Weeding and worms – that is what is growing on in the garden. Lots and lots of weeding occurred this weekend. The weeds are then fed to the chickens. We weed so that our crops receive the nutrients and water from the soil instead of the weeds. The weeds can choke the plant out of its space and cause our crop to die or not be productive. While we are weeding, the boys also have a jar near by to put worms in. Not only do they like to use the worms as bait when we go fishing, but they simply think worms are cool. In addition, the ornamental corn is growing like crazy and a great place for Sam to sit to be shaded from the sun.

As we were working in the garden, the kids asked me some good questions that I thought some of you may like to know as well. So below are a few clarifying terms that I hope are helpful.

Annual – A plant that grows for one growing season. Most of our crops our annuals and are replanted every spring.

Perennials – Plants that grow back on their own for more than two years. A perennial crop produces year after year. Crops that are examples of perennials would be rhubarb, asparagus, strawberries and blueberries.

Germinate – When a seed that you have planted begins to grow.

Replant – When a seed does not sprout. We had to replant some seeds because they rotted in the soil. The soil was to wet over an extended period of time because of all the rain we received. Once the soil dried enough, we replanted it in the soil. Now we are hoping that it will germinate or begin to grow.

Pests – We deal with a variety of pests in our garden. A pest is a destructive insect or other animal that attacks crops, food or livestock. Pests we deal with our weeds, insects (ex. potato bugs, squash bugs) and wildlife (rabbits and deer).

What’s Growing On

We also were replanting different crops. The constant wet weather caused some of our seeds to rot and not grow in the garden. So we replanted some of these crops this past week.

Not only do the insects like to eat our crops. So do the rabbits, see what they did to the cabbage.

This is the way the cabbage looked before the rabbit enjoyed a meal.

 Garden Science

Potato bugs can lay up to 800 eggs at one time. While everyone has been diligent in searching for the adult potato bugs and the eggs, we weren’t fortunate enough to find all of them.

Sam is holding four stages of potato bugs. On the leaf are the eggs, the largest bug is the adult and on either side of the adult are red dots which are different stages of baby potato bugs. We have been researching our options and recognize that constant monitoring is necessary so that an infestation does not occur. An infestation will cause them to not only eat the potato plants but other crops as well.

 Boxes of Produce

This list is prepared before we harvest your share. Some guesswork is involved! We do our best to predict which crops will be ready to harvest, but sometimes crops are on the list that are not in the share, and sometimes crops will be in the share even though they’re not on the list.

Remember food safety in your kitchen when preparing, always wash your hands before working with your produce and always wash your produce before eating.

Rhubarb – one pound equals about 3 cups. Wash, cut the ends off, cut off any bad parts. No need to peel. You can freeze it in a Ziploc bag (no blanching) and use for months to come. Our family loves it in muffins, breads, jam, pie, crisp, sauce and torte. Check out our recipe ideas below.

Asparagus – Fresh cut asparagus from the Chute’s Farm Fresh Gardens in Aitkin, Minnesota. These farmers are friends of ours who we know from Farm Bureau and also the Minnesota Agriculture and Rural Leadership Program. They had some extra they wanted to share with us, and the delivery time worked out well. Enjoy! See how asparagus is harvested in California.

Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce – One of my favorite garden crops.  Remember to wash your vegetables before eating. See how lettuce is grown throughout the year so it is available in our grocery stores even on our cold Minnesota days.

Prizeleaf Lettuce – what a beautiful colored lettuce to add to the salads. Add some fresh strawberries or dried fruit to your salads and Enjoy!

Red Oak Leaf Lettuce – I love this beautiful red lettuce leaf. It adds such a wonderful color to your salads.

Spinach – Remember to wash before eating. A combination of these vegetables will make such a wonderful meal! Some spinach salad ideas from P. Allen Smith.

Beet Leaves – Many times I have seen in high-end restaurants beet leaves in my salads. Well here is your opportunity. These are young plants that we are thinning out of th rows – eat the whole plant. It will add color and nutrition to your salads. Learn more here.

The boys gather, clean and pack the eggs. They hope you enjoy them!

Eggs – Enjoy some fresh eggs from our chickens. The varied sizes and colors come from a variety of breeds of chickens as well as different ages of chickens. Please feel free to ask the boys about the different sizes. They will be happy to identify the hen that laid it.

Fresh cut arrangement – Hosta leaves…these last forever in a vase of water. After a week, give them a fresh-cut, and they will last longer. The greenery in the house is a day brightener.

Recipe of the Week

This is Keith’s favorite – Rhubarb Torte. It is one of my favorites as well! We were so excited to have some tonight that we ate two pieces for “supper” before you all picked up your boxes tonight!

Rhubarb Torte

Mix together the crust until crumbly
•1 cup flour; •1/2 cup butter; •Dash of salt;
•2 tablespoons sugar;

Pat it into a 9×13 pan. Bake for 25 minutes at 325 degrees.

