Why I Became a Farmer
We have finally made it to what I can officially say feels like the transition from Summer into Autumn, especially in the chillier mornings with the low light. Fall is always the time of transitions, when all of that energy of Summer is reminded that now it has to find someplace to go. It has to shift, like it or not. I love this time of year, when it’s easier to see the Sunrise every morning. The farm is at peak abundance, all of that summer energy stored up in its fruits, ready to nourish us. I’d say I’m not alone when I notice that this...
read morePumpkin Soup & and Ode to Pumpkin Pie
Hello CSA members! Today we are bulking out all of our pumpkin harvest, which means we are harvesting it ALL! This week in your share you will be getting 1 each, and I have a poem for ya! ~Reuben The PumpkinJohn Greenleaf Whittier (1844) Oh, greenly and fair in the lands of the sun,The vines of the gourd and the rich melon run,And the rock and the tree and the cottage enfold,With broad leaves all greenness and blossoms all gold,Like that which o’er Nineveh’s prophet once grew,While he waited to know that his warning was true,And...
read moreWelcoming September
On Sunday, someone came up to me at the Chimacum Farmers Market and mentioned how quiet it was. The sun had just tucked itself into a cloud and mist filled the space between us, and I agreed – it was calm and relaxed, a stillness that I’d forgotten about. It’s like a gulp of air after diving deep underwater, or a gentle plateau at the top of a hill: the coming of fall. I used to dread it, knowing the clouds would gather thick and low, and remembering the inescapable cold-sweaty socks and the nights that begin...
read moreOutdoor Adventures with Veggies
In my time at Red Dog Farm I have done a lot of exploring in Olympic National Park and National Forest. While I am out on my adventures I almost always bring fresh veggies from the farm with me. As the seasons have changed from spring to summer and now starting to turn to fall, I have been eating different vegetables in different beautiful places. Before I start a hike or climb I make sure to pack my bag properly with water, an extra layer, headlamp (just in case), snacks, and of course a few Red Dog vegetables.I have spent a lot of...
read morePics & Puns from the Fields
What do you call a strawberry in math? A berry-able! These heirloom tomatoes are on a Hot Streak. Lord Cukeington (Emma) harvesting a gorgeous slicer! Lettuce know if you love lettuce puns. It’s corn o’clock! Let’s bake a beet-za for dinner. My friends hate my herb puns. Don’t know what their dill is. How did the vegetables ask to be paid more? Lettuce have a raisin celery. ~Eddy
read moreTomato Taste Test
After a lot of tending, planting, pruning, weeding, watering, waiting… We are officially in tomato harvest season! We’ve got the usual Big Beef slicing tomatoes, a classic, as well as our outdoor Sungolds (my personal favorite summer snack) starting to produce fruit. And, in all their colorful glory, we’ve got a wide variety of heirloom tomatoes this season. Walking through the greenhouse, you’ll see them hanging heavy on the vine, using all their cues to tell you when they’re ripe & ready. I noticed while harvesting the tomatoes...
read moreMoving Irrigation
We all know that water is an essential part of farming. But knowing about irrigation and seeing it in practice are two different things. As straightforward as it seems to move water from point A to points B, C, and D, irrigation has many moving pieces. Literally. It’s a dynamic world, finicky and imperfect. And a fun one. A silly one. A satisfying one. And beautiful, too. Our irrigation system uses wells (which, honestly, have always seemed a bit mystical to me). We pump the water, running it through the ground and through long...
read moreLoving Raspberries, from the Midwest to the Northwest
Up until two weeks ago I had described myself as a Midwesterner through and through. I’ve spent the majority of my life in Minnesota, and while I love my home state, I felt it was time for a change of pace after finishing my time at college. Luckily, I found an excellent opportunity with Red Dog Farm to work with the field crew, and so far it has truly been a blast. There’s been so much to learn and a crew of fun and hardworking people, and while I do think I am getting the hang of things, you never really stop learning. Naturally, I’ve...
read moreSalt Baked Beets
Hello everyone! As I write this newsletter, the wind has officially picked up for the first time this season, and sneaky gusts are making harvest suddenly a lot more dramatic. This is presenting a new experience for the crew members who are new to this area! Today I have a recipe that y’all can use several ingredients from this week’s CSA share to make, and which is a crew favorite.Salt Baked Beets: For baking/roasting beets in salt, you can actually reuse the salt, which is much more economical and less wasteful than using new kosher...
read moreConnections to Wilderness
As long as I can remember, I have been making my way to the Peninsula from Seattle. It has always been a more seasonal pilgrimage, the weather putting a bit of a damper on outdoor sleeping from October to May, so ferry rides and packed coolers became a much anticipated sign that summer had arrived. I am deeply lucky to have had such an emphasis on outdoor excursions from such a young age, and while I certainly have my parents to thank for that, there is someone else in my immediate family who always insisted upon it. At 97...
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