The INSANELY early frost has put us on notice: Prepare for Winter or ELSE. We're re-routing all power to the engines and getting the hoophouses and the caterpillar tunnels for winter production! This hoophouse has been out of production for a season as we allowed the elements to correct an iron surplus in the soil. With the soil back in fighting shape, we're clearing the way for cold weather crops. We need to do some touch up on the endwall plastic as well as cover the frame with it's first new plastic in over 1,000 farm years!
The team pulled out all the stops to save the wintersquash from the early frost last Friday. It made for a very long work day before the Saturday markets... it's that time of year
Mystery bug spotted on Helen's finger! Guesses welcome!
Alyssa at the Ann Arbor Saturday market
Another Late Sunday seeding our microdreams.
Oh hi there!
Well that fridgity-frosty night was a good three weeks early. And that is if we are going with the early fall frost date! There was nothing we could do to control it and we didn't have much time to take protective measures. What we could do? get the wintersquash hauled out of the field, something we were planning on doing any way. What did we lose? Our peppers, basil, what was left of our tomatoes, likely our last summer squash planting, eggplant- all those warm season goodies. What this does? It opens the workflow up for single-minded focus on preparations for winter.
In this email:
Generally Important Notes:
There is a small pre-ordering window for Ann Arbor Wednesday. Ordering opens now and goes until midnight tonight (Tuesday 9/22)
If you signed up as a Farm Member online, please note, you can also use your account at market. Pre-ordering is not required!
If you had trouble ordering, please scroll down our "Ordering With Local Line" section.
Recipe: Mashed Acorn Squash (or any squash really...)
Ingredients:
Place squash on tray in oven. I kept them whole this time!
Roast for about an hour. Stab with fork to test readiness. If the fork doesn't puncture but dents, it still counts as done.
Remove from oven and carefully cut in half (take care not to get burnt!)
Remove seeds- I recommend roasting this with the same spice mix above- see below.
Scoop out delicious squash meat.
Mix with spice mixture- about a tablespoon of olive oil (or butter/other oil) plus a 1/2-1 teaspoon of the spices.
That is done! It is so delicious. Great as a side, mixed with something chunky, a filling for a pastry. I just ate it out of the bowl!
Roasted squash seeds:
Preheat oven to 275
Rinse seeds off
Dry (or don't!) and mix with tablespoon of olive oil plus a mix of spices listed above.
Place on tray line with foil or parchment paper (or write on the metal!
Roast for about 15 minutes or until you hear the seeds popping.
These make a great snack on the go or at rest. And all those spices are extra good for you!
Notes from the Farm:
We received several loving emails from you last week and they stoked the fires in our hearts. I read some of them to the crew, sharing the love and boosting the spirits. Thank you so much for the love. We love you right back.
So what does preparing for winter look like? Well we still have to collect the rest of the onions and some shallots, some potatoes, and possible a select few other roots for the larder. We have to tend our late plantings of winter radishes (remember those delicious purple daikon?!), greens, and turnips. And we have to plant! Time is of the essence!
Within the next two weeks we hope to plant the kale, chard, lettuce, and choi that will feed us for the winter, as well as seed the arugula, tatsoi, other brassica greens, cute radishes, and more that will do the same. This means ripping out the plantings of the summer and preparing the soil. We are also going to put plastic back on one of the hoop houses that we let rest. And before mid-October, we will construct caterpillar tunnels over all of these plantings for that extra layer.
This winter is predicted to be colder than usual. Who knows if the prediction will pan out, I wouldn't mind if it didn't. But if it does, and we face colder that average temperatures. Now is a good time to prepare for that mentally and with provisions.
Onward to prep!
All the very best to you!
Helen & Jim and The Lake Dividers: Lizz, Malcolm, Kyla, Rachael, Amy, Alyssa, Kathryn- we returning crew Annie and Eva!
Lake Divide Farm: Good for the Earth, Good for the Farmers, Good for the People. The Trifecta of sustainability. 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.
Fresh From the Field!
