FFF CSA - Week 9/12 - What's in the Box? - Squash of the season after autumn variety...

Squash.... one of the most varied and versatile crops in on our farm! As Week #9 of our CSA share comes round, we are seeing all varieties of squash maturing. Squash varieties are typically separated into two types or categories - summer and well... I hate to say it but well... that season that happens after autumn, starts with a 'w' and sticks around like an uninvited guest, you know the one. 

Anyway, suffice to say, there are two categories... Zucchini and pattypan squash are two summer squash that you have already enjoyed (or are sick of). The other variety.... ok, I'll say it straight, winter squash can include acorn, butternut, spaghetti, turban, and pumpkins! Over the next few weeks you will be getting all of these varieties. 

Winter squashes can be prepared in so many different ways.. Roasted, boiled, mashed, stuffed made into soups, sauces or fries - they are very versatile. I have made a faux cheese pasta sauce out of butternut squash that fooled my children! Of course spaghetti squash produces wonderful stringy noodles that can be used in place of traditional wheat noodles as well! Roasted squash, mashed and mixed with quinoa and black bean along with spices and breadcrumbs makes a great burger too! Mr. Google has oodles of more specific information and recipes, but the key to enjoying squash is being open to trying new things! 

So... What's in the Box this week?

• Swiss Chard
• Lettuce
• Beets
• Baby carrots
• Zucchini
• Cucumbers                   (regular and armenian)
• Potatoes
• Peppers 
• Squash - pattypan, acorn and/or turban
• Apples 
• Tomatoes
• Beans (fulls only)
• Onions
• Herbs in a cup - oregano, parsley, chives, basil

Note: We do rinse the produce but it would be prudent to wash all vegetables when you get them home. Keeping the herbs (ends) in a cup of clean water will keep them fresh longer. (unless of course, you are drying them for storage later.)

Reminder: Please return your empty box along with all re-usable containers (ice cream pails, plastic containers, etc) so that we can reuse them all over again. 

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Week #8 - Cover to Cover

I love a good book and the somewhat quieter pace of the winter months, means that I get to indulge a bit more than usual.... 

My bedside table typically holds a collection of books, many of which I'm half way through or currently browsing. 

Often they are an assortment of reference books relating to any number of current questions we are pondering around the farm.... which essential oil is best to ease a headache, when do goats come back into heat in the spring, what factors increase the success rate of hatching eggs.... and on and on.

I tend to keep my fiction books on my iPhone as then I can make use of every minute I find myself waiting for something throughout the day to read a chapter or two... while I miss the smell and feel of a real book, I can't ignore the sheer convenience that reading on my phone brings to my lifestyle. 

Recently I finished the Tearling series by Erika Johansen along with The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini.... Currently I'm reading The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins. 

When I'm on the move, I'm starting to enjoy listening to books and am a third of the way through Tim Ferris' The 4-Hour Workweek. I admit I'm skeptical but intrigued! 

Soon spring will come and gone will be the stolen hours of reading until winter comes again. How about you... What are you reading? 

Week #7 - Plant therapy

I hit it! I hit the wall! 

Even though this winter has not brought particularly bad weather... each February usually just after Valentines Day, I hit the "I'm totally done with winter wall!

On Monday our seed order came in and the urge to dig in the soil and plant something was palpable! The yearning for the smell of freshly turned earth and sunshine on my face was overwhelming. 

So yesterday, I turned to a little bit of plant therapy.... Got some pots out and some soil and started playing! Planted some herbs, lettuce, some spinach and some edible flowers. Put some calendula in as I'm hoping to use the petals to dye our soaps and violas to add to our salads. 

Can't wait to see the green shoots pop out of the rich dark soil, reaching for the sun. It's not the same as digging in the garden but it will have to suffice for now.... spring is just around the corner!

What do you do to get through the winter months? 

Week 5 - Winter's embrace

February brings us fully into winter's cold embrace.... For us February is a month of ordering seeds, planning where and what we will plant, and repairing and cleaning equipment (well at least in theory, we should be doing this... at times the warm fire is more welcoming).

On days like today, it feels a bit like winter's embrace is more like a headlock... The wind and snow are creating challenges everywhere, with road closures and flickering power outages. 

However, regardless of the weather, chores must be done and work has to continue. The animals need more care and attention than ever in order to keep warm and healthy so out we go....

How do we deal with the snow and cold? 

Engineer crazy sled inventions from recycled things!

Dress warm!

Some of us enjoy it more than others!

How do you embrace winter? Whether you are a hibernator or a snow lover, here's hoping you have a healthy dose of whatever makes you happy today! Stay warm!

Week #4 - Going to the birds!

Winter can be hard on all beings, both two legged and four. During winter we could all use a leg up, a boost.. a helping hand. 

