To Market To Market

For David and Z Food Farm this years’ market season will start the first weekend/week of June. For the coming season David will again attend the Rittenhouse Farmers’ Market in Philadelphia, (9:30Am-4PM) a market that is organized by Farm To City. For more information about the market and the other markets supported by Farm to City go to www.farmtocity.org. Z Food Farm will also again sell produce at the farm itself. At this time the plan is to be open on Wednesdays and Fridays. The specific times will be posted on the Z Food Farm facebook page and on the Z Food Farm website (www.zfoodfarm.com). And Z Food Farm will once again be part of the Lawrenceville Farmers’ Market. New this year, the Lawrenceville Market will now be held on Saturdays; 10AM – 2PM. This is a change in day and time. Go to http://www.lawrencevillemainstreet.com/events/farmersmarket.htm to stay informed of what is happening.

The big market news for the coming season is that Z Food Farm will be attending the New Amsterdam Market in New York City (www.newamsterdammarket.org). The market is on Sundays from 11AM-4PM. On May 1 there was a special May Day market event that Z Food Farm attended. In addition to various potted plants (lettuce, kale, Swiss chard, snap peas, and basil), for those who want to ‘grow their own’, David had leeks, spring garlic, and kale as fresh produce. It was a wonderful experience and David and all of Z Food Farm are eagerly looking forward to being part of the New Amsterdam Market this coming farm season.

Z Food Farm looks forward to friends old and new at Rittenhouse Square, at the Lawrenceville Market, and at the farm and to the new friends we are about to make at the New Amsterdam Market.

Eat healthy and prosper.

Welcome to the Z Food Farm stand at the New Amsterdam Market.

Here are some of the potted plants that were available at the New Amsterdam Market. Potted plants will be available at all market sites come the beginning of June.

More potted plants.

The fresh produce. Spring garlic is a special treat and if you have a chance you should try some.

The market is located by the old Fulton Fish Market just below the Brooklyn Bridge. It is a beautiful sight.

Growing

Last year the first planting, potatoes, took place on May 12. Today, May 7, marked the start of this seasons planting. First in the ground was kale and kohlrabi. Pictures to commemorate the event will be forthcoming. Though planting has started sooner than last season, things are behind where David would like them to be. Though there were a couple of glitches, the greenhouse was not heated as soon as desired being one, the wet weather was the biggest culprit. Over the past few days the weather has been glorious and David was able to work the soil, thus allowing for the start of planting. Planting will continue tomorrow and the cycle of the season is now well under way. More trays of plants will be moved from the greenhouse to the outside tables to 'harden' them in anticipation of planting and then there will be more seeding, germinating, growing, planting of the grown up plants and moving the now ready trays of plants outside; and so on for the duration of the season. There is a continuity and regularity to the farm season that is consistent and comforting.

The anticipation is that market season will start the beginning of June. With more specifics to come, Z Food Farm will be: at the Lawrenceville Farmers' Market on Saturdays (yes, the market is moving from Sunday to Saturday), at the Rittenhouse Square Market in Philadelphia, also on Saturday mornings, at the New Amsterdam Market in NYC on Sunday mornings, and at the farm on Wednesday and Friday afternoons. Whew! That should keep David and crew busy. David and Z Food Farm are looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones.

This shows how full the greenhouse was, and this picture was taken on April 6. Much of what you see here has grown up and was moved outside to be replaced by new trays.





These are the trays of plants that have been moved outside and are waiting to be planted.




These are hops rhizomes. Let's brew some beer! Actually is will be a couple of years before there will be enough hops to actually do some serious brewing.

"In botany a rhizome is a characteristically horizontal stem of a plant that is usually found underground, often sending out roots and shoots from its nodes. Rhizomes may also be referred to as creeping rootstalks or rootstocks.

If a rhizome is separated into pieces, each piece may be able to give rise to a new plant. This is a process known as vegetative reproduction and is used by farmers and gardeners to propagate certain plants. Examples of plants that are propagated this way include hops, asparagus, and ginger." (Wikipedia)

This is Red Russian Kale that survived the winter and was producing delicious baby sized leaves of kale. It was delicious.


This is David's 'new' tractor, a 1977 John Deere. The blue tractor from last year was not powerful enough to pull the various plows and other implements to work the field and plant the crops. David was in the position of borrowing Farmer Matt's tractor throughout last season. Matt was very generous with his tractor, but there were times when David was in need of a tractor at the same time that Matt was using it; David thus had to wait. While David will still need to be patient about when he borrows some of the implements (ie. a chisel plow), having his own tractor will minimize the amount of time that he will have to wait. And if you are concerned about the age of the tractor, have no fear, nothing runs like a Deere.


This is what the field looks like after being chiseled plowed. Chisel plowing is the first step in preparing the soil for planting. This type of plowing breaks apart the top layer of soil that has been compacted over the course of the winter.


This is what a chisel plow looks like.




