9/16/09

Nitty Gritty News September 17th


From the Farmers….
We are getting ready for winter here at Nitty Gritty Dirt Farm. On Friday, Gigi and I stacked 140 bales of hay into the barn and today we added another 140 with all our interns. This is enough hay to feed all our sheep and goats for the winter. On Saturday we picked up a load of firewood and slab wood which we then stacked on the front porch to be ready for the first fire in our wood stove. And we have been canning and putting up food for the winter. So with a barn full or hay, a porch full of firewood and a basement full of canned goods we are ready for the big snow.

And at the same time – with all the hot weather – the warm season crops have been ripening like crazy. We are on tomato overload. We picked over 30 bushels of tomatoes for your shares this week. And then we picked several more for interns to take home and for us to can over the weekend. Tonight – right now – as I am writing this column, the last two canner kettles of tomatoes are processing. 28 quarts of tomatoes are a good start.

The first group of five pigs went to the butcher on Sunday. It was the annual adventure getting the pigs into the trailer. We were so thankful for the help of intern Gretchen and her friend Stephanie who was visiting over the weekend. Now the smaller five pigs have taken over the larger pen previously inhabited by their larger relatives.

The intern shower house is finally almost done. Now that we are close to frost and the end of the season, we have the composting toilet ready to be used. The shower with an on demand water heater has been usable for a couple of week already. And the middle section with a sink for washing dishes and brushing teeth, etc, is all ready for the water to be hooked up. We plan to get it all ready this weekend so that our interns can get some use of it before we need to shut it down before it freezes.

And one of our ducks laid an egg. Cara found a small duck egg on the ground in the duck pen this morning. We plan to build a duck nest soon so that as the other young hens begin to lay, they will all lay in the same place. We are also checking regularly for eggs in our Black Star coop. We are expecting them to begin laying any day now. They are almost five months old and that is about the time they begin to lay. We plan to retire the last of the Red Stars when the young hens start to lay.

Until next week….


WHAT’S IN YOUR SHARE

Cantaloupe: Superstar, Pulsar, Eclipse or Classic,
Watermelons: Sunshine(round striped – yellow) or New Orchid (round striped – orange) or Starlight (round striped – red) or Blacktail Mountain (round dark green – red) or Sweet Siberian (oval striped – orange) or Mickey Lee (round pale green – red)
Onions: Candy, Red Candy Apple
Potatoes: Norland
Squash: Cream of the Crop (white Acorn), Sunshine (orange Kabocha)
Eggplant: Dancer (pink oval) Galine (purple oval) Thai Green (green long) Orient Charm (pink long) Orient Express (purple long)
Sweet Peppers: Islander (purple bell) Carmen (green bull horn) Gypsy (yellow)
Snapper (green bell), Jimmy Nardello (3/4 inch by 6 inch green)
Hot Pepper: Serrano del Sol
Tomatoes: Taxi (yellow) Orange Blossom (orange) New Girl (small red) Paragon (large red) Pink Beauty (dark pink) Green Zebra
Turnips: Just Right
Bok Choi: Mei Quin Choi
Zucchini: Zephyr, Cavelle, Sunburst, Raven, Elite or Bennings Green Tint
Basil
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DROP SITES

Use the addresses to google or mapquest or look up the drop site from your particular location. Keep in mind that the folks at the drop sites are volunteers, allowing us to use their space (and in some cases, their homes) as drop sites. Be nice to them. We couldn't do this without them. If you have any questions about your share etc., you should ask us, not them. They have enough to do....as do we all. All deliveries occur on Thursday afternoons. Approximate drop site times are listed below each location. The end times vary but you should pick up your share as early as possible. Look for the NITTY GRITTY DIRT FARM DROP SITE signs at your delivery locations along with lists to check your name off when you pick up, and a description of exactly what you should take.

Nitty Gritty Dirt Farm
10386 Sunrise Road (Cty Rd 9)
Harris MN 55032

35 north past North Branch to the Harris Exit. Turn Right.
Go into Harris, cross RR tracks to stop sign. Turn Left
Go 2 blocks to County Rd 9, also called Sunrise Road. (at Heartbreakers Bar) Turn Right. Farm is 4 1/2 miles out on left side of road. Look for Nitty Gritty Dirt Farm sign.
Shares available from 3:00 to 6:00

United Theological Seminary 3000 5th Street NW, New Brighton MN 55112
694 to Silver Lake Road exit. Go south to 5th and turn west (right). Go three blocks to UTS. Follow driveway (left) to the maintenance garage at the far north end of the parking lot. Shares available after 3:30 PM to 6:00 PM.

Pilgrims United Church of Christ
8801 Rice Lake Road, Maple Grove MN 55369
Just off of Weaver Lake Road across from Rice Lake Elementary School. Use main church door. Shares available from 3:30 to 6:00.

Acadia Cafe
329 Cedar Avenue South, Minneapolis
NW corner of Cedar and Riverside. Park on Riverside or
in lot behind the cafe.
Shares available after 3:15 PM until 6:00 PM

Vincent Avenue
3646 Vincent Avenue North, Mpls MN 55412
1/2 block north of 36th Ave N, and 2 blocks south of Dowling. Park on the street. Shares available after 3:30 until 6:00 PM

Additional drop sites may be added as shares are sold. Drop Sites are subject to change but plenty of notice will be given and alternate sites will be within close proximity to the original drop site.

FARM CONTACT INFORMATION

Robin Raudabaugh & Gigi Nauer

Nitty Gritty Dirt Farm

10386 Sunrise Road

PO Box 235

Harris MN 55032


(651) 226-1186


nittygrittydirtfarm@gmail.com

Also Nitty Gritty Goods Wool CSA
Robin Raudabaugh
651-216-9012
nittygrittygoodswool@gmail.com

We are a 15 acre Community Supported Agriculture farm providing a wide variety of fresh, organically and sustainably grown vegetables, fruit, lamb, pork, turkey and chicken. Located one hour north of the Twin Cities, we deliver to several metro locations. We are intentional about our organic and sustainable farming practices which include (but are not limited to): maintaining soil health through green and animal manures, compost, mulch, cover crops and crop rotations; Organic Pest Management to naturally monitor, prevent and control insects and other pests; maintaining animal health and well-being through the use of portable and loose housing and pasture rotations. Owner/operators Robin Raudabaugh and Gigi Nauer provide over 30 years experience in fruit, vegetable and livestock production, education and customer service. Our primary goal is to build community, relationships and personal health and well-being around good food and the intentional living that creates it. We’d love to have you join us.

Not every day is like this but we try.

Not every day is like this but we try.

Not every day is like this either.

Not every day is like this either.