Tuesday, June 26, 2012


This Week’s Box:
Cucumbers See the recipe below for a great cucumber and potato salad.
Squash/Zucchini
Sweet Peppers-they are all sweet, even the longer skinny types.  Those are an Italian frying type called Carmen.  They can be used the same as a bell pepper.
Garlic
Scallions
Carrots- Sweet, crisp. Garden carrots are the best!  See the recipes from last week in the previous blog posting.
Kale-keep enjoying the greens!  At this point we never know how long they will last-especially in the upcoming weather. Recipe below
Potatoes-Yukon gold, a creamy potato with a medium dry flesh for any cooking style.  Roasted, boiled, scalloped, baked.   Recipe below
Dill- Dill and potatoes anyone? My favorite!
Parsley
Beets-Large Share only this week.  You really should try last week’s recipe for Orange Beet Salad.  See last week’s posting.

 
Elisa and the delicious carrots!


The root crops are coming!  This week we have more tasty, sweet garden carrots.  It is a great job pulling the bright orange, crisp roots from the soil.  After this weekend’s rain the soil was a crumbly texture perfect for digging.  The loose dark brown dirt just fell away from the roots.  The next digging project was potatoes.  This year we planted some potatoes here at Bluebird Farm to avoid the insect problems present in the big field at the other farm.  We also planted some over there to try to have more quantity.  We haven’t dug them up yet.  But the potatoes here at the home farm grew beautifully.  This week you’ll be receiving Yukon Gold potatoes-a creamy yellow-gold type of potato.  Digging for potatoes is kind of looking for eggs, but in the ground.  We use the digging fork to loosen the soil around the plants.  But we can’t dig any closer because we might stab potatoes (stabbed about a dozen).  So then we go through by hand and grub for potatoes-turning them out of unexpected lumps of dirt and weeds.  It is quite the fun job, especially when you’re rewarded with baskets full of potatoes at the end!  Enjoy the bounty,
Your farmers,
 William and Marie

 William with a garden fork. 


Adam and Elisa display the fine potato harvest from a few beds.

Recipes
Auntie Bonnie’s Potato Cucumber Salad
From the cookbook, How it all Vegan, 1999.
This tangy, tart salad will tickle your tastebuds.

2-3 cups new potatoes, cubed
1 tbsp fresh dill, chives or parsley, chopped (you can used green onions)
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp prepared horseradish
¼ cup flax oil (or your choice of salad type oil)
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
2-3 cups cucumber, cubed
In a medium pot, boil the cubed potatoes in water until they can be pierced easily with a fork.  In a small bowl, whisk together the chosen herb, mustard, vinegar, horseradish, oil, salt, and pepper.  Set aside.  Once the potatoes are done, drain and rinse under cold water until cool.  In a medium bowl, mix together the potatoes, cucumbers and dressing just before serving. 
(Marie’s adjustment: I like to give the potatoes a quick rinse, then pour the dressing over the partially-cooled potatoes and refrigerate for a few hours.  Then mix the cucumbers in before serving.  This lets the flavor soak into the potatoes more.)

Indian-Spiced Kale & Chickpeas
We love Indian vegetarian dishes! This dish goes well with chicken and lamb for a meal with meat.  The chickpeas add a great texture and a source of protein to this recipe.  You may experiment with different ratios of spices to suit your tastes.
From EatingWell:  October/November 2005, EatingWell Serves Two
Chickpeas make this exotic dish a terrific player in any vegetarian menu.
4 servings, about 3/4 cup each Active Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
  • 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1-1 1/2 pounds kale, ribs removed, coarsely chopped (see Tip)
  • 1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth, or vegetable broth
  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1/4 teaspoon garam masala, (see Ingredient note)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed
Preparation
  1. Heat oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add kale and cook, tossing with two large spoons, until bright green, about 1 minute. Add broth, coriander, cumin, garam masala and salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until the kale is tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in chickpeas; cover and cook until the chickpeas are heated through, 1 to 2 minutes.
Nutrition
Per serving : 202 Calories; 5 g Fat; 1 g Sat; 3 g Mono; 1 mg Cholesterol; 32 g Carbohydrates; 9 g Protein; 6 g Fiber; 415 mg Sodium; 499 mg Potassium
2 Carbohydrate Serving
Tips & Notes
  • Tip:  When preparing kale for these recipes, remove the tough ribs, chop or tear the kale as directed, then wash it--allowing some water to cling to the leaves. The moisture helps steam the kale during the first stages of cooking.
  • Ingredient Note: Garam masala, a ground spice mixture traditionally including coriander, cumin, cinnamon, peppercorns, cardamom and cloves, is commonly used in Indian cooking. Find it in the specialty-spice section of large supermarkets.
  •  What a tasty bunch of carrots Marie has!

Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Garlic Galore!


New this week!
Garlic
Beets- So if you think you don’t like beets, please give them another chance!  Try the recipe below.

Head Lettuce-  We’ve cut every single head of lettuce in the garden, so we’ve got some baby heads of lettuce for you.  This is the last lettuce of the spring!
Radishes “French Breakfast”, These are the last of the radishes.  They are a bit spicy!  Try the radish and cucumbers in a dill marinade recipe below. 
Kale
        Small shares: “Lacinato” kale-  This Italian heirloom kale is so tasty that the groundhogs prefer it.  This is the 3rd year that we’ve grown it, but the first year that we’ve been able to harvest any due to those silly groundhogs.
        Large shares: “Red Russion” kale-
Zucchini and Summer Squash: Believe it or not, but zucchini and squash are very good raw!  I like to chop it finely and add it to pasta salad! There is always zucchini bread, but it doesn’t use all that much zucchini.  Check out the selection of zucchini bread at Allrecipes.com http://allrecipes.com/search/default.aspx?qt=k&wt=zucchini%20bread&rt=r&origin=Recipe
There are many fun types of zucchini. I think that they are all similar in flavor when picked young and cooked, usually sautéed lightly. (Never cook them a long time; they turn to mush!) See recipe below
Lettuce Mix?  MaybeWe’ll check it Wed morning to see if it is ready.
Scallions: Use fresh or cook with scallions.  Use the fleshy part and the greens too.  Nice mild onion flavor. 
Cucumbers
Parsley: This nutrient packed herb is not just for a garnish! Many cultures across the world value parsley for its flavor, texture, and nutrients. Parsley has a fresh from the garden flavor that goes well with cucumbers and the nutty flavor of cous cous. 
Dill:  Cucumbers and dill! My oh my! What a wonderful combination.  Try sprinkling some fresh dill over a nice lettuce salad.  You can always hang it upside down and dry it for later.
Cilantro:   Try making the cilantro vinaigrette (recipe below) and marinating sliced cucumbers in it for at least 10 minutes…Mmm.  Add some to the Orange Beet Salad!


Elisa's got your kale!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Garlic Galore!
We love garlic. We adore that zesty flavor that garlic adds to vegetables and meats. Adam, Elisa, William, and I spent the afternoon harvesting, sorting, and bundling several varieties of garlic from the garden.  Garlic is rather homely looking straight out of the garden; it is covered in dirt.  You don’t wash it though, you hang it out to dry.  That way the garlic will keep for about 6 months or so. 
The garlic that you have tomorrow is very fresh.  Don’t put it in the refrigerator. Put in on a nice dry counter and start using it in your favorite recipes.
Elisa and Adam, our friends from the San Francisco area, are adventurous souls who are taking a working vacation at our farm this summer.  We’ve been so happy to have them working hard with us, and even more happy for the fun entertainment of friends!


Marie with the garlic pile

Elisa has some poems to share with you…


Garlic

Globes encrusted in dirt underground

 You came up easy when you were found.
Planted by a clove so small
 You grow foliage so nice and tall.
Your taste is spicy and when its unfurled
 You are part of foods from all over the world.

Beets
Beets beets so deep dark red
you lie happily in your bed.
Then up you grow peeking out
 your tuberous root big and stout.
So deep your color flavor and style
Your red carries to eaters from mile to mile.


Recipes:
Orange-Beet Salad
From Better Homes and Gardens annual Recipes 2001
Marie’s notes: I used olive oil instead of walnut oil and plain chevre instead of feta cheese. I also omitted the orange peel (the peel of conventional citrus have a high concentration of pesticides) and used 1 extra tablespoon of orange juice.
Tip: Roll the plain goat chevre or feta cheese in a black pepper and thyme mixture (coat the cheese in herbs)  to keep the red juice of the beets from staining the cheese.  I let the beets marinate overnight in the dressing, drained the beets, and then topped the beets with the walnuts and cheese on the dinner plates.   It was delicious!

