Clagett Farm Notes

What to expect in the rest of your shares

Many people have wondered what remains of their share this fall, especially given these dry conditions.  Let me give you my best guess. 
    We should expect a small to moderate harvest of sweet potatoes, which we're planning to begin next week.  You will probably also get a few more butternut squash, and lots more garlic.  Your broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower survived being transplanted, but they have been very slow to grow, and the deer and groundhogs have been using them and the sweet potato greens as an emergency fuel now that the dry weather is stunting their usual clover diet.  Perhaps they will produce small heads in October, or perhaps they will wait and produce bigger ones in November--it's hard to say.  The kale and collards are doing surprisingly well under the circumstances.  Everyone should continue getting a half pound or so each week, and much more if it ever begins raining again.  They also get a bit sweeter once the first frost hits.
      Your baby mustard greens, lettuce, spinach, arugula, carrots, beets, cilantro, dill, radishes and turnips were planted in August in two fields--a small one that can be irrigated and a large one that cannot.  We have not had a soaking rain since then, so nothing has germinated in the large field.  Only a bit of arugula, baby mustards, turnips and radishes have matured in the small field, and we will be doling them out carefully to everyone in October.  In September, when our grim circumstances were becoming apparent, we tore out some poorly-producing squash and cucumbers and dug some more beds near the washing station so we could seed more greens and roots that could be irrigated.  They have all since germinated in happy abundance, but I don't think they will be ready to harvest until November.  Carrots and beets need so long to mature that it didn't make sense to replant them, so I'm sorry to say that this is going to be a carrot and beet-free fall. 
     We still have some beans, cucumbers, summer squash, peppers, eggplants and okra.  You might have noticed that these summer crops slow down their production as the weather cools (the dry weather is contributing to their slow-down, as well).  All of the summer crops die abruptly with the first frost, which usually comes in early or mid-October.  It's been unusually warm, though, so perhaps we'll keep them a little longer. 
     We have planned for your last shares to be November 8 and 12.  November 18 and 19 (the Friday and Saturday before Thanksgiving) will be the gleaning weekend when you can pick all you want of what remains.  I don't think we'll need to make any changes to that schedule, but we'll certainly keep you informed if we do. 
    Autumn is usually my favorite season, and the farm's most abundant one.  It saddens me to have to eek out such a small share to everyone this October.  I deeply appreciate how understanding everyone has been.  Our customers seem to be taking this dry spell in stride, and that helps me relax and keep a better perspective on the viscicitudes of farming. 

Fast dwingling tomatoes

Shareholders no doubt noticed that the amount of tomatoes in their shares has been going down drastically. We are approaching the end of our tomatoes quicker than we expected. Last year we had tomatoes until mid October. We don't yet know whether we will have tomatoes in our share next week. Why are tomatoes quitting on us so early? We are not quite sure. The drought conditions we are experiencing had an obvious detrimental effect, but there may also be other factors involved. Here is a view from earlier today of our shrunken tomato plants. 

But let's put things into perspective. Our tomatoes had a great August. And although greatly reduced in number, as the September 13 photo below shows, they still look great:

    

August means tomatoes

Among other summer goodies, the first weekly share of August includes 5 pounds of tomatoes and 10 ears of corn. Judging from how loaded the plants are, it looks like it's going to be a good tomato month! And if you want even more tomatoes, do not hesitate: come to the farm and pick your own.

And our corn has been getting rave reviews. If you are new to freshly picked organic corn, do not be put off by the occasional caterpillar. Just lop off the damaged area and eat the rest. It's delicious.

First Share Thank Yous. Strawberries--Not Quite. More Transplanting.

Shareholders, thank you for making our first share such a good experience. It was great to be greeted by smiling old-timers as well as to see eager and curious new shareholders. Expect much of the same in the second share. Details will probably follow after Tuesday's harvest (it's still Monday, as I'm writing this). I have to say, though, that I was overoptimistic when last Tuesday I told Dupont shareholders that they will be getting strawberries in their second share. There are strawberries to pick, just not enough to harvest. But this weekend will probably be a good one for those who want to come to the farm and pick their own berries.

