CSA Week 5!

Dad and Eddie inspecting the wheat.  We seeded this organic winter wheat last fall and it is looking good and coming very close to harvest. We will have ground Whole Wheat Flour as well as Wheat Berries for retail sale in the coming weeks!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a ALL SHARES week...FULL and HALF Vegetable and Fruit Shares!

 

Pick up is Thursday, July 11th.

4-7 pm at your respective site.

 

 

 

 

 

Your Vegetable Harvest for this Week...

 

 

• Broccoli

• Green Zucchini

• Chioggia Beets with Greens

• Green Scallions

• TFO Salad Mix (lettuce, radicchio, dill and Italian parsley)

• Cilantro

• Scarlet Turnips without greens

• Fresh Garlic Bulb

• Red Russian Kale

 

Our zucchini crop is just starting. More to come.

 

Joe is displaying a Chioggia beet (pronounced -  key-oh-jah) he just pulled from the ground and cut in half. We love these Italian heirlooms and you will too.

They are beautiful and sweet when roasted or braised. The greens are really fantastic as well when roughly chopped and tossed into the pot for last 5 - 10 minutes of cooking. 

 

Harvesting cilantro.

 

 

Your Fruit Harvest for this Week...

All from Mick Klug Farm

• Montmorency Tart Cherries 
• Duke Blueberries
• Encore Red Raspberries
• Black Raspberries 

 

Black Raspberries!

A fleeting summer treat.

Recipes!

• Raw Chioggia Beet Salad With Honey-Lime Vinaigrette (add your Cilantro here too!)
• Chioggia Beets with Raspberry Mint Vinaigrette (pick up a bunch of fresh mint at the farm stand!)
• Scarlet Queen Red Turnip Salad
• Sautéed Kale With Garlic and Olive Oil (very simple and good)

 

 

 

Sunflower Harvest!

Fresh bouquets will be at the Farm Stand on Thursday
and at the Logan Square Farmer's Market on Sunday.

 

 

We are busy building another walk-in cooler.

Just in time as we are bursting at the seems with vegetables and flowers.

Having two coolers also gives us the opportunity to keep certain items at different temperatures

for optimum storage.

Joe, Peter and Kyle shown here with big smiles on their faces, all cozied up for a 4 wheel drive into the fields to continue the harvest.
Little did they know at the time but about 7 minutes later they were completely drenched
by one of a few downpours. Ah...the glamour of farming.

CSA Week 4!

Morning in our busy and tightly packed wash house.
Joe, Jesus and Kate load vegetables, fruit and eggs out of the walk in cooler and onto a trailer for a quick trip to our farm stand.

Meanwhile, Tania and Michelle make flower bouquets to sell at the farm stand and the Logan Square Famer's Market. In the upper right you can see empty honey supers ready to be placed on bee hives as the nectar flow continues.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a FULL SHARES week...Full Vegetable and Fruit Shares!

That means only those with Fruit and FULL Vegetable shares will pick.

Pick up is Wednesday, July 3rd.

4-7 pm at your respective site.

 

 

 

Next week is an ALL SHARES week again so HALF SHARE folks, no pick up this week.

But please stop by the farm, pick up a few things in our retail area and say hi!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Vegetable Harvest for this Week...

 

• Red Beets

• Fresh Sweet White Onions

• Hakurei (sweet salad) Turnips

• Rainbow Swiss Chard

• Fennel Bulbs

• Mustard Mix

• Salad Mix (all lettuce)

• Dill

• Edible Flowers

  **Please Note: Some folks may need to taste a bit of each of the bagged greens in order to tell the difference between SALAD MIX and MUSTARD MIX.
  Other folks may be able tell by sight.
  
  
  
  

  

  Edible Flower Petals!
  Bachelor Buttons and Calendula.
  Like July 4th fireworks in your salad!
  

    

Peter and Joe harvesting hakurei turnips




Our Farmall 140 tractor cultivates our immature onion crop.

We harvested a few of these sweet white onions early for you to enjoy just like a leek or large scallion.

 

 

 

 

 

Your Fruit Harvest for this Week...

 

 

• Red Raspberries (Mick Klug Farm)

• Blueberries (Seedling Fruit)

• Sweet Red Cherries (Seedling Fruit)

 

 

 

Recipes!!!

