“What might be in your CSA box this week?
This is what might be in your CSA box for the week of
May 14, 2012
Small box might have:
- Kale
- Cauliflower
- Romaine Lettuce
- Red Maui Onion
- Garlic
- Clementine Oranges
- Large Strawberries
Large box might additionally have:
- Collard Greens
- Broccoli
- Grapefruit
- Red Beets
This is what might be in your CSA box for the week of of May 7, 2012
Small box might have:
- Broccoli
- Cabbage: Red or Green
- Cauliflower
- Red Lettuce
- Swiss Chard
- Blueberries
- Strawberries
Large box might additionally have:
- Large Maui Onion
- Radish
- Grapefruit
- Napa Cabbage
**These tree fruits are certified organically grown by Glen Ivy Farms in Corona. A non-profit organization tended to by Sergio Gutierrez.
***Finally found a local organic apple grower! Howard Albano is the owner of Cuyama Orchards growing about 250 acres of apples in Ventura. They are certified organic by CCOF. Enjoy these wonderful fruits!
****These organically grown potatoes are from Noonan Farms in Oregon. A little far away but I thought that you all would enjoy something that we do not have.
*****OCP-Orange County Produce. OCP has multiple organic farms around Orange County.
++ from - Sahu Subtropicals a small, sustainable, fruit farm in the Rainbow/Fallbrook area of N.San Diego County, specializing in subtropical & other fruits grown using organic practices.
Its always fun to try a new recipe with the family and friends. For your interest, we have a collection of recipes. If you would like to try the recipes, please click here. Have fun with the recipes, and when you get a chance, please let us know how the recipe turned out, by emailing us at CSA@TanakaFarms.com.
Farmer Tanaka's Blog
May 15, 2012
Well, the hot day that I was anticipating never appeared! This is beautiful Southern California!! The crops are growing, the tours are in full swing, we have a wedding out on the farm this weekend and it is time to start getting ready for summer and plan for the pumpkin patch!
We have started our volunteer gleaning program again. They are on Monday and Wednesday afternoon at 3:30 pm. You must register online on our homepage as we are limited in the number of volunteers that can come out at one time.
Enjoy the week!
May 7, 2012
I really hate to complain, but........ one of the purposes of this blog is to let you into the world of the farm. Sooooooo.......... Our strawberry plants just begin to put out enough beautiful, plump, red juicy fruit for our children of the farm tours, our CSA subscribers and produce stand customers and now what? Last week we had all of those mornings with the wet drizzle and overcast days. That is not good for the variety of strawberry that we grow and as long as we leave them on the vine for optimum flavor, those damp days rot the strawberries. You may have noticed a few rotten ones in your CSA box also. We try to sort the bad ones out but when there are as many as there are and many times really hard to see when they are picked, a few do slip by us. We are throwing two thirds of them away in the fields!
Ahhh, beautiful weather this week??!! It is supposed to be 80 degrees Tuesday!!!!!!! That will blister half of the one third of the good berries that are left!!!!! Oh my! I think I have a stomach ache!
So what is the good news? The sweet Maui type onions are fabulous! The summer squash is just about ready to harvest, they look great! Green beans are about two weeks away and the sweet white corn is tassling and the silk is shooting out of the ears. Another month and we should have some corn to bbq!
Get ready for some great summer veggies!
May 3, 2012
I once again have to apologize for neglecting to keeping you all updated as to what is happening on the farm. My mantra has been "communication, communication, communication" and I have been failing at it with all of you. I can only apologize.
I will offer you my feeble attempt at an excuse. I have been very depressed about the poor decision that I made about planting this year's strawberry crop later than normal. Because of that and the cooler than normal spring, our plants are just now coming into full production. That meant that you did not get to enjoy the early season strawberry crop and I did not have much to sell at my produce stand. For you , you missed out on the best berries of the season (at least I like them the best) and for me I lost out on revenue that I won't make up! Not only that, for the strawberry tours for our school children, I had to buy strawberries from my neighbor to pass out. Not only did the children miss out on my sweet delicious strawberries, I had to buy them on top of that!
It is really hard to make a living at any small business and when the owner makes a costly mistake like I did, it is very, very hard to get over it (at least for me). Now that we are in full production, I feel better and I need to get over it and move forward!
So......... I hope that you all have been enjoying our fresh produce! There may be an occasion when you will get some produce that seems to be infested with insects! It will happen! With the occurrence of those warm days every now and then, the insect population explodes and it can be very difficult to keep things under control. We do our best to sort the infested vegetables out but it can be difficult sometimes especially with the leafy greens when they are buried deep inside.
Most of you had some great tasting organically grown blueberries! They are from our friend Ron down in San Diego. He also supplied us with theasian guavas about a month ago. ENJOY!!!
April 9, 2012
If you have been watching any television at all lately, it seems that healthy eating is the hot topic! Over half of your plate should be fresh fruits and vegetables! And all of you that are our loyal CSA subscribers have a great understanding of the benefits of eating FRESH fruits and vegetable direct from the farm! If you are following the recommendation of eating 50% of your plate filled with fruits and veggies, our small box should not last an entire week! Even the large box should not last the entire week! Even if you eat out a lot, just about everything in your CSA box can be precooked or prepared for easy snacking. Nothing wrong with snacking on a carrot, cold beets, snap peas or even snack on a light salad.
There is a great debate going on right now about how to consume your veggies. Raw foodies claim that cooking destroys vitamins and minerals in food. While the statement is true, cooking is shown to enhance the amount of lycopene in tomatoes. Cooking carrots, spinach, asparagus and many other vegetables also supply more antioxidants, such as caratenoids and ferulic acid, to the body than they do when raw. That is if they are boiled or steamed.
The answer to the question, "should I eat my vegetables only raw for the best health benefit?" The answer is "no." Eat them both cooked (lightly steamed is the best) and raw as consuming them both ways have their benefits.
For more information on this hot topic, google "vegetables raw or cooked" to see for yourself.
March 27, 2012
The good news is that we did not lose a lot of strawberries due to the rain like our neighbors did because there are not that many strawberries on the plants to lose. The bad news is that we will be slower to recover. Still waiting for that second push of bloom to come out of the crown.
The rain is great for the soil, again washing out the damaging salts allowing a good medium for the plants to grow and thrive in. The nights are still actually very chilly which is delaying the maturity of our spring crops.
Great reviews on our new "Vegetable Harvest Tour!" You all have to come out and try it! A guided walking tour around the farm and pick your own vegetables that you can take home and enjoy! Come out and bring the family!
March 19, 2012
Where has Farmer Tanaka been??? After my last blog, my wife and I left for a week's vacation! It was fantastic! I really did not want to come back just yet, but it was time. After returning home it was back to business and everything was piled hid high! What is the old adage? "You play, you pay!"
On top of the backlog of work, we had to wrestle with the idea of cancelling CSA Day (which we did) and some of our farm tours because of the lack of strawberries!!! What happened? If you have been following along, you know that we planted a little later than we usually do hoping that the plants would be stronger and healthier to fight off some of the lingering diseases that we have in the soil.
In doing so, the plants did not get the advantage of the warm October nights to get a good amount of growth in before the winter and with that our first crop came a little later and smaller and now the plants are in a huge gap waiting for that second flush of fruit to pop out of the crown! Right now the plants should be loaded with fruit in all stages of maturity plus it should be white with bloom! But they are not. We will also be short of strawberries for our biggest strawberry sales day of the year, Easter!
Please forgive my lack of communication as I have been a little depressed. Strawberries is our main crop (and my favorite!) and to be so short of fruit has really put a monkey wrench on our plans and cash flow! We not only do not have strawberries for our CSA subscribers but we also have thousands of school children that already have reservations to come to the farm to pick our famous red, ripe, deliciously, sweet strawberries! My stomach is just in knots thinking about it!
Please bear with me as we try to get through this season. Hopefully things will straighten out in four or five weeks!
