Harmony Valley Farm

July - Pictures from the farm

2008-07-15T16:04:00.020-05:00

Oh if only there was smell-o-vision!

Even though it's down wind from the newly turned compost piles, the nasturtium flower tunnel smells amazing!

Also quite fragrant are the two, count them two, greenhouse buildings that are quickly filling with freshly harvested garlic. They will dry out in the dry heat for 2-3 weeks, then the Italian hardneck & Porcelain varieties will be cleaned & trimmed for the familiar garlic bulbs, while the Nooksa Rose will be cleaned and then braided.

My most favorite smell today was the fennel field. It smelled like candy - like licorice. And it is so lovely and soft looking!

Now on to more mouthwatering pictures - can't you just taste the chard,

cabbage, kale,

sunchokes,

onions,

tomatillos, watermelon, sweet corn,and celeriac? I can't even believe how much I miss celeriac!

In the news

2008-06-21T13:39:00.000-05:00

From a Wisconsin public television segment, right after the rains:

http://www.wpt.org/npa/ram/inwisconsin/IW635_floodedfields.wvx

http://www.wpt.org/npa/ram/inwisconsin/IW635_floodedfields.ram

Rainy Weekend Update

2008-06-09T20:20:00.005-05:00

We wanted to update you on our situation here at Harmony Valley Farm following the storms we experienced this past weekend. We have received several calls from the media and preferred that you hear firsthand from us before reading about it in the newspaper. We received significant rainfall starting Saturday around 11:30 am and continuing through yesterday evening. Total rainfall was about 12.5” by Sunday night. We also experienced high winds and some hail. The rain came hard and fast, and despite an afternoon reprieve yesterday, the rate of rainfall was faster than the ground’s ability to absorb or the capacity of some of the drainage ditches to move the water off the fields.

The water levels in the fields subsided some overnight and today we were able to get a better look at the damage. A field of recently transplanted tomatoes, okra and peppers was hit hard with excess rain. Most of the peppers and all the okra and tomatoes will not be viable. We will need several days to determine the effect the rainfall had on other crops including melons, watermelons, summer squash, sweet potatoes, and cucumbers. These plants were covered with row covers before the rainfall. Today the crew is removing the wet and muddy covers so the plants can get more sunshine and air. We are hopeful that they are still viable and can recover and continue to grow. Three-fourths of the sweet corn field was washed out as well as a portion of the head lettuces in the adjacent field. The onion field had water standing in the wheel tracks yesterday evening, but is draining better today and the onions looked good this morning. There was hail damage on some of the greens, but overall the current planting fared well and we are hoping to harvest them this week. The next 2-3 plantings of salad, arugula and spinach are likely lost.

There was significant erosion by the creek that runs on the home farm. The creek bank was cut back significantly by fast moving water and the new fences that were built in that area for the cattle were washed away. We also have significant erosion in some fields caused by draining water. On the bench fields, we had a significant amount of rocks that were relocated into our fields by water draining out of the adjacent woods. We will have to remove these so we can continue to farm these fields without damaging equipment.

So what is going on today? Well, all employees are back at work today, safe and sound. Many crops still look good and the crew is out harvesting as usual. This morning they harvested radishes, asparagus and pea vine. This afternoon they are picking the first strawberries as well as broccoli. Tomorrow we plan to harvest beautiful baby white turnips and bok choi. Alejandro, Hector and Simon are filling trays in the greenhouse to plant more peppers, okra and tomatillos. We still have some extra sweet potato plants in the cooler that we will use to replace any sweet potato plants that don’t survive.

We are thankful to still have a second planting of tomatoes and melons in the greenhouse along with fall cauliflower, broccoli, romanesco, kale and collards. Pending any further rainfall, we are hoping to plant more salad, arugula and spinach this week. As soon as we are able, we will continue to work ground, lay plastic, transplant the remaining greenhouse plants, direct-seed more crops as planned, rebuild drainage ditches and fences, and cut and bale the rye cover crop.

If you are concerned about our ability to continue delivering CSA boxes, rest assured that we will continue to pack boxes for you. Coming up in the next couple of weeks, you can look forward to cabbages (including Napa, Green Savoy, and a new salad cabbage), kohlrabi, cauliflower, broccoli, fennel, scallions, garlic scapes, and strawberries. There is a nice field of beets as well as carrots and potatoes. As soon as the ground is dry and we are able, we will plant the second plantings of tomatoes, melons, and the new peppers we are starting in the greenhouse. The garlic and celeriac fields look good and we will continue with planting fall crops. We have been about 2 weeks behind this spring due to cooler weather, so you may still see the effects of that as well as an absence of salad mix, arugula, and spinach for about 4 weeks while the next crop is planted and matures.

We appreciate your thoughts and encourage you to read our newsletter later this week for more updates from the farm as well as what it means to “share the risk” as a CSA member, both for you and for us.

Have a good week and we hope you enjoy your vegetables this week!

Richard and the HVF Crew

This Week's Box

2008-06-04T15:53:00.003-05:00

For the Twin Cities this week, we will send:

Green Garlic; Pea Vine; Arugula, Saute Mix or Spinach; Broccoli; Hon Tsai Tai; Rhubarb; Asparagus; Radishes; Salad Mix & Burdock (the Choice Item).

