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Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: Burning daylight, no time to talk!

8/29/2018

Moonshadows are one benefit of the shorter days. Yes, this has been a Cat Stevens reference.

Undaunted by August exhaustion, Exie the Dog is still hard at work patrolling the field

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

Darkness is upon us. In the morning I mean. I said it would happen and now it is. The sun rises at 6:58 am. We are going to have to start a little later in order to be able to see what we are doing. But that doesn't mean there is less to do!
Care for plants weeding and thinning, watering and seeding
Harvest harvest harvest- did you know last week we harvested over 250 pounds of delicious cabbage, along with around 1,000 pounds of tomatoes, a couple hundred pounds of kohlrabi? And that is just the big stuff.
Finish ground prep and seed our cover crop!
Order our seed garlic and prepare to plop it in the ground.
So much weeding (yes, it is on the list twice...)

I barely have time for canoeing!
Gotta go, burning daylight over here!

See you at market!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

Fresh From the Field!

Greens:Salad Mix: Limited
Kale: flat leaf, green curly, and red curly
Microgreens: Spicy and mild.
Shoots: Sunflower and pea!
Swiss Chard
Herbs:
Basil- getting close to the end of our basil season so get it while you can!
Cilantro and Dill- coming back in a couple weeks
Mint
Oregano
Parsley: The stems of the curly parsley are incredibly sweet!
Sage
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Carrots
Cabbage and Napa cabbage
Eggplant: Roast, stirfry, sandwich
Fennel: Last week before a break in the fennel action.
Garlic
Ground Cherries: Little lanterns of deliciousness.
Kohlrabi- big and little
Onions: petite and pungent. FYI most of our onions are going to be on the small side this year. They are perfect for roasts, salsas, pickling, sandwiches, salads, and of course, for eating.
Peppers: Green bells and friers along with some colorful ones coming along.
Hot peppers: Hungarian hot wax, cayenne, jalepeno, and poblano
Shishitos: Toss in hot oil with the lid on while the pop, remove from heat and toss in salt, then eat the whole thing minus the stem!
Radishes: red, pink, and french breakfast! We have had these all along and forgot to keep them on the list!
Tomatoes: Hierlooms, slicers, beefsteaks- all tasty!
Cherry Tomatoes!!

Markets, always rain or shine!
Wednesday: Ann Arbor
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.

Thursday: Northville
The Northville market is located at 195 Main St, Northville, MI 48167 and it runs May thru October, 8 am to 3 pm.

Friday: Stockbridge
The Stockbridge Open Air Market is located on the square in downtown Stockbridge. It runs from May thru October from 4 pm to 7 pm

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Chelsea
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 Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the lower library lot along Park St. It runs May thru October from 8 am to 1 pm.

Sunday: Howell
The Howell Farmers' market can be found in the heart of Howell at State st and Clinton st, adjacent to the historic Livingston County Courthouse. It runs May thru October, 9 am to 2 pm.

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Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: The setting sun and a Metal Wizard

8/22/2018

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Lizz and Brianna try to shirk work, blending in with some of our volunteer sunflowers. They couldn't fool me though!

It took some help from the community to get it done, but the disc hitch has been reforged! While I could certainly do without the consequences of the timing of this break, I have to admit it was a great learning experience getting this put back together.

