Trials, Tribulations and Thanks

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and our wish is that you may all celebrate the holiday season in a way that seems right to you and helps you to see the good things around you.

Tammy and I agree that Thanksgiving is our favorite holiday. To us, Thanksgiving is actually a 'literal' holiday.  We believe that we should spend some time giving thanks, even when it feels difficult and, perhaps, even impossible.  This Fall has been harder than usual for us.  Some of the issues might be of our own doing, some might be as a result of other forces and some just simply happened.  We are aware that everyone has their issues and we know our problems are nothing compared to so many other people out there who struggle just to get through each day.  I do not say this to belittle how we (or you) feel when we're down.  Instead, it is a reminder to me that I am not unique to having periods of difficulty and that I am blessed to be able to do something about so much of what faces me.

One of my traditions for Thanksgiving is to write statements of gratitude and I thought I would share some of them with you.

- I am frequently humbled by the many people who trust us to provide them with vegetables, poultry and eggs for their consumption.  In fact, we sometimes work so hard at trying to do the things we think are right and necessary to fulfill that trust that we may not be transmitting to you how honored we are to be able to work for you.  We give thanks for all of the fine people who support our farm by buying our products.  Thank you for being understanding when things don't go quite as we planned and thank you for telling us when you are pleased.  Those little nuggets are fuel that burns for days, weeks, months and years on our farm.

- Neither Tammy nor I are terribly comfortable with self-promotion - even though we find ourselves in a situation where we have to promote what we do in order to make sales for the farm or to advocate for other things that matter.  But, that's not going to stop me from saying good things about my spouse.  I know she doesn't think some of these things are a big deal - but I do.  We actually braved some of the Friday shopping madness in order to acquire some fleece that will be made into fleece blankets for the Wartburg Social Work Holiday Shoppe (local families with financial challenges are able to get gifts for their children at Christmas through this program).  Each year since she started at Wartburg, she and her students have tied several blankets to be given away.  This year, Tammy made sure to invite some students who were remaining on campus to join us for a full Thanksgiving dinner.  In addition to that, she cooked up a ham to take to a community dinner and made pumpkin muffins for students in her Wednesday classes.  This isn't a contest, she's not trying to win a prize.  She does this out of kindness and a desire to help make things better where she can.  I am proud of her and I am eternally grateful that she is willing to be my friend.

- Sometimes, we have the good fortune to get help on the farm.  Sometimes it is negotiated and sometimes it is offered with no strings attached.  Suffice it to say, there is a list of fine people for whom we give thanks on a regular basis.  Rather than list people and risk omission, I'll give a couple of examples without names.  When I walk by our Northeast asparagus patch, I remember help received to plant the crowns out there several years ago.  Each time I enter the new walk-in cooler, I think of the persons who worked hard to make that construction project happen.  I see the new plastic on our smaller high tunnel building and I am reminded of all of the great folks who came early in the morning to help.  I remember the time our old truck was crushed under a building and someone immediately loaned us a truck so we could make deliveries.  We cannot repay, we can only give thanks.

I am hopeful that you will all receive this email.  Recent email issues have made communication difficult with many emails sent to me apparently lost permanently in the ether.  Even so, I am grateful that we do have access to electronic communication.  And, I am also thankful that I have the ability to address problems we might be having.

Happy Thanksgiving!
Rob & Tammy Faux
Genuine Faux Farm

Half Full / Half Empty

What do you see when you look at a list of your accomplishments for a period of time?
a) a bunch of things you did that you feel pretty good about
b) a bunch of things you still need to do and you regret not getting them done too
c) a bunch of things that are "done enough" so you can continue with other tasks
d) all of the above

Well, if you run a diversified small farm such as ours, I will make a wager that your answer is going to be d) every time.

New Perennial Fruit/Veggie Area
When Valhalla (our new high tunnel) went up last year, we made sure to leave some space between it and the bush line to its North.  The main issue we were trying to avoid was the possibility of drifts accumulating and pressing on the North wall of the building.  We managed to handle that - but we were left with this odd sized area and we trying to figure out the best things we could do with it.

We got most of the rhubarb transplanted!

Our intended solution was to expand our asparagus bed in that area and add some rhubarb and grapes to our production.  Of course, we intended to 'get right to it' last year.  But, when push came to shove, it just didn't hit the top of the priority list.  This year, we spent time working to discourage the Canadian Thistle in that area.  Then, we actually managed to hill out two areas and transplant our year-old rhubarb starts, using some of our nice compost to encourage them to do well.

Now, as long as we only look at the South bed, we're good.  But, sadly, the North bed is still awaiting it's asparagus and grapes.  Alas!

Valhalla at Work
The new high tunnel did reasonably well for us this season.  We are still fighting some soil compaction issues that were a result of the build last year, but we figure that will work out over time.