For the chickadees that comes in the form of seed cakes we make from saved bacon fat and bird seed. This keeps the seed together, instead of scattered all over. I find in the winter if it scatters, its lost after the next snow fall. 

The bacon fat which we use in place of suet is a great source of energy for the birds, which helps keep them warm during the coldest days. 

The cakes are easy to place in the crooks of trees and elsewhere where the birds can eat in peace. 

Selfishly, we also put one on the bench near our window so that we can watch them come and go! 

Now if we could just teach Avery (our Newfie dog) that the chickadees are OK and not a threat! 

Week #2 - Wintering hens, a delicate balance!

Anyone who has tried to over-winter chickens in Manitoba (north of 50), knows that it is a delicate balance to achieve. The balance of daylight, warmth, water supply and feed needs to be just right if you want to continue to enjoy fresh eggs throughout the long, cold winter.

We've been keeping our hens over the winter for almost a decade now and have made every mistake you can think of. Trial and error along with research and study have resulted in eventual success for both our hens and our breakfast table!

While our hens are outside from March to November, they just can't withstand the bitter cold and prairie winds that come with a Manitoban winter. Temperatures drop to below -30C, even lower with the windchill (-41C this morning), thus even the hardiest breeds need shelter, food and unfrozen water.

After years of trying a number of different shelters, some which worked and others that did not, we built a lean to addition on our barn to house our hens. While the walls are insulated, the space is not heated with the exception of two regular light bulbs and the hens themselves. Against most conventional wisdom, we do not clean our coop through the winter but add straw, lime, evergreen boughs and leaves throughout the winter forming a layered composting floor which produces a natural warmth for the hens. The coop is warm enough that the water remains unfrozen even on the coldest days and in fact steam escapes when you open the door and you are quite comfortable without gloves and in a light jacket. For water we use fill a large poly tank attached to a line of nipple waterers. We don't have running water in the barn (a someday maybe dream!) so we haul water once a week. 

We have both a screen door and a solid door on the coop to allow us to regulate the temperature as the weather changes. A single southern window lets natural light in to the coop. We currently use a mixture of ISA-Browns and Columbian Rock chickens but are planning to experiment with some other breeds this spring. 

Our birds tend to drop in production for a few weeks following the move inside (and outside) but otherwise they seem to do pretty well in this environment.... it's almost as if we finally know what we are doing! 

Fire in the sky, ice on the ground

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Fire in the sky, ice on the ground. Somehow the sunsets are always more stunning when the weather is bitter cold! 

Snowy stroll...

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The fresh snow makes the daily visits to the barn a bit more challenging until the tractor blows the way clear...

Heroes in the dark...

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On snowy days, we rely on the speed plow operators to come by in order to get out of our road! 

Until you hear that familiar sound and see the near tornado of snow and lights, you are often sitting... biding your time until you can head for the city. 

This morning our hero in the dark came by at 7:35 a.m., just in time.... A big thank you to "Highway Rod"! 

Come and sit awhile...

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It's like winter has prepared a comfy seat for us all to come and sit awhile... 

Horizons...

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On the Prairies sometimes it's hard to tell where the land ends and the sky begins!

There is always one...

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There is always one... one hen that refuses to be caught... who hides each night in some outbuilding on the farm and won't join the rest of the hens inside... there is always one!

Crisp & Clean

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Beautiful day with sunshine, hoar frost and gentle breezes. 

Pig play...

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The pigs are loving the snow and can often be found rolling, digging and generally frolicking in the drifts. 

The winter coop!

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The winter coop is warm and snug and the girls seem to be adjusting well to the move inside. 

While I'm sure like all of us that they would prefer to out in the field and sunshine scrounging for bugs (well I'm good without that last part...), they seem to be happy enough scratching in the leaves and straw that we use for bedding in the coop. 

They sure have lots to say anyway.... #cluckinghens

The great silence begins...

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I'm always struck by the shroud of silence that seems to descend on the  world along with the first snow. 

The snow muffles the land and sends critters burrowing underground. #silentwinter

It's that kind of night...

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The wind and snow continue to swirl... A quick tour of the chicken coop to collect the eggs, throw a bale of hay to the goats and cow and it's a cookie baking kind of night....

In with a bang...

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Winter has arrived with a bang! Sitting here in the dark, listening to the wind roar and howl. #electricityisunderrated

Stored away...

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A winter-full of veggies are now tucked away in our cold storage room. 

Moving day....

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Today was moving day for the girls.... 

We moved our laying hens inside the winter coop as their water lines were freezing most nights in their summer shelters. 

They immediately got to work scratching and pecking in the deep piles of leaves and straw that form the floor, searching for morsels of food, bugs and seeds. 

They will be cosy tonight!