Farm Happenings at Firmly Rooted Farm
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Lettuce Rejoice! April 15, 2021 - Tiny Beginnings & Great Green Garlic

Posted on April 9th, 2021 by Tamara McMullen

April 15, 2021

The Lettuce Rejoice

Firmly Rooted Farm's Newsletter for their Veggie Loving Farm-ily  

***Be sure to check out our Making the Most of Your Farm Share guide!***

 


On the Farm: Where it All Began

Hi All!

Many of you have likely been buying from Firmly Rooted for quite some time, but do you know the story of where it all began? When Tamara and Brian started their farming journey, they were living in a 200 square foot tiny home they built with the help of a local contractor. Together with two cats, they lived in this space for over 5 years as they developed their farming skills and knowledge. The tiny home accompanied them while they participated in the farming internship at Everdale Organic Farm and Environmental Learning Centre in 2012, and provided shelter as they began their own business on Brian’s parent’s property in Clinton.


Modelled after a classic barn with a red gambrel roof, the tiny home offered the comforts of a not-so-tiny home. They spent this time saving money and dreaming big, preparing for the day when they could invest their savings and passions into their own land and labour of love. Today the tiny home finds its own home on Tamara and Brian’s property, providing refuge to others. To read more about the tiny home and view some pictures of the “making of” process, visit the Firmly Rooted website!


Farm Happenings

This past week we were delighted to be planting outside! With a big push from the entire team, a wide variety of wholesome plant babies made their way into new homes in our raised bed field. We transplanted salanova lettuce, red, golden, and chioggia beets, endive, head-lettuce, bok choi, dino kale, curly kale, rainbow chard, and kohlrabi. Outside we also seeded carrots, turnip, spinach, Asian greens, arugula, and radishes. We ventured our way into the greenhouses and high tunnels to transplant broccolini, dill, fennel, cilantro, green onions, and even more lettuce (you can never have enough lettuce on a salad farm). We also complemented some plant beds with a buffer of sweet alyssum, a beautiful flower well-loved by beneficial pollinators, which will wonderfully enhance the growing biodiversity of the farm. The unseasonably warm weather has us all dreaming of summer days when the bees will be happily buzzing around an array of blooms!

 

Kitchen Corner


This week in your box you may find green garlic, an exciting vegetable offering for your culinary creations, which you can also swap into your box during customization. Simply put, green garlic is immature garlic. Substitute it for regular garlic in your favourite dishes or use it as a garnish like you would green onions! Prepare it by trimming the roots and any tough parts of the green leaves. Chop or slice the white and light green leaves and any tender sections of the dark green leaves. Then get creative! I’m personally quite excited to try fermenting some green garlic with red pepper flakes.

Kitchen Clean-Up


Our Making the Most of Your Farm Share guide will help you make good use of your CSA box! In the guide, you will find tips for cooking and storing your veggies as well as helpful and easy stir fry and veggie soup stock recipes.

That’s all for now folks, happy eating until next time!
Farmer Erika