Do I see lima beans?!?

Lima beans have long been one of Rob's favorite veggies that he gets only rarely.  So, we thought we'd do a trial of some limas in the high tunnel.  After all, they like warmer seasons and they need a bit more time than many crops.  The results were positive from our perspective.  But, they are not likely going to be expanded to production levels that will allow us to have limas for our CSA or for sale.  The returns just don't seem to be that great.  But, it sure was nice to have some fresh limas this Fall!

Taking a Moment to Appreciate Fall Color
I even managed to enforce a ten minute break when the sun was showing off the Fall colors in the tree lines to our North and East.  I'll take that as an accomplishment as well.  Of course, I wish I could have done this more often over the past year, but I'll admit that I did this enough so that I could continue to do what I needed to do!

Keep On Keeping On

I have been in need of some humor lately and I am guessing others might as well.

Please check your worries at the door and set aside sorrow, anger and fear.  If only for a few moments, let yourself chuckle... or groan at the puns if that's your style.  In a future post, I'll take on weightier things.  For now, I give you this:

The Computer Scientist Strikes!
Many of you might know (or maybe you don't) that I actually have a degree in Computer Science.  In fact, I am fond of pointing out that I have a PhD in Computer Science and Adult Education - therefore I farm.  For a short time, I worked for Rockwell International in Cedar Rapids and had a phone conversation with a guy in a Rockwell office located in Australia.  He told me about their Local Area Network setup that he was in charge of.  Of course, they called it the LAN down under.

For the Birds
The chickens were really active today on the farm.  It wasn't too windy and the temperature was pretty nice.  I guess I encouraged it a bit when I gave them some veggie scraps.  That's me, I enjoy all kinds of art - including poultry in motion.

So, You Want a Salad?
I give you Baxter Black and his Vegetarian's Nightmare as presented on the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson.  You just have to appreciate the twinkle in his eye as he does this one.

Star Trek II?
So, when we lived in Madison, Wisconsin, we would often drive by this small 'hole-in-the-wall' business by lake Monona that advertised palm reading and other such stuff.  The owner, a short, slightly built fellow, had no employees and it was hard to see how he could possibly be making a go of it.  Some time ago, we heard that the proprietor had been arrested for some "improper business practices" and had been found guilty and sent to a minimum security prison.  More recently, we read an article that said he had managed to escape from prison.  The headline read:
"Short Fortuneteller Escapes Prison: Small Medium At-Large!"

I wondered if any of the people who had put him in prison were worried about the "wrath of con?"  No?  Ok, that was stretching a bit.

Ah, Tim Conway, You Make Me Cry

The Carol Burnett Show has so many wonderful nuggets like this.  Is it what he says, or is it the fact that no one can stop laughing to continue with their skit?  I don't care - when I need a laugh, this always gets me.

Music Festival
Tammy and I used to go to a music festival in the Summer.  Needless to say, the farm put a stop to that.  Well, actually, we moved so far away from the music festival it became a non-issue, then the festival ceased to be - which made it more of a non-issue.  In any event, it was a festival that included a campground area, so thousands of people would pitch tents and go to various concerts held throughout the grounds.

What struck me about the whole thing is that people would sang whenever they wanted, but they never did sing.  Kids ran all over the place, but they would never run.  People would spoke with each other, but they never did speak.  After all any where people went in the camping area, it was past tents.

String You Along?
Haven't laughed enough? - time for Monty Python. 

Some day we'll tell you about the "hosettes" we now have at our farm.

In Closing
Well, I suppose I must be going now.  You know what "they" say.  Time flies like an arrow.  Fruit flies like a banana.

Chickens, Dry Beans and Fall Crops, Oh My!

Here we are, in the month of November and it feels like September.  I won't complain too much since this weather is giving me many more opportunities than usual to get things done without wearing as many layers of clothing as has often been the case in the past.  Besides, I am positive I will still have plenty to do once Mother Nature decides to turn on the A/C unit and I am also quite sure I'll be frantically trying to do a large number of things on the day(s) just prior to the "big freeze" that typically comes right before Thanksgiving every year.

Portable Fertilizer Units
Once again, we are making use of our portable fertilizer units who double up as a clean up crew.  Our third (and final) batch of broiler chickens for the year are cleaning up the Western 2/3 of our tomato/basil plot this year.  They've done a nice job kicking the straw mulch around and exposing the drip tape so it will be easier to remove.

These boys go to the park on Sunday!  Who wants some chicken on Monday?

We will be taking the broilers to the park on Sunday night and we would love it if a bunch of people told us they wanted some unfrozen chickens for eating.  We will arrange delivery points in both Waverly and Cedar Falls if we can get enough orders.