February 28, 2012
Some of our CSA subscribers really do a nice job of communicating with their fellow members. Probably do a better job than I do! These communications when done properly create excitement and help others prep and use their fresh fruits and veggies when ideas start to run thin. This helps to maintain subscriber interest and keeps pick up site numbers higher.
The following is an email that was sent out to subscribers at Pegasus School in Costa Mesa (I hope Kathyrn doesn't mind me reprinting this for all of you to see!):
Hello all,
Today's Tanaka box had an amazing volume of greens! Let me share a cooking strategy I used tonight...
Roast the beets
Cover the the beets in foil and popped them in my toaster oven on a tray. 425, 1 hour.
Saute the turnips
Cut up the turnips into 1" pieces and put them in a saute pan with 1T oil. Let them brown, then add 1/3 C water, some salt and sugar. Cook covered until tender, then remove the top and cook until most liquid is gone. My 1st grader loves these...
Mushrooms and greens saute
Cook all the greens (turnip and beet tops). I had a package of mushrooms, so I sliced those up and began to saute. Once they were done, I seasoned them, then added all the pre-rinsed and chopped greens. Cover the pan and cook for 5-8 min. Yum.
(I remove the stringy red beet stalks. Just too earthy, even for me. However, one week I saved these stalks, diced them and added to my standard onion/celery/carrot soup base. They were good and colorful. Nobody noticed except me.)
Now, I've got room in my refrigerator for the rest of the produce! And how about those amazing Satsuma tangerines? Super sweet.
Lastly, I recently read about "massaging your kale." No kidding. If you like making (uncooked) kale salads, the current technique is to dress your kale, then massage the dressing into the leaves. This makes the leaves softer (and presumably, happier). Will try this week.
Try this combination: raw kale, chopped apples, grated carrot, chopped walnuts, raisins. Dress with a neutral oil, like grapeseed or canola. Massage (!).
Thank you all for participating in the Tanaka Farms program. I hope your family is enjoying the produce quality and that you are inspired to get in there and cook :)
Thank you Lisa for your delivery help today,
Kathryn
What will you cook tonight?
Some of you have some great blogs that I have seen and I will start to search them out and post the links here so that everyone can enjoy them and get some fresh new ideas!
There is nothing like good words from subscribers to promote our CSA!
Thank you all and keep on spreading the word!!!
February 20, 2012
Strawberry season is HERE!!! Actually, they haven't really gone anywhere!! You will see them in the grocery stores just about all year around. Southern California starts producing in December ends in May, Central California begins in April ends in August, Northern California begins in May and ends around November. Whatever gaps there are can be filled with fruit from Florida and Mexico!
But do not be fooled, February through June is LOCALLY GROWN STRAWBERRY SEASON and that is when you will get the best and freshest strawberries of the year (especially if you get them from Tanaka Farms, ME!!!!!!).
The strawberry, fragaria is a genus of flowering plants in the rose family. The delectably tasty and fragrant part of the plant that we love to eat is not actually the fruit of the plant but is a part of the fruit. It is the receptacle, the fleshy edible part of the flower.
If you are trying to lose weight, strawberries are great because they have a high nutrient density rating and have a high satiating effect (makes you feel full!).
If there is a downside to something that is considered to be such a healthy food is that a large portion of it's calories (49 calories per cup) come from sugars.
I was going to try and paraphrase the following but the information is too good. The following info is copied from the "health and nutrition" page from the California Strawberry Commission web site.
The Antioxidant Power of Strawberries
Fruits are one of the best sources of healthful antioxidants, and antioxidant activity is thought to explain, in part, why diets rich in fruits and vegetables can reduce the risk of certain cancers, heart disease and other conditions related to increased oxidative stress.
Antioxidants provide protection by neutralizing free radicals -- molecules produced by the body during metabolism -- that increase to unhealthy levels at times of oxidative stress (i.e., inflammation, smoking, exposure to pollutants and UV radiation).
Antioxidants in strawberries are thought to help defend the body against several diseases and conditions, including cancer, heart disease, neurological decline, and diabetes. Data suggests the high antioxidant activity of strawberries may help reduce levels of oxidized LDL cholesterol, a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Flavonoids in strawberries may also provide cardioprotection by inhibiting platelet aggregation and thromboxane synthesis. In addition, anthocyanins in strawberries may help protect the neuronal cells from inflammation that is linked to declines in cognitive function.
Strawberries and other berries provide unique antioxidants, anthocyanins, which give berries their red and blue hues but also act as potent antioxidants. Specific antioxidants present in strawberries include quercetin, kaempferol, chlorogenic acid, p-coumaric acid, ellagic acid and vitamin C. (1)
A recent report published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (LINK TO STUDY) analyzed over 1,000 foods and beverages for antioxidant capacity, strawberries ranked third in total antioxidant capacity (AOX) per serving. (2) Only blackberries and walnuts were found to be higher in antioxidant capacity. For comparison, the researchers found that a serving of strawberries provides 3.6mmol antioxidants/serving while blueberries were 2.7 mmol AOX/serving, sour cherries were 2.2 mmol AOX/serving and oranges, 1.3 mmol/serving.
References:
1. Olsson ME, Ekvall J, Gustavsson KE, et al. Antioxidants, low molecular weight carbohydrates, and total antioxidant capacity in strawberries: :Effects of cultivar, ripening, and storage. J Agric Food Chem. 2004;52:2490-98.
2. Halvorsen, BL, Carlsen MH, Phillips KM, et al. Content of redox-active compounds (ie, antioxidants) in foods consume din the United States. Am J Clin Nutr 2006:84:95-135.
Check out the California Strawberry Commission website for more great info about the fabulous strawberry!
ENJOY!
February 13, 2012
It is starting to feel a little bit like winter! Better late than never.
We are busy at the farm! The strawberry plants need to be weeded and tended to. We have dropped seed and are getting ready to transplant into the field tomato and pepper plants. We are still continually dropping seed and planting in the field cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, lettuces and other winter/spring, cool weather crops. Still direct seeding in the field, carrots, onions, baby bok choy, beets and the like. We are also ready to direct seed into the field our spring/summer crops like green beans, squash and one of my favorites, our sweet white corn!
So please be patient, I know some of you may be getting a little tired of the cool season crops, but soon the season will be changing. The weather has cooled off to enjoy those soups and casseroles that you can make with the great winter veggies!
If you are enjoying your CSA boxes, please spread the word and encourage your friends to support their local farmer (me!), eat fresh and eat healthy! Many of you subscribe through your child's school and 10% of the sales goes back to your school! Win, win!
February 6, 2012
This will be brief as I have some things that I need to take care of right of way.
You will probably have some little green things in your boxes this week. They are Asian guavas. They can be eaten when they are hard or soft. The seeds, try not to bite down on them, just swallow them whole. A little salt and or lime and they are good to go. We got them from an organic grower from the Fallbrook area. I will post a bio about him when I get a little more time.
Hope to get you all some of sweet strawberries on a regular basis soon!
January 30, 2012
This could be California's driest year on record! Farmers are not the only businesses that are weather driven. Lake Tahoe, which relies on skiing for income, has no ski areas operating at full capacity. Some only have 30% of their lifts open according to a post by Bob Morris.
Thanks to the foresight of the MWD (Metropolitan Water District) for constructing a vast array of reservoirs we have enough water to get us through two or three years of drought. That does not mean that we should not continue to conserve and use our water wisely. On my farm here in Irvine we use a drip irrigation system on our crops that puts the water right in the root zone so as to use our precious water as efficiently as possible with no runoff. We also use reclaimed water supplied by the IRWD (Irvine Ranch Water District) who produces the cleanest and safest reclaimed water in the country.
Past history has shown that droughts and the lack of water have caused civilizations to collapse. It are the ones that have a reliable and robust infrastructure in place that have been able to survive such catastrophies.
I hope that you have been enjoying the apples. I apologize , last week they were listed as Fuji apples but they were and are this week again Pink Ladies. They are better for cooking if you would like to give that atry. The flavor is not as sweet or as sharp as the Fujis. I don't know what Howard Albano does to his apples but his Fuji apples are by far the best Fuji apple that I have ever had. I leave them in my office and in my pick up truck and eat them all day long! Enjoy them while you can as they will only be around for another month or so.
