Fresh Safe Food

Nothing better than fresh meat from the farm; not only is there no antibiotics or hormones, but it just plain taste better; just like fresh bread compared to a week old loaf; there is no comparison. My favorite part is always having meat in the freezer not to mention I can choose what I want when it goes to butcher. Do I want chops or a roast? Do I want more breakfast sausage or Italian sausage. Do I want those shoulder roasts or do I want more sausage? In this family, ALWAYS MORE SAUSAGE. I love that the sausage comes in 1 pound packages ready to throw loosely in eggs or soups or spaghetti; I used to spend tons of time cutting casings to get my favorites for a "ground" texture. Order beef and you don't want so much hamburger; your choice of sausages can be made or you can go to www.sausagermaker. com and make your own minutes prior to cooking if you want. You want grass fed Lamb at a great price and fresh; order here in Phelan. Grass fed beef is in the experimental stage.

Bottom line . . . you tell the butcher what you want . . . does not get much better than that . . . not to mention the taste is superior . . . I am warning you, you will never go back to store bought.

Jerricho Lettuce Experiment 101a has been a success; I don't have this many heads unfortunately, but the ones I have are this beautiful! (No I still have not gone to the store to buy a camera reader and still do not know where my cord is, but you can't do everything!) I have 72 more started to go into the ground this week that I can plant outside and more to come. This variety is the "hope" for summer lettuce; bolts slowly in the heat and maintains its quality too. Market growers in other hot summer areas are having great success and hopefully mine will continue. The good news is that it was started while temps were still cool so if this continues it could be a 9 month/12 season lettuce! The Rouge D'Hiver is a red romaine and is looking just as nice. I sold a few bags as "washed and cut" lettuce last week. Hopefully more in the future. The new field is piling up nicely thanks to the manure from Moonstruck Farm and Bashaws; tilling in this week and planting more squash in about 4 weeks. Leeks are coming up quick along with sugar snap peas; everything loving the humidity of the fog bank today. The new herb garden is planted with initial plants and without fence and they are still there!! Hoping this trend continues and I will move more out there this weekend! Tomatoes are getting a late start outside (in greenhouse they look great) due to our crazy weather, but the good news is that they will be covered by Fall extending the harvest until November and adding more "Winter Growing" space.

Snapdragons

A greenhouse cannot contain only vegetables, what fun would that be, and so flowers are a must not only for the attraction of the beneficials, but for the health of my spirit. There is nothing like a vase of flowers smiling back at you on a freezing day to make the fear of a near freeze go away even if only for a moment. There are snapdragons, yarrow and marigolds among others all doing their duty and I let the kales and lettuces flowering out stay a little while too to encourage more beneficials. With the bees already buzzing in and outside I know the warm weather is only a blink away. My greenhouse and fields are not the neatest looking, but if you look a little closer everything has a purpose. From the flowering collards attracting the bees to the weeds that go to the chickens and goats (they love the seed heads on the grasses) to the lambs quarter that is breaking the soil up before I give it to the chickens, which by the way is more nutritious than spinach and then they reward me back with beautiful eggs and one day goat's milk of my own (though their goat antics make me smile each day), which was fantastic from Valhalla and I am going to get more this week to make yogurt and ice cream!!

Unexpected Operating Expense

Okay, not everything around here in operating expenses is purely seed and water; I do have another important expense; my MP3 Player. It carries me through the day with anything from classical to movie soundtracks to rock and lots of Country of course. It is the one time I can listen to anything I want to. Well, as I was running through cutting kale yesterday my cord to my MP3 player fell out of my pocket and the music went dead; yes I cut the cord. Oh well, a new set of headphones, but then in all the wind I was constantly using my jacket to protect the greens from flying and thus it went into the wash with the linens yesterday because of this; well I normally take off my ear phones/MP3 player as I come in because it is in my ears; this time it was still in my jacket. It is now drying out on my washer; hopefully to recover. :) Yes, I will be glad when the winds stop.

Celery is something new I tried this year, and not bad!! My stalks are about half this size now (yes, I have not replaced my dead camera card reader yet). I have been enjoying munching on them along with a few snow peas, sorry I just can't help it!! Of course with the temperatures rising it will have to be shaded and I will say a prayer over it that it continues to do well. Next year it will go out in the new greenhouse with the retractable sides so heat will not be an issue until mid summer, but then again this is a crop that will be available through Fall and then again in the Spring. I look at what I am managing to do now and then picture another 100 feet (I only have 40 feet of greenhouse now) and with more time to manage it the possibilities are so fantastic!! I can't wait!! NRCS called to confirm that everything is on track, and that she needs my Organic System Plan sometime soon since I am registered under the Organic EQIP Program; so here goes!!! Thanks again for your support!!

Well I thought I would write a bit while I am sitting here waiting for the onions and radishes outside to defrost! Yes they were under an inch or so of snow this morning, but will be fine in a little while. I also fed the animals and discovered the alfalfa all over the place again even though I tried to protect it with a tarp. Not critter damage, dog damage. My husband built them a huge dog house costing about $300 to stay warm and being typical farm dogs they choose the alfalfa! Like buying kids Christmas toys and they play with the box. Beautiful day, enjoy!

VERONICA FROM NRCS JUST CALLED AND I GOT THE CONTRACT FOR THE NEW HIGH TUNNEL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We are going to go with a new design using a "wiggle wire" that will allow the sides to be raised for ventilation like the one pictured here!! One major study for Moonstruck Farms and the NRCS to begin very soon!!!!!!!!!!