Our Wisconsin CSA members will get much the same, but I think we'll substitute Green Bok Choi for the Hon Tsai Tai. Either way, you can still use this week's newsletter recipe!

Spicy Stir Fried Chicken and Greens with Peanuts
Serves 4
2 Tbsp soy sauce, divided
2 Tbsp dry Sherry, divided
3 tsp Asian sesame oil, divided
2 tsp honey, divided
1 1/4 pounds skinless boneless chicken breast halves, cut crosswise into 1/3-inch-wide strips

3 Tbsp peanut oil, divided

4 green onions or 2 green garlic, white parts and green parts chopped separately

2 tsp chopped dried chiles

1 large bunch greens (such as spinach, hon tsai tai, bok choi, mustard greens, kale), spinach left whole, other greens cut into 1-inch strips

1 cup broccoli florets

1 cup asparagus

1/4 cup chopped roasted salted peanuts
--Whisk 1-tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon Sherry, 1-teaspoon sesame oil, and 1-teaspoon honey in medium bowl. Add chicken; marinate 20 to 30 minutes.

--Whisk remaining 1-tablespoon soy sauce, 1 tablespoon Sherry, 2 teaspoons sesame oil, and 1-teaspoon honey in small bowl and reserve.

--Heat 2 tablespoons peanut oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add white parts of onions and garlic and chile flakes; stir 30 seconds. Add chicken; stir-fry just until cooked through, about 3 minutes. Transfer chicken mixture to bowl. Add 1 tablespoon peanut oil to same skillet; heat over high heat. Add broccoli, asparagus and greens by large handfuls; stir just until beginning to wilt before adding more. Sauté just until tender, 1 to 6 minutes, depending on type of greens.

--Return chicken to skillet. Add reserved soy sauce mixture; stir until heated through, about 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to serving bowl; sprinkle with green parts of onions and peanuts.
Yum!

New Arrivals

2008-05-29T13:26:00.007-05:00

We're still waiting on La Chiba Blanca to give birth to her kids (and I wish it would happen soon - she looks so big & uncomfortable!), but baby goat #3 was born last Friday. He has beautiful grey eyes and is very adventurous.

Today, five new pigs were introduced to the pasture. The goats seem to be sticking to their corner & the pigs theirs, but I think they'll get integrated soon enough. And they definitely have enough space, with all the fencing that 's been done this spring!

Our fourth CSA box went out this week:

Sweet overwintered parsnips (last week for them)

Green Garlic

Chives with Blossoms

Hon Tsai Tai (a tasty & nutritious cooking green)
Red Bok Choy

Radishes

Spinach, Arugula, or Sauté Mix

Asparagus

Plus it was coffee & cheese share deliveries this week. The cheeses this week were Colby, Blue Cheese, and Monterey Jack. Yum. Try this recipe:

Arugula Salad with Lavender Blue Cheese Vinaigrette
Serves 4 (with a little dressing left over)

1 green onion, minced
2 tsp dried lavender
1/3 cup white balsamic or white wine vinegar
1 ½ tsp honey
2 oz crumbled blue cheese
2 Tbsp fresh thyme (optional, but highly recommended when available)
Salt & ground black pepper, to taste
½ cup sunflower oil
4 oz arugula
4 oz mixed greens (spinach, lettuce, sorrel, etc)

-In a small bowl, combine shallot, lavender, vinegar, honey, blue cheese and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Stir to combine.
-Slowly drizzle in oil while whisking continuously. Refrigerate for several hours before serving. Just before serving, taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
- Combine greens in a bowl, drizzle about ¼ cup of dressing on greens (or enough to lightly dress the greens) and toss to combine. Garnish the salad with sliced almonds or slices of radishes.

Field report this weekend, I promise. With lots of photos of all the good growing green things!

What''s in the Box May 22-24

2008-05-23T10:05:00.009-05:00

I truly wish the interweb had smell-0-vision or scratch & sniff capabilities. There is just so much in bloom! The landscape and plant life changes everyday. Between plums, apples, and lilac scents blowing in on the breeze, I am in heaven.

In this week's CSA box: Overwintered Parsnips, Asparagus, Rhubarb, Green Garlic, Egyptian Walking Onion, Radishes, Spinach or Sauté Mix, Nettles, Sorrel & Garden Herb Packs.

Besides the trees & fields bearing fruit, so are the forest floors. Richard took us out to an amazing dead elm where we gathered all these morel mushrooms! All in one evening's trip. It was my first time mushroom hunting and Chef Nichole has prepared them for a couple evening meals - as a deep fried appetizer (fried in safflower oil) with a blue cheese/dill dipping sauce, in a red wine sauce with flank steak, and creamed in risotto with ramps. She also dried some for later. Yum. Well worth the slogging up hills & risking ticks.

Anna and the field crew have a new toy - the new Salad cutter. It does the cutting that people otherwise would have had to do (backbreaking work, no?), runs the greens up the conveyor & into the totes. Then they bring it back to the farm for a cool wash, dry & it gets bagged. But don't worry, we're not replacing people and going automated or to all machines. As you can see in the background, we still do a lot of weeding by hand. Big ups to all our hardworking crew!