3 medium beets (about 9 oz) (feel free to use more beets!)
3 Tbsp. walnut oil or salad oil
1 tsp. shredded orange peel
2 Tbsp. orange juice
1 Tbsp. white wine vinegar or white vinegar
2 Tbsp. broken walnuts toasted
3 Tbsp crumbled feta cheese
¼ coarsely ground pepper
1.    Wash beets well. Cut off and discard root tails and all except 1 inch of stems.  Do not peel.  Cook, covered in lightly salted boiling water for 40 to 50 minutes or until just tender. Drain.  Let cool until easy to handle.
2.   Slip skins off beets under running water.  Carefully slice each beet into 1/4 inch thick slices, removing and discarding remaining stem ends.
3.   Meanwhile, for dressing, in a screw-top jar combine walnut oil or salad oil, orange peel, orange juice, and vinegar.  Cover and shake well.
4.   In a medium mixing bowl gently toss the beet slices with the dressing. Cover, and chill to marinade for 2 to 24 hours. 
5.   To serve, let mixture come to room temperature. Gently stir walnuts into beets. Sprinkle with feta cheese and pepper. Makes 4 servings.

Fresh Gingered Beets
Adapted from The Passionate Vegetarian, 2002.

Basic Cooking Method
1.     Wash beets well. Cut off and discard root tails and all except 1 inch of stems.  Do not peel.  Cook, covered in lightly salted boiling water for 40 to 50 minutes or until just tender. Drain.  Let cool until easy to handle.
2.    Slip skins off beets under running water.  Carefully slice each beet into 1/4 inch thick slices, removing and discarding remaining stem ends.
Once the beets are sliced, you may splash them with a bit of olive oil and store for about 2 days before using or creating them into a dish.  I like to store beets in Mason jars, so they don’t stain the Tupperware.
Recipe:                                                         
1.    Heat 1 teaspoon each butter and oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  When the oils are sizzling hot, add the baked beets and toss them in the hot fat. 
2.    Then add 1 to 2 teaspoons peeled very finely dice ginger.  Toss for about 30 seconds.
3.    Then add 3 tablespoons brown sugar and 2 tablespoons water.  Cook, stirring, until the water and brown sugar have bubbled into a glaze, about 30 seconds.

Beets!

Honey Cilantro Vinaigrette 
Try marinating sliced cucumbers for at least 10 minutes in this vinaigrette! Mmm!
Adapted From Passionate Vegetarian
Makes about 1 ¾ cup

4 cloves garlic, minced
1 bunch cilantro
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1/3 cup honey
1 jalapeno pepper or 1 pinch cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce(optional)
1 ½ teaspoon salt
Black pepper to taste, freshly ground
1 cup olive oil

Combine all of the ingredients except the olive oil in a food processor.  Process until smooth, scraping the sides when needed.  With the machine running, slowly pour olive oil into dressing.  Taste for salt and pepper.  Best if aged for at least one hour or overnight.

Teeny Zucchini with Onions
You should really try this recipe if you haven’t yet!

From Better Homes and Gardens Annual Recipes 2001
Note: squash can be substituted for zucchini
Health Note:  We like to get include some other form of protein in our meals, when not eating meat with a meal.  We tend to eat meat just 3 times a week.  The walnuts in this meal are a great protein source.
1 lbs baby zucchini or 3 medium zucchini
1 tblsp. Olive oil
1 Small Onion, cut into thin wedges
¼ cup chopped walnuts
½ tsp dried oregano, crushed
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp pepper
Rinse and trim zucchini.  If using medium zucchini, cut each in half lengthwise, then turn into ½-inch slices
In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add zucchini and onion.  Cook for 6-8 minutes until vegetables are just tender, stirring occasionally.  Add walnuts, oregano, salt, and pepper to mixture in skillet.  Cook and stir for 1 minute more.  Makes 4-6 servings. 

Fresh Cucumbers in Dill Marinade
From The Fruit & Vegetable Stand by Barry Ballister, 2001.
Marie’s comments in italics.