Four Leaf Clovers Are In There!
Take note of the nice clover in the path by the bush line.

I know the 4 leaf clovers are there - they told me so.

Beans, Beans, the Miracle Fruit
The dry bean harvest is one of those that always gets put off.  And put off.  And put off.  We grow bush dry beans and pole dry beans.  The bush dry beans are much harder to pick usually.  At least this year, we kept them weeded so it won't be a treasure hunt in addition to a harvest task.

Ok, I took a picture of the wrong section of fence....

The pole beans on the other hand, haven't been a consistent success for us because we don't always get the fencing up in time.  It's a time thing and just the way things go.  This year, we had a wonderful crew of Wartburg students come out for a "Work for your Supper" event today and we got all of the dry pole beans done.  Looking forward to some excellent eating with the True Red Cranberry and Cherokee Trail of Tears we grew this season.  The vines weren't as heavy as they have been some years, but I would call it at least an average harvest - which is fine with me.

Bucket List
My bucket list is different than most peoples' bucket list.

Give me some nice paint buckets and the bucket on the tractor.

Hey, I TRY to Tell You We're Still Growing Crops
This time of year I get the comment from numerous people that goes something like this:  "Well, I guess you're winding down now.  Surely everything must be in by now."

Nope.  And, the deer know it.

The deer were giving our daikon radish too much TLC, so we thought we'd make it much less of a positive experience.  Also in the picture are watermelon radish, mustard greens, arugula, spinach, turnips and short season radish.  We may need to add some row cover in a bit, but here's hoping we can get what we want out of most of this before that point.

We, The People

You know, Lafou, I've been thinking.  A dangerous pastime... I know.

You may have noticed that we tend not to use our farm blog or Facebook to attempt to sway others to vote one way or another.  However, there are some things I do wish to say regarding the upcoming elections and I hope you will take them in the spirit they are intended.

Friends Are Always Friends
I have friends that identify at various points in the "political spectrum" and because of this, I try to remind myself to avoid belittling any opinion that I do not agree with.  First, I know I am far from perfect, so it is not my place to sit in judgement of others.  Second, I am fully aware that there is NO SUCH THING as an easy answer.  Every solution put forth, whether if favors conservative, liberal or other viewpoints, has shortcomings and advantages that requires hard thought.  Third, I suspect many of you are like me, we tend to grow tired in conflict and sadly, we often do not take the time to really check our facts.  I also believe that the majority of us don't even know how to find the facts necessary to make a truly informed decision.  And, yet, we seem to think it is ok to take a position without any consideration for other options.  We happily glom on to anything that already agrees with our initial opinion.  And we tend to let the simple (and incomplete and often inaccurate) answer be enough.

In the end, I am comforted by the fact that friends are simply my friends.  This is true regardless of whether we agree politically, religiously or otherwisely.  And, because I value my friends, I remind myself constantly to be respectful and to remember that the reason we might disagree on things so strongly is because we care.  And, that's usually one of the main reasons I like my friends in the first place.

Those People We Like to Gripe About - Well, They're Us
It's so easy to say things like - "That @$%* government messes everything up.  They need to just leave me alone and let me do my thing."  After all, in our own eyes, we are never the problem.  It's always someone else, isn't it?  And, the government is so big, it's pretty easy to pretend it isn't made up of a large group of people who have dreams, aspirations and abilities that run the gamut  - just like you and I.  In fact, I bet each of us has friends who are employed directly or indirectly in government-funded positions.  When you make a blanket statement about the organization, you make a statement about your friend.  Is that really what you wanted to do?  And, if somehow, you try to say, "Well they're the exception."  Just remember that all of the other government employed are someone else's friend or relative.  They can't all be the exception.

And guess what?  Those folks running for the various offices are also people.  While I won't make any claims about those who like the big stage, I will tell you that most who run for state and local offices are people who are generally running for office because they wish to serve.

And yet, all we hear about them are the general negatives that apply to anyone who is a (fill in a political party).  Clearly, because they identify a certain way - they are clearly evil. And, apparently we respond pretty well to all of the general negative ads that are out there now that have very little basis in fact and are usually not specific to the candidate in question.

How terribly sad for us.

If We Really Care - We'll Simmer Down and Think Harder, Be Kinder
As I said earlier - I believe that many of our ideological disagreements come because we care.  But, when we fail to respect others' ideas/ideals and we fail to consider alternatives and we fail to thoroughly check out what is true then I have to conclude that we do not care enough.

I'd like to believe that we are all better than this. I'd like to challenge myself and anyone who reads this to work to improve.  After all, the real strength of the United States of America is...  us.  We can demand integrity.  We can encourage conversation and compromise.  We can overcome our tendency to respond to sensational advertising and emotional appeals when some careful thought and investigation would be better.

