Worth the wait

As we move from spring to summer, the days at the farm 

are still filled with many labors—we are not done with all our planting 

and much of what's in the ground is still at the fragile stage 

of needing lots of attention to ensure an abundant summer and fall bounty. 

While we may not yet be able to steal a taste of something as we are picking, 

we do get enough signs of encouragement to keep us going.

growing Dragon Beans behind "the fig"
They look cool now, but when cooked, the bean
will lose its variegated color.
Good thing you can also eat them raw!

"The "Dragon Tongue" bean is a dual purpose bean, 

qualifying as a fresh pod bean as well as a dried legume. 

 When harvested fresh, the entire bean, shell and "seeds" are edible. 

 The bean has a warm cream color with vivid violet 

variegations throughout its stringless pod. 

 Its shape is broad and the bean measures to an average of six inches in length. 

 The pods are crisp and succulent and bear four to six plump bone white seeds 

 with pink to purple stripes that turn tan with age. 

 The fresh seeds are firm, slightly starchy, nutty and sweet." 

We have to wait a bit to see what magic our chefs will create with these.

Check out this primer on other bean varieties 

and how to use them

So yes, even with our labors, we are doing a lot of waiting these days.

Waiting for vegetables to grow, for seeds to set, 

for blossoms to mature and fruit to ripen.

eggplants growing

squash seeds just planted

we can't harvest the potatoes until
the flowers have finished blossoming

Indian Blood Peaches starting

soon to be apricots

If you are waiting for your garden to grow, or if you aren't able to have your own farm, 

check out the Farmers Markets near you. 

While it's true that even those who farm for a living

may not be at peak time yet, you might be surprised 

at some of the gems available now.

Sonoma Farmer's Market photo
courtesy of Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau

If you do want to grow your own vegetables and have your own "backyard farm," 

there are lots of great resources to help you. 

In the North Bay, there's "Let's Go Farm,", where you can purchase vegetables to plant, 

join their CSA and also buy from their bounty at area Farmers Markets.

Joey Smith, the young man who founded "Let's Go Farm," explains:

 “One of my goals is to show people that they can 

grow a lot of food on a very small piece of land.” 

This video also gives you an idea of how to create your own "farm" at home:

Still wondering how to get started? Or need some tips?

Check out Garden Nerd.

And still one of our favorite online resources is SmartGardener

And in the "creative ideas" department, 

we couldn't resist this use of a ladder:

More ideas to share: The headline for this post was 

"Grow your salad" 

Easy recipes to use what you are growing 

or finding at the Farmers Markets. 

Back at our farm, we are waiting for those potatoes 

that are getting close to harvesting.

Besides the obvious go-to creation for them:

here's our Fingerling Potato Confit recipe 

from Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country:

Fingerling Potato Confit          Serves 6

2 pounds Fingerling potatoes, cut in half 4 cups extra-virgin olive oil

5 garlic cloves

3 sprigs fresh thyme

11⁄2 tablespoons salt 1 teaspoon pepper

Place the potatoes in a deep cooking pot along with the olive oil, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper. Make sure the potatoes are completely covered by the oil (add more oil if necessary).

Heat the oil and cook the potatoes until soft, about 15 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow the potatoes to rest in the oil for at least 10 minutes. 

What are you waiting for from your garden?

Time Lapse at the Farm

Sometimes I wish we had a time lapse camera recording at the farm. 

I am amazed at the changes I find from day to day, and especially week to week. 

While some of this can predict, of course, so much depends 

on the weather and just how the plants "take," 

that often we are surprised at what we find at the farm.

that's purslane growing in the radish bed
although we didn't plant it, we certainly like to use it!

We planted our potatoes at the farm at the end of February 

and soon we will be harvesting them.

The amount of time it takes for potatoes to grow depends on the variety 

(as well as the conditions), but generally fingerlings 

are ready about 100 days from planting.

potato beds late February ready for planting

potatoes getting going

potato beds last week!

We are especially excited about our Russian Banana Fingerling potatoes.  

This variety makes our farm staff and chefs happy:  

Considered the easiest fingerling to grow, these were developed

 in the Baltic Region of Europe/Asia and are
"heralded as excellent for salads (note to chefs!),

 and are a favorite of among chefs and gourmet markets." (note to diners!). 

Here are some great tips on planting and using Russian Banana potatoes.

notice that the Russian Banana potato flower is purple
while the Yukon golds have white flowers

these blossoms are our indicator
that the potatoes are pretty well set

we will likely pick the potatoes
about two weeks after the plants have lost their blossoms 

While the chefs will be inspired to create with the Russian Bananas, 

we find the Yukon Golds are best for this party nibble:

Photo of Salt Cod & Potato croquettes by Steven Krause
for Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey Through the Seasons in Wine Country

For fun, here's a time lapse video of a tomato plant growing over 42 days. 

