gmail - august 2012 newton farmer

6/21/2016 Gmail - August 2012 Newton Farmer

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?ui=2&ik=39145d013f&view=pt&q=newton%20farmer%202012&qs=true&search=query&msg=1392d5081a00e224&siml=1392d5… 1/9

Jenn Martin <[email protected]>

August 2012 Newton Farmer

Newton Community Farm <[email protected]> Wed, Aug 15, 2012 at 10:43 PMReplyTo: Newton Community Farm <reply6a3396d22df5f4dbb17b[email protected]>To: [email protected]

Dear Farm Friends,

We start this month’s newsletter with a farm tip: All the vegetable tops inthe CSA share are edible except carrot tops. For example, kohlrabi leaves,onion tops, even radish leaves are all edible. They can be eaten raw, inmany cases, or steamed, sautéed, or stirfried and added to many dishes.So don’t throw away a good part of your farm goodies because you thinkthat it just goes on the compost pile.

In addition to the CSA program, Newton Community Farm sells produce atits farm stand and at the Friday farmers’ market in Newton. It alsodonates produce, as you can read in the article below. The farm sellsproduce to restaurants, too, including Sweet Basil in Needham, Ina’sKitchen in Newton Centre, and Farmstead Table, a new farmtotablerestaurant that just opened in Newton Centre.

Susan TornheimNewsletter [email protected]

From the FarmersFor the CSA farmer in New England, August is the busiest time of theyear. Summer vegetable harvest is in full swing while fall crops still needto be planted. Weeds are still growing as fast as we can pull them, andsome beds need to be put to rest until next year. A broken tractor couldhave made a full schedule never ending. Luckily we have had anotherawesome crew of volunteers this summer who have helped make this farmrun smoothly. We like to call it farming 1850s style, although the sicklehas been brought out a number of times, so maybe it’s more like farming

August 2012



in Mesopotamia. Regardless, we

have an abundance of produce.

Since we are farmers and therefore

always looking ahead to the next

season, we remember winter time.

Sad, sad winter time with little

fresh produce. So over the

weekend, with our abundance of

carrots, potatoes, jalapeño

peppers, onions, and herbs, we

decided to make escabeche. This isone of Joshua’s favorites from his

California days. In a brine of salt, vinegar, and water, we canned our

precious produce, and if we are able to keep our hands off them, we will

have some even in the winter. Canning is something we are relearning

how to do but have found plenty of resources both from books and online

(we recommend Wild Fermentation by Sandor Katz). We have found thatcanning is relatively easy and quick to do.

Another tool we use for summer abundance is the Excalibur. This food

dehydrator is faster and less of a production than canning. You simply

chop the food, put it in, and turn the dehydrator on. It makes cherry

tomatoes into amazing little candy treats that you can eat in January.

Dried carrots, peppers, and zucchini, just to name a few, can be re

hydrated for soup later. Maybe it is because I am reading a book about

growing up in the dust bowl, or because I am closely tied to Oklahoma

where a serious drought is currently wiping out grain crops, but I am

realizing more and more how important a vibrant local food system really

is. Not just vegetables either, but grains, beans, oils, and herbal

medicines. If you have not been by to see our exhibition garden yet, now

is the time to see a small batch of grains being produced. The millet has

reached seven feet in height and is a beautiful array of purples and

greens. Of the different grains we planted this spring the quinoa, millet,

and amaranth have really taken off and will be harvested within the

month. This small patch of grains might produce a few pounds, but we are

learning what grows well here, how to harvest and store what we grow,

and how much time and effort really goes into what we eat. And for us, it

is a step in the direction of cultivating a more regionally independent food

system.

Let me jump down off that soap box and tell you the good news―as of yet

we do not have late blight in our field! We sent a suspiciouslooking

sample to the diagnostic lab at UMass Extension. The test came back

negative for late blight (but positive for early blight and septoria, which

can be resisted through the pruning of diseased leaves and the addition of

nitrogen). Many neighboring farmers, as close as Natick, have been hit

with late blight and have lost much of their tomato and potato crop. We

reason that it missed us because we seem to have had less rain than folks

just a bit west and south have had, and we were able to get into the

tomatoes on dry days and prune leaves heavily. Late blight occurs in

damp, cool conditions, and by pruning leaves we created more space for



air flow. It is important to pruneand harvest tomatoes when theirleaves are dry. This will helpprevent the spread of disease.Also, when watering tomatoesfocus on the base of the plant,keeping the leaves dry.

