Abt 2021 InPerson and Virtual Fresh Fruit and Veg Conf and Agritourism

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Abt 2021 InPerson and Virtual Fresh Fruit and Veg Conf and Agritourism
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The snow’s flying and temperatures are plummeting, but northern growers will gear up for summer at the January 25, 2021 Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Conference.

Normally held over a three-day period and attended by over 700 producers and marketers, researchers from across the Upper Midwest, the 2021 conference will be held in-person and, for the first time, virtually due to COVID 19.

COVID presented numbers of challenges during the 2020 growing season. Interestingly, in many instances, these yielded increased sales and tourism visits. How to sustain the trend? Other conference topics will include pest control, marketing, and technical issues, said Anna Maenner, a leader in the Wisconsin fresh fruit and vegetable sector and organizer of this year’s one-day event. She stresses that this event can be very valuable for growers exploring commercial scale or agricultural tourism activities at their farms, vineyards, or orchards.

I hope you enjoy this interview and will join me at the conference. I’m scheduled to make a one-hour presentation on regional agricultural tourism efforts.. For more information and to register go to www.freshfruitvegetable.org  

Sylvia Burgos Toftness

Nancy Graden: Herbs and food for COVID and flu season

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Here we are: about eight months into our worldwide struggle with COVID-19. As we brace for the coming winter season, I thought we might benefit from the Deep Roots Radio podcast with Nancy Graden, medicinal herbalist and certified organic farmer. We recorded this conversation in the spring, early in the pandemic. In it, Nancy describes how we can help ourselves stay healthy and strong.

Nancy has over 30 years experience and training in herbal medicines, and works with over 50 kinds of plants on her farm, Red Clovery Apothecary Farm in Amery, Wisconsin.  She provided us with detailed notes on how to think about and use herbs in connection with the corona virus.  Notes on the COVID-19 VIRUS from an Herbalist’s Perspective 1

I hope you enjoy this interview.

Sylvia

 

Grateful to farm for health of land, cattle, and customers. Reserve beef online now

I don’t know if there are any words to describe the 2020 virtually all of us are struggling through. Every day we’re assailed with news stories and personal accounts that feel more bizarre than the previous day’s reports.

Dave and I are really grateful for these months of relative peace on the farm —  working for the health of the land, our cattle, and ultimately, our family and friends.

Well, I’m not going to attempt deep philosophy, but I will offer one bright note — our online store is open again and you can now order grass-fed-grass-finished beef to suit your budget, freezer space and appetite.

A few of our grazing Buelingo beef cattle

Reserve 25 pounds of ground beef, or several packages of delicious summer sausage — made without artificial nitrates or nitrites.

Choose the size variety package that meets your needs. These packages range from 30 pounds to 200, and contain a selection of steaks, roasts and ground beef. All cuts are vacuum packaged, clearly labelled, and frozen to -20 degrees to preserve flavor and quality.

Boost your immune system by making bone broth with our grass-fed soup bones — lots of meaty bones as well as marrow. Our cattle never get hormones, subclinical antibiotics or grain, so you can be confident of the nutrition in your broth.

Quantity is limited and we’ve scheduled our last harvest. Reserve now.

Questions? Call 651-238-8525, or email, sylvia@bullbrookkeep.com.  Dave and I look forward to being your farmers.  Sylvia Burgos Toftness

Agricultural tourism – what it is, how to start on your farm, and how to find a farm to visit. Three-part series

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The growing season is in full swing: new calves are running across the pastures, the first CSA boxes have been delivered, corn is knee-high, and vegetables are growing more than an inch a day.

This year, most of us have been stressed and isolated by COVID-19, and we’re eager to enjoy the sights, smells, and open spaces of nearby farms. Visiting working farms – agritourism – is a rapidly growing interest all across the country. What does the term encompass? How can farmers enter this growing field? And how can you find a farm to visit for a couple of hours or a weekend?

This three-part series features Sheila Everhart, President of the Wisconsin Agricultural Tourism Association (WATA). Although the focus is Wisconsin, there’s lots of information for farmers and food lovers in any state.