While the crust is baking mix together the next layer. •1 1/2 cups sugar; •2 tablespoons flour;
•1/3 cup cream; •3 egg yolks beaten; •3-4 cups rhubarb; Cook until thickened. Pour over crust after it has baked. Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes.

Mix on high until stiff – 3 egg whites.

Then add and beat into the egg whites:
•1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar; •Dash of vanilla; •Dash of salt; •1/3 cup powdered sugar.
Spread over middle rhubarb section. Bake at 325 degrees for 5 minutes to brown slightly the meringue.

Fresh out of the oven.

Rhubarb Torte

Crust

Mix together until crumbly

• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup butter
• Dash of salt
• 2 tablespoons sugar

Bake for 25 minutes at 325 degrees.

Middle

• 1 1/2 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1/3 cup cream
• 3 egg yolks beaten
• 3-4 cups rhubarb

Cook until thickened. Pour over crust after it has baked. Bake at 325 degrees for 15 minutes.

Top

• 3 egg whites (whipped until stiff)

Then add and beat into the egg whites

• 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
• Dash of vanilla
• Dash of salt
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar

Spread over middle rhubarb section. Bake at 325 degrees for 5 minutes to brown slightly the meringue.

In the end, I have happy boys eating rhubarb!

More Recipes

Thank you to one of our shareholders Tracy Modory for sharing this easy jam recipe that was a success in her house. Looks delicious!

Strawberry-Rhubarb Refrigerator Jam

1 1/3 cup strawberries
2/3 cup rhubarb
2 tablespoons honey (or to taste)
2 T chia seeds

Process all ingredients in a blender, transfer to jars and refrigerate overnight. The chia seeds will gel, thickening the fruit puree. No need to cook the fruit. This can also be frozen after refrigerated overnight and thawed when ready to use.

The spinach, lettuce and radishes are looking great. The rain, heat and humidity have given a needed boost to these plants given our late spring.

If I could have only captured the moment on camera on Saturday night as we were attempting the mad dash to finish planting our tomatoes. The scattered thunderstorms had been popping up all afternoon, and it was one of those days where the directions of the storms were a bit unpredictable.

Steve and Sam were getting a few more supplies from our garage which left Keith and I in the garden. You also need to know that weather has always fascinated me. If given the opportunity, I would have loved to have been a tornado chaser.

So, I looked south across the section and saw heavy rain showers rolling across the field. If you have never seen this, it is a sight to see. It is one thing when it is a light rain (that is a somewhat calm beautiful view). But when the clouds are dark and you can hear the wind blowing and the rain hitting the ground over a mile away, you know it is time to find shelter FAST. Keith had never really experienced this, but thankfully, it was one of those moments when he listened to me – the first time. Perhaps it had something to do with the tone in my voice:) So anyways, I looked south and saw the storm rolling in very quickly. We rapidly picked up our equipment and sprinted into our garage, barely making it before you could hear the thunder of rain hitting the ground. There are many times in my life that I was not so lucky and ended up soaking wet to the bone.

This time we were a little wet, and I was laughing so hard after I crossed the threshold of the garage because of the crazy mad dash to the “finish” line. Keith on the other hand was asking me if we were going to have a tornado. I told him no – not to worry and said now you will always understand what it looks like to see a storm rolling in. It appears I will attempt another mad dash to finish the tomato planting this week between storms.

Yet, just another example of the crazy life and family experiences from our home.

We have had about 1.5 inches of rain since Saturday. This is less than others around us have received. We are thankful for what we have been given.

 Crop Update

The rhubarb is growing like crazy while the other crops are trying to catch up. The boys were excited to share some with their Grandma. In addition, we do sell rhubarb for $3 per pound. Part of the proceeds go towards disaster relief and Gillette Children’s Hospital.

The boys were checking out the cucumbers that have emerged and doing some weeding so the weeds don’t overtake the crops.

We finished planting several varieties of tomatoes on Monday night. What a good feeling to have them in the ground!

Your Boxes

Welcome to all of our shareholders. We appreciate the opportunity to work with you and for you through out the growing season. We work hard to earn your trust and respect in the food that we grow for your families and ours!

All of you should have received an email with more details of dates and specifics with the CSA. The planting was late this year, but the heat and humidity of the last two weeks have really helped out many of the crops. In addition, we received over an inch of rain since last night.

We are excited to see the daily changes and growth in the garden. Look for weekly blog posts for guidance through the season which will provide you with updates, ideas for your box of produce and recipes.

Pick-up and Delivery

Remember that pick-up and deliveries will be on the schedule you have arranged with Harner Brothers CSA with harvest on Wednesday evenings. It is your responsibility to know that the pick-up or drop-off time will occur at the agreed upon time, and it is your responsibility as a shareholder to know this and be responsible for the produce at that time.

If you are unable to utilize your share that week, it is still your responsibility: find someone else to pick it up or donate it to the food shelf. Each box is labeled for each family. The same boxes will be used for your family throughout the season. Boxes and containers should be returned the following week. Bags will only be used once.