What's in the Box May 15-17

2008-05-16T13:26:00.004-05:00

The second CSA box of the 2008 season

Ten reasons to love spring! Overwintered parsnips, nettles, burdock, sunchokes, sorrel, rhubarb, ramps, chives, overwintered spinach and asparagus.

Plus baby goats! On the left, Rhiannon holds Baby Boy. On the right is Baby Girl. Both only 1 day old! The girl is the stronger of the two, but both seem to be doing well.

Happy Birthday!

2008-05-15T10:47:00.011-05:00

It's been crazy busy here these last couple of weeks! We're in week two of CSA deliveries and they are going better than I expected. We're making good boxes, they're getting to the people they should be getting to (mostly) and most importantly, people are excited about and enjoying their veggies!

Last week, we celebrated Richard's birthday and Cinco de Mayo. Let's just say the cake was too small to fit all the candles on it.

That week we also got our baby chickens! They will soon supply us with all the eggs we'll need to feed the crew. I am no wildlife photographer, but I think you'll get the idea of how funny and skittish they are. We are all especially enamoured of this little white guy with the funny poofy pompadour.

Last night one of our three expecting goats gave birth to kids - a boy and a girl. Again, I am no wildlife (or domesticated life) photographer and Mama wouldn't let me too close, but say hello to the newest member of the Harmony Valley Farm crew! He's the spitting image of his proud father, too! The doe is behind mama. You'll see more of them as they start to wander the pastures.

First Thunderstorm

2008-04-11T15:10:00.003-05:00

My housemate Clovis says that the valley has been waiting and listening for the first thunder. We had a storm last night and whether it's the lightning that fixes the nitrogen in the soil or if the thunder really woke up all the living things, he predicts that things are really going to start happening now. I'm just glad the snow didn't come as predicted - snow after a thunderstorm would be just too freaky to wake up to.

Despite the rather miserable rain, some plants got moved from the greenhouse outside to the coldframes!

Career Opportunity at Harmony Valley Farm

2008-04-11T10:12:00.002-05:00

Financial and Information Systems Specialist
Do you have a business mind AND a passion for organic agriculture? If so, read on to see if we may have found our match. We are seeking an organized, detail-oriented professional to join our team as the farm’s primary resource for financial and IT functions.

The primary responsibilities of the financial component for this position include, among other things:
Keeping the financial records
Providing financial reports to the management team
Managing Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable
Payroll and related HR financial accounting and reporting
Maintaining a product cost system
Participating in financial analysis of the business
The IT component of this position includes, among other things:
Maintenance of a management information system based on our existing Access database
Development of improvements to the management information system as our needs evolve
Leadership for improved integration of existing information systems for accounting, customer information, costing, and other data
Required personal skills:
Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a small team setting
Self-starter able to take initiative and follow tasks through to completion
Good with interpersonal relations.
Effective verbal and written communication skills
Required technical skills:
Previous work experience in business, accounting or economics
Bachelor’s Degree in business, economics, or other financial-related area not required, but a definite plus
Proficiency in using Quickbooks, MS Access, MS Word, MS Excel, and Outlook.
Book keeping skills.
Accuracy with numbers.
Attention to detail.

Compensation and Benefits
· Compensation commensurate with experience
· Opportunity to work in our gorgeous valley
· Health Insurance Plan
· SIMPLE retirement plan with 3% employer match
· Opportunity to breathe fresh, country air
· Lunch provided Mon-Fri mid-April through mid-November, prepared by the farm chef featuring organic vegetable and meat from the farm plus organic fruit & cheese!

Position Available Immediately! Please send resumé and/or inquiries to andrea@harmonyvalleyfarm.com

Early April Greenhouse Update

2008-04-04T09:50:00.010-05:00

The sun is finally burning off the fog that has obscured the valley this morning. It's still pretty cold and sometimes frosty in the mornings but they are predicting 60 degrees tomorrow!

We're filling the greenhouses and have moved trays into the ancient lean - to (at left). This structure came with the farm.The other greenhouses were built within the last couple years and we are contemplating adding another in the next few seasons!

The nursery greenhouse was busy this morning, with Hector and Simone doing a second planting of fennel seeds. As you can see, the trays and trays of peppers are thriving!

The herb packs and okra are coming along well, too. We think the herb packs will be ready for CSA delivery for the end of May - just in time to plant in your own garden!

I took a walk across the road to check on the big greenhouse - it's almost full to capacity!! Soon the onions will be moved to the cold frames outside and then to the field!!

The progress with all the little plants is amazing to me. The trays are filling in and the plants are colorful, tall, lush, healthy. Left to right we have:

Red Marimba & Green North Star Lettuce

Fennel and lettuce

Kohlrabi & Napa Cabbage

Broccoli & Bok Choi

We still have shares available for our CSA and now is the time to sign up. Our first deliveries are the weeks of May 8-10 & May 15-17, depending on what you order. We still have coffee, fruit & cheese shares available too! And Beef! OMG go to our website & read all about it! Eat local, go organic, be an adventurous cook, live well my friend.

Onions, kohlrabi and herbs! Oh my!

