Potato Planting Per the Moon Phase in the Children's Garden

Lee suggested to Lisl (self motivated leader of the Children's Garden) that yesterday was the day to plant potatoes. The moon phase determined this decision more than anything else as it was time again to plant for root growth. Children were invited for a noon-time potato planting that included Lisl in charge, Wayne in support and whatever kids and parent's might show. A small initial group of participants and a beautiful day made for a great initiation and potato planting experience to a few young participants.

Bamboo bean trellis serving as a constant back drop to the setting of this plot, it will one day soon be walls and tunnels of greenery. Thanks to the small group who gathered at the farm yesterday, we will now have some spuds to dig up in a month or two. Potato harvest is one of the most exciting for kids and adults alike, such surprises to be encountered with each newly harvested tuber hiding under the earth. Now we have this to look forward to in the future.

Stay tuned for more events in the Children's Garden or come by the farm stand and visit the land and/or drop your email on the register so you will be contacted for future events.

Winnowing with Wayne

Enjoy the following short video, filmed and produced my farm friend and follower, Andrea who is a Sonoma County native and Bay Area local of my own generation. This is just the first of a series of films she intends to create, documenting various operations and people around the farm. Enjoy her expert eye, this is what she does for a living.

On the topic of Winnowing with Wayne, I recently finished reading the book Fields of Plenty by Jonah Raskin. The book contains a small chapter with the same name and excerpt describing his own experience cleaning beans and visiting the farm. A wonderful Sonoma County-local farming read that I highly recommend to others.

Wayne did build the vertical winnowing device in the video below. A huge part of finding efficiencies in the details of farming is the modification of tools to suit the circumstance and location specific to the farm. This farm is large enough that is does rely on mechanical assistance to a large extent, otherwise it would never be able to provide for so many households and survive. In addition to the winnower Wayne and others around the farm have constructed farm specific planting equipment, a recently developed harvesting cart (more coming soon), the smoker that makes all those chipotles, and much more. This is all part of the fun of farming!

Winnowing fava beans in July from The Seedling Project on Vimeo.

A low-tech method of winnowing fava bean pods from fava beans, which is demonstrated by Wayne James of Tierra Vegetables. Tierra is located just outside of Santa Rosa and they are famous for their chili peppers and delicious pepper products.



This is an excerpt of a larger documentary about Tierra Vegetables—I've been following them for almost two years.

Beautiful Rhubarb

There are those who adore rhubarb and those who ignore rhubarb, myself admittedly one of the latter types. Why do I ignore rhubarb? I have little use for it in my little experience with it, I do not make time to learn to use and enjoy it, in my growing experiences it has proven invasive in smaller garden spaces, in my sales experiences it is a long and tangled hassle to weigh and pack off to a customer home. I remain in an under-educated and oblivious position with the joys of rhubarb, but I realize not everyone is like me. I watch and help many a Tierra customer select and tote home small arm loads of this wonder fruit/veggie each week, awkwardly packing the tangled stalks of rhubarb into their bag loads of seasonal fare. Just a day or two ago, a regular CSA customer stopped in the farm stand on her way out to tag rhubarb onto her order, a sensual pleasure she could not go home without as long as the season lasts.

When I asked her to further explain what it was about the rhubarb she went into a sensory list that included four of the five senses. She adored the look, smell, taste and texture. I am sure if it made any noise she would love the way it sounded too. She certainly made me stop and look twice at the stalky fruit/vegetable that I have been passing over the scale and out the door of the farm stand for weeks now. It is quite beautiful. Our field manager, Pablo, agrees as I saw him carrying around a stalk of a new variety we are producing this season in admiration of it's visual beauty and quality. Our customers in San Francisco seem to agree too as we have continued to sell quite a bit of rhubarb in the city each week. I am certain farmer Lee is proud of the results of her hard work to select a successful variety and bring it to fruition on the farm too. So, take it from someone who neglects the availability of such a resource right in front of me, people are loving our rhubarb and if you are at all interested in such an ingredient I suggest you try some too. At least come indulge in a few of the sensory pleasures it offers and come and see it growing if you like, I can point you in the direction. Additionally, grow some yourself! We still have a couple of gallon pots for sale.