Moving on to later crops, last Thursday we had our second (and last) session of tomato transplanting. This year we transplanted the same amount of tomatoes as last year, so shareholders can expect plenty of tomatoes later in the summer. Whether the harvest will be as plentiful as last year's is another issue--we'll certainly do our best, the rest is up to Mother Nature.

Weather permitting, we will transplant sweet potatoes later on this week.

That's Megan's left hand placing a tomato seedling into the "pinchers" of the transplanter. In her right hand she is holding the camera (quite a feat). Sitting to her left is Kenji. For a photo presenting a wider view and to read a quick explanation on how the transplanter works, go to Transplanting, an April 11 post.

CSA shares closed

As of April 26, 2005 our full-price shares for this season at all pick-up sites have filled up.  It took us a bit of time to be sure, since we had to finish plugging everyone's orders into the database.  We're terribly sorry we have to turn anyone down, so here are your other options:
1) Come to our farmstand at the Anacostia Farmers Market any Wednesday after June 1, 3-7pm. It's on 14th St, SE, between U and V Streets. This is a small, inexpensive market that could use your support.
2) Come for a work share!  You are welcome any Monday through Saturday.  We begin at 7:30-8am weekdays and 8:30-9am Satudays.  Four adult hours gives you a week of vegetables. 
3) Let us know that you are interested and we'll make sure you are alerted about shares for 2006 as soon as they are available. 

1st share postponed

We are postponing our first share a week due to the cool spring we have had this year.  Soil temperatures have stayed so low that although our crops are planted and healthy, they are growing very slowly.  We need an extra week for the strawberries to ripen, and the lettuce and spinach to size up.  Your first share will be May 17 (Dupont and Farm Tuesday), May 18 (Anacostia) and May 21 (Farm Saturday).  We'll call or email everyone to alert you sometime this week.  Thanks for your patience!

Dupont is Full!

We've reached our limit of 70 shares picking up at Dupont, so anyone who hasn't sent us their order yet will have to choose another site or start our waiting list. Please note, we're still in a position to make special exception for our long-time members or people whose orders were somehow mishandled on our end, so if you're one of those people, let us know.

FAQ from potential new members, and a dire request for okra recipes.

1) As of today, we have 175 shares filled of the 215 total.  So if you'd like to buy a share, we still have space for 40 more!

2) There is a new CSA cookbook that is soon to come out from an organization called One United Harvest (for a preview check out FarmCookbook.com).  I made a special request that she include recipes for the southern vegetables that are often left out of CSA cookbooks, such as sweet potatoes, okra and collard greens.  She has a few recipes for okra but she needs more!  Please, please, for the good of mankind and your fellow members, send the author a few of your favorites.  Her name is Julie Sochacki, so her email is JC plus her last name at sbcglobal.net.   

3)  People often ask how large one share is.  This is a tough question to answer since it varies so much each year and week-to-week.  Our customers tell us that one share feeds 2-4 adults.  The average size is about 7-10 pounds--it's smallest in the first month (mostly greens and a few strawberries) and gets quite heavy in late summer and fall when we have sweet corn, melons, sweet potatoes or pumpkins.  We hope to archive our shares on the weblog this year, so perhaps this question will be easier to anwer in the future.  Perhaps!

2005 Update and Order Form

Greetings again, dear members!

At last, we have the brand new 2005 order form. Please note, space for former members is guaranteed until April 1, 2005.

Click here:Download 2005 CSA Order Form

Here are some updates...

Same prices, sites, new flexibility

Again this year we are offering shares at $385 at the farm and Anacostia, and $425 at Dupont Circle. As ever, the premium for shares at Dupont covers the extra cost of delivering those shares. We will also be keeping the number of full-paying shares at 215. One change this year, is that you can pick up your share at any site without prior notice. For example, you can pick up your share on the farm on Saturday instead of at Dupont that previous Tuesday without telling us in advance. Just make sure that you sign up for the day and location where you will pick up your vegetables at least 80% of the time. And if you can tell us in advance that you won’t be at your regular pick-up, that is still helpful and appreciated.

