As a new year begins, new hope rises for a fruitful new season of mind, body, and soul. Here’s hoping you find in your 2012 a bountiful harvest in all these ways.
Solus Invictus (For my purposes: Genesis 8:22)
I love the winter solstice because it signifies the turning of the tide, the slow but steady march back toward warmer weather. I generally don’t notice it at first, because of the preoccupation with Christmas, but soon after the new year I notice the daylight hours are steadily increasing daily, albeit painfully slowly. Spring is just around the corner!
Our first crop every year is asparagus, so we need to be about the business of clearing the old foliage from the bed right now, because those spears will begin to emerge before you know it. We will announce later, as soon as the asparagus is ready for sale, probably sometime in March. Get your running shoes on, because supplies are limited, and we don’t wait for stragglers.
We very much regret not posting our apple forecast much earlier. Whereas all of our varieties save one would normally been available long before now (September is our main apple season here in Oklahoma), the fact of the matter is that we did not produce an apple crop this year. Due to this summer’s drought and extreme high temperatures, combined with our limited ability to irrigate, we have had no apples at all to sell to the public. We are in “regroup” mode in the orchard, and look forward to a crop next year. Stay tuned for developments, and thanks for your patience.
Wayne & Suzan
Well it came at least ten days early this year, and I can’t really tell you why. The fact still remains: We are out of blueberries for 2011. We did have a hail storm in early May, but I didn’t notice any berry or blossom drop. The rainfall pattern was different this year, but we irrigate regularly to offset that. The bottom line is this season’s blueberry crop is history.
I will say that we do have a young planting of blueberries, and each year will hopefully produce larger crops. We will be adding rows this fall, with varieties that mature later in the season. So, each year should be better than the previous season, with God’s good pleasure. As you plan for next years picking, remember to call in April/May to get your place in the que.
What’s next this season? I think it will be pickling cucumbers, but stay tuned for what and when.
June means blueberries. Call to set up your time to come out and pick. Early is better than later, as it heats up quickly this time of year. We hesitated to even post that they are ready, as a list has been forming for several weeks from our return customers, and supplies are limited. Give us a call and we will try to get you in for some blueberries. We do still have some rhubarb waiting for someone to pick it and take it home.
Filling:
3 cups sliced fresh or frozen rhubarb (1/2 ” pieces)
1 quart fresh strawberries, mashed
2 T. lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1/3 cup cornstarch
Cake:
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 t. baking powder
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1 cup butter cut into pieces
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 extra large eggs
1/2 t. vanilla extract
1/2 t. almond extract
Topping:
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
In a large saucepan, combine rhubarb,strawberries and lemon juice. Cover and cook over medium heat about 5 minutes. Combine sugar and cornstarch; stir into saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly until thickened; remove from heat and set aside. In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Beat buttermilk, eggs, vanilla and almond extracts; stir into crumb mixture. Spread half of the batter evenly into a greased 14” by 10” by 2″ baking dish. Gently spread filling on top. Drop remaining batter by tablespoonfuls over filling. For topping, melt butter in a saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat; stir in flour and sugar until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over batter. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes. Cool in pan.
Note:
I also use combinations of other fruits making this coffeecake….blueberries and tart pie cherries are great as well.
(Modified from a recipe found in a Country Woman Magazine, March/April 1993.)
The first produce of the season out of the garden here at High-Fence Farm is always asparagus and rhubarb. Both perennials, and both technically vegetables, only asparagus makes its way to the table during the main part of the meal. It can stand alone as side dish, or added to a casserole.
Rhubarb, by contrast is a tart filler for pies, coffee cakes, and breakfast crumbles. A common companion to rhubarb is strawberries. I did say tart, didn’t I? Be sure to remember the sugar in your recipe. I think my wife is going to post a recipe for rhubarb in the next day or so, so keep your eyes peeled.
Both asparagus and rhubarb are in limited supply, so please call ahead before you come out. They should be available until about mid-May. Both are priced at $2.00/lb.
This time of year we are busy cleaning up, getting ready for next season. Several frosts in recent weeks have brought an end to almost everything in the garden, so we are in the middle of clean-up and renovation in preparation for spring, 2011. The past few days we have been planting blueberries. For some reason, we lost a good number of two-year-old plants, so we are filling in the gaps. Our blueberry season occupies, for the most part, the month of June. Start calling in May to get your name on the list. Supplies are limited. This most likely will be our last post till sometime in the early spring.
Enjoy the upcoming Thanksgiving and Advent seasons with family and friends.
The Hatchers
Apples are history. Normally we would have a few Arkansas Black apples in October, but this year’s AB crop suffered from a severe case of scab, so it’s over, folks.
We do have a few American hybrid Chestnuts (not pick-your-own, of course), so give us a call if you are looking for fresh Chestnuts.
Last week saw a flurry of apple sales, but there are still some Golden Delicious left. Call and set up a time to come out and pick yours this weekend. Our apple orchard is a work in progress, so next year should provide an increase in variety selection.
Apples are about to descend upon us. We have a limited supply of Golden Delicious, so call now to reserve yours.
