Lake Divide Farm Newsletter:
A window into the production path of your food.

Well, the grand majority of our vegetable population survived the first deep freeze of 2019. I am impressed. Purportedly the temperature dropped to negative 12 degrees Fahrenheit, and this after a more reasonable low of negative 3 degrees! We are in the process of obtaining and placing thermometers about our farm. Data, data, data, however, even without this home furnished data, I trust that temperature to be accurate to within a few degrees. Bitter, that is the word for a temperature like that. It wasn't the last of it though. Next week, the temperatures will creep back down and there will be more snow. So, get out your skis, snow shoes, and ice skates. Get your mind in gear for bundling up and getting out there. There is joy to be had in this alternate universe that we call winter. 

To note:
Stockbridge Farm Members: The next pick up is Tuesday, January 29th. Please look for your order forms and complete them by Monday morning at 9 am.

We will be in Shed five (inside!) at Eastern Market. Look for our expansive and joyous vegetable display. 

No Ann Arbor Saturday this coming week. With the single digit temperatures for a portion of the day, plus blustery winds, we have decided to  forgo the foray this week. Stay posted for next week!
Recipe:
Returning to a simple shredded vegetable recipe that never disappoints. I eat delicious scoops of this in the morning with my breakfast fare.
Shredded carrots, apple, and watermelon radish: Wash! Grate carrots and apples. I don't even cut the apple, just apply it to the grater and go to the core. Thinly slice the watermelon radish. Toss it all together with powdered ginger, a pinch of salt, a little black pepper, and some lemon juice. It satisfies every time. 
Thoughts and rambles:
I don't know if you folks know it yet, but we are scaling up, again. We have added two, large markets to our line up while business continues to improve at our existing markets. This brings with it all sorts of growing pains. We need additional market vehicles, additional storage, additional people, and we need to grow more food. We are attacking these tasks voraciously. Just today, Jim drove to Ohio through this icy mess, to look at another sprinter van. The prospect looks good and we will hopefully check that acquisition off the list within the week.
Interviewing has become a domineering part of our lives. It is exciting to have so many wonderful applicants interested in working with us. Jim has been carrying out the phone interviews and checking references and I am about to start lining up the work interviews. At least this year we start off with one returning staff member taking of a full-time position (Lizz!) and one taking on a part-time position (Brianna!). I have never had returning staff before and it is so exciting that people are gathering with us to build this farm. This farm that will become all of our farm as is the dream. 
Taking on an additional farmers' market for the winter has been wonderful. We were able to sell many of the field greens that otherwise would have stayed in the field. And we are meeting lots of new people. The downside of this impulsive expansion is that our carefully planned stores of vegetables, with numbers taiilored to a single market, are dwindling due to the doubled exodus from our cooler. Bear with us this winter while our supplies may decline for the months of March and April, just remember, this gives us all the more time to really prepare for increased harvests in the early spring. This year we are hoping to put up some more caterpillar tunnels and seed them for early harvests of carrots, salad greens, turnips and more. These are incipient plans, however keep them in the crooks of your mind and cheer them on with us. 
In my non-work life, I have been restoring my good habits to good working order. Eating food that makes me happy- shredded carrot and apple, an egg from a farmer friends flock, delicious toast from bakers that I love. Lighting candles. Cleaning up after myself- one of the less glamorous habits that needs to be restored. One of my favorite habits that I am trying to cultivate is to simply experience the world. Every walk I take,  I try to push the static of decisions and  concerns, analysis and debate, towards the back of my mind (or out of it for that matter) so that I can exist as just myself, so that I don't have to look through that fog. I don't have to think of all the factors, every moment. If I put them down, they will be there when I return to pick them up again. In this practice, I make a point of noting one interesting thing that the world is doing. The picture of the tunnels in the snow was the product of one of these walks, as were the ice crystals. Mindfulness doesn't require pictures however. Join me in enjoying the world. 
Keep warm and see you this weekend. 
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

• Looking to join our CSA or renew your membership? Find more details here. The basics? Open an account with us, get a bonus, and use your account to purchase produce with us at any of our markets. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask. 
• We are hiring! We have 3 full-time and 3 part-time positions opening up for the 2019 season. You can find details about the jobs on our website here. If you or anyone you know may be interested, please send us an email or pass along the information. 
• We are accepting workshares both on the farm and at market. Please email for details. 