Good news about our financial stability

Did you know that 2004 was the first year that the income from full-priced shares, which was 60% of our harvest, covered more than 60% of our expenses? That means that if this were a private farm selling all shares at full price, we could pay our farmers a decent wage, invest a little into new equipment, be good stewards of our land, and still make a profit. Not only that, but the work environment has been so rewarding, that for the first year, everyone in our paid farm crew will be people who are returning from years past. There’s plenty of room for improvement of course, but we’re glad to be moving in the right direction. Congratulations to our members, volunteers and work sharers for supporting such a great endeavor. Hooray for successful, local, sustainable farms!

More vegetables to low-income families

Last year, in effort to reduce (but not eliminate) our reliance on the Capital Area Food Bank and Chesapeake Bay Foundation for extra income, we lowered the percentage of reduced-price and donated vegetables from 50% of our total harvest to 40%. Fortunately, since our total pounds of production was so much higher, the actual pounds we distributed to low-income families was still greater than in years past. This year, if we can increase production again, we are hoping to return that percentage closer to the 50%. So who gets these veggies? Some of our recipients are in summer camps for at-risk kids who visit the farm and go home with a bag-full of vegetables. Some will be elderly folks who come to the Anacostia Farmers’ Market with their senior center. Some have been patients at an HIV/AIDS clinic that offers alternative therapy and nutritional classes in addition to free produce from our farm. Some are families on disability who come to us directly for help, or individuals with weakened immune systems who work for their vegetables when they can. One agency that regularly picks up vegetables from the farm serves homeless men who are too sick to survive on the street. Any time you donate money to us above the cost of a share, or lend an extra hand to harvest or twine tomatoes, it helps us increase this outreach. And if you ever forget to pick up your share, we can donate a few extra pounds in your honor. Thank you!

Volunteers welcome

Speaking of lending a hand, help now and help often! We’ll be updating this weblog when we have particular needs, and we’re keeping an email list of people who would like to work for free or for food, so we can send those people special requests if we’re particularly desperate, or invite them to events in honor of our workers. We can use weekly help in the office (Tuesdays 1-5pm is ideal during the summer), endless help in the field Monday through Saturday until early evening, groups of volunteers can make arrangements any day or time, and we love it when people give us copies of good recipes to give our members. If anyone is willing and able to help us improve our website, this is a great time!

Chesapeake Bay Foundation and the Capital Area Food Bank

Last, we would like to remind you of the special help that we get from the Capital Area Food Bank and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. In 2004 the Chesapeake Bay Foundation took 37,000 students on educational field trips, lobbied legislators to reach significant targets to reduce pollution in the Bay, planted thousands of trees as stream buffers and started oyster and underwater grass nurseries to improve the stability of the Bay’s ecosystem. Last year the Capital Area Food Bank distributed 20 million pounds of food to agencies serving the hungry in our area and picked up the slack when D.C.’s children lost their free school lunch for the summer. With all these tremendous efforts, both organizations still spend the extra time and money to support this little project that combines both missions—they remember that we must be stewards of our environment AND our community, all at once. They pay From the Ground Up’s expenses that are not covered by income from shares and donations. There are small ways you can help them, as well—by volunteering to sort food in the Capital Area Food Bank’s warehouse, or by joining the Chesapeake Bay Foundation’s e-mail action network. And if the spirit moves you, perhaps you could send them a note telling them how important the farm is in your life—lest they forget about the farm amidst their other various needs. Thanks for making our jobs a meaningful, rewarding, joyful experience!

Don't send us money for 2005 shares yet!

We've been delighted that some enthusiastic, would-be members have already sent us money for a 2005 share.  Nonetheless, we're not quite ready for you.  We're still deciding on some small changes, and working out a few kinks in the way we process your shares.  Drop us a line to tell us you're waiting with bated breath, and we'll be sure to include your email among the first that receives our new 2005 order form.  I'm aiming to get them out around the end of February, (but that's not a promise). 

Also, we do not plan to have a pick-up site in or near Takoma Park.  As always, we'll encourage you to take turns picking up your share with another nearby member, instead.  We only want happy, satisfied customers, though, so if driving to the farm is too much, try shopping around for a more nearby source of locally-grown, environmentally-friendly produce.  These sites might help: csacenter.org, USDA.gov directory of farmers' markets, NewFarm.org "farm locator" and localharvest.org.  Or, if you'd like to donate a deisel van that we can convert to consume used vegetable oil, we would be so grateful you could have your share delivered wherever you want. 

Thanks everyone!