BGF NEWS - May 2023 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 7

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 1.48" (not nearly enough!)

Happy Memorial Day weekend from the farm and heartfelt thanks to all those who have forged the path before us. 

It's been a busy and productive month here as the full crew is now on board and we are working fast and furious! May is filled with a flurry of field prep, transplanting, sowing, harvesting and cultivating. The bulk of the main season crops are now in the ground and growing quite well thanks to our irrigation system. 

We had a huge transplanting push early last week when, thanks to extra help from a couple of veteran crew members, we were able to get thousands of plants in the ground all in one morning including tomatoes, peppers, hot peppers, eggplant, summer squash, zucchini and ground cherries. Whew!

Then the next day it was melons, okra, roselle and flowers plus sowing winter squash seed. Everything transplanted over those two days had to be hand watered in which actually took longer than planting them. Some of the recent transplants were a little offended to move from their lovely protected high tunnel locations out to dry, hot windy fields, but most seems to be acclimating well enough as long as we keep the irrigation lines running. 

We had just enough rain early in the month to pop most of our seeded crops including the best stands of beans, popcorn and edamame that we've had. The potatoes came up so fast we almost missed our window to flame weed them and they put on enough growth that we have already hilled them once. Even the deer and rabbits seems to be pitching in a bit this year and only taste-testing a few plants here and there instead of wiping out hundreds of row feet of plants in one night! Much appreciated!!

Now the all too familiar mantra, we need rain! The average total rainfall for our area for April and May is 8.10" we've had a total of 2.60". While we are not alone and we are certainly not the driest part of the state, it doesn't change the fact that this is an alarming way to start the season. So if you have a raindance to offer, we are gladly accepting!

A few people have recently asked me if we are ever going back to farmers market. The short answer is, no, at least I hope not. Farmers market was a hugely important part of our farm and business development but as we have learned, grown and matured it became clear that we were ready for a different model going forward. VegEmail is the model that is currently working well for us personally and professionally. It is a huge quality of life improvement and allows us to really focus on our core customers and CSA members. That said, we are always looking for ways to diversify and grow those bases so feel free to invite your friends along for the fun!

VegEmail continues on our summer schedule of weekly Saturday deliveries to Des Moines and Knoxville. A reminder that Des Moines customers can also order Cottagescapes Bakery breads, Ebersole Cattle Co. eggs & meats, Lost Lake Farm LLC cheese (and pick up tasty beverages from Peace Tree Brewing Co. at the same time!) It's like a farmers market in your Inbox! If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, or you want to share the link with someone just click here: Get VegEmail!.

CSA 2023: The season is nearly here! 

The first CSA delivery of the season is less than 2 weeks away, Tuesday, June 6th. Thanks and welcome to everyone who has signed up!

We've had an unexpectedly high number of CSA reservations back out this spring for a variety of reasons. We *try* not to take it personally, things happen, plans change, we get that. What that means is that we do still have memberships available that we would really like to fill. Spots are available in Des Moines, Knoxville and for on-farm pickups. If you haven't been a CSA member with us before and are interested, here's where to find details: CSA Info.

If you are ready to join us for a season of veggie adventures, here's the direct link to sign up: CSA 2023 Signup. If you have questions, just shoot us a message.

If you know someone who would love a season full of fresh, local, chemical-free produce, please share the joy and send them our way! Our amazing members and customers are the best ambassadors of the farm!

Current CSA members, just a reminder that we do have a weekly Bread Share available from our crew's family farm, Farmyard Fancies. We've subscribed to the Bread Share for the past 2 years and are looking forward to this year's delicious offerings! Bread Share is $120 (if paid with cash or check) or $125 (if paid with PayPal to
farmyardfancies@gmail.com). Please email Angie at (farmyardfancies@gmail.com) to sign up by Friday, June 2nd by 5 pm. Spaces are limited!

That's about it from us this month. Thank you for making it all the way to the end of the newsletter and for joining us on all our farming adventures. It is such a privilege to live in this beautiful place and to raise safe, healthy, delicious food for so many amazing people. WE LOVE being your farmers!

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page at Blue Gate Farm Community.

