Fall Crops

Arugula

Fall (yes, it's coming fast!) means wonderful fall crops like butternut squash, pumpkins and even grapes. At One Love Farm we also have second harvests of crops normally harvested in the spring. Greens and root crops typically like the cool nights of the spring and fall. French long radishes and beets were a big hit at the Richmond Farmers' Market in the spring and we should have both ready for harvest in late September or October.

We also harvest Arugula in the fall. Arugula is a spicy green used in salads, on pizza and as a pesto. And, if you are wondering about the tiny holes in the Arulula leaves, those are from a common pest to the plant. Flea beatles feed on Arugula and other greens. Since we don't use pesticides at One Love Farm, we have to rely on organic controls. So far, I have yet to find and fully effictive organic control for flea beatles. However, their damage to the crop is visual only and doesn't harm the plant or affect the flavor of the leaves.

Arugula sets seeds in the hot months of the summer. We harvest the dry pods in the summer to save the seeds for next year. Inevitably, seeds drop in the dirt and we get Arugula sprouts in August. We don't even have to plants the seeds. That is the magic of nature at its finest. The plant has such a strong genetic disposition to reproduce that it will germinate wherever it hits the ground and gets rain. In fact, we have Aruguala growing outside the beds from the seed pods flopping over the side of the border and in the paths from where I carried seed back to basement. Arugula is truly an amazing plant! Next week, I will make a mix of radish greens and Arugula for a spicy salad mix available at the Richmond Farmers' Market. Come see us on Saturday.

Love Lies Bleeding

Amaranthus caudatus is also known commonly as Love Lies Bleeding, Pendant Amaranth, Tassal Flower, Velvet Flower and Foxtail Amaranth among other names. The plant is an annual and is easily grown from seed. At One Love Farm we sow seeds directly into the ground after danger of frost has passed, but you can also be successful sowing seeds indoors and transplanting after your last frost date. Love Lies Bleeding is edible and used as food in India and South America where the leaves and seeds are eaten. We enjoy using Love Lies Bleeding in bouquets where its striking red color and weeping character are enjoyed.

Eggplant

Asian Eggplant

Without a doubt, one of my favorite summer vegetables is eggplant. Although Karen is Italian in heritage, and we love Italian vegetables (look for an upcoming post on San Marzano tomatoes) we greatly prefer the Asian eggplant to the Italian varieties. The Asian variety is slimmer with a tapered end compared to pear shaped Italian fruit. What makes Asian eggplant the best is the seeds, or lack thereof. Unless picked early, Italian eggplant starts getting big seeds inside the fruit. These seeds tend to be bitter, especially when cooked. Asian eggplant, meanwhile has fewer and smaller seeds.

Asian eggplant is used the same way as its Italain cousin. We roast it in the oven with other veggies, marinate it with pesto and herbs, grill it with zucchini and bread it and bake it or deep fry it. However, by far our favorite way to cook eggplant is to make eggplant balls.

Just peel and cube your eggplant and roast it with olive oil and salt until very tender. Eggplant, I think, has an unpleasant palate when undercooked, so make sure it is very soft when you take it out of the oven. Let the eggplant cool and put it in a food processor with a clove of garlic and a pinch of red pepper. Drizzle in olive oil while pulsing on the food processor until smooth. Then, add bread crumbs and process. Add enough bread crumbs to get the consistency of dry meatballs. Take a large tablespoon of the mixture and roll into a meatball shape. Roll in flour and fry in a pan or bake in the oven at 400 degrees until cooked through. You can use them just like meatballs on pasta or in a grinder (hero sandwich). We often make dozens and dozens of eggplant balls, let them cool and bag them up. They freeze well and we love taking out a dozen for a hearty pasta dinner on a cold night January!

Purple Majesty

Purple Majesty (Millet)

Millet is widely cultivated around the world. There are dozens, if not hundreds of varieties of millet. In China, millet is staple crop grown as a grain. It does especially well in the dry areas of China. In the United States, millet has been offered in health food stores as a grain for decades.

