Community Shared Agriculture

I just attended a great talk at the Western Fair Farmers' Market through On the Move Organics. It featured a farmer from Aylmer, Ontario who runs the Triple Cord CSA.

A CSA is a program where people pay up front to secure a number of weeks of fresh produce. In this case it is $400 for a small, or $600 for a large, box of organic fruits and vegetables, grown in Aylmer, for 20 weeks - starting May 21st and ending October 1st. Boxes can be picked up Saturdays between 8am and 3pm at the farmers' market. They are packed full of fresh, organic produce ranging from spanish onions to potatoes to kale and even berries. There is also an opportunity half way through to visit the farm and get a tour of where and how everything is grown.

Reasons to join a CSA:

Support a farmer! These hard workers incur all of their costs at the beginning of the season and all of their profit at harvest - it's not easy on their bank accounts. By paying up front you give them both income for purchasing seed, etc. and a guaranteed market so they know exactly what to grow. It saves them from wasting a work day at the market when they could be tending to the crops. This in turn promotes the local economy.

Receive quality produce! You know this stuff will be fresh and organic. It will have high nutrient content and the very person who grew it will be giving it to you with pride. Grocery store produce is not often picked ripe and doesn't receive full nutrition. Instead it sits in a truck pumped with ethylene gas until it looks ripe. You eat a red tomato, but you get the nutrition of a green tomato. And grocery store produce is genetically bred for shelf stability and looks not taste and quality. Besides if you have a box of fresh vegetables sitting in the house you're going to eat a lot healthier than usual.

It's better for the environment! Rather than shopping around for avocados grown in Chile that must use gallons and gallons of gas getting to your plate why not eat the local food that your body was designed for that has only traveled less than an hour. When you accept a box of produce you eliminate the incredible food waste that goes on in grocery stores because people pick and choose what they want that week. And if it's organic you can be sure the soil and water practices are ethical and planet friendly.

Enjoy a new experience! Not only will you learn a lot about farming when you're touring the land but you'll come to see what crops thrive or don't in certain weather. Perhaps the melons in your box will be smaller this week because rain fall has been short, or your box will contain more spinach than arugula because weather's been unseasonably cold. You will also learn about vegetables that you wouldn't normally cook with (kohlrabi, turnips, bok choi), forcing you to experiment. If you receive an abundance of something one week that can't be eaten or shared before going bad maybe you'll learn a new method of preservation. This also grows community because it gives other CSA contributors a chance to talk amongst each other about uses for certain vegetables.

You can get more information about the Triple Cord CSA by emailing Jeff at onthemoveorganics@gmail.com or visiting the farmers' market on a Saturday.

The Very Best Gardening Books...

... or, the very best gardening books that my library has to offer, would be a more suitable name.

Fresh Food from Small Spaces - RJ Ruppenthal

 This book goes way beyond growing vegetables in the city. It was my first in depth look at urban beekeeping and chicken raising. Yes, it did convince me to adopt a duck but don't tell Calvin. The book is a great guide to gardening in small areas like apartment building balconies, cozy backyards, fire escapes and even abandoned areas that you don't own (guerilla gardening). I found some of the information only pertained to southern, warm climates so keep in mind if you're from Ontario like me you'll have to adjust.

Carrots Love Tomatoes - Louise Riotte

I'm actually still waiting to read this book but just about every one who's anyone recommends it. It goes into the relationships (beneficial and harmful) between various garden crops. This year I'll be growing the classic companion planting combination: the Three Sisters. The theory goes that if you grow corn, winter squash and pole beans together they will each benefit the others in some way. Corn provides a pole for the beans to grow up. Beans bind nitrogen into the soil. Squash provide pest control and insulation through ground cover. 

Four-Season Harvest - Eliot Coleman

Finally, a Zone-5 specific book to teach me gardening techniques specific to my cold climate. This man believes (and has easily persuaded me) that you shouldn't just plant seeds once a year and harvest them when they're ready. Rather, you should practice succession planting. This is where you plant new seed every two weeks or so and enjoy multiple harvests. Using cold frames (built up boxes with glass on top) he eats fresh produce all year round.

You Grow Girl - Gayla Trail

Probably the most visually appealing book that this subject has to offer, Gayla does a great job at plainly, and interestingly, explaining a wide range of gardening topics with no risk of losing your attention. From planning a garden, to starting one, to caring for it, reaping the benefits and then winterizing, she has it all. She also throws in a lot of her creative flair with instruction how to paint your pots, make fancy seed posts, brew up herbal tea and use old garage sale junk to make your backyard look great.

Putting Food By - Janet Greene, Ruth Hertzberg, Beatrice Vaugman

My reaction to this book is equally 'inspired' as it is 'entertained'. The book was probably written before my parents were born and uses some hilarious language. It is the ultimate guide to preserving food. I don't plan on using the guide to canning wild game or collard greens, I will remember the tips on sauerkraut and stewed tomatoes.



Lastly, if you would like heirloom, organic seeds for this growing season I am doing group orders through Quarter Master. The packets are $3 each and I prefer pre-payment but depends how well I know you. Varieties can be found at www.cottagegardener.com and will be sent/ready for pick up in May.

Harvest Muffins

It's autumn and that means one thing: everything I eat must have pumpkin in it. Okay, it's true: I'm getting a little sick of pumpkin, but I still want to pay homage to the changing leaves and smell of cinnamon candles in the air. So I made these:

First, preheat your oven to 400F and begin soaking 1 cup-ish of raisins in hot water to plump.
In a large (yellow, if possible) bowl mix:

2 Tbsp ground flax seed + 2 Tbsp water
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 cup apple cider
1/4 cup vegan margarine
Then add:
2 cups flour (or GF flour mix)
4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 cup grated carrot
1/4 cup grated beet
1/4 cup grated apple
The soaked raisins
Any spices + nuts you think are nice

Mix up and spoon into muffin cups (I filled 12 to overflowing, he he).
Bake for 20 minutes or until you can just tell they are done.

They turned out yummy, pink and not begging for butter-soakage as muffins usually do. Try them before harvest season runs out!