Frankly, I would rather require that ads for each candidate only feature the candidate discussing policy options they currently favor and discuss how they see the role they would have as our representatives in government.  What do you think about that? 

Here is Where I Make An Exception
I stated at the beginning that we try not to use our blog to encourage certain votes.  I will say that I DO want to encourage you to vote.  Our country needs us to participate in the process and it needs us to honor the process.  By honoring and respecting how things are done in our democracy and using civil discourse we build ourselves up rather than tear everything down.

An example of this is this past year's efforts to encourage change in the state of Iowa that would help farms such as ours deal with chemical misapplication.  Brian Schoenjahn of the Iowa Senate (12th district) is my representative and the representative for many who read this blog.  He was willing to hear what I (and others) had to say about the problem.  He allowed us to educate him with some of the necessary details.  He and his staff went to others to learn more about the issue and then he was responsive as we lobbied for change.  We were able to convince him to advocate on our behalf.  Perhaps we didn't get everything to happen that we wanted in 'our perfect world.'  Perhaps Mr. Schoenjahn doesn't see all of what we want in the same light we do.  And that is fine.

Why?  Because what matters is Mr. Schoenjahn did what a public servant is supposed to do.  He responded when his constituents asked for something.  He listened respectfully while a case was made and requested additional information in hopes that he could learn enough to properly advocate for a solution - or perhaps decide there wasn't enough cause to go looking for a solution.  During the process, I felt as if I actually had a say in how things happen in our government.  Isn't that how I am supposed to feel?

We don't necessarily need more Democrats or more Republicans or more Libertarians or more Green Party members.  We need representatives in our government who know what it means to be a responsive and responsible lawmaker.  We need people who won't shut down or begin to sneer at you because you are not in agreement with them.  We need problem solvers, not problem makers.

Because I have had some direct interaction with Brian Schoenjahn, I have come to see him as a problem solver.  Therefore, I will endorse him for the Iowa Senate, realizing that my endorsement will likely do little to convince anyone else to vote for him.

What I am MOST hopeful for is that each person who does read this blog will become more involved in the day to day governing of our nation so that they too, can become problem solvers.  And, in so doing, they can also identify our public servants who are more a positive part of the government that is made up of us.

We, the People.

Go vote! I, the Sandman, have spoken.

Turkeys - Want One?

The turkeys took their trip to "The Park" on Wednesday night and they either headed to their new homes where they will be the guest of honor for Thanksgiving dinner or they are now attending "Freezer Camp."  Those that are attending Freezer Camp are looking for their new homes as well.  Are you interested in inviting one of our wonderful birds to your Thanksgiving celebration this year?

Summary:
   Available: 55 total turkeys - 8 still available
   Bird Cost: $3.75 per pound if under 20 lbs
                    $3.50 per pound if  20+ lbs
                   add the cost of freezing birds.  We won't know about the cost until we get the bill.

Delivery Options for frozen turkeys:
  Waverly at St Andrews Church 4:30-5:30 PM on Nov 2 or Nov 16 (both Wednesdays)
  Cedar Falls at Hansen's Outlet in the old Chinese restaurant next to the gas station.  4:30-5:30 PM on Nov 9 and 23 (both Wednesdays)
  Other options can be considered, including on-farm pickup.
  We request payment at the point of delivery.

How to Order
  Send us an email and tell us which bird you would like to order.  Also, tell us which pickup you would prefer (or give us another option if those do not work).
Please note: we also have a number of broiler chickens available at $15 per bird.  Feel free to order these as well.  However, we want this post to focus on the turkeys!

About the birds:
   Our turkeys are Broad-Breasted Bronzes that were purchased as chicks from Hoover Hatchery in Rudd.  Once the birds were old enough, they have their own dedicated pasture area and allowed to day-range.  They came inside at night to a room in a permanent structure on our farm to protect them from predators.  After the first few days, turkeys are able to walk themselves into their room at night and the farmers just need to close them in to protect them.  If you thought turkeys were dumb, you might want to read this research we discovered by Ima Turkey.

Feed came from Riverside Feeds in Riceville.  All grains in the mix were non-GMO and much of them were certified organic. The birds were also allowed to forage on the clover and other plants in the pasture and they were given cucumbers, tomatoes, melons, squash and other produce that did not meet our delivery standards, etc.  Jake, will gladly tell you about some of the things he enjoyed at the Genuine Faux Farm.

The birds were taken to Martzahn's farm in Greene for processing, where they do exemplary work cleaning them for your use.  Our birds were very active, thus the quality of the dark meat far exceeds what you will find with most birds raised in confinement or with limited pasture.  Our birds tend to be leaner, so we recommend you cook your birds at lower temperatures for a slightly longer period of time for best results.