2008-03-25T10:52:00.004-05:00

Spring has really sprung! The snow we got on the first day of spring is pretty quickly melting and the greenhouses are filling up! Onions were one of the first crops to get started on the heat tables and here's a little photographic progress for you to see.

Right now we have seven varieties of scallions, white cipollini, early sweet candy onions, two different red cipollini, four varieties of storage onions, three varieties of leeks, and four kinds of shallots.

We've also started:

Celeriac-Diamant, Mars & President

Herbs for our CSA herb packs: Rosemary, thyme, savory, Greek oregano, sage, Giant of Italy parsley, krausa/curly parsley, & stevia.

Two edible Violas- Sorbet & Helen mount

Plus two kinds of brocolli, three cauliflower, five kohlrabi, two bok choi (including a gorgeous red choi), four varieties cabbage, two fennel, a super cool purple Concerto Artichoke, SEVEN different kinds of lettuce, two varieties of dandelion greens.

Today we will start three kinds of kale and collard greens.

This week we will plant 4-5 different eggplants, basil, two Okra varieties (Little Lucy & Cajun Delight) and SEVENTEEN different varieties of peppers!!!

Next week: TOMATOES!

This is all just in the greenhouse. We will direct sow carrots, beets, garlic (already in the ground over winter), spinach, salad mix, radish, chard, cilantro, dill, arugula, edamame, green beans, corn, parsnips, sunchokes, turnips, potatoes, peas, rutabaga, sweet potatoes.

When I say we, I mean our amazing field crew. I just work in the office and blog. Our latest newsletter is available on our website - check it out!

Greenhouse 101

2008-03-24T10:33:00.016-05:00

First, you start building the room again. This greenhouse was used for curing sweet potatoes this fall and the one across the road held winter squash & dried chiles for the ristras. So you have to clear all that out and make it a greenhouse again. Set up the tables, make sure the water flows, hoses are connected, and thermostats are set.

This greenhouse is where the plants get started - the tables are lined with hoses with warm water flowing through them to maintain the soil at 75 degrees. We try to use the space as efficiently as possible so that means keeping those tables full!

We tuck the plants in at night to keep the warmth and moisture in. Then we unroll the covers each morning before the sun starts beating down. It's amazing to see the plants push up out of the soil, sometimes overnight! It seems like you can watch them grow during the day - inches from morning to afternoon.

When the plants are big and strong enough, we move them across the road to the other greenhouse. Space is definitely at a premium, so we have to fill in any holes in the trays. If a seed didn't germinate, we've planted trays to transplant little seedlings so we get to 100% capacity. Smart.

So even though the first day of spring brought us snow, inside the greenhouse was warm and thriving!

Friday Update

2008-03-07T10:23:00.005-06:00

It's a beautiful, crisp winter day in our valley! We are still enjoying winter weather complete with piles of snow and ice, but the sunshine today is very much appreciated.

It's been a busy week in the greenhouse. On Monday we graduated some of the onion plants to the large greenhouse. They are big enough to do fine on their own out of the nursery. Soon they will be ready for a haircut, but other than that we just need to make sure they have enough water, appropriate temperatures for slow, steady growth, and a little conversation now and then to meet their social needs.

Back in the nursery greenhouse, we are patiently waiting for some cipollini and shallots to pop up. In the meantime, yesterday Hector, Simon and Alejandro planted the rest of the shallots as well as all the herbs for the CSA herb packs, and celeriac! We are making progress, but still have a lot of planting left to do.

Until there is more greenhouse work, the guys are staying busy repairing pallets. We had a whole stack of them set aside to repair as a winter project. Once they are caught up we should be good on pallets for quite awhile.

Terri has been working diligently to prepare for the first large CSA fair this week in Minneapolis. Last weekend she had a smaller scale trial run at the Viroqua Food Co-op. She has a beautiful display board and did a little shopping in the cooler this morning to get veggies for her display. Both Brian and Terri have been working furiously to get all the CSA signups we are receiving processed.

The packing shed coordinators have stayed busy this week working on revising manuals, putting the finishing touches on the greenhouses, and organizing our supplies inventory. Spring doesn't allow time for "spring cleaning," so we are doing winter cleaning.

Richard has been busy this week with phone conferences with buyers, meetings at the FSA office, as well as all of the other things coming across his desk. He's hoping to find time this weekend to catch up on his reading....especially the latest edition of Spudman Magazine that came last week.

Well, that's the week wrap-up from the farm. Have a great weekend!

Update from the Greenhouse

2008-03-02T17:31:00.004-06:00

Wanted to keep everyone up-to-date on growth in the greenhouse. Hector, Simon, and Alejandro planted more shallots and started on the red cipollini last Thursday. We moved the green onions that were planted first off the heat table since they are strong enough to survive on their own now. They are growing like crazy...they literally look kind of crazy! Pretty soon we are going to have to trim them up a bit so they don't get too gangly. Monday we are going to move more onions off the heat table and fill more trays. Tuesday they will plant the rest of the red cipollini onions, and hopefully by Thursday will be able to finish the shallots. That should be it for the alliums, and then we'll move on to celeriac.