In Part 1, Sheila defines agritourism and describes how WATA provides useful info to farmers, advocates for agritourism regulations and policies, and helps the public find farms and activities throughout the state.

Part 2 is for farmers: the questions and issues to consider before launching an agricultural tourism activity.

Part 3 is for individuals and families searching for a farm to visit. How to find a nearby farm, and how to prepare for a successful visit.

Enjoy these informative conversations, and visit a farm soon!

Sylvia

Some medicinal/healthful herbs right outside your door: descriptions & photos

Good morning!

Boy, I enjoyed this morning’s Deep Roots Radio chat with Nancy Graden, medicinal herbalist/farmer, and owner/operator of Red Clover Herbal Apothecary farm.

In addition to cultivating over 50 plants on her certified organic farm in Amery, Wisconsin, Nancy harvests 20 others for her broad line of herb-based products. Today, she introduced us to several plants we can find growing right now in our yards, farms, ditches and woodlands.

pasture herbs

I’ll post Nancy’s podcast tomorrow, but I thought you might find her 14-page resource notes and photos useful this afternoon. I’ve also resposted Nancy’s detailed perspective on herbal helps during COVID-19.

Sylvia

 

 

Medicinal herbalist Nancy Graden – boosting health and immunity in time of COVID-19

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Medicinal herbalist Nancy Graden - boosting health and immunity in time of COVID-19
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By the time we were halfway through our first week of “shelter in place,” I knew I had to touch base with Nancy Graden, a neighbor, farmer, and very knowledgable medicinal herbalist. What could I do to brace myself for the Coronavirus (COVID-19)?

Nancy’s response is captured in this Deep Roots Radio interview, recorded March 28, 2020. I hope you find it informative and encouraging. And don’t forget to download the eight-page resource Nancy developed in light of the pandemic: Notes on the COVID-19 VIRUS from an Herbalist’s Perspective 1

pasture herbs

I’m so grateful Nancy’s helping us navigate these rough waters. And I’m so glad her farm and business, Red Clover Herbal Apothecary Farm, is just a few miles down the road in Amery, WI. She starts, nurtures and harvests 50 types of medicinal plants on her certified organic five-acre farm. She also forages an additional 20 varieties for her broad product line. Nancy consults with customers and clients locally and from the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area.

Nancy began exploring the world of medicinal plants over 30 years ago while living in the Ozark Mountains. When she returned to Minnesota, she studied herbalism at the Australasian College of Health Sciences; anatomy and physiology at the University of Minnesota; and earned an associate’s degree in Western Clinical Herbalism from Minneapolis Community College.

Nancy and I will chat again in three weeks to focus on the medicinal herbs growing just outside your door.

Sylvia

In time of need: delish, nutritious pastured meats and veg from local sustainable farmers

Looking for nutritious foods? Meats and veggies that will boost your health – and just when we need it the most? Look to your local, sustainable farmers.

We’re here to help as we face today’s challenges, and as we prepare for a better future. Today, we can offer healthful, delicious foods – as supplies last.

If you’re in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area, and in Wisconsin’s Polk and St. Croix counties, here are farmers ready to help with foods grown for health: of the land, of the livestock, and of the meats and vegetables themselves. Contact farmers directly. We deliver, or you can pick up at the farm. Our farms are clustered closely – you can visit two or more in a single trip. We’re an easy drive through beautiful countryside.

We’re the sustainable farmers of the St. Croix Watershed Midlands. We’re committed to great taste, quality and high nutrition. We use organic practice, livestock is pastured, and meats processed at nearby custom USDA facility.

BueLingo cattle graze lush pastures

Bull Brook Keep: grass-fed-grass-finished beef grown without grain, subclinical antibiotics or hormones. Available now —  #1 ground beef packages, soup bones, summer sausage (without artificial nitrates or nitrites), and variety packages of ground beef, cuts and roasts. Variety packages start at just 15 lbs. See my order page here. Call or text with questions, Sylvia@bullbrookkeep.com, 651-238-8525.