Quick note: You may notice that the crop list in the email does not always match the crop list in our online store. Items not found online may have sold out or we may not have posted them online. We sometimes do not post crops online that have not come into abundance yet because we don't always know how much (or how little) of a crop will be harvestable by the end of the week so we can't offer it for sale on Tuesday. These items go to market in small quantities. When they come fully into season, we will list them online. This is the best way we have come up with to manage these crops.
That said, you can always add to your order when you pick up at market.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we troubleshoot a whole new (to us) way of doing things.
Greens:
Brussel sprout tops (wonderful sauteed with garlic!)
Collards
Kale-bagged or bunched
Microgreens! Mustard Mix, Just Arugula & Just Watercress
Pea Shoots
Swiss Chard
All manner of deliciousness:
Cabbage- Round Green
Garlic!
Onions- Red and yellow
Kohlrabi (limited)
Peppers- mostly green- what we saved from the frost. We will have these for a few more weeks and then that's it.
Hot Peppers- limited
Snack Peppers- limited
Shishito peppers- limited
Potatoes- Fingerlings and regular
Summer Squash- Golden and Green Zucchini plus some classic yellow squash and patty pans (limited)
Cherry tomatoes (limited)
Tomatoes (very limited)
Sweet Turnips- great greens too
Wintersquash (or the rebrand- fall squash!): Acorn, dumpling, delicata, and kobocha
Herbs:
Mint
Parsley
Sage
Thyme
Staying Active: Something to keep the gears of progress engaged:
We are taking a short hiatus from curating weekly lists and paths. I have included below a couple links to readings and some ideas on how to work towards racial equity within your community. Also included are two links to some places where dollars can make a difference.
In the meantime, keep learning, listening, speaking up, and showing up. We have to continue providing energy for change. There is much to be done. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something.
If you come across resources, readings, or movements that you feel are powerful, please send them our way so we can share them.
To read: This list is by no means whatsoever all inclusive.
Essays and articles (links to arcles):
The Case For Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates
The Uses of Anger by Audre Lorde
Books (links to authors website):
How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Here is a link to an excellent interview with Ibram X. Kendi discussing the concepts in his book.
The New Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. This website also has some guides to study and organize
So You Want To Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
White Fragility: Why it's so hard for white people to talk about racism by Robin DiAngelo.
Here is an interview with Robin DiAngelo about thebook and the concept of white fragility.
To Listen and Watch:
MSU launched a "Music for Social Justice Series". Artists who are faculty members in the MSU College of Music speak out on issues of inequality, blending performance with commentary about the impact artists and music can have on today’s social issues. Nine episodes will begin the series, premiering on the College of Music YouTube channel August 12 through December 2, 2020.
Something to do:
Organize a reading group. There are lots of guides out there that can help organize and approach difficult and uncomfortable topics. I am hoping to use this toolkit that is geared towards farming communities. Although some of the reading is agriculture-specific, the tips and approaches for keeping the conversation constructive are broadly applicable.
Although not fully vetted, this site: Racial Equity Tools seems to have a lot of resources to get organized around.
Discover your implicit bias: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html
Show up! Detroit Will Breathe has been marching for Justice daily since March. https://detroitwillbreathe.info/
If you come across a good community organizing tool kit, please send it our way so we can share it.
To contribute:
We The People Community Farm: We have included this link for the past several weeks. Their fundraising campaign is to"fundraising campaign to help us grow more food, grow our impact, and grow the relationships we're forging with people coming home after being incarcerated. " They are still fundraising and are in our Ypsilanti, so offer opportunity to get directly involved.
Black Land Collective Fund: The history of U.S. agriculture is inseparable from the history of U.S. racism. Indigenous land dispossession, slavery, the ongoing exclusion of racial minorities from federal agricultural programs and support systems, present day exploitation enabled by lack of labor protections for agricultural workers, and disempowering immigration policies are all examples of the ways in which racism has been woven into agriculture on every level since this land was colonized (to learn more about these histories, please see the study guide section, and the bibliography of additional resources). Examples of racism in agricultural contexts exacerbate inequity and injustice throughout the food system and society more broadly, contributing to community food insecurity, labor exploitation, and other forms of racialized oppression. Dismantling racism in our society must involve deep change in our agricultural systems. It is crucial that farmers, organizations that work on agricultural issues, and people involved in food systems at every level directly address racism, the myth of white supremacy, structural inequity, and the ways they manifest as ongoing violence and dispossession in relation to land, food, climate, and labor.
