Monday, July 23, 2012

Finding Our Food




Here's a new way to enjoy our food if you're not signed up for one of our Food Share options


 The Giving Foods Organic Market & Bakery

Located in Whitefish next to the Pin and Cue at 6550 Hwy 93 South. They have a beautiful assortment of handmade breads, a lively lunch menu and Organic Tamales. The only place in the area to make and serve them. They're a great new Health Food Store so check them out.
They currently have our freshly cut Fordhook and Northern Lights Chard as well as, Garlic Scapes. Try these recipes for something new and interesting in your summer menu.  

Saturday, July 14, 2012

Earth Building

New Moon Earth Building Workshop
July 19-20th
4-7pm


Summer Projects
  Strawbale Greenhouses, Earth Ovens, Living Roofs and Rocket Stove Benches
Learn about Materials and Building Methods

$10 dollars per person/day enjoyable for all ages
Bring a Tarp, 5 gallon bucket and Vegan Dish to Share
Reach us @ 730.2441 for Directions

Squash Blossom Farm
Agroecology ~ Heirlooms ~ Earth Building ~ Sustainability
Whitefish,MT




 



Thursday, July 12, 2012

Sustaining Local Populations





In the garden we're trying to create habitat for pollinators, birds and mammals. Living on the cusp of open land and urban landscapes we are serving as a connector to species adaptable to edges. Over the past 5 years our "let it grow approach" has created habitat for several friends. We've had foxes move in that hunt the abundance of voles in the meadow and scavenge carcasses from the neighboring tract of wood. By allowing the edges of our modest 1/2 acre grow naturally into the wetland-meadow habitat, fauna can coexist and benefit. Our source of flowers, cover crops and vegetables offer crucial habitat for beneficial insects, pollinators and butterflies. Not only does this provide resources for local migratory birds it's sustains a struggling population inundated with chemicals and pesticides-Bees.
We continue to develop a closed loop ecologically stable environment. By practicing a labor vs mechanical intensive style of farming we not only preserve vital soil structure and insect populations but also replenish necessary nutrients with crop rotations, cover cropping and green manures. The viability of growing food in the long term is highly dependent on our source seed production, limited fuel use and minimal intensive labor. Sustainability is essentially defined upon these principles and demands them.
Genetic diversity of crops generates several safety mechanisms for their long term survival in varying climatic conditions. That's why we emphasize growing heirlooms in our garden. It also sustains us by producing an abundance of seeds for future years. This surplus is rich in genetic structure available for long term adaptations. Self sufficiency and survival being the optimal goal for us and plants alike.


We welcome the swallows and bluebird families that will call our corner of the world home by allowing the landscape to develop naturally. Listen intently for the Sora and Wilson's Snipe to arrive in the spring and serenade the lingering sun at dusk all summer. The fox may kick out our residence skunk to raise her pups and we'll watch as the ravens cavort and defend their territory in the meadow from the fleeting red tail hawks, bald eagles and northern harriers all the while relishing every moment as the system seasonally changes.
There is so much possibility to intensively farm supporting both native fauna and flora while maximizing grow space when garden rows are designed not by the size of the tractor wheel. Instead you navigate the garden by the size of the growers foot, reach or straddle. Our modest beginnings are crucially supported by a small group of people who make expansion of growing space and acquisition of heirloom seeds sustainable. We appreciate your interest in local food-you're apart of this system.

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Food for Dragonflies and Chard Two Ways

There is a dragonfly and mosquito hatch happening simultaneously in the garden. Another ecological balance-mysterious and illuminating and almost as fascinating as warblers gleaning insects. Fortunately for us there is a source population of dragonflies migrating over from the wetland. In numbers strong enough in combination with the nesting swallows to keep the mosquitoes somewhat down. As much as mosquitoes seem a nuisance they play an important role directly and indirectly on many trophic levels. But if you'd like to keep them off-we like mixing vodka with this synergistic melody of essential oils ~ clary sage, rosewood, lavender, peppermint, lemongrass ~ 4-8 drops each in a 4 oz bottle. Any bites we got this week we covered with calendula salve which dramatically improved inflammation including itching within a few hours and totally healed within a day.  






You might enjoy this refreshing soup from the garden the other night. We cooked down some chard and baby bella mushrooms then added the sliced garlic for 2 minutes and poured the coconut milk over the top. Finishing it with fresh dill.

Northern Lights Chard in a Lime Coconut Soup with a hint of Dill
5 stalks Chard
Baby Bella Shrooms 
3 garlic cloves
a few sprigs of Dill
Coconut Milk

Our sunset dinner last night of Garlic Scape Pesto over stir fried Chard and Orach was not only brilliantly colorful and tantalizing to the taste buds but full of pure health benefits. We paired it with the Yugoslavian Butterhead lettuce, you'll find in your share this week, topped with shredded zucchini and golden beets, avocado slices and raisins.


Garlic Scape Pesto
1 cup soaked cashews
7 garlic scapes
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
2 handfuls of basil 
a little water to get things moving in the blender
salt to taste


My measurements are always estimates so the blender should visually be about 2/3 of the way full of ingredients. Add the water while the blender is running until it's a nice creamy green consistency. We cut the scapes where they start to curl and chop the remaining stalks for the stir fry of chard and orach and served it over a bed of penne rice noodles.



As for how the garden grows ~ We really enjoyed the first round of peas-they were well worth planting back in March and have served both purposes as staple and nitrogen fixer. The sugar snaps never tasted so sweet. We'll be turning the veg under for the cucumber crop. The peppers, tomatoes and tomatillos that made the transplanting window before my departure a month ago are loving these warm nights that are barely dipping below 60. The squashes are coming-just a little later than planned. I'm catching up on transplanting our namesakes in the ground to climb up 3 foot radius tepees. And even though the we'll use the flowering arugula next season once it goes to seed I'm restarting another round along with bilko chinese cabbage as both started flowering during my hiatus.

Today we resumed the earth building adventures. After flipping the tarps off I discovered some ants making a home in the premix and thankfully not the sand in the earth oven where the toad was found. Lesson here keep the premade mix in trash cans instead of tarps. So instead of the full foot immersion we spent an enjoyable day hand building and throwing on the wheel. Talus taking his first ride at the wheel and showing me few new ways to work the clay. Tomorrow is another day of opportunities.


      









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