Posts from the “Portland CSA” Category

Volunteer Day 7.7.12

Posted on 6 Jul 2012

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Hello All!

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Looks like tomorrow is going to be a hot one!  Our volunteer day tomorrow, Saturday, July 7th,  still stands, but, we also know that it’s pretty oppressive weather to work in.  So, if you’re feeling up to it, we encourage you to come anytime from 8 am – noon before things really start to heat up!  If you haven’t had a chance to come out to farm this will be a great opportunity to get your hands dirty and to get to know your farmers, Jess and Brian but, if it’s too hot or you can’t make it, we promise that there will be more days in the future for helping!

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We’ll be weeding, planting, prepping, seeding – you name it!  Our to-do list is getting pretty long so if you’re planning on coming by drop us an email.  If you’re unable to make it tomorrow and would still like to come out some time during the week let us know and we can work something out!  Either way, enjoy your weekend and we look forward to seeing you soon!

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Thanks for your support!

dirty hands, clean hearts–

CSA Week 4

Posted on 3 Jul 2012

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Happy 4th of July!

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Hello farm friends,
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And another month begins!  How quickly the season is already whirling by and at 4 weeks we have so many special surprises for you!  We hope you’ve been inspired in the kitchen by all the fresh produce and are also feeling a bit lighter and more energetic.  We know we wouldn’t be able to keep up mentally, physically and spiritually as farmers if it wasn’t for all the nutrient rich food we eat all day long.  Even now at 9:30 pm we’ve just finished a harvest of raspberries and are winding down a long day of planting and mowing in the sun.  This life is pretty good I tell you what.
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But it’s getting to be that time of the season where we could definitely use some extra hands.  Try as we might we can’t get everything done and we feel confident in asking for the help of our loved members and friends.  So, we invite you out this Saturday, July 7th, (10am-5pm) for some fun in the sun and hang out time with your farmers and community.  If you haven’t had a chance to come out to farm this will be a great opportunity to get your hands dirty and to get to know your farmers, Jess and Brian.  We’ll be weeding, planting, prepping, seeding – you name it!  Our to-do list is getting pretty long so if you’re planning on coming by drop us an email.  If you’re unable to make it on Saturday and would still like to come out some time during the week let us know and we can work something out!  Either way we look forward to seeing you at the drop this week!

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Thanks to everyone who brought their old mason jars last week.  It was incredibly thoughtful and it easily gets us into the harvesting spirit seeing all the empty jars sitting on the shelves just waiting to be filled with delicious goods!  Also, the berry cartons can definitely be reused so feel free to save yours and bring them back to us at the pick-ups.  Reduce, reuse, recycle – every little bit counts!
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And if anyone wants to talk animal husbandry this week we have open ears as we’re looking to purchase a few grazing animals for our 3 acres of open pasture.  We’re thinking a dairy cow and a couple of heritage hogs.  So, if you have any advice to give or experience to share we’d love to hear it.

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Until then,

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Your faithful farmers

dirty hands, clean hearts

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CSA Week 2

Posted on 26 Jun 2012

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a week’s worth of bountiful produce just for you…

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Greetings friends,
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We’ve had an amazing start to the CSA this year and we have you to thank for it’s success!  We hope you’ve been enjoying all the fresh tender goodies that late Spring and early Summer have to offer.  The summer bounty is on it’s way with flowers appearing on all the squash, cukes, peppers and beans and young tomatoes forming on the vine.  If there are any recipes you swear by or have tried for the first time you can email it to us and we can post it on our blog.  Which reminds me, have you been checking in with us on the blog?   We recently posted a recipe for Kale Chips and some lovely photographs from our volunteer day back in May.  Too adorable.

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Wolf Carr’s bees are buzzin’ all around the farm these days..

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Also, a big thanks for all of you for bringing your crates back last week and of course, for your appreciation and smiles.  We really love what we do and couldn’t be more happy to be able to share it with you!  We appreciate the wonderful communication about pick ups – whether it be a friend picking up for you, or that you will be out of town etc – it really makes our days easier and more efficient when we’re harvesting for those who will be picking up.
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That being said, a few people have asked about 4th of July which is a week from Wednesday.  Our pick ups/drop offs won’t be changing that week – everything will be just as it always is.  But, if you will be out of town & would like your box donated or will have someone picking up for you that week, just let us know by Monday, July 2nd.  Normally, if you are taking a vacation or will have other folks picking up your box, 24 hours notice works just fine for us!