Here is David using the disc plow. After the soil has been broken up by the chisel plow, the disc plow turns the soil and breaks it up even more. Following disc plowing the soil will be rototilled and then David will use an implement to lay the plastic 'mulch' that helps, somewhat, to minimize weeds. Just like rust, weeds never sleep.


And here's your hippy, dippy farmer wishing you all peace, love, and organic vegetables.

Moving Forward

This seasons seeding started a little later than was planned, but was well ahead of last year. The germination was great and the seedlings have thrived. The seedlings grew up and, in anticipation of being planted, were moved outside to ‘harden’ them. The next round of seeding was accomplished and germination was again successful. These seedlings have also done well and the plants are close to being ready to be moved outside. There’s only one problem- it keeps raining and the ground has been too wet to do any plowing (driving heavy equipment on wet ground compacts the soil- compacted soil is unhealthy soil) and thus there has been no planting. Since the outside tables are full the plants ready to be moved outside have nowhere to go. However, on Monday, May 2 and Tuesday, May 3 David was finally able to do some plowing. First he did some chisel plowing to break up the soil and then he used a disc plow to turn the soil over. The next step would be to rototill the soil to prepare the beds into which the seedlings would be planted. Alas, Wednesday’s rain prevented this from happening. Fingers are crossed for dry weather so that planting can take place within the next few days. Last seasons first planting took place on May 12, so David is still ahead of where he was, but is behind where he would like to be. And so it goes.

Last season David bought a cultivating tractor. The advantage of such a tractor is that it would save labor when it came to weeding between the plant beds. Unfortunately the tractor was not strong enough to pull various attachments- such as the chisel plow. Farmer Matt, David’s mentor from his days as an intern at Cherry Grove Organic Farm, was generous with his tractor and equipment. While David will still benefit from Matt’s generosity with various attachments, David now has a tractor that is strong enough to pull the attachments; a good old John Deere. While David will still need to wait for Matt to be done with any particular attachment, having his own tractor will allow things to go much more smoothly. Better days ahead.

As was done last year, Z Food Farm will spend Saturday mornings/afternoons at Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia (Go to http://www.farmtocity.org/ for more information about the market and the organization behind the market). The Lawrenceville Farmers’ Market will be moving from Sundays to Saturdays; yes, we will be in two places at once; more details to come. And the farm stand will be open on Wednesdays and Fridays; again, more information will be forthcoming. In addition to these locations, David will be adding the New Amsterdam Market to his schedule. The New Amsterdam Market is located in Manhattan, where the old Fulton Fish Market used to be. (Go to http://www.newamsterdammarket.org/ for more information about this market.). On Sunday, May 1, Z Food Farm made its inaugural appearance at a special edition of the market. All markets will start the first weekend of June. The opening of the farm stand has yet to be determined, but will be around the same time.

David and Z Food Farm are looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones. Getting there.

Keep On Growing

Most of the germinating seeds in the greenhouse continue to do well. In fact, lettuce and spinach that was seeded on 3/22 has been moved outside to 'toughen' up in preparation for being planted in the field. (Pictures of these plants will be posted in a couple of days.) The plan is to start planting in about two weeks. A break in the rain would be a very good thing. Will all friends of Z Food Farm please hope for the best. In addition to the excitement of moving the lettuce and spinach outside, there are two other bits of exciting news. The first is that the hops that were ordered have arrived! Yay hops! The other is that the second round of seeding has started. The next seeding of lettuce, Swiss Chard, and broccoli has been done. This process of seeding, germinating, moving outside, and planting will be continued throughout the season. In the next few weeks the pace of events will speed up. Greg and Oscar, while not back to work full time, have been integral parts of the ongoing process of getting things at the farm up and running and their efforts as things move forward are essential to the success of Z Food Farm. This is a very exciting, and anxious, time of the year. Actually, the entire season is full of excitement and anxiety:-)

The following pictures were taken a week ago. Compare them with pictures from the previous post to get a sense of how quickly things grow. Within the next couple of days more recent 'baby' pictures will be posted to again show the growth and development of the plants. Enjoy!

Here is the center row of the greenhouse. The green of the germinating plants is a beautiful thing.


Here is the left side of the greenhouse. Notice the green of the plants in the background of the picture and the newly seeded flats in the foreground.


Baby basil plants. There are 160 varieties of basil. Z Food Farm will have eight varieties including Italian, Lime, Lemon, and Cinnamon.


Baby Swiss Chard.



This is some of the lettuce. Within the past week there has been an amazing amount of growth. Within approximately two weeks the lettuce will be ready for planting in the fields.


If you look back at previous posts you will have an appreciation of how much growth there has been with these plants. What you see on the heating mats are tomatoes, eggplants, sweet peppers, hot peppers, and various herbs.


This picture should give you a better perspective of how much the seedlings have grown. Remember, seeding started on March 21. Nature is truly amazing.



As a frame of reference, at this time last year the greenhouse was still in the process of being put together. The end walls were still not complete, and most certainly nothing was germinating in the greenhouse. As was written about last year at about this time, David was able to start his seeding at Cherry Grove Organic Farm through the generosity of Farmer Matt. It is amazing how far things have progressed at Z Food Farm. Market season is just around the corner. Looking forward to seeing everyone at Rittenhouse Square and at the farm stand. Yay farm fresh produce!!

