Well, farmer's market season is finally here!! We finished our regular market season in early December of last year. For the last 4 months, Natalie has enjoyed some much deserved rest (for a few weeks) and then starting in late January she began preparing, seeding and planting for this year. Additionally, Ann Piotrowski, our intern from last year, decided to return to Sugar Creek for a second year as an apprentice farmer and we are very excited to have her back.
Now that the weather has warmed, our crops are beginning to mature and it is time to begin to enjoy this year's harvest! This is the busiest time of the year around the farm by far. All the spring crops (lettuces, root veggies, broccoli, etc.) are planted and our summer veggies are just starting to hit the ground since the last frost hopefully is behind us. Combine all this activity with harvesting and weeding and you can quickly see why our to-do list never seems to get any shorter!
Weeding is currently a very popular task as the crabgrass is just starting to emerge. This week we weeded the potatoes and finally learned how to time it perfectly. If you cultivate just after a weed seed germinates then those tiny small plants are much easier to eliminate compared to when they are allowed to get bigger and develop stronger roots. This year we used the tractor to lightly "hill" the potatoes which dislodged some young weeds and smothered others. The tractor work took less than an hour, which was much appreciated when compared with the alternative (spending all day weeding by hand). However, we were conservative with the tractor hilling as we didn't want to disturb the emerging potato plants so there were still a few hours of old fashion hand weeding needed to tidy things up. In a week or so we'll probably hill again with the tractor just to stay on top of the task. But we're sure the potatoes will reward our weeding efforts through increased yield and size when we harvest them in late June!
We have two recipes that we would like to share with you this week:
Wilted Russian Kale Salad with Balsamic Vinegar and Orange Zest
Ingredients
1 bunch of red Russian kale
2 cloves of garlic, minced or thinly sliced
1 bunch spring onions, thinly sliced
2 Tbsps olive oil
1/4 cup organic currants (can also use craisins)
1 tsp orange zest
2 tsps balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper to taste
Directions
Remove tough stems from kale
Wash the kale leaves well and then chop into large pieces.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Add garlic and scallions and saute until translucent.
Add the kale and cook until completely wilted.
Remove from heat and let cool.
Add the vinegar, currants, zest, and salt and pepper to taste.
Toss well to combine and serve!
Omelette and Arugula Salad
Ingredients
6 farm fresh eggs
4 spring onions, finely sliced
1/2 lb of your favorite sausage
1/2 tablespoon red pepper flakes
3/4 cup milk
1 cup gruyere cheese, grated
arugula (enough for a salad)
red wine vinegar
olive oil
salt and pepper to taste.
Directions
Saute sausage in pan.
Add red pepper flakes and scallions while sausage is cooking.
When everything is completely cooked, place on paper towel and drain.
Beat eggs and milk together. Season with some salt and pepper.
In a greased pie dish (or whatever shallow baking pan you have) place sausage mixture in the bottom, then pour egg mixture over the sausage.
Sprinkle the top with cheese.
Place in 350F oven for about twenty minutes.
While the omelette is cooking, simply tossed the arugula in a little red wine vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Serve arugula salad along with the omelette.
April 19th, 2013
We would like to thank everyone who came out to our “Farm
Visit Day” last Saturday - we couldn’t
have asked for a better day to check out an organic farm! It looks like real spring weather is finally
here. The past two weeks have given us
normal temperatures and in my eyes the plants have officially “popped.” All of our plants are growing really well and
it looks like we will begin selling at Farmers Markets starting on Saturday,
April 27th! I admit, it is
really tempting to harvest some of the veggies this week and go to market, but
we are having to exercise patience because if we harvest the plants too hard
when they are young we risk stunting future growth and having lower yields for
the rest of the season.
