BGF News - June 19, 2018-Vol. XL, No.3

BGF News - June 19, 2018-Vol. XL, No.3

In this week’s box:

Collards

Garlic Scapes (green curly things in a twist tie)

Head Lettuce or Lettuce Bouquets: asst varieties

Kale Mix  (large mixed leaf bundle)

Purslane
Summer Squash: Slik Pik (yellow), Zephyr (yellow & green), Golden Glory (yellow zucchini), 
                                Patty Pan (saucer-shaped, green/yellow/white) or 8 Ball (round, green)

Turnips: Hakurei
and perhaps one of the following:
Snap Peas: Sugar Sprint
Snow Peas:Oregon Giant

A bounty of summer squash

For those with the Egg option [full & half shares]: one dozen free-range eggs (asst. colors)

For those with the Herb option: Genovese basil, lemon thyme, garlic chives

  
Featured Recipes:  ** indicates a BGF favorite 
Easy Sausage Zucchini Casserole
Lemon Collard Greens Pasta
Purslane Salad with Yogurt Dressing

BGF's Favorite Kale Salad ** (see recipe below)

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past week: 0.45"

As I write this, storms are making their way east towards us, sweeping away the week-long heat wave that has been slowly roasting the farm. The heat-loving plants (including the weeds) have been putting on big growth this week and we are scrambling (and sweating buckets) to stay ahead of it all. The squash have just exploded and are growing at an alarming rate. We normally harvest squash every two days, but right now it feels like we should be checking them a couple times a day.
Amid the squash-harvesting, we have really been pushing this week to stay ahead of the weeds, but in some cases "rescue-weeding" has been necessary, especially with the onion-family crops, but we are nearly there. Now if the weeds would just stay "weeded" we would be in awesome shape!

The potatoes plants are huge and we finally got a window with dry enough soil and big enough plants that we could hill them. Until several years ago, we did this by hand and it made for a hard, hot and thoroughly unpleasant several days. Then we moved our potato plot to some new ground that could be worked with the tractor and we've never looked back since. A job that used to take days of back-breaking work now takes about an hour, including setting up the equipment. We also acquired a new-to-us potato plow last week, so we are hoping that the harvest tasks see the same improvement.

The mid-season crops are coming along nicely. We are seeing the first of the fruit set on tomatoes, okra and cucumbers. Peppers and eggplants are a little farther ahead. We have nice small heads on the cabbages and noticed the first of the broccoli heading just yesterday. The melons and winter squashes have germinated pretty well and are starting to put on some good growth. The first sowing of beans have been popular with the rabbits, but are just starting to show the first flowers. The 2nd sowing is looking good, but don't mention that to the rabbits.

Baby broccoli

A little detail on your produce this week:

Garlic Scapes: One of our favorite crops of the year. These curly green things are the emerging flower stalk from a hardneck garlic plant. We remove them to redirect more of the plant's energy into the bulb, but it also provides us with a delightful fresh garlic treat. These keep very well in a plastic bag in your produce drawer and can be used in any recipe calling for garlic. They would be perfect in last week's garlic salt recipe, make a great pesto and can be minced and added to room-temperature butter, which is then stored in log shape, in the freezer for a last minute dollop of goodness for vegetables, breads or meat.

Peas: We grow snow peas (flat pod with little bumps showing immature peas inside) and sugar snap peas (rounded pods with mature peas inside).  Both have edible pods and can be used interchangeably in recipes.  They are particularly good in stir-fries and salads, though we tend to eat them fresh as a snack.  Peas keep best in their plastic bag in the produce drawer of your refrigerator.

Purslane: Considered an invasive weed in many gardens, purslane is a valued green in many parts of the world. The plant is rich in vitamin E, vitamin C and beta carotene, and quite high in protein.  Most noteworthy of all, it is considered a better source of essential omega-3 fatty acids than any other leafy plant.  Enjoy raw or cooked in any recipe calling for greens.   We particularly like it in salads, cooked with eggs and as a lettuce replacement in tacos. Store in a paper towel-lined plastic bag in your crisper drawer and use within a week.

