Week 10 -- We rocked it, ya'll!

First, some pictures that tell a story, and that ARE NOT the share basket:

Now that you're intrigued, here's the bad news... I'm not telling you the story, just yet. You're left to your imagination -- at least, until we meet again, where I promise I will tell this interesting homesteading tale to you!

Now, for a picture of Share Basket #10, in all its glory:

Some new friends and some old ones, here =) ...and of course, some important notes:

1) Potatoes -- 100% from our garden, from volunteer plants (from a much larger planting my dad and I did last year) that I re-homed into a half of a row, late this spring. Sooooo good, sorry they didn't make more!

2) Better-boy red slicing tomatoes -- come from First Step Farm, an awesome place that grows produce for the Candler and Canton communities while helping people struggling with addiction get their lives back on track. They pick 'em awefully orange (IMO), so I table-ripened these myself for all of us, with the old-bananas-and-apples-in-a-bag trick ;)

3) Basil-in-a-box -- I had to harvest them in the heat of the sun, unfortunately -- so they won't have a long shelf-life... BUT, I noticed that our plants that looked terribly yellow had produced some green side shoots, so I tried to selectively pick some of those for ya!

4) Eggplant -- you either got two big round ones, or a few smaller ones

5) Corn -- I'm so sorry, everyone was supposed to get one -- but I forgot to put the one on the table, into the share basket where it belonged. Do let me know if you're the one that I owe one ear of corn, and I will make it up to you somehow =P

I wanted to close by thanking you all again for allowing me to share my joy of homesteading with you all (and for making it a much more sensible adventure, financially speaking). With your funds, we were able to cover all of our supply costs... now, allow me to keep a rosy-eyed view of it all, and to not attempt to calculate exactly how many hours I spent down there at the plot, making it happen =P

Finally I wanted to thank Doro and my kids, who have ALWAYS been extremely helpful, anytime there was more work that needed be done, in a shorter period of time than I could have done myself. I love you, Mikulski-Schulz tribe!!!! XOXO

Looking forward to seeing you all throughout the coming months, and to doing this hyperlocal food 'thang again next year!

Matt

Week 9 -- Sorry no share-contents picture this time! =(

Hey everyone!

So, I had Doro and I's share splayed out on the table yesterday (as I usually do, while I'm packing the other baskets), but forgot to take a pic before rushing off to the Wedge... and then I forgot to text her, and ask her to take a pic -- before she rinsed, trimmed and packed everything where it needed to go! Anyhow, there were only two new things that deserved a little explaining, and even though I THINK I told you all in person, I can put it here as well:

Popping corn -- These are the smaller cobs; I think the variety is 'strawberry' (color-wise it makes sense). Peel, rinse off/out any stupid tiny wormies that might be trying to have a party with one or more kernels, and then place on a sunny windowsill for a couple of weeks. Should be dry enough for popping by then!

Regular corn -- I had hoped, SO BADLY, that I could find two ears for each member... but unfortunately, many of the ears I squeezed in testing had not-fully-mature kernels in them. So, be prepared to use your veggie-slicing knife in remarkably precise fashion, to cut each family member a justly-portioned mini-cob! =P Also, this is an heirloom variety that has a bit more starch than your typical Ingles fare... great for making creamed corn, but be ready for some squeakiness (if you were just gonna boil, butter, and typewriter-munch those kernels off).

Next Wednesday is the last share delivery day (and probably a good time to stop, as tomato production is basically non-existent, and things will be turning into an okra-only parade in just a week or so)... It has been a great summer being with you all, and sharing in this local bounty... I will try to find something special to put in that last basket, so that we can go out with a proverbial bang! =)

Your mini-farmer dude and friend,
Matt

Week 8 -- still going strong, and... homemade pickles!

Hey everyone! Sorry for the delay, I hope you recognized the pickle(s) for what they were, and got that zip-locked baggie in your fridge as soon as you could yesterday! Here's a picture of the share contents, spread out on our dining room table (where I pack the contents, every week):

(You can click on the image, to blow it up more... go ahead, try it ;)

Here's some notes:

- Everyone got either a big orange beet and a carrot, or a handful of carrots

- Everyone got either one HUUUUUGE pickle, or 2-3 smaller ones. Do slice them according to your preference, and serve them chilled (ice-chilled is doubly nice)

- Slicing tomatoes, as you can see, are falling out of production... I may be able to glean some more slicing-style ones for the final (ie, Week 10) basket, but even that will be a pleasant surprise if it happens

- The frequent rain has made it difficult to gather the golden cherry tomatoes before they develop small cracks... I have tried to pick out all the 'soft' ones, and let you decide about the half-or-so that are split but still perfectly edible. Do rinse them before you eat them, though, as again... I had to pick a few funky ones out of the picking basket

- Everyone got one 'UFO' squash and a combination of other squashes that included at least ONE (sometimes two) green or yellow zucchini

- Lots of peppers... I'm trying not to give ya'll too many, which is why I had some for extra selectin' up in the passenger seat. By all means, take more from that bucket, and make yourself a nice, spicy conserve or something! (or, dice em up and freeze em, and have them ready to go for a recipe a month or more from now =)

- Okra... I pick them all somewhat soft and still flexible, but some get picked early in the week... and they ripen somewhat even after picked... while I try to set aside tougher ones for my family to eat (we don't mind em, really), you may have one that you find too tough in your basket. Leave it on the windowsill, let it finish ripening and drying out, and harvest the dark, pea-like seeds inside to try growing some of your own (either indoors over the winter, or next spring ;)

