Organic Gardening Info from Peaceful Valley

It’s feeling a bit like Fall here in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Time to start thinking about Fall and Winter proofing your gardens, cleaning and putting up your tools and harvesting those last but not least vine ripe tomatoes. It’s also a great time to get those cover crops and wildflower seeds in the ground while the soil is still warm enough to get the seeds to germinate and put some roots down to hold them in place for the winter. Then they are ready to “take off” when the warmth of Spring wakes them up again. Then you’ve got a great start on your garden soil building, and wildflowers will be mature enough to put on some flowers for beautiful spring and summer color! Don’t forget to plant your greens, brassicas, garlic, onions and potatoes too!

The summer crops are still coming on strong at this time of year, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed with the bounty. Rather than chucking it in the compost, it’s a great time to try your hand at preserving the harvest. Canning, freezing, drying, and fermenting are all ways to make the winter months just a little bit sunnier. Some interesting things I’ve tried this season are drying sungold tomatoes, the little yellow, super-sweet cherry tomatoes. I cut them in half and lay them out on screen drying racks or use a dehydrator. Once they are dry you can store them in airtight containers, or in jars of olive oil for an extra special treat. I’ve also dried pears, figs, apples, apricots, peaches, and tomatoes in the past. The trick is to get the slices the right thickness so that they dry fairly quickly, but still retain some chewiness. You don’t want to dry them too long. We sell a selection of great dehydrators that will help you in your quest for the perfect hiking snack.

Pickling has also been full-0n this summer. I’ve pickled the traditional pickling cucumbers, but also lemon cucumbers, green beans, snow peas, and peppers. It’s fun to try different spices and vinegars and ratios of vinegar and salt. One of my favorite spices to use is turmeric. It adds a beautiful golden hue to the jars.

Canning tomato sauce and whole tomatoes is another great way to use up the prolific tomatoes this time of year. Jams and fruit sauces are also easy canning options as the acid and sugar in fruits make it safer for home canning. My favorite right now is pear ginger sauce. Just cook up the pears with some fresh or powdered ginger, a dash of vanilla, and a cinnamon stick. I don’t even add any sugar the pears are so sweet on their own.

Some books that we carry to help you preserve the harvest include: Preserving Food Without Freezing or Canning, Country Wisdom and Know-How, and How to Store Your Garden Produce.

Trombocino

If you are already placing seed orders for next summer’s garden, try these. In my opinion, the best summer squash in the whole world is Trombocino. It’s tender, firm & nutty and quite novel too. My favorite pole bean is Spanish Musica with outstanding flavor and quite tender even when large.

Peaceful Valley and our very own Farmer Pricing Rep. Greg Lightfoot were recently sited in an article in the Monterey County Herald in an article about cover crops.  Take a gander an the article here.

The Roma Sauce Maker instructions were easy to follow to set up the machine. I made grape-raspberry juice using the grape spiral from the accessory kit. I was impressed at how quick and easy it was to make. The most time-consuming part was the picking and washing of the grapes. The juice came out really clear and tasty.

I have also processed tomatoes for sauce. I used the “salsa” strainer because it left the tomatoes chunky, but without skins. A few seeds got through because the holes of the strainer are bigger, but it makes for a less watery sauce.

I am pleased with Roma’s performance and am looking forward to processing other things from my garden as they become available.

View the Roma Sauce Maker & Accessory Kit from Peaceful Valley Farm & Garden Supply.

How many ways can you prepare zucchini and summer squash? Please share your favorite recipes in the comments section!

Here are a few staff favorites:

Simple Saute

Dice an onion and slice few zucchinis. Warm a few table spoons of olive oil in a frying pan and add the onions, then zucchinis a couple minutes later. Add some Italian seasoning and fresh cracked pepper. Other welcome additions could include minced garlic, diced red pepper, summer squash. Put the lid on the pan to let the squash simmer and soften. Enjoy with rice.

Summer Omelet

Whisk 4 eggs with a touch of milk and pour them over saute vegetables (see above). Use a spatula around the edges of the pan to encourage the uncooked eggs to find their way to the frying pan surface. When the eggs are nearly done, add some cheddar cheese to the top and put a lid on it. Turn off the burner and let the cheese melt. Fold in half (or not) and enjoy!

