Scab
I find that I keep my head in the sand until I am ready to take it out .. . About a month ago, a guy came by to check out the farm who considers himself somewhat of an expert on things agricultural. He reported that our apple trees are in terrible shape. As much as I tried to ignore him, I had noticed some defoliation and some brown leaves. But, too busy, I stored it away. Now we are harvesting apples, of which there are thousands, and some space opened up and I extracted my head from the sand.
I had a good conversation with our AEA consultant, Nick Casale. He asked for pictures, so I went around and took individual pictures of our 33 apple trees (in my distraction all these years, I didn’t even know how many trees we have). We determined it was scab, which is clear when you notice the little spots on the flesh of the apples, that actually can be washed off, if you so desire. As I understand it, scab on the apples is not deleterious to human health, but the cosmetics aren’t great.
Nick fired back a scab recipe for us to use, followed up with a fall post-harvest spray. I am looking forward to moving forward on dealing with this pesky and almost ubiquitous problem that apple growers face. The AEA approach is, of course, certifiably organic, unlike the conventional approach suggested by most extension consultants. I am looking forward to the results.
Recipe for 10,000 square feet of apples
Scab recipe
25 oz SeaStim
10 oz SeaCrop
4 oz Copper
4 oz Manganese
8 oz Cobalt
20 grams Micro 5000 organic
Apple post-harvest spray
Post-Harvest Foliar – for 1 acre
Number of Apps: 3
Interval: 1 week
Recipe: Mix in 25 gal water.
- 1.5 gal Accelerate
- 2 qt. HoloCal
- 1 qt. MicroPak
Special Gratitude this week
Thanks Nick, for yet one more recipe, for early signs of powdery mildew on our second planting of summer squash and our flowers. It is nice to be able to reach out for early help with nutritional solutions when the need arises on the farm!
Mildew on Summer Squash, flowers, cucumbers
2 quart seastim
1 quart manganese
2 quart seashield
75 grams of Micro 5000
What is in your CSA Share this week?
Share week of September 16
Best guess for week of September 23
- Tomatoes
- Chard
- Beets
- Arugula
- Lettuce
- Kale
- Cauliflower or Broccoli
- Summer squash
- Rutabaga greens
- Turnips
- Radishes
- Apples – Grimes golden again this week
- Peppers
- Tulsi
- flowers for flower shares
We are still taking new shareholders – here is where you can sign up — https://mhof.net/csa-order-form/
Volunteering at MHOF
This week Michele will return to the MHOF family, a very long-term volunteer and shareholder. And she is coming on Wednesday, our hardest day!
On Saturday, Matt, Marcello and John making a dent in our 4 crates of Friday tomatoes
Jennifer’s recipe for the week
Spiced Apple Oats with Walnuts
Happy Autumn! This is my favorite time of year. As the winds pick up and the temperatures drop, there’s nothing better than starting the day with a warm, spiced breakfast of oats, apples, and walnuts. Oats and apples provide grounding nourishment, while cinnamon and ginger add a fiery warmth to ignite digestion. Walnuts, rich in protein and brain-boosting benefits, are also easier to digest than many other nuts. Adding ghee helps deliver the nutrients deeper into the tissues, making the whole meal even easier to absorb. Enjoy this cozy and nourishing start to your day!
Food available for sale for preserving – be in touch to order
- Swiss chard – $3/lb.
- Kale – $3/lb.
- Collards – $3/lb.
- Peppers – $4/lb.
- Tomatoes – $3/lb.
- Grimes golden apples – $3/lb. these are so juicy, sweet and crispy!
We are also selling the following preserved foods
- frozen applesauce – nothing added – $7/quart.
- Frozen pear sauce – nothing added – $7/quart – this one is especially good for your gall bladder
- frozen peaches – $6 per pound in bags of around 2-3 bs.
- canned tomatoes – $10/quart.
- Canned tomato juice – $10/quart
- Canned apple juice – $10/quart
- NEW ITEM – cooked, pureed, frozen beets in pints – $6 – good for almost everything – https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8565237/; we plan to use it in soups and add it to our super drink everyday
Dan has some items for sale
Potatoes and tomatoes, each at $3/lb. Contact him at 978-257-2627 or dan@bionutrient.org.
Farm Doins
With Stu back on the farm fresh from Montana, we were able to go at the weeds in a real way again.
Notice the bill of Stu’s hat. Sadly he left it on the coffee table and Harriet sampled it in a moment of boredom.
By the end of the week, we had weeded all of our fall brassicas except one bed of broccoli which we will hit on Monday. We harvested 2 more beds of potatoes, picked up more than half of the winter squash (a moderate harvest this year)
Amanda showing off the squash
We picked up a bunch of hay and now have enough set aside for layer bedding for the winter. Jim cut another batch in the pond field which we hope to use for our garlic mulching.
The pigs behaved all week, bought off by a new swimming pool that we replenish each day by running their water hose for 2 hours each day.
Jennifer, Leslie and I ended Friday picking up apples for Sunday’s cider operation. We found 9 crates under our “mother” apple tree.
Leslie took on the production of the bitters this week, taking this important job over from Clare. Our MHOF bitters will be ready just in time for Thanksgiving.
I am not sure exactly what we are doing so well with many of our vegetables right now, but quality and quantity is off the charts with lettuce, beets, radishes, turnips, summer squash, kale, chard, tomatoes, peppers and others. I could only have dreamed of this time 45 years ago when we started.
Food preservation moves at a fast pace with major focus on applesauce and cider, pear sauce, tomato juice, summer squash purees, our new beet puree product. We try to keep 3 5 gallon pots on the stove most days to stay ahead of the crates of food on the back porch.
I am off on Monday for three days travelling with Ellen, seeing Paul in DC and my Aunt Ella in Charlottesville, VA.
Julie
Jennifer caught me in mid shake of the Grimes Golden. Sadly, right after she took the picture, I dropped that apple that I was eating.
