ORGANIC FARM NOTES: WEEK 3. July 11 – 15 2016: Smaller or Larger Bag.
Veggie Membership Coordinator is Mike Rabinowitz. (Cell: 749-7300, Home: 895-2884)
Pick up is 6 p.m. Science Building Parking Lot at MUN. Go through the underpass which we call the tunnel. If it is raining, the van will be parked in the tunnel. If we are early and you are on time, you will see people congregating around the back of a black Outback or red Forester where bags are being lined up along the curb. Step into the line and mak sure your name is checked off the list. If you are sharing, it may be in the name of the person you share with. If you know that you want to substitute something in your bag for something else, you will need to wait until we have time to get to the SWAP Box. If everything is acceptable, you are good to go and we will see you same place, same time next week.
REVIEW OF ROUTINE. Main message. We leave at 6:30 unless we know you will arrive by 6:45. . If you are running very late and let us know, you can pick up your bag at the lower level of the Aquarena between 7 and 9 PM. Otherwise, Mike will take your bag back to farm chill room to be picked up at your convenience. Smaller bag members who forget to pick up can request their bag be included with the larger bag delivery at MUN on Wednesday evening between 6 and 6:30.
Pick up at the Farm.
Head out Portugal Cove Road, passing airport, Indian Meal Line, Bauline Line Extension, Legion Road, Eetc. Come down into Portugal Cove and look for convenience stores on your right – Elaine’s Convenience and Whalesback Store. Turn right on Churchills Rd about 75 meters past Whalesback. Cross the little bridge and bear left. Drive up the hill to the crest of the road. There will be two Organic Farm signs on your right. Turn right and go up the hill, Stop at the first greenhouse. There will be a white two story shed/house on your left just before you reach the greenhouse. Your bag will be in the cooler in this buidling. Just walk to the back and the cooler is the door on your left. Check you name on the balckboard to let us know you have picked up your bag. There should be chaulk hanging on top of the blackboard.
Dogs.
If you are afraid of dogs, call the house number and someone will take care of Buck, the over friendly dog who will greet you. The smaller, black shaggy dog is Wump who may be standing or lying in the roadway; she is old, hard of hearing and barks at everyone, but totally harmless.
The Routine at MUN
If you are not able to make it to pick up, contact us by e-mail or phone as early as possible and no later than 5 p.m. on the day of pick-up. We will keep your bag in the chill room until you are ready to pick up. If an emergency occurs later than 5 PM, please leave either a voicemail or text message at 749-7300. Mike is still a novice but improving using his ptablet.
WHAT’S IN THE BAG?
The Large Bag and Small Bag will have similar or related items. For example, on a particular week, one group might get chard, the other kale. Everyone will get lettuce or salad mix if available; onions, and some type of herb. This time of year, there might be some other kind of greens – early vegetables that can grow in the cold;; we are also beginning to get green peppers in one of the greenhouses.
PACKING SLIP!
The Packing Slip on will be posted around noon the day of pick-up. Go to Farm Website:: www.theorganicfarm.net. You will see ( packing slip) on the left side just below headers or go into main header – Veggie Membership and follow the arrows to Farm Notes and Packing Slip, organized by weeks and dates..
SWAP BOX AND TAIL GATE SALES. .
This is the fun part. LOOK INTO YOUR BAG! If there is something in your bag that you don’t want, bring it to back of the van where we have extra vegetables for swapping. We often have extra things to sell. For example, sometimes we don’t have enough of a vegetable to go into bags, i.e. eggplant so we take it to tail gate sales. Also, extra pea shoots and tomatoes. If you are interested in free range eggs let us know. A local farmer is producing them without antibiotics. They eggs are not certified organic and cost $6 per dozen.
The Pull Down Door of Cooler Shed is usually open.
If not, there is a man door on left side of the shed; walk down the middle, past the stairs on your left to a door with green chalkboard. This is the chill room. Open the door and find the veggie bags, labeled as Monday or Wednesday. After you get your bag, close the door tightly and mark your name off of the list on chalkboard. (There is also a washroom in this shed.)
SPECIAL ORDERS!
Often we do not have enough of a particular product to make it an item for the Veggie Member bag. An example might be artichoke, eggplant or even pea shoots or rhubarb at certain times of year. If, for example, you are looking for a large bag of basil to make pesto, please let us know. We can bring it into MUN as a special order or leave it on the table by the cooler if you pick up at the farm. You can pay for the extra item by cash, cheque, or e-transfer – whatever is convenient. Large special orders that we have by Thursday evening can be picked up either at the farm between11 and 5 or Farmers’ Market between 9 and 2, on Saturdays.
