Ahh, fruits of my labor

I sampled some tasty strawberries last night! Hecker variety - a little later than Quinalts, but I don't have any of those this year. 

Looks like the serviceberries are not quite ripe yet (picture above).  I was surprised to see a Cascade Delight raspberry turning red already (first picture below), before everything but the Lathams (second picture below).  CD is supposed to be a mid-to-late season variety in the Lower 48.  Go figure.  I got to taste two of the CDs last year and WOW were they wonderful. I hope they taste the same this year, as conditions are quite different.

And then there are the real surprises - Cumberland black raspberries.  That is what the package said last year when I bought them.  However, they are not supposed to be hardy below -5F.  Anyway, here is a picture of one starting to turn color.

The blog wouldn't be complete without a picture of Chica - taken two months ago. Enjoy!

First harvests

I was just wandering the farm and noticed several strawberries and serviceberries that are nearly ripe. Looks like I will have some berries soon!  Raspberries are still a few weeks away, although the Latham are starting to color up.  It will be a while before I have any vegetables to offer - and then they will be very limited.
  With all the activity on the farm this summer, I haven't had much time to plant vegetables.  On the other hand, the delay in repotting my seedlings has shown that beans do much better in a greenhouse at my elevation (1500ft).  I have always planted them in my raised beds and watched them produce beans that looked anemic (not to mention pitiful looking leaves).  This year, they are still in the greenhouse and the leaves are a vibrant green.  Really healthy looking plants.
  As far as "produce" goes this year, don't expect me at the Jennifer Dr. gravel pit any time soon.  I won't get enough fruit off my berries for more than a pie or two and I want to donate one to the "Fun for Food" event that the Co-op Market has planned for November.  With any luck, next year it will be a blackberry pie (fresh 'Alaska grown' blackberries, now wouldn't that be a treat!)
  Well, gotta go . . . it's not raining right now!

July 4th Update

Well, I finally got around to putting a list of the varieties of plants we are testing on the farm up on the website.  It is somewhat lengthy, but I have had several people request to see what we are experimenting with.  I hope to purchase a digital camera soon so I can post pictures of plants and different fruits as they mature.  We might have a few (and I mean just a few) tasty blueberries this year to sample.  The raspberries are going crazy, as are the serviceberries.  So, look for me selling these berries this summer at the Jennifer Dr. gravel pit.
  Now for some bad news.  My dump truck caught fire in June.  It looks salvageable, but it will set me back some time.  I also managed to damage some fruit trees while I was clearing the area above my driveway.  Definitely no plums this year.  And, (as has been the case in the past) no grapes yet.  Maybe next year.