Fresh From the Field!

Greens: (Limited):Arugula!
Head lettuce!
Herbs: 
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Beets
Cabbage- running low!
Carrots!
Kohlrabi- beautiful meal sized kohlrabi and tender petite 
Onions
Sweet potatoes! White and orange fleshed!
Radishes: Classic (with greens! May be limited), White Daikon, Green Daikon, and Watermelon radish
Turnips: Purple top and golden roasting turnips!

​Markets, always rain or shine!All good things come to an end: The Wednesday Ann Arbor Farmers' market and the Saturday Chelsea market will return in May after a winter haitus. 

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Detroit's Eastern Market

The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.

The Eastern Market in Detroit is located about a mile northeast of downtown. It covers about 43 acres, bounded by I-75 on the West and Gratiot Avenue on the South. It runs year round from  6am – 4pm

Ahoy!

To note:
Stockbridge Farm Members: No pick up this week. 

We will be in Shed five (inside!) at Eastern Market. We are still new there and getting moved around. Please look for us. We may be by the doors on the North Side of the building- that is a good place to start looking.

Recipe:
Japanese Sweet Potatoes! White on the inside, with a nutty flavor, they are a little more dry than the classic orange fleshed sweet potato. They make GREAT chips. I recently got a mandoline from a second hand store and have been toasting up a batch in the oven every chance I get. They make a great crispy addition sprinkled on top of any meal or just a crunchy, healthy munchies to fill that indulgence slot. 

Sweet potato chips: Scrub them up and slice them thin. I have been using a mandoline but you could use the slicer on the side of your cheese grater or a regular ole knife. Coat the slices with the oil of your choice and season to taste with salt, pepper, and any other flavor you desire. Spread them onto a baking tray. They do not have to be completely single layer.  Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees, give them a scrape and flip, and then bake for another 20-30 minutes. Remove them from the oven and give them an additional stir. Allow them to stay on the pan while they cool to add on some additional crispy-ness. Enjoy!
Thoughts and rambles:
We are moving from a dusting of snow to a real snow and along with that, a real dip into the winter cold. By Sunday we will experience this year's first dip into the single digits, and a potential for a drop into the negatives. We are bracing for it by adding additional covers to the crops in the hoophouses and crossing our fingers. Hopefully our impressive plants will bear with us.
We are also working on completing our seed order. We aim to have the bulk of our seed orders placed by January 25th. This involves looking at all that we grew and sold this past year, predicting how much markets will expand or contract and making adjustments, nixing crops that didn't pan out or firming our resolve and trying again, and resisting the temptation to add too many new types of crops. There is so much data in a diverse vegetable business like this, organization is key. This is where excel becomes an actual member of our team, taking on human form and advising our decisions.  Thank you human-excel, for holding all this information for us. Just next month we will be starting our first seeds for the season. It amazes me yet again how easily time passes.
But never fear, we aren't letting this time slip by unnoticed. We took a dip in the winter woods and saw some beautiful ice crystals. They look like leaves! This is known as hoarfrost and happens when temperatures are cold enough and there is ample water vapor around. We saw more hoarfrost in the forest where the frozen soil heaved up. Between the cracks, leaflets of beautiful ice crystals were exposed! 
I hope you can make some time to get out in the world and observe some beauty! Looking forward to seeing you at market.
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

• Looking to join our CSA or renew your membership? Find more details here. The basics? Open an account with us, get a bonus, and use your account to purchase produce with us at any of our markets. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask. 
• We are hiring! We have 3 full-time and 3 part-time positions opening up for the 2019 season. You can find details about the jobs on our website here. If you or anyone you know may be interested, please send us an email or pass along the information. 
• We are accepting workshares both on the farm and at market. Please email for details. 

Fresh From the Field!

Greens: (Limited):Arugula
Head lettuce
Herbs: 
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Beets
Cabbage
Kohlrabi- beautiful meal sized kohlrabi and tender petite 
Onions
Sweet potatoes! White and orange fleshed!
Radishes: Classic (with greens! May be limited), White Daikon, Green Daikon, and Watermelon radish
Turnips: Purple top and golden roasting turnips
Turnabaga- Turnip-Rutabaga cross! Delicious, sweet and crisp!

