Our work share crew last Saturday. THANKS! Email us if you are interested in worksharing Wednesdays or Saturdays.
2) Farm News
- August Delivery Schedule
- Potluck for Farm Manager Will Tuesday July 22, 7:00pm
- Outstanding in the Field Reminder
- Best of Austin – Last Chance to Vote – Best Local Food Company
- From Our Fields: Updates on Happenings at the New Farm
- Outbreak of Fungus Threatens Eastern States Tomato Crop
- 2,000 Acre Quarry Proposed for Eastern Travis County
- Reminders
- Julie and Julie: Chef Demo & Ticket Giveaway
- FRESH Film Feast Benefiting SFC
- Edible Communities Show on Heritage Radio Network
- Classes at The Natural Gardener
- Austin Public Library Green Living Talks
- Austin Organic Gardeners
- Travis County Master Gardeners Association
4) Quotable Food
- Cream of Squash Soup
- Zucchini Creole with Tomatoes and Peppers
- Fried Squash Puffs
6) Vegetable Storage Tips
7) Johnson’s Backyard Garden Contact Information
Please send newsletter feedback, suggestions and contributions to farm@jbgorganic.com
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Yukon Gold Potatoes
Assorted Sweet Pepper
Basil or Mint
Watermelon or Cantaloupe or Honey Dew
Eggplant
Summer Squash and Zucchini
Cucumbers
- August Delivery Schedule: As you know, the Johnson family usually takes a vacation during August, however, this year will be making CSA deliveries throughout the summer. Beth and the kids are still going to Alabama to see the grandparents and great grandparents for a couple of weeks, however Brenton will be staying at the farm. He plans to go home for a week at Christmas and see the family. It is hard to leave when we are busy training new crew members readying the the new farm for fall planting.
- Potluck for Farm Manager Will Tuesday July 22, 7:00pm – Will is moving on to greener pastures after nearly two years at the farm. We will really miss him and are having a potluck dinner to show our appreciation. The potluck starts at 7:00pm in the pecan orchard…wear something you can get wet in!
- Outstanding in the Field Reminder: This event brings together the best of what Austin has to offer in the way of chefs, farmers, winemakers and food artisans. This is the second year that this wonderful dining experience has been held at JBG. For those of you who are not familiar with Outstanding in the Field please check out their website and consider signing up for this years extravaganza. But you’ll have to act fast as tickets for this event are almost sold out.
Also check out the You Tube video of Jim Denevan that aired on CBS News Sunday Morning in January 2008.
2008 Outstanding in the Field dinner at JBG.
- Best of Austin – Last Chance to Vote – Best Local Food Company
Last year, the Austin Chronicle’s ‘Best of’ Awards’ critics picked Johnson’s Backyard Garden as the Best Farm to Table Local Food Initiative. Well, it’s that time of year again……….the 2009 ‘Best of Austin’ Award is published in this week’s Austin Chronicle. We are shamelessly soliciting all interested persons to VOTE FOR US as the ‘Best Local Food Company’. Here’s how it works. You can pickup a copy of the Chronicle, fill out your ballot and send it in. Or you can follow the link above to place your electronic ballot. We’d like and appreciate your support and remember to get those ballots in by July 21. Thanks!
- From Our Fields: Updates on Happenings at the New Farm
Update on the new farm – Curtis Griffin, from the Jimmy Evans Company, was generous in helping us clean up the fence line with the bulldozer last week. The wells are now installed and very capable of producing enough water for us (the 16″ well produces 225 gpm and the 6″ well produces 80 gpm). This will make for happy fields all around. Brenton is busy designing the irrigation system and working with the electrical contractors to get power to the wells. Hopefully the pumps and electricity will be installed in the next two to three weeks. As soon as we get the wells operational and the irrigation system installed we will be ready to start preparing the field for fall planting. Next week we also plan to take soil tests to see what soil amendments we need to add.
We recieved our Organic Certification for the new farm last week. With 19 acres at the airport farm and 40 acres at the new farm, we now have nearly 60 acres of land under organic certification. We are really excited to have more land. It means Aaron is busy with crop planning for twenty acres, that’s half the new farm.
This will allow us to be more sustainable in our farming practices by reducing our dependence on importing compost and organic fertilizer to maintain soil fertility and organic matter. By having more land we can grow vegetables on a portion and grow cover crops and green manures on another portion. Ideally we would like to have only 1/3 of our land in vegetable crops at any one time and the rest of the land in soil building crops to add organic matter and nitrogen for use by subsequent cash crops.
