Category Archives: Blog

2022 Maple Sugaring Newsletter The wind chill factor temperatures at our maple syrup farm have hovered at around 30 degrees below zero. While we all realize that it does get cold in winter, these extreme temperatures are caused by climate change. Without the unique cycles of warm days and cold nights sap will not flow. […]

The Romans called it locusta. The Anglo-Saxons knew it as lopystre. Botanists pitched in with Homarus Americanius. The fisher folk of Maine will brook no argument: It’s LOB-stuh, and that’s that. What boasts five pairs of compound eyes on sturdy little stalks? What crawls about on five sets of legs, one of which has modified into some nasty pincers (one […]

What comes to mind when you think about “Oysters”? Delicate pearls?  A luscious dozen nestled in their own tangy juice on a bed of ice with, perhaps, a dab of horse radish, a splash of Tabasco?   Champagne?  Of course!   And while it is true that genus Ostrea has long been prized by the wealthy, or reserved […]

Our vigilant grower tells us that this year “Florida had mostly typical Florida weather: a little drier in the spring with a wet summer, and then another moderate late summer/fall. No storms affected the citrus this year other than some increased moisture. Some of the best looking fruit we’ve seen in the last 4-5 years. […]

We are pleased to announce the first good news about the acre of Minnesota wheat leased to some lucky folks (after the stormy winter, floods, and tariffs that affected so many farmers).  The growers will be keeping a close eye on the crop as it progresses from the little shoots just now turning the prairie into a pale green […]

Prune, prune, prune…. that’s what the wonderful stewards of the apple orchard were busy doing during the months of March and April.  Winter storms can break the branches of trees, and some trees do not survive the ice storms or bitter cold of New England winters.  (This winter was less cold than the one of […]

Besides being the most graceful fruit-bearing tree, the Date Palm is one of the most valuable.  Few trees grow to be as tall or provide such a cornucopia of fruit.  They are also infused with the power to resist heat and drought and are probably the oldest tree cultivated by man for centuries!  History tells […]

Our peaches are picked when they are firm and put right into a hydro-cooling bath.  Washing accomplishes two things.  First, it removes field dirt and cleans the peach fuzz.  At the same time, the cold water “sets” the peach, arresting its tendency to continue ripening as if it were still on the tree.  After the refreshing bath, […]

Most of the wild rice that is available in grocery stores is similar to brown rice grown in rice paddies. It cooks uniformly, and is consistently the same year after year because it is cultivated rice. This type of rice is actually a hybrid developed by the University of Minnesota. Also, most of the grains […]

The Pistachio tree is subtropical and hardy. It thrives in high desert climates where the summers are long, hot, and dry, and the winters only moderately cold. This summer in California is especially hot and dry. The pistachio most likely originated in Central Asia, and is found today throughout the Middle East, India, Pakistan, Cyprus, […]