Children's Garden

Weeks ago I was en route to the Petaluma Seed Bank with Wayne and Lee. With all of us cooped up in a vehicle for a small off the farm field trip it was a good time for idea-sharing. This was way back when Lee revealed to me she wanted a Children's Garden area this season. I connected with the idea with enthusiasm....it seemed a natural course of action for the people and visitors I have learned so much about with recent time spent in the farm stand. A destination just for the little ones would be perfect!

As time progressed, random ideas came together here and there in addition to all of the other things we are always trying to accomplish to improve and maintain the farm. What it would be and how it would operate were questions that challenged us. It could not be too much work for us or for kids, it should be interesting and fun and not cause too much extra work for us, who would manage it when there was no spare time as it is?

Adjacent to and east of the farm stand is a section of land (we call it SE Section 9 in the planning and record-keeping scheme) that has now been designated as a destination area for the little ones this season. It may not have it all as there are so many potential ideas with a project like this....what it will have is pumpkins, a tunnel of pole beans, ground cherries and cherry tomatoes for harvesting, opportunities to weed and engage with cultivation (parental supervision required), flowers for aesthetic enjoyment and perhaps some picking, potato planting and harvesting, and who knows what else.

We have rennovated a back corner of the farm stand as a registration and check point for the Children's Garden. This chalk board has had my handwriting from over a year ago permanently chalk-inked to promote a 4 for $20 on dry chile packets....it is now re-painted and transformed into an info center for smaller sized farm visitors. Please stop in if you fit the previously mentioned profile. What you will find? Suggestions for what might be done in the Children's Garden that day, baskets for harvesting, flowers for taking, a sign up sheet where you may drop an email address to receive updates about events that will occur (an upcoming potato planting will be the first of these), and a binder where we ask that a picture or write up of your child's experience might be inserted to share with others and serve as a memory book for the 2010 season for us all. We must give great thanks to customer and educator Lisl Christie who has taken an active interest in contributing time, ideas and resources towards organizing. This allows us employees of the farm to focus more closely on our jobs (and the reamining 20+ acres of the farm) while still being able to afford to offer land for fun and education to all those interested visitors, large or small.

Farm friend, customer and frequenter Sara brought her boys, Radly and Finn, by to "work" in the garden last week. This is a rough time in the season as weeding and cultivation tend to be high on the list of "things to do." There is some sparse, early harvesting to be done in the ground cherries (harvesting has much more immediate reward than weeding, obviously). Attempting both weeding and harvesting, the farm stand proved a lure to the boys who are well trained to know that strawberry samples are available back under the awning they know so well. Focusing on weeding takes some real personal investment and perhaps these guys will get there by the end of the season. For now, they have removed a small share of "bad" plants to make more room for "good" plants and have already discovered the bean tunnel that is just made up of tiny bean plants at this time. Watching these items grow, change and live out their annual life is what the experience is all about.

So what is the Children's Garden at Tierra? It is a destination, a demonstration, and at times an activity area. Please be careful, have respect for the farm, the land, other visitors, the plants and enjoy a small slice of food production that welcomes your periodic visits.

Strawberry Side By Side Comparison

The larger berry on the left is the Chander, our June-bearing selection. This is the moment of the season when the berry on the right, Seascape, comes on at the same time. The result? Lots of strawberries! Also, a chance to compare the two varieties for a few weeks before the Chandler disappears for the season.

Physical characteristics include a difference in shape. The Chandler often produces a large and bulbous berry...perhaps less of a perfect strawberry heart shape whereas the Seascape seems to be coming out almost to perfection in little heart shape size.

Flavor? I prefer the Chandler for the moment. Apparently this changes as time wears on, but for the moment there is a maturity to the Chandler berry that just seems to produce a sweeter flavor. The Seascape is still just beginning to ripen.

Come to the farm stand and ask to try both. Compare for yourself before it is just Seascape for the remainder of the season.

30th Anniversary Celebration

Wayne, Evie and Lee pose with the strawberry filled cake made for them by Dominique (of Dominiques Sweets and Macaroons-she rents and works in our commercial kitchen).

See cake and icing details....Dominique really put some effort into the farm theme here. It is always challenging to cut into work like this.


A second creative vegetable-themed cake was presented by farm friend, Ina.

