First Big Freeze of the Year

 

First Big Freeze of the Year
Getting all the remaining napa cabbage out on Friday!
 
Farm Update
 
 
Last night we saw the first real dip in temperature, with a local weather station near the farm reporting -5℃.  For the past week we had been keeping a close eye on the forecast because a low like that is damaging to most crops we still had in the field.  As the week went on and the forecast was predicting lower and lower temperatures for Sunday night, the pressure was on to harvest everything possible.

Every year around this time, we face a last-minute, last-chance-before-the-freeze, save-everything-we-can harvest day.  Some crops can handle a few subzero temperatures, but most of what we grow are too tender for those conditions.  We were lucky this year that this harvest day came when it wasn't terribly cold (if 5℃ and raining counts), though we have certainly seen years when it was 1℃, raining sideways, and you could feel the temperature dropping every hour.

Fridays are normally a busy day for us with two delivery trucks to ship out, and two markets to harvest and prep for.  But, it was also the last day of the week there was a full crew available before the freeze on Sunday night.  So, without really any other choice, we split into a small team working on bulk harvesting, another team harvesting for markets, and Erik making sure our coolers were ready to accommodate the resulting inflow of vegetables.

Just about everyone was totally soaked, covered in mud, and needed to change into dry clothes at lunchtime.  Those types of harvest days are physically demanding and require mental endurance, but there is definitely something really satisfying (dare we say fun) about going as quickly as possible, despite the weather, to save what you can before dark.  We can't negotiate a different schedule with the weather, so it's really about making the most of all our work earlier in the season.

After Friday's rush, a smaller crew also worked on Saturday to harvest even more and prepare the farm (greenhouses, irrigation and buildings) for freezing.  All told, we were able to get all the critical things done and are happy with how smoothly everything went.  This week, we will be working on the indoor tasks that were put on hold last week, while we wait until the snow subsides to harvest the rest of our carrots.
 
Adding the hoops overtop of lettuce in our new field tunnel location.  We got the plastic on just in time to insulate from cold and frost.
 

FARM STORE NOTES
 
FROM OUR FARM:
 
Head lettuces: These are the last weeks of magenta, mini heads, radicchio, endive, and escarole this year!  The fall weather makes them extra flavourful, so this is the perfect time to enjoy or try them.  Make sure to get your fill before they're done for the season!
 
Fennel: It's also their last few weeks of the season.  Fennel is great shaved into salads, in soups and sauteed.  Some of us on the farm even snack on it raw.  Its anise flavour adds freshness to lots of dishes.  If you haven't tried it, trust us, it tastes nothing like salty, black licorice! 
 
Sunchokes: Also called Jerusalem artichokes, sunchokes are related to sunflowers.  Indigenous to North America, sunchokes are both edible and ornamental.  The plants grow 10' tall, with a beautiful sunflower-like blooms.  In the fall, the plants die back and you can dig up and eat the tubers!  Use sunchokes any way you use carrot or potato, and no need to peel.  Grated/thinly sliced in salad, in soup or stew, roasted, scalloped, sauteed or mashed.  Flavour is similar to potato but slightly sweeter and nutty.
 
From the field:​ Leeks, carrots, beets, potatoes, sunchokes, herbs (dill, cilantro, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme), salad mix, spinach, mustard greens, arugula, celeriac, rutabaga, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, choi, head lettuces, green onion, kale, collards.
 
From the Greenhouse and hoophouses: chard, dill and cilantro.
FROM OUR SUPPLIERS:
 
PRODUCE
 
HOPE Eco-Farms (Aylmer):​ Tetsukabuto, stripetti (striped spaghetti), butternut,​ and black futsu squash.  Sweet potatoes.
Great Lakes Farms (Port Stanley): Macintosh, cortland, empire, gala, honeycrisp, mutsu, spy, jonagold, sunpunch, golden delicious, fuji.
Forest City Microgreens (London): Fresh microgreens
Daryl Myny (Aylmer): Spanish onions
Pfenning's Organics: Red onions, russet potatoes, parsnips
Through Pfenning's: Ontario Empire, Gala or Liberty apples, and Asian pears, shallots, and mushrooms.  From further away; lemons, limes, ginger, turmeric.
 
DAIRY and EGGS
Mistyglen Creamery (Belmont): ​Non-homogenized and vat pasteurized milk, yogurt, and cheese curds.  
HOPE Eco-Farms (Aylmer): Eggs.
Through Pfenning's: L'Ancetre butter and grass-fed cheeses
Gunn's Hill (Woodstock): Brie, Handeck and Five Brother's cheeses
 
 FROZEN
3Gen Organics (Wallenstein): Ground pork, sausage, bacon, ham, tenderloin, chops
YU Ranch (Tillsonburg): Pasture-raised ground beef, beef patties, stewing beef
New Leaf Foods (London): Plant-based beet burgers
 
BAKERY
Seth/La Houlette de vie (St. Thomas): Organic sourdough bread made using local grain that Seth mills himself. 
Artisan Bakery (London): Sourdoughs and pastry made with local flour.
J&D Peters Tortillas (Aylmer):​ Corn, spelt, whole wheat and unbleached flour tortillas.
Lewis Baked Goods (St. Thomas): Organic flour ready-to-use pizza crusts.
 
PANTRY
Aldred Maple (West Lorne): Amber, dark, or whiskey barrel-aged maple syrup.
Wildflowers Honey (St. Thomas): Unpasteurized honey from hives all over Elgin County, including our farm!
Mat's Fine Oils (Staffordville). Fresh, organic and cold-pressed, hemp and sunflower oil. Store in the refrigerator.

PICKUP / DELIVERY SCHEDULE

Pickup Instore: Farm pickup is Thursday 4pm-8pm. ​Western Fair is Saturday 8-3 pm, Kitchener Market 7-2 pm.

Delivery: Thursday or  Friday in London / St.Thomas.  We will send out the schedule Wednesday.  

RETURNING CONTAINERS

We love to re-use wherever possible!  We can take our CGF boxes and liner bags, strawberry and blueberry baskets/boxes, milk bottles, and egg cartons. 

For delivery, please leave these return items out where you would like your order dropped off.  Thank you!

 
 
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Common Ground Farm 6986 Middle River Road St. Thomas, Ontario N5P 3S9
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