If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know.
Best from the farm,
Jill & Sean (and the whole BGF crew)

BGF NEWS - April 2023 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 6

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 1.00"

                                                           Snow: Trace

Whew! Just making it under the wire for the April newsletter! Let's get to it!

This month has been a whirlwind of soil prep and planting, as is usual for April. It's the month of biggest changes on the farm.

Some of the farm crew started back this month and we hit the ground running, prepping beds, sowing seeds and transplanting early crops. As of today we have all of the allium (onion), brassica (cabbage/broccoli) and potatoes in the ground plus the first of the fennel, Asian greens and head lettuce. We've transplanted more than 7,300 row feet of crops so far (all on our hands and knees) with many more to come! 

Plus planting about 2,900 row feet of potatoes from the cushy comfort of the planter seats. (Why we don't use this rig more is a long and complicated answer).

Many of our crops are seeded directly into the fields and we are working through that list as well. So far we've planted: peas, turnips, salad mix, arugula, choi, and a couple rotations of beets & carrots. This coming week will see more warm-weather crops being sown such as beans and edamame plus more rotations of root crops.

Another big task that we are part way through is installing our irrigation systems in all the fields. This is a big task and it's the earliest we have ever needed to start using it. We are alarmingly dry, especially for this time of year. For the month of April we had a total of 1.00" of rain. The average for the month is about 4.00 ". This is not how we like to see the season begin. Luckily we have the ability to irrigate, but natural rain from the sky is SO much better for the plants and soil (and the budget!) Regardless, we have irrigation and will put it to work. However we are accepting donations of rain dances/wishes/prayers, whatever you got!

The asparagus made it's first appearance this year on April 13th, about 4 days ahead of the average first sighting. Since then it has been slow to develop, given our wide temperature swings. We anticipate having it available on a limited basis for this week's VegEmail delivery, with much more to come in the following weeks.

And speaking of VegEmail, this week marks the return of our weekly Saturday delivery schedule.  Starting May 6 from 10am-noon you'll find us at Peace Tree-Des Moines Branch and the Grand Theater in Knoxville. Keep your eyes peeled Mondays at 5pm for the new weekly order forms!  

A reminder that Des Moines customers can also order Cottagescapes Bakery breads, Ebersole Cattle Co. eggs & meats, Lost Lake Farm LLC cheese (and pick up tasty beverages from Peace Tree Brewing Co. at the same time!) It's like a farmers market in your Inbox! If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, just fill out the form here: VegEmail.

CSA 2023: The season is nearly here! The first CSA delivery of the season is scheduled for Tuesday, June 6th. Thanks and welcome to everyone who has signed up and to the many members who paid early! Full membership payments are due on April 30 (today).

We do still have memberships available in Des Moines, Knoxville and for on-farm pickups.  If you haven't been a CSA member with us before and are interested, here's where to find details: CSA Info.

If you are ready to join us for a season of veggie adventures, here's the direct link to sign up: CSA 2023 Signup.  If you have questions, just shoot us a message. 

If you know someone who would love a season full of fresh, local, chemical-free produce, please share the joy and send them our way! Our amazing members and customers are the best ambassadors of the farm!

CSA members are also able to order shares from our partner farms including two of our favorites:

Bread Share: From our friends/neighbors at Farmyard Fancies. Receive a fresh loaf of sweet or savory homemade bread each week. 

Meat and Egg Shares: DM customers, if you want to guarantee local meat and eggs for your household, shares are available from our friends at Ebersole Cattle Company. Not currently available on Tuesdays, but contact Shanen for more information.

CSA members will be receiving an email in the next couple of weeks with details on the add-on options and about the start of the CSA season.

That's about it from us this month. Thank you for making it all the way to the end of the newsletter and for joining us on all our farming adventures. It is such a privilege to live in this beautiful place and to raise safe, healthy food for so many amazing people. 

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page at Blue Gate Farm Community.

If you have any questions or comments, be sure to let us know.

Best from the farm,

Jill & Sean (and the whole BGF crew)

BGF NEWS - March 2023 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 5

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 0.35"

                                                           Snow: 8.00"

Happy spring from the farm! Though there is snow in the forecast, our little part of the earth has embraced the seasonal change as the daylight hours continue to increase. On the land, the fields are showing a green haze beneath the brown and we are seeing the first of the spring growth on early plants.

