Sundog CSA June 9, 2020

The month of June has brought heat and humidity, lightning bugs and thunderstorms to the hill. This is ideal growing weather for plants with a good root system. People on the other hand take a few days to adjust! 😊 I saw on the forecast that heat indices were flirting with triple digits which is a little challenging in June. Last week’s rainfall which amounted to .75 totals hasn’t stopped local farmers as we hear tractors running long hours to get crops planted before it is too late.

Work in the gardens has been weeding and setting out the last of the transplants so that we can close the little greenhouse which has become a “hothouse”. Green beans have joined the peas as vegetables under attack by the deer. Looking closely at the plants, we noticed that the tops were being eating off – grazed would be a more appropriate word. We put up a line of deer fencing and have to wait to see if it is effective or if these deer have been practicing their high jumping. Garden pests seem to have moved in overnight = worms and bugs of all colors. Our biggest concern is squash bugs and cucumber beetles. I hate to even mention it in print but we have not seen very many Colorado potato bugs - yet!

Excitement on Monday was Izzy seeing a black snake crawling into the chicken house and since her mom was quite a ways down the hill in the bottom tunnel, she thought fast and grabbed the snake and managed to get him into a bucket with a lid on top. In the meantime, Seth had run as fast as three year old legs can go downhill yelling for his mom to come quick but by the time Katy got to the scene, it was peaceful. So, all three, plus the snake making four, took a ride down the road so that the snake can make a new home near the creek away from our egg and chicken supply. It has been a long time since I lost baby chicks to a snake and we sure do not want to lose our new arrivals.

Another piece of exciting news is that the baby chicks arrived here on Wednesday. Tiny fluff balls of all colors are now residing in their newly roofed and repaired home after spending the first few nights in the house. They seem to be handling the heat and the stress of coming from another state all before the age of 3 days old as we have not lost a chick yet.

YOUR BAG THIS WEEK –

• Asparagus

• Red Turnips (eat the greens)

• Onions (the tops are amazing chopped fine in salads)

• Lettuce

• Garlic Scapes

• Fresh Peas ( Please read your label as we picked from 3 different kinds of peas – shell, edible pod and snow peas)

Hida Beni Red Turnip

INFORMATION: Supremely crisp, sweet and mild, the white and red, fine-grained flesh makes this a top fresh-eating salad turnip. These beautiful, large, red-skinned turnips are cultivated mainly in Takayama City, Japan. It is excellent for making pickles

We haven’t grown red turnips in a few years and then fell for the picture in Baker Creek Seeds and they are as beautiful as advertised.

Scarlet Queen Red Turnip Salad

https://www.yummly.com/recipe/Scarlet-Queen-Red-Turnip-Salad-1336376#directions

AND don’t forget to try Lauri’s pickled turnips recipe from last year! It has come to be something that we look forward to each season! This site has a fantastic recipe for using the turnip greens: https://www.yummly.com/recipe/Spicy-Skillet-Turnip-Greens-1111212

RECIPE SHARE – Thank you Connie for this recipe! It certainly inspired the Sundog Crew!

Rhubarb Cookie Delight

Basically this is an Oatmeal Cookie recipe with the added delight of rhubarb.

1 Cup Softened Butter

1 Cup Coconut Oil

¾ Cup Brown Sugar Packed Firmly

½ Cup Sugar

2 Eggs

2 Teaspoon Vanilla

1 1/4 Cup Plus 1 Tablespoon Flour

1 teaspoon Baking Soda

1 teaspoon Salt

3 ½ to 4 Cups Old Fashioned Quaker Oats (We like lots of oats)

1 Cup Coconut (More or less depending on personal preference)

Several Stalks of Rhubarb Cut Up and Sprinkled with Sugar (Not sure how much Rhubarb that I added. I just added until I was happy with the look.

Blend butter, coconut oil and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla and blend well. Add combined flour, baking soda, salt and mix together. Mix in Oats. Mix in coconut. Mix in sugar sprinkled Rhubarb. Drop by rounded teaspoon onto cookie sheet and bake at 350 degrees for 10 – 12 min.

My tiller broke down last week. Dan came over to look at it and see if he could figure out what had happened to its ability to go frontwards and so asked me how it operated. I explained how I put it in gear etc. and he was polite enough to say that he thought I was looking at the big instruction picture on the front of the handlebars from the wrong angle. So for two years I have been putting it in gear by adjusting the handlebars - works for me!! J And that is a true example of how people can look at the same picture and see different ideas. I also had to think about the fact that I was really lucky that my son-in-law agreed to swear to me that he would not post this incident on Facebook! By the way, my tiller is once again running frontwards and I have not adjusted the handlebars once this week!

Blessings of health and safety to you from the farm – Dan, Katy, Seth, Izzy, Teresa, Zach and Jen

For those of you who remember lazy summer days sitting in the shade of tall old fashioned hollyhocks, here are Izzy’s latest creations! And below is a picture of her snake before she introduced him to his new residence!