Farm News June 13, 2017
Farm NewsI am pretty sure that a week ago, it was grey, cloudy, and the thermometer topped out at a fairly chilly 60 degrees. So on Sunday it was quite a jolt for us humans to be sweating it out above 90F heat, without much of a transition, and its not particularly great for plants either. But our intrepid crew is getting up extra early to get the greens out of the field before the heat sets in, and racing all over the farm with pipes, sprinklers, and drip tape to keep the thirsty crops happy.
The spring greens are looking really good, lots of leaf, Romaine, and butterhead lettuce, plus one of our best bunching spinach harvests ever. We’ve got the first ripe tomatoes trickling in from our hoophouse. They look good for now, although they didn’t fair so well in the humid, grey days in May. Luckily the next crop in the high tunnel is cooking along, and with some luck we’ll be at full tomato production by mid-July.Otherwise we’re in full swing trying to keep up with the weeding, watering, trellising, and planting. In the meantime, there’s a lot of other critters getting busy around the farm with the business of raising the next generation, see photos below.We hope you enjoy the farm and the harvest,Paul and Rebecca, for Elliott, Justin, Lauren, Bailey, Hannah, Adam, and the field crew 
RIP Field 8. This is the piece of ground we are losing in July as St. Francis cemetery to the south looks to expand. Thanks to St. Francis for renting us the field for the past 9 years.
Left: A Killdeer nest. These ground foraging birds love our fields, and nest in bare ground. They do a "wounded wing" decoy to lead would be marauders from the eggs, which are so well camouflaged they are nearly invisible.Right: Elliott snapped a photo of this snapper laying eggs in our spring greens field. She had to cross 2 fences and Fort Hill Rd to get to our field.Featured this week:
Chinese cabbage: great for stir fry or to shredded into salad. Shredded Chinese cabbage salads with tamari dressings are delicious, cool salads for hot summer days. See recipe ideas below or at www.forthillfarm.com. Store in your fridge crisper for up to 3 weeks.Garlic scapes: These are the flowering stems of our topsetting hard neck garlic. Viewed with suspicion by shareholders in the past, they have become very popular due to their great garlic flavor and many uses. Cut off an inch or two of the thin ‘whip’ at the end of the flower, and the rest is good to chop up. Sauté in oil and then add cooking greens. Or check out our yummy garlic scape pesto recipe on the website. Great over pasta. Scapes will store for at many weeks in your fridge.Bunched Baby Beets: the first of the season, tender, with delectable tops intact. Steam, roast whole with tops, or chop and sauté. Beets with tops will keep for a week in your crisper drawer.Also available: arugula, baby red kale, tatsoi, scallions, head lettuce, radishes, bok choy, escarole, lacinato and curly kale, rainbow chard, pea shoots, sunflower sproutsPick Your Own at the farm: Strawberries are in! Get 'em while the getting is good. Organic strawberries are hard to grow anywhere, but particularly in the northeast. Approaching peak harvest this week, we should have them for most of June.PYO Hours: The pick your own patch is open 30 minutes before and beyond the barn distribution times. PYO patch is open in all weather except thunderstorms. PYO is also open to the public on Tuesdays during our Tuesday Farm Stand.Coming soon: kohlrabi, fennelRecipes, suggested by Rebecca BatchieSteamed Beets and Greens with Goat Cheese Over PastaFrom Janine McCormick, Inspired by Cassandra Purdy of Pizza to the People, Bridgewater, CT. We break out this recipe at the first sight of bunched spring beets.1 bunch beets2 to 3 TBSP olive oil2 to 3 scallions coarsely chopped, green part onlysalt and pepper to taste2 to 4 cloves garlic, minced (scapes are great here)goat cheese½ tsp dried oregano (or 1 tsp fresh)½ to ¾ lb of pasta, cavatelli or cavatapi, or any short pasta shape½ tsp dried basil (or 1 TBSP fresh)Bring a pot of salted water to boil and cook the pasta al dente.Coarsely chop the beet greens; slice the beets into rounds and then ½ inch strips. Steam the beets until the beets are soft enough to stick a fork in, remove from the heat. Heat the olive oil in a skillet, once hot add the garlic and sauté one minute. Then add the beets and beet greens, basil and oregano. Toss together and cook until the greens are wilted.Drizzle a little olive oil over the pasta, add the scallions, beets and greens and toss well. Add salt and pepper to taste, top with goat cheese and enjoy!