​Markets, always rain or shine!
Saturday: Ann Arbor and Detroit's Eastern Market

The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.

The Eastern Market in Detroit is located about a mile northeast of downtown. It covers about 43 acres, bounded by I-75 on the West and Gratiot Avenue on the South. It runs year round from  6am – 4pm

Ahoy! 
​
See the greens that I promise exist pictured about. They are coming! In the meantime, roots, roots, roots.

To note:
Stockbridge Farm Members: We will be sending out an order form to be used. Orders should be placed by Sunday night for pick-up Tuesday evening at Positively Chiropractic (thank you ladies!) between 4:00 and 6:45 pm. More details in the order sheet.

We will be in Shed five (inside!) at Eastern Market tomorrow. We are still new there and getting moved around. Please look for us. We may be by the doors on the North Side of the building- that is a good place to start looking.
Recipe:
I know you have seen these pointy, lime green cabbage at market! Did you know they are tender and sweet? They carry a meal! Here is a unique way to enjoy them.

Roasted Arrowhead Cabbage: Cut the cabbage into wedges, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt, pepper, and thyme. Roast for 20-30 minutes at 350 degrees. A dusting of parmesan cheese just before finishing is optional. 

Blatherings:
We got a dusting of snow! I miss the snow of last year. It was thick and quieting. I don't really miss the super cold we had, but the snow. And the prospect of ice skating on whatever lake I wanted. 
The warm weather this past week has been really enjoyable. And the sun. In the gray times of Michigan's winter, slivers of sunshine and string lights are the only way through. We can control the influx of string lights (you should see our kitchen!) but the sun is on its own schedule. As we knew, the warm weather couldn't last forever. It will be cold cold by the end of the week.
This weather change that we are experiencing is bringing a lot of wind. As the air warms and rises, it leaves a low pressure area begging to be filled. In comes the cold air. Wind with a farm is stressful. Before the farm, wind was a portal. I could feel the big systems that we are a small part of. It was like getting a glimpse of the big magic. While that is still true, and could still be visible, it is often overshadowed by the threat of destruction. Our structures seem flimsy when up against the all powerful wind.
Our caterpillar tunnels, the ones with the greens you see pictured, are such structures. Especially with the rain softening the ground that their stakes are holding on to. We had an even last week when the plastic, loosened by the warmer weather, slipped off to the side. Kindly, it was still belted in with cord, but it was an effort to pull it back on. This week, we were more ready. We have been maintaining our caterpillar tunnels diligently, checking rebar and tightening plastic. We have found that on windy days, regular checks are imperative. It takes a lot less time to maintain than it does to recover.
We are going to dramatically extrapolate that theme into our lives. Maintain rather than rush and rebuild. 
Onward and upward!

Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

• Looking to join our CSA or renew your membership? Find more details here. The basics? Open an account with us, get a bonus, and use your account to purchase produce with us at any of our markets. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask. 
• We are hiring! We have 3 full-time and 3 part-time positions opening up for the 2019 season. You can find details about the jobs on our website here. If you or anyone you know may be interested, please send us an email or pass along the information. 
• We are accepting workshares both on the farm and at market. Please email for details. 

Fresh From the Field!

Greens: (Limited):ARUGULA!!
Herbs: 
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Beets
Cabbage
Kohlrabi- beautiful meal sized kohlrabi and tender petite 
Onions
Sweet potatoes!
Radishes: Classic (with greens! May be limited), White Daikon, Green Daikon, and Watermelon radish
Turnips: Purple top and golden roasting turnips
Turnabaga- Turnip-Rutabaga cross! Delicious, sweet and crisp!
Markets, always rain or shine!All good things come to an end: The Wednesday Ann Arbor Farmers' market and the Saturday Chelsea market will return in May after a winter haitus. 

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Detroit's Eastern Market

The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.

The Eastern Market in Detroit is located about a mile northeast of downtown. It covers about 43 acres, bounded by I-75 on the West and Gratiot Avenue on the South. It runs year round from  6am – 4pm

AHOY!!
​
I hope that you had a wonderful holiday season and enjoyed celebrating the arrival of the new year. Although the days are getting longer and the plants feel it, I barely do. It seems the days are as short as ever. Whelp! It will only seem like that until I notice it is still light out at 9 pm! Honestly, I can't wait for that!

