FARM WEEK # 1 - Friday, May 28, 2010 - Full and Half Shares Starting!

Hello people!

Well, it's happening! The first picking for the shares will be this Friday, May 28. It will just be for the Full and Half Shares this week. Next Friday will begin the Mini Shares. Most likely I will be delivering by 12:30 or 1:00. You can help by having your cooler and extra containers ready and waiting.

I am pretty excited.

I picked 8 pounds of salad greens last Friday for the wedding of some dear friends. It served well as a warm-up picking for the shares. Little details were dealt with like tracking down my picking containers and special food-only scissors and just remembering how to clean a large quantity of greens. It also served as confidence builder. There is food out there in the garden, you just have to pick it.

THIS WEEK'S SHARES (full and half sized only)
mesclun
spinach or spinach in the mesclun — this depends on how quickly it grows this week
arugula
radishes
pea shoots
rhubarb
dwarf bok choy or Chinese cabbage — these are small but starting to bolt so we may as well eat them.
bouquet
(The turnips need thinning. The leaves are about 4 inches long. If you want some thinnings, let me know. Otherwise, the chicks and I will eat them.)


COOKING IDEAS:
pea shoots
http://blogs.kqed.org/bayareabites/2009/02/12/i-heart-pea-shoots/

http://gardening.about.com/od/vegetables/qt/Pea-Shoots-Tendrils.htm
All parts of the pea plant are edible. You can harvest and eat the shoots, leaves and tendrils as well as any flowers or buds that may have formed.

GARDEN NEWS:
Head lettuce and white turnips forming up nicely. The TOMATO and tomatillo plants are in the ground. 32 hills of 16 varieties of winter squash have been planted. The potatoes are up and looking stout. This week I am planting lots of BEANS - green, lima, shell and soy beans as well as cucumbers and more summer squash. Next weekend I'll be setting out peppers, eggplant, and okra. The NEW FIELD looks great and it's lovely to work down there with the sound of all the birds and the view of the pond across the road. I'll be home planting on Memorial Day if anyone wants to stop by for a tour or to help with the planting. The CHICKS are getting quite big. They have all their feathers now and I plan on letting them into their yard this week. The IRISES and PEONIES are starting to bloom and the new cut flower garden is getting filled. It is going to be glorious. The May Flies and Deer Flies have arrived. There's a GARTER SNAKE guarding the door to the chicken coop, keeping the rodents away from the grain. WEEDS are growing, some welcome and some not. Rob and I enjoy eating Stinging Nettles and Lamb's Quarters. It's a busy time.

See you soon!
Laura

Laura Timmerman
910 Greenfield Rd
Leyden, MA 01337
413-773-8325
laurat@crocker.com
http://lasting-impressions-on-the-farm.blogspot.com/