Persons who have purchased our turkeys have given excellent reviews for the taste and quality.  We have had customers who have successfully brined, smoked, grilled, deep fat fried and roasted birds we have provided.

If you would like to know more about the names we give to our turkeys at the various stages of their lives, you might enjoy reading Time to Talk Turkey. 

How pickup works
The times listed for pickup are also our delivery times for our Fall Vegetable share delivery.  We deliver eggs at that time and will also be selling/delivering chickens.  We will work as quickly and efficiently as we are able to get each and every person what they need.  Your patience is appreciated if there are a number of people waiting for our attention.

Remember, we can't help you if you don't ask.  So, if there is something you need, please let us know.  Also, feel free to remind us if you think we are forgetting something.

Available Bird List
Price does not include the cost of freezing the bird.  typically the cost is a couple of dollars.

Weight	Price	Taken
11.94	$     44.78	x
12.43	$     46.61	x
12.95	$     48.56	x
13.49	$     50.59	x
13.55	$     50.81	x
13.6	$     51.00	x
13.64	$     51.15	x
13.83	$     51.86	x
13.94	$     52.28	x
14.01	$     52.54	x
14.11	$     52.91	x
14.15	$     53.06	x
14.49	$     54.34	x
14.58	$     54.68
14.6	$     54.75
14.78	$     55.43
14.81	$     55.54	x
14.84	$     55.65	x
15.15	$     56.81	x
15.59	$     58.46	x
12.86	$     48.23	x
16.3	$     61.13	x
16.37	$     61.39	x
16.43	$     61.61	x
16.69	$     62.59	x
16.71	$     62.66	x
16.85	$     63.19
16.95	$     63.60
17.22	$     64.58	x

17.38	$     65.18	x
17.48	$     65.55
17.54	$     65.78
17.72	$     66.45	x
18.6	$     69.75	x
18.64	$     69.90	x
18.67	$     70.01	x
18.73	$     70.24	x
19.57	$     73.39	x
19.57	$     73.39
19.69	$     73.84	x
19.82	$     74.33	x
19.99	$     74.96	x
20.47	$     71.65	x
20.56	$     71.96	x
20.87	$     73.05	x
20.92	$     73.22	x
21.06	$     73.71	x
21.06	$     73.71	x
21.4	$     74.90	x
21.44	$     75.04	x
21.77	$     76.20	x
22.16	$     77.56	x
22.25	$     77.88	x
22.61	$     79.14	x

Why Do Cowboys Mosie?

A very good friend of mine shared the last few stanzas of  this poem with me at a point when he was looking at some of the western US literature.  I don't know why, but for some reason, this one stuck with me for a very long time.

Reincarnation

A Poem of the Old West by Wallace McRae

In a while the grass'll grow upon yer rendered mound.

Till some day on yer moldered grave a lonely flower is found.

And say a hoss should wander by and graze upon this flower

that once wuz you, but now's become yer vegetative bower.

The posey that the hoss done ate up, with his other feed,

makes bone, and fat, and muscle essential to the steed.

But some is left that he can't use and so it passes through

and finally layz upon the ground, this thing that once wuz you.

Then say, by chance, I wanders by and sees this upon the ground,

and I ponders, and I wonders at this object that I found.

I thinks of reincarnation, of life, and death, and such,

and come away concludin': Slim, you ain't changed all that much.

I am not sure that I still have a fascination with this poem because it amuses or bothers me.  Perhaps a little of both.  The simple fact that a person could almost picture the stereotypical cowboy perched on his horse, scratching this poem out with a nub of a pencil while glancing down at Slim's freshly covered grave.  I can almost see him chewing idly on a blade of grass or perhaps the pencil as he considers his next bit, allowing himself a chance to grieve while maintaining a philosophical perspective with a twist of humor to help it all go down more smoothly than it might otherwise.

If you want to read more about Wallace McRae, I think this article in the Montana State University magazine would serve you well.   This poem is probably the one he is best known for, though it is not, according to more than one source, his favorite by any stretch.  And, that doesn't surprise me in the least.

I am not a cowboy, nor do I have any real experience on a Montana ranch.  I can, at best, extrapolate my own experiences on our farm, but I am sure it isn't the same.  Therefore, I, and most anyone else, fall back on the stereotype.  And, because there is humor, irony, truth and sadness all bound up into this poem we grab it and share it.  And, by sharing it, we perpetuate the myth and stereotype.  Then we attach that myth/stereotype to Mr. McRae.

This is the sort of thing that makes me wonder what others might have connected to me.  I am only curious because I am fairly certain it won't be something I would have picked myself.

Even after I learned more about Wallace McRae, I find myself liking the poem even more.  Why?  Because, he shows great skill in building a picture and a story with which I can relate.  Even if I relate to the details without full understanding, I can still connect with the feelings.

Well, I guess I'll just mosie along now.