Rhubarb

Strawberry

The garlic is another of our "early risers" in the spring and it is now pushing through the straw much enough that we can start to see the rows. We're looking forward to another great garlic year!
The skies over the farm are filled with the return of our migratory birds. The air is filled with spring birdsong from the robins, meadowlarks and killdeer and the first of the spring peepers and chorus frogs. The song of spring is raucous around here!

Our biggest focuses right now are seeding crops and watching the weather. 

Freshly planted and ready to grow!

The high tunnels have mostly been cleared of winter crops, the beds prepped and replanted with early spring crops. We spend quite a bit of time putting on and taking off the row cover fabric on these beds as they need as much sun as possible on warm days, but still require protection from the colder temps.

We are a little less than half way through seeding our transplants for the main growing season. In the past month we've sown: lettuces, choi, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, chard, kale, collards, peas, flowers, roselle, fennel, eggplant, peppers, herbs and ground cherries. Space in our sunroom nursery is now at a premium and some of the hardier plants like onions and kale had to move out to the small high tunnel to start hardening off and to make space for other new crops.

VegEmail deliveries continue on the winter schedule of every other Tuesday in Des Moines at Peace Tree-Des Moines Branch and in Knoxville at the Grand Theater. We will continue to do these sales every two weeks until the first of May. Just because it's winter, doesn't mean you can't still enjoy fresh, local foods. Our next delivery is Tuesday, 3/28 and the order form will be open until 3/26 at 10pm. If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, just fill out the form here: VegEmail.

CSA 2023: Signup season is here and we still have space available at all our delivery locations!  Thanks and welcome to everyone who has already signed up and to the many members who have paid early! Full payments are due on April 30 and we will send out invoices in early April.

If you haven't been a CSA member with us before and are interested, here's where to find details: CSA Info.

If you are ready to join us for a season of veggie adventures, here's the direct link to sign up: CSA 2023 Signup.  If you have questions, just shoot us a message. 

If you know someone who would love a season full of fresh, local, chemical-free produce, please share the joy and send them our way! Our amazing members and customers are the best ambassadors of the farm!

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members and current local customers can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our Facebook community page 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 the whole BGF crew)

BGF NEWS - February 2023 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 4

WHAT’S UP ON THE FARM?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 0.50"

                                                           Snow: 9.00"

Greetings from the farm on this cold, blustery February day. What better time to sit down in front of the computer with a hot cup of tea and review the past month.

As with most months on the farm, the weather has been a big part of our focus. The snowstorm last week brought us a quick 9" of snow as pictured in dark yellow band in the graphic below, but within a few days it was largely gone. As the top soil had thawed by then, all that good moisture soaked in with very little runoff, which we love to see. In fact, according to the experts, our area is now at "normal" soil moisture for this time of year. After last year's severe drought, that is great news!

February 1 is traditionally the start of our growing season, when we start seeding transplants in our heated sunroom.

However, this year we delayed that by a week and headed west to visit friends and family in Colorado. It was a wonderful trip with agreeable weather, some time in the mountains, a couple of bighorn sheep sightings and lots of good food. We are so lucky to have on-farm family and our awesome crew members available to take care of things while we are gone!

As soon as we returned home, the growing season began! So far we've sown all our alliums (onions, leeks, scallions & shallots), all of the early high tunnel greens, celery, early herbs and the first of the flowers. As soon as we hit March, things will really get going!

VegEmail deliveries continue on the winter schedule of every other Tuesday in Des Moines at Peace Tree-Des Moines Branch and in Knoxville at the Grand Theater. We will continue to do these sales every two weeks until the first of May. Just because it's winter, doesn't mean you can't still enjoy fresh, local foods.
Our next delivery is Tuesday, 2/28 and the order form will be open until out on 2/26 at 10pm. If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, just fill out the form here: VegEmail.

CSA 2023: Signup season is here and we still have space available at all our delivery locations!  

If you haven't been a CSA member with us before and are interested, here's where to find details: CSA Info.

If you are ready to join us for a season of veggie adventures, here's the direct link to sign up: CSA 2023 Signup.  If you have questions, just shoot us a message. If you know someone who would love a season full of fresh, local, chemical-free produce, please share the joy and send them our way!

