gardening – Cane Creek Asparagus & Company CSA

Mid-August Eggplants

I cannot believe we are already at the middle of August. Obviously, I have not Blogged recently. Quite honestly, it has been simply too depressing to write about not having any veggies for our CSA Members. The rains and the heat together caused most all of the plants to wither and die except for the cucumbers and cantaloupe and eggplant which were in a drier section of the garden. However, the deer got in and ate all of the cucumbers and cantaloupe and then the plants turned yellow. The eggplant remain and we do have beautiful globe eggplants this year! The one bright spot!! We also have potatoes. The okra plants are less than two feet high; thus, there is no need to use a ladder to harvest them this season. LOL You just gotta laugh at the craziness of it all . . . it is as if we live in Florida!

I have posted two new easy eggplant recipes to the website. Both are delicious and freeze well. This is the only vegetable I have to process, so we shall be eating lots of eggplant this winter in our household. Eggplant is naturally bitter; but as long as they are growing quickly, we never remove the skin when we prepare them. Also, we much prefer to roast our eggplant as this method brings out the sweetness. I simply brush the slices with EVOO rather than frying in it.

Eggplants are nutrient-rich, antioxidant-packed fruits that may benefit your heart, blood sugar, weight, and cancer risk. Their hearty texture is a good stand-in for meat. You can roast, bake, steam, or sauté eggplant. When it’s cut up, it makes a good addition to curries and soups or even as a basil substitute for pesto which can be used for dips, pizza, or sandwich spread.

We will offer a limited number of CSA Boxes. If you really love eggplant and potatoes, please send me an email at canecreekcsa@gmail.com and I will prepare a box for you. There may be some offerings over the next few weeks. Unfortunately, we will not be able to resume the entire CSA schedule again as we had planned at the end of June.

Triplets Tree Tag

Passing by a second-story window the other day, I noticed this shaggy tree-bush (on the right behind the bird feeder) violently shaking. My mind raced! What is the cause? An impending storm? A possible landslide? A Brevard Fault earthquake? I took a deep breath and then noticed no other trees on the mountainside shaking. Averting my eyes downward, I observed our Resident Mama Bear lying on the ground with the bird feeder tipped into her opened mouth! One of her three (yes, she has triplets) cubs lingered nearby looking upward into the shaking tree-bush before joining his two siblings playing a game of Tree Tag! Just another day on our small, family farm Wildlife Sanctuary along Cane Creek.

Tree-bush on the right–once a bush, shaped into a tree allowing for easy climbing access!

We received measurable rainfall almost every day during the month of June. Actually, this began in May. What a year! Robert and I think it is the worst year for gardening we have ever experienced. Just to show how much rain we are getting in this part of Fletcher/Fairview, check out the photo below. The crane in the picture is frequently seen in Cane Creek. This day she seems to think she might find a fish in the “lake” at the end of the road which leads into our gardens! Perhaps she is correct? Maybe I should put a worm on a hook and drop a line into this “puddle” to see what I can catch!

Crane confuses our constant road puddle for a lake!

I went back into my farm notes and records to see if in the last thirty years we had ever experienced a season as wet as this one. LOL, as it turns out we have twice before found it necessary to skip one or two weeks of CSA Boxes. This time we are facing an entire month! Still even in those bad years, we were able to pull off some reasonable vegetable boxes. This is exactly why we collect payments in the unusual manner in which we do! We are grateful to be able to do so. And we are grateful for your understanding.

Now we are are past the July 4th Holiday. I trust you were able to see some fireworks celebrating the Freedom for which our ancestors risked their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor! There has been no rain in the last few days. Robert says the soil is actually getting dry! However, this does not negate the excessive rains of May and June. Our CSA box deliveries remain on pause until the recently replanted summer vegetables can grow. All of our CSA Members should have received a personal email from us regarding this break. We trust we will have veggies again by August. Stay tuned, watch your emails, and enjoy the heat and Vitamin D-3 from the summer sun as best you can!

In The CSA Box

We are so glad you have joined us for this 2025 Harvest Season. We are having a challenging start. Last year we grew sweet bell peppers which weighed one pound each! This year the plants are doing so poorly in the field soil that we planted new seeds in the greenhouse on Friday. The soil tests and ph are good, but the texture of it is off. No doubt our soil is suffering from Helene Trauma.