Blackbrook Farmstead: pastured pork and fresh spring spinach. Other products may also be available. Contact Ayla or James, 651-343-2595, blackbrook.farm.llc@gmail.com 

Whetstone Farm: pastured lamb and mutton, stored root vegetables, fleeces. Other products may be available. You can also sign up for their organic vegetable CSA. Contact Emily or Klauss: cell 612-354-6282, home 715-268-8454, whetstonefarmers@gmail.com

Turnip Rock Farm: pastured pork, and to sign up for their organically grown CSA. This farm also raises and milks a grass-fed herd that supplies the wonderful milk for Cosmic Wheel Creamery for fresh and aged artisan cheeses that are out of this world. Contact Josh or Rama, 715-268-9311, turniprock@gmail.com.

Additional farms and resources will be added. Check back often. Thanks.

Sylvia

Where to go for healthful beef? Read on

In light of emerging scarcities, and a desire to provide a healthful alternative, Dave and I are offering a smaller variety pack of our grass-fed-grass-finished beef. This 15-lb. pack is called “To Your Health!” and includes ground beef, roast and steaks.  You can pick up at farm, or at a drop site (+$5) in Mpls/St.Paul metro, and Wisconsin Polk and St. Croix counties.

Suppy is limited. Find out more and to order, click here.

Wishing you health and calm.

Sylvia – your local, sustainable farmer

Larger packs, ground beef, soup bones and summer sausage also available.

Questions? Email (sylvia@bullbrookkeep.com) or call, 651-238-8525.

Clay Coyote CEO Morgan Baum on the beauty and function of clay cooking vessels

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Deep Roots Radio
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Clay Coyote CEO Morgan Baum on the beauty and function of clay cooking vessels
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I’ve baked my sourdough hearth loaves in covered clay pots for years, and recommend that same strategy to the many baking students that travel to my Bull Brook Keep teaching kitchen. Why? because the covered vessels provide a blast of heat and moisture-saving enclosure that yields high rises, crisp crusts and tender crumb laced with glossy holes.

That said, I’m a newbie when it comes to cooking and roasting in clay, a culinary tradition that spans a couple of thousand years (at least) and is used in nearly every country on the globe.

My first attempt was making a whole chicken.  I followed advice gleaned from a couple of cookbooks and comments on the Cooking with Clay Facebook group. It was also there that I became aware of Clay Coyote, and Minnesota pottery maker renown for its beautiful and functional clay cookware.

I hope you enjoy this Deep Roots Radio interview with Clay Coyote CEO/Owner Morgan Baum. She grew up amid the clay and firing at  Clay Coyote and is taking it into the future.

About the chicken? Well, as I said, I followed instructions pulled from old books and offered by fellow enthusiasts.

First, I soaked the bottom and lid of my terracotta roaster in a deep sink of water. After draining the pot, I placed sliced fennel bulb (another thing I don’t use much) onions and sweet peppers in the pot. I then added a couple of herbs I haven’t used much – tarragon and marjoram – and a good glug of very dry white wine. The whole chicken nestled on top of the veggies. I put on the lid and placed the pot in a cold – yes cold – oven.

I set the dial to 300F and let the oven sit there for five minutes. I then upped the oven to 450F and let her go for 1.5 hours.

The result? Every piece of that chicken was moist. The skin was crisp. The veggies were delicious. I was sold!

Since then, I’ve dived into making beans in clay, and to poaching eggs in savory sauces. It makes such sense: great ingredients cooked in pots shaped from the earth.

Sylvia

 

 

Saturday mornings at Jewelltown Roastery jams.

Coffee, food, conversation, music…Star Prairie, WI

I couldn’t get this audio file to upload on Facebook, so here it is on my blog. It’s a one minute bite of this morning’s regular jam session at Jewelltown Roastery, in nearby Star Prairie, WI.

In addition to my cappuccino fix, I chatted with several new acquaintances as tunes flowed across several decades. What a great group of musicians!

Hope to see you there.

Sylvia

Bringing it on at Jewelltown Roastery