PFI Pollinator Field Day in August

Basil flowers with a visitor

In partnership with Steve Schmidt, Practical Farmers of Iowa, the Xerces Society and the support of the Bremer County Extension office, we helped to host a pollinator field day on August 20.  The Genuine Faux Farm (yes, that's us) has always been concerned about supporting pollinators and beneficial critters on the farm and it was an honor to be asked to help with this particular field day.

The day started at the Bremer County Extension Office in Tripoli where Sarah Foltz Jordan of the Xerces Society covered a broad range of topics regarding pollinators and pollinator habitat on farms.  It is always difficult to figure out what needs to be covered at events like this because you can never be entirely sure of where your audience is at knowledge-wise.  But, Sarah is a pro and did a fine job reaching us where we were.

At mid-day, lunch was served at the Extension Office.  GFF turkey, lettuce and tomatoes were served along with other food grown by Iowa farmers.  Liz Kolbe has a report for PFI on their blog  that lists the other farms that provided additional food, such as some delicious sweet corn.  Sally, Liz and Tammy did a fantastic job of getting the food together!  I don't think anyone went away hungry.

After lunch and before everyone started getting too sleepy, we headed out to our farm for a farm tour and a shot at using the Xerces Habitat Assessment Guides.  Rob was given a microphone, which is always a risk.  But, he behaved himself for the most part and people seemed to be able to tolerate him at least a little bit.

Probably the highlight for us - from our perspective - was the ability to show off the melon plot and our deliberate and careful integration of annual pollinator support strips.  We wrote about this more than once last year.  First, we highlighted the flowers we had selected for our melon field.   Then, we linked this more directly to our purpose of feeding our pollinators.  So, this is not an entirely new concept for us.

In fact, we've been trying to incorporate annual flowers into our veggie fields ever since we started.  Sometimes with success - and sometimes not.  We can tell you that treating these annual flower strips with the SAME priority as our melon crop we have seen an increase in marketable fruit over the past two years even while we reduced the number of melon plants we have put in the ground.

Borage left, basil towards the front, zinnia at right with melons between.

We certainly try to do this in other fields as well, but I have to admit that we don't always accomplish what we envision for each season.  Sometimes, we just don't get to it.  For example, we've interplanted sage (and other spices) with our broccoli in the past, but we didn't get to it this year.  Then, there are the cases where things just didn't go as planned.  We seeded cilantro next to our tomatoes and the cilantro simply didn't germinate.  We tested the germination of the seed in trays as well and they didn't do well that way either.  So, that kind of thing happens.

On the other hand, it was a good year for borage and zinnias. We direct-seed both of these flower crops and have had good success in both cases.  We typically seed a bit heavier than we might if we were just gardening for ourselves.  But, the intent is to make sure the flowers out-compete any weeds in the row.  We will cultivate between rows, but we don't want to do lots of extra hand-weeding just for the privilege of having the flowers.  Zinnias showed up in our tomato field (along with basil) and in our winter squash field.  Borage made an appearance with the winter squash as well.  And, you could find phacelia (Bee's Friend) in various places with different levels of success.

We also have marigolds, four o-clocks, salvia and various other flowering plants throughout our fields.  We're sad that we didn't get the sunflowers in this time around, but there is always next year.

Uh oh!  There's a picture of the farmer with the microphone.  And, Tammy is walking away from him.  I hope he didn't say anything bad!

Actually, in Rob's former life, he did teach computer science and is comfortable speaking in front of others - despite his tendency to be a bit introverted.

I thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to share a little of what we do on the farm and tell others what seems to have been working and a bit of what doesn't seem to work for us.  For me, it is not about trying to pretend to know everything.  Instead, it's about sharing what we've tried and what we think we know based on our observations and research.  From a selfish point of view - this forces me to work harder at investigating what I think I know so I can share these things effectively.  But, really, I think the sharing is beneficial if it gets others to simply think about what they can do to help pollinators.  It's a bit like farming, you plant seeds in hopes that they lead to something good.

Some attendees had to leave at various points as the event transpired.  It's always the nature of the beast since people can come from some distance to these events.  Those that were able to participate in running through the Xerces evaluation tool at our farm were willing to pose for a picture.

Steve Schmidt's farm

After that, people followed Steve Schmidt to his farm by Denver, Iowa.  Rob and Tammy stayed at their farm because, being the good introverts they are, they needed some recharge time!  Or, more accurately, they just collapsed.  But, we have been to Steve's farm and we're pleased that he has been working on a pollinator planting that he has incorporated into his row crop operation.

Steve is doing something we hope more row crop farmers will begin doing in the future.  Studies are showing that the presence of pollinator support tends to improve crop yields for a very wide range of crops.

