Chipmunks, Geese, soft ground - could it be?

Be still my heart, and my hands and my head to keep me from planting outside.  We get fooled every year at this time before we get pummelled with yet another s--- storm (I can’t say it).  I hope you are enjoying every moment of this wonderful weather.  It’s so nice to not scrape, defrost, shovel and preheat vehicles before going out, not to mention the lack of clothing layers.  I notice some birds are singing their song.  Oh and we definitely have a rooster in our little cluster of new chickens.  He is so beautiful and pretty gentle.  

This big boy is crowing loud and strong now.

The frizzle’s feathers have come in and he/she is pretty crazy looking, but cute as anything as you can see.

The hot pepper seedlings are now growing their second leaves and the most recently planted are sprouting their first.  We’ll be up-potting them next week, which means 72 seedlings from one tray will need four trays of 18 pots each, which means more shelves!  The plant rooms smells like spring so it must be spring. 

We’ll encourage anything currently growing in the greenhouse to get a move on and grow quicklier and will also be starting new seedlings to transplant. 

We were at EcoFarmDay in Cornwall on the weekend where we listened to a couple from the Finger Lakes area in New York talk about transitioning from conventional farming to organic.  It’s always good to chat it up with the suppliers of organic materials at the trade show in between sessions, like the Biemonds with their yoghurt and cheese, Norm from Multi-Shelter Greenhouses, Julie from Spread-X who deliver our organic compost, Homestead Organics, Canadian Organic Growers and so many more. 

I became a member of The Organic Council of Ontario at this event.  In one of the sessions this day, there was an entire discussion, as there have been several in the past, of simplifying organic certification for smaller farms, like Day Brighteners.  I’ve not felt the need, through your reassurance each year, to become certified, but I am definitely interested in the process, just in case.  From what I understand it is quite expensive and there’s a truck load of paperwork involved.  I plan to attend an evening at Just Food in March which will go through the process and then I can decide if this is right for me. 

Much of the discussion was about the wording of Organics.  Many of us feel that you, the consumers, are confused by the wording.  In your delivery this week, I will put some postcards with words you recognize and may or may not understand completely, and which will lead you to the OCO (Organic Council of Ontario) website where, if you’re interested, you can learn more about all of this kerfuffle.  Hell, if I’m confused, you must be too.  If I don’t become certified soon, I won’t be able to use the word “organic” in any form for my produce.  Let me know what you think. 

Meanwhile back at the farm, we have several pots on the stove and are very excited to begin a new growing season. 

One thing I must respectfully remind you of is that we are growing mainly for those of you who let me know what you would like best to eat and how often.  If you choose to order from the menu I send out each week, food will first be disbursed amongst our regular steady customers.  It’s at this time of year, if you would like to be a regular steady customer, you should let me know before we begin seeding, planting, growing, weeding, picking, sorting, packing and processing.  I love it when everyone who orders gets their complete wish list delivered to them. 

I was at Holy Cross Elementary School this morning with the Kindergartens, saw what has developed since the kids started their pea and sunflower shoots, showed them which they could eat and which should be transplanted.  We took a tour of the outside to make planning a bit easier.  I left some seed catalogues which should encourage them once they see pictures of the beautiful foods they’ll grow. 

Beautiful foods available to you this week are:

GRANOLA:

 with fruit  $8 /500mL jar  

 with nuts and fruit  $10 /500mL jar  

MICROGREENS:  $2 / bag

  Curly Cress

  Kale

  Pea Shoots

  Radish

  Red Cabbage

  Sunflower Shoots

MICROGREEN MIX:  (arugula, carrot, curly cress, kale, leaf lettuce, purple basil, radish, red cabbage,)  $3 / bag

SPROUTS  $3 / bag

  Broccoli (just broccoli)

  Broccoli Brassica Blend (broccoli, broccoli raab, radish, mustard & arugula)

  Sandwich Booster (clover, alfalfa, radish & mustard)

  Spring Salad Mix  (broccoli, radish, red clover & alfalfa) 

Tomato Sauce  $6 /500mL jar  sealed

Tomatoes, frozen   $4 /4Cup package  great for sauces and soups

Tomatoes, Gardeners’ Delight (ping pong ball size) frozen whole  $3 pound

I look forward to receiving Your Special Order.  Call or email me with amounts you’d like and any questions.  