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

Remember when the disc broke? Well, it will be back in action this Wednesday and just in time too, since we are seriously hoping to seed more cover crops next week in hopes of creating fields with reduced weed pressure next year. Carrying out the repair took a group effort. After the crucial step of breaking it, (hahaha), Jim took the piece to a tool and die shop in Jackson and made some friends. Tool and die folks are the sorcerers of machinery. Boyers Tool and Die is family owned and operated and has been in the family for generations. The accumulated wisdom shows in their skill and comfort with the trade. They have been around so long that their assembly of equipment and technique could serve as an educational walk through of the evolution of tool and die. As the family brought in another generation, so did they bring in another generation of technology and in this way they have remained competitive. The shop is an industrial wonderland filled with well used whale-sized equipment and around a dozen very busy people. There are 20 foot lathes, industrial grade presses made of dark steel, and computer controlled fabrication machines. Shiny corkscrews of metal adorn the floor at the base of these steel giants. Despite the imposing scene, Jim was greeted warmly by a friendly and down to earth machinist. The folks over there are able to look at pieces and see how they work together and what needs to happen for them to function. Jim brought in the broken pieces, they returned them functional, but still pieces.
To remedy this, we called upon our neighbor for a welding lesson. Jim learned about using hot hot metal and some sparks to create strong bonds. I hear that he is a natural. I am looking forward to all kinds of fancy welds now. With the pieces reassembled, and with some new information, all that remains is for the piece to be reattached. Hopefully, by the time you read this, it will be done.
In exchange for our neighbor's help, Jim shared some of his surveying knowledge, which he enjoys doing. Honestly, exchange-exsmange, we know Jim would have shared it anyway, likewise so would our neighbor have. but it is always nice to return a favor. We seriously love the community aspect of farming. We love learning from people what they are willing to teach and offering what we know as a resource to others. We are all always moving forward together.
The days are seriously getting shorter. By the end of the month we will have lost one full hour of daylight. I don't know if you have noticed, but we have. Lost light in the evening, lost light in the morning. We are taking heart in knowing that the weeds are going to slow down, giving us a little relief from our frantic pace.
Our fall greens are looking mighty good. We will give them a good weeding this week and maybe, just maybe, they will be back next week. I'm talkin Arugula, mizuna, mustard, tatsoi. Seriously. We may also luck out with some incoming turnips and fall radishes in the next couple weeks.
There is still a lot left to do before the main season can be tucked away to be considered and learned from later when the wounds aren't quite so fresh. We are beginning to get serious about hauling our potatoes in. We are getting serious about collecting our pungent onions and stashing them. We are getting serious about our fall cover crops. We are getting serious about our winter planting. We are getting so, so serious, while staying seriously silly.
Come see our serious selves at market this week.

Helen and a very large specimen of Pokeweed. It is one of the weeds I love to grow, despite its poisonous nature. This one came up in "the pile"; the place where we keep miscellaneous, weather tolerant, bulky items

Exie decides, with all the breaking equipment, she will be in charge of mowing from now on. — with Exie the Dog.

See you at market!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

Fresh From the Field!

Greens:Salad Mix: Limited
Kale: flat leaf, green curly, and red curly
Microgreens: Spicy and mild.
Shoots: Sunflower and pea!
Swiss Chard
Herbs:
Basil- getting close to the end of our basil season so get it while you can!
Cilantro and Dill- coming back in a couple weeks
Mint
Oregano
Parsley: The stems of the curly parsley are incredibly sweet!
Sage
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Carrots
Cabbage and Napa cabbage
Eggplant: Roast, stirfry, sandwich
Fennel: Last week before a break in the fennel action.
Garlic
Ground Cherries: Little lanterns of deliciousness.
Kohlrabi- big and little
Onions: petite and pungent. FYI most of our onions are going to be on the small side this year. They are perfect for roasts, salsas, pickling, sandwiches, salads, and of course, for eating.
Peppers: Green bells and friers along with some colorful ones coming along.
Hot peppers: Hungarian hot wax, cayenne, jalepeno, and poblano
Shishitos: Toss in hot oil with the lid on while the pop, remove from heat and toss in salt, then eat the whole thing minus the stem!
Radishes: red, pink, and french breakfast! We have had these all along and forgot to keep them on the list!
Tomatoes: Hierlooms, slicers, beefsteaks- all tasty!
Cherry Tomatoes!!

Markets, always rain or shine!Wednesday: Ann Arbor
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.

Thursday: Northville
The Northville market is located at 195 Main St, Northville, MI 48167 and it runs May thru October, 8 am to 3 pm.

Friday: Stockbridge
The Stockbridge Open Air Market is located on the square in downtown Stockbridge. It runs from May thru October from 4 pm to 7 pm

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Chelsea
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 Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the lower library lot along Park St. It runs May thru October from 8 am to 1 pm.

Sunday: Howell
The Howell Farmers' market can be found in the heart of Howell at State st and Clinton st, adjacent to the historic Livingston County Courthouse. It runs May thru October, 9 am to 2 pm.