The good days and the bad days!
Our staff come to work every day, regardless of weather. Yes, the farm staff are out picking your lettuce and kale in the rain and cold; it is remarkable how faithful they are to harvesting on these occasional ridiculously cold days. They are picking with water dripping over their hoods across their faces as they bend over. One of the young men who was picking came in for lunch and I put a plastic bag on the kitchen chair before he sat down because he was so wet!!
We are all lucky to be able to get some things ready. It takes more time and staff on nasty days. Mike begins to make the Veggie Membership list on his Sunday Walk-a-bouts and it is modified when Tom and Diane get to the farm at 8:30 on Mondays. Then 3 or 4 staff go off to different fields picking the amounts needed. They meet to count and pack in the lettuce shed out of the rain. As you make your salad tonight, stop a minute and thank Michelle, Mary, Tom, Fumiko and Charles, our pickers today.
Are there Pecan Cookies in your future?
Please consider coming out to visit us when the weather is decent. The past couple of days, I have been making pecan cookies using my Aunt’s recipe I brought back from Tennessee, along with several bags of pecans. Honestly, they are the best cookies I have made in many years and each batch takes a cup of pecans, the same amount as a pecan pie. Toby and I were in Tennessee for July 4th for a big family reunion, around 100 people, little, big, young, old and older. My sister-in-law came to say good bye to us the night before we left and brought six or more bags of shelled Tennessee pecans that she had picked up herself, cracked,shelled and saved for me in her freezer. Since I was a child, picking up pecans has been and important family ritual, led by my mother, who passed away ten years ago. Every year when my children and I visited Tennessee for Thanksgiving or Christmas, we were expected to help pick-up pecans and join mom for cracking and picking out pecans. Louis took the job very seriously; he sat at the picnic table outdoors under the big maple trees and managed to pick out all of the pecans in the dishpan Mom gave him. He brought it into the kitchen and proudly presented it to my mother. What he got for getting his done first was another dishpan of pecans to be shelled. The next year, when we were planning a visit to Tennessee, Louis made it clear he want to go after pecan picking season was over. That year, he went in February and stayed at my brother’s house, far away from any pecan trees. .
Mom always saved several bags in the freezer for Melba in Newfoundland. If we went from Tennessee through North Carolina to visit Mike’s brother, we were instructed to take the pecans out of the suitcase and keep them in the freezer, whether our visit was 6 hours or 6 days. And, Yes, we did forget and leave them behind a couple of times. I don’t think my mother knew that she had provided pecans for pecan pies in North Carolina instead of Newfoundland.
Answer: There are pecan cookies in your future, if you plan to come sooner rather than later – as soon as the weather is decent. I am also hiding a bag or two in the freezer to make pecan cookies later on. Pecan Cookies, in fact, all cookies disappear from the kitchen table the day of – as people come in for breaks and lunches. And visitors come in at Mike’s invitation. We also finish off a couple of loaves of home made (break maker) bread every day. .
A Picnic Table Reserved for You and Your Family!
.Right Now – the farm has piled of sand, gravel and compost everywhere!!!! We are still trying to finish the access road around new shed, paths and re-establish the gardens. This is why we have piles of sand and compost near visitor entrance – but, we do have a picnic table near shed reserved for families. And a couple of other benches. The family kitchen is also a good place to stop in, whether you are coming or going. The fun part of the visit for the children will be taking a walk to see the fish in the irrigation pond and tasting the edible flowers. In August, there will be an opportunity to bring along the family to help pick raspberries on the hill. Stay tuned in Farm Notes.
Don’t forget to send in a recipe for the cause! Cause its fun! Especially for Melba, who has been collecting recipes from Veggie Members for many years. Melba still writes on computer and tries to figure out how to upload to website. The farm staff have been texting each other for years – but not Melba and Mike. This year, Mike has a tablet and is learning to use texting. Or send your recipes and messages to Tom, our employee who manages Farm Face Book where he is posting pictures of what is going on at the farm. If this doesn’t help connect – there is always the Telephone: House phone: 895-2884; Organic Farm: 689-7693 and now Mike’s personal phone number for Veggie Pick-Up days: 749-7300.
WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO WARMER DAYS AND HEARING ABOUT YOUR FAVOURITE RECIPE!.
Melba and Mike
July 11, 2016