Market Details:
The Ann Arbor Farmers Market, Wednesday with guest star Kyla! 7 am to 3 pm, Pre-ordering, curbside pick-up, On site vegetables sales! Pre-ordering from Tuesday afternoon until Tuesday midnight.
All orders must be picked up by 1 pm. All curbside orders must be picked up by 12 pm.
The market runs until 3 pm but we may leave early so it is important that you pick up your order by 1 pm.
For curbside pick-up: Email us to let us know. On market day, pull up and park along Detroit street and tell a volunteer your name and that you are picking up an order from Lake Divide.
Check out the A2 website for information on what to expect.
Northville, Thursday with Amy! 8 am- 3 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, on site vegetables!
Ordering will be open from Tuesday afternoon until Wednesday at 3:30 pm
If you would like curbside pick-up, please include a note with your order indicating so. We will email you with a phone number to text (call if needed, text preferred) when you arrive to pick-up your order.
Stockbridge, Friday with Malcolm! 4 pm- 7 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, on site vegetables!
We will be at the market with your orders from 4 pm to 7 pm! If you would like curbside pick-up, please include a note with your order indicating so. We will email you with a phone number to text (call if needed, text preferred) when you arrive to pick-up your order.
The Ann Arbor Farmers Market, Saturday with Alyssa and Lizz!: 7 am to 3 pm, pre-order walk-up or curbside pick-up, on site vegetables!. All orders must be picked up by 1 pm. All curbside orders must be picked up by 12 pm.
The market runs until 3 pm but we may leave early so it is important that you pick up your order by 1 pm.
For curbside pick-up: Email us to let us know. On market day, pull up and park along Detroit street and tell a volunteer your name and that you are picking up an order from Lake Divide.
Eastern, Saturday with Kyla! 7 am to 2:30 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, onsite purchases. *If you feel strongly or need to have a trunk pick-up because you are high risk, please email me and I can arrange to have your order dropped at your car.
Royal Oak, Saturday with Helen and Shana! 7 am to 1 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, onsite purchases.
Find us inside in our usual spot.
*If you feel strongly or need to have a trunk pick-up because you are high risk, please email me and I can arrange to have your order dropped at your car. I will email you the instructions Friday after all orders are in.
Farmington, Saturday with Jim! 9 am to 2 pm, pre-order for walk-up or curbside, onsite purchases.
If you are a CSA member and your account balance is low:
Ordering: How to Register with Local Line
If you have already registered with Local Line, just log in and use your account to order. If you haven't already done it, please make sure your account name is in the format Lastname.First as in Chandler.Helen or Neumann.Jim. This isn't required but it helps us when we are entering data, packing, and handling pick ups.
Trouble shooting:If you have filled your cart but your order isn't going through: If the answer to one of these questions is yes, that is the cause of your problem.
How to create a Local Line Account:
Well that fridgity-frosty night was a good three weeks early. And that is if we are going with the early fall frost date! There was nothing we could do to control it and we didn't have much time to take protective measures. What we could do? get the wintersquash hauled out of the field, something we were planning on doing any way. What did we lose? Our peppers, basil, what was left of our tomatoes, likely our last summer squash planting, eggplant- all those warm season goodies. What this does? It opens the workflow up for single-minded focus on preparations for winter.
In this email:
- Generally important notes
- Recipe!
- Notes from the farm
- Fresh From the Field- What are we bringing to market this week!
- Staying active and engaged with social change- look for a list switch up next week!
- Market Details-
- Find our vegetables and other local goods in Stockbridge at Plane Food Market!