The difficult part of this is that if you have a small farm like ours and live is an area where land is so expensive it is hard to afford to not use 2/3’s of the farm for cash crops. Our long term goal is to continue to be able to buy more land (a total of at least 120 cultivatable acres) eventually having 35 to 40 acres in vegetable production. This would allow us to feed nearly 1200 Austin families each week.
Michael Klug, our Hyde Park host and who is helping make the purchase of the new land possible, is interested in planting fruit and berries on ten acres adjacent to the new farm. Brenton will be helping design the planting and laying out the irrigation system to this section. We are considering planting apples, satsuma oranges, limes, Myers lemons, loquats, blackberries, persimmons, figs, peaches, asparagus, and a few pecans.
- Outbreak of Fungus Threatens Tomato Crop
The New York Times published a story last week about the outbreak of Late Blight Fungus that is currently affecting Eastern and mid- Atlantic states. Though this threat is not a local problem for Texas at this time, it does illustrate how fragile our food source truly is. Another strain of this fungus was responsible for Irish potato famine in the mid- 19th century, according to the New York Times. The fungus has been traced to plant sales from national big-box stores.
Late Blight on green tomatoes. Photo: New York Times.
- 2,000 Acre Quarry Proposed for Eastern Travis County
The Statesman recently published an interesting news article concerning land use in Eastern Travis county. The proposed large scale mining operation has brought out comments on both sides of the fence. Check out their story for further information. Frankly we cannot believe the planned destruction. We encourage you to contact your local representatives and voice your opinions.
- Reminders
At JBG, we rely heavily on a system of trust for the distribution of our weekly shares. We appreciate the fact that the vast majority of our members respect our policies and allow this system to work. Recently, we have received a few complaints about problems at some of the pickup sites and just wanted to restate our policies as a reminder.
TRADE BOXES: Please use the trade box concept as it was originally conceived. This means you should feel free to take some produce when you’d like a little extra but also please leave anything from your own CSA box that you may not be too fond of. Please do not empty the trade box for use in your own kitchen. Instead please share in the bounty and trade with your fellow CSA members.
CSA BOXES: Always bring a box or food bags to transfer your produce into for the trip home. Do not take the wax boxes home! Remember to help your host take care of your drop off site by breaking down the wax CSA boxes and stacking them neatly. It helps keep the host’s property organized, the boxes clean, and the delivery person happy.
All the CSA boxes are packed with similar offerings. Please do not peruse each of the CSA boxes in search of your preferred produce. This causes problems on many levels. Other CSA members are left without their full share, and the replacement cost of each of those boxes is huge for us. This kind of activity forces us to harvest and process more veggies than we have planned for, essentially limiting our planned harvest numbers. It also increases our delivery costs, as replacement boxes then need to be brought back to the drop off site. Please consider your fellow CSA member’s investment and help build community.
MANAGE YOUR CSA ACCOUNT: At CSA accounts, you can make payments, check schedule pick up times and dates, and renew or change your order. It’s the best way to stay up to date with your individual account. If you experience any difficulties managing you account, please contact Carrie at the farm Monday- Friday before 12:30 pm at 512.386.5273 or email us at farm@jbgorganic.com.
- Julie and Julie: Chef Demo & Ticket Giveaway
- FRESH Film Feast Benefiting SFC
Tuesday, August 25, 7pm at Boggy Creek Farm
Edible Austin and Alamo Drafthouse will present an Alamo Drafthouse Film Feast at Boggy Creek Farm on Tuesday, August 25. The event will feature a screening of the new food movie, FRESH, and will benefit the Sustainable Food Center (SFC). All interested community groups are invited to attend as co-hosts and help us present an evening of conversation, farm-fresh picnic feasting along with viewing this outstanding new film about food in America. Co-hosts include Front Porch Project, Farmhouse Delivery, Zhi Tea, Maine Root, Texas French Bread, Greenling Organic Delivery, Paula’s Texas Spirits, Independence Brewing Co., Better-World Maker’s Co-op, Slow Food Austin, Urban Roots, Green Corn Project, Capital Area Food Bank, Farm and Ranch Freedon Alliance and others. Please contact Marla Camp This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it at Edible Austin to get involved.
DETAILS: Cocktails and Conversation: 7:00pm – 8:30pm; locally-sourced picnic dinner by Alamo chefs John Bullington and Trish Eichelberger: 7:30pm; FRESH film screening begins at dark. Tickets: $35 advance only (Includes food and drinks) are available online at Alamo Drafthouse. Guests are encouraged to bring lawn chairs or blankets to spread out on the lawn for picnic and film showing. Limited seating.