Summer Squash/Zucchini: Refrigerate unwashed zucchini and summer squash for up to a week and a half in a perforated plastic bag or in a sealed plastic container lined with a kitchen towel. These do not need to be peeled to use, just slice them up and go!

Turnips: keep best if separated from their greens.  Greens are stored in a plastic bag and can be cooked like mustard or collard greens (you can add them in with your Braising Greens Mix). Trimmed roots can go into a lidded container or zip-close bag. These aren't your grandma's turnips. These are a sweet, Japanese salad variety that is particularly tasty for fresh eating. They will still work great in cooked dishes, but we love to eat them raw, often right out of hand, like an apple. One of the farm crew's favorite mid-field snacks.

A few other details: All of your GREENS will keep best if stored in a plastic bag, with the top folded over and placed in the produce drawer of your refrigerator.  

** NOTE: You will notice over the course of the season that some box contents listed above say "Perhaps one of the following..."  These are items that we can’t harvest in sufficient quantities for the whole CSA to receive at one time.  We do track who gets what and we will do our best to ensure that everyone eventually receives each item.  On some items this may take several weeks, so please be patient.

Is a weekly newsletter not enough for you and you want to read more about our daily adventures or see pictures of the farm?  Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm and/or share your recipes, experiences and questions with other BGF members at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That’s about it this week, if you have any questions or comments be sure to let us know. 

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and Luci & Indigo)

BGF's Favorite Kale Salad  

Yield: Makes 6 to 8 servings

2 tablespoons dried cranberries
5 tablespoons balsamic vinegar, divided
3 tablespoon seasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
2 bunches kale (about 1 pound), center ribs and stems removed, leaves thinly sliced crosswise
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds, (if using salted, cut down on the 1tsp salt above)
Parmesan cheese shavings

Place cranberries in small bowl; add balsamic vinegar, seasoned rice vinegar, honey oil and salt and allow to soak several hours (overnight is even better).

Place kale in a large bowl, add cranberry mixture and toss to coat. Let marinate 20 minutes at room temperature, tossing occasionally. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with cheese shavings and sunflower seeds just before serving.

Recipe Source:  adapted from an epicurious recipe by Dan Barber

BGF News - June 12, 2018-Vol. XL, No.2

In this week’s box:

Basil Tips (in the small plastic bag)
Braising Mix: Osaka Purple Mustard, Senposai & Tokoyo Bekana (bunch of large leaves)

Baby Choi: Shanghai Green or Joi Choi

Garlic Scapes (green curly things in a twist tie)

Head Lettuce or Lettuce Bouquets: asst varieties

Ginger Mint

Wild Things Mix: Amaranth & Lambsquarters (bunched, with small leaves)

and perhaps one of the following:
Summer Squash: Slik Pik (yellow), Zephyr (yellow & green) or Patty Pan (round, green)
Tapestry Salad Mix (zip-top bag) (please see note in "A Little Detail..." below)

Summer Squash 'Zephyr'

           

For those with the Egg option [full shares only]: one dozen free-range eggs (assorted colors)

For those with the Herb option: Herb share will begin in a couple of weeks as herbs mature

Featured Recipes:  ** indicates a BGF favorite 
BGF Wild E'Scape Dip **
Cold Sesame Noodles with Mustard Greens ** (we like scapes in place of scallions in this)
Lemon Garlic Bok Choy
Peppermint Syrup
Roasted Parmesan Summer Squash

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past week: 1.75"
 

What a strange weather week on the farm. We were lucky to miss the worst of the storms, though we did have enough wind to damage both fan units on the big tunnel. An easy trade off, since our friends at Grinnell Heritage Farm lost 2 high tunnels in the same storm! We also missed the big rain events, but the totals for the week added up nicely. The drying time between the rains was perfect for us to get some good weeding & cultivating work done in the fields and a rainy Monday gave us the prime opportunity to spend most of our crew hours in the high tunnels getting them well weeded and maintained. We also pruned and trellised all but the last planting of  tomatoes in the tunnels. 

