Sundog CSA June 21, 2021

Saturday night and we are moon watching – there is a big ring around the planet this evening. I had always heard that it meant a weather change which is what a “sundog” forecast. So I looked it up in the Farmer’s Almanac which says that a moon ring is a predictor of either rain or snow. At this point, we would probably take either! 😊 As hot as it has been the past few days, the snow would melt upon impact and the plants might enjoy the tiny chill as much as we would!

This entire week has been a race to water things before they die, especially the tiny seedlings that are barely germinated. Buckets and pails, dipping and pouring, we make our way across the beds, leaving damp spots behind. Those damp spots are gone by the next day’s afternoon. So far, the majority of the plants have survived but I can’t say that they are thriving. Wind speed has been low this past week and that helps the plants to survive.

Sunday morning – there was the soft patter as about 100 rain drops hit the barn roof – stringing those drops out so that it took more than five minutes for the clouds to empty them all out.

Sunday evening – we listened and watched as huge clouds built into formidable shapes, white highlighted with shades of blue and then we followed them with our eyes glued to the skyline as they headed southeast of the hill. Not one drop was lost as they held their water tightly. The thunder was a continuous sound that just rolled in the background, only interrupted by the weather alerts on the phone telling us that there was lightning and heavy rain the area.

And so that is how we begin the season of summer – today being the solstice. The longest day of the year with summer beginning at 11:32 central standard time this evening. And tomorrow (Monday) our rain chance is somewhere around 70% so we are hopeful that we will be walking in mud doing chores in the morning.

The ground cover this year was wheat, rye and turnips. Izzy and Seth are harvesting wheat heads that are ripening with the hopes that they will have enough to make some wheat bread. We picked apart some of the wheat heads that were a little green and tried chewing them as we used to do that as kids – wheat gum. The rye heads are also filling out but not near ready to pick. Most of the time we till our cover crops into the ground but this year with all the rain, some of the beds got ahead of us so we just let the grain grow.

Potato digging started this weekend. Seth and I were in charge of this operation while Katy and Izzy ran over to the pasture to cut a few thistles spotted up on the pond dam earlier this week. Digging with Seth is a little different since each plant has to be loosened around so that he can find the prize potatoes. And then each potato has to be examined to see if it is a “big guy”. We had just finished digging “prizes” when the thistle cutters returned with tales of a crabby bull and a fence hopping adventure that included running thru the neighbor’s wild berry patch and Izzy wearing the stripes where the brambles swiped her face. All four of us sat on the bench under the pear tree, glad that we were all safe and coming to the opinion that a few extra thistles in the pasture wasn’t something we were going to worry about right now. 😊

YOUR BAG THIS WEEK - Baked and dehydrated by the Kansas sun!! 😊

• Asparagus
• Potatoes – First “diggings” of the year
• Onions
• Garlic Scapes
• Greens and Kale bundles - the heat has been very hard on both these crops as have the bugs!
• Last of the turnips
• First of the cabbage
• Mint – for your iced tea!

RECIPE SHARE – Thanks Lauri!

Lauri said that she used onion tips, garlic scapes, shelled peas and asparagus in this risotto. It looks delicious! 😊

https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/spring-risotto-with-asparagus-peas.html

Sometimes I have dreams – sometimes I have nightmares and sometimes I am not quite sure what happens in the night after I turn out the light. This week there was one of those nights. I went to bed late and had probably been asleep an hour or so when I was woken up by the sound of a cow bawling. I should explain that I sleep with my windows open and there is a small piece of grassland outside of my bedroom where the cows sometimes graze in the evenings. It is unusual for the cows to be bawling at 12:30 or so I got up and my first mistake was that I only took the time to find the flashlight and not my glasses. Running out the back door, I saw in the beam of the flashlight that Tubiggs was bawling and marching across the field and headed to the barn. I couldn’t think as to why she would want to milk in the middle of the night. I ran after her and turned-on lights and headed out in the lot, all the while listening to her bawl. And then I heard a calf and I knew that this had to be a nightmare because we do not have cows calving, least of all Tubiggs who isn’t due for several months. But the sound of the calf was distinct and kept coming closer. And then I saw eyes shining in the dark and not thinking, I am running back to the barn and I am looking in the pens where Penny Roger and Buster Grace live and they were present and then I looked in the last pen for the twins and I could only find one and so I went in the pen and felt around – nothing. Grabbing a calf bottle, I tripped and stumbled my way out in the lot - clear out the hay feeders where Tubiggs was standing and I offered it to this calf and she came - she was the missing twin. I guess that she had pushed open the door and headed out and finding herself in unknown territory, had sent out a distress call. Tubiggs had answered and I am so glad that she did as it is hard to know what a baby calf will do, especially one that isn’t used to being out with the “big girls”. The twins mom who is one of the summer pasture cows, was not able to feed them so they were added to the chore list.

Just to make sure that this was not one of my “night strolls”, after securing the calf in the pen, I left the bottle in the feed room so I could see it in the morning at chore time - solid evidence that I was out there and not dreaming!

Blessing from the farm - Katy, Izzy, Seth, Dan, Jen, Zach and Teresa

PS – The bottle was right where I left it and both calves were in their pen the next morning! And I was really tired as I headed off for work. 😊

Monday Rain UPDATE – None - lots of clouds and rain to the south of us but nothing here. It was cool and nice compared to the last few days of concentrated sunrays!

From a distance the wild grasses of Kansas don’t really cause you to suck in your breath in amazement at the wonder of each stalk – and yet up close, they are a definite work of art! And we have the good luck to be able to see these close up on our way to the bottom high tunnel! No admission required!

So, I am guessing that the moon ring was just practicing at predicting - no rain or snow this weekend! 😊