Thanks.

Until next post, have a great every day. 

Jo

613-258-7970

joanne.daybrighteners@gmail.com

Learning Week

What a deliciously warm long weekend we just had!  Over and above sowing more seeds indoors we were able to open the greenhouse doors, clean up a couple of table tops in preparation for the incoming seed trays and we washed and disinfected a few hundred trays.  Now, each day when I sow new seeds I don’t have to take the hour or so to scrub and disinfect each tray.  Whew. 

parsley

Microgreens were really popular last week so let’s eat more this week.  I’ll keep these going until the big veggies start to grow for us. 

pea shoots

sunflower shoots

You also let me how much you liked last week’s new sprout addition – Broccoli Brassica Blend.  I grew them for a customer who asked.  So like a smarty pants I figured I’d make double the amount this week.  Nope.  It would be easier if I had seeds to do this.  I had a little bit, which prompted me to put in an order to Sprout Master which arrived today.  They have such good service.

Today, I was at the college learning about Selling Food to Ontario.  Quite a diverse panel of knowledgeables informed us of labelling requirements for our food.  There was a good mix of attendees who asked some pretty interesting questions.  It was a learning experience for sure.  I forgot how those fluorescent overhead lights suck the energy right out of you so am tired tonight. 

Eco Farm Day is this weekend, more learning involved.  

Here’s the menu for this week:

GRANOLA:

 with fruit  $8 /500mL jar  

 with nuts and fruit  $10 /500mL jar  

MICROGREENS:  $2 / bag

  Pea Shoots

  Radish

  Sunflower Shoots

MICROGREEN MIX:  (arugula, chard, kale, parsley, radish, red cabbage, curly cress)  $3 / bag

SPROUTS  $3 / bag

 Ancient Eastern Blend (fenugreek, lentils, kamut & adzuki)

 Broccoli Brassica Blend (broccoli, broccoli raab, radish, mustard & arugula)

 Crunchy Bean Mix  (peas, lentils & garbanzos)

 Sandwich Booster (clover, alfalfa, radish & mustard)

 Spring Salad Mix  (broccoli, radish, red clover & alfalfa) 

Tomato Sauce  $6 /500mL jar  sealed

Tomatoes, cherry, dehydrated  $2 /snack bag

Tomatoes, frozen   $4 /4Cup package  great for sauces and soups

Tomatoes, Gardeners’ Delight (ping pong ball size) frozen whole  $3 pound

I look forward to receiving Your Special Order.  Call or email me with amounts you’d like and any questions.  

If you would like to be added to our weekly email list to see what's happening and what's growing, let me know.  

Until next post, have a great every day.

613-258-7970

joanne.daybrighteners@gmail.com

Spring, spring, spring. Spring?

The new Team is now ready to roll.  It was inspiring to interview many like-minded people, some of whom probably know more than I do about soil and such things as they have degrees in Environmental Studies, etc.   Each chosen member is enthusiastic, ready to learn, ready to share and raring to get their hands and feet deep into the soil. 

But first things first.  I’ve begun many seedlings myself to get a jump on the long-growing vegetables like hot peppers, onions, some herbs and flowers as well as the continuing supply of microgreens and sprouts - to the point where we need to build more shelves this weekend.  Each new Day Brightener will join me for a few days in March and then we’ll be in full swing by the beginning of April when we’ll start tomatoes, sweet peppers and everything else in the greenhouse. 

It's always exciting when those first seeds germinate. 
Here are some lettuce mixes I'm testing. 

and of course, the first hot peppers of the year.

As I say every year at this time “And so it begins again”.  Days are definitely getting longer, nights shorter and excitement around here is rising for the upcoming growing season. 

We're currently putting together a brochure/pamphlet with information about Day Brighteners Farm, a General Price List, some lovely pictures of what grows here and Upcoming Events such as the annual Sustainability Fair to be held April 22 for Earth Day, a Garden Tour here in the height of growing season, Customer Appreciation Day in the fall and I’m thinking of some teaching sessions.  I’m very happy (and relieved) that the seeds I saved and have tested so far are viable.  If you’re interested in a Seed Swap let me know. 

