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Goldfinch Farm CSA
Goldfinch Farm Newsletters
| For Beth's Ramblings and Rants click here. |
Issue No. 7: 31 August 2010
GOLDFINCH FARM CSA NEWS
Farmers: Jon & Beth Weaver-Kreider * 252-3894
www.goldfinchfarm.com * weaverkreider@comcast.net
CSA Pick-up Hours: Goldfinch Farm Tues & Fri 2-7, Sat 9-12
Lancaster Friends Meeting Tues 3:00-6:00
East Chestnut St. Menno Fri 3:00-6:00
News (A Poem in Process)
Every year, there is a day when
suddenly the sun slants
winking through the blue
in a distinct autumn mood.
It happens all at once.
This is that day.
The jays and crows have noticed, too.
They fill Skunk Hollow
with the news of it.
The robins begin to congregate.
The breezes come cool
with just a hint of winter chill, and
already underfoot is the crunch
and scuttle of fallen leaves.
The walnut is the first to start
the slow striptease. Her leaves
Are going gold.
The shadow of a vulture passes through
the shadow of the poplar's leaves.
Huge.
It is the shadow of coming winter,
the shadow of dreams to come.
Halfway
But do not be dismayed, the CSA season has only now begun to coast down the slope past the halfway point. The sun has suddenly
begun to come in at that autumn slant, the mornings are cooler, and the scholars are returning to their tasks, but we still have two months
of farming left before we put the fields to sleep for winter.
If the afternoons begin to seem too short to fit in the picking up of children from school and ferrying them to band practice and soccer and
yoga, all before rushing over to pick up the veggies before heading home to make supper, please feel free to pack a picnic supper and eat
at the farm between stops. You can set up on any of the tables in the drive, or head up into the flower beds to eat among the butterflies.
Zinnias, cosmos and sunflowers are some of the favorite bouquet flowers in the field right now, and you might find some wild Queen
Anne's lace on the way. Pick bouquets for your own table or to give to your teachers. I hadn't realized until this week how the new perennial
herbs bed is thriving. A little weeding this past week, and it can now easily be spotted just downhill from the upper (barn-side) flowerbed.
The catnip is simply buzzing with hundreds of pollinating insects. While the herb bed also has chives and oregano and the catnip, I believe
I'm going to call it Scarborough Fair (parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme).
If you pick up in Lancaster, please feel free to make a field trip out to the farm some week to pick up your veggies, pick flowers and herbs,
picnic, read a book in the orchard, sit and chat, knit, play in the sandbox, swing on the tree swing. . .
Meanwhile, put this on your calendar:
Celebrate the Coming of Autumn!
You are invited to the Annual
Goldfinch Farm POT LUCK
Sunday, September 26, 4:00 pm
Eating commences at 4:30 pm
Bring along:
* A tasty dish or two to share
* Place settings for your family
* Lawn Chairs or blankets
* Musical Instruments
Feel free to sit a spell under the trees for some music-making. Bring along a song to share (people will join in as they can), or a poem
or story to tell.
Dilly Beans and More
This is a recipe from Too Many Tomatoes, Squash, Beans and Other Good Things. A favorite farm crew recipe, the jars of dilly beans that
show up for crew breaks often contain quite a lot of non-bean veggies: carrots, hot peppers, sprigs of wild purslane. Try whatever you have
on hand. Some folks finish these off in a boiling water bath to save for winter. This makes 2 quarts.
1 lb. snap beans
1 qt. boiling water
½ Tbsp. salt
Boil uncovered 5 minutes or until tender-crisp. Plunge into cool water and drain.
1 tsp. mustard seed
1 tsp. dried dill weed (fresh, if you can get it)
½ tsp. crushed hot chili peppers
½ tsp. dill seed
2 (or more) garlic cloves, whole
1 c. water
1 c. white vinegar
1/3 c. sugar
1 Tbsp. salt
Bring to a boil. Pour over beans. Cool and cover. May be divided into jars for storage. Keep refrigerated.
Potato and Apple Salad
Another one from Too Many Tomatoes. . ., this one looked interesting to me, especially since apple season is beginning. The book says
it is “not as heavy as most potato salads.”
¼ c. heavy cream
2 Tbsp. white wine vinegar
2 tsp. grated onion
1 tsp. salt
Dash of pepper
½ c. olive oil
2 lb. new potatoes, or quartered potatoes
¼ dry white wine
1 lb. McIntosh apples, peeled and thinly sliced
Cook potatoes 15-20 minutes in salted water, until tender. Drain, peel, slice ¼ inch think, and toss with wine. Add dressing to apples and
potatoes.
The Year of the Moth
I wrote in an earlier newsletter about how exciting it was this spring to see both a Luna and a Cecropia moth. We've continued to see
interesting moths in the recent weeks.
Last week, Jon found a dead Five-Spotted Hawk Moth. It was rather large, with gray watercolor wings, and a furry body with five coral-
colored spots running down each side of its back. It was truly lovely.
Ah, but now we sigh: the larva of the Five-Spotted Hawk Moth is the Tomato Hornworm, a ravenous caterpillar. Fortunately, we seem to
have a good balance of the parasite wasp here on the farm which lays its eggs on the back of the hornworm. The wasp larvae hatch into
the caterpillar and eat it alive. While it's rather a gruesome tale, it does let me enjoy the beauty of the moth without being too anxious about
the larvae eating up our tomato crop.
This morning as I was walking past the sycamore tree, I heard a small plop on the grass beside me. There at my feet was a huge
caterpillar, yellow-green, with white spots and golden spurs sticking up along the length of its back and tufts of fur sprouting along its
length. Looking it up in Joss' favorite book, the Golden Book of Butterflies and Moths, it appears to be the larva of the Imperial Moth, a lovely
lemon yellow moth tinged with pink. I sure would love to meet the adult some day.
PA Energy Fest
On September 17-19, in Kempton, PA, about 20 west of Allentown is the PA Energy Fest. They're sending me some discount coupons
for a dollar off the $12 admission price that you'll be able to pick up soon. Friday also includes a special discount for students ($4 per
students). Go to www.paenergyfest.com for more information.
“My idea of heaven is a great big baked potato and someone to share it with.” --Oprah Winfrey
“Weather means more when you have a garden. There's nothing like listening to a shower and thinking how it is soaking in around your
green beans.” --Marcelene Cox
ARCHIVE
Final Newsletter of 2009
(with links to most 2009
newsletters)
#1: Late May
#2: 14 June 2010
#3: 28 June 2010
#4: 13 July 2010
#5: 27 July 2010
#6: 17 August 2010
Final Newsletter of 2009
(with links to most 2009
newsletters)
#1: Late May
#2: 14 June 2010
#3: 28 June 2010
#4: 13 July 2010
#5: 27 July 2010
#6: 17 August 2010
| Celebrate the Coming of Autumn! You are invited to the Annual Goldfinch Farm POT LUCK See Details Below |