Enjoy!
January 22,2012
Finally!!! We received some much needed rain with more on the way! One half to one inch of rain once a week would be just perfect. Give the rain a chance to soak into the ground before the next one and allow us to get some work done. Will someone please order that up?!
As I mentioned before, you will be seeing Swiss chard and broccoli in your box just about every week for a while. My apologies but you try and get just the right amount and mix of vegetables at just the right time (I know, I am the professional). It's not easy!
Some of you will be getting a little taste of strawberries in your box this week! They are a little small but they do taste good! Sorry that there is not enough for everyone, please be patient!
I mentioned last week, follow us on facebook as I will be updating several times a week with photos of the farm and even some quizzes now and then!
Stay dry!
January 16, 2012
It is already two weeks into the new year! Our nursery is full of starter plants, cauliflower, broccoli, romaine, red leaf, and more winter/spring crops. We have already dropped seed and have spouted tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, seedless watermelon and more of the summer crops!
In the field, I am able to pick a few red strawberries (just enough for me!) and all of our winter crops growing. Areas where we will be planting spring and summer crops are green with our cover crops that help enrich the soil with nitrogen and organic matter. Yes, we grow crops to help the soil. We have to pay for seed, planting, irrigating, tilling and rent and receive no money for the crop, but it is good for the soil. The key to producing a healthy crop.
It is a constant chess game planning on where to plant what crop and when. I need to plan around our three main crops, strawberries, watermelon and pumpkins. These crops have to be planted in certain areas and at specific times and all other crops need to be scheduled accordingly. When crops mature at different rates, from six weeks to twenty five weeks, things changing because of weather and change in plans, etc. Quite a puzzle!
Follow us on I will be posting more updates and including more photos of the farm!
January 10, 2012
Happy New Year!!! I hope that everyone had a wonderful time over the holidays visiting with family and friends. I know that I did! Now it is time to get back to work.
You may have seen some local strawberries in the supermarkets and as my neighbors have all been busy picking the first set of fruit off of their young plants. I planted about six weeks later than most of them so I don't even have any ripe fruit on my plants. In fact, most of my plants don't even have any bloom!
The reason that I plant so late is that since I do not wholesale anything that I grow I do not plant to try and be early which is when the prices are usually the best. I plant to try and have peak production in late spring when the weather is the best and we have the most visitors out on the farm. Also, by planting later, the transplants are more mature and stronger and hopefully will produce better quality fruit.
In the past, I seem to always be talking about the weather. But it is the weather that we really do not think about but has a huge impact on our lives. The beautiful mild sunshine that we have been having is terrific! But we do need rain! There is nothing like that natural rainfall that will wash away the salts in the soil and clean the air to let our plants flourish. Have you ever smelled the air after a nice rain! Have you noticed how the plants around the area seem to spring to life after a good shower! These things cannot be duplicated with sprinklers. We also need to replenish our above and below ground drinking water reservoirs!
You may be seeing a lot of Swiss Chard and broccoli in your boxes over the next month or so. Please bare with us as we have had to deal with a few production problems. A little short of ground and some germination, or I should say, non-germination issues in our nursery. So, get creative, get on the internet and find some good recipes!
December 12, 2011
When you get old, time flies! I was just getting used to writing the numerals 2011! I would like to remind everyone that this is the last week for our CSA deliveries. You do not have to do anything to your account, you will not be billed because you will not be getting any deliveries for three weeks. We will resume deliveries Tuesday, January 10, 2012. We will send you a reminder.
If you are looking for a Christmas gift idea, how about signing them up for a CSA box and put it on your credit card! Just a thought.
Please mention to your friends that we are introducing five new pick up sites! When we begin delivering again in 2012, you can pick up Thursdays at Plowboys Market in Fountain Valley (Warner and Magnolia), Wednesday at the Farmers Market in Tustin (El Camino Real & 3rd St), Thursday at the Farmers Market in Costa Mesa (Orange County Fairgrounds), Friday at the Farmers Market in Laguna Hills (Laguna Hills Mall parking lot) and Saturday at the Farmers Market in Irvine (at the Irvine Center across from UCI).
Plowboys are old friend from when they were in Hawaiian Gardens. They agreed to let us use their location as a pick up site as a favor to us. Be sure to pick up you any of your other produce and grocery needs while you are there.
The Farmers Markets is a natural fit for us. Our good friends from Orange County Produce has agreed to let use their stall as a pick up site for our CSA subscribers. Make sure to support them as they also have terrific organically grown produce from Orange County.
If you have not got your Christmas tree yet, this Sunday will be our last day so do not put it off any longer!
Stay warm and dry!
December 5, 2011
It was wonderful to see all of the new faces out at the farm for our CSA day! It was a little windy but we had watered the roads down the night before so it was not too dusty for our visitors or our newly planted strawberries.
Eileen and Shannon along with our friends Karen, Keith, Bobby, John, Donna, Trish, May, Diane, Patti, Roselle and Debbie put on a great spread of baked potatoes (with all of the fixin's), salad, beets, swiss chard and the baked goods along with the Christmas photo in front of the Christmas Tree! Everyone seemed to enjoy the food and the tour of the farm! Thank you all for coming out!
As I was explaining to everyone, we are really behind on our weeding! The older crops where the weeds are bigger, the weeds are mature enough to have flowered and are full of seeds ready to sprout when they are tilled back into the soil. More weeds for us to pull! The younger crops ,like the strawberries that we just planted, the weeds are competing for the water and soil nutrients that are essential to the growth of the plants. We need to hurry and get to the weeding before our intended crop is stunted and begin to affect the future fruit production.
Other than being way behind on the weeding, everything else is proceeding along nicely. Our winter crops are looking really good! In some cases, too good. Some of the cauliflower is just huge! We should probably cut them in half, but, maybe you can make some mashed cauliflower out of it if you happen to get a really big head in your box. It is supposed to taste just like mashed potatoes! Someone let me know how it tastes.
Would someone please turn off the wind!
November 18, 2011
The winter chill is in the air! We just finished planting all of our strawberries. They are tucked in and sprouting new roots. Things are looking good for now. Even though the pumpkin patch is over we are extremely busy trying to strip the fields of the plastic mulch, irrigation tape, trying to get crops planted for January and February harvest, plus we still have to sand bag the tail ditches and weed the crops! AND we are trying to get ready for our Christmas trees that will be arriving on Thanksgiving day!
A reminder, the farm will be closed down for three weeks during the winter holidays. There will be no CSA deliveries between December 19th and January 9th. You do not have to put yourself on vacation hold or do anything to your account. We will send you an email reminder before we close.
If you happen to be going on vacation other than those days that we will be closed, you may put yourself on vacation hold at anytime (no later than four days prior to your normal delivery day).
I have to apologize for the yellowish looking soybeans in your box this week. The cold weather really affects certain crops and the soybeans are one of them. They actually tasted fine but we are very a very appearance driven society and they did not appear appetizing. Again, my apologies. I will have a little extra something in your boxes the following week.
Thank you all for your continued support!
November 7, 2011
It is always busy and non stop on the farm. Pumpkin season is over but we have to clean the fields and get it ready to plant more strawberries. We also have to prep the front display area for Christmas trees, they will be coming in the day after Thanksgiving. All of our equipment has to be gone through , inspected and repaired. Planting and harvesting of crops for the produce stand and for your CSA boxes is continuous.
Even though we are busy, I took a couple of days off to celebrtate the marriage of my good friend Marvin Masuda and Donna Huderberg. Marvin is an old family/childhood friend that has never found the right partner to spend his life with. He recently was contacted by his highschool sweetheart, Donna, and it was love all over again! It was if he was meant to be there waiting for this opportunity for all of these years. All of his friends and family are so very happy for him! We all wish him and Donna the very best! Congratulations!