So, are you curious about what you can do?  Take a look at this page on the Xerces website that includes a number of resources they have made available for free. 

Our thanks to Liz and Sally (PFI) for sharing these pictures form the field day.  For some reason, the farmers didn't have their own camera out!

101 Uses For Okra

Don't let the title fool you, we're not really going to give you 101 uses for okra.  But, you might get an idea or two.

The impetus for this post is the creativity of our volunteer, Max, at the Waverly distribution.  I confess that it might be because of something I said that he started looking for letters in the okra.  But, even if it isn't because of anything I said - the fact remains - Max found letters in the okra.

101 Uses for Okra - this must be number 73?

Now, if we could find the letters for "Genuine," we'll have it all figured out.

Our thanks to Kory for sharing the picture with us.

Oddly, this would not be the first time okra was the theme of a GFF blog post.  The other was amusing to me at least.  I suspect others found it at least marginally so.

If you were looking for something more serious about okra - like how you should use it - you might have to go elsewhere.  We know you can bread it and fry it, you can pickle it and you can use it gumbo or other soups.  We know several people who just LOVE okra.  And, that's a good enough reason to grow a nice 150 foot row of it for our CSA members.

When we first decided to grow some okra, we didn't know much at all about the plants.  But, as soon as they started flowering, we thought we had some sort of mallow flower.  For example, hibiscus are also in the mallow family.  And, sure enough, okra are in the mallow family.  See, we don't ALWAYS fully research everything before we try it.

A nice hedge of okra is usually planted on the side of the pepper rows that will provide the peppers some wind protection.  Okra plants tend to be relatively tall and the stems are tough and fibrous.  While a planting of okra can help, they certainly won't prevent all wind damage to the pepper plants.  But, why not give the plants a secondary purpose if you are going to put them in anyway.  They apparently have no problem being paired up with peppers and bush beans.

There you have it!  Well, ok, maybe that was five or six uses for okra.  But, 101 sounds soooo much more impressive, doesn't it?

Well, it certainly is better than me trying to make puns about the Okra Winfrey show or the shootout at the Okra Corral with the Urp brothers and Dock Holliday.  (hey, Dock is an edible root - give me a break here!)  And, I suppose if okra was more of a mustard yellow color, you could call it ochre okra.

Ok.  Enough already, please finish your blog post human.

When in doubt, one should listen to the indoor farm manager.

Crop Report 2016

Apparently, we are getting into the habit of posting crop goals in October.  I am not sure if it is good or bad to be somewhat predictable on that account.  I'll just say it's good and leave it at that.

As a reminder, we tend to set two goals for ourselves.   The first is a number we think is reasonable AND should provide us with plenty to meet obligations (CSA, etc) and provide additional sales opportunities.  The second is a goal we think we really have to get in order to just meet obligations.  Additional sales would be minimal in that case.  And, for those who might care that our goals are different this year than they were last year - there are reasons.  For example, we adjusted the green bean goals in part because we were hoping some pole beans (Gold of Bacau) would take some of the load (and they did).

All numbers with * are subject to change as the season continues. Updated 11/4/16

Green Beans
   goal - 700 pounds                                                   minimum goal - 500 pounds
   2016: 481.6 pounds *                                             2015: 888.5 pounds
Broccoli
   goal - 500 pounds                                                     minimum goal - 400 pounds
   2016: 193.0 pounds *                                               2015: 369.8 pounds
Cucumber
   goal - 4000 fruit                                                        minimum goal - 3000 fruit
   2016: 3022 fruit                                                        2015: 2898 fruit 
Garlic
   goal - 3000 head                                                       minimum goal - 2000 head
   2016: 3176 head                                                        2015: 3393 head
Bell and Sweet Peppers
   goal - 4000 fruit                                                       minimum goal - 3000 fruit
   2016: 3635 fruit                                                       2015: 4418 fruit
Zucchini
   goal - 1200 fruit                                                       minimum goal - 750 fruit
   2016: 868 fruit                                                         2015: 936 fruit
Lettuce
   goal -  750 pounds                                                   minimum goal -  500 pounds 
   2016 -  860.6 pounds *                                            2015 -  349.5 pounds
Melon
   goal - 500 fruit                                                        min goal - 300 fruit
   2016 - 541 fruit                                                      2015 - 644 fruit
Onion
   goal - 3000 bulbs                                                    min goal - 2000 bulbs
   2016 - 3205 bulbs *                                                 2015 - 3598 bulbs 
Winter Squash
   goal - 1000 fruit                                                     min goal - 500 fruit
   2016 - 938 fruit                                                     2015 - 643 fruit
Snow Peas
   goal - 250 pounds                                                  min goal - 100 pounds
   2016 - 134.8 pounds                                             2015 - 445.4 pounds
Potatoes
   goal - 2500 pounds                                               min goal - 1000 pounds
   2016 - 1460.4 pounds *                                          2015 - 1139.7 pounds
Carrot **
   goal - 500 pounds                                                min goal - 200 pounds
   2016 - 122.0 pounds                                           2015 - 607.3 pounds
Kale
   goal - 300 pounds                                                min goal - 200 pounds
   2016 - 221.0 pounds    *                                       2015 - 432.8 pounds   
Pok Choi
   goal - 300 pounds                                                min goal - 200 pounds
   2016 - 222.4 pounds    *                                      2015 - 365.5 pounds
Snack Tomato
   goal - 2000 fruit                                                  min goal - 1500 fruit
   2016 - 1959 fruit    *                                            2015 - 3332 fruit

