Rootdown Organic Farm

We are now taking names for our 2013 CSA Harvest Box program. Follow the link below for fresh, weekly vegetables.

http://rootdownfarm.net/community-supported-agriculture/

Outside the window by my cozy bed, the last of the stars is twinkling faintly in a pink and blue Pemberton Meadows morning sky. I open my eyes at the sound of the rooster, and his chatting hen lady-friends, and look out on the greenhouse, and the fields.

Today is Sunday. The truck and trailer have already been packed and are bound for Vancouver and Whistler, and I put on the kettle and reach for the toaster as I ponder the tasks for the day ahead. On Sundays, Sean and I hold down the fort while Sarah and Simone take the beautiful bounty of veggies and eggs we’ve all worked hard to harvest off to eagerly awaiting Whistler and Vancouver markets. We’ll head out after breakfast to find our day’s task list on the chalkboard in the workshop, but first things first, the pigs need feeding!

After some cheerful grunts we put on our boots and head for the shop and our list…

S& E Sunday List

#1: Spread Some Fall Rye

We’re spreading cover-crop seed on the beds from where we’ve pulled up this year’s garlic harvest. Later we’ll move on and seed an acre section of the north field as well, where the pigs and chickens have pastured this season.

Keeping a cover-crop on a field means the soil doesn’t lay bare, but stays protected by plant matter, remaining more fertile and less exposed to the elements. By choosing a crop like rye or clover, we are also able to compete with the weeds and other grasses that would naturally colonize a freshly tilled area, so that there’s less competition for the veggies next year. We measure out some buckets and then head out to broadcast the seed by hand. Working together it takes us a couple of hours, all told. Tomorrow the beds will be lightly turned over, so the seeds can germinate.

#2: Weeding in Salad Plantings

Weeding is actually pretty rare this time of year, as the shorter days mean less growth. Just a quick pass through and we’re done, giving the lettuces a breath of fresh air and some new angles of sunshine. Fall means dream-weeding, apparently.

When we’re done that, Sean waters (and I inspect) our pepper plants in the greenhouse (it’s my first year growing them!), before I head in to make some lunch for us.

I pick a spicy chili pepper, and a perfect cherry tomato, and then head to the farmhouse kitchen. Today I’m making a twist on thin-crust pizza, with whole grain flatbread, fresh basil and black krim tomatoes. In just over a half-hour I hollar out the door ”LUUUUNCH!!”

Sean hears me from the workshop, where he’s just finished washing eggs for the CSA add-ons. We eat together, clean up together, and take few minutes to hang out in the back yard before checking what’s on the docket for the rest of the day.

It’s an… Allium Afternoon!!

#3: Place Onions in Slats in Greenhouse to Cure

#4 Clean and Trim Some Garlic

#5 Feed Chickens and Collect Eggs

#6 Feed the Pigs Their Dinner

Sean’s dad came up from the city to visit for the afternoon, so he and Sean go together to give the pigs their afternoon meal. They are so clever that as soon as there’s a squeak of a wheelbarrow, they all gather at the corner of the pigpen and wait, squealing in anticipation!

By the time the pigs have quieted into a steady chomping around their troughs, the sun dips over the western ridge alongside our stretch of the meadows, and it’s time to close the greenhouse. As I walk around to close the flaps to keep things warm in there, I notice and rescue a dragonfly from inside.

Where the dragonfly flies off, Sean and his dad are rounding the corner, and we all congregate to hang out with our ducks for a bit, while we decide how to spend the evening and what to make for supper. Such a good day.

I sigh with the happiness of a good day’s work. I feel like we must be the luckiest apprentices ever…

With Slow Food Cycle as a pleasant memory in our minds the signs of Autumn begin to show themselves in the farm around us.  The cooler air and the cottonwood leaves, the topped tomatoes and cucumbers that grow quickly and hang heavily on their vines in a colourful display.

     Here at Rootdown, the greenhouse has been a place of life and excitement since the early stages of spring. Salad greens and spinach were kept through the winter and the transplants for our fields were started from seed and kept in the warmth before being hardened off for planting.

Everything has long been in the field for this year.  This week we’ll prepare next years garden, putting the animals in the far field and sowing a cover crop of fall Rye. We’ll seed salad greens for transplant to stand where the tomatoes grow, once the harvest is in and they’ve succumb to the cold.

We’re proud of the progress, and amazed by the growth. It was a treat for us to get to share it, with tours, last week.  We wanted to thank you all again for stopping by.

So get out there and hike, bike, climb, or sit back and read through another’s adventure.  Take our food with you to power you through the day because until it’s time to slip on our ski’s we’re happy here, listening to your stories.

A  big thanks to everyone for your energies and support.