October 25, 2011
We just finished planting one acre of strawberries! Only six more to go! It is really tough to get everything done. We have school children that want to see our pumpkin patch on the weekdays and families that also want to enjoy the farm on the weekends and everyone on the farm is very busy keeping things neat, harvesting and packing vegetables for your CSA box, planting and weeding new vegetables for your CSA box that we will be harvesting in January, prepping the ground to plant more strawberries! Everyone on the farm is exhausted!
Even after the pumpkin patch closes, we have to pull the plastic mulch and irrigation lines to prep the pumpkin patch to plant strawberries and also we need to get things ready for our Christmas trees!
Summer crops that we are harvesting now, like tomatoes and bell peppers should be around until it gets really cold. Even now with the cool night time temperatures, the tomatoes are much slower to ripen. Wait until the day time temps stay in the low 70s or high 60s and it will take forever for that green tomato to change to red. In other words, enjoy the tomatoes now as they will not be around for much longer. The ones that will be available in the grocery stores will be from Mexico, Florida or hot house grown.
October 17, 2011
It was nice seeing everyone here at the farm last week for our CSA day! I wish that I could have talked to each of you but as you could see, it was a very busy day!
The weather has been changing dramatically each week!. Rain and humid, blazing heat! We would have had some beautiful bell peppers and anaheim chiles for you but most of them got sunburned! The tomatoes also suffered some blistering from the heat but the plants had a pretty good canopy protecting them.
The pumpkin patch is in full swing! This past weekend the weather was perfect and families had a great time riding the wagon, petting the animals, picking veggies and selecting that perfect pumpkin! October is sooooo much fun!
October 3, 2011
Fall is definitely here! The days may be warm but as soon as the sun goes down it gets cool very quickly! And our first chance of rain for this new season is coming Tuesday afternoon with a greater chance on Wednesday.
We have been very busy on the farm. Opening day of our U-Pick Pumpkin Patch went off without any problems. It is wonderful seeing all of the families coming out to search for that perfect pumpkin! Of course they also have to take the wagon ride around the farm, visit our farm animals, get lost in the corn maze and pick a few veggies. We also have a few farm games and some snacks to keep everyone happy!
Our CSA program has been going very well. We have over 1100 subscribers! That is fantastic! For all of you newbies, please make sure to check our policies page, it will answer many of the most common questions that you may have in regards to the program.
One of the most frequently asked questions is "I am going to be away next week, can I put a hold on my CSA box?" The answer is yes you can. Under our policies, look under Vacations and Temporary holds. If you log into your account, go to "Vacation" and put in the period that you will be away. Please note that you must do this no less than four days prior to your scheduled pick-up! This four day period is the time necessary for us to make harvesting plans to ensure that each subscriber receives the freshest product possible.
You will notice that there are some changes in the type of produce in your boxes. Some of you received some edamame (soybeans). We harvest the bean still attached to the plant. This is a great opportunity to get your children and family involved in prepping dinner. Have them pick the beans off of the plant, wash them and put them and put them in a pot of water. Boil them for about 15 minutes, a little sea salt and enjoy popping them out of their shell and into your mouth!
Just a heads up, start looking for some recipes for acorn squash, butternut squash and kabocha.
Don't forget to sign up up for CSA day! Instructions were included in an email sent out to yo last week and you should be receiving a reminder this afternoon Monday. Deadline to register is Wednesday, October 5th.
Thank you!
September 13, 2011
As fast as the pumpkin plants grew, the heat has taken its toll and the plants are dying off just as fast. It would not be so bad but the plants and the fruit that they are bearing are not mature. There will be a lot of soft pumpkins out there so please be careful when choosing a pumpkin early in the season. Make sure that the shell is hard and free of any bruises or soft spots as that is where the pumpkins will begin to rot first.
And the season begins to change again! The heat wave that we had makes way for the cooler and moister days of fall. With that we will miss the watermelon (oh that terrific yellow watermelon!), sweet white corn, Japanese eggplant, cantaloupe and peppers. We will continue on with tomatoes, squash and green beans hopefully into late fall, mid November.
What do we have to look forward to? A lot of tree fruits like Satsuma tangerines (seedless), Pomegranates, persimmons, apples, avocados and of course the leaf items like lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, celery and the like.
Keep an eye out in your email inbox for an invite to our CSA day at the Farm! It is a great chance for our CSA subscribers to come out and enjoy a few hours on the farm to see where your produce is grown. You will also get to see our pumpkin patch where we actually grow the pumpkins for the children to see. Not a parking lot with pumpkins laid out on the asphalt!
See you at the farm!
August 29, 2011
The pumpkin plants have a lot of surface area where transpiration takes place and in this heat, the roots cannot absorb enough water to make up for for what is being lost. Seeing the plants in the middle of the day I get a little worried seeing all of the wilted looking plants. But when the afternoon breeze pops up and cools things down a bit, the plants start looking healthy and vibrant again.
The pumpkins are growing really fast now. Last week they were the size of tennis balls and now they are almost the size of a volleyball. Things happen quickly!
We are just about done with our white sweet corn and mini watermelon. Not because the season has changed but because we do not have any room to plant those items! Right now about 9 acres of the farm is dedicated to the pumpkin patch. Another three acres have to be taken out of production for the parking lot for the pumpkin patch. Seven more acres will son be out of production to get ready for strawberries! That only leaves about four acres for our CSA customers so we need to plant as much multiple harvest items as we can such as green beans, squash, swiss chard, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, basil, rosemary, thyme, etc.
School will be starting soon, please let your friends know about our CSA program, how it benefits the health of their families and how the funds benefit their school. Get them charged up about it so that they can get their PTO charged up and ready to commit as soon as school starts! Have them contact Eileen Sagara at Eileen@TanakaFarms.com or (949)283-0511.
August 22, 2011
The pumpkin plants are huge!!! The leaves are about 14 to 18 inches across and have a beautiful green color to them. The flowers are blooming and some pumpkins have begun to form, the bigger ones are about the size of a tennis ball. Some are green in color and some are yellow, but eventually they will both turn orange when they are mature.
Usually at this time of year we are really busy getting our ground ready to plant strawberries but there are still a lot of vegetables still growing in that ground plus some cover crops to help build the soil. Most commercial strawberry growers will be ready to plant by the end of September so that hopefully they are in full production by the end of January and strawberry prices are at their peak. We don't need to have such early production so we will wait to plant until the end of October. By waiting, our transplants are stronger and healthier because they are m
Come and visit the farm this weekend as it is the last for the watermelon tours. That also signals the end of summer and school is back in session! Spread the word about our CSA program! Healthy eating for families, supporting a local farmer and a great fundraiser for your school!
August 1, 2011
How did you like the little summer rain shower yesterday? Cool things off a little bit, but this hot humid weather really invites the mildew. You may notice a powdery white substance on some of the produce, especially any leafy items. It is not harmful but it does seem to affect the taste a little bit. Especially on the watermelon and cantaloupes. This is why growing these summer crops in the fall is so tough. That is when the nights get cool and damp and the mildew is at it's worst. Summer crops are meant to be grown in the summer and winter crops are meant to be grown in the winter!
The crows have not gone away but the pumpkin plants have grown large enough that they don't bother them anymore. Lisa, one of our CSA subscribers offered the services of her husband to come out and scare the crows with his remote controlled airplanes. Thank you, but by the time I got the message, the problem was over.
That is how it is, put out one fire and than another one starts. Put that fire out and than another one starts and so on and son on.
Make sure to tell your friends that we are now using FIVE Whole Foods Markets as pick up sites for our CSA boxes and we will be adding more sites soon. You can pick up at Tustin, Huntington Beach, Long Beach (the newest site), Redondo and El Segundo.
We also added another pick up day at the Farm's Produce Stand. Sundays, Tuesdays and now Fridays!
Thank you all for your tremendous support of this great program of eating healthy farm fresh produce and supporting your local farmer! We all benefit!
So spread the word!
July 25, 2011
Kale! Too much kale? If you are wondering why there is soooo much kale in your CSA boxes this summer, it is because we are using it as a "natural" packing material. The summer crops provide a lot of small loose items like tomatoes, cucumbers, pickles, corn, etc., and the kale makes a nice cushion, divider to keep everything from rolling around too much and bruising each other. The plus side is that you can eat it and it is one of the super foods! Click here to read about kale's extrordinary health benefits!
