Mandolin Tunes

This past week UCSC hosted a Mandolin Festival of classes and fun. The gig was headed up by David Grisman and Mike Marshall. Tracy Grisman was in charge of food preparations and made a visit to our farm for a basket of fresh produce. She was so taken with her experience on the farm that she invited all farm apprentices to any and all of the nightly performances (if anyone was to question our attendance we were to simply say, "Tracy Grisman invited us.") My week was naturally a busy one, but I was able to attend the Friday and Saturday night shows- very casual, low-key and intimate settings. I captured a few photos and videos of the music and even got to chat briefly with David and Tracy. And did I mention- the music was AMAZING!! I know quite a few people who should have been there....

Fires & Fun (but not together...)

A few weeks have gone by. Where have I been? What have I been up to? Well- the title pretty much sums it up, but I'll fill you in on a few more details if you'd like some further reading.
Last week was a busy one. The farm got hit with it's first ever LBAM quarantine. What does that mean you might ask? Well the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM) has caused quite a stir in CA-mostly amongst farmers, overhead sprayers, political figures and chemical companies out to get rich. In a nut shell- if a 'suspect larvae' is found on a farm- that crop is quarantined and can't leave the area (or be sold). Suspiciously enough those 'suspect larvae' were found in peak season on our most lucrative crops... raspberries & those lucious beautiful blueberries. How can they still be sold? If highly paid government officials hand inspect each and every berry that leaves the farm for CSA or Cart sales. If 'suspect larvae' are found- the whole batch is withheld. What does it mean for apprentice farmers? We get loads of berries for the kitchen and get to participate in the first ever CASFS blueberry U-pick!! Though us farmies benefited directly from the LBAM quarantine, it's a shady deal that naturally involves mostly money and politics and NOT the health and well being of farmers, land or food consuming citizens. If you want to know more about LBAM and the ins and outs of that little soap box contact me directly.

Last Tuesday I piggy backed nicely on the LBAM quarantine with my second day of cooking with my dear friend Suzie. We made fabulous eats for our fellow farmies starting with most amazing brown butter blueberry muffins and ending with quadruple berry crisp (strawberries, cherries, raspberries and blueberries). Though everyone was singing our praises- you really don't have to do much when your berries have less than 24 hrs off the tree/vine/bush and are naturally sweetened by the sun. Between the berry surprises we entertained with polenta, greens, curries, dal and naan. Fun times in the kitchen for sure!

And as far as those fires... yes, yes the west is burning and I see plumes of smoke & hazes of smoke. I also hear helicopters buzzing around over head carrying fire jumpers, buckets of water and aerial sprays. BUT- the excitement doesn't stop there. Last Friday we had reconvened at 2pm in the veggie shed for the start of our afternoon of work. As we sat chatting and copping with the inevitable post lunch sluggish start to the afternoon we heard... "There might be a fire at the Life Lab!" We all ran down the hill (200 ft away) toward Life Lab to see smoke pouring out of a bordering bush. I heard- "Call 911!!" "Grab hoses!" I saw farmies running, grabbing buckets, hooking up hoses. I looked down and saw a hose- I grabbed it and ran down the hill, trembling I hooked it up to a connection and threaded it through the fence to help douse the fire. Fifteen plus farmies act fast. By the time the fire department was there we were in the midst of water fights with hoses and buckets. Lucky for them because they were on their way to another, bigger fire that had just started about 20 minutes from us and closed down Hwy 1 for a few hours- which we could clearly see from our farm perch. Though it ended simply enough- it really gave some reality to the dry and heat of our daily lives. We were lucky.