Days on the farm right now are, well, really full and busy! But despite the summer runaround, we still think it’s important to eat well (which probably explains why we have chosen to live and work with food surrounding us). 

To make sure we do, it’s been helpful to cook up big batches of dahl, stew, or soup, that we can heat up for a few days worth of lunches, so we can make sure we get a healthy and hearty bite, but still get back out to the fields in good time. Here’s a recipe using some of the veggies we’ve been harvesting lately. 

Mid-Summer Vegetable & Chick-pea Stew (for busy farmers and their friends!)

Makes about 6 servings

Ingredients

Stew Basics:

• 1 tsp coconut oil*
• 1 spring onion, diced
• 4-5 new potatoes, roughly chopped
• 1 head cauliflower, chopped into bite-sized pieces
• 3 cups sprouted chick-peas (or 3 cups pre-soaked and cooked)**
• 3 cups chicken or vegetable stock
• 2 cups water
• Sea salt (1 tsp)

Seasonings (any combination of the following will be delicious):

• Coriander seeds (1 tsp)
• Cumin seeds or powder (1 tsp)
• Fennel seeds (1 tsp)
• Cayenne pepper (1 tsp)
• Cardamom (1 tsp)
• Cinnamon (2 Tbsp)
• Turmeric (2 Tbsp)
• Chopped or grated ginger root (2 Tbsp)

Additional vegetables (whatever you have on hand will be great, but here are some ideas):

• 2 cloves green garlic or a few garlic scapes, chopped
• 2 small yellow or green zucchini, diced
• 1 cup beet thinnings (bulbs and greens), chopped
• 1 cup carrots, sliced

Garnish (add any or all of the following to the pot just before serving, or garnish in the bowl!):

• Raisins
• Cashews
• Chopped Cilantro
• Chopped green onion
• Plain yoghurt
• Shredded cucumber
• Small seed sprouts (clover, fenugreek, etc.)

*Here’s a link to a friend’s blog post about the health benefits of coconut oil: TheHeartyHeart

**A note on sprouting chick-peas: Many people who have trouble digesting legumes and pulses find it helpful to sprout them before cooking. For an excellent resource on how to do this, check out SproutPeople.com

Method

If you are planning to serve the stew with a grain, such as rice, or quinoa, set that up now, so it can be cooking while you’re making your stew.

In a large pot, saute onion in coconut oil on med-high until just translucent.

Add potatoes, cauliflower, and chick-peas and saute with onion for about a minute. If you are adding additional vegetables, add them now as well as whatever seasonings you like, and salt.

Pour chicken or vegetable stock and 1 cup of water over vegetables, and bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium, continuing to simmer until chick-peas and potatoes are tender, about 35 minutes (cooking time may vary depending on if you are using sprouted or pre-cooked chick-peas). Add more water if necessary, to maintain desired consistency of stew. If you add more water, you may wish to add more seasonings to taste. 

Serve over rice, quinoa or steamed kale or other greens, garnishing with any of the above toppings right before serving.

Happy Eating!

As the zucchini’s ripen, things have been heating up on the farm this past two weeks and if you listen you can almost hear how quickly things are growing.  

We’ve been fuelled on cherries and berries, staying ahead of the growth, and making sure everything is pulled from the fields.  We hope our CSA members are enjoying all the fresh food from their boxes as much as we’ve enjoyed putting them together.  

Our talkative bunch, the Tamworth’s, have also been working their share.

Look at how large they are getting.

In rotation with the chickens and turning next year’s field they’re eating their way through the acres in trade for their twice daily (quite hefty) meal.

We can’t wait to see you at Slow Food Cycle… less than a month away!

After all, we know it’s only the pigs who spend their days lounging around. 

The first of May brought new faces to the farm this year! Six weeks have past since the arrival of 16 beautiful Tamworth pigs, and two wonderful apprentices.

Erika Bland and Sean Davids have joined us for the full season to share in our growth, hard work and learning and we are excited to introduce them to all of you.  Both, Erika and Sean are settling in well to life around the farm and find Pemberton to be the home they have been looking for.

The sun and showers have brought a great start for us this year and we’re looking forward to all the days and weather to come.  The beds are made in our transplant field, the poles are in for beans; our greens have been making their way to dinner plates through markets and restaurants and it’s getting close to the start of our CSA.

We’d like to welcome and remind everyone to visit us this year in the markets of Pemberton and Whistler, Squamish and Kitsilano and invite all to visit the farm for tours and treats August, 19th during the Pemberton Slow Food Cycle event.

We look forward to hearing winter stories and catching up with the community of friendly faces we’ve come to know and love and thank you all for being a part of our journey.

The season of excitement at Rootdown Organic Farm.