When we were sowing microgreen seeds at the school, I offered the kids a choice between sunflower seeds and pea seeds.  Each group made their choice until a group asked if they could have both.  I hadn’t thought of that.  I know they grow at different rates but let them go ahead with it anyway.  I’m always saying that gardening is full of experiments, so why not.  I also discovered this about you a few weeks ago when I had a variety of microgreens.  Some of you asked for a mix.  I wouldn’t have thought to do that yet this year.  So this week you can have a mix too. 

Here's a picture of those little baby chickens at age almost four months.  Spring must be soon as we got two eggs this week.  I can’t even remember the last time I held an egg from our own girls. 

We think the largest white and brown one is a rooster. 
And there's a little frizzle hiding behind the others.

As promised last week, this week’s menu is larger and will continue to be so each week from here on (basil is doing great so pesto will be coming soon).  Here's what's to eat this week:

Granola, with fruit  $8 /500mL jar  

Granola, with nuts and fruit  $10 /500mL jar  

Hummus:   chickpeas*, tahini*, olive oil*, lemon juice*, roasted garlic*, a teeny bit of hot pepper flakes* and cumin  (*organic)  $5 250/mL jar   

MICROGREENS:  $2 / bag

Kale

Radish

Curly Cress

MICROGREEN MIX:  (kale, radish, curly cress, red orach, mustard)  $3 / bag

SHOOTS, Sunflower  $2 / bag

SPROUTS, Broccoli Brassica Blend (broccoli, broccoli raab, radish, mustard & arugula)  $3 / bag

SPROUTS, Sandwich Booster (clover, alfalfa, radish & mustard)  $3 / bag

SPROUTS, Spring Salad Mix  (broccoli, radish, red clover & alfalfa)  $3 / bag

Tomato Sauce  $6 /500mL jar  sealed

Tomatoes, cherry, dehydrated  $2 /snack bag

Tomatoes, frozen   $4 /4Cup package  great for sauces and soups

Tomatoes, Gardeners’ Delight (ping pong ball size) frozen whole  $3 pound

I look forward to receiving Your Special Order.  Call or email me with amounts you’d like and any questions.  

Until next post, have a great every day.

Jo

613-258-7970

joanne.daybrighteners@gmail.com

Everything is back to normal

i haven't been away, just doing other things like working in my husband's office last week, interviewing and hiring.  The office week is over and I’m back in my own world now.   I'm done interviewing and in the midst of choosing the best members for the Team.  

The log/record keeping/journal I referred to a few emails ago is proving itself very useful this week.  I’m looking back over the last couple of years to see when certain seeds were sown and my notes which tell me to hold off on some things and don’t bother with others.  I am in the process of starting fresh microgreens, several flavours of basil, more herbs, flowers and some hot peppers.  The bright days (never mind all that snow) are very inspiring while I collect and wash trays and pots from storage, then carefully choose which seeds will be meticulously placed in tiny 1” cells or gently sprinkled on top of seed starter in pots and spritzed.  Everything sown from here on will need my attention every single day until they are up-potted, some several times, and eventually moved out to their designated spots in the gardens.  I am in my happy place – until April when my happy place will be outside and in the greenhouses. 

I ordered seed potatoes today, some reds, yellow and russets – totalling 100 pounds!  They’ll arrive in May to be planted shortly thereafter.

The menu is compact this week, next week will be larger:

Granola, with fruit  $8 /500mL jar  I’ll make it when you order

Granola, with nuts and fruit  $10 /500mL jar  I’ll make it when you order

Hummus:   chickpeas*, tahini*, olive oil*, lemon juice*, roasted garlic*, a teeny bit of hot pepper flakes and cumin  (*organic)  $5 250/mL jar   I’ll make it when you order

SPROUTS, Sandwich Booster (clover, alfalfa, radish & mustard)  $3 / bag

SPROUTS, Spring Salad Mix  (broccoli, radish, red clover & alfalfa)  $3 / bag

Tomato Sauce  $6 /500mL jar  sealed

Tomatoes, cherry, dehydrated  $2 /snack bag

Tomatoes, frozen   $4 /4Cup package  great for sauces and soups

Tomatoes, Gardeners’ Delight (ping pong ball size) frozen whole  $3 pound

I look forward to receiving Your Special Order.  Call or email me with amounts you’d like and any questions.  

Thanks.

613-258-7970

joanne.daybrighteners@gmail.com

Until next post, have a great every day.

Jo