The crew does like their braising greens!

It looks like we will get a couple days of "normal" temperatures and then the summer heat returns for the an extended stay. This is going to finish off our early season greens so we are sending out some extras in the boxes today, so you get a chance to try them. The braising greens and Wild Things can be used interchangeably (or mixed together). In most any recipe. They are both best as cooked greens. We hope you will take the opportunity to try our new "E'scape" dip as we are loving it! It's a great way to get folks to eat some healthy greens and is awesome on a good crusty bread, but would also be good as a side dish, on a baked potato or on pasta.

Wild E'scape Dip! One of our new favorite recipes!

The summer crops are coming along nicely and this nice moisture along with the heat will really push them forward. The basil plantings in the field and high tunnel are coming along nicely. They have put on enough growth that they were ready to be pinched back to help them produce more full growth. So you are the lucky recipients of a little early basil harvest! There was a lot of soil splashing around during last night's rain, so your basil is a bit dirty. It ruins the quality of basil to wash it before storing, so we didn't. Just rinse it off prior to using.  We harvested the very first summer squash this week but there lots more that are coming. We love summer squash season as they are just such an easy vegetable to use: grilled, sauted, roasted, fried...they are all delicious! 

Amid the weeding and rains, we also got some additional crops sown including successions of fennel, beets, beans, lettuce, chard, tetragonia and edamame. We transplanted more melons and basil. We are seeing the first fruit set on the peppers and the earliest tomatoes, so there are lots of good things to come!

A little detail on your produce this week:

Basil hates the cold and will turn black with exposure. Keep long stemmed basil in a glass/vase of water on your counter top (out of direct sunlight). Stems that are too short (trimmings/tops) should be placed in a plastic bag, with a dry paper towel. Then put inside of a paper bag (for insulation) and put in the warmest part of your refrigerator (usually the door) or on the top shelf towards the front.

Braising Greens: A combination of greens that are used mostly in cooked dishes.  Store like other greens, in a plastic bag, with the top folded over and placed in the produce drawer of your refrigerator. 

Choi (a.k.a. - pac choi, bok choy or pok choy) is the large, structural-looking vegetable.  It is a member of the cabbage family and is a traditional Asian stir-fry vegetable.  Both the stems and leaves of choi can be used and are especially tasty in cooked recipes.  If cooking them, separate the leaves and stems, and begin cooking stems first to avoid overcooking the more tender greens. You can also use the leaves like any green-leafy vegetable and the stems like celery.  We tend to use choi leaves as a sandwich wrap, or just roughly chop the whole thing and sauté with garlic and/or onion.  Cook until stems are tender and dress with a little seasoned rice vinegar. Store choi loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in your produce drawer.

Garlic Scapes: One of our favorite crops of the year. These curly green things are the emerging flower stalk from a hardneck garlic plant. We remove them to redirect more of the plant's energy into the bulb, but it also provides us with a delightful fresh garlic treat. These keep very well in a plastic bag in your produce drawer and can be used in any recipe calling for garlic. They would be perfect in last week's garlic salt recipe, make a great pesto and can be minced and added to room-temperature butter, which is then stored in log shape, in the freezer for a last minute dollop of goodness for vegetables, breads or meat.

A few other details: All of your GREENS will keep best if stored in a plastic bag, with the top folded over and placed in the produce drawer of your refrigerator.  

Herbs (other than basil): Most herbs keep best in a glass of water in the refrigerator, loosely covered with a plastic bag. You can keep them in a glass or base on your kitchen counter for a couple of days if you change the water daily.

Summer Squash/Zucchini: Refrigerate unwashed zucchini and summer squash for up to a week and a half in a perforated plastic bag or in a sealed plastic container lined with a kitchen towel. These do not need to be peeled to use, just slice them up and go!