The weekend was full of Full Moon, Solstice and Farm Tour fun. We had a lovely Solstice dinner under the Kiwi Arbor on Friday night and an optional day of farm tour in the Pescadero area all day on Saturday. We started the tour at Harley Farm; a goat cheese farmstead (sorry they only sell locally- yes!!- otherwise I'd tell you to be on the look out for the pretty edible flower packaging). There I saw many cute goats and wonderfully sustainable farming practices. Incidentally, a Farmstead is where the animals and milk come from the same place as the product produced (ie- cheese). Something to look for on packaging!
We then headed to my friend Paul's parent's place- Double Dog Farm. His parents are experimenting with growing grains. Wheat, millet, oats etc. Very beautiful! Have any of you ever been in the 2nd story of a barn with a full sized tepee set up on ONE SIDE of it??? There isn't even room here to go on about the food consumed at lunch. Simply amazing...
We then headed down the road to Blue House Farm and helped harvest garlic and participate in their solstice/CSA strawberry shortcake party. Nothing like sun kissed shoulders, kids, banjos and sweet strawberries mingling together on a summer afternoon.
Our final stop, Pie Ranch, was unfortunately cut a bit short. This farm produces products to make pies (eggs, wheat, fruit) in a practically perfect surrounding and hosts a free pot luck/barn dance every third Saturday. For solstice they had slaughtered a goat and made birria to add to the excitement of the season. I was most excited to finally get a chance to partake in these festivities. Unfortunately for many- there was a horrific 5 car/3 fatality accident directly in front of their entry on Hwy 1 right before we arrived. We were blessed to have missed most of the trauma, though there was plenty of commotion, tears and strife as we (and others) arrived for the party. We took a self guided walking tour of the place and made our way back to town. I hope to be back next month. Though- the 2 final farms on our tour were started by and are run by former apprentices so we will also visit again as part of our curriculum.

And then... Dirty and Fun... Jen turned 31!
I had the most monochromatically funly fantastic birthday. Thanks for your love and greetings from afar, I was blessed with a plethora close by as well. How fun are farmies? Thirty seven farmies didn't leak a word of their plan to all dress monochromatically for Jen's Birthday! My breakfast was hilarious as this theme was gradually presented to me. (stay tuned for pictures- they are on Adelaide's camera...) The day continued with Markos playing the accordion and all singing Happy Birthday during our DG walk, many hugs and well wishes, phone calls and chats, a massage from my friend Maggie and blueberry mint (coconut milk based) ice cream with ginger cake. HELLO SWEETNESS!!

Days and harvests continue (along with plenty of weeding...). This week we added fennel...
Just when you start to feel the rhythm, things change. Next week starts my 6 wk rotation in the field. Here come the long, long rows and the big tractor tires.
Stay tuned...

PS-Did you know that kale, broccoli, kohlrabi, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli raab & collards are all of the genus species Brassica oleracea? Which means they are the exact same plant- selected over time for various different features (ie- flowers, leaves, swollen stems etc) and you can eat all parts of all plants. Hilariously interesting, no?

Ericacea

The blueberries (and mullberries for that matter...) are bumpin'!

My fingers are stained, my belly is full, my heart is content.

The Farm at Low Tide...

Harvest time has come!! This week began our first days of harvest on the farm for the CSA boxes and cart sales. Though the pickings were slim- I have to remind myself most of my family and friends are still dealing with snowy days and freezing nights. On the harvest table we had: broccoli, cauliflower, brassica greens, kale, chard, turnips, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, mixed herbs, lettuce, flower bouquets and edible flower baskets. Not too shabby really.

The days continue with many new and foreign words and names trying to be crammed into my brain. I'm struggling with the genius/species of many different and unfamiliar flower varieties. So it goes.

I finished my last week in propagation and have been a stranger to the farm and garden and much of what is being planted out these past three weeks. However, I was able to take part in a dry farmed heirloom tomato planting out experiment in the field. Dry farming (essentially planting out starts very deeply without watering them the entire season and hoping for deep tap-root formation...) is something that is peaking my interest as a potential, exciting venture in the land of WYO. We are also experimenting with different types of fertigation... fish emulsion, nettle/comfrey compost tea and worm casting compost tea.... Stay tuned for results... PS- word on the street is that our dry farmed tomatoes are off the hook in a couple months... literally rotting on the ground as we can't keep up with them all (regardless of CSA, cart, feeding us farmies and canning and dehydrating like mad...) Not on my watch! COME VISIT!!

So amidst all the propagation, fertigation and harvest excitement there were some emotions running high (and low) this week. Yet to be determined if it was the heat, the low-tides and/or the culmination of intense schedule changes and extreme farm bonding over the last month and half, but I'm hoping crawling from tent to tent Friday night-during the annual Tent Crawl down Tent Row (and having a rockin' party in the Farm Center after) has turned those moods and lightened hearts. I do know it has left a large bruise on my right knee. And what we ALL know is... Farm camp is FUN!

On that note- I'm attaching way more pictures that one should on a blog, but also a link at left if you just can't get enough (as is obviously the case with me).

We well young chickens... It's JUNE! :)