Farm Saturday

Despite unseasonably cool and wet weather, it has been a great week on the farm. We had a good number of orders for deliveries, met some new customers, and today was a busy day at the market where we sold almost all that we brought.

I'm now feeling like a mushroom forager extraordinaire. Two weeks ago I discovered what turned out to be an edible mushroom called a cauliflower mushroom. Earlier this week I spied an interesting variety of mushroom and decided to harvest it to take to our friends at the market. I did some research and thought I knew what it was but of course I wanted to make sure. It turned out to be a chicken of the woods (aka sulfur shelf or sulfur mushroom:

I also found yet another variety growing and I was pretty sure they were chanterelles. A couple of years ago I thought I discovered some, but after some research determined that they were the poisonous lookalike called Jack O'Lantern. Now that I've found the real thing, I don't know how I could have mistaken the poisonous ones for the edible ones as they really don't look alike. Here's some more of the lovelies coming in:

Now there are three varieties of wild mushrooms that are easy for me to identify and that I know I can eat - plus the shiitakes we grow! We also did some bartering with our market friends who helped identify the mushrooms and ended up with two oyster mushroom logs and some black tea/hibiscus kombucha in exchange for a piece of the chicken of the woods.  The joys of homesteading!

Have a great weekend!*

*Postscript:  We went mushroom foraging this evening.  We found some blue milk cap mushrooms (edible but not necessarily tasty).  However, the best news is that we discovered several large patches of tiny chanterelles!  We'll keep an eye on those spots - plus I've read that they will come back in the same spot if the ground containing the mycelium is undisturbed.  Every cloud has a silver lining and now we know what to do when it's too wet to farm.

Wellness Wednesday

For the past few months, I've tried to avoid the typical reaction to headaches and other minor aches and pains - grabbing an over-the-counter pain killer. Instead, I've been using white willow bark, which is the substance that aspirin was originally derived from. It seems to work. And whether it works medically or is a placebo effect doesn't really matter - because it works for me. Here's an infographic from Dr. Mercola, showing us the dangers of commonly used pain killers, also known as NSAIDS (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs):

Source

It's interesting to see how many people are hospitalized - and die - each year from using NSAIDS. If a natural supplement was linked to similar statistics - white willow bark, for instance, it would immediately be removed from store shelves and outlawed. Instead of reaching for that bottle of chemical pills for minor aches and pains, try a natural solution instead.

Monday Morning Amusement

Source

Quote for the Day

"The first wealth is health."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Farm Friday

We're entering a transition season on the farm. As some of our gardens die down, we're starting seedlings for our fall crops. Our squash, zucchini, and cucumber garden is done for the year. Our tomato and green bean garden is done, but we have another one that is almost ready to produce. Watermelons are in (and delicious) and our customers have raved about the taste. The eggplant is amazing and the best we've ever had. This summer we have truly been eating seasonally - almost everything we eat is directly from the garden.  

Last week we discovered an interesting mushroom:

We took it to a fellow vendor at the market - who also happens to be a chef - thinking it was a maitake. He immediately shot that idea down but said he was pretty sure it was edible.  After some research and consulting with another vendor who has wild mushroom knowledge, we were told its a cauliflower mushroom, which is in the same family as the maitakes (and has no poisonous lookalikes - very important). So I cleaned it, sliced it up, and sauteed it in butter. Yum! Now we will keep an eye out for these delicious fungi.  In the meantime, our shiitakes are really starting to come in!

We had another first on the farm - we harvested some of our grapes. This year the black rot and the birds weren't able to get to the all, so Bill picked a few clusters and made some grape jam!

We've added another delivery stop on Wednesdays - a medical clinic. We have two physicians who have been ordering from us and this week I briefly met their office manager and gave her our farm information to share. Looking back to the very beginning, when I tried to sell our excess produce alongside my crafts at the farmers' market and was regarded as a freak, it's amazing to see how far this community has come. As more and more individuals become aware of the serious problem with our food system and/or are diagnosed with serious, chronic illnesses, the local and chemical-free food that we sell is becoming more popular.  We're excited to see how things are going for us and for other local, chemical-free farms.

I've been a bit worried about the butterflies lately.  We have two butterfly bushes plus some wild butterfly weed that are completely covered with butterflies at some point during the summer. This year - nada. During our walk last night, I was saddened when I realized the butterfly weed was no longer blooming and so wouldn't feed any butterflies this year. All I could think about was how our toxic brew that we've created here on earth had eliminated butterflies in our area. However, yesterday morning, while I was waiting for a customer to meet me at the farm house to pick up an order, I saw some tiger swallowtails.  Yay - they're back!  And better late than never.

Have a good weekend!

Wellness Wednesday

Source

Normally I focus on physical health in my Wednesday post. However, this week we lost a light in the world when the comic genius Robin Williams committed suicide, so I thought I'd share a little information on depression and suicide.  

First of all, depression is extremely difficult to recover from. Those who suffer from depression think it will last forever and don't see any hope. Go here to read about how difficult it is to climb out of depression. It may help you understand yourself or someone you care about. Secondly, suicide not selfish. I've heard that comment before because the survivors are left to pick up the pieces.  However, a person who commits suicide is anything but selfish.  Someone who has fallen into the black hole of depression does think of others, hangs in there for a while, then believes that suicide is the best option for everyone. Here's an article about it. Lastly, help is available for those suffering from depression and considering suicide.  Most of the time there are warning signs when someone is contemplating suicide.  The American Foundation for Suicide Prevention has compiled a list of risk factors and warning signs to look for, as well as ways to help.  Most importantly, if you're experiencing depression, seek professional help, and if you have a loved-one who seems depressed, take the signs seriously and be there for them.

Taste of Tuesday

The weather here has been strange lately - chilly, rainy, overcast - which is not conducive to growing tomatoes, watermelons, and other summer crops.  However, our eggplant continues to flourish despite a triple whammy during the seedling stage:  flea beetles, Colorado potato beetle larvae, and Japanese beetles.  So I'm sharing another eggplant recipe that I discovered and made last week.  It will go into our "favorites" stack:

Onion-Eggplant Soup Provençale

2 large onions, thinly sliced and separated into rings
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
4 cups water
1 small eggplant, peeled and chopped (about 4 cups)
1 small summer squash or zucchini, thinly sliced (about 1 cup)
½ cup brown rice
1/3 cup tomato paste
¼ cup dry red wine
3 vegetable bouillon cubs
1 clove garlic, minced
1 ½ teaspoons dried basil, crushed or 1 ½ tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
½ cup orzo or other small pasta, cooked and drained
4 thin slices French or other crusty bread, lightly toasted
Olive oil
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

In a large saucepan, cook the onion in the butter or olive oil until tender but not brown. Add the water, eggplant, squash, brown rice, tomato paste, red wine, bouillon cubes, garlic, basil, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes or until vegetables are very tender and rice is done. Stir in the cooked pasta and heat through. Lightly brush each slice of bread with olive oil. To serve, ladle soup into individual bowls, place one bread slice on top of each serving, and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Bon appetit!