Onions for me are a way to trackthe season. They are the first thingseeded in the greenhouse in March.They sit most of the season, and

you get used to them being there.Last week we harvested all of ouronions and put them into thegreenhouse where they will stayuntil the green of their stems hasdried out and turned brown. Thenthey will go into crates and bestored in the barn until wedistribute them. Garlic is similar asa time marker. Although this yearwe harvested about two weeksearlier than normal due to thewarm winter and spring, the garlic has been curing in the barn for about amonth now and is almost ready for distribution! It’s a goodlooking cropthis year, and after we sort it, keeping some of the biggest cloves to plantthis fall, we'll begin distributing it to the CSA. Also be on the lookout forgarlic at the farm stand and the farmers’ market.

As August moves on, produce keeps coming, as do the weeds, and manyof our regular volunteers go back to school. We can still use help in thefield as we prepare for the upcoming harvest fest, planting garlic, andputting the field to rest. We are still without a tractor so if you want agreat workout, please come by and help us flip a bed or two.

Happy August!

Megan Talley

EducationWhat a busy month we have had! Our Farm Sprouts have been meetingon a regular basis and have been busy learning about the different partsof a plant and the important work of the worm and exploring all thedifferent colors of the farm. New Farmers in Training (grades 3 to 5) havejoined our community and have been busy tying tomatoes in the LearningGarden, composting the potatoes, and making their own pickles usingproduce fresh from the field.

This past month we also completed our very first SAY Farmers program



(Socially Aware Young Farmers),which was a huge success and a lotof fun for all involved. Over the twoweeks we discussed the differencesbetween local, smallscale farmingand industrial farming, focusing ontheir differing impacts on theenvironment, the community, andourselves. At the end of the twoweek program students presentedtheir own interpretations of whatwe had discussed to our farmmanagers, Megan and Joshua, aswell as some parents.

So what about August?Farmer in Training – We stillhave spaces available for the weekof August 21 to August 24 and alsofor our final week of summerprogramming, August 28 to August31. Please visit our Web site formore information and to register.Farm Sprouts – Some spaceshave opened up in our Thursday11:30 a.m.–12:30 a.m. class forthe remaining weeks of August.Please contact our education coordinator, Alison Wilson, directly for moreinformation at [email protected].

And don’t forget our Yoga at the Farm, ideal for our younger supporterswith a caregiver. Have fun exploring the poses and benefits of yoga withyour youngster in the beautiful surroundings of the farm. Fun and laughterare guaranteed! Friday, August 17, and Friday, August 24.

Information and registration details on all our offerings can be found atour Web site.

Looking aheadWe are already in the process of planning for the fall. This year we will belaunching FOOD MONTH, the month of October, an opportunity for peopleof all ages to try a variety of cooking and foodrelated classes. There willalso be old favorites such as Budding Chefs for youngsters as well asExtending Your Growing Season for the gardeners among you.

Alison Wilson

Dinner on the FarmOur 2012 Dinner on the Farm was a great success! This year the eventsold out and we welcomed 90 friends, old and new. This dinner could not



have happened without our inspired chef, Ted Craddock, who donated his

time, plus our wonderful volunteers and generous donations from Iggy’s

Bread of the World in Cambridge and Vinodivino of Newton.

Rochelle Rosen

Dinner on the Farm Chef has Local Roots

Ted Craddock, the chef for July’s Dinner on

the Farm, has a very personal connection to

the farm and a long history of cooking. His

mom is board member Jenny Craddock, and

he started cooking in her kitchen by age 11.

He hopes to eventually open his own

restaurant.

Designing a menu with produce from a small farm poses some challenges, saysCraddock. It’s hard to know precisely what will be available. Craddock started bypicking the meal’s proteins and then considering vegetables. “Megan sent me a list ofwhat was most likely to be available: squash, rhubarb, lots of herbs, beets,” saysCraddock. These veggies aren’t as vulnerable to hot or dry weather as other produce.The heat wave during the week preceding the dinner killed much of the farm’s lettuce.

Craddock enjoys working with local produce. “I prefer working with local producebecause you can talk with the farmer and learn what’s good,” he says. He urges farmmembers to use as much local produce as possible because it’s the freshest.

Speaking of local, Craddock learned his chef skills at Johnson & Wales University inProvidence, Rhode Island. He went there after working in a restaurant for a couple ofmonths. He currently works as a chef for Sandrino’s Best of Thymes, a caterer basedin North Andover. He does prep work for the firm and also provides service atpeople’s houses.

Craddock would like to eventually open a gastropub. For him that means servingorgans such as sweetbreads, hearts, and livers in a fine dining style. “I like how theytaste, and I think organs are underappreciated,” he says.

Susan B. Weiner

Newton Community Farm Upcoming Events

Fall Festival – Sunday, September 23

Lumière Dinner – Tuesday, October 16

Halloween on the Farm – Friday, October 26

Seeking Helpers



The success of our Fall Festival depends on a great group of volunteers.This year’s festival will be held on Sunday, September 23, and we needhelp in many areas. We can use the help of women, men, and kids age 14and up. Below are some examples of tasks that helpers will do.