½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill (or 1 tablespoon crumble dried dill)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
¾ cup white wine vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
3 green unwaxed green cucumbers (Cucumbers from the store are often waxed.  Pesticides and fungicides may also be on the peel of store cucumbers)
4 radishes (don’t worry about them if they aren’t in season)

In deep bowl combine salt, pepper, dill, and garlic with vinegar and lemon juice.  Slice unpeeled cumbers and radishes. Mix with marinade. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.  Serves 4.

Tuesday, June 12, 2012




Curly kale beds with hoophouse in background

This week’s harvest
Head Lettuce-  Yay! The lettuce did well with the cooler weather last week, and we have some beautiful lettuce.  We’ll cross our fingers for next week and hope that the little heads will handle the next few days of hot weather.
Radishes “French Breakfast”, Try the radish and cucumbers in a dill marinade recipe below.
Kale “Curly”: This variety has a nice texture for tomato sauce and soups.  Also great for kale chips.  (See recipe in previous blog post.http://bluebirdfarmcsa.blogspot.com/2012/05/week-1-of-lovely-vegetables.html)
Swiss Chard “Rainbow”: Medium bunch of baby leaves. See recipe below.
Zucchini and Summer Squash: There are many fun types of zucchini. I think that they are all similar in flavor when picked young and cooked, usually sautéed lightly. (Never cook them a long time; they turn to mush!)
Lettuce Mix           
Greens Mix (Mizuna, and Tatsoi)This mix is not so tiny in size anymore; you can also enjoy it by chopping into 1 inch pieces and wilting it down in a stir fry.  This lively mix has the peppery flavor of arugula with the more mild flavors of mizuna and tatsoi.  You may also dice it up and wilt down in a dish at the very end of cooking.
Mizuna- fancy Japanese green that is a bit peppery, but is much more mild than arugula. It has fancy, deeply serrated edges.
        Tatsoi-(pronounced: tat soy)     
Scallions: Use the fleshy part and the greens too.  Nice mild onion flavor. 
Cucumbers: Did you know you can grate cucumbers too? Try grating them in a cucumber yogurt salad.
Parsley: This nutrient packed herb is not just for a garnish! Many cultures across the world value parsley for its flavor, texture, and nutrients. Parsley has a fresh from the garden flavor that goes well with cucumbers and the nutty flavor of cous cous.  Try the tabouleh recipe for a great cold entrée or lunch.
Dill:  Cucumbers and dill! My oh my! What a wonderful combination.  Try sprinkling some fresh dill over a nice lettuce salad.  You can always hang it upside down and dry it for later.

Hello all,
        Maybe it’s not officially summer, but out in the vegetable field it sure feels like it.  The warm green days are beginning to blend together in our heads and it’s hard to keep straight one day from the next.  Did we weed that yesterday or three days ago?  When was the last time we checked on the tomatoes? 
        The defining characteristic of this week has been the water, rain here and there and everywhere. The pasture and vegetables have been enjoying the regular moisture.  The farmers, well, we just try to be happy for the plants.  We can try to shift our work a little bit to be in the barn or under cover during rain.  But usually we just have to do the same thing we would have done otherwise, only wetter. 
        This week-don’t ask which day, I’ve forgotten already-we had a record transplant day.  In only a 3 hours Marie, William, and a friend who has been helping weekly set out about 200 squash, 250 cucumbers, and 150 basil plants.  The squash and cucumbers you’ve been enjoying the last few weeks are from the first two successions of plants.  Like with the lettuce and other greens that we plant frequently to ensure a continuous harvest we plant multiple ages of squash and cucumbers through the summer.  A planting only has a peak harvest of 2-4 weeks depending on weather, insects, weeds, and nutrients in the soil.  So we plan to plant monthly up until August.  The August plants will be the last because they will start producing in September, a month before our October frost.  Any later plantings wouldn’t have a chance to produce before frost.
        Enjoy the harvest!