It appears that everyone is having a good experience with our new flexible ordering system. Also, using Whole Foods markets as a pick up site seems to be a great new option! Make sure to spread the word to your friends.
We planted our pumpkin seeds last week and they are all pushing their way through the soil. Many of them have some nice little leaves on them and the crows just love it! They come out and pick the seedlings right out of the ground! Can you imagine looking out in our newly planted pumpkin patch and seeing about sixty crows playing around picking the plants out of the ground and cackling about it! There are only about 150 plants in one row so you can imagine the damage they can do in a short period of time! Got to go out and replant!
July 18, 2011
The farm is always in the constant state of change and it is a planning nightmare! One of our largest events is our U-Pick Pumpkin Patch. About one third of our acreage is devoted to planting pumpkins and they must be planted right now so that they are ready to be harvested during October. One or two weeks late will do me no good as who wants pumpkins in November?
The point that I am trying to get across is that all of the squash, beans, corn, carrots, etc. that we harvest for your CSA box has to be out of the area that we dedicate to pumpkins. Not only that, I have to be careful where we plant crops now because I need another third of our acreage available to plant strawberries in October.
When the 50 other crops that we grow all mature at different times and depend upon the weather, I am not sure if you can grasp the logistical problem that we face. Oh well, not your problem!
Hopefully we will get some of our little watermelon into your boxes soon. The only problem is, they are not as sweet as I would like them to be. I think that it is mainly due to the weather (it can't be me!).
Tomatoes are in full production, the first planting is peaking and the second is just about ready so you may be getting a little more than you can use. Get on that internet and start googling some uses for these vitamin, mineral packed fruits!
Make use of the variety of fruits and vegetables, raw in salads on these hot days can be very satisfying. Not just good for our waistline but great for our overall health!
Enjoy!
P.S Japanese Eggplant Recipe (Easy)
If you don't know what to do with the Japanese Eggplant in your box just turn on your BBQ put the whole eggplant on the grill. Let the eggplant sit on the grill, turning periodically until the skin is bubbling. Take off the grill let sit until a little cool. Peel off the skin put some soy sauce aka "shoyu" in Japanese, on the eggplant cut into pieces and enjoy.
July 10, 2011
Wouldn't you know it. Right after talking about the cool weather that were having, we would encounter a heat wave! It is summer after all and it is supposed to be hot, even here in beautiful Southern California! The watermelons love it but the strawberries do not. And of course that is why you do not have any broccoli, cauliflower, tender lettuces and the like because it is out of season.
Because of the cool June, our watermelon is about two weeks late and the few that are ready just do not have the flavor that they normally do. Our peppers will be very, very late this year. Our first three plantings were ravaged by insects, birds and rabbits. We have the same problems that all of you backyard gardeners have.
I hope that everyone is finding our new online subscription service is working well! Please make sure to read our policies page as it will answer most of the questions that you may have inregards to our system.
Also, we have had several instances of subscribers not picking up their box of produce during their specified pick up time and some have asked for a refund. Please, your box has been packed for you and in most cases are not kept under refrigeration and the pick up site host is only available during the specified pick up time. It is your responsibility to pick your box up during that time or your produce will be disposed of according to the discretion of the site host. A refund cannot be given.
Enjoy the summer!
June 27, 2011
How do you like the weather! I love it! Unfortunately the watermelons do not. The cool weather has slowed the growth of the plants and the mature ones just do not seem to be as sweet as they should. Need more heat!
The sweet corn has been fantastic. Enjoy them while we have them! Only three or four more weeks because we just do not have enough ground to plant as much as I would like. They take a long time to grow and take up a lot of space which I do not have a lot of.
The corn is great to eat boiled or bbqed without any condiments! But I do like to change it up every now and then by taking the husk off and throw them on the bbq and baste them with butter and some garlic salt. Over medium heat, turn and baste for about 25 minutes. Fantastic!
Strawberries are just about done. They are small and tender, many plants are dead and it takes a long time to pick them, remember, labor is over half of my costs here on the farm and there comes a time when even though there is fruit available to harvest, it is not economical to do so. What shame.
Just one more reminder, we are no longer with farm2table connect for our online ordering system. For July deliveries, click here to sign up.
June 21, 2011
The longest day of the year! It is hard to believe, just a short while ago the sun did not shine until 6:45 and was dark at 5:30. Now look, sun is peeking out at 5:30 am and stays out until 8:00pm! On the farm, that just means more daylight to get things done!
The school year is over and many of our subscribers have elected to take a summer break from receiving our farm fresh produce. Why you would not want to keep feeding your family healthy produce I have no idea. Especially summer! Squash, cucumbers, sweet white corn, heirloom tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, peppers!
You can pick your CSA box up from several pick up sites through the summer months. Whole Foods stores in Redondo, El Segundo, Huntington Beach and Tustin. You may also pick up at the Farm in Irvine on Tuesday or Sunday plus there are several other pick up sites that are open to the public, check our list!
Another reminder, we will not be continuing our use of the farm2tableconnect online ordering system. Please visit our CSA Program page to check out our new online system and all of our new flexible ordering and pick up selections! Especially great for this summer when you are not going to be around to pick up your CSA box, put yourself on a vacation hold to stop your order. Simple, convenient and healthy.
Thank you all for your tremendous outpouring of support for our "Walk the Farm" fundraising event that we held this past Saturday! It was a beautiful day attended by 1700 supporters, over 300 volunteers and more than 160 sponsors!
Thank you, thank you !!
June 6, 2011
There has been a tremendous response for the upcoming fundraiser that we are having at the farm to help rebuild farms in Japan that were affected by the March earthquake/tsunami. Every where you turn, there is a fundraiser for something, but this one is unique! To walk the farm and sample different fruits and veggies, you must admit, it is different! Please click here for more info and to register for
"Walk the Farm" at Tanaka Farms on Saturday, June 18, 2011.
Just when we get the summer fruits and vegetables, the school year is coming to an end, but you can still keep receiving our farm fresh produce by getting together with other subscribers and starting a summer pick-up point or you can join any of the other groups that are going through the summer. Click here to see a list of pick-up sites to choose from.
For those of you that are signed up through Farm2Tableconnect, just a reminder, this will be the last month that we will be using that system. The Farmigo system that we are now using has been fantastic. Our subscribers love the flexibility that it offers as you can choose weekly, every other week pick-up and if you go on vacation you can skip those dates by accessing your account. There is also no prepayment. Your credit card or checking account is automatically debited after you receive your produce! How easy is that! Please read our CSA Policy page to see all of the ins and outs of this great new program!
It is grilling season so please be careful with that lighter fluid! But that effort of lighting a good fire is well worth the effort when you slice up some squash, a little oil and seasoning and there is nothing like it! Put some corn on the grill, husk and all and in about 15 to 20 minutes, piping hot sweet white corn. No need for butter or salt, eat as is!
All of you CSA subscribers should have gotten a notice to sign up for our CSA day. I look forward to seeing you all at the farm!
May 31, 2011
The end of the school year is coming but that does not mean that you have to stop receiving our fresh produce! Summer is when we have sweet white corn, red, ripe tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, romas, heirlooms, squash, green beans, watermelon! You don't want to miss out! Get together with your neighbors and start your own pick-up site. Contact Eileen at Eileen@TanakaFarms.com or call her at 949-653-2100 ext 201.
You may have heard that we will be parting ways with Farm2table (we thank them for the opportunity to work together and wish them well) and will be working with a new online system, Farmigo. You will sign up through our website and will have much more flexibility in managing your account. No more prepayment. Your credit card or bank account will be automatically billed after you pick up your produce. Easily choose weekly delivery or every other week (EOW) delivery and change back and forth as you please. If you are going to be away or just feel that you have too much produce on hand and want to skip a pick-up, you may easily do so by accessing your account and entering the dates that you will want to skip! Click here to read more about how to sign up!