** Note that these numbers do not include Jeff Sage's carrot numbers.

This is just a sampling of our harvest so far and some of the general goals we set for ourselves for production.  If you have interest in some of our other crops, let us know and we'll add them to this list!

The Good

Bunte Forellenschus (bless you!)

Up until August, we were thinking lettuce was going to be the headliner for the season.  And, on the strength of the early season numbers, it still is.  But, heavy rains have taken a toll in September and the hopes for a 'monster' lettuce season are dwindling.  We'll see how the last batches shape up and we may still be more than just 'happy' with our lettuce season.  It's a pretty good situation when you could stop *right now* on a crop and say you've met and exceeded expectations.

It is difficult to come up with another crop that fits this category right now.  Frankly, very few crops are really knocking our socks off this year.  On the other hand, very few are making us terribly unhappy.  

The Good Enough
We have enough years of data and experience now that we have to be careful to not let an earlier year's monstrous success with one crop make us move the bar radically in response.  Case in point?  The peas.  Last year was a just a silly good year for peas and this year they came in at a number that is a pretty good average for us.  I admit that I didn't like the look of the vines this year - but it is possible I still have visions of last year's amazing plants in my head.  In the end, I suspect no one was unhappy with the amount of peas they received in the CSA.  We just didn't find ourselves trying to find sales outlets for them like we did last year.


The other crop that comes to mind here is the zucchini.  We've got numbers from our earlier years that run from 1800 to 2200 fruit.  Compared to the 800-1200 in recent years, it is tempting to wonder what is going on here.  Part of the reduction is simply a production choice.  We were having trouble finding homes for all of the zucchini, so we cut production row feet.  We also have tried to expand our production window so we would have zucchini for a much longer period of time.  That has worked, but to the detriment of total production numbers.  For example, this Fall's crop produced enough to give everyone in the CSA some zucchini in September, but the fruit per row foot production of these plants is actually very low.  In the end, we can say that the plants certainly produced well enough to meet our obligations and we do feel the quality was very high.  We just can't say it is anything more than an average year for them.  And, that's not a bad thing at all.

And the Ugly

How our broccoli *should* have looked (this was 2014)

There are some crops that might fall under the "ugly" category this year - sort of.  For example, it was extremely frustrating to watch multiple plantings of carrots fail to germinate in the field.  On the other hand, Jeff Sage is our carrot guru, so we can afford to not worry too much when that crop fails on our farm.  It's the main reason why Jeff grows the carrots, he likes to grow them and his soil tends to have more success.  On the other hand, the crop of Dragon carrots in our older high tunnel, Eden, was a decent crop.  The yield was in line with last year's numbers, so we feel we've got an idea of what we should expect for a high tunnel per row foot.

The broccoli has been terribly disappointing from OUR perspective this year.  That doesn't mean there hasn't been some tasty broccoli for our CSA customers.  It also doesn't mean there aren't more in the pipeline.  But, our troubles started with the entire first succession being decimated by critters while they were STILL in their trays.  If that isn't an omen, I don't know what is.  We've heard from other growers that the broccoli hasn't been as good as some years for them as well.  So, we'll just chalk it up to seasonal variability and some bad luck with seedlings.  The fact that we are still getting some decent broccoli just shows that we've got a pretty good plan to avoid being shut out for most of our crops.

Black Krims from the high tunnel are a wonderful thing

And the Mixed Up!
And here is where our efforts at diversification pay off - but make categorizing crops as successes or failures difficult.  The carrots could be an example of this, but the tomatoes are a much better poster child for this category in 2016.


If we exclude snack and cherry tomatoes from the count, we have harvested over 1300 fruit this year from our tomato plants.  Of those fruit, 748 have come from the field and 578 from the high tunnels.  So, what's the big deal?  The field was home to approximately 530 plants.  So, we have been able to pull just over one tomato per plant from the field this year.  That, simply put, is pretty awful.  On the other hand, we have 53 plants in our high tunnels.  About 11 per plant and still counting.  The field tomatoes, on the other hand, are done.