Even though there is still snow on the ground and we're supposed to get freezing drizzle tonight, we thought we might as well get into our spring/summer routine of checking out the fields on the weekends. So, we tromped out to the garlic field and Richard just couldn't resist the temptation to dig down and see what he could find. Let me tell you--he has skill. He picked a random spot, dug out the snow, stuck his finger in the ground to see if it was frozen and when he pulled out the dirt (which was not frozen) he also pulled out some roots. He just happened to have dug in right next to one of the garlic cloves. So, we can report that all looks well in the garlic field. The clove we observed had nice strong roots and a sprout starting to develop.

We also checked out the beaver dam--didn't see any activity, but could see evidence thereof. They sure have been busy cutting down trees and eating the bark off their winter stick stash. Guess they'll be ready to move downstream in the spring.

That's it from the farm. Have a great week!

2008-02-25T22:21:00.002-06:00

I am learning how to post pictures, and didn't succeed at my first attempt. This is the picture of the little onions starting to come up.

Check out the February Greenhouse Parade

2008-02-25T10:21:00.000-06:00

I wanted to update everyone on the growth in the greenhouse. Over the weekend we started seeing little onions start to poke their green little shoots out of the soil. At first it starts as just a few here and there--you sometimes have to look really hard to find them. We have continued to uncover them during the day so they don't get too hot when the sun comes out, but we cover them with their blanket at night to trap in heat and keep them warm. One of the most exciting times of the day is when you roll back the cover in the morning and get to see what's been happening all night. Well, this morning we discovered little Bianca joined us in our world--bianca is an Italian variety of early white cipollini onion that we usually harvest as green top instead of dried. Rossa lunga di frienzze is another Italian onion (purple scallion) that decided to make an appearance today. We also have Red Goddess, Ishikura, Nabechan, and Oasis--all early scallions. My favorite picture of the day was the one I'm going to attempt to post. I think it is amazing to see the little shoots, which seem so fragile and delicate, exert enough strength to push up the ground above them as they grow. So what you are seeing here is our little Parade onions pushing through and lifting up the soil that covered them and kept them warm. Cheers from the Harmony Valley Farm Greenhouse--Stay tuned for the latest updates! Andrea

Planting Has Begun!!!

2008-02-21T14:27:00.002-06:00

Greetings from our snow-insulated valley! Last weekend we had about 7 inches of snow, so our piles around the farm continue to build. Word on the street is that more snow is in our near future. Thankfully we now have a warm farm oasis to retreat to when we want to try to forget that is still winter.....our greenhouse!! Last week the crew worked hard to get the greenhouse washed, sterilized, and set up. Yesterday Hector and Simon worked all day planting onions. I am anxious to see the little green shoots start popping through the soil. We have been ordering and inventorying our seeds, germ testing them, and working on the field plans for the year. This weekend some of us from the farm will be attending the MOSES organic farming conference in LaCrosse, Wisconsin. Richard is still working with the FSA associates to improve the NAP insurance plan and complete our claims for last year's flood. It's a long process, but Richard has been very persistent and we look forward to the day his hard work pays off not only for Harmony Valley Farm but for other organic farmers as well.

We have also been hard at work receiving applications and interviewing people for our job openings. There never seems to be a dull moment on the farm!! Stay warm and well!

Andrea

New Twin Cities CSA delivery sites!

2008-02-14T09:30:00.003-06:00

We just confirmed THREE, count 'em 3! New Twin Cities Delivery Sites!

Eden Prairie!

Minneapolis Whittier Neighborhood (26th & Blaisdell)!

St Paul Macalester/Groveland Neighborhood!

Happy Valentine's Day

xoxo

What do you do all winter?

2008-01-04T17:30:00.000-06:00

People always ask me what we do at the farm all winter. We don't grow anything in the greenhouses (or in the ground) so how do we employ people year round?

This year is very different from other years because of the flood this summer. We lost about half our acres to the floodwaters, much of it our late season crops! Usually we can keep the packing shed busy washing & packing veggies for sale to stores and restaurants at least through February. Then in March it's time to start growing again. Last year at this time we still had beets, carrots, onions, parsnips, rutabaga, soup mix, turnips, and winter radishes to clean and pack. This year, we only have burdock, crosnes, garlic, horseradish, dried chile ristras, dogwood & willow, shallots & turnips - in limited quantities. So the packing shed crew is busy cleaning totes and preparing small orders.

This is Adelina, someone we'd like to employ all year round, washing totes this morning. The tank is full of soap & suds and she rinses, stacks and stores the totes to use next spring.

We have a small office staff comprised of Richard (farmer/owner), Brian (accounting), Andrea (seed database/meat coordinator/packing shed supervisor), and myself (CSA coordinator/marketing).

I am getting ready for the 2008 CSA season, preparing a member 'Welcome Pack', answering questions from new & incoming members, finding a couple new Twin Cities delivery sites, recruiting new members, preparing a member survey, and updating the website. We also have a pretty good benefits package for our employees (health insurance, health savings account & retirement plan) that I will maintain and administer. We're working on job descriptions for everybody too, so we can do performance reviews and the like. Fun, fun, fun!

