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Author: Wayne

Much Needed Rain Today

We got nearly 4 inches of rainfall today here on the farm, beginning early before sunup and continuing well into the evening. We have had quite a dry late summer into early fall, so this precipitation was very welcome. We are currently in the process of putting the gardens to bed for the fall: pulling up okra plants, raking up pumpkin vines, and preparing beds to plant elephant garlic. The rain put a stop to all of that today but there were plenty of other things to do inside, so we were happy with all of that.

We still have a good supply of pumpkins, spaghetti squash, butternut and acorn squash, sweet potatoes, and chestnuts. Give us a call to schedule a time to come out and find that special pumpkin with your name on it.

Our Online Chestnut Sales Have Gone Live

Chestnuts
Fresh Chestnuts

We are offering fresh chestnuts for sale online, grown right here on the farm. Check us out and get a few pounds of fresh chestnuts in time for the upcoming holiday seasons this fall and winter. Navigate to our sales page Here or click on the “Chestnuts” menu item above. We wrote about chestnuts last week, so for more information, go here.

Chestnuts for Sale, 2017

Chestnuts(Updated 10/06/2017)

Chestnuts for sale, 2017. This is just a quick note to let you all know that we have begun our annual fall chestnut sales. Almost everyone associates chestnuts with a popular Christmas song written in 1945 by Bob Wells and Mel Tormé. The oddity about this little fact is that the native stand of American Chestnut trees was pretty much wiped out by 1940 due to chestnut blight, accidentally imported from the orient around 1904. Any reference to “Chestnuts roasting on an open fire” had to be from the authors’ distant memory. The limited return of American Chestnuts in various forms to eastern North America is a story for someone else to tell. You might try Wikipedia for starters.

Here are a few key points for you. Our chestnuts are:

  1. Very perishable. They must be kept refrigerated (short term) or frozen (long term).
  2. In very short supply. We only have a few trees and these jewels go fast, so act now.
  3. Closely associated with the fall/winter holidays. You need to get on board.
  4. They have a fascinating history. Google “chestnut blight” to learn more.

To learn more about our chestnuts click on our Chestnuts page in the menu bar above. Now, give us a call and schedule a time to come out and get some chestnuts (and pumpkins, and sweet potatoes, and winter squash).

Dehydrated Okra

With plenty of okra still coming in, yet seeing that the end is in sight we decided to try our hand at dehydrating okra. Earlier this year we tried our hand at drying a spicy version of okra in the oven set at 150º, which is as low as our oven goes. It turned out okay but was not quite what we wanted. This time we hit the mark. Here's how.

It's all very easy, actually. It just takes a little time and if you don't have a dehydrator an oven on the lowest baking temperature setting will do. We were concerned with how much energy the oven would use in the process, so we pulled out the old dehydrator. Ours is a very simple one. You just plug it in and it goes. We tested it with a laser thermometer and it blows a steady warm air at about 110º.

  1. Pick quite a quantity of small okra, three to four inches long. Keep in mind when it dries down it is all going to be much smaller. Pick a lot.
  2. Wash the okra and cut both ends off; just a tiny bit off both ends.
  3. Slice each pod lengthwise in half.
  4. Lay the pods out on the tray, only one layer thick, cut side up.
  5. Plug the dehydrator in and let it go, usually 36 hours. If you have a temperature setting keep it low, below 150º.
  6. When the pods crunch to your bite, they are ready to store in jars in a cool dark pantry.
  7. Repeat the process–several times–because you are going to eat them up like snack food.

Dehydrated okra should keep for a year or more. Snack on it or throw it into soups and stews. We still have plenty here on the farm. Give us a call to set up a time to come out and get some.

Spaghetti Squash and Sweet Potato in Abundance

Fall is in the Air

Spaghetti Squash
Spaghetti Squash

You may not realize it but Fall is just around the corner. High school football started this last Friday, and college football begins this weekend. We have actually felt Fall coming on this year because the month of August has been unnaturally cool. We have had more high temperatures in the 80’s than I can ever remember for August. All of that being said, we have a couple of make-you-feel-like-fall treats right out of the gardens at High-Fence Farm:

Spaghetti Squash

We did some experimenting this year with spaghetti squash by planting two varieties; one creamy white, and the other a vivid Oklahoma State Cowboy orange. They are now ready to pick, and we have both varieties in abundance. If you have never tried spaghetti squash, they are a treat. When cooked the flesh peels out of the shell in strands, similar to spaghetti.

Here’s a quick recipe in pictures:

  • Take one clean spaghetti squash.

Sweet Potatoes

Freshly Dug Sweet Potatoes
Freshly Dug Sweet Potatoes

In our household nothing says Autumn like the smell of baked sweet potatoes. They are such a versatile vegetable and they are all kinds of healthy. This year we have had an especially good crop of sweet potatoes. The vines went everywhere, taking over a couple of adjacent rows of okra. We are just beginning to dig them up this week, but they look to be in great abundance by the week’s end. Call today to reserve yours.

