The "new -to-us" bedformer preparing for its inaugural flight.
Here is the first attempt at creating raised beds with the bedformer (still some adjustments to make). Raised beds have numerous advantages: better drainage, less compacted soil for plants to root in, provides some protection from soil bound pests AND it lets us plant and harvest with a little less strain on our backs!
We built some shelving in the greenhouse to accommodate our Spring overflow. Some short term crops like microgreens and shoots have proved very tolerant of the decreased sunlight
Lake Divide Farm Newsletter:
A window into the production path of your food.
So I ate the Polyporus squamosus, also known as Dryad's saddle. I was as they said, nothing to write home about, however, it was my first foraged and and eaten fungus so for that I am happy. This is a big week coming up. We are going to get about a half acre of tomatoes planted and staked. This will set our July scene. Yeah, it is a whole lot later than we wanted it done, but I am glad for it. There have been a few changes to our market start dates. Just take a look below.
I hope everyone had a happy mother's day celebrating all the wonderful mothers we have. I was lucky enough to spend part of the day with my my wonderful mother and my sister (and my nephew!) It is just so wonderful to be around them.
To note:
Find us at the following markets from now on:
Eastern Market
Ann Arbor Saturday
White Lotus Farm Cart
Chelsea
Stocbridge
And back at Northville on Thursday and starting at Royal Oak this Saturday!
Here are all of our markets and their expected start dates:
Ann Arbor (Wednesday): May 22nd (holding off one more week- look for us Saturday!)
Recipe:
Radishes. One of the first spring beauty to climb back into our hearts. There is more to them than chopping them in a Salad. It is looking like the french breakfast radishes are going to come into their own this week. Get ready!
Radishes sliced with butter or cheese or olive oil on toast!
That is all! Good bread, tender, tasty radishes sliced thin, a sprinkle of salt, and a lipid. Beyond delight.
Food for thought:
As we switch from writing the email towards the end of the week to writing them towards the beginning, you get a chance to see what the weeks looks like from this side. There is just so much on the docket! The big goal for this week is as I already said, getting those tomatoes planted. With the risk of frost all but passed, we have the green light to work like lightening, zapping plants into the ground. Weeding, planting, trellising. Hopefully (and it looks like it is true), we will get a chance to prepare more ground too.
We are also hoping to finish the repairs on our cultivating tractor, the project that is so close to completion we can taste it, but has been back-burnered so many times I can't count. It isn't that it isn't important and we aren't waiting for any parts. All it is, is time. Tasks elbowing their way ahead one at a time.
And the other large under-taking (other than everything else) is to install the trellis lines for our cucumbers. This year we are growing them in the hoop house and using a vertical trellis to get the most cukes for our jukes. I am really excited to see how it turns out.
We also hope to get our two smaller hoops prepped and planted in basil, install all the irrigation for what we have planted so far, weed as needed, and hopefully, harvest some delicious vegetables.
Thank you for all the confidence and support in this seemingly endless wait for spring. See you at markets this week.
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers
Good for the Earth, Good for the Farmers, Good for the People. (Notice our new catch phrase? We call it the trifecta of sustainability. It sounds a little cheesy but we mean it from the heart. Good for the earth: Taking care of the natural world is a important, after all, it takes care of us; Good for the farmer: We believe farmers should have livable hours and livable wages; Good for the people: We believe in food equality and bringing our produce to market at an affordable price and keeping it accessible is important to us.)
A window into the production path of your food.
So I ate the Polyporus squamosus, also known as Dryad's saddle. I was as they said, nothing to write home about, however, it was my first foraged and and eaten fungus so for that I am happy. This is a big week coming up. We are going to get about a half acre of tomatoes planted and staked. This will set our July scene. Yeah, it is a whole lot later than we wanted it done, but I am glad for it. There have been a few changes to our market start dates. Just take a look below.
I hope everyone had a happy mother's day celebrating all the wonderful mothers we have. I was lucky enough to spend part of the day with my my wonderful mother and my sister (and my nephew!) It is just so wonderful to be around them.
To note:
Find us at the following markets from now on:
Eastern Market
Ann Arbor Saturday
White Lotus Farm Cart
Chelsea
Stocbridge
And back at Northville on Thursday and starting at Royal Oak this Saturday!
Here are all of our markets and their expected start dates:
Ann Arbor (Wednesday): May 22nd (holding off one more week- look for us Saturday!)
Recipe:
Radishes. One of the first spring beauty to climb back into our hearts. There is more to them than chopping them in a Salad. It is looking like the french breakfast radishes are going to come into their own this week. Get ready!
Radishes sliced with butter or cheese or olive oil on toast!
That is all! Good bread, tender, tasty radishes sliced thin, a sprinkle of salt, and a lipid. Beyond delight.