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Potato-ville it all it’s glory!

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Tomatoes!  It’s not too late to plant tomatoes.  We have some beautiful organic, heirloom varieties in 1 gallon pots for sale.  We are saving all our pennies for a doe eyed Jersey cow.  So, we suggest if you love fresh butter, milk or cheese you should buy a tomato or two, if not for you, for a friend!  They are $5 a piece and are perfect for planting out in a garden or potting up into a large container on a patio.  We’ll have them for sale at our SE location (13th & Ankeny) tomorrow and at our farm for the rest of the week.
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We look forward to seeing you all in the coming days.  Until then, if you have any questions, feel free to send them our way.  It’s going to be another great week!
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Faithfully yours,
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your farmers

dirty hands, clean hearts
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‘Tis the season… (two for you, one for me, two for you….when we’re picking and filling boxes)

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p.s. If anyone has any pint, quart or gallon mason jars lying around (with or without lids) I would gladly accept them for the canning that is about to ensue here on the farm (i.e. jam, pickling, sauce etc)!

My Ode to Kale

Posted on 25 Jun 2012

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As most of you know I have a very big love for KALE.  Growing up my family would eat it every now and again but since living in Hawaii I’ve turned a new leaf  and have become the biggest kale advocate.  It all started when I was living in Hawaii and treating myself to a fresh kale & banana smoothie every morning.  We’d eat it raw, as wraps for sandwiches (bread is really expensive out there), in soups and stir-fries and sometimes, if you were in a rush (was I ever really in a rush in Hawaii?), by itself.

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Last spring, when I returned to the main land, I realized just how much eating kale had positively impacted my body, mind and spirit.   So, I promised to celebrate and spread my love for Kale and the richness it offers to us all in so many ways.  But, before that point, I was like most of you, who often wondered what else you could make with Kale besides Kale Soup?

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Which leads me some things you should know about KALE:

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  • Kale is very high in beta carotene, vitamin K, vitamin C, lutein, zeaxanthin, and reasonably rich in calcium.
  • Kale, as with broccoli and other brassicas, contains sulforaphane (particularly when chopped or minced), a chemical believed to have potent anti-cancer properties.
  • Kale is also a source of indole-3-carbinol, a chemical which boosts DNA repair in cells and appears to block the growth of cancer cells.  Kale is also a good source of carotenoids.

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Need I say more?  Honestly.  Chop it up and throw it in a veggie stirfry, grate it into long, thin strips and throw it on top of a salad, whip it up into a delicious kale smoothie or make some deliciously easy Kale Chips.  And that’s where we’re going to start today.  These chips are just as tasty as any potato chip (better in my opinion) and much better for you!

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I realize it might be a stretch, for those of us who are used to enjoying kale in the winter and fall in a delicious soup, but let’s take it one step at a time with this simple recipe.  I promise you’ll be singing Kale praises after you try out this simple recipe and I think you might know where to find an endless supply…

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Baked Kale Chips

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Experiment with crispiness to figure out what tastes best to YOUR palette!

1-2 bunches kale

1  – 2 TBsps olive oil

Pepper & Sea salt, to taste

Optional: A few loving handfuls of nutritional yeast (which you can find at your local CO-OP or Natural Foods Store in the bulk section)

Other seasoning options: cayenne, garlic, chili powder, cumin, sesame oil, sesame seeds etc.

Be creative, have fun and try things out!

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1.  Preheat oven to 300°F for a shorter amount of cook time OR 220°F for about 40minutes – hour to keep it green, raw & crispy.  Rinse and dry the kale.

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2.  Remove the stems by “stripping” the leaves from it.  Use you thumb and forefinger at the base of the leaves and with a little bit of force “strip” it off the stem.

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3.  Cut into large pieces, toss with olive oil in a bowl then sprinkle with salt, pepper & any other seasonings you might enjoy.

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4.  Arrange leaves in a single layer on a large baking sheet.  I used two baking sheets because I stripped two bouquets of kale.  Some people use parchment paper for easy clean-up but I just put it right on the sheet.

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5.  Bake for 10-15, or until crisp. Or, if you are a raw foodie you can bake it at 220 for about 1 hour.  Bake until the leaves are crisp to the touch but still a dark green.  If you’re thinking about using the chips for a seasoning on Popcorn or something like that – you can let them get really crispy and then hand crush/sprinkle them right over the bowl.  Along with some dill, nutritional yeast, olive oil etc… YUM!

