Calliope’s Table CSA Distribution #7 – July 15, 2009

Hello Subscribers,

A variety of things, new and continuing, await you this week at the distribution such as peas, chard, broccoli, BASIL!, and maybe even a first showing of the root crops. Even with the cold weather we’ve been having lately – it’s summer! That means we’re finally shifting from spring into the heat of summer, whatever that means this odd weather year. So, salad greens are on their way out for a bit, and squash, tomatoes and basil are in. Well almost.

The nearly 100 summer squash plants around town have started producing as you saw last week, and are just waiting for a couple of decently hot days to take us into that time of year when folks start hiding them at friends’ and neighbors’ to get rid of them. I will stop by those gardens today and see what we can find there that is ready.

On the tomato front, about 50 plants of different varieties are planted and have fruit set on them. An indicator of our cold season is that the early season varieties are only slightly ahead, if any, of their mid-season cousins. There is green fruit set on most every plant in the first wave, and again, we just need some warm weather to remind them it’s time to ripen some of that fruit.

Today I will be harvesting the first of the Basil. Woohoo! I love basil so this is always a special turning point for me in the summer. I can eat a handful of it every day, so it has been so hard for me to just pamper them and not pick them up to this point. Another wave of basil transplants are now in and growing down the street from this first batch so we will have plenty this season. They are in fact growing right next to (yes, tomatoes do love basil as you’ve heard) those heirloom tomatoes I posted about seeding back in April. Hopefully it will all come in at once and be a big part of some canning and preserving we’ve talked about. If you are still interested in doing/learning some canning this season, please mention it to me as I’m starting to think about rounding up all the right people and equipment to be ready when the plants are.

The chard is making a fine comeback after the recent leaf miner raid that left them less than eatable last week, but already has some nice new growth that will be harvested today. Thanks to Carmen for her Zen-like approach in culling out the damaged leaves and singing to the plants while she did. That kind of attention really does wonderful things for the plants.

On the greens front it looks like we’ll be making a transition from salad greens back to cooking greens, or maybe somewhere in between. There may be one more picking from the lettuce mix you (and especially me!) have been enjoying these past weeks, but time is really up for them now and with the New Moon coming up next week it’s time to replant those beds. This will likely take us right through the fall with salad greens when they make their appearance in a couple of weeks.

There are lots of the Tatsoi mustard greens left, even as they try to bolt, and also Orach and Chicory are now at a harvestable size. I’ll have a mix of these available today for you to try as either a cooking green or give them a try as a summer salad mix. Think of Orach as a summer spinach, and chicory as well but with a bit more bitter taste.

Did anyone try a pasta salad with the Broccoli? I did and came up with two versions. The broccoli is the sweetest I’ve tasted in some time, and I’m enjoying eating every bit of it, stalks and all. One salad had Rotini (corkscrew) pasta, broccoli, sliced red onions, matchstick carrots, minced ginger, scallions, snow peas, cilantro and dressed with a honey-dijon salad dressing. The other had less of an Asian influence and left out the carrots, ginger and cilantro.

Another simple pasta creation that will work for this week is taking the hot pasta and mixing it into sautéed greens. For pasta shape, try a medium spaghetti or linguine. In a skillet in which you’ve sautéed sliced onions in olive oil over medium-high heat until mostly translucent, stir in the chopped cooking greens and continue cooking keeping everything moving until the greens are wilted. Toss in a good amount of minced garlic, turn the heat down to low, toss well to mix, then add the hot drained pasta and keep mixing. Add a bit more olive oil if needed to coat the pasta, and serve when everything is well mingled. Black olives with a bit of its juice works well in this too. Serve in a bowl with grated parmesan on top and crusty bread.

You might also try the greens mix this week as a salad too. Use your favorite salad dressing or you might like to try this one I ran across that sounds great too: Whirl in a blender or whisk in a bowl: 1 clove roughly chopped garlic, pinch salt 1 teaspoon (scant) dijon mustard, 2 teaspoons plum jam or any other jam available, 4 Tablespoons rice wine vinegar, 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil. Thanks to Marquita Farm CSA for that recipe. Check the link for more recipes from them.

In other farm news, there will be regular gatherings at the Ladd’s Addition garden on Saturdays at 9:00am. If you’d like to help us turn this lovely space back into a community garden, please join us on any Saturday starting this week, July 18 at 9:00 am. We would love your help to make this space a food production garden that will help supply the new Food Not Bombs-style serving that is being developed in SE Portland. Help us grow high-quality, nutritious fresh food to supply these servings, and help us vision the direction this community garden will take in future seasons. Across from the East Rose Garden in Ladd’s, straight down the Harrison hill into Ladd’s if you’re on bike. Get in touch if you need better directions.