Germination

A few days later than intended, here are some pictures to show a) how much the greenhouse has filled up in one week, and b) the amount of germination that has taken place. These pictures were taken on Tuesday, March 29. In the two days since, the range of plants germinating has increased and the growth of the seedlings has been dramatic. As the season progresses, and the cycle of seeding, germinating, growing, planting, growing, and harvesting speeds along, there is so much going on that there is less preoccupation about whether or not the newly seeded plants will germinate. But at this stage of the season, there is always nervous anticipation while waiting for, and then a great sense of relief when, the first sprouts start poking their head above the soil mix. Though it will still be some time before these plants are ready to be moved outside to be toughened up as prelude to planting, it would be nice if the weather would start to cooperate. There is much to be done to prepare the fields, and the wet conditions are not conducive to getting much done. The hope is that the current cool and wet conditions do not foreshadow a cool and wet farm season. If you recall, the 2009 season was marked by cool and wet conditions that led to a disastrous tomato crop for many of the areas organic farmers, and farmers throughout the Northeast. Let's hope for sunny, warm days and pleasant nights.

Okra- Seeded 3/22



Lettuce- Seeded 3/21

Spinach- Seeded 3/21


On the left- Red Russian Kale; On the right- Toscano Kale. Both seeded 3/21


The center tables of the greenhouse. Compare with the pictures in the prior posting.


The left side of the greenhouse.


The right side of the greenhouse. The seeding trays in the front part of the picture are on heating mats. The seeds of certain varieties require extra warmth to aid in their germination. Among the plants on the mats are okra, basil, sweet peppers, eggplant, and hot peppers.



There you have it, a quick trip through the greenhouse. Stay tuned for more pictures showing the rapid growth of the seedlings. Peace and healthy eating to one and all.

More Seeding

The seeding has continued. What follows is the updated list of vegetables that have been seeded.

Hot Peppers- 19 varieties, plus the three specialty peppers that were previously written about- Padron, Shishito, and Piquilo.

Herbs- Lemon balm, Oregano, Rosemary, Sage, Lovage (its leaves can be used in salads or to make soup. Can be made into a tea. Its seeds can be used as a spice, similar to fennel seeds), Shiso (also known as Perilla), and Summer Savory.

Okra- two varieties

Eggplants- two of sixteen varieties were seeded. The remainder will be seeded this coming week.

Leeks and more onions. When all is said and done there will be four varieties of leeks and twelve varieties of onions (bulb onions, tropea, scallions, and chipollini), with one variety of shallots thrown in for good measure.

Fennel- six varieties

Swiss Chard

Basil- Italian, Thai, Cinnamon, Mrs. Burns' Lemon, Linme, Red Rubin, and a variety called Aroma 2. There are, in fact, 160 different varieties of basil. Who knew?

Along with the excitement of seeding, there is great news. Some of the seeds are starting to germinate!!! Every time there is seeding there is a certain level of anxiety. Is the soil mix correctly balanced? Are the seeds receiving enough water? Too much water? Is the greenhouse warm enough? Too cool? And then the first signs of germination. What a wonderful feeling. More details about this and pictures of the new babies will be coming within the next few days. As seeding continues, a list of the newly seeded of veggies will be available.

Warm days and gentle nights to all.

Seeding - Day 1

The following pictures depict the first day of seeding.

The various components that make up the soil mix are combined in this 'pool'. The sieve helps sort out stems and other unwanted items from the final mix. The mix includes- peat moss, compost, limestone, greensand, kelp, blood meal (not human), and bone meal (also, not human), vermiculite, and perlite. These ingredients provide the nutrients that aid in the healthy germination of the seeds.

The center row of tables. Only the beginning.


The left side of the greenhouse; looking from the front door.


The right side of the greenhouse. Keep these pictures in mind. On Monday, March 28, one week after these pictures, pictures of each section of the greenhouse will be shown to allow for a comparison to illustrate how much has been accomplished in one week.


On the left is a flat of Toscano Kale; on the right, Red Russian Kale. On Monday, 3/28, another picture of these flats will be taken to see if there has been any germination. This will be done on a weekly basis until they plants are ready to be planted in the field.


In the late fall, cloves of garlic were planted. They were then covered with straw to provide some protection over the course of the winter. As can be seen, the garlic is sending forth shoots that indicate that they are growing and doing well. The visible shoots will become garlic scapes, which will then be harvested and available at market. The 'scapes' can be used like garlic or scallions. They have a milder and more delicate taste than the garlic. They can be used fresh, sauteed, or made into a pesto.


Let the seeding begin. Here David is intent on the task at hand. Seeding requires ones full attention and is very time consuming. Yet, it has a certain meditative quality to it. It is a question of balance to maintain ones full attention and move along at a steady pace.


Overseeing the operation is Maple. She wants to make sure that everything is being done to a high standard of excellence.


Further on down the road. Peace and healthy eating to all.