* NOTE: You will notice over the course of the season that some box contents listed above say "Perhaps one of the following..."  These are items that we can’t harvest in sufficient quantities for the whole CSA to receive at one time.  We do track who gets what and we will do our best to ensure that everyone eventually receives each item.  On some items this may take several weeks, so please be patient.

Is a weekly newsletter not enough for you and you want to read more about our daily adventures or see pictures of the farm?  Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm and/or share your recipes, experiences and questions with other BGF members at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That’s about it this week, if you have any questions or comments be sure to let us know. 

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and Luci & Indigo)

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BGF Wild Escape Dip

After talking to a restaurant owner about what we have coming this week, I started brainstorming new recipes. This is what happens when I get "bored." A new jam flavor (Strawberry Lemonade) and a made up recipe for ripe-and-ready crops on the farm. This is my new favorite tasty treat, which I am eating for supper as I prep for market tomorrow.

BGF Wild E'scape Dip

1 bunch garlic scapes, chopped

1 bunch Wild Things Greens, chopped

drizzle olive oil

6oz cream cheese

1/4c sour cream

1/4c mayo

1/3c parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp red pepper flakes

1/4 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 325°

Saute greens in olive oil until soft & reduced. Cool.

Place scapes in a food processor & pulse until minced.

Add greens, cream cheese, mayo, cheese, pepper flakes and salt & pulse until combined.

Put mixture into an oven safe dish.

Bake for 20-30 minutes until top turns golden and starts to bubble.

Serve with a baguette or crackers.

BGF News - June 5, 2018-Vol. XL, No.1

BGF News - June 5, 2018-Vol. XL, No.1

"Vivid" Choi

In this week’s box:

Asparagus 

Choi: Vivid (leafy bundle with pink/purple stems)
Garlic Scapes (green curly things in a twist tie)

Head Lettuce: Muir (green) or Magenta (red) or Romaine

Kale Mix  (large mixed leaf bundle)

Lemon Balm (lemon-scented, small leafy bundle)

Turnips: Hakurei
and perhaps Tapestry Salad Mix (zip-top bag) (please see note in "A Little Detail..." below)

           

For those with the Egg option [full & half shares]: one dozen free-range eggs (asst. colors)

For those with the Herb option: Herb share will begin in a couple of weeks as herbs mature

 
Featured Recipes:  ** indicates a BGF favorite 
Lemon Balm Pesto**
Sauteed Japanese Turnips
Garlic Scape Pesto** see recipe below

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past month: 1.7"
 

Welcome to the first delivery of the 2018 CSA season and the start of weekly newsletters!  The boxes are a little light at this time of the season and you will notice the abundance of greens and not quite as much variety as we expect later in the season.  This is part of the joy of eating fresh, seasonal foods.  As the season continues the weight and variety of the contents will increase with the arrival of heavier crops including beans, tomatoes, potatoes and squash.  One thing that does remain somewhat consistent is the presence of some cosmetic damage caused by our local insects.  This is another of the indications that we are truly a chemical-free farm.  We try to keep the insect population under control, but they are simply a fact of life in a naturally grown system.  We hope you can overlook some minor leaf damage and we will do our best to keep it to a minimum.  Also we do our best to provide you with clean produce, but you may find a little dirt here and there or, yikes, possibly an insect.  We do wash the produce and sort it to the best of our ability, but we are processing a significant volume and it is possible that at some point you will find a little “nature” in your box.  If and when it happens to you, we apologize ahead of time and hope you will forgive the oversight.  Remember, while we do clean the produce, it is always good practice to wash your vegetables before using.

A big thank you to our pick-up site hosts: Peace Tree Brewing Co - Des Moines and the Grand Theater in Knoxville.  Over the course of the season please consider supporting these independent, local businesses who offer us a great place to deliver your produce.