This group shot captured all past and present employees who were present at the moment of this photo session. There are a few figures I am not sure about from the past, but left to right the approximate identities include: Wayne, Katya, Evie, Jesus, Roxie, Callahan, Ellery, Lee, Erica (self), Paige (behind my head), Linda, Dominique and daughter Marisol, and Zeni.

Scene from the front of the hay ride tour on the farm. Wayne gave us an overview of the farm field in general, this season's crops and whatever else we happened upon along the way. Slight sprinkler spritzes were a feature of this tour.


This is Marisol. She knows a good strawberry and this was a good day for her to stroll down the rows of the strawberry patch and check out what was good, or not so good. I was impressed by her ability to sort out the bad ones and toss them away, savoring the perfect berries. Marisol is Dominique's daughter (that is, Dominique who is now working with the farm stand and CSA, not the Dominique who made the cake shown above). Two Dominique's now.

Here Roxie and Brian gossip away (they can't help it) next to Roxie's spinning demonstration. Brian is a handy man around the farm these days, formally our master welder. He also was the driver of the hay rides during this Sunday event so that Wayne was free to lead the tour.

This kids enjoyed the pinata and respectfully took turns....smaller children were not required to wear blind folds. No candy as a reward, there may have been a few disappointed reactions at first, but once they realized their prizes of popcorn and strawberries, I think there was some sweet relief.


The farm stand served as a wonderful shelter and gather place for the pot luck and social center for all of our guests an friends.

A big thanks to all for coming. It is the people and community who make an event like this. I know your farmers and friends greatly value the support and interest all of us invest into the hard work that goes into farming, not to mention 30 years of it. Looking forward to many, many more years of Tierra Vegetables.

Wayne's Feet

Here is a topic people cannot seem to get enough of. Young and old, informal inquiry and local news publications, people are always caught in fascination with your farmer's bare feet.

WHY?! He just prefers to be this way. Exceptions? Muddy days I find him in a pair of garden-type Crocs and middle of winter you might find him with woolen slippers crafted by his sister.

Pros: No need to worry about the proper footwear for a given situation. Whereas I will often juggle boots and garden shoes for different activities and settings, Wayne is always set to go whether he is indoors or out.

Cons: I have more than once observed significant foot splinter events as a result of the heavy bark mulches around the farm. You'd think a painful lesson like this might provoke change, but as I mentioned previously, he just prefers his feet remain bare.

I'm sure there is much more to say to this topic if I wanted to go into a full interview, but it seemed worth a mere mention as I stole a photo the other day in the farm stand. Maybe more action shots of Wayne's feet in the future this season, but he does admit it is a topic that has been over-publicized as it is.

Out with the old and in with the new

Here is another perfect strawberry photo. They seem to go on and on which is not something to complain about. The Chandlers are wonderful. Large, sweet and the poor things have endured quite a bit of rain and grit this season with little trouble. There are lots of berries to enjoy now!

And if that June-bearing Chandler ever starts to slow down in production, not to be worried because here comes the everbearing Seascape you all remember from previous seasons. Strawberries seem to be one of those crops that Lee and Wayne have mastered over the years, in addition to many others.

Fresh snap peas finally made their way into the fresh product inventory this last week and I highly suggest all you folks take advantage of their limited season. It will get too hot for them and NOW is the moment to enjoy. A large quantity will be harvested for the first CSA box of the season next week so the farm stand could have limited supplies. That is one of those benefits of being a CSA subscribers; often the best stuff gets saved for those of you who have committed, given us your trust, and paid ahead.

And here is what the end of fava season looks like. A little more yellow than the beginning of the season as they mature and dry out a bit. Still very edible and flavorful although less tender, the fava will go on for another week or two. Then that is all until next season. Last chance opportunities!

Where did the asparagus suddenly disappear to? Well, it is out there in the middle of the field as it will perennially be as long as the farm goes on, but it is now left to flower and feed itself for future seasons. Wayne and I calculated the duration of harvest and decided it was time to let it alone for the health of the crop. A fine time to transition as many early summer crops are starting now. I was impressed to see the large loads of asparagus move out of the farm stand this season. We sure do have some spear lovers out there. Sweet as they are, this is quite understandable.