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Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: August abundance ensues

8/15/2018

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Helen picking monster sized tomatoes in hoop house 1

Getting ready to install the new AC unit in the shipping container

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

Time flies! The tomatoes are at long last in abundance enough to merit a tomato sale! If you get more than five pounds, the price drops to $2.50 per pound. If you get more than 10 pound the price plummets to just $2.00 per pound! Get a tray to can or freeze. Roast a batch and make a soup. Make some a family sized batch of salsa! Eat decadent tomato sandwiches on boats with friends!
Meanwhile, we are still busy in the field. Another round of planting happens this week- more storage radishes, kohlrabi, broccoli, greens. All the good things that we love about fall. Our storage carrots are coming along nicely. We flame weeded them just before their cotyledons poked through the soil. We then weeded them again (ongoing) to keep them in good, uncrowded shape. Hopefully, if all goes well, we will have carrots through the winter.
We have also finally started harvesting our potatoes. They were planted so late due to wet weather in the spring. I know it is hard to remember that! This shuffled all the potato timing forward. We had a touch of new potatoes at market last week. Hence forth we shall be flush with potatoes.
I had a conversation last week about farming practices and regenerative agriculture. There is huge focus on caring for the soil and the biodiversity within as a means to grow food. As our overarching goals of ecological farming and spaces shared with the wild rose to the surface, I was momentarily dismayed. I couldn't shake the feeling that we weren't achieving a balance and were not working with the natural systems that exist on our farm to reach our goals but rather trampling over them, especially after doing all that plowing. It is so important to me that we cultivate a safe haven for wildlife big and small. But I was rejuvenated as the idea crept back in that we are on the path. We are learning and won't be complacent. This is my life's work and there will be no plateau. A friend of mine sent me a snippet of Wendell Berry's poem "The Farm". In fact it was a poetry bomb, sent by text and unexpected but it brought me to tears, being aligned with my musings of finding a place within the elaborate systems of the natural world and the reality of the extent of my individual power. You can read the whole poem here, below is the snippet that I found so moving:

And you must walk the fields
With hoe in hand, to cut
The thistles and the docks.
There is no end to work —
Work done in pleasure, grief,
Or weariness, with ease
Of skill and timeliness,
Or awkwardly or wrong,
Too hurried or too slow.
One job completed shows
Another to be done.
And so you make the farm
That must be daily made
And yearly made, or it
Will not exist. If you
Should go and not return
And none should follow you,
This clarity would be
As if it never was.
But praise, in knowing this,
The Genius of the place,
Whose ways forgive your own
And will resume again
In time, if left alone.
You work always in this
Dear opening between
What was and is to be.
And so you make the farm,
And so you disappear
Into your days, your days
Into the ground. Before
You start each day, the place
Is as it is, and at
The day’s end, it is as
It is, a little changed
By work, but still itself,
Having included you
And everything you’ve done.
And it is who you are,
And you are what it is.
Reading this reminded me of several things. If offered me comfort knowing that I am small drop in the bucket. The farm is including me in its life and I am including it. Time is perspective. All of these abstract things. But another more concrete thing that this poem offered me was this: I love reading. This time of year, I am deep in the madness of work, so much so that finding an interesting book to read is sometimes beyond my ability. If you feel inspired to send me suggestions, please don't hold back. I have a library card and am not afraid to use it!

Hope you are eating well and enjoying life! See everyone at markets this week!

Watching the sun go down on the lake with a little stolen time

See you at market!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

Fresh From the Field!

Greens:Salad Mix!!
Kale: flat leaf, green curly, and red curly
Microgreens: Spicy and mild.
Shoots: Sunflower and pea!
Swiss Chard
Herbs:
Basil- it is still pesto time!!
Cilantro
Dill and dill flowers
Mint
Oregano
Parsley: The stems of the curly parsley are incredibly sweet!
Sage
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Carrots
Cabbage and Napa cabbage. Have you ever made a stir-fry with napa cabbage? I really recommend it.
Garlic nice and fresh
Eggplant: LIMITED- Still coming to its full potential.
Fennel
Kohlrabi
Onions: petite and pungent. FYI most of our onions are going to be on the small side this year. They are perfect for roasts, salsas, pickling, sandwiches, salads, and of course, for eating.
Peppers: Green bells and friers
Hot peppers: LIMITED - hungarian hot wax, cayenne, jalepeno, and poblano
Shishitos: LIMITED - Toss in hot oil with the lid on while the pop, remove from heat and toss in salt, then eat the whole thing minus the stem!
Radishes: red, pink, and french breakfast! We have had these all along and forgot to keep them on the list!
Tomatoes: Hierlooms, slicers, beefsteaks- all tasty!
Cherry Tomatoes!!

