Resiliency
The smoke has started to clear here in Wine Country. My home and farm were not damaged by the wildfires but that seems, to just be by luck or a random change in wind. These wildfires have been devastating, I…
Category Autumn
Still Picking
October is here and I’m still harvesting tomatoes. The heirloom tomato plants are just barely hanging on having never really recovered from the intense heat wave from weeks ago. But the cherry tomato plants are happy and healthy with fresh…
Finding the Harvest
I’ve been spending my days hunting for pumpkins. What started as nice little pumpkin plants in neat straight rows has grown to vines with big green leaves stretching far and wide. It’s hard to walk as every space is either…
Farmers Love Books
As a farmer with winter coming and farm life slowing down, now is the perfect time to stay inside and get cozy with a good book. Books make great presents this holiday season either as a hostess gift or a…
Garlic in the Ground
Last week I planted garlic. In addition to my favorite garlic variety California Early White, I have also planted an heirloom variety Inchelium Red garlic. I’m excited to see how this new variety grows and taste compared to my old favorite.…
Waiting on the Popcorn
The popcorn crop is not ready for popping yet, it was all harvested weeks ago but the wait continues. Most years I’m eating bowls of fluffy popcorn by the second week of November. I shouldn’t be surprised as I stare…
Local Jeans
Last Saturday I drove out to Bolinas to the beautiful Mann Family Farm to attend Fibershed’s Grow Your Own Jeans event. The event was the debut of jeans made of organic cotton and indigo grown in the Capay Valley, then woven…
Bountiful Bounty
The end of the summer and early fall is a time of great bounty. Summer crops are at their peak and fall crops are just starting to be harvested. Right now I can fill a ten pound box of heirloom…
Here Comes the Rainy Season …
Last week we got rain, not much about a quarter of an inch, but every little bit helps. With our current drought we have had so few rain storms, I admit I kinda forgot what they were like. Thursday morning as…
Colorful Beans
Last week I harvested the first of this year’s dried bean crop. I am growing four different bean varieties this year Tiger Eye, Jacob’s Cattle, Hutterite, and Calypso. Each of these varieties has a distinct colorful pattern hidden underneath their…