- Ordering with Local Line: register and troubleshoot
- CSA members- what to do if your account is low
Generally Important Notes:
There is a small pre-ordering window for Ann Arbor Wednesday. Ordering opens now and goes until midnight tonight (Tuesday 9/22)
If you signed up as a Farm Member online, please note, you can also use your account at market. Pre-ordering is not required!
If you had trouble ordering, please scroll down our "Ordering With Local Line" section.
Recipe: Mashed Acorn Squash (or any squash really...)
Ingredients:
- 1 or 2 squash (acorn or dumpling recommended), depending on your craving
- Spices: Turmeric, black pepper, paprika, garlic (powder or minced), salt
- Olive oil/oil/butter- pick one!
Place squash on tray in oven. I kept them whole this time!
Roast for about an hour. Stab with fork to test readiness. If the fork doesn't puncture but dents, it still counts as done.
Remove from oven and carefully cut in half (take care not to get burnt!)
Remove seeds- I recommend roasting this with the same spice mix above- see below.
Scoop out delicious squash meat.
Mix with spice mixture- about a tablespoon of olive oil (or butter/other oil) plus a 1/2-1 teaspoon of the spices.
That is done! It is so delicious. Great as a side, mixed with something chunky, a filling for a pastry. I just ate it out of the bowl!
Roasted squash seeds:
Preheat oven to 275
Rinse seeds off
Dry (or don't!) and mix with tablespoon of olive oil plus a mix of spices listed above.
Place on tray line with foil or parchment paper (or write on the metal!
Roast for about 15 minutes or until you hear the seeds popping.
These make a great snack on the go or at rest. And all those spices are extra good for you!
Notes from the Farm:
We received several loving emails from you last week and they stoked the fires in our hearts. I read some of them to the crew, sharing the love and boosting the spirits. Thank you so much for the love. We love you right back.
So what does preparing for winter look like? Well we still have to collect the rest of the onions and some shallots, some potatoes, and possible a select few other roots for the larder. We have to tend our late plantings of winter radishes (remember those delicious purple daikon?!), greens, and turnips. And we have to plant! Time is of the essence!
Within the next two weeks we hope to plant the kale, chard, lettuce, and choi that will feed us for the winter, as well as seed the arugula, tatsoi, other brassica greens, cute radishes, and more that will do the same. This means ripping out the plantings of the summer and preparing the soil. We are also going to put plastic back on one of the hoop houses that we let rest. And before mid-October, we will construct caterpillar tunnels over all of these plantings for that extra layer.
This winter is predicted to be colder than usual. Who knows if the prediction will pan out, I wouldn't mind if it didn't. But if it does, and we face colder that average temperatures. Now is a good time to prepare for that mentally and with provisions.
Onward to prep!
All the very best to you!
Helen & Jim and The Lake Dividers: Lizz, Malcolm, Kyla, Rachael, Amy, Alyssa, Kathryn- we returning crew Annie and Eva!
Lake Divide Farm: Good for the Earth, Good for the Farmers, Good for the People. The Trifecta of sustainability. 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.
Fresh From the Field!
Quick note: You may notice that the crop list in the email does not always match the crop list in our online store. Items not found online may have sold out or we may not have posted them online. We sometimes do not post crops online that have not come into abundance yet because we don't always know how much (or how little) of a crop will be harvestable by the end of the week so we can't offer it for sale on Tuesday. These items go to market in small quantities. When they come fully into season, we will list them online. This is the best way we have come up with to manage these crops.
That said, you can always add to your order when you pick up at market.
Thank you for your patience and understanding as we troubleshoot a whole new (to us) way of doing things.
Greens:
Brussel sprout tops (wonderful sauteed with garlic!)
Collards
Kale-bagged or bunched
Microgreens! Mustard Mix, Just Arugula & Just Watercress
Pea Shoots
Swiss Chard
All manner of deliciousness:
Cabbage- Round Green
Garlic!
Onions- Red and yellow
Kohlrabi (limited)
Peppers- mostly green- what we saved from the frost. We will have these for a few more weeks and then that's it.