William and Marie              



 
Close up of curly kale growing in the garden.  Try the kale chips recipe in this previous post...http://bluebirdfarmcsa.blogspot.com/2012/05/week-1-of-lovely-vegetables.html

Recipes:
Cucumber yogurt salad
            Wash cucumbers well.  Finely slice, dice, or grate cucumber.  Mix with plain yogurt (greek style yogurts are particularly good for this recipe).  Add as much yogurt as you prefer.  This salad can range from being almost purely cucumbers with a yogurt dressing to a bowl of yogurt with some cucumbers in it.  Salt to taste.  For flavor try adding dill, crushed garlic, diced spring onion, parsley, or another of your favorite herbs. 

Fresh Cucumbers and Radishes in Dill Marinade
From The Fruit & Vegetable Stand by Barry Ballister, 2001.
Marie’s comments in italics.

½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill (or 1 tablespoon crumble dried dill)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
¾ cup white wine vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
3 green unwaxed green cucumbers (Cucumbers from the store are often waxed.  Pesticides and fungicides may also be on the peel of conventional store cucumbers. Our cucumbers don’t have pesticide residue.)
4 radishes (don’t worry about them if they aren’t in season)

In deep bowl combine salt, pepper, dill, and garlic with vinegar and lemon juice.  Slice unpeeled cumbers and radishes. Mix with marinade. Refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours.  Serves 4.


Tabbouli
From Secrets of Healthy Middle Eastern Cuisine, Abourezk
Marie’s comments in italics
Go ahead and switch the recipe up a bit!  I recommend adding sweet peppers and cucumbers with feta cheese and basil. You can switch the ingredients based on what veggies are in season…in early June, you can use diced baby zucchini, cucumbers, and scallions… since there aren’t any tomatoes in season yet.

Ingredients
½ cup bulgur wheat (I’ve used cous cous before too)
½ cup water
4 cups finely chopped ripe tomatoes
½ cup fresh lemon juice
2 tbs olive oil
2 large bunches parsley, about 5 cups finely chopped (1 large bunch is plenty! Chop parsley very fine- almost to a fluff)
1 cup chopped onions
1 tbl dried mint flakes

1.       Rinse the bulgur, drain and then add ½ cup of the water and let stand for 15 minutes.  Place the bulgur in a large mixing bowl, then add the tomatoes and lemon juice.  Chop the parsley (very fine-almost to a fluff).  Place on top of the bulgur and tomato mixture.  Add the onion, mint flakes, and the oil and mix thoroughly.
2.       Tabbouli can be prepared a couple hours ahead of time if you wish.  Simply leave out the oil and lemon juice dressing until you’re ready to serve.  Adding the dressing too soon makes the parsley wilt and creates too much liquid in the bottom of the salad bowl.
3.      In the Arab world, tabbouli is scooped up and eaten with lettuce leaves, rather than with silverware.  Putting each serving of tabbouli inside a lettuce or a cabbage leaf rather than displaying them in a flat dish is a very tempting presentation.  Or, for an elegant looking and tasting hors d’oeuvre, cut cherry tomatoes in half, remove the center, and fill them with tabbouli.


Creamy Baked Swiss Chard and Pasta
I don’t like to call anything “noodle casserole,” so I’m renaming this dish Creamy Baked Swiss Chard and Pasta.  You may omit the parsley if you wish. You can also cut back on the sour cream and cheese.  –Marie
VEGETABLE NOODLE CASSEROLE a.k.a Creamy Baked Swiss Chard and Pasta Printed from COOKS.COM

3 tbsp. olive oil
2/3 c. chopped walnuts
1 lg. onion, thinly sliced
2 lg. carrots, coarsely grated
1 lg. bunch Swiss Chard, chopped
1 clove minced garlic
1/3 c. minced parsley
1/2 tsp. thyme leaves
8 tsp. soy sauce
1 c. sour cream
Salt
3 c. pasta
2 c. grated Jack cheese
Heat oil in large frying pan and saute nuts until lightly browned. Remove from pan with a slotted spoon, and then stir in onions and carrots.
Sauté until onion is translucent, and then remove from pan. Add chard, garlic, parsley and thyme and sauté until chard is limp.
Combine soy sauce and sour cream; add to chard mixture along with walnuts, onions and carrots.
Stir to mix well. Add salt to taste. Spread pasta in a lightly greased 2 quart casserole and spoon vegetable mixture over top.
Sprinkle with cheese and bake in 400°F oven for 15 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and casserole is heated through.
Serves 6.