Also, for the next 3 weeks, I will be the farmer-in-residence at the SE Urban Farmer Collective produce booth at the new Hawthorne Urban Farmers Market. It’s 1-6pm on Sundays at SE 43rd and Hawthorne next to the Hawthorne Auto Clinic. There’s lots more than produce there, natural soaps, Reiki treatments, furniture, cut flowers, and live music, all truly local, with a down-home feel you’ve not seen the likes of at a farmer’s market for some time. Come see the new market, enjoy the music, sit a spell, and meet some of the urban farmers and artisans in your neighborhood. The new market will be featured in a piece on National Public Radio this week. http://minnesota.publicradio.org/radio/programs/marketplace_money/ It’s on Friday night here, from 8-9pm (91.5fm). Tell everyone!

A most wonderful and blessed week ahead to you!

Peace, Calliope

Happy Summer Solstice!

Happy Summer Solstice!

It was great to see all of you at the CSA distribution last Wednesday. Not all of you knew but it was my birthday and I had a great time sharing the day and the fruits of some long, rainy spring months with you.

This major turning of the year when we celebrate the longest day of sunlight, and then start the half year journey back to Winter Solstice and the longest night, seems like a good time to update you on what’s happening with Calliope’s Table.

The gardens are loving the weather and have really started growing. The plants have been through rain, heat, wind, and not always at the right times. Next week you will see the first of the Swiss chard, more salad greens and peas, and probably some beet greens. In the next few weeks some of the summer staples like squash should start to appear as well. Thanks for your patience as the plants decide they are now finally ready to start flourishing.

One of the challenges in getting more produce sooner has been not having enough growing spaces ready at the right time, and not being able to jump on new spaces that were offered. I think I am finally figuring out what and how much I need in that area, and am already working on next season in that respect. I am going to start the “Got Grass?” campaign again soon to find and get ready a few more plots in the right places that will be either for winter crops or ready for early planting next Spring. If you know of spaces that might work please get in touch. The amazing garden space in Ladd’s Addition came to be farmed by me in just that way. Thanks again!

I will be looking for the collaborations with Sunroot Gardens and Otis’ Farm to yield some harvest for the new Hawthorne Farmer’s Market in the hopes of generating a few US dollars for things like rent, bike parts, and the occasional cup of coffee. This is a separate effort from the gardens that grow food for your CSA. While I intend to get you some of the produce from those collaborative efforts that I did not have space to grow on my own, produce from the few gardens where I am growing food for your CSA are not part of that farmer’s market joint effort.

Along those lines, the newly formed Portland Urban Farmers Co-op was/is an attempt to form an association of other urban farmers operating here in the greater Portland area. So far, just 3 farms are participating, Calliope’s Table, Sunroot Gardens, and Otis’ Farm. The intent in forming this organization was to share resources when it made sense, save some money when buying tools, seeds, and amendments, and collaborate on projects that were too big for any of us individually. Some of that has happened, and some is still trying to take shape. I’m looking for involvement from other local urban farmers for this to be the kind of association I am hoping for.

Through this association I was able to buy some amazing field hoes from Rogue Tool in Missouri for almost 50% off by buying through a group order. These hoes (one of which you can see in the movie, “The Real Dirt on Farmer John”, if you look closely) are made of recycled plow steel, which is better grade steel than we make in this country anymore. With care and good maintenance these hoes will likely outlast me, and represent money that will not have to be spent again.

I am becoming more and more focused on what works best for the farming and sustainably growing the most food, rather than embracing any ideal such as traveling or moving materials exclusively on bike, or digging all the plots by hand if I can borrow a rototiller and put gas in it to get a new garden going. When it comes to the ideals around the food, I will never waiver there. I will embrace and use techniques that are “beyond organic”, as Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms puts it. “Beyond Organic” is a term he coined when the authorities prevented him from using the word “organic” because his operation was not certified. Joel is one of the smartest, most successful farmers in the country, and his customers are happy to buy what he produces, some driving over 100 miles.

“Beyond organic” for me means I embrace the original intention of organic in that it means more than not using pesticides. It also means care of the soil and fair wages for the people that grow the food. While I’m not able to give fair wages even to myself yet, I am improving the soil in every plot I farm. If you take a taste of what passes for certified organic produce at your local grocery store, I think you will see that even as far as growing the food, some of that ideal has been abandoned. You will also not be able to convince me that those growers are giving their workers good wages and conditions, and I doubt the soil is being improved. One of the reasons I grow salad greens like you all received this past week is that I don’t know where I can buy greens for myself that taste like that except maybe another CSA.