Markets, always rain or shine!Wednesday: Ann Arbor
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.

Thursday: Northville
The Northville market is located at 195 Main St, Northville, MI 48167 and it runs May thru October, 8 am to 3 pm.

Friday: Stockbridge
The Stockbridge Open Air Market is located on the square in downtown Stockbridge. It runs from May thru October from 4 pm to 7 pm

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Chelsea
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 Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the lower library lot along Park St. It runs May thru October from 8 am to 1 pm.

Sunday: Howell
The Howell Farmers' market can be found in the heart of Howell at State st and Clinton st, adjacent to the historic Livingston County Courthouse. It runs May thru October, 9 am to 2 pm.

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Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: Organic inspection and rain

8/8/2018

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With our second annual organic inspection behind us, Exie Decided to celebrate the occasion!

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

We had our organic inspection this past Sunday. It wasn't so bad and it was nice to see that all of the work we have put in to record keeping is working. The documents that I put together over the winter when the organic management plan was turned in still make functional sense!
It rained for real! We got 1.75" inches of rain! Hooray! Much needed. Everything is happy. There is nothing like a good rain.
We went to a farm tour and potluck at the Student Organic Farm at MSU. It was wonderful to see all the great work that is being done over there and to take some time to eat food with friends and farmers alike.
We voted! I hope you did too!

See everyone at markets this week! See you at market!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

Fresh From the Field!

Greens:Salad Mix!!
Kale: flat leaf, green curly, and red curly
Microgreens: Spicy and mild.
Shoots: Sunflower and pea!
Swiss Chard
Herbs:
Basil- it is still pesto time!!
Cilantro
Dill and dill flowers
Mint
Oregano
Parsley: The stems of the curly parsley are incredibly sweet!
Sage
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Carrots
Cabbage and Napa cabbage. Have you ever made a stir-fry with napa cabbage? I really recommend it.
Garlic nice and fresh
Eggplant: LIMITED- Still coming to its full potential.
Fennel
Kohlrabi
Onions: petite and pungent. FYI most of our onions are going to be on the small side this year. They are perfect for roasts, salsas, pickling, sandwiches, salads, and of course, for eating.
Peppers: Green bells and friers
Hot peppers: LIMITED - hungarian hot wax, cayenne, jalepeno, and poblano
Shishitos: LIMITED - Toss in hot oil with the lid on while the pop, remove from heat and toss in salt, then eat the whole thing minus the stem!
Radishes: red, pink, and french breakfast! We have had these all along and forgot to keep them on the list!
Tomatoes: Hierlooms, slicers, beefsteaks- all tasty!
Cherry Tomatoes!!

Markets, always rain or shine!Wednesday: Ann Arbor
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.

Thursday: Northville
The Northville market is located at 195 Main St, Northville, MI 48167 and it runs May thru October, 8 am to 3 pm.

Friday: Stockbridge
The Stockbridge Open Air Market is located on the square in downtown Stockbridge. It runs from May thru October from 4 pm to 7 pm

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Chelsea
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 Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the lower library lot along Park St. It runs May thru October from 8 am to 1 pm.

Sunday: Howell
The Howell Farmers' market can be found in the heart of Howell at State st and Clinton st, adjacent to the historic Livingston County Courthouse. It runs May thru October, 9 am to 2 pm.

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Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: It rained!

8/1/2018

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Driving the repaired Case 695 with the repaired disk in tow. This was the first time either moved in over a week... well, the first time they moved in the x and y, the disk changed elevation a few times while I was testing the hydraulics.

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

It rained! We'll take it!