 

•  Spaghetti with Swiss Chard and Garlic (garlic scapes if you have some left from last week??)
• Hakurei Turnips with Greens and Sesame (we normally eat these turnips raw but this recipe sounds really good.)
• Fennel and Orange Salad (use the fresh sweet onions and mustard mix in place of red onion and arugula respectively)
• Lots of Beet recipes!
• Raspberry Breakfast Bars (Use 1 pint raspberries and 1 pint blueberries for a red, white(ish) and blue effect!)

Fresh Dill

 

This is our pto powered pump that we use to irrigate most of our crops.
We dug this pond 2 years ago and it has become invaluable.

Three types of beets in this field.

 

 

 

Please stop by and see us to purchase retail farm products.....

 

 

 

*Every Thursday 4 - 7 pm on the farm(WEDNESDAY JULY 3rd THIS WEEK!!!) 

*Every Saturday 8 am - 2 pm on the farm 

 

*Every Sunday 10 am - 3 pm at the Logan Square Farmers Market

 

*Every first and third Sunday of the month

           May 5 through October 20, 2013 9 am - 3 pm at Chicago Botanic Garden

 

 

 

 

 

 

CSA Week 3!

 

Joe gives the radishes a quick shower before the real washing begins in our wash/pack shed.

The rain gives us plenty of plant growth and plenty of work challenge.

 

 

 

 

This is an ALL SHARES week...Full Vegetable, Half Vegetable and Fruit Shares!

That means that everybody picks up their shares from their respective sites this week.

 

Pick up is Thursday, June 27th.

 

Next week JULY 3rd is ONLY for those with Full Vegetable and Fruit Shares.

 

 

 

 

Your Vegetable Harvest for this Week...

 

• Hoophouse Carrots

• Hoophouse Red Skinned Potatoes

• Purple Kohlrabi

• Lettuce Mix

• Red and White Radishes

• White Salad Turnips (we usually eat these raw)

• Italian Flat Leaf Parsley

• Garlic Scapes

• Escarole**(see picture)

 

**Hey folks. This is not lettuce. This is the Italian bitter green known as Escarole.
Fantastic with garlic scapes, white beans and parsley!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Fruit Harvest for this Week...

• Sweet Cherries (one pint) (from Mick Klug Farm)

• Red Raspberries (one pint) (from Mick Klug Farm)

• Strawberries (2 quarts) (from Seedling Fruit)

Saturday On Farm Market!

 

 YES we will be OPEN THIS SATURDAY 6/22!!!

 

 

Please stop by and see us to purchase retail farm products.....

 

*Every Thursday 4 - 7 pm on the farm

 

*Every Saturday 8 am - 2 pm on the farm

 

*Every Sunday 10 am - 3 pm at the Logan Square Farmers Market

 

*Every first and third Sundays of the month

           May 5 through October 20, 2013 9 am - 3 pm at Chicago Botanic Garden

 

 

 



CSA Week 2!

 

 

Flowers like these calendulas are coming along nicely despite the unseasonably cool nights.

Tania will have lots of gorgeous bouquets for sale this Thursday and Saturday on the farm.

Also plenty of flowers this Sunday at the Logan Square Farmer's Market! 

Our hardworking crew harvests arugula from under 'row cover'.

This physical barrier protects certain crops from certain pests.

It is also helpful in keeping the covered crop just a bit warmer and moister, therefore

shaving off a few days from the calendar and giving us mature vegetables a few days sooner.

 

 

 

 

This is a FULL SHARES week...Full Vegetable & Fruit Shares!

Pick up is Thursday, June 20th.
4-7 pm at your respective site.

 

 

 

Next week is an ALL SHARES week again so HALF SHARE folks, no pick up this week.

 

 

 

 

 

Your Vegetable Harvest for this Week...

 

• Garlic Scapes (the unopened flower of the garlic plant)

• Head Lettuce (2 green oak leaf & 2 mini red romaine)

• Arugula

• Chinese Cabbage (from our hoophouse)

• Dandelion Greens (long, serrated, dark green leaves)

• Sorrel (shorter, lemony leaves)

• Green Scallions

• Spicy Mustard Salad Mix

• Green Asparagus (from Mick Klug Farm)

  
  
  
  Your Fruit Harvest for this Week...

• Strawberries (3 quarts!)
  

Farmer's Market Announcment

 

**Please Note: The Farm Stand will not be open this Saturday 6/15.
We will however be open the following Saturdays until at least the end of October.

Thank you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Please stop by and see us to purchase retail farm products.....