The idea of investing in those hoes ($200) is that I can personally take out an entire lawn by myself if that ends up being the way it needs to happen. I was happy to prove this to myself this week, just one day short of being 53 years of age, when I did clear a decent sized area from some tall pasture grass and blackberry bushes at an amazing new space I am starting to prepare for later this season and into next year. I felt much like Jack LaLanne and the feats he regularly performs on his birthday.

The new farm is at the base of Mt. Scott on Johnson Creek and just a couple of blocks from the Springwater Corridor bike trail. There are more blackberries to clear this summer, and a former horse corral (with all that yummy manure just waiting for veggies to grow there) with very tall weeds that need to be prepared for winter crops. I have very high hopes for this space and envision this being the space I can finally have my own hoop house for greenhouse growing. Besides all that it is the closest thing I’ve found to being in the country since I got back from the Umpqua Valley this winter. Maybe we can plan to take a ride out there sometime this summer and check it out.

Oh, it’s also just a short bike ride from my new residence in the Outer SE in the Arleta/Mt. Scott neighborhood. That’s right, I’m living indoors again! I’m back sharing my apartment from last year with my awesome roomie Ann. It has made all the difference in my quality of life, which translates directly into my farming, and I’m now able to cook some of the bounty from the gardens in our own little cozy kitchen. Thanks to all of you who were so supportive during the past months while I worked to find my place in the city!

The new garden (at least new to me) in Ladd’s Addition is really starting to take shape. I have been getting more and more help from Ethan who some of you have met on the distribution days. So far there are over twenty zucchini bushes planted, nearly 30 tomato plants, and over 60 Giant Kohlrabi. We are planning to plant corn there in the front of the plot as has been done in past years, this Sunday, June 21 at 10:00am, if weather permits. This is planned to be a more intimate work party than you are used to seeing announced on the Portland Urban Farmers Co-op list. I’m only announcing this to the subscriber group and a few close allies to provide a chance for some of you to meet each other and chat a bit at a time other than Wednesday afternoons when it’s harder to linger and socialize. If you’d like to help us plant, or just come share the morning with us, the garden is on Locust, just across from the East Rose Garden in Ladd’s. Call me for directions if you need it. I’ll be leaving at around noon to do some picking for the first day of the Hawthorne Farmer’s Market, but you all can linger there as long as you’d like. Maybe I’ll also see some of you later at the market. We’re trying to make this a farmer’s market like the ones in days of old before excessive regulations changed the very intention of what a farmer’s market is all about.

Much of the food at the Ladd’s garden is intended to go straight to hungry people, bypassing organizations like the Oregon Food Bank which I believe is not as effective as it could be in feeding the hungry. One way this will happen is through a brand new effort in conjunction with SE Food Not Lawns. The Outer SE no longer has a Food Not Bombs serving, and we hear nothing from FNB about any intention to again serve this area, which has a very underserved population of homeless and underemployed people. My vision and intention in this area comes from a book that thinks anyone alive and breathing deserves to eat. I am one of three urban farmers in Outer SE that will be supporting this new effort to feed some hungry people. We’re still in the planning stages, but if you’d like to help, get in touch.

Finally, I have the new WordPress blog I’ve been longing for. I’ve moved all the blog history over and will be using this new space for weekly announcements about the CSA, and my occasional ranting about our industrial food system. I know many of you had trouble subscribing to the old blog, but if you will give another try at subscribing to this new one I think you will have better results. Just hit the RSS Feed icon on the far right side of the address bar in your browser. It’s an orange square with white curved lines. Subscribing to the blog will send you an alert when it is updated and I can use it to send you weekly news about the CSA.

My copy of The Mad Farmer Poems by Wendell Berry just arrived at the library and one of the poems seems so appropriate at this moment. I hope you like it.

Thanks for all you do! I love being your farmer!

Peace and peas,

Calliope

Don’t worry and fret about the crops. After you have done all you can for them, let them stand in the weather on their own.

If the crop of any one year was all, a man would have to cut his throat every time it hailed.

But the real products of any year’s work are the farmer’s mind and the cropland itself.

If he raises a good crop at the cost of belittling himself and diminishing the ground, he has gained nothing. He will have to begin over again next spring, worse off than before.

Let him receive the season’s increment into his mind. Let him work it into the soil.

The finest growth that farmland can produce is a careful farmer.

Make the human race a better head. Make the world a better piece of ground.

Prayers and Saying of The Mad Farmer

- Wendell Berry