Farm News, June 8, 2021
Welcome back to the 2021 version of Fort Hill Farm. While every spring we set out with a new hope for a bountiful season, this spring seemed a little more hopeful than usual. April found us cleaning up around the farm, building a new cold frame to harden off our transplants, hauling lots and lots of compost, and filling 4 greenhouses and the big cold frame with plants. May and early June have been a bit of a blur, with the usual weather craziness of a New England spring. This year’s highlight was 3 nights of frost in a row followed only twenty days later by a genuine heat wave string of 90-degree days. We’re managing to keep up with the tasks, but it’s a struggle.
It’s a new season. Hooray!
We do have some sweet rewards coming in to show for it. It’s strawberry season, and this year’s crop looks good for the moment. That can change in a heartbeat if we get a rainy patch of weather, so come out and pick while we have them. The strawberry patch is open in all weather except for thunderstorms. We are also bringing in some of the season’s best greens, including a particularly bountiful lettuce crop.
Like the rest of us, Dana is most excited for strawberry season.
The “we” this year looks a lot like the ‘we’ from last year, and Rebecca and I have been blessed with an amazing bunch of people who came back to help us get the farm off the ground for another year. Lauren Henderson-Tamowski returns as our coordinator extraordinaire, getting everyone on task each day. In a nod to her impending departure to become a farmer on her own, we’ve divided most of the farm’s management areas to our experienced crew of growers. James Gilbert is in charge of getting all the plants in the ground this year, which can be a bit of a jigsaw puzzle with a few pieces missing this time of year. Dana Scott is managing the harvest and headed up planting the 1000 blueberry bushes this spring, and Connor Whitehouse is running the harvest shed, planting the cover crops, and running around scouting for weeds and hooking up drip tape to some really thirsty veggies.
Connor drives while Adam and Liv put in the leeks. We followed the same mojo yesterday with NEXT year’s strawberries.
Emma Homans is keeping a sharp eye on the greenhouse tomato crop, and Shell Pitcher is back running the transplanter and tilling in the cover crops and moving lots of irrigation pipe with Adam Quattro, who is a first-year apprentice after being on field crew for a record six previous years! Liv Binzen also rejoins us as a first time apprentice, but only after a full year and two summers of field crew under her belt. You will see her handiwork in signage, as she’s added a much-needed artist’s touch to our rustic farm. Rounding out the crew, we are lucky to have Kathy Scott and Faye Barry, respectively, cranking out the greenhouse starts and running the plant sales, while both making sure everything runs smooth at the farm stand. We’ve also got a bunch of new folks helping us at the market and a few (but not enough!) field hands helping us out with the summer labor crunch.
Just starting to come in …..
We’ve found it very difficult to find folks to round out our field crew this season. Is it the generous unemployment benefits? Lingering pandemic fears? General reluctance to go back to work? We’re not sure! But we are looking for 2 or 3 hardy folks to fill out our field crew this season, so please check out our web site for more info on working at the farm and spread the word if you know someone looking for work this summer.
Hope you enjoy the harvest,
Paul and Rebecca for the Fort Hill Farm Crew
A forest of carrots from our winter planting. These are just so sweet!
Featured this week:
Strawberries: Did you know that Strawberries are the number one crop for pesticide application? Aren’t you glad ours are certified organic? The crop started off slow this year, but now the berries are here in droves. While there’s a chance today’s weather may not be conducive to picking (PYO patch is open in all weather except thunderstorms - Check the web page “Announcements” for details on picking conditions.), they are at peak ripening now, so don’t wait too long. Fort Hill long timers know what a fleeting blip strawberry season is! They will store in the fridge for a few days but eat promptly as ripe berries don’t hold well. You can also wash, top, quarter, and freeze them quite easily. Remember the pick your own patch opens 30 minutes before each distribution, and closes 30 minutes later.
Kohlrabi: one of the crazier-looking members of the cabbage family, these underrated orbs are the crisp to counter the June heat – similar to broccoli stem, with a mild, sweet flavor. They are great peeled and sliced as a dipping veg, or some folks grate them for slaws or sautéing (see recipe below, or Chicken Salad with Kohlrabi, Fennel, and Scallions on our Recipes tag). The leaves are also yummy sautéed. Store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. We only grow this one in the spring, so get while the getting is good!
Also available:
Salad mix, arugula, 5 kinds of head lettuce, French Breakfast and red radish, baby bok choy, salad turnips, scallions, fennel, Chinese cabbage, kohlrabi, escarole, curly and lacinato kale, rainbow chard, basil, parsley, pea shoots,
Coming Soon:
cherry tomatoes, sugar snap peas!
Pick Your Own:
Strawberries!
PYO begins 30 minutes before and goes 30 minutes beyond barn hours.
Recipes
Suggested by Rebecca Batchie
For more recipes, check out the Fort Hill Farm Recipe Database
Kolhrabi Fritters With Avocado Cream Sauce
From acouplecooks
For the kohlrabi fritters
2 kohlrabi
1 carrot
1 egg
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
¼ teaspoon cayenne
½ cup grapeseed or vegetable oil (enough for ¼-inch depth in a large skillet)
For the avocado cream
½ avocado
¼ cup plain yogurt
½ lemon
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
Green onions (for garnish)
Instructions
Cut the leaves off the kohlrabi and peel the bulb. Peel 1 carrot. Shred the vegetables in a food processor, or by hand using a grater. Squeeze the shredded vegetables in a tea cloth (or with your hands) to remove moisture, then add to a medium bowl with the egg, kosher salt, and cayenne. Mix to combine.
Place the oil in a large skillet (enough for 1/4-inch depth). Heat the oil over medium high heat, then place small patties of the fritter mixture into the oil. Fry on one side until browned, then fry on the other side. Remove and place on a plate lined with a paper towel to drain excess oil.
For the dipping sauce: Remove the avocado pit and scoop out the flesh with a spoon. In a small bowl, mix the avocado, plain yogurt, lemon juice, and kosher salt to make the avocado cream (or blend the ingredients together in a food processor).
To serve, slice the green onions. Serve fritters with avocado cream and green onions. Note: These fritters are best eaten warm the day of making; they don’t save well. Like anything made with avocado, the avocado cream sauce will become brown after exposure to air. Make sure to cover the surface with plastic wrap when storing.