Speaking of Helene, during the extensive cleanup process, Robert found a piece of engraved metal which was given as a “reward for distinguished service with the Farm Bureau.” With the help of the Fairview Town Crier Editor we tracked down the son of the man whose name was on the plaque. We returned it to the family this weekend. It turns out his father started the Farm Bureau in Buncombe County decades ago. How ironic that this little part of the award washed up onto a family farm during the raging waters of Cane Creek last September!

Curtis Wright (holding our Helene Find) and Robert Ploeger (on the right)

Robert has a new toy to mow the fields with this season. The lay of the land is extremely rough after all of the heavy equipment that was required for Helene debris removal. I would take a video of him mowing, but it might make one nauseous to watch as he bounces up and down!

Your choice to eat local, organic foods is a commitment to consuming nutritious, energetic foods! By joining our CSA, you are engaging in conscious eating just as we are engaged in conscious farming. Our choices make us all rebels who believe that all food should be local–or as local as possible!

This week we will add romaine, escarole, and possibly lettuce and kale to the Joi Choi, Ching Chang, and Asian Delight. The Tatsoi is over as it is a very finicky plant growing only under the best of conditions.

Our Current Situation

On Tuesday, October 29, I went to the meeting of farmers with all of the various agencies involved in attempting to help. A representative from one of the agencies reported it could be five years before some “programs” to assist farmers would be implemented. Despite this, I will say I left that meeting feeling relieved that we no longer have to deal with animals and their feeding and housing as so many other farmers do. Strange where one can find positive feelings!

Never realized how many houses were on the other side of that beautiful tree line we lost!

We did get the internet back on Wednesday, October 30. And my very first phone call that came was from the USDA asking if they could come out and test our soil. Three people in three vehicles arrived on Thursday, October 31 at 9:00 a.m. and did just that! We were told not to incorporate the MUD into our soil until we got the results back just in case further testing is needed. We still do not have the results of those November 5 soil tests. One tractor has come back from repair and the second has been towed in.

The deposited layer is dense and cracked. This is what they are testing.

We do have a major rock field in a couple of the garden areas parallel to the creek (and water flow). We were told our planting methods allowed most of our top soil to be retained which is a very good thing! The fabric held soil in gardens perpendicular to the creek. Also, the dense staking of our peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes seems to have help retain the soil. Our deep-rooted cover crops did a good job of holding ground in our areas not tilled and those sections are “greening up” nicely which is a sign of healthy soil. Once again we are relieved, as apparently, it could have been worse.

Drip line and fabric are tangled within. The power pole and line has been replaced.

We and our neighbor have been concentrating on rebuilding our road to our houses. Robert has been doing some work in the gardens each day. Interestingly, it was still quite wet and muddy even five weeks after! We are going to need heavy equipment to remove debris and big trucks to haul that debris away. I will update as I know more.

More pieces of someone’s life; but in the distance, see how green the front field is!

This weekend we found this in one of our blueberry rows. Perhaps we can locate the owner! The 500-gallon LP tank which landed in the front field was claimed after three weeks, so there is hope.

I will send this photo to Milwaukee as a testament to the durability of their products!

Thank you for all of your well wishes. We realize Helene has been a stressful time for everyone and we are not alone. We all must look for the Blessings we do have during this upcoming Thanksgiving Season and be grateful for them.

A DANGEROUS GAME

The unnamed cyclone is bringing some rain to the farm today. It should not be a problem because the soil is quite dry. Indeed, we are still irrigating the peppers which explains the fact they are nearly one pound each and full of Vitamin C.

Yesterday I noticed Robert sitting still on the running tractor, so I walked out to see what he was doing. As I approached, he shouted, “Don’t come any closer!” He apparently had disturbed some sort of ground hive with his mowing. Once alerted, I could clearly see from the distance that he was surrounded by wasps or yellow jackets or some such dangerous insect. He was attempting to determine their point of origin so as to avoid it on the next pass–and praying that if he remained still enough, they would not sting him! He eventually backed out of the area without finding their nest which was quickly relocated by the angry mob. Later in the evening, he was able to finish mowing while being always aware they are lurking about elsewhere in the fields! Farming is a dangerous game!!

We are winding down the 2024 CSA Season. Expect an email from me in the near future with more details! In the remainder of the boxes expect butternut squash, those sweet bell peppers, a variety of potatoes, smaller eggplant due to the cool nights, probably some green beans, and perhaps a random cabbage or tomato or okra or individual-sized spaghetti squash.