A Little Reminder..

Posted on 19 Jun 2012

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Hello friends!

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We’re excited to start off another week of harvest & thoughtful conversation with our little farm community (that’s you!).  We also look forward to seeing you all this week and hearing how you enjoyed your first round of spring produce.  Brian has been busy in the workshop finishing the last round of cedar crates and it couldn’t smell any better.   It’s also our little friendly reminder to make sure you bring your crate to your pick up this week and we’ll exchange it for one that is full of delicious bounty!

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Here’s to another exciting week full of tasty, sun ripe surprises…

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Faithfully yours,

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Farmer J

CSA Week One.

Posted on 12 Jun 2012

Endless rows of tomatoes warm our farmer hearts. 

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A very warm welcome to all our CSA members!
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This week marks the very first of the season and we’re so excited to meet your acquaintance, whether it be at one of our pick up locations or at the farm!  (pick up locations and hours can be found here).  There are plenty of spring time greens in this week’s box!  Enjoy the young tender greens while the weather is still mild.  Your CSA box will be heavy on the greens and little surprises for the first few weeks as we wait in anticipation for the sun kissed summer bounty of tomatoes, peppers, corn melons, cucumbers and squash!
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For us, this week brings everything we do into focus.  Why we work 80+ hour weeks & find ourselves only ever talking about the farm.  To be able to meet the community that supports our cause and to feed them a bountiful CSA crate each and every week for 5 months.  To put faces to all the names we have on our member list and for you to put a farmer’s face to the food that you are nourishing yourself with.  A couple of farmers that you can trust and a small farm where you know first hand how your food is being grown.

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We are happy to have the wonderful, Wolf Carr and his bees at our farm. 

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We love what we do.  For us, farming isn’t work, it’s a way of life.  There is no question about it.  Everyday when we get up with the sun and watch it slowly fade into the horizon, there is no question, only purpose.  And with your support, your enthusiasm and commitment this farm dream is not only possible but it becomes a reality.  So, remember, you are not just a member of this farm but the integral foundation on which this farm stands.  You put your faith into a few crazy hearted young farmers (that you might not have even met -yet!) and it takes a special kind of person to do just that.  And for that reason alone we feel both happy and blessed to have the members that we do this year.  We hope that we are here to serve you for year’s to come and that you enjoy the bounty, the hard work and the love that goes into it just as much as we do.

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Sugar Snap Peas blowin’ in the breeze.

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We look forward to many refreshing conversations, outdoor dinners, volunteer parties, movie nights and picnics on the farm.  Our farm is open to you as a place to enjoy life, nature and the good company of others (and our new flock of chickens).  But, until then, we look forward to seeing you all this week and sharing, with you, what we love the absolute most.
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Let the 2012 begin….
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Your faithful farmers

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Our new handmade cedar crates full of bountiful produce. 

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Our sweet new gals getting comfortable in Chateau Poulet.

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Livin’ it up at Chateau Poulet.

New Beginnings

Posted on 6 Jun 2012

many hands, make light work

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Hello dear friends,

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We are just a week away from our first CSA drop off and we are gearing up for a great season!  We are still reeling from this past weekend, which was spent alongside some of our amazing CSA members and their families.   We can’t believe the turn out on Saturday and look forward to sharing many more moments with you all as the season continues.   For those of you who spent time with us on Saturday, you worked so hard weeding those beds and transplanting those tomatoes and basil – you made your farmers proud and you should be too!  Our hearts, minds and bodies are filled to the brim with good energy and we look forward to meeting the rest of our members next week!

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We’re in need of a final push to fill up the last 10 shares  in the CSA, so any help by spreading the good word is helpful to the success of our little farm.  Here’s the link for our pick up share and home delivery share (both are currently available).  It’s thanks to you that we can fully live this dream and feed the people and families in our community.  It means the most to us, so, thank you again for all that you do!  

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enjoying lunch at the community table

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Before we part, until next week, here’s a quick reminder of the drop off locations and times:

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Tues. 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm at SE Ankeny St. & SE 13th (near Old Wives Tales)

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Wed. 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm at 12101 SW River Road Hillsboro OR 97123

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Thurs.  4:00 pm – 6:00pm at Blue Moon Coffee & Bakery 3975 Mercantile Drive Lake Oswego, OR 97035

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Thurs. Home Delivery CSA

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And as always we could use some helping hands hilling potatoes, transplanting peppers and tomatoes and weeding!  Send us a message or give us a call if you’d like to get your hands dirty with us this week.  We love spending time and getting to know each and every one of you.  