Setup: 8–11 a.m.Set up tents, booths, tables, and decorations

1st Shift: 11 a.m.–2 p.m.Assist with food or children’s activities

2nd Shift: 2–5 p.m.Assist with food or children’s activities

Cleanup & Breakdown: Fold up tables, chairs, and tents and remove trash

Bake SaleDonations & Table: Donate baked goods for sale (cookies, cakes, muffins,brownies, scones, bread, etc.). Staff the sales table.

Sign up by contacting Rochelle Rosen, our event coordinator, [email protected].

Barney Keezell

Barney Keezell, the newest member of the Board of Directors of the farm,is an avid organic gardener who is well known in his neighborhood forpumpkins, which grow over his hedge each year. He also informally servesas his neighborhood’s “vegetable garden consultant.” When he took agardening workshop taught by Ted Chapman, Ted encouraged him tobecome involved with the farm, so Barney volunteered at the farm lastyear, working in the field two days a week. A graduate of NortheastOrganic Farming Association’s fiveday land care course, he recentlyworked in the vegetable greenhouse of a wellknown retail garden center.He is retired from a long career as a social worker in child welfare,including many years as a senior manager in state government, and heand his family have lived in Newton for more than 20 years. As a NCFBoard member Barney coordinates volunteer participation in the farm’sprograms and connects the gardening community to the farm. His otherinterests include saltwater kayak fishing and cooking.

Dede Vittori

Vote of Confidence

Do you think Newton Community Farm is a great place to volunteer? Wedo, too, and need your help to spread the word! We have been nominatedas a “Best Place to Volunteer” in the annual Newton Patch poll and needyour vote to win. In order to vote you must be a registered Patch user.It’s free and easy to open an account if you would like to submit your



vote. Click here for the poll. We thank you for your support.

Rochelle Rosen

Sharing Food:NCF donates produce to Newton food pantriesand Second Step

As in the past few years, NCFcontinues to make weeklydonations of fresh produce to theNewton Food Pantry, located in thebasement of the Waban LibraryCenter at 1608 Beacon Street,Waban. According to Jackie Colby,Newton Food Pantry’s president,the organization serves an averageof 35 families each week, and theyreally appreciate the donations of awide variety of fresh, locally grownvegetables and herbs. Nothing goes to waste. From summer through thefall, a farm volunteer brings large plastic bins of herbs, greens, turnips,beets, tomatoes, and other seasonal vegetables on Wednesday before thepantry opens. Pantry volunteers sort the produce into smaller portions fordistribution.

NCF also collaborates with another organization, Food to Your Table, whichdistributes leftover fresh produce from the farm on Saturdays to both theCentre Street Food Pantry and Second Step, an organization that providestransitional housing and other services to survivors of domestic violence.Food to Your Table is run by Amy Silberstein and Joan Balaban, both ofwhom have CSA shares this season at NCF. The residents at Second Stepreally appreciate the donated food, seedlings, and recipes. They recentlymade pesto and vegetable juices and also planted the donated seedlingsin their residential garden.

Both food pantries need donations of food and money to meet theirgrowing demands. Contact Newton Food Pantry at 6175272394 and CentreStreet Food Pantry at 6173409554 for more information on how to supportthem. NCF’s donations are possible due to the farm community’scontributions of money and time. Your support helps the farm give freshfood to families in need in the local community. Thank you for yourgenerosity!

Dede Vittori

Newton Community Farm Envirothon Team

You may have been wondering about NCF’s Envirothon team since readingabout them in our July newsletter. Coach Ann Dannenburg reports that



the team did well when they represented Massachusetts in the recentnational competition in July. The team finished first in forestry (one of fivefield stations in the competition), beating 53 other teams from 43 states,9 Canadian provinces, and the Yukon Territory. Overall, NCF's teamfinished 13th, which is the best a Massachusetts team has done in manyyears. Congratulations to the team on their success!

Recipes

Cold soup is a refreshing part ofsummer dinners, especially duringzucchini season. How aboutZucchiniPea Soup? This uses 2pounds of zucchini, a goodlyamount when your refrigerator isstuffed with them, and 2 cups offresh or frozen peas. You can useany summer squash in place of thezucchini. Click here for the recipe.

Susan Tornheim

Volunteer Hours

Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 9 to 12 every week

Wish List

• Acrylic paints for education program (don't need to be new)• Working old lawn mower• Bike pump for volunteers who ride their bikes

Thanks to folks who have donated old toolsthey've been very useful!

Please contact us if you have any questions about this newsletter or ideas for futureissues, or if you want to be added to our mailing list. Just email Susan Tornheim [email protected]. For more information about the farm, email our farm managers,Megan and Joshua, at [email protected] or check out our Web page atnewtoncommunityfarm.org (or click on the image at the top of the page).

updates on class listings, events, NCF news and more!

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gmail - august 2012 newton farmer

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