Something I like to do with these smaller eggplants is to roast them and then make them into Eggplant Pesto which I can then spread onto crackers or bagels. If you want to try this, just use any Basil Pesto recipe and substitute the pulp of the eggplant after you have scraped it from the skin. It also freezes well in ice-cube tray blocks for later enjoyment!

On a final note, we have a acquired a very pretty little red rooster! He just appeared about two weeks ago in our field and seems to be living on the nearby mountain side. I am amazed no “critter” has enjoyed him for an evening meal. This little guy is either quite lucky or very wise and able to conceal himself when danger is present. And he likes our neighborhood which is a Wildlife (and fowl) Sanctuary!

Praising The Bear

It is pouring rain at the farm right now. The farmer is going back to the field to harvest some beets in the mud for Tuesday’s CSA. There will also be some green beans or some yellow, broad beans in your box–but not both There would have been both, but it is raining too hard to be picking more beans! We really do not need this rain. Daily rainfall, even if small amounts let alone this deluge, is not good for our garden. The squash, zucchini, and patty pans in particular will begin to drop off from excessive dampness.

We had a serious problem solved last week! There was a huge hive of something (bees? wasps? hornets?) attached to the underside of the bucket of one of our tractors. This tractor had not been used recently as it is used for maintaining our gravel road–although with this rainfall, we might need to use it tomorrow! We have another tractor for mowing which is in “seasonal” use right now. Back to the problem . . . Robert has been watching this hive and considering how to safely remove it. The fantastic news is that one day last week, one of our bears tore off the hive and carried it off into the woods–much as he did our trash can one time! Problem solved without needing to use an epie pen! Praise for the bear THIS WEEK . . .

This is the *small* bear and one of the two which frequent our property and perhaps live on it somewhere!

One of our CSA Members was telling me how she is making muffins for her freezer from the patty pans and summer squash. What a great idea; particularly if your family needs to have the zucchini hidden! I am surprised I have not thought of this; although, Robert and I tend to be purist when it comes to our vegetables. As little sugar and as close to raw as possible is our preferred method of consuming,

In the box you can expect green cabbage, red beets, a variety of patty pan squash, long summer squash, yellow or green zucchini , orange carrots, yellow broad-beans and/or string-less, green beans (depending on the day), a couple of sweet, green bell peppers, and a bit of okra.

Blueberry Alert

Some of our CSA Members have been asking about our U-pick blueberries. They did survive that late May frost! However, this extended drought is taking its toll on our blueberries this season. Many berries are simply falling to the ground in this dry heat. Additionally, we have a late variety which will not be ready for another six weeks. This is not encouraging news, I know. Therefore, today I want to direct you to another local farm where blueberries and blackberries are currently (and for the next 3 – 4 weeks) available for picking! This location is the Cloud 9 Farm at 137 Bob Barnwell Road in Fletcher. My friend, Janet, has beautifully mowed and irrigated berry patches–which explains why she has so many berries this year. Also, she keeps the bushes trimmed so picking is easily maneuvered. Her business is berries where ours is veggies which means our berry patch is somewhat neglected during our harvest season.

Cloud 9 Farm Berries are available now on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday from 8 a.m. until noon. Drive past the “main venue entrance” to the BLUE GATE and berry patch. Janet will be there to give you more directions. No need to call, just check out the link above for details in advance.

Cloud 9 Farm is a 200 acre family farm that Janet’s father had the foresight to purchase decades ago. We have had family members get married there. And we have had family members stay in two of the vacation rental homes/cabins which are available for short-term rentals. It is in the neighborhood and great for when company outstrips ones available bedrooms!

As CSA Members, you are still welcomed to visit our blueberry patch, of course. If you have been here before, you know our bushes are quite tall and the field is not mowed which does make for a difficult picking site–except for the most adventurous! We do not charge a fee; we simply ask that you leave a half-share of what you harvest for the farmer who trims and weeds the patch each fall.

Seasons Change!

We are moving into kohlrabi (red/green), broccoli, cauliflower this week along with the lettuce, kale (red/green), romaine (red/green), escarole, endive, and the big, tall, light green Tokyo Bicanna. The “red/green” note means it depends on which variety needs to be harvested that particular morning. You can see from this list the chois are missing. Some CSA Members will be happy, perhaps; but, others will be saddened. Seasons change!

Something else missing will be peas. Somehow the peas were planted in one of the gardens not surrounded by the deer fence this year–sorry. Unfortunately, the deer got into the peas two days ago and ate both them and the plants on which they were growing. When I say deer, I do not mean one or two . . . we have a hungry herd! And apparently, a herd with a taste for Seasonal Gourmet Vegetables!!