Thanks for sharing in this bounty. I'm already looking forward to seeing what kind of basket we can grow for you, next week! ;)

Week 7 -- our most diverse, so far! =)

Sorry for the late post and ID / tips... these last four weeks are going to be crazy... putting together the share, keeping the garden from not getting overgrown, picking things on time, AND working at the school as we launch into our 2019-2020 season. Anyhow, here's the fun, that grew out of the sun for us all these past few months:

Clockwise, from top left: carrots (two types), normal lettuce, bell peppers, okra, poblano peppers, zucchini, crookneck squash, pattipan (what we call "UFO") squash, eggplant, bolting lettuce, eggplant, malabar spinach w. vine, canteloupe (two lucky baskets had them stowed away, because we only had two ripe ones), loose malabar spinach leaves, and green beans (eggs and slicing tomatoes in the middle).

We also had two fun grab-bags: One was a handful of dried mushrooms (hen-of-the-woods, honey mushroom, and porcini) -- of your choosing; the other was as many unsorted (ie, some split ones in there) golden cherry tomatoes as you wanted to stuff in a zip-lock bag.

I can't offer many cooking tips I don't think you already know about these things, except this one: the malabar spinach, while nutritious and succulent, needs flavor. It also should be cooked sooner rather than later, as it certainly can wilt. Finally, in case you haven't noticed, the vines should be rinsed just before throwing in the pan (I suggest flash-frying with either soy sauce, or some bacon grease).

We set aside some eggplant, squashes and okra for the party tomorrow AND for the coming week's share, and some other things are either still coming in OK, or are about to start coming in -- so I'm optimistic that next week will have a bounty in it, as well. As always, thanks for letting me be your wannabe farmer :)

Week 6... and b-day bash/garden celebration, in a few weeks!

Hey there,

It was such a joy, putting together the basket for you all this week. Here's whats up:

Some notes:
Immature onions -- you either got three small, or one or two bigger

Tomatoes -- I tried to give one of every type / ripeness, to everyone

Apples -- foraged off an old abandoned homestead out in Robbinsville... delicilous, even with the spots (kids and I have already barefisted several)

Eggplant or okra or green beans (roulette; we didnt have enough for all to get one of each) -- self-explanatory

Lettuce -- its still bolting, but still not too bitter

Staghorn sumac berry juice -- wonderful, locally foraged beverage that has a lovely sourness, about the closest thing to Appalachian lemonade that you can get. Courtesy of me :)

More details on the upcoming party, to come soon!

Week 5's basket... and special thanks to Doro!!!

Hey ya'll! Check out this awesome share's contents:

The only 'option' this week is beans or broccoli... either u got one, or you got the other, so decide -- and don't be sad one way or the other! =P RE: Tom's, well everyone got a mix of ripe now, and ripe in a few days... recall the rapid ripening trick, whereby you leave unripened tomatoes in a paper bag with either bananas (best) or old apples (better) for a couple days, to get full color (and flavor) out of a tom!

For people in on the beef share, this week I put T-bone steaks in there, approx. 2 lbs (so no cut for next week)... OMG so gooooood! And, an update on eggs -- our ladies are laying 6-8 per day again now, so... tragedy averted, and we no longer need to source from other ethical, local laying operations. Yaaaay self-sufficiency!!!

Next week we should have staghorn sumac seedheads (for making homemade, native-to-NA lemonade) and also okra. I'll have a recipe to share ;) It's been such a pleasure, bringing you goodness out of our garden, week after week... until next time!

Finally, a special thanks to Doro, who had the optional Dahlia flowers for this share, and was absolutely essential (due to me having a full day of work at the Franklin School today) to the shares being put together. Doro, you are AMAZING, and the best life-partner I could ever hope for!!!!! =)

A video tour of the garden... and, week 4's share/pickup contents!

Hey ya'll!

I'm so proud of our successes at the Coburn Cooperative Homesteading garden, right now. Ordinarily (= last year, and years before) I'd just be taking my time, taking pictures of every 'hippy' thing I'd try to do in the garden... but this year, I haven't had time for all that. I've been TRYING lots of different things (in addition to working more than I usually do at my school, over the summer). And it seems some of them have worked :)

To catch up on lost time, I made a video this morning, after the last of the harvest for the share baskets was done... I figured, if a picture's worth a thousand words, a video-showing-material-success is worth at least... twelve lost opportunities to show 'look at me trying hard at stuff right now' pictures? ;) I hope it looks as much like an amazingly productive garden to you, as it does to us! Anyways, here goes:

VID_20190724_080530936[1] from Mr. Mikulski on Vimeo.

And now, a picture of yesterday's share contents, and any details that might be good to know:

New things:

Peppers -- a couple of bell peppers in each basket, plus a slightly spicier pepper

Bush beans -- super-yummy

Malabar spinach leaves -- an interesting, tasty spinach substitute that thrives in the summertime... eat raw in salads, on sandwiches, etc.

Half-winter squash (my make up name) -- 'UFO squash' (Doro's made up name)... these are great baked, but don't need as much baking time as winter squash typically do.

And finally, a picture of the mushrooms the kids and I were able to find, foraging yesterday (some of you who made it out to share pickup yesterday, went home with some of these):

We found black trumpets, chantrelles, boletes, and saffron milk caps. I hope to prepare most of this today, will try out drying some so I can use in soups later!

If you have any nice recipes that use current or former share ingredients, please reply back and let the rest of us know about it! Until next week... =)