ABOUT THE FILM: FRESH celebrates the farmers, thinkers and business people across America who are re-inventing our food system. Each has witnessed the rapid transformation of our agriculture into an industrial model, and confronted the consequences: food contamination, environmental pollution, depletion of natural resources, and morbid obesity. Forging healthier, sustainable alternatives, they offer a practical vision for a future of our food and our planet.
- Edible Communities Show on Heritage Radio Network
- Classes at The Natural Gardener
Saturdays through mid-September. 9 a.m. The Natural Gardener, 8648 Old Bee Cave Road. Free. 288-6113.
- Austin Public Library Green Living Talks
Varying times through Aug. Check Web site for schedule and locations. www.cityofaustin.org/library
- Austin Organic Gardeners
The Austin Organic Gardeners meet the second Monday of every month at Zilker Botanical Garden. www.austinorganicgardeners.org Meetings start at 7 p.m.
- Travis County Master Gardeners Association
The Travis County Master Gardeners Association holds it’s monthly meetings on the first Wednesday of each month. www.tcmastergardeners.org Meetings starts at 7 p.m.
4) Quotable Food:
A nickel will get you on the subway, but garlic will get you a seat. ~Old New York Proverb
5) Recipes:
- Cream of Squash Soup, from southernfood.about.com
1 1/2 pounds yellow summer squash
2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, sliced
1/4 lemon, sliced, seeds removed
1/4 cup flour
6 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
3 to 4 grinds of fresh nutmeg or dash of ground nutmeg
1 cup heavy cream
Wash and trim squash. Slice, reserving 8 very thin slices for garnish. In a large saucepan, melt butter; gently saute onion and lemon. Sprinkle with flour and cook slowly, stirring, until flour is absorbed. Add chicken broth gradually, then sliced squash, salt and pepper. Simmer for 1 hour. Puree soup in blender or food processor. Add nutmeg. To heat, stir in cream with a wire whisk and cook over low heat. Do not allow to boil. Garnish cream of squash soup with reserved squash slices.
- Zucchini Creole with Tomatoes and Peppers, from southernfood.about.com
1 1/2 to 2 pounds sliced zucchini
8 ounces sliced mushrooms
1 large green bell pepper, cut into thin strips
1 clove garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried leaf basil, crumbled
1 tablespoon melted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon sugar or equivalent sugar substitute
1/4 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
2 medium tomatoes, peeled and chopped
Combine zucchini, mushrooms, green pepper, garlic, basil, butter, salt, pepper, sugar, and Worcestershire sauce in a large skillet; cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Add tomatoes and cook for 5 minutes more, or until tender.
- Fried Squash Puffs, from southernfood.about.com
3/4 pound yellow squash, about 2 medium, cubed
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 medium onion, grated
vegetable oil
Add squash to saucepan and cover with salted water. Cook, covered, 10 to 15 minutes or until tender. Drain and mash enough squash to make 1 cup. Combine squash and egg and blend well. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt, stir well. Add squash mixture and onions, stir until blended. Drop squash mixture by level tablespoon into hot oil. Cook until golden brown, turning once.
6) Produce Storage Tips:
We aim to grow and package our vegetables to maintain the highest taste and nutritional quality possible. However, once they’ve left the farm it’s up to you to keep them fresh and nutritious. There’s no refrigeration at the CSA drop points so it’s best to pick up your box as early as possible. Here are some additional tips on how to store this week’s share:
Tomatoes should be kept uncovered at room temp, but can be refrigerated if very ripe. All other fresh vegetables belong in the refrigerator.
Peppers and Cucumbers should be stored in the crisper, and washed before use.
Basil can be stored upright in a jar of water at room temperature, or in an open bag on the counter. These three all do well frozen also (they will loose texture but not taste).
Eggplants, Potatoes, Onions are best kept moderately cool, no lower than 50 degrees. A cool, dry dark place is best- on the counter, in a cupboard or basket. Don’t whole store onions in the refrigerator because the moisture is bad for them. Don’t store potatoes near onions. The onions will absorb moisture from the potatoes.
Summer Squash will last 4-7 days in plastic bags in the crisper.
Melons should be ripened before refrigeration, stored in plastic bags when ripe. Melons should be used as soon as possible after ripening.
Checkout our storage tips on our website for a more complete guide, and of course, feel free to contact us with any questions. The National Center for Home Food Preservation is your guide for how to can, freeze, dry, pickle or ferment just about anything.
7) Johnson’s Backyard Garden Contact Information
Johnson’s Backyard Garden
9515 Hergotz Lane, Box E
Austin, TX 78742
Office Phone: 512.386.5273
Office Hours: M-F 8am to 12:30pm
e-mail: farm@jbgorganic.com