Broccoli heads and cauliflower heads will vary in size depending on where in the garden they were growing. Our gardens include a variety of different soils. Think of it like a patchwork quilt! It is just the way God made it and there is nothing that can be done to change this fact. If the plants were in a more clay-pack area, they will be smaller. Also, we have different varieties of broccoli planted. Some years one variety does better than another; so this, too, may account for differences.

This little head with the long stalk is a special variety called Artwork.

At some point we will also be taking a new variety of green romaine lettuce which we are trying out. It is fluffier–more round than tall. And leaves have little ridges.

It is hot and dry. We are not excited to hear about the high 80 and 90 degree temperatures heading our way. At least we have our underground, drip irrigation to help keep the plants growing!

The April 30 Garden

So much is going on in our gardens! The second garden to be included in the fence is in the process of being laid out as you can see below. That metal post you see is the hose bib where we attach the drip irrigation which runs through the garden to the drilled well.

Meanwhile, thousands of plants have been moved to the main stage in the first garden where we trust they will flourish and grow to fill our CSA veggies in mid-to-late-May. WHEN we begin harvest all depends on the weather in the next two weeks. The chois, etc. will be smaller in the first two weeks of the CSA, but these crops grow every day and soon one will practically fill the entire box! Please remember this!

If you look closely in the photo below, you can see the seven-foot deer fence which surrounds this first garden and will be extended to surround the second garden as well. The fencing is barely visible to the human eye; but the deer can see it! Over the years we have determined what crops the deer like to eat, so we simply enclose them.

Sprouts are starting to come up through the soil in the potato garden. The fabric has been laid between the rows and the drip irrigation lines are waiting to be set up. Within thirty days, one will not be able to walk between these rows because the potatoes will have grown so large–we trust!

Many other crops have also been planted including carrots, beets, peas and some I am forgetting to be sure! I will send out an email to each and every CSA Member when it is time to arrive at your pick up location for your first box of farm fresh vegetables. It will take us two weeks to get the CSA up and running because we operate on the every-other-week delivery system. These early veggies like cool weather as in traditional spring weather. Cool weather will prevent them from bolting early. Pray for this!

The Days Are Long

Typically on hears the phrase “the days are long, but the years are short” in regard to child rearing; however, it also applies to CSA farming. The greenhouse seedbed and transplanting stage is nearing an end as all of the spring crops are growing nicely and filling their individual peat pots. The nightshade veggies are the last to fill the seedbeds. Today those seeds are starting to break though the soil which means by the end of the week, I shall be transplanting the tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers into their individual peat pots. And then, except for monitoring and watering the plants located there, my daily greenhouse hours will have ended!

The last seedbeds are popping through the soil.

The first and now largest plants have left the greenhouse so they can get acclimated to the real world of direct sunshine, unregulated temperatures, wind, and rain. This means I must be careful when I back out of the garage! Robert put a small fence around this “nursery” to keep wandering animals from walking through and damaging the plants. These plants get watered every day. Once they have adjusted, they will go to the gardens to be transplanted for the final time into our field/garden soil.

This is our driveway “nursery” where plants harden up before going to the gardens.

At the same time, the garden soil must be turned and fluffed. This step is done with our tractors. The remainder of the season is all really hard, manual labor. The ground covers between which we plant must be laid down. The drip irrigation lines must be laid as well. Only then can we begin putting our plants into the gardens. Robert is busy today preparing the gardens for the first joi choi, tatsoi, kale, lettuce, romaine, broccoli, cauliflower, kohlrabi, and cabbage transplants. We trust each plant will mature into a lovely, tasty vegetable to fill our early CSA Boxes.

Robert is hooking up the drip irrigation which runs down each row.

Producing a veggie crop is a long and labor intensive process which begins the first of March. Each year when we start up our CSA Farmshare pick ups in mid-to late-May, we comment, “It will be the 4th of July before you know it!” And then it is!! Then the first of August arrives with its harvest of tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant. Typically, by this time, we have “hit the wall” in terms of our energy levels and need to rest and re-group. This is when we say, “The harvest season is halfway over.” Turn around a few times and the end of September has arrived and our supply of fresh produce is dwindling. Then, if all goes well, by the end of October or mid-November, the gardens will all be cleaned up and put to sleep for the winter months. One fact remains–the days are long and the year is short!

Tag: gardening