Hot Peppers- limited
Snack Peppers- limited
Shishito peppers- limited
Potatoes- Fingerlings and regular
Summer Squash- Golden and Green Zucchini plus some classic yellow squash and patty pans (limited)
Cherry tomatoes (limited)
Tomatoes (very limited)
Sweet Turnips- great greens too
Wintersquash (or the rebrand- fall squash!): Acorn, dumpling, delicata, and kobocha
Herbs:
Mint
Parsley
Sage
Thyme
Staying Active: Something to keep the gears of progress engaged:
We are taking a short hiatus from curating weekly lists and paths. I have included below a couple links to readings and some ideas on how to work towards racial equity within your community. Also included are two links to some places where dollars can make a difference.
In the meantime, keep learning, listening, speaking up, and showing up. We have to continue providing energy for change. There is much to be done. No one can do everything, but everyone can do something.
If you come across resources, readings, or movements that you feel are powerful, please send them our way so we can share them.
To read: This list is by no means whatsoever all inclusive.
Essays and articles (links to arcles):
The Case For Reparations by Ta-Nehisi Coates
The Uses of Anger by Audre Lorde
Books (links to authors website):
How To Be An Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi
Here is a link to an excellent interview with Ibram X. Kendi discussing the concepts in his book.
The New Jim Crow: Mass incarceration in the age of colorblindness by Michelle Alexander. This website also has some guides to study and organize
So You Want To Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo
White Fragility: Why it's so hard for white people to talk about racism by Robin DiAngelo.
Here is an interview with Robin DiAngelo about thebook and the concept of white fragility.
To Listen and Watch:
MSU launched a "Music for Social Justice Series". Artists who are faculty members in the MSU College of Music speak out on issues of inequality, blending performance with commentary about the impact artists and music can have on today’s social issues. Nine episodes will begin the series, premiering on the College of Music YouTube channel August 12 through December 2, 2020.
Something to do:
Organize a reading group. There are lots of guides out there that can help organize and approach difficult and uncomfortable topics. I am hoping to use this toolkit that is geared towards farming communities. Although some of the reading is agriculture-specific, the tips and approaches for keeping the conversation constructive are broadly applicable.
Although not fully vetted, this site: Racial Equity Tools seems to have a lot of resources to get organized around.
Discover your implicit bias: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/takeatest.html
Show up! Detroit Will Breathe has been marching for Justice daily since March. https://detroitwillbreathe.info/
If you come across a good community organizing tool kit, please send it our way so we can share it.
To contribute:
We The People Community Farm: We have included this link for the past several weeks. Their fundraising campaign is to"fundraising campaign to help us grow more food, grow our impact, and grow the relationships we're forging with people coming home after being incarcerated. " They are still fundraising and are in our Ypsilanti, so offer opportunity to get directly involved.
Black Land Collective Fund: The history of U.S. agriculture is inseparable from the history of U.S. racism. Indigenous land dispossession, slavery, the ongoing exclusion of racial minorities from federal agricultural programs and support systems, present day exploitation enabled by lack of labor protections for agricultural workers, and disempowering immigration policies are all examples of the ways in which racism has been woven into agriculture on every level since this land was colonized (to learn more about these histories, please see the study guide section, and the bibliography of additional resources). Examples of racism in agricultural contexts exacerbate inequity and injustice throughout the food system and society more broadly, contributing to community food insecurity, labor exploitation, and other forms of racialized oppression. Dismantling racism in our society must involve deep change in our agricultural systems. It is crucial that farmers, organizations that work on agricultural issues, and people involved in food systems at every level directly address racism, the myth of white supremacy, structural inequity, and the ways they manifest as ongoing violence and dispossession in relation to land, food, climate, and labor.
Market Details:
The Ann Arbor Farmers Market, Wednesday with guest star Kyla! 7 am to 3 pm, Pre-ordering, curbside pick-up, On site vegetables sales! Pre-ordering from Tuesday afternoon until Tuesday midnight.