I walked around the farm this morning and took a few
pictures to share with you. You’ll see
that we are almost finished with the renovation of our hoophouse, as four of the
beds are seeded and not much work is left for the other two. In our fields, the potatoes have finally
emerged after four weeks underground and so far so good with them! The weeds are beginning to show up, though, so I plan
to do some hilling before the rain comes later today as we want the potatoes to
continue to thrive. We also are prepping all of the fields that
will host our summer veggies. We start
most of our summer favorites in the greenhouse and they are ready to hit the
field now, which would be perfect as we have prepped the fields in
anticipation of the rain later today. However, they
are calling for a low of 39 degrees on Saturday night and experience has taught us that
the farm is typically 3-4 degrees cooler than the forecast, so we are going to
be patient and start transplanting on Monday in hopes of avoiding a late frost.
All of the other veggies are looking great. In the pictures you will see that kale,
chard, and radishes are almost up to size.
We are excited about the growing season and can’t wait to share our harvest!
March 3, 2013
You probably won't be surprised to learn that even though the markets are currently closed, we've been busy over here at Sugar Creek Farm. The 2013 growing season has been planned, seeds have been ordered and it seems like packages appear on our doorstep every day! We have started a lot of our transplants and the seedling house is almost full. All of this reminds us that the beginning of our market season is not as far away as it feels, and we want to make sure to keep you informed of all that is going on around the farm.
This season, our Friday hours for the on-farm pickup will still be from 4-6pm. On Saturdays we will be attending two markets in Winston-Salem: The Old Salem Cobblestone Market and the Dixie Classic Farmers Market. We've been making other exciting changes, too.
- We will not be attending a Tuesday market in Winston-Salem and as a result will not be able to do home delivery. We decided to concentrate our efforts on Friday's on-farm pick-up and Saturday's markets.
- We have expanded our growing area to allow us to grow more produce.
- Our perennial section, which we started a couple of years ago, should produce its first harvest of asparagus, rhubarb and hopefully a small number of figs.
- We have changed our hoophouse plan so that this year we will be able to offer leaf lettuce and arugula in the summer by using a shade cloth.
- We are focusing on improving the quantity and variety for our late summer and early fall produce. We are planting more melons and winter squash, and also starting our fall favorites in July so that October will be a month of plenty!
June 29, 2012
We hope this finds you all
well and cool. We are actively staying hydrated at Sugar Creek. Beverage of the weeks to come - as of yesterday = water + cold
cranberry juice.
2 cloves of garlic
4 Scallion (or spring onions)
6 Slices of bacon
Bring a pan of cold water to the boil and gently simmer the fish for 20 minutes (until the fish is tender)
Remove the fish from water and allow to cool.
Remove all of bones and skin then flake the flesh of the fish.
------------------------------
green tomatoes $2.5/lb
Thursdays have taken on the name Trellising Thursdays
and for the last good month and a half - trellising has been a weekly
event. We use what is called the Florida weave method of trellising:
pounded t-posts or conduit poles every 3rd or 4th plant (one row per
bed), attaching a box of twine to the waist, and stringing them up about
8" off the ground. Looping the trellis around the t posts and along
one side of all the plants, turn the corner and come back
to sandwich the tomato stems between twine. As they grow, continue to
trellis them as high as needed, keeping the growing tips of the tomato
above the line so that you're not trellising in vain.
This
trellis is helpful for disease control - keeping the fruit and leaves
off of the ground, a trellised tomato makes it easier to pick, and
evident today, it brings a little shade to the picker. Last week's
trellising Thursday turned into planting and harvesting day so we were
dealing with a small jungle in block 8 - home of this year's tomatoes.
The sungolds - our height superstars - got 2 lines on Tuesday and then
yesterday, were ready again for another round. As Jeff mentioned last
week, last year we had terrible blight problems which knocked us out of
field tomatoes pretty quickly. This year we acted more proactively -
let's talk about copper!
Cu.
It's amazing. Copper is antimicrobial and thus one reason why a lot
of plumbing is based on copper. Copper has been used for carrying water
for a long time - not as much slime forming on the container keeping
the water more pure. It slightly acidic with a pH of 5.5. Some folks
wear copper bracelets for arthritic purposes - though not scientifically
proven. There is ongoing medical research on the components and
various uses of copper. But for our purposes, it is an organically
accepted way to fight diseases. All of our tomato plants now look like
little Frankenstein. We stripped copper wire down and stuck the wire
directly through the base of the plant. At the Rodale Institute, I
learned that a stressed plant produces more antioxidants. I've also
read that a splinter through the stem under the artichokes produce a
bigger flower. Once a week, we spray a 10% hydrogen peroxide to water
solution on it. This is to be used as a preventative measure. I was
much more enthusiastic about this process last week when everything was a
healthy dark green, we are getting a few specks of brown on the leaves -
we'll keep you posted as to what happens, but in the meanwhile, enjoy
the heirlooms we've picked today!