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members and current local customers can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our Facebook community page 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 the whole BGF crew)

BGF NEWS - January 2023 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 3

WHAT’S UP ON THE FARM?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 0.95"

                                                           Snow: 5.50"

Happy new year from all of us at Blue Gate Farm! 

Xander rules the seed stock

The seed orders are rolling in (SO MANY SEEDS) 

and the farmer meeting and conference season has begun. Such is the way of January on the farm.

I feel like we've been pretty lucky with the weather so far this year and we've really appreciated the added moisture. However, as I write this we are headed for below zero temps, but again, such is the way of January! 

Bring on the snax!

The animals aren't too bothered with the weather, the alpacas are well bedded in their shed and have recently been getting extra snacks, thanks to our "Paca Snack" campaign for returning CSA members. Sky has a cozy insulated doghouse and as you can see, the "farm" cats are spending a fair amount of time in the house. 

Seed starting season will begin in about 2 weeks with the onion, shallot and scallion crops as well as some assorted herbs and flowers. Then in March, things will really get crazy! We are growing a few new things this year that we are pretty excited about, including a few new tomato varieties, a whole lineup of new cucumbers, a traditional green celery, a couple of new sweet peppers and some new lettuce varieties. Plus a  BUNCH of new flowers for our VegEmail bouquets.

VegEmail deliveries continue on the winter schedule of every other Tuesday in Des Moines at Peace Tree-Des Moines Branch and in Knoxville at the Grand Theater. We will continue to do these sales every two weeks until the first of May.

Our next delivery is Tuesday, 2/14 and the order form will go out on 2/8 at 5pm. If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, just fill out the form here: VegEmail.

CSA 2023: 

Signup season is here! CSA members from 2022 have just a few more days to reserve their places for the upcoming season. Here's the link for our veterans: CSA 2023 Signup. Starting February 1 any remaining spots will be offered to our waiting list. If you aren't a CSA member but are interested, here's where to find details: CSA Info. Or email us with any questions.

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page 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 the whole BGF crew)

BGF NEWS - December 2022 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 2

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 1.75"
Snow: 2.00"

Happy holidays from all of us at BGF! What a year it has been and how very thankful we are for our amazing family, crew, members, customers and friends! We wish you a season filled with joy, good food and those you love. 

Wow, the first official day of winter brought some serious changes to the farm this year! BRRRRR! We saw lows of -14° for a couple of days. Weather like that is rough for everyone, farmers included, requiring lots of extra chores, frozen waterlines and many layers of clothing! Luckily our power stayed on and everyone seems to have gotten through the worst of it. And yes not only the farm cats but the farm dog got to spend a couple of days in the house weathering the storm. It's still too cold to open up the high tunnels to check, but we most certainly lost some of the crops even with the row covers on. We'll get in there as soon as it warms up a bit more and see how things look.

In the meantime, this is the season of seed and supply inventories, which we completed earlier this week. 

The stack of seed catalogs has been perused and the seed order lists begun. That task should be mostly completed before the end of the month. Then we move into conference and farmer meeting season and before we know it, seed starting season will begin (in about 6 weeks).

VegEmail deliveries continue on the winter schedule of every other Tuesday in Des Moines at Peace Tree-Des Moines Branch and in Knoxville at the Grand Theater. We will continue to do these sales every two weeks until the first of May.

Our next delivery is Tuesday, 1/3 and the order form will go out on 12/28 at 5pm. If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, just fill out the form here: VegEmail Sign Up

CSA 2023: 
Signup season has begun!  Current CSA members from the 2022 season should have received an email (or two) earlier this month with the '23 sign up information (if you didn't get yours, be sure to let us know).  Those members have until the end of January to register for the upcoming season. Any remaining spots will be offered to our waiting list in early February. If you aren't a CSA member but are interested, shoot us an email and we'll get you on the list!

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page 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 the whole BGF crew)

BGF NEWS - November 2022 - VOL. XLIX, NO. 1

What’s up on the farm?