Now millet is also grown as an ornamental. One of our favorite varieties is Purple Majesty. We use the striking purple spikes in flower arrangements. If left out, the stalks will dry and birds will feast on the seeds. Gardeners treasure the seeds and often save them. However, in northern climates like Rhode Island, the seeds must be saved indoors as they will not germinate if frozen over winter.

Zinnias

Zinnia

Zinnias are native to Mexico and the American southwest. Zinnias are now grown throughout climates in America as a beautiful cutting flower. If you like cut flowers in your house during the summer, zinnias might be a good choice for you. Zinnias are easy so grow from seed. They like rich, amended soil. If you continue to cut and harvest flowers, the plant will branch, giving you a new supply of flowers every few days for weeks. At One Love Farm, we grow many different colors of zinnia along with sunflowers, grasses and other cutting flowers. They are all available in arrangements at the Richmond Farmers' Market.

Pesto

Basil

Pesto generally refers to a sause used on pasta made of crushed basil and garlic with olive oil, parmesean cheese, pine nuts and hot, red pepper. However, there are many variations on pesto. You can substitute walnuts for the pine nuts or omit the nuts altogether and still have pesto. You can even make pesto out of garlic scapes (see earlier blog entry) or arugula.

By far the most popular pesto is made with basil. Italian basil. While we grow Thai basil and purple basil among other varieties at One Love Farm, by far the most popular variety is Italian Large Leaf Basil. Most people buy our basil to make pesto, but some use the bail in garden salad or with cut tomatoes and mozerella cheese for Caprese salad.

Besides serving on pasta, there are many other ways to serve pesto. French cooking often uses a variation of pesto, called pisto, in soups. We often use pesto as a marinade for vegetables before grilling. It is also good with grilled tofu. Whatever your use for bail, now is the time of year to get it in New England, while it is local and in season!

Garlic

Pesto:

One big bunch of basil, leaves only

One clove garlic

Olive oil

Toasted pine nuts

Parmesean Cheese

Crushed Red Pepper

Salt

Mince garlic clove in food processor

Put basil leaves in food processor, but do not overfill.

Drizzle in olive oil until pesto becomse a smooth paste

Add toasted pine nuts and grated cheese and pulse. Add more olive oil if needed.

Add salt and crushed red pepper to taste

Pesto can be frozen and kept in the freezer up to a year or longer. However, I have found it best that when freezing to omit garlic, cheese and nuts as they can discolor and get bitter. I have also found it best to freeze pesto using less olive oil. Once thawed, you can add in garlic, cheese and nuts and additional olive oil.

Tomato Cages

New fangled tomato supports

I have been struggling for years with the best way to support tomato plants. They seem so puny in the spring when you plant them. How could they possibly need so much support? Eggplant is a prolific producer and needs no support. So too, most pepper plants. But tomatoes are different. Their fruit is weighted down with lots of water and are super heavy.

In the past we have used tomato cages (anyone need about 100?). They work great at the beginning of the season. But by the time harvest rolls around, they are toppled over and the plants are back on the ground. In addition, the cages make it difficult to prune branches, a very important step when growing tomatoes.

Tomato stakes work well. But they are a huge labor drain. Every tomato has to be individually staked and they have to be retied to the stake every week or two. With so many things to do in the garden this time of year, that seems less than efficient. What usually ends up happening is that you get a top heavy plant with lots of broken branches.

This year, we decided to try something new. Pantyhose! By tieing pantyhose to tomato stakes, we can get several plants per stake. In addition, pantyhose has way more give than twine, so the delicate tomato plant branches don't break or get cut. Also, pantyhose is strong enough to support even a huge tomato plant weighed down with fruit.

The only issue was getting the pantyhose home. I just couldn't bring myself to buy 60 pairs of hose by myself (what would the clerk think I was doing with them?) So, I brought Karen along and we got out with no questions asked! I'll let you know how our new experiment works for better or worse.