Food for thought:
As we switch from writing the email towards the end of the week to writing them towards the beginning, you get a chance to see what the weeks looks like from this side. There is just so much on the docket! The big goal for this week is as I already said, getting those tomatoes planted. With the risk of frost all but passed, we have the green light to work like lightening, zapping plants into the ground. Weeding, planting, trellising. Hopefully (and it looks like it is true), we will get a chance to prepare more ground too.
We are also hoping to finish the repairs on our cultivating tractor, the project that is so close to completion we can taste it, but has been back-burnered so many times I can't count. It isn't that it isn't important and we aren't waiting for any parts. All it is, is time. Tasks elbowing their way ahead one at a time.
And the other large under-taking (other than everything else) is to install the trellis lines for our cucumbers. This year we are growing them in the hoop house and using a vertical trellis to get the most cukes for our jukes. I am really excited to see how it turns out.
We also hope to get our two smaller hoops prepped and planted in basil, install all the irrigation for what we have planted so far, weed as needed, and hopefully, harvest some delicious vegetables.
Thank you for all the confidence and support in this seemingly endless wait for spring. See you at markets this week.
Helen writing for the Lake Dividers
Good for the Earth, Good for the Farmers, Good for the People. (Notice our new catch phrase? We call it the trifecta of sustainability. It sounds a little cheesy but we mean it from the heart. Good for the earth: Taking care of the natural world is a important, after all, it takes care of us; Good for the farmer: We believe farmers should have livable hours and livable wages; Good for the people: We believe in food equality and bringing our produce to market at an affordable price and keeping it accessible is important to us.)
- 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 1 part-time position open 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.
The Lakedividers did an amazing job on the onion planting this year! I can hardly wait to have onions back on the menu. Great work Lakedividers!
Helen and Cody are hard at work pounding in 8ft metal t-posts to trellis the first tomato planting. This is our first time using metal t-post instead of Oak stakes. The Oak stakes we used in previous years would sometimes break from the weight of the plants, additionally the bottom of the wooden stakes would frequently break off and have to be dug out of the soil (ugh)
This week we are buying in some produce from local farms to make up for some gaps. These items are noted with an asterisk (*). We will not be able to bring these items to the Ann Arbor Farmers' market because of their producer only rule (which we love). You will be able to find them at The White Lotus Farm Cart and Eastern Market.
Fresh From the Field!
Transplants!
Head lettuce and kale
Basil for your windowsill
Greens:
Microgreens: Solo-Arugula and a Mustard Mix (At all markets excluding White Lotus)
Pea Shoots (At all markets excluding White Lotus)
*Spinach
All manner of deliciousness:
*Daikon Radish- purple and white!
*Green Garlic, Maybe! (not certified organic but responsibly done by our friends at Titus Farms)
Bunched Radish- super cute and the first taste of our field crops coming in
Scallions
Parsley
This weeks Markets
Thursday: Northville
The Northville Market is located at the corner of 7 Mile and Sheldon Roads. It runs May thru October, 8 am - 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 - 7 pm
Saturday: Ann Arbor, Chelsea, Detroit's Eastern Market, The White Lotus Farm Cart and Royal Oak 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 - 3 pm.
The Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the Palmer Commons at 304 S. Main St.. It runs May thru October (then moves inside thru December!) from 8 am - 1 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
The White Lotus Farm Cart is located at 7217 West Liberty Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48103. It is open Saturdays from 9:30am-1:30pm, May thru December. There is a collection of vendors there selling produce, bread, cheese, artisanal produces, along with brick oven pizza and the opportunity to roam the gardens.
The Royal Oak Market is an indoor market located at 316 E Eleven Mile Rd, Royal Oak, MI 48067. It runs year round from 7am - 1pm.
Fresh From the Field!
Transplants!
Head lettuce and kale
Basil for your windowsill
Greens:
Microgreens: Solo-Arugula and a Mustard Mix (At all markets excluding White Lotus)
Pea Shoots (At all markets excluding White Lotus)
*Spinach
All manner of deliciousness:
*Daikon Radish- purple and white!
*Green Garlic, Maybe! (not certified organic but responsibly done by our friends at Titus Farms)
Bunched Radish- super cute and the first taste of our field crops coming in
Scallions
Parsley
This weeks Markets
Thursday: Northville
The Northville Market is located at the corner of 7 Mile and Sheldon Roads. It runs May thru October, 8 am - 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 - 7 pm
Saturday: Ann Arbor, Chelsea, Detroit's Eastern Market, The White Lotus Farm Cart and Royal Oak 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 - 3 pm.
The Chelsea Farmers' Market is located in the Palmer Commons at 304 S. Main St.. It runs May thru October (then moves inside thru December!) from 8 am - 1 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
The White Lotus Farm Cart is located at 7217 West Liberty Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48103. It is open Saturdays from 9:30am-1:30pm, May thru December. There is a collection of vendors there selling produce, bread, cheese, artisanal produces, along with brick oven pizza and the opportunity to roam the gardens.
The Royal Oak Market is an indoor market located at 316 E Eleven Mile Rd, Royal Oak, MI 48067. It runs year round from 7am - 1pm.
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