Farm News Crop Forecast
U-Pick Recipes Nuts and Bolts
Greetings!
Wow, there’s not much interesting left to say after 3 newsletters full of old stories!!!!!!
We’ve been touched to hear that many of you enjoyed reading those. It’s been fun to think of years and moments past, and to make sure we share with you the gifts of the many people who have made this farm from the background , from behind the scenes.
This afternoon 7 Hmong farmers are diligently weeding our fall beet crop. They just keep going.
Our full-time crew is harvesting beets, after a week of taking care of all the details while Erin and Ben were out of town. They didn’t miss a thing. The place looks great.
It is the time of year when plant diseases that have been simmering often take off. This year is pretty moderate in the disease realm. So far we’ve only had major loss in one crop — peppers — and may be looking at some in basil or cantaloupes, but maybe not. We’ve sent pepper samples to the UMN Plant Disease Clinic (“the lab”), and it came back as bacterial leaf spot; which seems to have caused flowers to drop, before making fruit.
Cantaloupes fought a disease off that they got in the greenhouse, and have looked amazingly vigorous and healthy, but it’s coming back a little. Basil had a weird thing happen over the weekend, so widespread in the field that we think it might be a type of sun or smoke scald. We’ll samples of each to the lab to see what we can learn.
Most plant diseases we can prevent in future years by slight adjustments to our growing practices — water less, water more, store seed in the freezer, buy varieties that are resistant to that disease, don’t grow a grass as cover crop beforehand etc. In the current year, we can keep some diseases at bay, with foliar fertilizers, or watering adjustments, or placing an order for more sunshine and less humidity or hard rain.
We’ve had some hard rain this year but also extra humidity, as you’ve probably noticed. Both have added some stress for the plants but overall things look really, really good. The cucurbits — squash, cucumbers, melons, winter squash — are super vigorous and happy looking. Melons are coming soon and we can’t really tell what’s under the vines till we start picking, but it looks like they’re having a good time. Same with winter squash — which is just over a month away !!! Summer please stay a little bit!!
Crop Forecast
Tomatoes have an interesting pest this year — 13-striped ground squirrels. Look ’em up, they’re cute. We have a couple families around the farm and this is the first time we’ve known them to eat more than a few veggies or cause us much of a problem. It’s impressive they’ve stayed alive — this tomato-loving family (or individual) lives very close to the dead oak, which most days has a red tail or sharp-shinned hawk in it.
So we would have a few more tomatoes but can’t give you the ones they’ve chewed on, which aren’t fully ripe anyway. Once we get to the next layer of fruit, up off the ground more, we’ll see tomato numbers going up, in the next week or so. Tomato harvest is looking good so keep your eyes peeled for the tomato bulk box email coming soon.
More summertime this week and next : sweet onions, eggplants, cucumbers, summer squash and zucchini, carrots, beets, fennel, cabbage . And hopefully enough broccoli, with a limit this week — we may be in between plantings of broccoli, but wow it’s been good.
Peppers should start next week. With the disease mentioned above we might only get 10% of our usual pepper harvest, it’s hard to say for sure but it will be much lower than usual. Usually we’re selling peppers by the pallet in August and September but the plants are looking pretty bare. But there should be enough to make a decent showing in the share.
Leaf lettuce and greens, and kale and swiss chard.
And Garlic starts this week!!! We do garlic in the share for 6 weeks, 1 head per full share each week. Split shares please communicate with your share partner who gets the garlic each week — split shares will each get a total of 3 garlic as part of the share. After 6 weeks it will be for sale in the barn, including for big orders and stocking up for the fall and/or winter. If you want more than a head per week during these 6 weeks you can also buy as many more as you want. $1.25 / head. Can be purchased on the spot, no need to pre-order garlic.
What’s for U-Pick?
Beans are now best by the sunflowers. The planting by the driveway looks like it has too many beans gone by so we’ll probably mow those rows. The rows by the sunflowers and solar panels should have plenty to give for the rest of August and well into September.
There are lots of beans and the more they are picked clean the more they will keep producing, so don’t be shy. If you see big ones you can pick them and drop them on the ground, this encourages more flowers and fruits to develop, and can really increase the amount of beans available for everyone by making each planting produce for longer.