We are counting the days (maybe minutes?) for ours to mature 

and each visit to the farm chronicles how much they are growing. 

last week found our first tomato flower!

As we are keeping track, we are on our second planting of radishes already, 

having harvested the ones we planted late winter into early spring. 

For our menu at the girl & the fig, we know we always need 

to have radishes going at the farm.

Just picked radishes in April 

one of our most popular starters:
mixed seasonal radishes from our garden, anchovy butter & grey sea salt

Any guess how long it will take for these to get from our farm to your table? 

Follow the blog and you can follow the progress of these radishes!

What are you following in your garden? 

Any tips to share while you wait?

More than tomatoes growing

We admit we've gotten a bit carried away
with tomatoes recently, but can you blame us? 

500 of those beauties is a lot to salivate about. 

But now it's the patience part of farming, so, like you, we will wait
until it's time for picking to enjoy the fruits of those labors.
Well, we will do more than wait-we promise to tend them!

John picking tomatoes last summer

for now, John like the rest of us, is still in tending mode

 thoughts of this keeps us focused!

So, we turn our attention to the other plants at the farm 

that are in "ready" mode--our beets and radishes are very close 

to harvesting and the carrots are not far behind.

beet salad at the girl & the fig

carrots a few weeks ago

carrots this week

carrots next week!
photo by Steven Krause for
Plats du Jour: the girl & the fig's Journey through the Seasons in Wine Country

We haven't forgotten the upper quad beds–we've planted lots of potatoes 

including Butterball, Fingerling 

and Russian Banana (which is actually a Fingerling variety). 

yet another way to keep us focused on our work

Something else going on in the upper quads caught is really interesting. 

We planted fava beans because they are good cover crops

 during the interim period as the farm transitioned from winter to spring. 

The nutrients from the favas "fed" the soil. 

As the pods mature, they are like decoys, attracting aphids 

but the aphids attract ladybugs, who get to work right away.

Ladybugs are busy getting rid of the aphids 

and all the other good work they do as our partners at this biodynamic farm.

Did you know that one ladybug can eat 5,000 aphids in a lifetime!
(and on average that is only one year!)

Learn more about our ladybug pals and other friendly bugs from

UC Davis "The California Backyard Orchard. 

Always lots of good stuff going on at the farm, even 

when we aren't picking food to bring to table.

And the same can be true in your "backyard farm."

We like this book and website tips and resources.

There is a lot of good information out there for you, 

whether you are planting a big space, part of a community garden, 

or even just tending a few pots of vegetables.  

We recently stumbled upon this online garden forum 

and have enjoyed the ongoing conversation. 

Check it out, join in with a question or if you have an answer to share. 

And please do the same here, as you follow the farm project with us.

What are you growing? 

Happy plants

We feel like we are in full swing now at the farm—most of our plantings 

are in as we look ahead to a bountiful summer and fall harvest. 

After our big planting party a few weeks ago, 

we added a greenhouse behind the girl & the fig 

for micro greens and herbs, which will make the chefs very happy.

new greenhouse behind the girl & the fig

And speaking of happy, we recently talked about "a sense of place in our food," 

 the idea of "terroir," and shared a great article from "The Atlantic" 

about how getting your hands in the dirt and working in the garden 

ESTATE sous chef Uriel planting peppers

boosts your mood, but did you know that some of what you grow 

has the same affect as you are eating? 

"Organic Gardening" magazine shares which 

vegetables and herbs make you happiest.

Sondra & John are pretty happy after picking beets & carrots-are they on the list of veggies?

The link to "Organic Gardening" article was shared by 

Smart Gardener, a rich resource for information and tips. 

If you have not finished your planting for the season yet 

and wonder how long you can keep seeds, Smart Gardener recently posted 

great info on that. We follow them on Facebook and appreciate all their tips. 

there's still time for you to plant for summer 

Chard, potatoes, and tomatoes, 

are just some of those noted as affecting your mood in a positive way.

Chard grows in great abundance behind the girl & the fig 

potato bed in the Orchard at the farm

photo by Steven Krause 

Ultimate potato happiness, right?

Ray from Local Landscapers with tomato starts we grew from seeds, ready to plant at the farm

Last summer a "happy" John picking tomatoes

we look forward to a great bounty of tomatoes from the 350 plants at the farm

supreme "tomato happiness" at the girl & the fig; photo by Steven Krause

It makes us feel good as we work at the farm 

knowing you will enjoy the fruits of our labors, 

but with these particular vegetables it seems as if there is another layer to the cycle. 

Our moods are boosted during planting and you 

get an extra hit of happiness from the properties of these vegetables. 

Whatever the science of this, we just know how good it tastes 

when we create a dish from our farm ingredients.

 Sondra & John picking carrots and beets at the farm; photo by Jerry James Stone

Chef John at work in the kitchen of the girl & the fig

Do you have a favorite farm-inspired dish from our menu?

Or is there something you make from your garden bounty 

that tastes especially good and makes you happy?