Make sure to check your CSA box for information about how to sign up for our CSA days coming up June 11 and 12.
We have been receiving a fantastic response in regards to our CSA work days! Our subscribers are finding that it is a great family outing. Spending a few hours working together discovering how much work it is to actually bring food to the table. Make sure to start checking the website for more opportunities during the summer!
We are also providing volunteer opportunities usually on Monday and Wednesday afternoons. You must pre-register for these harvest days as we can only accommodate about 25 volunteers at one time. On these afternoons we harvest crops and donate them to two local food pantries, SCO (South County Outreach) and Families Forward of Irvine. Between the two they service about 350 needy families per week. Our fresh produce is a wonderful supplement to the staples that these organizations provide to these families to help them through some difficult times. Check back here for dates, times and how to register!
Have a great week!
May 23, 2011
I know I updated this blog last week. I know I did! But when you have multiple people working on the same program, well, that is just more chances for things to go wrong. Either that, my old age and my lack of computer savvy is just catching up with me.
I really hope that you have been enjoying the strawberries! They are at the very peak of flavor! They smell good, they have decent size, shaped really nice and did I mention that they taste FANTASTIC! But this all comes at a the expense of shelf life. Some of you may have come across one or two strawberries in your basket growing some "whiskers!" White mold is what that is. There is so much sugar and the skin is so tender that these wonderfully sweet morsels cannot be stored very long at all. We pick your strawberries 24 hours before you get them and some just cannot make it that long, so please be forewarned. You are not getting OLD strawberries, you are getting the best tasting strawberries that you ever had!
Kale, Swiss chard, fresh garlic, Maui type SWEET onions, basil. For many of you these items might be foreign to you. But that is the great thing about receiving these boxes of produce. It forces you out of your comfort zone and makes you do some research. The perfect opportunity to get the family involved! Especially the children. Get them on the Internet and research recipes and uses for these new items (and for the old staples as well). If they are involved, they are more than likely to try and enjoy the things that they helped to create. Spread the workload around and get the entire family involved in preparing the meals that they will enjoy!
I had some of our sweet white corn! Fantastic! But the ears are small. I think that the cool weather that we have had this spring really affected the way the plants grow. Corn is a warm weather crop, but in the cool weather, the plants grew slowly and never achieved a good size. Small plant, small fruit. On top of that a lot of worm damage. Even in the cool weather, the silk, the hairy part of the ear, grows about an inch every couple of days. This is where the moths lay their eggs and the larvae make their way into the tip of the ear and feed on the kernels. A corn growers biggest battle.
Enjoy the week!
May 1, 2011
I hope that you all enjoyed the extra strawberries in your CSA boxes this past week because the ones that you were going to get this week got all sunburned and damaged from the wind.
That is the bad news, the good news is that finally you will now begin to see the seasonal change begin. It started with our sweet "Maui Type" onions and this week you will be getting some fresh garlic! The variety that you will be in your box doesn't have that typical skin over the cloves and the green stems that kind of look like green onions is probably something that you haven't seen before. Use the green parts also, just like you would use a green onion.
There might also be some green beans this week. We are experimenting with some different varieties so please bear with me as we try to find the right one. We used to grow "Espada," nice color, not as straight as I would like to see them but they tasted really good. I don't know why, but they discontinued that particular variety so that is why I am experimenting with some new ones. One type looks really nice but is lacking flavor and the other does not have good color, has a tendency to have a lot of "fish hooks" and flavor is fair. I will keep looking.
The squashes are almost ready, maybe next week. The sweet white corn is maybe three weeks away! The silk, the hairy part of the corn that grows out of the top of the ear, will grow up to an inch per day. This is the part that catches the pollen as it drops from the tassel of the corn. This is also where the moths will lay there eggs and the larvae will travel down the silk and feed on the tips of the ears of corn. I suppose that is where they got the name "corn ear worm."
The seedless watermelon and the other melons for that matter are way behind. We had problems with getting the seedlings germinated and, well, we are way behind. Next to strawberries, I just love yellow seedless watermelon!
It is hard to believe but the school year is soon coming to an end. If you want to continue receiving our home grown produce through the summer, now is the time to get together with your coordinator and fellow subscribers to find an alternative pick up site!. Or hopefully by the end of May we will have some more Whole Foods Markets set up to be pick up sites. If you haven't already heard, we are currently using The Whole Foods Tustin and Redondo as pick up sites and will soon be adding more!
Stay cool!
April 18,2011
Saturday was another potentially devastating day with the possibility of some record high temperatures for this time of the year, so we tried really hard to pick off the tender, ripe strawberries. Most of you should be getting a little extra in your boxes this week so enjoy them!
The corn is about three feet tall and are starting to tassel. The tomato plants are all blooming and will soon have some delicious fruit hanging on the vine. The green bean plants have started to change color and the flowers are starting to pop open. All the signs that we are in the middle of spring getting ready to welcome summer!
But, the real indicator for us at Kanaka Farms that the season is changing is when we start harvesting our Maui Type Sweet Onion! Many of them are about the size of a tennis ball, a little bit early, but I cannot wait we will start picking these now! Onions are a great addition to our diets and our onions are "usually" mild enough to be eaten with everything!
Now is the time to come out and visit the farm! The weather is great, the strawberries taste wonderful, the farm is so pretty, there is no better place to get away for a few hours than out on the farm! Do the "Strawberry Tour" and if you have a little extra time, bring the family out and participate in the "Cookout Tour." Both of these are great outings for birthday parties, reunions, employee outings, church field trip, great for any kind of group get together!
See you at the Farm!
April 11, 2011
I don't want to brag, but I, we, us at the farm have been getting more than the usual amount of comments on how much better our strawberries are than others (I know that you haven't received many berries in your CSA boxes lately, but that is changing soon!!!). I have to attribute that to the new varieties that are now on the market. The berries look great, have good size and color but they just don't have that great flavor. I am growing some of the same varieties that most others are, even the Roadside Stand and Growers that participate in the Farmer's Markets, but I try to leave my strawberries on the vine that extra three or four days longer so that the fruit is at it's absolute peak of flavor! The problem is that they are very tender at that point and a little rain, a little heat or they are not handled gently enough, they will bruise and decay and we will have to throw them away.
Some of you that have strawberries in your box Monday and Tuesday are from Orange County Produce. Nice and red, but I am sorry to say, they do not taste like mine! From this Wednesday on, we should have enough of our sweet delicious strawberries available almost every week until the end of the season.
A little while ago I had mentioned that we will soon be using Whole Foods Market as a Friday pick up point for our CSA boxes. Well that time is here! Before the end of this week I will have instructions available on this website on how to sign up and begin picking up our CSA box at Whole Foods Market in Tustin on Friday afternoons. Tell your friends to check back here at the end of the week. If all things go well, we will also be able to use other Whole Foods Markets around the Southland as pick up points, so please, help us get of to a good start and tell your friends about this great new venture!
April 4, 2011
As you noticed, I took a couple week break from my blog. Did you miss me???!!!! And apparently nothing has really changed, my biggest thing to talk about is the weather! Cold, wet, hot, cold, hot and a chance of rain again at the end of the week! We just deal with it because is what happens and we have no control over it.
My red, beautiful strawberries is the crop that seems to not be taking the change in weather well. The rain beats down on the thin skinned fruit, softens it up and breaks it open spoiling a perfectly good strawberry. Now the sun comes out, 80 - 90 degree heat and just cooks whatever fruit that did not get taken out by the rain. Did I mention that you won't be getting any strawberries in your CSA box this week?
The good news is that the drought is officially over! But that does not mean that all is well. We need to be prepared for the next time when rainfall is short and the snow pack is low. It is not too soon to be prepared because it takes a lot of time to build waterways and reservoirs. Our tax dollars are stretched way beyond their limits but when it comes to improving our water supply, that should be a priority. Without water, we have no way of surviving here.
Spring is officially here, our summer crops are in the ground but the weather has actually been cooler than normal and the green beans and squash are little behind schedule. The sweet corn is about a foot tall as well as the tomatoes but those two crops are a long way off before harvest.
