Fresh Ginger

I felt as if I short shifted organics a bit yesterday and was writing a reply to one of my comments so long, that I figured I should add it to the blog instead.

In Michigan our seasons are shorter, so I of course have to rely on non local groceries, but I do make an effort to can, dry (although I have learned that drying zucchini is not worth it) and freeze veggies from the garden to last me throughout the year. I did pretty well with tomatoes, green beans, broc and green chiles and froze more swiss chard and collard greens than I will ever use. I have learned that there are some things I won’t eat except when they are in season, like squash. Most people love squash, not me, but I grew a bunch and then saved them all winter for some big unknown squash event (I am a hoarder, I think I have a gene from someone who lived through the depression) and eventually, they were inedible.

I love CSA’s and farmer’s markets as you know who produced your food. I wish we could all buy from them year round. I have a guilty pleasure of buying cheeses from Europe and that is certainly not environmentally friendly. If I could find local cheeses I would buy those. There are a few around here. I certainly don’t mean to poo poo organic foods (and I buy plenty of them, I just don’t single them out) as it is more natural and less invasive. I was just surprised that so many of our products are owned by multinational corporations. I just don’t think of organic production that way. I always wonder how there can be fields and fields of organic lettuces growing with out losing a crop to some pest. Maybe the large organic farms rotate their crops enough that the bugs can’t find the veggies as easily. I need to tour a large organic farm next time I am in California.

I am actually going on a farm market tour tomorrow that our local extension is putting on. I think the intention is to get more markets (and agri tourism) going and show people that there is a need and that there are many things not at the markets that could be. I am will be sure to blog about it. Eventually my goal is to have spun wool (will need some sheep for this part), goat and cow cheese (I recently had a goat milk brie from Trader Joe’s - crazy good!), shitake and oyster mushrooms and whatever else I can grow in a hoop house for sale at local markets. Some day I will get there. Oh and a hard cidery - like a brewery, but with cider. It’s good to have goals.

I will post some new pics of our pig Pancetta soon. Wow, has she gotten big. Bacon on the way baby!

On a totally different note, I got up at 6:30 am to see the lunar eclipse (it was supposed to be mid eclipse at that time) and couldn’t even find our moon in the sky. I guess I should have thought about being at the end of the Eastern Standard Time zone and gotten up earlier. Did anyone see it? How spectacular was it?

i’m out

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