Sunflowers! Out toward the solar panels. It’s a good idea to bring your own pair of clippers.
Cilantro, Dill and Basil are doing great!
Other Herbs — Thai Basil, Nasturtiums, Parsley, Oregano, Thyme.
This spot in the newsletter will keep you informed, and always check the U-pick board when you’re here to see what’s available and picking amounts.
Nuts and Bolts
Bulk Produce for You
Check here each newsletter for what we have available for extra purchase.
To place a bulk order, simply email us at least 2 days ahead of the day you’d like to pick it up. Orders can be picked up at the farm during our regular pickup hours, but it doesn’t have to be your share pickup day. Usually we can make an order on the spot, too. No need to pre-order garlic.
This week’s selection is : Lettuce Mix for $6 / lb . Green Cabbage for $1/lb. Kale for $3 / lb. Carrots, Beets, Cucumbers, Zucchini for $1.25 / lb. Garlic for $1.25 / head.
From Maura and LuAnn in the Medicinal Herbs Garden
Did you know that Open Hands Farm is home to over 130 documented medicinal plants? You can discover them in the medicinal herbs garden, the you-pick culinary herbs area, the you-pick flowers section, and even growing wild along the edges. Join Maura and LuAnn on Thursday, August 14, or Tuesday, August 19 during your pick-up time, for a brief introduction to some of our favorites and learn how to use them to support your health. If you’re interested, we can guide you in making your own herbal tincture or oil, and you’ll have the chance to create a 4-oz. jar of tincture for just $5!
Share Pickup Hours TUESDAY and THURSDAY 1:30-6:30 pm.
Change Pick-Up Day Form — Click here. Please fill out this form instead of emailing us. Thanks!
Where is the farm? 4151 320th Street West, Northfield.
Please Drive Carefully —Children are everywhere.
If You Send Someone Else to Pick Up Your Share — Please forward them the basic pickup video in this link , which was also sent in an email earlier in June. Then just tell them to introduce themselves to us in the barn, just so we know and we can show them around.
We love having all of you come to the farm! Thank you for making it such a great place to be!
Your farmers,
Erin and Ben, with Allia, Alex, Camille, Elliott, Maura, River, Sai Dang and Crew
RECIPES
Beet Salsa
2 tomatoes, cored
2 green chilies, seeded for less heat if desired
1 orange or red bell pepper, seeded
1 cucumber, peeled if desired
2 cloves garlic
½ medium sweet onion
1 beet, peeled (young, juicy beets are best for this recipe)
1 bunch green onions
¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
Pinch each paprika, garlic salt, celery seed, and cayenne, or more to taste
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
Coarsely chop all the vegetables and place them into the bowl of a food processor.
Add the herbs and seasonings.
Pulse until blended but still chunky.
Adjust the seasonings.
If necessary, work in batches and transfer the blended salsa to a large bowl for final seasoning.
Yields about 10 cups.
Serve with lime wedges and your favorite tortilla chips, or as a topping for grilled fish.
Summer Lasagna
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 to 4 cloves garlic
1 medium onion, chopped
2 small zucchini or summer squash, chopped
1 teaspoon basil
1 quart spaghetti sauce
9 lasagna noodles
1 bunch kale (half a clear bag), chopped
1 ½ cups cottage cheese or ricotta cheese
1 beaten egg
¼ teaspoon salt
Black pepper to taste
½ pound mozzarella cheese
½ cup parmesan cheese
Heat oil in saucepan and sauté garlic, onion, zucchini, and kale.
Stir in basil and spaghetti sauce and allow to simmer over low heat while you prepare the rest of the lasagna.
Cook noodles in boiling water until just tender.
Drain and rinse with cold water.
Mix Cottage cheese or ricotta and egg together.
Season with salt and pepper.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Oil the bottom of 9 x 13-inch pan.
Layer 1/3 of the noodles, cottage cheese, sauce, and mozzarella cheese, then do that twice more.
Top it with parmesan cheese.
Bake for 40 minutes.
Open Hands Farm 