Greetings CSA Family and Friends!
My computer sits at a table next to a bay window and I can look up from the screen and watch the rain. It is a warm storm, with gusty winds, currently to the north, sending the spray sideways.
My rain gauge says nearly 3 inches have fallen in the past few days. I think this means we have had a normal February. I can hear Willits Creek roaring behind the farm. The sound of runoff is soothing as previous rains seemed only to sink into thirsty soil.
Pick Up Date, Place and Time. Tuesday, February 24th, (that’s tomorrow) at my house, 4-6 pm.
I am probably going to be heading down to the farm today and dig out some parsnips and Jerusalem artichokes. It will be soggy! Tomorrow I will harvest the greens and leeks. Onions and potatoes will come out of storage.
This month has been less physically active than in January, when it seemed like spring. Time indoors was spent finishing the planning charts and ordering seeds. I started working in the greenhouse, doing basic cleaning, organizing and making potting soil. Today I plan to get some lettuce going for planting in about 1 month. Sometime between now and then I need to prepare the bed space for said lettuce. I need a break in the weather to do bed prep, and I look forward to that but with mixed feelings since a break in the weather means it is not raining, which I want it to do almost continuously for a couple of months. So what do I really want?
In Other News. Bill and Marilyn Boosinger were fantastic helpers with last month’s harvest. David and Ellen Drell came by to assist with winter maintenance of vines and artichokes. David and I also set up some fence extenders that should thwart the deer. Roger Wilson is working on a bike trailer that will replace my old Burley. The worm bins are extremely active thanks to food scraps from Mendonesia Café. I estimate about 2000 lbs of worm castings will be ready to use this spring and summer.
Cooking Tips. My family makes copious use of winter greens in two ways. Way 1: Simmer coarsely chopped kale, chard and tree collards in a covered pot in chicken broth, salt and pepper to taste. Way 2: Puree greens in blender or food processor and add to soups. The latter is an incredibly sneaky method of feeding children all their veggies. “Look kids! Green potato soup!”
Soakingly Yours,
Jason
Monday, February 23, 2009
Friday, February 20, 2009
Earth Day 2009: Cool Blue Planet: April 26
Mark your calendar! The Noyo Food Forest is throwing a fabulous party, in honor of the Earth and Her Sweet Waters, at The Learning Garden on Sunday, April 26th from noon to six pm. We will have live music from several bands, including JUCE, a hiphip/reggae band from Humboldt County, as well as rainwater catchment workshops, locally grown food, a kids tent, organic plant sale, educational activites, etc. etc. etc!! You don't want to miss this! Huge thanks to our business sponsors, including 3D Organic Solutions, Mendocino Botanical Garden, Being Water, Anderson's Alternatives, and Thanksgiving Coffee! See you there!
Monday, February 16, 2009
Noyo Food Forest Plants 500 Trees!
This past Sunday, a motivated and energetic group of Noyo Food Foresters planted 500 redwood, pine and cedar saplings at Simcha Ranch near Ten Mile River. It was an incredible experience and I really hope we can do it again and invite more people to participate! We had a blast and the rain held off until we were almost done....perfect timing to water in the babies we planted. Thanks to Tom for organizing the planting fundraiser! We raised .45 cents for each tree we planted. Sweet!
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Building the Fence
The Head Start Family Garden Project will be having a workday Saturday, February 21st from 10-2. We will be building a fence and removing grass for beds.
Anyone out there looking to get rid of 65 ft. of 6 ft. deer fence?
email: morgankimberlina@gmail.com
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
How do I protect my garden from frost?
During the day, plants and soil absorb and store heat from the Sun. As the Sun sets and night comes forward plants begin to lose their stored heat. As the temperature drops, the moisture in the air settles and create dew. This dew can freeze when temperature drops below 32 degrees F. Water both inside and outside of the plants freeze causing cell ruptures, which kill the leaves on the plants.So, what can I do to protect my plants from winter destruction??
Well, if you have well established plants, simply place an old tablecloth or trash bag over them during the evening and remove it the next morning. Your cover doesn't need to be fancy, look around your house for something you can re-use over again that is thick enough to keep out the dew but light enough it won't break any branches.
However, if you have young plants or winter veggies you might want to build a frost box. Frost boxes are very easy to make and you can get materials from your local recycling center or post on our GreenExchange. Here is a picture of a very easy to make frost box.
Simply close the lid at night! These are great to use if your going on vacation as plants can survive up to 4 days without having the lid opened. Now that's the way to beat the frost!
Victory Garden Program in Ukiah
The Victory Garden Program
On Saturday, January 17th, twelve Mendocino County Master Gardeners put together a class called “Creating Your Own Victory Garden.” The class was held in Ukiah and was open to the general public. The response was tremendous with 60 people attending the class. Everyone had a wonderful time. The class was the first in a three part series that will take participants through planning, planting, harvesting and using the bounty from a Victory Garden.
What is a Victory Garden and why do I want to plant one?
Victory Gardens first appeared during World War I. As the conflict on the war front made it difficult for European farmers (those that weren’t off at war) to bring their crop to maturity and market, a food shortage ensued. Canada and United States’ efforts were needed to supplies our European allies with food. The U.S. government, concerned at how the food shortages might affect the home front, began a campaign to encourage citizens at home to grow their own food as part of the war effort. The gardens were called Liberty Gardens and growing food quickly became an act of patriotism. An emblematic poster from that era is a picture of Lady Liberty sewing garden seeds. The program was a success and supplied many communities with adequate food through the difficult times during and directly after World War I.
