seed catalogs and garden supply junk from all over the place. I use about three suppliers for about 99% of our seed and supplies. So unfortunately the remainder of the catalogs with their sexy descriptions and eroctic vegetable photos wind up in my circular file.
I do look forward to catalogs though. It seems to be a never ending shot in the arm for getting excited about next year. No matter what,there is always next year. So as I bitch about too much rain, not enough rain, cold, hot, wet, dry, wind, no money, etc, etc. Know that I still and always will love what I do. It just keeps getting better every year.
I'll leave it at that friends. Next year will be better.
Keep on,
Farmer John
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