Field Operations

Farm work is busy. When there are things to do (which is almost always) there are tons of things that need to be done at once. Priorities are a MUST and we wander about picking and choosing out battles all day long on the farm. A Saturday afternoon project yesterday was to apply row cover to newly planted and emerging seedlings. I think it was arugula the guys were trying to save from insect damages. It typically gets munched into a doily full of holes by flea beetles. Other plants like cucumbers and squash are attacked by cucumber beetles, and the list goes on and on. When is it worthwhile to spend the time and energy to save a crop from these pest damages? Wayne and Jesus work together in the above image to attach a large roll of brand new row cover to the tractor for application. Tis the season of insect pests and if we want to have certain crops they will need protection in the form of exclusion.

Once the tractor is rigged to apply the row cover it can actually drive itself while the guys follow along and cover the edges so that it will not blow away. All of this extra time and labor and the resources are good examples of why farming organically can be challenging and costly in the broader scheme of food production techniques. These row covers will be re-used around the farm again and again until they out live their life cycle and a full of holes and tears. The guys will have to remove the covers in order to harvest and once the crop is done. It is a lot of extra work, but lets the crop thrive without the damages of our local insect pests.

Meanwhile, Roberto got called off of field operations to go pick more strawberries! He is our number one berry man when the time comes around to re-stock inventory throughout the sales day. We try to pick enough for everyone while also not over-picking. But it is trivial because we never know hen a large strawberry order might hit a the end of a day. You can often see Roberto out filling boxes of sweet berries from out the back of the farm stand. I'm certain he loves his sweet job as he was probing and calling for months as we anticipated the first berries of the season. I never find hesitation is asking for MORE berries AGAIN.

A New Farm Stand Hand: Dominique

Introducing a girlfriend of mine, Sonoma County grown small farm fan and sustainable agriculture follower, Dominique. Evie and I are lucky that Dominique was finishing up school this spring and seeking practical experience in the field of farming, making the farm stand sales position a perfectly suitable environment for her to gain some new insights and exposures from some very experienced farmers.

Evie and I are still here too, but the farm stand is about to open full time for the season and we are going to divide the job amongst us to avoid overly long days and to share the work load. There is always plenty of work at a farm and while Evie is coming to the end of her treatments, she is still in recovery from all she has been through lately and will not be around as often as recent years, at least for now.

I met Dominique a couple of years ago when I returned to Sonoma County and was seeking farms and CSAs to work with. She and I worked together packing the CSA at First Light Farm in Sebastopol under the direction of Nathan Boone during the 2008-2009 season. When I left the packing crew out there, I left the CSA management position to Dominique who had the reliability, passion and competence to do a great job. Meanwhile, I worked for Tierra too and babbled on and on about all the incredible farming magic I was experiencing across the county. I was delighted that Dominique followed the sustainable farming trail out to Airport Boulevard and have subsequently gotten to know the farm bit by bit, finally stepping inside as a need for extra help emerged.

Since meeting her, she has always been out to find a way to find the closest thing to a homestead or sustainable living for her family including her beautiful young girl, Marisol. She is a lover of animals and care-taker of many members of her family. She has pursued and completed course work to obtain her degree in Sustainable Agriculture at the SRJC and is currently enrolled in a permaculture course. Appropriately, she is a strong believer in the issues we stand for as supporters and consumers of locally and sustainably grown food.

Please offer a warm welcome when you run into Dominique this season. Not only will she be a figure in the farm stand, helping us keep long and frequent hours to serve you as much as possible, but she will also be involved in packing and managing the CSA this season. Driven to learn and experience farm operations as someone who is truly interested in a finding a way to make a living this way, I know Dominique will put her heart and soul into her roles with Tierra. A chef for a husband (John, he currently works with Rosso Pizzeria), she has tips for use of vegetables that go beyond my realm of experience and ought to be an asset in helping people figure what to do with all the unique Tierra goodies.

We have only had one day together on the sales floor, but I was reminded why I so love working with this friend of mine. She is a hard worker! I was relieved as she stepped right in and just started doing....smart, organized, informed and out to do the best job possible. I hope you all are able to enjoy more good stuff this season as a result of more good hands that facilitate us being able to do more good stuff for the farm and everyone involved! New energy is upon us and it is a great thing!

Thank you, Dominique.