It is a busy time on the farm. The quick turn from early spring to high summer weather pushed us into high gear for transplanting, weeding and mulching. Most of our earlier sown crops are looking pretty good, although the rabbits are causing some significant damage, which means our dogs are getting lazy. So far the little furry eaters have shown a decided preference for lettuce and broccoli. The first crop of broccoli (nearly 400') is gone, but there is a beautiful 2nd crop in another field that is coming along nicely.  We're going to have to work on making the crops less appealing to the bunny and deer. The early and extended hot weather is also causing issues for the cool weather-loving crops. Salad mix, spinach and arugula all struggled and we lost multiple sowings of each. The spinach is done until fall, but we will try again with the salad and arugula if the temperatures will stay around "normal" for the season.

Garlic Scapes

The garlic is "scaping"! For those of you who are new to the CSA, scapes are the emerging flower stalk on a hardneck garlic plant. We remove them to redirect more of the plant's energy into the bulb, but it also provides us with a delightful fresh garlic treat. It is one of our favorite crops of the season and we hope you enjoy their curly, garlicky goodness as much as we do. They are a short season treat though, so we will likely have them in boxes for the next two weeks and then they will be done and we will go on to the next stage of garlic happiness. 

Other things on the farm are rolling forward. We've cleared most of the early crops from both high tunnels and are nearly done switching over to warm season crops in there. The field tomatoes, eggplant, okra, squash, melons and basil are all in. Still one planting of peppers to transplant and then ongoing plantings of lettuce and sowings of  beans, beets and edamame to go. The majority of the irrigation system is installed and running daily. Amid planting, sowing, irrigation work and harvesting, we've also managed to get a fair amount of cultivating done and the weeds are being discouraged almost daily (they do seem to have a lot of encouragement from somewhere though). It seemed like just a couple of weeks ago we were so wet that we couldn't work soil and now we are starting to choreograph our rain dance. Such is the life of a vegetable-grower in Iowa.

All in all things are looking very lush and green here at the farm. We hope you enjoy this first delivery and are looking forward to this season as much as we are.

3/4 of the farm crew. Pretty sure these ladies could just about run the farm without me!

We hope you enjoy the weekly online newsletter. One of the goals for this format is so you can go to the blog/newsletter at any time and search for specific vegetables, that should allow you to see any archived recipes for that item. It also allows us to include photos and links to more recipes and information. As we mentioned in the recent newsletter, in addition to the regular BGF Facebook page, we also have a Facebook page for CSA members. You can find it here: Blue Gate Farm Community. If you have a Facebook account we encourage you to post recipes, photos and questions about your weekly produce box adventures. If you don't have an account, don't worry, you can still see/read anything on the page, but you won't be able to post anything. We will keep an eye on the page and try to answer questions in a timely manner, but really this is to encourage the "Community" aspect of CSA and to provide you all a venue to share and connect with each other.

A little detail on your produce this week:

Asparagus: Keeps best stored upright in a glass with about 1" of water, in the refrigerator. Delicious raw or cooked.

Choi (a.k.a. - pac choi, bok choy or pok choy) is a member of the cabbage family and is a traditional Asian stir-fry vegetable.  Both the stems and leaves of choi can be used and are especially tasty in cooked recipes.  If cooking them, separate the leaves and stems, and begin cooking stems first to avoid overcooking the more tender greens. You can also use the leaves like any green-leafy vegetable and the stems like celery.  We tend to use choi leaves as a sandwich wrap, or just roughly chop the whole thing and sauté with garlic and/or onion.  Cook until stems are tender and dress with a little seasoned rice vinegar. Store choi loosely wrapped in a plastic bag in your produce drawer.

Garlic Scapes: One of our favorite crops of the year. These curly green things are the emerging flower stalk from a hardneck garlic plant. We remove them to redirect more of the plant's energy into the bulb, but it also provides us with a delightful fresh garlic treat. These keep very well in a plastic bag in your produce drawer and can be used in any recipe calling for garlic. They would be perfect in last week's garlic salt recipe, make a great pesto and can be minced and added to room-temperature butter, which is then stored in log shape, in the freezer for a last minute dollop of goodness for vegetables, breads or meat.