Richard and Andrea are looking at seed catalogs and planning next years plantings. We have some delicious and nutritious items (some with very funny names: Mellow Yellow carrots, Skywalker cauliflower, General Lee cucumber, Bull's Blood beets, Orion fennel, Freckles salad mix, El Jefe jalapeño, Dagger & Javelin parsnips, Crocodile spinach and of course, Lancelot Leeks!) for you next year! Andrea will update you soon!

Brian our bookkeeper/accountant, processes all our incoming CSA orders & is working on our 2008 customer database, a complete overhaul of what we had in the past. He does payroll & pays all the incoming bills, too.

Our shop crew will be maintaining and winterizing all our equipment. The wagons' wheel bearings get lubed, chains get tightened, machines get cleaned and stored. They still have goats to look after and they're still clearing trees from the creek & river banks too.

The packing shed staff is also working on updating our Employee Manual. It originally came about as part of getting organic certification so it goes into a lot of detail about sanitation procedures, weed & disease control, and harvest & handling. Plus lots of information on our water management practices, crop outlines & planning, seed germination and general storage information. It's all about how we do it & do it well at Harmony Valley Farm.

We get a vacation week at the end of January. Where should I go?

FSA flood insurance!

2007-12-25T15:13:00.000-06:00

Last week I met with head of Wisc FSA, Ben Brancel and his #1, Russ Raeder and Wisconsin Department of Ag, Laura Paine and #1 in my eyes, Will Hughes. Will has some connection with Ben, Will had read my analyses and understood it, he directed the meeting. True to form as government employees, Russ and Ben digressed and passed the buck to Washington! Will took down names, 'Who do I talk to?' Price!, needs a big change, Unharvested factor! off by at least 50%, planting periods!, I think Russ and Ben flinched, after all they have had since 2000 to get them right!, I wrote them in 2004 and went home and rewrote them in the exact table they use, all they have to do is click send! Maybe there is some hope on this one for 2007 disaster application!, about $20,000 difference if they get it right this time! That is about all I can do.

I am holding out hope that Will can pull some strings! Will and family were original 1993 CSA members and had a pick-up site at their house for many years and has since moved up the ladder at Wisc DATCP and totally gets it! He made it clear that this is not only about HVF, but this is a good test case. If it does not work here, then it does not work for anybody!

There are two options being considered, if this fails, #1, get at least 500 CSA families to e-mail the government officials and demand they do their job! (A bit of insight!, the FSA officer who is doing my low interest emergency loan appl. told me that his predecessor and himself have given so few loans that the taxpayer would be better served if USDA just gave away some grants to those in need, rather than paying all these big salaries to employees who do not make any loans or payments for disasters) .

Or to digress further, but maybe quite accurate. Why do tax payers allow government employees to work in the interest of big business, rather than to protect citizen taxpayers, ie, FDA approval of drugs without sufficient studies, FDA and USDA approve untested GMO crops for the sole benefit of Monsanto, without protecting the public! It is about to happen again with a GMO sugar beet which will pollute most of the remaining food supply. They got corn and soybeans which make up 70% of food products and now with GMO sugar there will be no conventional food left that does not have some dangerously untested GMO component, they win, the consumer losses and the Goverment officials who are responsible for a safe food supply have completed the sell out!

Have to send a note to Ronnie Cummings, Organic Consumers Union, thought he had this GMO beet covered, but the CEO of Crystal Sugar just did a 180 turn, I wonder? Did they threaten his family or just offer money or both?

Anyway, got home from the FSA meeting and had a message that the 'Sow the seeds fund' was sending a $37,000 check, we do know who our friends are! So that leaves us at squeaking by, still in business, a fair FSA insurance payment would mean business as usual, employee raises, replace broken equipment, fix stream bank wash-outs, etc. Richard

Note to Self

2007-12-24T14:42:00.000-06:00

Don't enter the cow's pasture empty handed, especially if they are hungry and you are wearing a red hat

You can't run very fast when you're wearing snowshoes in 6 inches of powder

This afternoon I wanted to check on the cow's hay because it looked kind of low in the feeder (from a distance). I usually work in the office but I am more than happy to bring buckets of food to the animals on the weekends or other days off - I am in charge of the animals for only a couple days a month. The feeder is across the creek from the bunker (what I like to call their table) where I put their delicious organic grain.

(okay, okay, I'm trying to sell you some beef. We still have beef for sale. They are rotationally grazed, finished on organic grain. Buy some! Here! Next delivery in January!)

So I decided to walk over across the water in my snowshoes for a look-see at the feeder, 'cos Richard said Dan had put 10 bales of hay in the feeder the other day, but I thought it looked low (from a distance).

As I opened the gate, the cows came close 'cos they know me as good for feed by now. I used to think it was cute how they scampered around like puppies when I came in with buckets of food. I bypassed the "table" and they followed me across the creek. There are definitely leaders and followers with these cows. The first two led the way across the creek, right behind me, while the others followed more slowly. Then the slow ones paused. I stepped to the side and I tried to coax them on because I didn't really want to follow them too close behind, much less cross their path. But they stopped. So I crossed behind two, ahead of four cows. I kept telling them that it wasn't lunch time, I was just checking in, look - no bucket of food, but they kept advancing. I made a wide berth around the feeder 'cos it was very poopy and I could see clearly that it wasn't very full of hay. They sped up and #13 gave me the eye. She pawed the ground, looked at my head/red hat and kicked up her heels!