Callaloo
- seed from some Jamaican friends up the road - she recommends peeling
the skin off the stem of the plant before washing and chopping into
small bits
Callaloo and Codfish recipe pictures with the recipe here
Ingredients
You will need the following ingredients to prepare enough callaloo and codfish for 4 people:-
1/2 lb Saltfish (dried, salted codfish)
1/2 lb shredded callaloo
1 medium onion
1/2 lb shredded callaloo
1 medium onion
1/2 tsp black pepper
3 tbsp of butter
1/2 a hot chili pepper (ideally scotch bonnet)
1 sweet pepper
1 chopped tomato
1 sprig fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried thyme
Optional ingredients:-3 tbsp of butter
1/2 a hot chili pepper (ideally scotch bonnet)
1 sweet pepper
1 chopped tomato
1 sprig fresh thyme or 1 tsp dried thyme
2 cloves of garlic
4 Scallion (or spring onions)
6 Slices of bacon
Preparation
Cover the saltfish in cold water. Let soak overnight (minimum 8 hours) changing the water several times (this removes most of the salt)Bring a pan of cold water to the boil and gently simmer the fish for 20 minutes (until the fish is tender)
Chop the onion, sweet pepper, chilli pepper and tomato whilst waiting for the fish to cook.
Wash the Callaloo in a pot of water and drain thoroughly.Remove the fish from water and allow to cool.
Remove all of bones and skin then flake the flesh of the fish.
Cooking
Melt the butter in a frying pan and add the onion, black pepper, sweet pepper, chilli and thyme. Fry for about 5 minutes.
Add the callaloo and half a cup of water, cover and steam for 15 minutes
Add the tomatoes and flaked fish and steam for another 10 minutes
------------------------------
Delicious: Roast Beet Salad with Balsamic Reduction
Ingredients
- 5-6 Small beetroot, any colour
- 1 small package of goats cheese
- 2Tbl Balsamic Vinegar
- 1 tsp sugar
- 4Tbl Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
Cooking Directions
- Rinse beets and quarter. Place on a baking tray with Olive Oil, Salt and Pepper. Cover.
- Roast for 35-40 Minutes on 180C
- Place Balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan with sugar. Cook on low until syrupy. Add Olive to pan.
- Remove beet greens and rinse, and add additional lettuce if desired.
- Remove beets from oven and let cool. Carefully remove skins.
- Add greens, goat cheese, and beets to bowl and spoon over some dressing. Enjoy.
Here is a list of what is available for our Friday on-farm pickup (today 4pm-6pm) as well as the Dixie Classic market tomorrow morning from 6am-12pm. The Friday on-farm pickup will be at our barn at 1451 NC Hwy 801 N, Advance NC 27006. Just look for our black mail box on Hwy 801 and you'll need to drive all the way back to the barn/greenhouse. For the folks that are members of our market share program we will happily reserve produce so you can pick it up at the market please so just reply back to this email with a list of what you would like.
