TOMATOES IN THE SNOW

GROWER’S LOG, 11.12.13 The addition of a high tunnel to an organic farming operation has innumerable financial benefits ranging from season extension of marketable crops to ease of production and labor costs. Here at The Dahlia Farm however, what we find most exciting is the complete juxtaposition of the normal farming curve. This year’s addition of our passive solar temporary building has enabled us to have summer bouquets of May peonies (hydra-cooled) and August dahlias side by side – a first in 50 years for us! It has also given us spring gladiolas, near-winter lettuce and Halloween dahlias. The coup-de-grâce however is this morning’s harvest: tomatoes in the snow! It is indeed financially beneficial to add at least one of these greenhouse structures to nearly any farming operation, but it is a spiritual trompe to any seasoned grower to finally have a laugh at nature… even if for just an hour.

Quick Peek, May 21

Just a quick peek at what's coming up tonight, May 21. From upper left, clockwise is red leaf lettuce, green lettuce, mustard, snap pea tendrils, baby spinach and baby kale. It won't be long now!

MASSACHUSETTS MUSHROOMS

To be candid, I was initially leary about growing and eating mushrooms. Let's face it, in today's fear-based society we have so many precautions and supersticions we're scarcely able to make a decision at times. And complicating our daily habits with "risky" ventures like eating mushrooms from the backyard is just not a high on most folks to-do lists. I mean what could be more scarey and dangerous than being completely responsible for one's own food...? And therein the teetering scales in my mind weighed in. Time to try something new - and growing shittake from mycelium spours was just the ticket. I have to thank my friend Tim over at the USDA in Wareham for turning me on to this "underground" delicacy. The entire process is actually quite precise and I can whole-heartedly recommend it to any avid gardener who feels they've exhausted the lot of the seasonal challenges, or who yawns at the thought of growing some new variety of zucchini. Shittake culture, and any myceliuum for that, requires a bit more attention, skill, patience and determination than most Massachusetts crops. You will need fresh oak logs - white or red - that are 4" to 10" in diameter, and have been cut live 6 weeks to 4 months prior. You will need to drill 3/8" holes 1" to 1-1/2" deep in a crisscross patern, plug them with mycelium-impregnated plugs and cover each plug with melted parafin, as well as the log ends. This will keep parasites out of the logs. The logs will then need to be stacked garrison-like in a shady, dark, relatively windless, damp area of your yard (think wooded wetland - not TOO wet). If you can place them on clean oak pallets on top of an old tarp or sheet of plastic - even better. Shittakes in particular can be purchased from many online sources. The one I used is www.fungiperfecti.com up in Nirvanarama Puget Sound. They've been at it for a while, offer a free catalog if you're interested and have a great info resource on their website, as well as kid-friendly projects. The Puget Sound Mycological Society up in Seattle is also a good source of info: http://www.psms.org/index.php There is also a central-Mass area website at http://mushroomhunter.net/ if you're more daring and care to venture out into the woods to hunt the wild varieties. Caveat: I'm not there yet and don't endorse it. To get back to the locally-sourced (150 feet from where I type this) shittakes, they are deliciously earthy and richly flavored. They are magnificent reduced in butter at a low temperature with a pinch of kosher salt. Any French chef would be proud to serve them as an appetizer. Enough of them would make a meal, if paired with a petite syrah or bolder red. If you have the space, time, and appreciate a gardening challenge, I would highly recommend attempting to grow mushrooms. April, with its rains, is a perfect time to begin. The autumn is good also. If you are a greenhouse, farm or other agricultural professional, Tim will be speaking in Dartmouth on May 11 through the USDA. Drop me a line and I will forward the details.

2011 Season Begins

Happy new year and welcome back!

With this winter solstice we begin the new 2011 season on the farm. Our seeds have arrived and we have already begun to book shares for 2011.

This past year's "Compost Project" landed a generous supply of landscape waste and manure (about 120 cubic yards) which goes into our long-term soil-improvement program. We've also managed a seemingly endless supply of trucked-in oak leaves to use as a mulch for our fall-planted garlic.

Seed germination begins in about a month, so whether you are a returning share-holder or entirely new to our CSA program, be sure to sign-up soon for what promises to be our best season ever.

WEEK 9 CSA (Aug 3-8, 2009)

Welcome to WEEK 9 here at The Dahlia Farm. This week introduces New Potatoes, fresh cut Genovese Basil, Blueberries & Green Beans and revisits "Summer Spinach" (Chard), Baby Carrots, Zucchini, our unique green-tipped "Zephyr" Summer Squash and Kohlrabi.

Be sure to tell your friends to get their own share - but they don't have to wait until next year. CSA shares (and half-shares) are available now through the remaining second half of the season. Full shares are $25 per week and the generous half-share is only $15 a week.

A half-season share is a great way to test-drive the CSA model, especially if you're not sure the weekly market basket idea is for you. We are so sure you'll be satisifed, we are currently developing an off-season plan to deliver a 12-month-long New England CSA in collaboration with several other farms, bakers & pastry chefs, fishermen & meat producers.

Looking forward, other new ideas include a year-end harvest festival - a veritable Garden Party complete with wine and live music.

As always, please help us out with your feedback. Email, call us or post here. Your suggestions help us serve you better.

One last thing... The blueberries are wonderful, nutritious, local, picked by us, and high in antioxidants, however we've collaborated with another farm to bring them to this week's CSA so it is advised that they be washed thoroughly before being eaten. If you are on an organic-restrictive diet, you may want to donate them. Otherwise, you will find them the same or superior to any others in the marketplace.

Heres the rundown in video format for Week #9:



BTW, if you'd like to get you kids to eat green beans, try this:




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WEEK 7

WEEK 7 FULL SHARE INCLUDES:
Calendula, Sugar Beets, Peppery Cress, Radish, Sugar Sanp Peas, Mizuna, Loose-leaf Lettuce, Assorted Squash, Sweet-pickling Cucumbers& Swiss Card.

SPRING FLOWER SHOW

Surprizing (and disappointing) as it may be the BOSTON FLOWER SHOW (a/k/a the NEW ENGLAND FLOWER SHOW) has been cancelled! Funding appears to be the main issue and if you would like to help the Mass Horticultural Society out for 2010, you can visit their site at http://www.masshort.org/New-England-Spring-Flower-Show.
The good news to all this is that The 16th Annual Rhode Island Spring Flower & Garden Show will take place THIS WEEKEND, February 19-22, 2009 at the Rhode Island Convention Center. For all information follow this link. http://www.flowershow.com/. These shows are always welcomed by winter-weary New Englanders and are well worth your support.