(This is that same feeder, found down stream, after the flood.)

As I made my wide berth, I realized I was right next to another food bunker and I had no food! The cows kept coming! I kept thinking about how bears and dogs can smell fear and tried to remain calm as I made my way to the next fence, about 25 feet away (which I think, I hope, is electric). As I said, one cannot run wearing snow shoes in six inches of powder. I moved as quickly as I could and I rolled under the fence and the cows kept coming. As I walked away from the fence (way more slowly than I would have liked), I saw #13 sniffing the wire & under the wire and make the wise decision to not try to follow. I ended up taking the long way home, across the creek again & across the fields. It took me almost an hour!

Richard and I went out later to give the cows some hay & that was another (reluctant) adventure. He pushed 8 bales out of the barn & we piled them into the bucket of the skid steer (like a Bobcat or Mustang - a machine with a fork or a bucket for carrying stuff. Ours has chains on the back wheels now, for getting around in the snow). I met him Richard at the gate & reluctantly got on top of the bales for the trip/ride to the feeder. (I didn't want to walk with the cows!) The snow was very, perhaps unexpectedly, deep & Richard struggled up the creek bank while I hung on for dear life, with cows looking on. OMG I was so scared!

We got to the feeder bin & I had to cut the rope binding the bales & pile it into the feeder below. The cows were at it in no time. I was still up in the skid steer bucket when I took this pic.

I'm scared of the cows now. Kinda like the goats - never turn your back. Don't laugh! I'm a city girl. This is all so very new to me.

Merry Xmas & Happy New Year!

Billy the Boer Goat

2007-12-14T11:50:00.000-06:00

We got ourselves a stud! We're gonna have kids in the spring!

Look at his beard blowing in the wind. We just put him in our pasture last night, so our other goats are still hesitant but very curious. We borrowed him from a neighbor and will return him in the spring. He is a lovely animal and we were assured that he wouldn't be too wild or cause trouble or jump fences.I'll be taking care of the animals over the holidays and Richard gave me this advice: Do not turn your back on an intact male. If you let your guard down that would be the moment they decide to give you head butt/nudge right at the knees. And down I'd go in the poopy snow.

Winter is Here/FSA Payments

2007-12-04T10:01:00.000-06:00

We had our first winter snow storm this Saturday. My first winter in the valley! It really is lovely but kind of scary. Richard drove to the Madison indoor Farmer's Market at Monona Terrace (RIP Otis Redding) and José and Margo had CSA deliveries that day. It started snowing mid-morning and visibility and the roads were crap! Andrea and I were home, here at the farm, and tried to convince both Richard & José to stay in Madtown, but they both insisted they'd be careful y despacio, and get home that night. I was so glad to see them (José and Margo much later than Richard)! We're expecting another couple inches today. I moved into the farmhouse just in time, I think! (the first cabin is mine, the upper is Glen's - electricity but no water)

Richard has been working on getting a fair payment from the FSA for our crop losses from the flood this summer. This is a letter and table he sent to the Vernon County FSA, Russ Raeder at the state FSA, and to the Wisconsin Deptarment of Agriculture. If you click on the picture of the table it should enlarge - it's all very interesting, but pay special attention to the last 3 columns: 2007 HVF Loss ($/Acre), FSA Payment ($/Acre), and FSA Payment: % of Actual Loss. FSA payments are incredibly low!

Being certified organic involves good record keeping, so Richard has very good records on all he's grown over the years - yields, prices and planting periods. I think he makes a great case for making changes in how the FSA calculates payments:

Comparative Analysis of Market Crop Values to Actual FSA Payments

Compiled By Richard de Wilde, Harmony Valley Farm

I have been farming in southwest Wisconsin since 1985. I grow certified organic produce on 100 acres of land that I sell to the fresh market. Half of my sales are to wholesale markets, with the other half of sales to retail markets including farmer’s market and our large CSA. In August of this year we experienced excessive rainfall resulting in devastating flooding in our valley that damaged and destroyed over 45 acres of crops as well as prevented planned plantings. I filed crop loss claims with NAP and have received 14 payment calculations from FSA thus far. The NAP policy is supposed to pay 27.5% of losses, however these 14 payment calculations only average 2.17% of Harmony Valley Farm’s (HVF) actual loss for these crops. If the remaining crop calculations are similar, I will receive $16,000 on a $750,000 loss. With a discrepancy this great, it is obvious that there is something really wrong here! My assumption is that the individuals associated with implementing the NAP program are well-meaning and want to work with farmers to make this program functional with an efficient process for filing and paying claims that will benefit and help the farmers who rely on this program. With this assumption in mind, I would like to outline some of the problems with the current NAP program from my perspective as a farmer. Please refer to the accompanying chart which will help demonstrate some of the problems.

CROP VALUE & PRICING

Please take a look at the crop value section on the chart, expressed in “dollars per pound.” I have been told that the FSA crop table uses the AMS fresh market price at the Chicago terminal. The crop table values are based on AMS prices taken from 120 days prior to the application closing date (March 15, 2007). Using AMS data from November 1, 2006, I found that the FSA crop table prices are only 29% of the AMS prices. How can this be? There are also obvious errors, such as “Green Baby French” beans are priced the same on the FSA table as the regular green beans when the AMS prices show a 214% higher price for this variety. There are serious problems with the FSA crop table when this sampling shows FSA prices are on average only 29% of the AMS prices when I would expect them to match. The issue is actually much worse than this!