Summer Squash Soup

In a tablespoon of olive oil, saute a diced yellow onion or two, some minced garlic, and (optional) sliced celery and carrots. After a couple minutes, add several sliced summer squashes, stir and saute for about 5 minutes. When the squash is soft, add enough chicken (or vegetable) broth to cover the vegetables and simmer for 5 minutes. Blend the soup in a blender in batches. Stir in a 1/4 cup of cream (optional) and serve with a decorative drizzle of creme fraich or sour cream (optional).

*Make this a curry squash soup by adding a table spoon of curry powder when sauteing the onions.

Stuffed Zucchinis

When you find yourself with a zucchini the size of your calf, slice it in half lengthwise, scoop out the seeds, and set it aside. Saute some onions, garlic, more squash (of course), other garden veggies, and optionally some beef or Italian sausage. Add some tomato sauce (optional). Mix in bread crumbs or cooked rice or cooked barley. Add some mozzarella or Parmesan cheese (optional). Re-fill the zucchini shells with the stuffing and place them in a glass baking dish with a 1/2″ of water in the bottom and bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.

Squash Parmesan

Slice any kind of squash you have on hand. Toss with some olive oil and minced garlic. Fill a glass baking dish with the squash and cover the top with a generous layer of a mixture of breadcrumbs, Parmesan, and Italian herbs. Bake for 30-45 minutes. This makes a great side dish for chicken.

Summer Squash Garlic Grill Marinade

Mince 4 cloves of garlic and mix it with a pinch of fine salt. Allow it to sit for a minute (the salt will help bring out the garlic flavor). Mix with1/4 cup of olive oil and add any other herbs you enjoy grilling with. Slice zucchinis, yellow summer squashes, and patty pan squashes into broad 1/4″ slices. Brush both sides with the garlic marinade, grill for about 3 minutes on each side and enjoy.

Our garden is blooming like crazy! Over the last few weeks, we’ve been harvesting Mizuna, Asian Greens, Romaine, Green Beans, Beets and Zucchini! We’ve had a few pest problems…and a few solutions.

First, we found a quick and easy aphid solution. Simply mix one part each molasses, soy sauce and vegetable oil, and put into a clean tuna can or other DISPOSABLE container (unless you like reusing a watery aphid graveyard). Put out at night, find dozens dead in the morning. We noticed a dramatic reduction in our damaged plants almost immediately, and have been practically aphid-free for weeks!

Additionally, we planted the Good Bug Blend when we started our garden, and found a surprise guest on our Asian Greens last night: lady beetles.

More to the point, we found dozens. These aren’t lady bugs, mind you — more like their big cousins who’ve spent some time working out. Nevertheless, proof that the mix works!

More to come as the season progresses…

Question from a customer:

Hi There,

Regarding curing garlic, is it OK to cut off the roots and/or the tops right after you dig it and then cure it on screens in the shade? Is it OK (will it continue to gain flavor) to cut off the roots and braid the soft neck varieties a day or so after it is dug? I want to gain as much flavor as possible but would like to get it ready as soon as possible after being dug.

Answer:

I don’t think it matters much if you cut the roots off after digging, but it is probably best to keep the tops (or most of the top) attached while you cure the garlic. Most growers think that the garlic head absorbs more nutrient from the top as it cures. If you are going to braid the garlic, you certainly don”t want to cut off the tops anyway. Usually, the garlic is cured for several days before you braid them and once braided you need to make sure there is good air circulation around the garlic, as it finishes curing. The curing process is probably 2-4 weeks, depending on temps and humidity.

Question:

I have been growing sudangrass that I have purchase from peaceful valley.

Is this seed viable for replanting. I live in Hawaii. It is expensive to buy large quantities and pay shipping too.

If so, when should sudangrass be cut and how long should seeds dry be fore planting seeds.

Mahalo,

Answer:
Yes, you could save the sudangrass seed. The seed should thoroughly dry on the plant before you harvest it. Here is some general information on sudangrass from our website www.groworganic.com;

Warm season cover crop. King of the organic matter-producing, weed-choking cover crops and one of the most vigorous summer plants. Grows to 8′ on hot, fertile, irrigated soil. Reduces many species of nematodes and symphylans when grown as a rotation crop, because it secretes a nematocidal acid from its roots as it decomposes. Useful for reducing excess soil Nitrogen.

Can be harvested for hay; horses and cattle love it, but note that Sudangrass is toxic to livestock immediately after frost and possibly when plants are young (up to 24″ tall) or stressed. Matures to hay in 75-80 days; to seed in 105 days, with very little irrigation.

Hope this helps,

A co-worker just pointed out to me that you can watch the documentary, “The Future of Food” for free online at hulu.com. Check it out!