Lemon Balm: a member of the mint family, lemon balm has a bright, lemony flavor that pairs well with other greens, potatoes, eggs and poultry. We like it as the main ingredient in pesto or as a refreshing iced tea. Store upright and loosely covered in a glass of water in the refrigerator.

Turnips: keep best if separated from their greens.  Greens are stored in a plastic bag and can be cooked like mustard or collard greens (you can add them in with your Braising Greens Mix).  Trimmed roots can go into a lidded container or zip-close bag. These aren't your grandma's turnips. These are a sweet, Japanese salad variety that is particularly tasty for fresh eating. They will still work great in cooked dishes, but we love to eat them raw, often right out of hand, like an apple. One of the farm crew's favorite mid-field snacks.

A few other details: All of your GREENS will keep best if stored in a plastic bag, with the top folded over and placed in the produce drawer of your refrigerator.  

** NOTE: You will notice over the course of the season that some box contents listed above say "Perhaps one of the following..."  These are items that we can’t harvest in sufficient quantities for the whole CSA to receive at one time.  We do track who gets what and we will do our best to ensure that everyone eventually receives each item.  On some items this may take several weeks, so please be patient.

Is a weekly newsletter not enough for you and you want to read more about our daily adventures or see pictures of the farm?  Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm and/or share your recipes, experiences and questions with other BGF members at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That’s about it this week, if you have any questions or comments be sure to let us know. 

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and Blue, Luci & Indigo)

BGF Garlic Scape Pesto **1 bunch tender scapes, cut into pieces, and processed in a food processor until finely chopped
1-3 sorrel leaves, rough chopped and processed with the scapes

Add the following and process until well blended:
1/3 cup olive oil (add more if you like a thinner pesto)
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/3 cup sunflower seeds

optional, toss in some basil for additional pesto flavor if you have it.

This can be served now or frozen for future use. I freeze it in small (1/2 c.) zip-top plastic bags, flattened. Then you can just break off whatever amount you need. Delicious as a pasta or pizza sauce, dip, sandwich spread or add a little seasoned rice vinegar and it becomes a tasty salad dressing.

BGF News - May 2018-Vol. XXXIX, No.5

BGF News - May 2018-Vol. XXXIX, No.5

Precipitation in the past month: 4.45"

What’s up on the farm?

Asparagus season is on!

It's that time of the year when the "To-Do" list and the "Completed" list are vying to see which is longer. The farm crew is all here and working hard to move tasks from one list to the other as fast as we can. 

The beds are mostly prepped and a big chunk of the seeding and transplanting is done. So far we have transplanted onions, leeks, shallots, scallions, kale, chard, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, head lettuce, fennel, eggplant, peppers and herbs into the field and high tunnels. The first (and some second) round of seeding is complete on salad mix, arugula, beans, peas, spinach, choi, beets, edamame, carrots & beets. 

Most of the seeds have germinated, though the earliest greens really struggled as the soil conditions were quite dry. We have since caught up on some of our rain needs, but NOAA released the most current drought maps this past week and we are already in Moderate Drought conditions. It is alarming to see this so early in the season when we normally get the highest portion of our rain. The potatoes were really slow to emerge this spring, a combination of the dry and cool soil. We finally started seeing them this week, so we could get a start on cultivation. Thus begins the weed war. We will continue to skirmish with them (the weeds, not the potatoes) throughout the season, but if we can get ahead of the battle now, the rest of the year will go easier.  The asparagus was also delayed this season, but it is making up for lost time now. Just this week, we harvested more than 500 lbs!

The Before...

In addition to our regularly scheduled tasks, this week was also the annual shearing of the alpacas. While we have a professional shearing team from Missouri do the actual shearing, it does require "all hands" to take care of all the support activities. The alpacas don't really enjoy this day much, but after about 15 minutes of attention from the shearers, everyone is feeling much better. 

...and The After

2018 CSA deliveries begin Tuesday, June 5th!
This will be the last monthly newsletter for the season. Weekly newsletters will begin with the first CSA delivery, coming up quickly on June 5th. There is still space for new (or returning) members in the 2018 Summer CSA. Veteran members should have received their invoices last month and payments are now due.  We will send out an orientation email for all members the week before deliveries begin.