Check out this picture of tomato plants in the hoophouse from almost 2 weeks ago.  The plants are about 1 1/2 feet taller now!  We will have tomatoes in about a month or sooner.

Tuesday, June 5, 2012


Week 4,    6/6/2012
\Remember,  you can look at newsletters (and recipes) from previous weeks by scrolling down or looking at the menu on the right side of the CSA blog. www.BluebirdFarmCSA.blogspot.com

Salad of the week: Try making a big ole salad with scallions, cucumbers, radishes, chopped boiled eggs and with lettuce mix, greens mix, and arugula.

This week’s harvest
Head Lettuce- Enjoy. We may not have lettuce next week.  Cross your fingers, and tell the lettuce to stay happy!
Radishes “French Breakfast”
Kale “Red Russian”
Swiss Chard “Rainbow”: See recipe below.
Zucchini and Summer Squash: Not much zucchini yet. I think it’s better than being sick of eating it, right? We’ve fertilized them with organic fertilizer, so hopefully they will produce well soon.
Lettuce Mix           
Arugula
Greens Mix (Mizuna, and Tatsoi)This mix is not so tiny in size anymore; you can also enjoy it by chopping into 1 inch pieces and wilting it down in a stir fry.  This lively mix has the peppery flavor of arugula with the more mild flavors of mizuna and tatsoi.  You may also dice it up and wilt down in a dish at the very end of cooking.
Mizuna- fancy Japanese green that is a bit peppery, but is much more mild than arugula. It has fancy, deeply serrated edges.
        Tatsoi-(pronounced: tat soy)     
Sugar Snap Peas: The season is just so short.  We don’t have as many this week. Maybe the cool rain will make them happy again!
Garlic scapes: Chop ‘em up and use them raw or cooked. Tastes like garlic and onions.
Scallions: Use the fleshy part and the greens too.  Nice mild onion flavor.  Check out this blog for a great sauce. It’s good on the snap peas…Ginger Scallion Sauce. http://www.salon.com/2010/06/19/ginger_scallion_sauce_recipe/
Cucumbers: Mmm… There’s nothing like a cucumber in season from the garden. 

Hello all,
This week there was no one big project that kept us busy.  But boy oh boy do the little projects add up.  One thing after the next and the next, then at the end of the day there’s another thing to do.  Whew! Sorry- no recipes this week…We’ve been outside every night ‘til 9:30 or 10 pm. Remember that you can go to the blog and view the recipes from previous weeks.
     One of the many projects was to rescue the cucumbers and squash from the weed jungle.  We’ve been working sun up ‘til sun down to get the spring farm work done, but that didn’t include time for the rapidly growing weeds.  We were able to pre-weed some of the garden beds before planting the 3rd generation of cucumbers and squash.  Those beds were easy.  Just a quick back and forth with our hoes and it was clean.  But we were officially behind on the older plants.  In some places it was tricky to even find the crops under weeds.  When the weeds take over like that they compete for water and nutrients.  We could tell, the crops looked stunted and the leaves were beginning to yellow.  A few hours of dirt grubbing later though and the crops were out in the open.  They looked better already.  The next step was to get the plants a little nutrient boost to make up for the weed competition. This year we are using a mixture of fish emulsion, the emulsified and stabilized leftovers from a western NC trout farm.  It isn’t very high in nutrients, but because we deliver it in a liquid form the nutrients are immediately available to the plant.  We dilute this into water and add some dried sea minerals.  This is essentially sea salt, but unpurified so it contains all the micro-nutrients from the sea=iron, zinc, copper, and other minerals.  All these are important to plants in small amounts and sea salt provides an excellent source for these minerals.
     
     On the animal side of things we brought the second flock of the broiler chickens to the butcher.  This flock was hatched at the end of March.  Since then they’ve enjoyed wonderful weather-not too hot, not too cold, and some good rain.  Animals like good weather just like people and vegetables!  Even better, the good weather made for excellent pasture.  Each day as the chickens progressed across the pasture they would dive onto the next patch of clover.  If we were quiet we could even hear them chomping away.  Their diet of pasture and insects supplemented the diet of organic grain they receive.  The organic feed provides them a diverse diet that is chemical free and free of genetically modified organisms.  Enjoy the very best chicken!