More garlicky goodness: fermented garlic scapes, our cleaned garlic, and the dog enjoying our mess after cleaning the garlic!

More jungle! My tomatoes grew like crazy this year and with barely any rain in August their sugars and flavour were concentrated into the best tasting I’ve ever had. I have dried, frozen and canned (paste and sauce) tomatoes that will last me well past the winter. More squash- I let them take over the whole garden once my string beans and onions were done growing. I snuck some sunflowers in beside the jerusalem artichokes. 

Part of a jungle of my garden. First, the pumpkins I planted into the lawn in hopes they would grow down over an existing rock wall. A success! Second, squash plant hanging from the jerusalem artichokes. Third, the squash plant making its’ way to the other side of the huge patch of jerusalem artichokes.

Cute Calves!

Changing People’s Minds

A question I was asked yesterday driving home from the farmer’s market: What do you think are the best ways to educate and encourage and change people’s minds about their food choices? A tough question to answer, but one I think about all the time. There are a few factors to …

The beauty of strawberry season! Raspberries are just around the corner…

Check out the field in the background of the picture covered in Dandelion fluff. Now look at the closer fields. Barely any. Both of these fields are pasture, but the one in the distance is the neighbour’s field. The excess of dandelions is a sign of over grazing. The grass gets cut down just a bit too much and the dandelions out-compete it. The fields at this farm have also been in permanent pasture since 1857, with only one field that has ever been cultivated. Dandelions aren’t a huge problem in pasture though. The cattle will eat them before they go to seed if they’re given a chance. It’s the burdock, thistles, daisies, asters, buttercups and any other plants the cattle won’t eat that are unwanted. 

Solar energy powers the pump shown in these pictures. The spring-fed pond provides water for the cows, calves and cattle all summer long. The water is pumped up the hill in an underground pipe to the permanent water trough. To accommodate two separate herds, the trough is strategically placed on the farm so that fencing can be set up to divide it in half allowing both herds to drink from it at once.