The HVF average prices from 2006 are 158% higher than AMS prices. Yes, some of that is a premium for “certified organic production,” but much more so it reflects the fact that half of HVF production is sold at retail prices while AMS and FSA crop values are based on wholesale market price. Retail prices are 100% higher than wholesale, a standard practice in the produce industry. To pay only wholesale prices may work for businesses who only sell to wholesale markets, but the reality is that most produce growers sell some or all of their product to retail markets. Thus, the current FSA practice is discriminatory against direct market produce growers.

A more reasonable practice would be to use a price that more closely matches the individual farmer’s market situation. FSA already uses an individual farmer’s yields (APH) to figure crop values, thus why not extend the practices to use an individual farmer’s prices as well. In the very least, figure payments using a scale that matches a farmer’s actual market breakdown where crops are sold instead of assuming all sales are made at a wholesale market price. NAP rules include ‘local markets’ in the list of price sources.

UNHARVESTED FACTOR

As stated previously, NAP policy is supposed to pay 27.5% of loss when the loss exceeds 50%. This percentage is based on paying 55% of losses over 50% of the total. So, payment is already being based on a much lower amount than the actual loss. If a farmer has a total loss on a crop—now FSA is going to decrease payment further by calculating in an unharvested factor (FSA value assigned to costs that would have been incurred had the crop been harvested). Their rationale for this is that costs associated with harvest are decreased or eliminated if a crop is lost. Where do these numbers come from? Are they based on records of harvest costs? If so, whose records were they and when were they gathered? While I do not feel an adjustment factor for harvest costs is even warranted, if it must be there it should at least be an accurate value.

I have included the HVF labor cost per pound for harvest and calculated a harvest factor cost based on our known harvest costs. I derived these values from time studies that have been done on my farm to establish labor costs for my own business use. You can see that the HVF harvest factor is 177% greater than the average FSA unharvested factor and hence would increase a 100% loss payment substantially.

Also, though many of the crops appeared to be a total loss initially, in many cases there was a higher part of the field that recovered and we were able to harvest some crop that went to market, so we have some production to report. Both the assessor and the Vernon County office advised me to ask the State FSA office for permission to change those crops from zero production to harvested. Reporting production would remove the unharvested factor for those crops initially assessed to be total loss. Regardless, the fact still remains that the unharvested factor numbers as they are now are a serious impediment to this program working effectively.

PLANTING PERIODS

The NAP handbook has clear provisions for establishing planting periods for crops that are planted multiple times during a growing season. The majority of vegetable crops are in this multiple planting category. It is absolutely essential and necessary for planting periods to be established for NAP to work! This was evident in 2003 when I applied for a drought disaster for 4 acres of beets planted for fall harvest and storage. When that loss was combined with our good spring beet crop, the loss was only 50% and payment was zero. FSA refused to establish planting periods for that loss.

In December 2004 Russ Raeder asked me to write planting periods for all vegetables. I submitted them on January 4, 2005 and they were reviewed by Karen Delahout, vegetable specialist for the University of Wisconsin. As a result, a few planting periods were established, but two years later there are still more than 40 crops from the NAP list that we grow that do not have established planting periods! I wrote the planting periods without compensation, providing FSA with all the information needed to do the right thing. I did my part, but it is the responsibility of FSA employees and committees to implement them.

The NAP insurance program is a workable program as catastrophic insurance if, and only if, it is administered properly. It has not been so. There are still serious errors in final plant dates, price, unharvested factor and planting periods, that when combined make a $100,000 difference in my loss payment. This may be the difference between being able to continue farming or not. I would like to see FSA take responsibility for making the necessary and long overdue changes needed to make the NAP program an efficient, manageable, fair and reasonable insurance program that will actually benefit farmers who are invested in growing food necessary to feed and sustain our families and communities. I have followed through on my end of the deal and expect the government representatives to do the same. I am not satisfied with hearing “We will try to get it right for next year!” Changes need to be made, not in the future, but NOW for 2007.

Best Crew Ever!

2007-11-09T13:19:00.000-06:00

Today was the last day for several members of our crew; four will be leaving for Mexico soon. But we still have work to do, so we can keep the majority of the crew busy for a while longer. We keep 6-8 people working year round in the packing shed & greenhouses, but much of the crew will return to work next spring. I made everybody (well, I thought everybody, but a couple people decided not to get their picture taken) stand outside (hoping that it wouldn't start snowing again) and smile. Back row from left to right: María, Frezbindo, Francisca, Simone, José Z., Gerardo, Adelaida, Nestor, Margo, José R., Richard, Juan, Andrea, Cristino, Rufina, & Benji. Front row L-R: Angel, Michael, Adelina, Brian, Alejandro, Aurelia, Margarita. Not pictured: Ezequiel, Ishmael, Irma, Rhiannon, Miguel, Hector, Glen, Dan, Brian.