Precipitation in the past month: Rain: 3.35"
Snow: 2.50"

Welcome to our November newsletter. We will publish these once a month until the start of the CSA season in early June. Our goal is to give our members, customers and friends a quick peek into our world on the "back-side" of the seasonal calendar. So grab a hot beverage, sit back and join us for a little tour of the farm this month.

We are thankful for a time to slow down a bit. Not that a farm ever really rests, but November is usually the time when the pace on the farm really starts to ease. The rush of the main planting and growing season is done, many of the crops are out and the farm crew is on limited hours.

So, besides harvesting and packing VegEmail orders, what have we been doing for the past month?

Installing row cover (giant pieces of fabric) to protect the producing crops from early cold. It means harvesting takes longer, as the covers have to be removed and then replaced, but it does extend the lives of many of our fall crops.

Due to the unseasonably cold temperatures, a couple weeks ago, the row covers couldn't provide enough protection and the crops were damaged beyond use. Once the snow and ice melted, the row covers and all the hardware were cleared and stored for next year.

Some of our crops don't get covers, especially root crops. We just let them grow to the size we want and them harvest them all at one time. We can do this because these crops store well for an extended time in the cooler. 

This includes carrots, beets, turnips, radishes and daikon. This makes for some very long harvest days as they all have to be washed and topped (greens removed) before going into the cooler. But once that work is done, it is such a delight to have them all ready to be bagged up for orders. Happily, we were able to get this done before the bitter cold temps hit so these crops are all tucked into the walk-in cooler for the winter VegEmail season.

Clearing the beds of spent crops is always a big job in the fall. All the plant matter goes to one of our composting piles.

Then all the trellises, support posts and fabric mulch have to be cleared and stored. Irrigation system parts are all rolled up, labeled and stored as well. These tend to be messy and sometimes wet tasks and we were very pleased that this year, those all happened on fairly pleasant days, as often that isn't the case.

Usually the final big fall task is planting the garlic crop for next year. All of the heads are broken into cloves and each clove is hand planted. This year we were helped along by Skeehan family members here at the farm for a reunion weekend. They cloved out over 100 lbs of seed garlic so the farm crew was only responsible for the planting, hilling and mulching. 

Our crew has gotten really efficient at this task but it's still a significant undertaking. This year we planted a bit under 200 pounds of seed garlic, which translates to about 3600 cloves. Then once the cloves are set, they are all covered with soil and the whole plot is mulched with straw. It is a huge project and one that we celebrate once completed!

Amid all the field work, the high tunnel crops were sown or transplanted, cultivated and tucked into their own row covers for harvesting throughout the winter.

This is also the time of year when I start focusing more on our yarn and fiber inventories. There's lots of fiber and yarn to dye and much spinning to be done.

Just a reminder that we offer our U-Pick Yarn sales on the first VegEmail delivery each month in Des Moines. So locals can stop in a peruse our full fiber inventory. Folks who have yarn interests but aren't in DM can contact us directly for other options and we are happy to ship any of our fiber products.

VegEmail deliveries have now switched over to our winter schedule of every other Tuesday in Des Moines at Peace Tree-Des Moines Branch and in Knoxville at the Grand Theater. We will continue to do these sales every two weeks until the first of May.

Our next delivery is Tuesday, 12/6 and the order form will go out on 11/30 at 5pm. If you aren't receiving the VegEmail order form and you would like to, just fill out the form here: VegEmail Sign Up

CSA 2023: We have already started getting questions about next year's CSA season. "Current" CSA members from the 2022 season can start signing up in early December. Then we will open any available spots to our waiting list in January. So keep your eyes open for more CSA details to come next month.

All the activities and craziness aside, we are thankful for the privilege of living here on this beautiful farm, raising tasty, healthful produce alongside our fabulous farm crew. We couldn't do it without our amazing family, customers, members and community supporters. So we are thankful for you! We hope your Thanksgiving was filled with a bounty of delicious foods and time with your favorite people

Is a monthly newsletter not enough for you? Do you want to read more about our life on the farm and see more pictures? Follow us on Facebook at Blue Gate Farm or on Instagram at bluegatefarmfresh. CSA members can also connect with other BGF members to share recipes or ask questions on our FB community page 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 the whole BGF crew)

And welcome to Lily and Xander, our newest additions to the BGF family!