You don’t have to wait till the weekend to get your fresh produce, like we were some kind of farmers’ market! Call ahead to make sure we will be available, which is almost 24/7 (but not quite). We start receiving guests at 10:00, and if you need to come out after you get off work, that will be fine too–just so long as it is not dark outside.

 

 

Wonderful Okra Is Still Available in Abundance

Dehydrating Okra
Fresh okra about to be dehydrated

Yes, wonderful okra is still available in abundance. We still have plenty of okra, and here’s one way to prepare okra: dehydrated spicy okra chips. This shot is before it went into the oven (150° in your oven or dehydrator for 18-24 hours, or until crispy). After it comes out it looks totally different. Google it and find a recipe that suits your spice/heat level. Of course fried okra is always a favorite option. Give us a call today to plan your trip to pick up fresh-picked okra. Other produce is available too. Call ahead for availability.

 

July Gardening Has Been Fast and Furious

Well, there hasn't been any posting for the month of July. It has been quite busy. With beautiful weather, a beautiful garden, and wonderful customers we have been too busy to keep you abreast of what has been in the garden. Let me give you a quick rundown:

  • Our corn crop has ended. This was our first year to offer sweet corn, and we produced some fantastic corn. We had a lull during the middle of July, but the first and last of the month was fantastic. Our entire corn field has been mowed down and is ready to be tilled. To the right is one of our pickings for a customer who planned to cut it off of the cob and put it all up over a weekend.
  • Our green beans started looking quite tattered, and after our fourth picking we decided this last Friday it was time to pull them up and make way for a couple of rows of beets (second photo). There is cooler-cloudy-rainy weather for most of this week, so the beets should get a good start and be ready for pickling before fall frost. Sorry, folks, but these will not be for sale, but for private/family use only.
  • We had a beautiful patch of cantaloupe, but the melons would not turn from green to ripe...until they all ripened at once, nearly fifty of them. We have never had this happen before, so we guess the overly cool season helped us out a little too much. It was a challenge but we found homes for almost all of them. Next year we will stagger the melon hills instead of planting them all at once.
  • Cucumbers have been a great success and a second planting has just begun to produce. They are some of the most beautiful pickling type of cucumbers you could imagine.
  • Our Tomatoes have slowed down, but should pick back up in a week or two with cooler weather ahead.
  • Okra is going gang busters, and shows no signs of letting up. That is what okra does. Now, come on out here and get some of this top notched produce.
  • There's yellow squash, zucchini, eggplant, and peppers of all kinds too.

Sweet Corn

Succession Planting

We have had a terrible time this year with Squash Vine Borers. It seems to be the worst we have ever experienced here at High-Fence Farm. With seven yellow squash hills and three zucchini hills we have had plenty of squash for home use as well as sales—until recently. One by one the vines have succumbed to the borers, till we are down to about half the original hills and maybe only a quarter of the original production of squash. Those plants/hills that remain aren't long for this world.

The solution for us is to pull up the dead vines and replant. Squash plants begin to bear fruit from seed very quickly so we will be back up and harvesting plenty of both Zucchini and Yellow Squash in no time. During the heat of summer there are a few tricks to successful garden seed germination. Hand watering the newly seeded hill is a must since rain showers are few and far between after the end of June. Watering alone usually will not do the trick unless you just happen onto a stretch of cooler-than-normal or cloudy days. What we usually do is provide just a bit of shade for the seed bed until the seedlings are up. You must monitor the bed daily so you can remove the shade as soon as the seeds break the ground. This will keep them from stretching to find the sun.

We hope you are having a good gardening season this year. We sure have. Until lately the weather has been perfect. The last few weeks have been dry, but that is what soaker hoses and sprinklers are for. Happy gardening.

Sweet Corn Is Ready!

Sweet Corn Is Ready!
Fresh Sweet Corn

That’s right, folks. The day has arrived: our Sweet Corn is being picked starting today. Now there is not enough for everyone all at once, so you will need to call and get on the list.

We plant our corn in several manageable plots, so sweet corn will be available for several weeks. This ensures a fresher product for you the customer. This corn hasn’t been sitting in the back of a pickup on the side of the road for three days. In many cases it won’t even be picked until you show up.

Give us a call today and we will set aside a part of our garden for you today. We also have Summer Squash, Zucchini, Cucumbers, hot and cold running Peppers, and Green Beans.

See you soon.

Okra Is Ready for the Masses!

Okra Is Ready for the Masses!Okra is ready for the masses! Despite a very cool spring, a nasty hail storm in early May, and an overly windy June, we now have tons of Okra ready for sale. We are now picking daily, so get in line for yours today.

There’s nothing fancy here. These are just good old fashioned Clemson Spineless (Ha!) pods.

We like to pick them small so that you get the best product, suitable for anything your little heart should yearn for. We love ours fried, steamed, and pickled. How about You?

We still have a good flow of Zucchini and yellow squash flowing in, as well as tons of Cucumbers. Don’t wait. They won’t last forever. There are also surprises coming down the pike, so stay tuned.