Niagra Falls and Ginko Photos

While out interviewing Richard Ryan, PhD (Professor of psychology, psychiatry, and education, University of Rochester. Lead author of “Vitalizing effects of being outdoors and in nature,” Journal of Environmental Psychology.) and Elizabeth K. Nisbet, PhD, (Psychology Department, Trent University, Ontario. Researcher on individual differences in subjective connectedness with nature--nature relatedness--and the links with health, well-being/happiness, and environmentally sustainable behavior.), Chris stopped at Niagara Falls and fell in love with a ginkgo tree. 

Look forward to more of his amazing images in his new film--Dancing With Thoreau!

Enjoy!

Eat your greens--Six ideas!

Here are our suggestions for how to use the greens which are now being harvested and are for sale on the farm stand!

GREEN IDEAS

ESCAROLE
Considered a bitter green, don’t let that deter you. This is a mild green with FLAVOR. Chris’s mom was Italian, and she always made a traditional in Italian chicken soup, just chop the escarole and cook well. OR--slice head down the middle lengthwise, braise in a skillet with hot olive oil, serve with lemon, garlic, chopped walnuts and parmesan cheese.


SWISS CHARD
Great substitute for spinach in cooked dishes. Chop the stems and stalks, cook until soft before adding the greens to cook until tender.


COLLARDS
Like kale, it holds up well in hearty soups and stews. Delicate brassica flavor and nice texture. Cook well in a little water, drain. For a southern favorite drizzle bacon grease and a splash of vinegar or California style with olive oil, chopped garlic, and salt.


MUSTARD
Surprisingly light, but with a wonderful extra zing. Great in stir-frys combined with other veggies. Try adding a scoop of black bean paste. We like them well cooked in with a pot of beans (with ham or vegetarian).


KALE
Smoothie and massaged kale salad are our two favorite ways to eat kale. It holds up well in hearty soups and stews.

ARUGULA
Great in salads, or substitute for basil in your favorite pesto recipe then serve fresh on baked winter squash!

Front Yard Farm Stand or How Farming Followed Us to Whidbey Island

This is the fourth day of our new Front Yard Farm Stand. It has a nice ring to it. The table is filled with garlic, green beans, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, beets, and kale.

Two years ago when we sold our farm of twenty-plus years, and chose village life on an island in the Puget Sound, I thought we would leave farming behind. We would become the prosperous supporters of local farms, the city dwellers who turn their front yard into a garden, living a life of urban semi-self sufficiency. This felt like a relief to me, after an entire adult life committed to rather radical self sufficiency, including putting two children through cloth diapers with no washer or dryer, no indoor toilet, really living off the grid on the food grown by us and our neighbors. It was a good life. Nevertheless, our daughters grew up and Chris and I decided it was time to move to “town.” I am now a five minute walk from the best latte in the world, Yes, it’s true, many people who have traveled through Europe say they have not had a better espresso or cappuccino than that served by at Des at Useless Bay Coffee Company. But, I digress, such are the distractions of lively village life.

No sooner had we arrived, and in fact before we rented our first house in Langley, Chris had secured a plot in the local Community Garden at the Anderson Farm, turned the soil, planted seeds. My mind traveled back to the first weeks on our farm; we were living in a tent. The first work project was planting pecan trees, and the first structure built was a green house. Priorities.

And now, twenty-five years later, here we were, planing a garden before we had a home. Word spread that Chis had been a farmer, and a few people started to offer him land on which to farm. A minute later, he was on a plane, returning home to Kentucky retrieve his tractor and other farm equipment.

So, here we are again. Drying onions and garlic are strewn about the yard, our extra bedroom served as storage for a bumper crop of squash. The fridge is filled with goat milk, wine, local sausages, and cheese, all “purchased” from neighbors or local merchants in exchange for Chris’s vegetables grown just up the road a piece, at his market garden on the Anderson Farm.

We still puzzle with the real-number economics of farming—fully embracing the ideal of local food production, but also too experienced to ignore the reality that a $3 head of lettuce probably took $20 to produce. A young couple we know puts in 60 hours a week each on their CSA farm. Maybe they gross $30-40k? We wonder when the social and environmental value of local food will catch up with the economic value.

But, we keep at it. It turns out, farming followed us here.

And thus we have the new Front Yard Farm Stand. Please stop by and pick something up for dinner!

—Christy Korrow

The Organic Bug Book Has Arrived!

 

SteinerBooks, 2013

44 pages, full color

$16.95 ($11.95 plus $5 shipping and handling)

Buy your copy now! 

To order multiple copies, please do so through our publisher, SteinerBooks.  

The Organic Bug Book is a richly illustrated children's story by farmer, Chris Korrow. The book is an intelligent and entertaining resource for encouraging children to become involved in a garden or simply to help them understand and appreciate common backyard insects. 

There are about 1,600,000 different species of plants and animals on Earth. Almost 900,000 of those are insects! In 2001, expenditures for pesticides worldwide for agriculture was almost $32 billion U.S. In his “Resources for Parents,” Chris Korrow suggests,

“Begin by considering that there is a reason for every creature and every process in an organic garden. More than just growing something, the gardener is managing an entire ecosystem. The gardener must have an awareness of what is happening in his or her garden. How to do this? It’s simple—spend time in the garden, watching and observing. If you notice insect damage, check under the leaves of the plants, poke around in the soil at the base of plants. You’ll be surprised at how much you can learn about insect pests.”

In colorful pictures and simple text, Chris Korrow helps children (and adults) better understand the place of those small neighbors in our world. He identifies, illustrates, and describes dozens of insects, explaining what they do and how they are related to people and their gardens—and how bugs can help or frustrate organic gardeners!

 

The Organic Bug Book is based on Korrow's award-winning film, Garden Insects (as seen on PBS). 

After two decades of living off the grid, and homeschooling his two daughters on a biodynamic Kentucky farm, he was inspired to create this book with the hopes that it would inspire gown-ups to get outside and into their gardens with children.

Chris Tills the Ground for School Garden

Chris drove the tractor down Maxwelton Ave. to spade up some new beds for a school garden! Children will learn about science and sustainability while growing vegetables for Good Cheer Food Bank. Read all about it here!