To note:
The Wednesday Ann Arbor market and the Saturday Chelsesa market are on break until May.

For our local Stockbridge folks, that means quite trek. Never fear, we are planning on bi-weekly pickups in Stockbridge beginning the week of the 14th (likely on a Tuesday). Expect more details in next weeks email.

We will be in Shed five (inside!) at Eastern Market tomorrow.
Recipe:
This is the season that is light on greens. It is the time to get in touch with storage crops, eating them in all sorts of original ways. This is currently my favorite every day eat.

Shredded kolrabi and carrots with onions! It is as easy as it sounds. Shred the kohlrabi and carrots, mince the onions. Stir together with a generous amount of lemon juice, olive oil, mustard and caraway seeds plus salt to taste! It goes down easy so make a lot!
Blatherings:
The plants we placed in the hoops so late are slowly growing and appreciating the increasing sunlight ever so much. It is hard to remember now, the frantic pace of the summer. Why was it that we didn't get them planted? Oh, it is coming back to me. The tie-rod on the tractor needed to be replaced. Can't steer? Can't use the tractor.  Anyway. They plants are coming along. And with no help from us this last week and a half. 
It was the first time I can remember that I was able to completely disconnect with the farm. We made rules. We didn't talk about equipment we are planning on building. We didn't talk about plant varieties. We didn't discuss modifications of systems to increase efficiency. We ate food. We were quiet. We were loud. I slept and slept. On the mental back-burner, ethos clarified, materializing some of our goals as a family farm business. Without prodding, they leapt from our minds. Schedules, boundaries, defining emergency, personal space. These are all things people find themselves talk about when they talk about other people. This system we are working with, it has a life of its own. It has its own needs and wants. Within that, we must claim what we need otherwise we will have no room. Also, the realization that our farm foundation is almost laid. We are almost to the place where we get to build upon it and instill it with our dreams and hopes. 
This, of course, is all very vague and undeveloped, proof that I did in fact, stick the pact. Armed with almost two weeks of mental freedom, I will tease the gold out. For now, I am grateful to have had some space to just exist. The "decoupling", as the break has come to be called, will become an annual ritual. The coherence that precipitates from unfocused repose is invaluable. 
And now we are back, a little sharper than before. The sun for the past few days has been glorious. We are joyous to get our backs back into it. We are preparing to get the greenhouse back online, the first round of seeds include micro greens, pea shoots, and some head lettuce and bok choy transplants.
We can't wait to see you back at market this week!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

• Looking to join our CSA or renew your membership? Find more details here. The basics? Open an account with us, get a bonus, and use your account to purchase produce with us at any of our markets. If you have any questions or concerns, please don't hesitate to ask. 
• We are hiring! We have 3 full-time and 3 part-time positions opening up for the 2019 season. You can find details about the jobs on our website here. If you or anyone you know may be interested, please send us an email or pass along the information. 
• We are accepting workshares both on the farm and at market. Please email for details. 

Fresh From the Field!

Greens: (Limited):Tatsoi
Herbs: 
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Beets
Cabbage
Kohlrabi- beautiful meal sized kohlrabi and tender petite 
Onions
Sweet potatoes!
Radishes: Classic, White Daikon, Green Daikon, and Watermelon radish
Rutabaga
Turnips: Purple top and golden roasting turnips
Turnabaga- Turnip-Rutabaga cross! Delicious, sweet and crisp!
Your balance is: 0Markets, always rain or shine!All good things come to an end: The Wednesday Ann Arbor Farmers' market and the Saturday Chelsea market will return in May after a winter haitus. 

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Detroit's Eastern Market

The Ann Arbor Market is located in the Kerrytown District at 315 Detroit St, Ann Arbor, MI. The market runs from May thru December, 7 am to 3 pm and January thru April from 8 am to 3 pm.

The Eastern Market in Detroit is located about a mile northeast of downtown. It covers about 43 acres, bounded by I-75 on the West and Gratiot Avenue on the South. It runs year round from  6am – 4pm