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Don’t Forget the Garlic!
Food for Thought Newsletter - Issue 008
In this Issue: 008
- I’m not getting political - but I do have thoughts…
- Don’t forget to plant your garlic! - It’s almost time!
- My takeaways from U-Pick this season
Today is a bittersweet day - we had our final opening for u-pick and our pickers nearly picked the orchard clean of all of the apples we had available. It was a fun afternoon and finalized a really neat season. Also today, Gene gave up on the cantaloupe and pulled it all out of the greenhouse. 😔
Since this is the last year we will be growing cantaloupe, it’s even more sad! The past couple of cool and rainy summers have just made growing ultra heat loving plants just a bit too challenging.
However, we are believing for sunny days ahead! (Preferably all summer next year!)
We had hoped to get in one good final crop, but that was just not how it played out. Gene put a ton of hope and work into the cantaloupe this year. It’s really too bad.
However, on a good note, we are transforming the greenhouse into an indoor orchard! It’s a trial run to decide our next direction for the farm. I think it’s going to be so fun!
Are you about done with your food preservation? I made a gallon of salsa for the freezer today. It turned out really good! I also made a gallon of this Hawaiian ferment - I can’t wait for it to be ready! I think we just have apples and pears left - oh, and finish up the tomatoes. They are in the freezer, patiently waiting. I think they can wait another week or two. 🙂
Donkeys & Elephants 🗳️
POLITICS? Not here … But I do have a story to tell.
Four summers ago, we had a super cool thing happen on our farm. I remember the day so well. The sun was so warm and there was a slight breeze. It was a perfect day.
We had a field full of pickers and the parking lot was overflowing with cars. In the orchard we could hear people visiting, laughing, and comparing notes about what they were going to do with their bounty.
It was one of those moments where everything just seemed perfect.
I walked out to the parking lot to greet some customers, and I came upon two cars parked side by side.
One had a TRUMP sticker.
The car next to it had a BIDEN sticker.
And that beautiful moment made me cry. If you remember, four years ago, we were also very divided. So much drama. So much hate. So many stories - many of which weren’t true - were being told on both sides. And it felt like our beloved country was going to be ripped apart.
But at that moment.
In our orchard.
There were two people picking berries, one a democrat and the other a republican. One voting proudly for Biden. The other voting proudly for Trump.
And it didn’t even matter.
Because they were united in their mission to feed themselves and their family good, nutrient dense local food. And we were able to give that to them.
And that unity - that COMMON GROUND - is what keeps America going when it seems like everything is going to fall apart.
Folks, this election is a big deal. They ALL are! But let’s also remember - your neighbor is also a big deal. And the fellow in line at the grocery store in front of you is a big deal. And the family picking berries next to you on our farm is a big deal.
And maybe, just maybe, next year when we all meet in the orchard, we can find more ways to unite and seek to find more common ground - and work through our differences - and make new friends. Even if they chose the “wrong” candidate on the ballot.
On your Marks - Get Set - Wait….! 🧄
It’s ALMOST time to plant your garlic, but not quite yet!
I am hoping the ground will dry out at least a little bit because it’s so wet now that I’m afraid they will all just rot. If we don’t get a several day break in the forecast soon, we will cover the beds with a tarp so it can dry out a bit before the garlic is planted.
A few things to remember about planting garlic:
- Big bulbs make big bulbs. Eat the small ones and plant the big ones
- Just plant hardneck garlic - softneck won’t winter over
- Plant about 6” apart and make sure they are buried by 2” of soil.
- Plant your garlic in the fall when things are dormant but before the ground freezes.
- Make sure they are good and dry before you plant them - especially this year. Everything points to excellent conditions for rot, so you want to give all of the advantages you can.
- Plant with the root side (flat end) down and the pointy end up
- Cover with mulch - we cover ours with over a foot of straw
- Remember to uncover them in the spring - the mulch will hold in moisture
Be watching our YouTube channel - we will have a garlic planting video when we get ours planted.
My 2024 Season U-Pick Takeaways 😊
I can’t help but share some things I noticed about your 2024 u-pick season. It was one of our most fun, although we had less production than usual thanks to too much rain and limited pollination.
Alaskans are creative: You all come up with some of the neatest ideas for ways to preserve berries like shrubs, mead, sugar-free crisps, flavored vinegars, so many neat ideas!
Alaskans are hardy: No matter how crazy the weather was, you showed up when it was time to pick! And you showed up with smiles! It made windy, dreary days much more fun with you all around.
Alaskans are resilient: We heard stories from folks where their plants were eaten by moose, girdled by voles, munched on by rabbits, and run over by wayward lawn mowing husbands. But you all keep planting and trying! Cold weather, snow, rain, all of the different weather challenges - but no one is quitting, and you inspire us!
Alaskans LOVE local - and we’re so grateful for that! We are so grateful to be able to provide food for our friends and neighbors.
This year had its challenges - we just gave up on the cantaloupe yesterday and pulled it all up. We tried to hang on! But in the end, it was just too late.
However, wanna know something cool? Yes, it’s sad to see the cantaloupe chapter end, but today we started filling in the cantaloupe greenhouse with soil so we can plant an inside orchard!
We have big plans - for some really cool things … like sweet cherries!
So thank you for your support this summer. In this world that feels a little uncertain and where there is so much angst and even downright anger and hatred - I feel like our orchard was filled with friends, new and old, this year.
The fellowship was as sweet as the fruit, and it made our summer just wonderful!
Photo by Anton Darius on Unsplash
I love your donkeys and elephants story! It gives me hope that even when people disagree, we can still collaborate on the things that are common to us. How special is it that your farm is one of the places where that could happen?
Also, I am sad about the cantaloupe. I’ve never tasted anything like it. Hopefully, the greenhouse orchard goes well, though.
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