All orders must be picked up by 1 pm. All curbside orders must be picked up by 12 pm.
The market runs until 3 pm but we may leave early so it is important that you pick up your order by 1 pm.
For curbside pick-up: Email us to let us know. On market day, pull up and park along Detroit street and tell a volunteer your name and that you are picking up an order from Lake Divide.
Check out the A2 website for information on what to expect.
Northville, Thursday with Amy! 8 am- 3 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, on site vegetables!
Ordering will be open from Tuesday afternoon until Wednesday at 3:30 pm
If you would like curbside pick-up, please include a note with your order indicating so. We will email you with a phone number to text (call if needed, text preferred) when you arrive to pick-up your order.
Stockbridge, Friday with Malcolm! 4 pm- 7 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, on site vegetables!
We will be at the market with your orders from 4 pm to 7 pm! If you would like curbside pick-up, please include a note with your order indicating so. We will email you with a phone number to text (call if needed, text preferred) when you arrive to pick-up your order.
The Ann Arbor Farmers Market, Saturday with Alyssa and Lizz!: 7 am to 3 pm, pre-order walk-up or curbside pick-up, on site vegetables!. All orders must be picked up by 1 pm. All curbside orders must be picked up by 12 pm.
The market runs until 3 pm but we may leave early so it is important that you pick up your order by 1 pm.
For curbside pick-up: Email us to let us know. On market day, pull up and park along Detroit street and tell a volunteer your name and that you are picking up an order from Lake Divide.
Eastern, Saturday with Kyla! 7 am to 2:30 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, onsite purchases. *If you feel strongly or need to have a trunk pick-up because you are high risk, please email me and I can arrange to have your order dropped at your car.
Royal Oak, Saturday with Helen and Shana! 7 am to 1 pm, pre-order, walk-up or curbside, onsite purchases.
Find us inside in our usual spot.
*If you feel strongly or need to have a trunk pick-up because you are high risk, please email me and I can arrange to have your order dropped at your car. I will email you the instructions Friday after all orders are in.
Farmington, Saturday with Jim! 9 am to 2 pm, pre-order for walk-up or curbside, onsite purchases.
If you are a CSA member and your account balance is low:
- If you want to continue on as one of our members and your balance does not cover your current order
- Order what you want
- Add money into your account either by
- Putting a check or cash in your trunk/backseat Saturday for pick-up and emailing to let me know
- Mailing a check
- Using the online store
- If you just want to add more to your account, go for it! Use any of the methods listed above.
- If you no longer want to be a farm member
- We ask that you do not go over your balance.
Ordering: How to Register with Local Line
If you have already registered with Local Line, just log in and use your account to order. If you haven't already done it, please make sure your account name is in the format Lastname.First as in Chandler.Helen or Neumann.Jim. This isn't required but it helps us when we are entering data, packing, and handling pick ups.
Trouble shooting:If you have filled your cart but your order isn't going through: If the answer to one of these questions is yes, that is the cause of your problem.
- Is your total less than $10? We have a $10 minimum to help us deal with the extra cost of packing orders.
- Is it between Friday morning and Tuesday afternoon? Ordering is open from sometime Tuesday afternoon until Thursday at midnight
- Don't worry about this. We had to set up a work around to get Local Line to fit the needs for our business.
- Did you verify your email address? After you create your username and password, Local Line sends a confirmation email. You can find it by searching your inbox for and email from localline.ca and the exact phrase "please verify your email address"
How to create a Local Line Account:
- Head to the link at the bottom of these steps.
- Register using the green button to the right.
- You will be asked to enter a bunch of information and there are a two things that are very important
- Be sure to use the email address that this email went to. If you don't, you may be asked to pay using a credit card.
- Please use the Lastname.First for the Account name. (Your last name follow by a period followed by your first name, with no spaces. For example Chandler.Helen)
- You will then need to verify your email address by going to your email inbox and responding to the email that comes from Local Line.
- At last! You can order!
- Here is the link to use to create your Local Line account: https://www.localline.ca/lakedividefarm
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