Have a great day!
March 14, 2011
I want to thank everyone that came out to the farm this weekend, especially those of you that participate in our CSA program. I am sorry that I did not get to talk to each of you as that is really the essence of the program, getting to know the person responsible for growing your food! Maybe next time.
I would also like to thank The Original Manassero Farms and Orange County Produce for bringing samples of their delicious Strawberries and providing info on their locations to serve you.
It was also great having representatives from Families Forward on hand to distribute information on the variety of services that they provide to the community. FYI, they have a food pantry that services about 100 families per week and we are proud that we provide those families with fresh produce from our farms whenever we can. I am not sure of the exact amount, but last year we delivered over 8,000 pounds of fresh produce for Families Forward to distribute to their clients.
I also cannot give enough thanks to AG Kawamura, former California State Secretary of Agriculture, for taking time out his busy schedule to be on hand to talk with all of you. If you did not get a chance to chat with him, you really missed out on a great opportunity to hear his thoughts and foresights on things to come!
We had such a great turnout for CSA Day that we are a little short of strawberries for our CSA boxes! I think next time I will have to weigh each of you before and after you enter the strawberry field and charge by the pound! The strawberries in the field are sooooo delicious right now that I know each of you did not just sample one or two strawberries! Anyway, I know that you all didn't get any strawberries last week so I went and got some from our neighbor, Orange County Produce. They are organically grown in Irvine, in fact they are grown on the grounds of the Great Park, next to the Orange Balloon. Enjoy!
Have a great week!
March 7, 2011
The rains have had perfect timing. It clouds up, rains and then the winds come in to dry things up all within 24 hours. Cannot ask for much better timing than that. The ripe strawberries will see a little damage and you will see a few fuzzy ones in your basket every now and then, but overall, it is still officially winter.
Sorry, there are no strawberries for your CSA boxes this week. It is very typical at this time of the season to see a lull or a gap in the production cycle. It seems that the varieties that I have been growing, San Andreas and Albion, usually have a gap in production after the first set of fruit is harvested. We also have to leave what little fruit is there on the vine so that you all will have something to pick and sample when you come out to the farm this coming Sunday for CSA Day.
I do hope that all of you that receive our CSA boxes each week saw the flier inviting you to come out to the farm Sunday March 13. Make sure that you RSVP to your coordinator so that we can get a head count and prepare for your day at the Farm! We have a special treat for you, the former State Secretary of Agriculture, AG Kawamura will be here to talk with you so come prepared to ask questions or to debate with him!
February 28, 2011
I was at Whole Foods Market the other day. What a place! A complete supermarket with a huge line of organic and locally grown produce, prepared foods to eat in or to go, butcher, deli, fish market and even a wine tasting area! And you know what else? The place was packed! I need to get out more. I suppose it all started many years ago with Vons Pavilion or maybe it was a small chain like Mother's Markets where the produce section was the center point of attention along with all of the trimmings of prepared foods also. However these super stores got started, Whole Foods is out to perfect it!
You may be asking yourself why all of the fuss over this market? Because I was approached by them to see if we can work out a deal to use them as a drop off center for our CSA boxes! What a great idea! That is how innovative they are. They truly want to help support the local grower and this is one way that they may be able to do it. I will be meeting with them soon and will keep you all informed!
The weather is cold but beautiful! From the highest point on the farm I can Saddleback Valley to the east and all of Orange County to the west! I just love here!
In preparation for the 1" of rain that we got on Saturday, we went through and picked all of the ripe strawberries for you. We did that Friday and those of you receiving boxes on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday will be receiving these. Please excuse us if you come across one or two that might have some "whiskers" on them. The "whiskers" that I am referring to is the white fuzzy mold that has grown due to the wet weather that we have been having. When the berries are harvested, they look fine but time passes the tiny microscopic mold spores soon rapidly multiply and explode into what you may see as a white, moldy, yucky strawberry! Just one of things that we have to deal with.
We have three plantings of our sweet white corn already in the ground. Before the frosty weather that was predicted for this past weekend, I had the crew cover the tender young plants with a floating row cover. Essentially a thin blanket to hopefully keep the tender seedlings from freezing and dying. Expensive, but just like our children, we would do anything to protect them from harm! Hopefully we will have some sweet white corn for you by the first of June, right before school lets out for the summer!
Thank you for your patience while we convert you over to our online ordering system with Farm 2 Table Connect . I know that there are some issues that we have to deal with in regards to our ordering flexibility and such, but in the long run, it will make everyone's life a lot simpler! Again, thank you so much for your patience and understanding.
February 14, 2011
Happy Valentine's Day! If you happen to be passing by my Produce Stand in Irvine, you have to pick up some of our fabulous, "Chocolate Dipped Strawberries" for those special people in your life! (Sorry, couldn't help but plug my establishment).
Just a reminder, it is still winter! By now, you must have heard that the weather is changing! My delima is, do I go through and pick off all of the strawberries or leave them on the vine and take a chance that it will not rain too much and the strawberries will be spared.
If I pick it all off now, those of you that have your CSA boxes delivered later in the week will receive Strawberries that are picked today. Is that so bad? No, it would be about the same as if you bought them at the store (one of the reasons that you participate in this program is because of the freshness of our produce). It might actually be worse for you because we harvest our fruit at the very peak of their flavor and they do not have a long shelf life when they are that ripe so you may find a few more spoiled ones in your basket than usual.
As for the other crops that we harvest at this time of the year, a normal rain does not affect the quality like they do strawberries. The wet weather just makes it miserable when my men are in the mud and cold to pick the crops for you.
So what is in your box this week? We have some Satsuma Tangerines from Polito Farms. The couple that I ate were a bit sour, but do enjoy them as these are probably the last of the season. No more until the end of the year.
There are some Hakurei, Japanese Turnips, that are great raw in your salads and sandwiches, sauted or stir fried with your other veggies.
If you notice, strawberries are still pretty expensive in the stores, that is if your local grocer even has them! And organically grown strawberries??!!! You may not even find any. So enjoy these while we have them.
February 7, 2011
Let me see, what's happening on the farm?................ Plenty, so much so that I just do not know where to start.
We are preparing the Produce Stand for our Grand Opening this Thursday! Cleaning, painting, rearranging and planning for a big weekend. Valentine's Day Weekend! What better gift to give a loved one, a pack of red, sweet, Tanaka Farms' Strawberries. And if they are really special, how about some of our "Chocolate Dipped Long Stem Strawberries!" The sweet is even sweeter when coated with our dark or white chocolate! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!
With the great weather that we have been having we are able to get into the fields and prep our beds for our spring crops like green beans and squash. We are even getting ready to plant our summer crops like our sweet white corn, tomatoes and watermelon! Yes, it is still winter yet crops like watermelon that will take almost four months to grow and produce fruit need to be put into the ground (once the threat of frost has past) right away.
We are six weeks away from starting our Strawberry and Cookout tours but of course we are busy prepping for the season. We have to redress our scarecrows, touch up our signs, go over procedures, train our guides, get our wagons checked out, manicure the fields and on and on and on.........
And of course our crops need constant attention and care. They need to be fed, watered, weeded, checked for diseases, freed of harmful pests and of course they need to be harvested.
The tractors and tillage equipment need to be cleaned, repaired and lubricated.
The delivery trucks for our CSA boxes all need constant monitoring and maintenance.
We are planning our March CSA day (so make sure to keep in touch).
Wow, I am tired just thinking about everything that has to be done! I am going to take a nap now!
January 31, 2011
I hope that 1/4 inch of rain that we had yesterday does not cause too much damage to our strawberries! Speaking of those wonderful strawberries, I hope that you are enjoying them! Didn't I say that they are just terrific at this time of the year! They are not as soft and juicy as they are in May and June, but they hold up a long time in the refrigerator (but they should not be stored, they should be eaten!) and the flavor is just wonderful! For me, the best is to leave a couple of berries on the counter over night or during the day and when you walk into the kitchen........ the aroma!!!!! is just wonderful!
