Yokna Bottoms Farm

What a beautiful day yesterday was! My friend Lorri and I took a hike at Green Point Nature Center and even if human beings do not think this endless winter in Michigan is over with, the birds let us know that spring has definitely arrived. I knew it was coming of course since I just returned from a trip to Oxford, Mississippi where I was fortunate to work on Yokna Bottoms Farm.

 

I read about WWOOF (Worldwide Organization of Organic Farms) several years ago in Organic Gardening Magazine. WWOOF is a resource that connects farms with people who are willing to work on them for room and board. This provides knowledge to a gardener that can be taken home and incorporated into her own garden. Since the article was about a man from California who at 60 years of age worked for 6 months on a farm in Australia I automatically decided that I wasn't too old to participate. Yes, the majority of these workers are young people who are finding an affordable way to travel and see the world (like Megg, the young lady who was volunteering at Yokna Bottoms at the same time I was there). But I decided there was no reason I couldn't do it too!

 

Yokna Bottoms Farm is owned by Doug Davis, a professor at the University of Mississippi. The people who currently work there are Jeff, the farm manager, Betsy, my contact person for working on the farm and Nathan, who has been interning there for the past year. These people, along with the five dogs and four cats made my visit a time to remember.

I worked in the greenhouse my first day as it was too wet (and cold) to work in the field. The rest of my days there were spent in the field planting potatoes, onions, kale, broccoli, lettuce and more. Such wonderful potatoes include Rose Mountain which is red all the way through and Purple Majesty which is entirely purple. They make for a very colorful potato salad (yes we did eat a few of the seed potatoes for dinner). We also planted Yukon Gold, an old favorite. They get their potatoes from the Potato Garden, a company I will definitely check out.

 

By far the hardest  work was planting the onions. I recommend that anyone who complains about the price of food plant onions for a day. That person would never complain again!

Yokna Bottoms participates in local Farmer's Markets and also CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture). By supporting Farmer's Markets and CSAs people can get good produce in season that ensures more money ends up in the pockets of the people who actually grow our food. This is a win-win situation.

 

The pets were great company for me. Extra was always waiting outside my door each morning as I got up. Faith enjoyed sitting on my lap. The boy cats, Who Billy and What Jack were just too cute cuddled up together in an old crate on the porch. Shivas, the oldest dog, invariable let you know he wanted you to not stray too far away from him. Merton, Wet Dog and Missi liked to take walks with me (invariable waking up the other dogs in the neighborhood). Nathan's dog Bella was the last of the nine pets. She and the other dogs had to be reminded that there was a "no dogs in the field" rule.

 

Several types of chickens were located out near the field. There were also some beehives to provide pollinators.

 

So never fear folks. Spring is definitely in full progress in Mississippi so it is headed our way. Along with the Saginaw Farmer's Market, CSAs and all the good stuff that warmer weather brings.

Still Harvesting

Broccoli is a plant that will keep producing for you well into the fall. After you harvest the initial head if you leave the plant in the ground side shoots will appear and they are just as tasty.

Here it is, almost November and I picked enough broccoli in the past couple of days to make a big pot of cream of brocolli soup that mom and I can feast on all week. I also have plenty that I blanched and froze for eating all winter long.

Broccoli is cool weather plant that prefers cooler temperatures. That is why despite the frost we had last night (enough to put a thin sheet of ice on the small bird bath I keep on my deck) I was still able to pick some spears this morning. No protection needed-the plants were just fine.

 SLife sure is good with bounty galore!

 

Repeating Lavender

My lavender first bloomed this year back in June. It put on quite a display back then, not being hurt by the drought at all. It is in bloom once again now in October, not quite as showy, but still beautiful. If you want a plant that tolerates dry spells, needs little care, has a lovely scent and does not attract pests, lavender is the plant for you. Yes, winter is coming, but one needs to enjoy the flowers as long as possible, which is exactly what I am doing.

October Color

 

October in Michigan is a beautiful time of year with the leaves of the various trees turning into every variation of red, orange and yellow before falling and being added to the compost pile or turned into mulch. At least that is where my leaves go. Those leaves are too precious a resource for me to give them away.

 

The leaves of October are not the only color in my garden though. Some of my plants have been in bloom all season long like the above Calendula. The previous picture is of one of my mums just starting to give a display of color.

 

The butterfly bush started blooming in August and has been in bloom ever since. I just keep clipping back the dead blossoms and it keeps producing flowers.

 

 

I dig up the gladiola bulbs in fall and plant them in late spring. I am rewarded with gorgeous color  in late August and of course now.

This datura self seeds and comes back every year from seed. I never have to worry about planting it again.

 

Same goes for the borage, a true blue color for the garden, something that is not common and therefore desirable.

 

The marigolds did extremely well for me this year, starting to bloom back in June and continuing to bloom even now.

 

 

Yarrow blooms early in the season in my garden. This one lone flower is a new blossom after the plant was cut back quite awhile ago. A nice surprise of color for me. A hard frost may be coming soon, but I will continue to enjoy every bit of color for as long as I can.

 

Small White Gourds

Last summer I was fortunate enough to take a trip to the Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, Iowa for their annual summer workshop. One of the activities was the exchange of seeds from members who brought seeds of all varieties. One type of seed I picked up while there were seeds for some small white gourds.

I planted them this past summer alongside my neighbor's fence. Only one plant was necessary to pretty much cover the fence and produce the gourds in this picture.

So, no, I probably won't have a pumpkin this Halloween, but I figure these gourds will provide all the decoration I need.

Blooms in Fall

 

 

It may be fall (or almost) but that does not mean the blooms have to stop in your garden. I planted these colchicums a few years ago and they have done nothing except spread their loveliness. These giant crocus-like blooms do not last for long, but while they last they are quite impressive. The leaves come up in the spring, then die back for the summer. Then, come September the blossoms appear like magic.

It is difficult to see the flamingo hiding in the asters at this time of year. The asters are just prolific and eye-catching. Set against the ornamental grass which is also in bloom they are a bright spot in my garden.

 

It is not all about the produce at this time of year, although setting the produce by is my main garden activity in September. Just so long as I have a few blossoms as well, I can stay on a cheery note. Need to stay cheery when the days are shorter and winter is just around the bend...

Chinese Red Noodle Beans

This year I planted an unusual bean seed (at least to me) called Chinese Red Noodle Beans. They are offered for sale from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds and fortunately they finally germinated and are doing quite well in my September garden. Not only do they look cool on the plant, they taste very good. So I decided to blanch some so that I could freeze them to eat later in the winter.

They don't need much blanching and I expect they will taste just fine come January. Of course as long as the weather holds and no freezing comes for awhile I will be able to keep eating them fresh from the garden. Once the frost comes they will be through. As usual, September is a busy month for this gardener who has plenty of vegetables yet to be harvested. Happy eating!