Victory Gardens regained their popularity during World War II as a patriotic answer to food shortages and rationing. Across the country Americans were encouraged to “grow their own.” It is often cited that 40% of all produce consumed in United States during World War II was grown in Victory Gardens. This was also the beginning of school gardens with the Bureau of Education’s formation of the United States School Garden Army. Our colleague 4-H and Master Gardener Advisor, Rose Hayden Smith has compiled wonderful information on this interesting era. Tto learn more explore her Victory Grower website at http://groups.ucanr.org/victorygrower/.
What is happening with Victory Gardens today?
With United States involved in two wars and Americans feeling economically insecure, a movement has started across the country to revive Victory Gardens, encouraging citizens across the country to grow a portion of their food. This includes the “Eat the View” campaign led by Roger Doiron, who is trying to build support for replacing a portion of the White House lawn with a vegetable garden http://www.eattheview.org/. While the thrill of raising a crop of cauliflower in your kitchen garden cannot be denied, the attention surrounding the Victory Garden revival is most likely tied to several very American traits: self-sufficiency, independence, and tenacity. Certainly, this is a difficult time economically and culturally. The global economy is in the worst economic crisis for decades. Rising food and transportation costs, coupled with job loss and the housing crunch, are creating hardship across the country and Americans are looking for a way to make a difference in their own lives and the lives of their communities. Taking matters into their own hands, many people are addressing some of these issues by growing a local solution, literally.
Growing your own vegetables has many benefits. For starters, it can increase the quality and quantity of vegetables in your diet for less than you would pay at the market. In Mendocino County we are blessed with a mild climate that allows for year round vegetable gardening. If you plan right, you can avoid having zillions of zucchini, and enjoy a wide variety of vegetables from artichokes and chard, to spinach and watermelons. Growing your own vegetables can also reduce your carbon footprint. If the average food item travels 1,500 miles from farm to plate, then reducing your vegetable mile by approximately 1499 miles, 5,100 feet will definitely impact your carbon footprint. If you tear out lawn and replace it with your vegetable garden, you can most likely boost your impact by reducing water consumption, fertilizers etc… Finally, gardening is healthy! Anyone who has double dug an asparagus bed or pulled weeds from a radish patch knows that gardening is good exercise and generally gives you a better outlook on life. Whether you are new to gardening and need some help getting started, or you are an experienced gardener looking for new ideas and camaraderie, please check our calendar of events at http://cemendocino.ucdavis.edu/for our next scheduled class in the “Victory Garden Program.”
On Saturday, January 17th, twelve Mendocino County Master Gardeners put together a class called “Creating Your Own Victory Garden.” The class was held in Ukiah and was open to the general public. The response was tremendous with 60 people attending the class. Everyone had a wonderful time. The class was the first in a three part series that will take participants through planning, planting, harvesting and using the bounty from a Victory Garden.
What is a Victory Garden and why do I want to plant one?
Victory Gardens first appeared during World War I. As the conflict on the war front made it difficult for European farmers (those that weren’t off at war) to bring their crop to maturity and market, a food shortage ensued. Canada and United States’ efforts were needed to supplies our European allies with food. The U.S. government, concerned at how the food shortages might affect the home front, began a campaign to encourage citizens at home to grow their own food as part of the war effort. The gardens were called Liberty Gardens and growing food quickly became an act of patriotism. An emblematic poster from that era is a picture of Lady Liberty sewing garden seeds. The program was a success and supplied many communities with adequate food through the difficult times during and directly after World War I.
Victory Gardens regained their popularity during World War II as a patriotic answer to food shortages and rationing. Across the country Americans were encouraged to “grow their own.” It is often cited that 40% of all produce consumed in United States during World War II was grown in Victory Gardens. This was also the beginning of school gardens with the Bureau of Education’s formation of the United States School Garden Army. Our colleague 4-H and Master Gardener Advisor, Rose Hayden Smith has compiled wonderful information on this interesting era. Tto learn more explore her Victory Grower website at http://groups.ucanr.org/victorygrower/.
What is happening with Victory Gardens today?
With United States involved in two wars and Americans feeling economically insecure, a movement has started across the country to revive Victory Gardens, encouraging citizens across the country to grow a portion of their food. This includes the “Eat the View” campaign led by Roger Doiron, who is trying to build support for replacing a portion of the White House lawn with a vegetable garden http://www.eattheview.org/. While the thrill of raising a crop of cauliflower in your kitchen garden cannot be denied, the attention surrounding the Victory Garden revival is most likely tied to several very American traits: self-sufficiency, independence, and tenacity. Certainly, this is a difficult time economically and culturally. The global economy is in the worst economic crisis for decades. Rising food and transportation costs, coupled with job loss and the housing crunch, are creating hardship across the country and Americans are looking for a way to make a difference in their own lives and the lives of their communities. Taking matters into their own hands, many people are addressing some of these issues by growing a local solution, literally.
Growing your own vegetables has many benefits. For starters, it can increase the quality and quantity of vegetables in your diet for less than you would pay at the market. In Mendocino County we are blessed with a mild climate that allows for year round vegetable gardening. If you plan right, you can avoid having zillions of zucchini, and enjoy a wide variety of vegetables from artichokes and chard, to spinach and watermelons. Growing your own vegetables can also reduce your carbon footprint. If the average food item travels 1,500 miles from farm to plate, then reducing your vegetable mile by approximately 1499 miles, 5,100 feet will definitely impact your carbon footprint. If you tear out lawn and replace it with your vegetable garden, you can most likely boost your impact by reducing water consumption, fertilizers etc… Finally, gardening is healthy! Anyone who has double dug an asparagus bed or pulled weeds from a radish patch knows that gardening is good exercise and generally gives you a better outlook on life. Whether you are new to gardening and need some help getting started, or you are an experienced gardener looking for new ideas and camaraderie, please check our calendar of events at http://cemendocino.ucdavis.edu/for our next scheduled class in the “Victory Garden Program.”
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
