Notes From the Field - June Newsletter

Updates from the Field!

June marks the beginning of harvests for Aurelia’s Garden, and a big push to get our hot-weather crops planted for the summer. Peppers, and more are hardened off and heading from volunteer homes into the field. We are excited to plant these crops, and are looking forward to beautiful harvests in a handful of weeks!

Volunteers Kathy and Judy plant kale at Patterson Field. Image courtesy of C. Wager

Patterson Field has been a busy place this June. Our first donations of bok choy, garlic scapes, green garlic, peas and more have gone to OpenTable. The choy rows have been replanted with a second succession of kale for continual harvests in the summer. We’ve planted pole bean seeds, summer squash seeds and zucchini seeds. Dozens of pepper plants have been planted, and we are working on getting in our tomatoes and eggplants. We are continuing to lay irrigation lines, mulch new seedlings, tend to cover crops in fallow sections of the field, and diligently work to keep ahead of the weeds. Dozens of flower starts are being planted in the ends of rows and the edges of the field to attract pollinators and add beauty to the field. Want to come tend to the field and see our beautiful plants grow? Check out volunteer times on our Wayland SignUpGenius!

A beautiful lettuce harvest from Medway. Image courtesy of T. Ashok.

At Aurelia’s Garden at the Medway Community Farm our first crops were ready for harvest, and we have donated over 20 pounds of lettuce heads and radishes. Volunteers have been planting bean seeds and tomato plants and stringing trellis for our growing pea vines. The new bunny fence has been working great so far, and we have seen no signs of critter damage.

Volunteers Mary, Kate and Trista with our lovely sign at Medway Community Farm. Image courtesy of T. Ashok.

We also finally installed our fabulous sign, so our field is more clearly marked. We’ve had a great season so far thanks to all of our hardworking volunteers, and we look forward to a wonderful, productive summer! Want to join us in Medway? Check out volunteer times on our Medway SignUpGenius!

Recipe from the Field

The fields are full of greens, and our harvest of bok choi from Patterson Field is the first of many cooking greens harvests to come. The following recipe works well for many types of Asian greens, and we suggest adding thinly sliced snap peas, radishes or green garlic to the pan to roast alongside the bok choi. Serve it alongside noodles or rice, and any asian-inspired protein for a wonderful spring meal.

Volunteers Nancy, Kathy and Judy wih our first harvest of bok choi.
Image courtesy of C. Wager.

Roasted Bok Choi - Adapted from The Spruce Eats

Ingredients

12 ounces baby bok choy, cleaned and cut in half lengthwise
1 pint baby portobello mushrooms cleaned, trimmed and cut into slices
2 tablespoons olive oil
Ground black pepper, to taste
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon red wine or rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar or maple syrup
1 teaspoon toasted sesame seeds, cashews, peanuts or pistachios

Step 1) Preheat the oven to 450F
Step 2) Place the sliced bok choi and mushrooms on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with the olive oil and add a few grinds of pepper. Use your hands to make sure the vegetables are coated with the oil.
Step 3) Roast until the bok choi stalks are crisp-tender, about 6-8 minutes.
Step 4) While the vegetables roast, mix together the sesame oil, soy sauce, vinegar and sugar. Whisk well to blend into a dressing.
Step 5) Put the vegetables on a plate, and immediately drizzle with the dressing. Sprinkle with your nut or seed of choice.
Step 6) Enjoy!

Sustainability in the Field - Water Conservation

The summer solstice marks the beginning of the hot season at Aurelia’s Garden, which brings with it some new concerns for growing healthy plants in the field. Keeping our plants watered, especially new successions of seedlings, becomes paramount as the heat makes it challenging for seedlings to root into the field. The summer of 2022 was very hot and dry, and has made us very aware of the need for a robust irrigation system and heavy mulch. At the same time, we want to be mindful of conserving as much water as possible. Wayland and Medway both issued watering bans last year, and while farms are typically exempt from such restrictions, we do not want to waste this precious resource.

Drip tape in position around young Swiss chard plants. Image courtesy of C. Wager.

In the field at both Patterson Field in Wayland and the Medway Community Garden, we almost exclusively use a drip irrigation system. A properly installed drip irrigation system can save up to 80% the amount of water typically used in overhead irrigation systems. The drip lines deliver water directly to the soil and roots of the plants, often more evenly than in other forms of irrigation. Using mulch can aid in reducing the amount of evaporation that occurs, and keep plants watered longer than with bare soil. There is also the benefit of reducing disease and weed pressure in dry years. By irrigating directly at the plant’s roots, the leaves and fruit do not get wet, exposing them to more disease risks. On dry years, weeds are weakened and reduced in areas away from the drip tape, making weed management easier on our volunteer crew. Lastly, once the main system is installed, it is fairly easy to add onto the system with new drip tape to accommodate new rows of delicious vegetables. The New England Vegetable Management Guide has a wonderful outline of how small farms such as Aurelia’s Garden can plan and install a drip irrigation system.

Gorgeous lettuce grows with the aid of drip tape. Image courtesy of T. Ashok.

Support Aurelia’s Garden!

Donate to our Annual Appeal! We are still looking for support to help us reach our $15,000 Appeal Goal!
Paypal Favorite Charity: If you are a regular PayPal user, set Aurelia’s Garden as your favorite charity to have the option to donate every time you checkout with PayPal.
Our Gift Registry: Aurelia’s Garden now has an online registry wishlist! Farming requires a lot of tools and equipment, some obvious and some less so. The registry has a variety of useful things that we would love to have, ranging from storage equipment for our tools to weights for holding down row cover cloth. All of the items on the list will support our efforts to become a more sustainable organization as well, moving away from single use materials and focusing on well-made durable supplies.
Donation of Spare Equipment: Have something in your garage that you see on the wishlist or think we might need? We welcome donations of used equipment as well! In line with our sustainability mission, we are always looking for used garden tools, old but functional power tools, and old weights no longer in use. Have something that you think we might like but unsure? Email us at aureliaspantrygarden@gmail.com and let us know! We’d love to hear from you!

We deeply value your support. Contributions can be made securely online
or by sending a check to:

     Aurelia’s Garden, c/o K. Martin
     40 Beaver Pond Road
     Lincoln, MA 01773

Donations to Aurelia’s Garden are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

Tomatoes being planted at Patterson Field. Image courtesy of T. Smith.