First things first, last night, we were gifted with a luscious 0.45 inches of rain. With no dust rising from our foot prints, we are so happy to be able to walk and take deep breaths at the same time. We are so happy that all of our plants got a taste of the good life. We are so happy to take a mini break from our irrigation escapades. And direct seeded fall crops loved it. Honestly, I don't want to post it too publicly. While the storm had a sweeping breadth, I fear it may not have reached everyone. But we will take what we can get.
We seeded our last round of carrots last week and have been keeping the soil moist to aid in their germination. Along with those, we seeded chard, parsnips, turnips, radishes, salad mix, spinach, choi, cilantro, dill, along with our favorite brassica greens (arugula, tatsoi, mizuna, mustard, and Tokyo bekana). I can't wait for all that fall goodness. Today we are preparing to plant our last round of cabbage, broccoli, and kohlrabi, plus our fall kale and chard and some more fennel. I don't believe that fall is on the way. While I can't wait for all the glory of the fall harvest, a lot has to happen between now and then. Like eating many, many tomatoes, stir-frying as much eggplant as possible, and roasting peppers. Yes.
And along with that, all the planting, cultivating, and nurturing, harvesting and storing, that goes along with August on a vegetable farm. It is a busy month.
Also this week, Jim carried on with our new tradition of having him fix many things. He repaired an old commercial walk-behind mower that we traded for with a neighbor for. He is working on moving the disc repair forward. That's right, a new break. See the picture. Learning to weld is in his future. When that happens, all bets are off. I am voting for a watchtower.
And on a more human note, I went canoeing this past weekend! First I went out Saturday with some friends. It was the first time I got off the farm for a while and it was wonderful! We are so lucky to live close to so many diverse natural areas and so much water. The water lilies were blooming and so was the button bush. We saw a muskrat! The next day, I went back with some peanut butter sandwiches and binoculars and really settled in. It was a restorative weekend. Everyone needs one sometimes and it is a good thing that we got a little before steeling for The Long End Of Summer.
On a market note, Northville was excellent and you can expect to see us there weekly for the rest of the season.

Hope to see you at markets this week!

I replaced both tie rods on the Case to play it safe, it was just a matter of time before the other failed.

Following the fleeting sensation of satisfaction from having prepared the Fall beds, the disk seperated from the tractor! The bolt that held the tougue on to the disk exploded its way through solid steel. Unfortunate, but kinda cool in a strength of materials sort of way. I am coming to accept the fact that I'm almost a full time mechanic this time of year. Not such a bad thing.

See you at market!
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers

Fresh From the Field!

Greens:Kale: flat leaf, green curly, and red curly
Microgreens: Spicy and mild.
Shoots: LIMITED- Sunflower shoots. We ran out of seed and so will miss one week of harvest. But never fear! They will be back big time next week. In the meantime, if they are one of your must haves, I recommend getting to market early.
Swiss Chard
Herbs:
Basil- it is still pesto time!!
Cilantro
Dill and dill flowers
Mint
Oregano
Parsley: The stems of the curly parsley are incredibly sweet!
Sage
Thyme
All manner of deliciousness:
Broccoli: LIMITED
Carrots
Cabbage and Napa cabbage. Have you ever made a stir-fry with napa cabbage? I really recommend it.
Garlic nice and fresh
Eggplant: LIMITED- Still coming to its full potential.
Fennel
Kohlrabi
NEW Onions: petite and pungent. FYI most of our onions are going to be on the small side this year. They are perfect for roasts, salsas, pickling, sandwiches, salads, and of course, for eating.
Peppers: Green bells and friers
Hot peppers: LIMITED - hungarian hot wax, cayenne, jalepeno, and poblano
Shishitos: LIMITED - Toss in hot oil with the lid on while the pop, remove from heat and toss in salt, then eat the whole thing minus the stem!
Tomatoes: Really coming into their own this week. Tomato sale season will be upon us before we know it!
Cherry Tomatoes!!
Summer squash- May be limited

Markets, always rain or shine!Wednesday: Ann Arbor
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.

Thursday: Northville
The Northville market is located at 195 Main St, Northville, MI 48167 and it runs May thru October, 8 am to 3 pm.

Friday: Stockbridge
The Stockbridge Open Air Market is located on the square in downtown Stockbridge. It runs from May thru October from 4 pm to 7 pm

Saturday: Ann Arbor and Chelsea
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 Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the lower library lot along Park St. It runs May thru October from 8 am to 1 pm.

Sunday: Howell
The Howell Farmers' market can be found in the heart of Howell at State st and Clinton st, adjacent to the historic Livingston County Courthouse. It runs May thru October, 9 am to 2 pm.

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Farm News

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Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: Burning daylight, no time to talk!

Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: The setting sun and a Metal Wizard

Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: August abundance ensues

Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: Organic inspection and rain

Lake Divide Farm Newsletter: It rained!

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