beets - 3.00/bunch
kohlrabi - 2/pound
swiss chard - 3.50/bunch
green onions - 2/bunch
basil - 2/bunch
thyme - 2/bunch
flat leaf parsley - 2/bunch
turnips - 2/lb
squash - 2.25/lb
zucchini - 2.25/lb
carrots - 3/bunch
cucumbers - 2.25/lb
zinnias - 3.5/bunch
sunflowers - 2/dollar
bachelor buttons - 2/bunch
onions - 2/lb
eggs - 5/dozen or 2.5/half-dozen
leeks - 3/bunch
yukon gold potatoes - 1.75/pound
russian banana fingerlings - 4/pound
kohlrabi - 2/pound
swiss chard - 3.50/bunch
green onions - 2/bunch
basil - 2/bunch
thyme - 2/bunch
flat leaf parsley - 2/bunch
turnips - 2/lb
squash - 2.25/lb
zucchini - 2.25/lb
carrots - 3/bunch
cucumbers - 2.25/lb
zinnias - 3.5/bunch
sunflowers - 2/dollar
bachelor buttons - 2/bunch
onions - 2/lb
eggs - 5/dozen or 2.5/half-dozen
leeks - 3/bunch
yukon gold potatoes - 1.75/pound
russian banana fingerlings - 4/pound
elephant garlic - 7/pound
softneck garlic - 2 for $1
softneck garlic - 2 for $1
fennel - 2/head
callaloo (jamaican spinach) to be cooked - 2/bunch
sungold cherry tomatoes $4/lbgreen tomatoes $2.5/lb
heirloom tomatoes - 3.50/pound
hybrid tomatoes - 2.50/pound
June 15, 2012
This
week has been busy! Slowly but surely we are taking steps to get out of
spring production and into the full-blown summer season. This has
included getting the older crops out of the ground and putting in the
new. Last week we pulled out all of the garlic and hung them up to dry
in the barn. We also pulled up most of the sweet onions from the same
block. This morning we took some time to weed and prep the bed to seed
some mesclun mix and a spicy green mix I am excited to try. From there
we moved onto the sugar snap peas, which I am quite sad are done. We
pulled out all the old plants as well as the trellis and tee posts. Next
door we pulled out older heads of the romaine lettuce. Here we will
amend the soil and plant some okra. Getting older things out of the
ground and putting new summer crops in is an ongoing process but assures
us that we will have new and exciting things throughout the season.
Getting
out of spring production and into the summer we focus a lot of energy
on the soil and make sure we amend it so that the nutrients are present
for what our plants need. Soil is a farmers’ main capital and the secret
to a successful farm is good soil management. We don’t just want to
maintain the soil but over time also improve the soil quality. So what
do I mean when I say soil? Soil is the unconsolidated outer surface
layer of terrestrial earth. Soil is made up of air, water, mineral
particles, living organisms and dead organic matter. On Sugar Creek farm
we improve the soil by little tillage, the use of cover crops, crop
rotation and the addition of organic matter. By taking these steps we
increase water holding capacity, infiltration and soil organisms. This
all will increase the soil structure and overall soil quality. With good
soil the farm will be the most productive.
So
how is the soil looking at Sugar Creek Farm?? Awesome! Soil management
is an ongoing process but since I have been at Sugar Creek I have been
quite impressed with the quality of the soil. Still some blocks around
the farm need some work and I know that Jeff and Natalie have BIG BIG
plans! In order to classify a soil one can look at the soils physical
and chemical properties. Physical properties to look for are the texture
(mineral size and distribution), structure (spatial organization of
soil particles), tilth (the ease of working the soil), amount of soil
organic matter, aggregate stability (resistance to water), bulk density
(weight by volume) and porosity (spaces between soil particles). The
chemical properties for soil are measured by the pH, amounts of various
nutrients, the cation exchange capacity (which measures how many
nutrients the soil can hold), salinity (amount of salts in the soil) and
the alkalinity. The physical properties can be observed and maintained
on the farm by us but for a more in depth analysis we send off a soil
test twice a year to find out what our soil needs in order to be the
best quality.
Speaking of soil, I need to be off to get my hands dirty and have some quality tomato time!
-----------------------------
Roasted Beet, Goat Cheese, and Avocado Sandwhiches
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 cup mixed greens
A few tablespoons of vinaigrette
4 slices whole grain bread
2 ounces goat cheese
1 avocado, sliced
Salt and pepper
Preheat
the oven to 450 °F. Wrap the beets individually in aluminum foil. Toss
the into a roasting pan and place in the oven. Cook for about 40 to 50
minutes, or until a knife can easily slip into the flesh. Let the beets
cool slightly, peel them, then thinly slice the beets into 1/4 inch
rounds. Sprinkle the almonds into a skillet set over medium-low heat.