This week you will be getting a double dose of strawberries in your CSA box and probably next week also. But enjoy them now because our production should be dropping off soon. The first set of fruit is being picked off right now and I do not see a lot of small green ones or much bloom on the plants. What that means is that there will be a gap in the production cycle. Ideally, there should be fruit in all stages on the plant. Ripe ones, partially ripe, green, white, green, bloom and bloom coming out of the crown. When you don't see those at a certain stage, you can kind of predict when production will be down.
Have you seen the prices of produce, especially organic prices, in the grocery stores???!!! Remember that economics class that you took way back in high school? Supply and demand! Fresh produce is the classic and fastest reacting (besides the stock and commodities market) model of this basic economic principal. Too much supply and the prices go down. Not enough supply and the prices go up. And why is it so quick to react? Because of the perishabilty of fresh produce.
Strawberries are a great example. Strawberries once they are picked and cooled for transport need to be on the road within two or three days, otherwise they will begin to spoil and will have to be thrown away. The buyers know this fact, and when strawberries are in the peak of production and there are lots and lots of them in the cooler waiting to be sold, they will use it as leverage to get a cheaper price on the product. On the the other hand, when product is short (like many items are right now), the seller will definitely try to get a better price because everyone wants what there isn't.
There you go, Econ 101 in a nutshell! Class dismissed.
January 24, 2011
Just beautiful weather! I love it! Great for being outdoors and great for growing! But don't forget, we are still paying for that cold wet weather that we had six to eight weeks ago. The carrot and onion seeds that we planted in the fields were either washed away or the ground was compacted so hard that very few seedlings were able to crack their way through to sunlight and soon there will be nothing to harvest. The young, tender speedlings of cauliflower, broccoli and lettuces that froze in those cold mornings, we have little to harvest now. I know that I talked about this last week, but I just wanted to remind everyone. With this great weather, we wonder why there is a shortage.
The boxes this week contains some great stuff! Swiss Chard is a great alternative to spinach, not especially good raw, but steamed or boiled, the leaves are tender and tasty.
The beets are fantastic! It takes quite a while to boil them or bake them, but once cooked, I love them hot and even better cold, right out of the refrigerator.
The Purple Kohlrabi, I will have to admit that it is not a favorite of mine, but many of you have told me that you absolutely love them! Grated, raw or cooked.
My favorite of course, the STRAWBERRIES! Eat them at room temperature or cold, right out of the refrigerator and you get two different tastes.
Make sure to try the fruits and vegetables raw, cooked, cold, hot, prepared different ways. You will never know, you may find out that something that you did not like prepared hot, you do like when it is served cold. Or something that you do not like steamed, you like stir fried. Don't be afraid to experiment!
Enjoy!
January 17, 2011
In your November CSA box was a small pot, soil and some strawberry plants. If you planted those plants, kept them watered and in a sunny, warm area, they should have some flowers on them now, some of you may have some little green berries on them. If you are really fortunate, you may have some ripe strawberries on them. I know, because out here on the farm, we will be picking some strawberries (those same plants that you have) for your boxes this week.
That's right, STRAWBERRIES! Red, ripe, SWEET and DELICIOUS STRAWBERRIES! These are the variety, San Andreas. I don't think that they have the sweetness or the aroma that the Albion does, but if they are full color, they are pretty darn good! So, enjoy them now while we have this great weather because who knows when the rain will be back and spoil these delectable fruit!
Speaking of rain, remember the end of October when we had that unexpected deluge? That set us back a little bit in our ground prep. crops that we intended to plant, we couldn't that is why some of the product that you are receiving in your boxes may not be the best looking or the biggest things that you have ever seen as we have to be not as choosey as to what we put in your boxes as we normally would. The items taste just as good but may not be as eye appealing. The item may not be as big as normal because they are mature but will not grow any larger. Produce are just like people, they come in all shapes and sizes.
The real heavy rains that we had in November and December caused a lot of damage to our newly seeded crops as the rain packed the surface and made it difficult for young seedlings to sprout through to the surface.
The frosty mornings that occurred during December stunted and killed many of the young seedlings that were transplanted into the fields.
All of those adverse weather conditions effects will soon be seen. Over the next four to five weeks our produce will not be as pristine as I would like as we cannot cull the product as well as I would like to. I have to go out to other organic growers to try and supplement with items that we may have lost due to the weather.
I am asking to please be patient and bear with me as we try the best that we can to deliver you with the best that we have over the next couple of months. This is part of the CSA experience. To feel the effects of conditions beyond our control and to accept what the consequences are.
Thank you for your understanding and enjoy the STRAWBERRIES!
One other thing, don't forget that if you are signing up on our new online ordering system that you need to get your February order in before January 27th! I really appreciate your patience as we transition over to this new system. In the long run it will definitely improve our process and eliminate a lot of problems and improve the communication between you and me.
January 10, 2011
Happy New Year!
Welcoming in the New Year has always been a big thing in my family (in fact in the Japanese culture, celebrating the New Year is very important) when my folks were alive. I can remember my mother spending almost the entire time after Christmas getting ready for January 1. Excessive cleaning of the home, shopping and preparing for "oshogatsu!" (The Japanese word for the New Year holiday)
It was the food that took most of her time and effort and it is the food that I remember the most! And of course all of the friends and family that would come over to help devourer all of her hard work!
In the old days, you wouldn't just call the local restaurant or market and call your dinner order in, you would have to do all of the cooking yourself. And even if my mom could do that, she would not. She took pride that it was her labor that went into the preparation of the food that was on the table.
Family, friends and food is the center of every culture's celebrations. FOOD! Appreciate the abundance that we have here in this country. The there are no seasonality as we can have any fruit and any vegetable we want anytime of the year. We have choices of not only what to eat, for example apples, but choices of what size, choices of the different varieties of apples and even a choice of how they are grown, organic, sustainable, no spray or conventional.
Getting back to preparing food. How about trying to cook a little more this year, experiment more with the items that come in your boxes each week. Challenge yourself to be creative and be adventurous and take pride in what you can prepare with what we have to offer!
And tell a friend. Get them excited about eating healthy and supporting a local farmer (ME!).
Have a great New Year!
December 12, 2010
End of the year! Last delivery for 2010! No more fresh produce from Tanaka Farms!Until January 11, 2011!
As I write this article I am watching the documentary "Supersize Me." Basically it is about a man who sets out to eat three meals a day at McDonalds for a month and if they ask if he wants to supersize, he has to order the supersize meal and eat all of it! And to top it off he must also limit his physical activity. I haven't seen this in it's entirety but the basics are, yes he gains a lot of weight and feels horrible at the end of the ordeal.
Don't get me wrong, I like a good burger now and then. Something that my wife has taught me is....moderation. I have to admit, I eat too much and don't exercise near enough but I am working on it. At least sometimes when I over eat now, I over eat on fruits and vegetables which is what I hope many of you are also doing.
I am not sure what I am rambling on about, I just know that I am rambling. I think that what I am trying to say is, enjoy the holiday season, "eat, drink and be merry," in moderation!
Thank you for all of your support, have a great holiday season and we look forward to working with you all next year!
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from all of us at Tanaka Farms!
Tanaka Farms
FAMILY ENTERTAINMENT EVERY SEASON OF THE YEAR
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"Community Supported Agriculture"
We have 3 new FARMERS MARKET pick up locations for TANAKA FARMS CSA BOXES!
Irvine, Tustin, & Laguna Hills
plus PLOWBOYS Market in
Fountain Valley
CLICK HERE for more info
Please Contact:
Eileen Sagara, CSA Manager
eileen@tanakafarms.com
Shannon Braesch, CSA Deliveries
CSA@tanakafarms.com
(949) 653-2100 ext. 201 or
CLICK HERE for more information.
Activities at Tanaka Farms
For Every Season
Strawberry Tours
Watermelon Tours
Cookout Tours
U-Pick Pumpkin Patch
Christmas Trees
CSA CORNER
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Tips on: How to Store