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Our best to you and yours.

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dirty hands, clean hearts

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p.s. Stay tuned for more pictures from Volunteer Day at the farm! 

Helping Hands.

Posted on 1 Jun 2012

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Hello farm friends!
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Today marks the first day of June and we’re really excited to get the 2012 CSA season underway in just under a few weeks time.  There is much to be done around the farm and we’re inviting you to stop by tomorrow (Sat. June 2nd) for a volunteer day.  We welcome your help with open arms any time after 10.
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It looks like an overcast 60+ degree day which means It’ll be the perfect day to transplant and enjoy some good company and good conversation.
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We’ll be working on many projects – transplanting the rest of our sweet peppers, tomatoes, leeks & onions, hilling potatoes, weeding the freshly sprung weeds from our garden beds and hanging out with our new flock of chickens!  
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So send us a note if you plan on coming by.  We look forward to getting our hands dirty along side our favorite farm friends!
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Thanks for all your support!
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p.s. If you can’t make it out Saturday, but would like to give us a hand next week, feel free to get in touch and we can make it happen.  

Many hands make light work.

Posted on 27 Apr 2012

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“Many hands make light work.”  – John Heywood

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Hey Portland!  It looks like another weekend of warm, sunny with-a-mix-of-clouds type of spring weather and we’d love to have some helping hands out on the farm.  There are hundreds of babies that need to be planted now that the beds have been prepared.  So, if you’ve ever wanted to learn how to lay irrigation, plant seedlings, use a hoop hoe or just get your hands dirty, you are welcome to come by anytime on Saturday or Sunday after 10 am.  Send us a little note if you plan on coming to workinghandsfarm (at) gmail.com.  We can’t wait! 

Installing Bee Hives in Three Easy Steps

Posted on 18 Apr 2012

Welcome Wolf Honey _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Working Hands Farm would like to welcome Wolf Honey to our little farm.  Wolf Honey is owned by Wolf Carr who is a devoted a bee keeper, a fine barista at Stump Town Coffee and a passionate vocal coach.  We are thankful that he will be keeping his beautiful hives on our farm and we appreciate all the great work he and his bees will be doing throughout the summer. The pictures below document the installation of 19 of his hives. _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________  Step 1 _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Wolf believes in anti-biotic free bee keeping. He trusts his bees and I trust him.  By working with nature we become stewards not competitors. A philosophy that we promote in all aspects of farming.…

The Scary Part

Posted on 3 Apr 2012

– This is the time of the season that these farmers have to see past their fears.  To trust their instincts and to have faith that through hard work and perseverance it will all work out.  We have twenty members signed up and a little over two months to sign up an addition forty five  members, which we desperately need in order to cover all of our costs.  We sit and ponder, when that rain is falling and the farm chores are complete, how to market, how do we find those forty five CSA customers.  Do we focus our advertising efforts on the blog or social media, do we shake hands in front of food co-ops, do we post craigslist adds or put up…

How to buy your CSA share?

Posted on 3 Apr 2012

__________________________________________________________________________ Your Contribution (as easy as 1, 2) The full payment (of $625) is due when signing up for the CSA.  Once your payment is received we’ll send you a confirmation email welcoming you to our CSA program.  It is important to sign up for your share as early as possible in the season for two reasons: to reserve your CSA share, as shares are limited to 75, and to help your farmers absorb the initial expenses in the beginning the season.  If you prefer to pay for your share in two installments please contact us at workinghandsfarm@gmail.com and we can make and specific arrangement. __________________________________________________________________________ (Step 1) Send a Check Make it out to ‘Working Hands Farm’ and send it to 16200 SW…

Starting From Seed In PDX

Posted on 28 Mar 2012

This post is all about seed starting in the NW and specifically in Portland.  It covers what you need to start veggies from seed, where you can buy what you need, the simple science of starting seed (not from a dandies perspective but from a farmers) and a very basic applied methodology. If starting from seed is still too intimidating for you just swing by the farm and I’ll get you started in proper fashion. Enjoy!

 The Seed:

The seed needs come from a reliable source and if you are purchasing it you should only buy the current years seed.  I have primarily used Territorial Seed, based in Cottage Grove, for the past three seasons and I am a huge fan.  Their seed tends to be a little expensive but you pay for what you get.  When storing the seed you should keep it in a cool dry place and if you take good care of it it will last you a couple of years.