Cook for about 5 minutes, tossing occasionally. Remove from heat before
they burn. Toss the greens with a tablespoon or so of a vinaigrette.
Something really basic. Add the almonds to the greens. Toast the slices
of bread. Spread an ounce of goat cheese on two slices of the bread. Top
each of those with a few slices of avocado, a little bit of the salad,
and then a few slices of beets. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Top each with another slice of bread. Slice in half and serve.
------------------------------
Here
is a list of what is available for our Friday on-farm pickup (today
4pm-6pm) as well as the Dixie Classic market tomorrow morning from
6am-12pm. The Friday on-farm pickup will be at our barn at 1451 NC Hwy
801 N, Advance NC 27006. Just look for our black mail box on Hwy 801
and you'll need to drive all the way back to the barn/greenhouse. For the folks that are members of our market share program we
will happily reserve produce so you can pick it up at the market please
so just reply back to this email with a list of what you would like.
beets - 3.00/bunch
kohlrabi - 1.50/ each
collards - 2.50/bunch
swiss chard - 3.50/bunch
romaine lettuce - 3/head or two for 5
green onions - 2/bunch
boc choi - 2/each
mint - 2/bunch
basil - 2/bunch
thyme - 2/bunch
flat leaf parsley - 2/bunch
baby cabbage - 1.50/lb
turnips - 2/lb
squash - 2.25/lb
zucchini - 2.25/lb
carrots - 3/bunch
cucumbers - 2.25/lb
zinnias - 3 for $1
onions - 2/lb
eggs - 5/dozen or 2.5/half-dozen
leeks - 3/bunch
yukon gold potatoes - 1.75/pound
Weeding Wednesdays:
Every Wednesday from 8:30 to 12 we are weeding, if you would like to
join us, drop me a line - we'd love to have you.
A Great First Day at Cobblestone Market!
So we had a wonderful first day at the market on Tuedsay. Thanks to everyone who came out on such a beautiful day to support us! We had some truly beautiful greens.
Fox8 came to do a piece about a new service at the market, explained below. Check out this link for more, and for a glimpse of Sugar Creek Farm at the market!
"Besides offering completely local and environmentally-friendly food, the market is accepting federal Electronic Benefits Transfer cards. Those are used by people who normally don't have access to or can't afford fresh food.
"We are going to match those benefits so anybody who comes and uses their card and says they want a dollar's worth off their card, they get $2 to go spend at the market," said Matthew Mayers with the Cobblestone Farmers Market."
Thanks again to everyone that stopped by - come see us next week, and at the Dixie Classic Market on Sat., April 30th!
Fox8 came to do a piece about a new service at the market, explained below. Check out this link for more, and for a glimpse of Sugar Creek Farm at the market!
"Besides offering completely local and environmentally-friendly food, the market is accepting federal Electronic Benefits Transfer cards. Those are used by people who normally don't have access to or can't afford fresh food.
"We are going to match those benefits so anybody who comes and uses their card and says they want a dollar's worth off their card, they get $2 to go spend at the market," said Matthew Mayers with the Cobblestone Farmers Market."
Thanks again to everyone that stopped by - come see us next week, and at the Dixie Classic Market on Sat., April 30th!
Markets Opening Next Week!
Hi! I can't believe it's already April, but here we are. We are so excited for this growing season, because there have been a lot of changes at the farm over the winter. Most importantly, we now have a Farm Manager! Visit our website (www.sugarcreek-farm.com) to learn more about Natalie Sevin. We are so lucky to have her. Check out the April/May issue of FoCoWoJo (Forsyth County Women's Journal) to learn even more! You might recognize Natalie on the cover....
We also now have a greenhouse AND a big ole hoop house! So some of our tomatoes are already in the ground and will be ready in June. Thanks to Natalie, we are growing a lot more produce this year so our market tables will be full of all kinds of new things - come visit us at either the Cobblestone Market or the Dixie Classic Fairgrounds market.
This week at the markets you'll find mesclun mix, arugula, radishes, joi choi, spinach, kale, collards and (hopefully) head lettuce!
Hope to see you soon, thanks for visiting our blog.
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