 

*Every Thursday 4 - 7 pm on the farm

*Every Saturday 8 am - 2 pm on the farm (except This Saturday) 

 

*Every Sunday 10 am - 3 pm at the Logan Square Farmers Market

 

*Every first and third Sundays of the month
           May 5 through October 20, 2013 9 am - 3 pm at Chicago Botanic Garden

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here are a few links to the video files that I have tried in vain to post in the past two newsletters.

1. Queen Bee

 

2. Cultivating Swiss Chard

 

3. Plastic Mulch

 

4. Mother Killdeer



Eat Well, Eat Local.....and Thank You!

Chris & Tania Cubberly, Larry, Joe, Michelle, Tomas, Peter, Jesus, Kyle, Chris & Kate




 

 

 

 

First CSA Week!

Edible, beautiful and oniony!

These chive blossoms were raked carefully from the top of the chive plants.

Break them up lightly with your fingers and sprinkle liberally over your salad, potatoes, soup or make a gorgeous compound butter for grilled meats and veggies.

 

This is an ALL SHARES week...Full Vegetable, Half Vegetable & Fruit Shares!

That means that everybody picks up their shares from their respective sites this week.

 

Pick up is Thursday, June 13th.

 

Next week is ONLY for those with Full Vegetable and Fruit Shares.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Your Vegetable Harvest for this Week...

 

• Lettuce Heads
• Green Garlic
• Chive Blossoms
• TFO Custom Lettuce/Arugula Mix
• Green Curly Kale
• Bag of Popcorn
• Green Asparagus (from Mick Klug Farm)
• 1/2 lb. Shiitake Mushrooms (from River Valley Ranch)
  

 

 

 

Your Fruit Harvest for this week...

• 2 quarts of Strawberries
• Bunch of Rhubarb
  (both from Mick Klug Farm)

**Just a note seasonality. This season couldn't be any different from last season. Things are moving
along very slowly but steadily with the very cool nights. We'll take this season over last season any day even though it does require some patience.

So Remember...this isn't the grocery store...this is reality. (in northern Illinois anyway.)

 

 

 

 



                            Know your pick up site??

 

 

On the farm!
CSA Pick Up and Farm stand!!

 

4 - 7 pm

17970 W. Millburn Road

Old Mill Creek, Il. 60083

 

 

Lake Forest!

 

4 - 7 pm

The Simpson Residence-

1490 N. Green Bay Road

Lake Forest, Il. 60045

 

 

 

Logan Square in Chicago!

 

4 - 7 pm

Provenance Food and Wine-

2528 N. California Ave.

Chicago, Il. 60647

 

 

 

 

Mowing down a fall cover crop of winter rye and hairy vetch.

The stubble was immediately tilled in and later will be more space for our

on going planting schedule.

 

 

 

 

Here you see 15 little hogs under a giant Willow.

We welcomed these charming creatures to our farm a few weeks ago.

Believe it or not, these small hogs will reach a weight of between 250 - 300 lbs. by the

time mid-October rolls around. They will get to that market weight with a certified organic corn and soy ration along with roots, tubers, nuts, grubs and lots of vegetable scraps in their outdoor home.

 

 

 

 

A few weeks ago we prepared some of our fields with plastic mulch.

We use plastic mulch on tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, most cucurbits and sweet potatoes.

We are constantly on the look out for better and more inert/less environmentally impactive products that a small vegetable farm business can afford. There are companies producing degradable and bio-degradable mulches but these current products have problems associated with them and are way out of our price range. Some would say, 'use straw for mulch'. I would say yes but straw presents a whole new set of built in weed problems.

 

 

 

 

This video was taken in March but I just had to share it.

It shows another one of our favorite creatures living here among us at the farm.

This is a mother Killdeer playing as if she is injured to divert a would be attacker (coyote, skunk, mink, raccoon or farmer with an iphone) away from her precious nest of eggs and attract them to her instead.

Notice her beautifully speckled and perfectly camouflaged  eggs are very precariously nestled directly in the center of one of our fields. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Please stop by and see us to purchase retail farm products.....

 

Every Thursday 4 - 7 pm on the farm

Every Saturday 8 am - 2 pm on the farm

 

Every Sunday 10 am - 3 pm at the Logan Square Farmers Market

 

Every First and third Sundays of the month
May 5 through October 20, 2013 9 am - 3 pm at Chicago Botanic Garden