The Blend:

It is not worth your time to start seed with garden soil so fork over the cash to buy a seed starting medium.  I buy mine from Concentrates (they are total sweet hearts by the way) located near Bob’s Red mill in deep S.E. and they sell for $10 a bag (1.5 Cubic feet).  I blend three parts of the orange bag (an almost nitrogen neutral potting soil) to one part seedling medium (completely nitrogen neutral, purple bag).  I do this for a couple reasons, one because most seedling mediums that you buy tend to crust over and impede the sprouts from breaking through into the open air.  The second reason is that I want to dilute the amount of nitrogen in the soil from the orange bag because nitrogen promotes foliar growth in plants and too much growth in seedlings.  That is why when most gardeners plant in a potting soil or compost they get leggy, tall weak plants, not because you don’t have enough light but because the soil is too nitrogen rich. Remember seeds don’t know photosynthesis, they don’t need light in the beginning.  So Nitrogen is bad for seed starting.  The three numbers you see on the orange bag refer to the NPK ratio (Nitrogen, Phosphorus, Potassium) of the soil medium.  For seed starting you want those numbers as close to zero as possible.  So now you know what to plant your seeds into, where to buy what you need and how much it costs.

The Tools:

You can see in the picture above.  Watering can, bucket of soil, bowl (not needed if you have the tinest fingers in the world), a pen (because you need to write down what seeds you are starting on a tag otherwise you will forget), a tray (can be purchased at any garden store but if you want to buy the in bulk you can buy sets of 100 from Mckonkeys in Wilsonville. This is all you need besides what nature provides.

The Method:

Okay, so here is how seed starting works.  Veggie seeds need three things in order to germinate properly: air, water, heat (heat via soil conductivity).  You get air from the space in the seedling medium that you are using.  It has a bunch of stuff in it that is spongy (vermiculite, Pumice, etc..) and most importantly it has Peet Moss (which can be substituted for coconut coir depending on which one you think is more ethical) and peet moss in considered to be both hydrophobic (afraid of water) and hydrophilic (a lover of water) which means your little seed will have access to both water and air.  You will add the water and you should wet the soil all the way through after you have planted your seed. Folks commonly say that it should have the moisture content of a wrung out towel, which I can’t figure out how to reproduce so don’t worry about it, just don’t let it dry out completely.  With this mix you only need to water every two or three days at 70 degrees F. Now to explain heat, veggie seeds all germinate at a different temperatures.  Peppers want the most heat, 80 to 90 degrees, so if you want to germinate those bad boys you will need an electric heating mat that you can purchase from any garden store. They are a touch expensive ranging from $30-$70 but peppers are expensive to buy so you can decide for yourself.  Tomatoes need about 70 degree F to germinate and everything else is below that.  Your average house temperature will be just fine and if you are concerned or want to feel more connected to the process you can buy a soil thermometer for a few bucks at any garden store and keep track of your soil temp.  I use them all the time.  As far as how deep you need to plant your seed into the tray don’t worry about it, I don’t.  So now you know what a seed needs to germinate.

Starting plants from seed is one of the most beautiful and meditative things you can do with your time.  If you have any questions please feel free to comment and I’ll be happy to respond.  Enjoy your spring Portland.

cheers,

farmer Brian

Early Times

Posted on 15 Mar 2012

This is one of my favorite times of the season.  It is quiet this time of year, just you, your thoughts and the rain pitter pattering on the roof.  It isn’t the time for heaving shovels and straining backs; it is full of small, thoughtful movements.  Planting a single seed in every cell.  Mixing light soils to make the perfect bed for your seed.  Warming cold fingers by the fire.  This time of year reminds me to do the small things for those I love.




Some things you can’t learn from books

Posted on 13 Mar 2012

Tools I Love

Posted on 12 Mar 2012

I have an unyielding love for old tools both because I can learn to fix them myself and because they make me feel as though I am part of something greater, something that has history. I often imagine the dinner tables or rocking chairs that were brought forth from these machines. I think of the families that sat around those tables and the grandsons that sat on the knees of grandpas as they rocked to and fro.

This is a 1950’s Delta Rockwell Jointer that I will be using to build our CSA farm crates. I bought it for next to nothing from an old timer in Damascus. It needs a little TLC but I am lookin’ forward to learning more about the machine and to restoring it to its’ original glory.

Tools I Love