Friday, February 24, 2012

Down in the cellars...

On cold, cloudy days like this, I like to go down into our basement and look at the rows of shallot braids.  It's reassuring to know we'll still have some solid veggies for the first few weeks of CSA shares, regardless of unpredictable spring weather.
The potatoes prefer cooler, moister storage, so they spend the winter in the barn, insulated by hay bales.  We have eaten all of the Yukon Golds and most of the Chieftain Reds; luckily we still have several hundred pounds of our favorites, the French Fingerlings, to see us through the spring. 

Tonight John is making hamburgers and French Fingerling French Fries; Antonia is sauteing shallots and garlic for a cream sauce, seasoned with dried celery leaf from last summer, to go with fresh broccoli from the greenhouse. 

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

The seeds are sprouting!

Lots of plants are germinating this week... I borrowed Molly's new digital camera for a tour through the greenhouses.  

Check out the peas sprouting in the Cathedral greenhouse:
These are Austrian Field Peas: we'll be harvesting the shoots, rather than the pods.  The leaves and tendrils are surprisingly flavorful, mixed into a salad. 

Here's Molly, in the little greenhouse.  We start all our seedlings in here; it's a small enough space that it doesn't take too much energy to keep it heated. 
You can see the lights above the seedling flats, and the heat mats below: it may be February outside, but as far as the seedlings can tell, it's a sunny day in June.


The first tiny tomato plants are bursting forth with promises of the tasty garden produce to come.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

CSA info and signup sheet

Molly’s Island Garden CSA
Certified Organic for 14 years

Join our Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, and each week, you’ll come to the farm and pick up a selection of fresh, organic vegetables. 
An early Spring basket may include: Spinach, Green Onions, Bok Choi, Red Oakleaf Lettuce, Romaine Lettuce, Radishes, Cilantro & Sugar Snap Peas.
By Midsummer you’ll see: Broccoli, Carrots, Cherry Tomatoes, Onions, Cucumbers, Berries, Basil, Garlic, Beets, Leaf Lettuce, and Summer Squash.
In the Fall your basket may hold: Green Beans, Kale, Heirloom Tomatoes, Leeks, Potatoes, Garlic, Sweet Peppers, Winter Squash and Apples.
We grow over 100 varieties of vegetables to ensure that you have a varied share each week. Our weekly newsletter includes a recipe for the featured vegetable.  Have a favorite veggie?  Let us know when you sign up, and we’ll do our best to grow it for you.  We try to have a lot of everyone’s favorites (broccoli, carrots, spinach, tomatoes, lettuce) as well as the more exotic flavors like arugula and celeriac.
Choose either Tuesday or Thursday evening (5:00-6:30 PM) to pick up your vegetables; bring your own basket or bag to fill with a selection of seasonal vegetables.  One or more of your farmers will be on hand to answer questions, suggest recipes, or tell you more about how we grow your vegetables. 
Want to be more involved? Join the harvest for our annual potato dig, or celebrate the solstice with an on-farm potluck.  Drop in during scheduled volunteer work times and learn more about the planting, weeding and harvesting that nurtures our food.
 How to Subscribe:
We offer three CSA seasons: Early Spring (5 weeks), main season (20 weeks) and Late Fall (5 weeks).  Early spring and late fall are limited to 15 shares, so sign up early!  Depending on weather and crop yields, we may increase the number of late fall shares; we’ll know by September.  
We’re trying two share sizes in the 2012 season: the large share, $25/week, will feed 2-4 people; each week you’ll receive between 9-11 different veggies, herbs, and occasional fruit.  The small share, $15/week, will feed 1-2 people, with 5-7 items a week.  Because of the two share size options, we ask that each household purchase their own share rather than splitting shares. 
By signing up for our 2012 CSA, you allow your farmers to plan ahead for the spring; your deposits will be put towards buying the seeds, soil amendments, and other supplies that your farmers must gather and sow long before the first vegetables are harvested.
For those with more time and less money, we also have a limited number of work trade shares available – contact us for more information if you are interested.  We are committed to feeding our community healthy, local, organic food, so we hope to be able to accommodate all interested work traders’ abilities.
Questions? E-mail us at mollysislandgarden@gmail.com with “2012 CSA” in your subject line 
Ready to Join? 
Print and fill out two copies of the following form, keep one copy for your records and mail the other with a check for your deposit to: Molly’s Island Garden, 3340 Craw Road, Langley, WA 98260.
Molly’s Island Garden 2012 CSA Membership form
Sign me up!                                                                                           
I want to join the:                                          (check all that apply)                      (cost)

Early Spring Season                                            ____   small share ($75)         ____
 (5 weeks; April 10th or 12th to May 8th or 10th)           ____   large share ($125)      ____


Main Season                                                        ____   small share ($300)      ____
(20 weeks; May 15th or 17th to September 25th or 27th)____   large share ($500)      ____

Late Fall Season                                                    ____   small share ($75)      ____
(5 weeks; October 2nd or 4th to Oct 30th or Nov 1st)      ____   large share (125)      ____
                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                Total cost:    _____
I am enclosing: $________ (required deposit of $200 per share, or you may pay in full)
 We’ll send you an email to let you know we’ve received your deposit. A few weeks before the season begins we’ll email you a reminder of your first pick-up day with directions to the farm.  The remainder of your share cost is due on the first pick-up day.
Contact information:
_________________________________
Name
_________________________________
Address
_________________________________
City                                         State   Zip
__________________________________
Phone                                    Email

Circle your preferred pick up day:
Tuesday 5:00-6:30PM   
Thursday 5:00-6:30 PM

What is the best way to contact you?
Email    /   phone   /   mail   (circle one)

Membership Agreement: As a member of Molly’s Island Garden Community Supported Agriculture Program I understand that my share payment does not guarantee me an exact amount of produce.  I am making a commitment to support local farmers and to share in the rewards and the risks of the growing season.  I also understand that if I am out of town or unable to pick up my share at any time during the season, I am responsible for contacting a friend or neighbor to gather my vegetables (If I cannot pick up my produce, I will call or e-mail my farmers at least two days prior to pick-up day and ask that my share of the weekly harvest be either spread among the other members or donated).   
______________________Signature

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Now is the time to sign up for the 2012 CSA Season

2012 is off to a good start!  The boxes of seeds are arriving from Johnny's, Fedco, High Mowing, Osborne, and Territorial.  This year we spent $937 on annual seeds, so a big thank you to those of you who have already sent in your deposits.  The next major expenses come soon: ingredients for our seed-starting blend, seed potatoes, and (exciting!) strawberry plants.  Right now we're working on updating the planting plan: in 2012 we want to have more broccoli and fewer cabbages; a variety of colored carrots in addition to the usual varieties, Mokum, Napoli, and Red-Cored Chantenay; and more green (bunching) onions.  Last year we trialed a few melon varieties in the greenhouse and in the field; we actually got two out of three varieties to ripen, so we're going to try larger field plantings of those two as well as trialling one more new variety.  We'll be growing plenty of our favorite golden cherry tomato, SunGold, but switching to Peacevine for the red cherry tomato (last year's variety, Sweetie Cherry, produces very sturdy fruit, but I think the flavor leaves something to be desired).  We're also trying Black Cherry, an heirloom variety with a deep red skin, and SunPeach, a relative of SunGold with a pinker skin.  And lastly, the lettuce: Antonia picked out 15 varieties this year, from standards like Salad Bowl and Pirat, to more obscure heirlooms with wonderful names: Kinemontpas, Italienisher, Blushed Butter Oaks, Bronze Arrowhead, and Cracoviensis.