A Brief History of Squash and Celeriac
It’s sort of strange to think of vegetables as not “always” having been the way that they are – that all of them began as some wild, sometimes unrecognizable version of what they are today, carefully (or, perhaps, recklessly) bred into the delicious treats we get to eat today. This week, I did a bit of research on two of our crops: squash and celeriac. I hope you enjoy. The first squash was cultivated about 8-10,000 years ago in modern-day Mexico. It is thought that their hard shells were initially used as utensils and containers before...
read moreObservations on the Arrival of Autumn
We are given days full of surprises. The days swirl from sunshine toward a misty rain to a roaring wind and back again, always giving each day a new beauty unlike the last. With gratitude, the wetter days mean an end to overhead irrigation and more time spent on harvest. The number of times we have seen rainbows increases as rain returns as a familiar friend, and knowing that winter is around the bend, we find ourselves basking in the last days of warmth with the rest of nature. Yet the geese know what lies ahead; they can often be seen and...
read moreSquashball 2023!
As Geffen wrote last week, squash season is here! We had the full crew outside on Thursday and Friday harvesting over 50 rows of squash. While the task was bound to take days, we had a special technique to speed up the pace and elevate our moods – SQUASHBALL! Here’s how it goes down. We cut the squash from several rows and place it into two adjacent rows. A tractor driver maneuvers along the bed with two macros (large bulk containers), one on the front and one on the back end of the tractor. The harvesters work in pairs with one person...
read moreLooking Forward to Winter Squash
The rains have started to come, and with the rain the summer has ended. The days are much grayer and cloudy now, very different than our long sunny summer days that I grew very fond of. The start of autumn has brought some amazing things though. Watching the rivers full of salmon returning to the headwaters has been breathtaking and the change of the leaves is beautiful. The ocean waters are choppier and more turbulent now too. The change is all around us. The farm is changing a lot now too. All of the fruits that we harvested in the summer...
read moreWind and Rain and Warmth
the wind and rain have come down on us,the first real taste of the seasons turning.migrations patterning across the sky again,geese calling out to you.I get why they used to call those who understood their coursesoothsayers.there is truth in their flight, reliability.the wind in the valley is bringing old songs down from the trees,the waves white-capped rolling endlessly to me.but here, i am warm.the water on the stovetop is laughing.i can hear you in the bubbles,which is another gift of the cold.by my fire, sipping tea full of the sound of...
read moreWhy 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
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