If you are interested in joining the 2018 CSA season, you can read more about it here: https://us17.campaign-archive.com/?e=[UNIQID]&u=a9a85eb452c0147312d46dfe2&id=05062a06dd

If you know of anyone who might be interested in joining us for the CSA season, please share the info with them, we have a number of available slots that we would like to fill and you are our best marketers! 

*Team Blue Gate-Market Opportunity*

Again, this year we are looking for a team of folks who love the market to join Jill in the BGF tent during the Downtown Des Moines Farmers Market season. We ask that interested individuals commit to at least 2 market dates over the course of the season and to be there for set-up, selling and tear down (basically 6am-12:30 or so). In appreciation for their time and efforts, volunteers earn a BGF T-shirt and a $30 credit at the booth that day. We had an awesome group of folks do this the past couple of seasons and everyone seemed to enjoy it. If you are interested in joining us this year, you can go to the online calendar (http://signup.com/go/hBchVBi)  and sign up for whenever works with your schedule.

Is an occasional newsletter not enough for you and you want to read more about our daily adventures or see pictures of the farm?  Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm and Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. You can also share recipes, experiences and questions with other BGF members at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That’s about it for now, if you have any questions or comments be sure to let us know. 

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and Luci & Indigo)

BGF News - April 2018-Vol. XXXIX, No.4

BGF News - April 2018-Vol. XXXIX, No.4

Precipitation in the past month: Rain 0.75"
                                                    Snow 1.50"

What’s up on the farm?

Warmer weather...so nice to see green instead of white!
This past month has been quite the roller coaster ride; snow, rain, ice and sleet with enough sunshine thrown in to make us really aware of the below normal temperatures. Through all of that fun, we've been sowing seeds inside and out, harvesting and clearing high tunnel crops and starting the first of the transplanting. Most of the beds are prepped and ready for their soon-to-come crops.
 

Starting to look like spring outside...finally!

Some of the many transplants that will be heading to the fields soon

The return of spring weather means we can finally get to our field chores...

Applying finished compost with our 1940's era spreader

Cultivating the beds to kill early weeds and incorporate the compost with our 1950's era walking tractor

Sowing seeds in prepared beds with a vintage wheel hoe & 1920's era Midget seeder

                                                                                                                       There is still space for new (or returning) members in the 2018 Summer CSA. Veteran members should receive their invoices this week, with payment due May 4th.  If you are interested in the 2018 CSA season, you can read more about it on our website:

https://www.bluegatefarmfresh.com/about-csa . 

If you are ready to join us for the upcoming season of veggie-adventures, you can get sign-up information here: 
Blue Gate Farm CSA Sign-up

Tuesday, April 24th is the final round of our winter VegEmail sales. And two weeks after that, the Downtown Des Moines Farmers Market opens! Holy cow, here it all comes, ready or not! Honestly, at this time of the year, the answer is "not!" But we will be ready by the time it gets here.

Is an occasional newsletter not enough for you and you want to read more about our daily adventures or see pictures of the farm?  Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm and Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. You can also share recipes, experiences and questions with other BGF members at Blue Gate Farm Community.

That’s about it for now, if you have any questions or comments be sure to let us know. 

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and Luci & Indigo)

A visit from Iowa Ingredient

Last summer we hosted the production team from Iowa Public Television's "Iowa Ingredient" for a program they were doing on cucumbers. When they called, I warned them that on a chemical-free farm, cucumbers suffer from an insect-induced death sentence. The day that they called, we had about 300 row feet of cukes growing, but that could change at anytime and they would die nearly overnight. They took the information, did some research and decided to include that as part of the segment.  Here's the piece that recently aired...

It was poignant to see this on our public tv station a couple of weeks ago, as it was shot last summer before we lost our beautiful Blue. There she is, featured right at the beginning of the video supervising everything that happened on her farm, as always.