Author: Tristan Klesick

This week we are featuring Klesick Farms Inchelium garlic. We have settled into this variety to grow. It is a classic soft-neck garlic as opposed to a hard-neck garlic. The latter produces a seed pod, called a garlic scape, that is edible. Ironically, those seed heads will eventually turn into bulbils, which is essentially a very tiny garlic clove. When you plant those bulbils, you get one clove the next year and then if you plant that one clove from that one bulbil you will get a head of garlic.

Most farmers do not plant bulbils, but instead plant cloves directly and bypass a year of growth. When we planted hard-neck garlic in the past, we would save those bulbils. Then in the fall, just like regular garlic, we would plant them and harvest garlic greens in the spring, similar to green onions. Through trial, error, and frustration, we discovered that harvesting garlic greens in March is really difficult due to the elements, and our clay soils. 

We have learned to wait till the weather moderates and the soil warms before we attempt to harvest or plow on our farm. Because of this, we no longer grow garlic greens, mostly due to a time of year issue. However, garlic grown for bulbs does just fine, and the Inchelium is a beautiful heirloom variety that was discovered in Colville Washington.

Ironically, garlic, like most plants, takes on the personality of the soil and the farmer. This year’s garlic was a bumper crop! The combination of planting in hills, mulching with straw, and spacing it about 6” apart in each row and between the rows with two rows per hill seemed to work. Of course, that is what worked this year with this year’s weather pattern and this 9-month experiment will become the planting protocol going forward.

Garlic is one of those truly slow foods, especially compared to radishes, which take about 25 days to mature. Garlic is a superhero, and while it might take 9 months to grow and a few months to dry/cure, it can also last for months, unlike it’s quick growing compadre the Radish! 

CAUTION. We are sending you “uncured” garlic in your box this week, which means we just harvested it and it will not last for more than a few weeks on your counter. EAT IT THIS WEEK. You can use it just like regular garlic, press it, dice it, stir fry or roast it, but just make sure you use it this week. 

The rest of the garlic will be curing and available later in August and into the winter. If you haven’t noticed I am big fan of garlic and am all in on INCHELIUM! 

Enjoy,

-Tristan

Peter Rabbit and his siblings have taken up residence this year! The rabbits are cute and fun to watch scurry around. And they definitely feel at home! You can practically walk right up to them. The other day I found one sunning themselves in the greenhouse under the cucumbers. The nerve!  

I haven’t seen too much vegetable damage from the rabbits. But I have been scratching my head lately, wondering why the drip irrigation is leaking in unusual places. I even replaced a section the other day that was all scratched up. Hmmm!  

I mentioned this story to John, my #1 farmhand and it was like a light bulb went off above our heads. He just replaced two complete sections of drip tape which was all scratched up! But they weren’t all scratched up, they were chewed up, apparently those lazy critters are helping themselves to a drink every now and then FROM THE DRIP TAPE! 

Part of the problem is that our farm dog has gotten along in years and while his desire to chase rabbits still exists, the motivation to chase rabbits has long since left?. Of course, having a good rab bit chasing dog has its advantages (like less rabbits wandering willy-nilly here and there). But, since that option isn’t present, we will have to go to Plan B. I am going to put a plywood rabbit door that us humans can step over or move and then I am going to put a water dish outside the greenhouse. 

Obviously, our “farm ecosystem” is a little out of balance, which is why we have a lot of rabbits. Eventually, the coyote/owl/falcon/hawk/eagle populations will respond to the new increased food/rabbit supply and create balance again. It will take time, which means I will need to manage the operation a little differently and possibly get another rabbit-chasing farm dog.

This week’s menu has 13 locally grown fruits and vegetables. It has been a very late start to the local season, but we’re harvesting now! We are even seeing a few tomatoes ripening, both the Early Girls and the Sungold Cherry tomatoes. And we are going to have a bumper crop of cucumbers, green beans and beets. The potatoes have really loved the cool spring and this dry stretch. Of course, everything has really loved this dry stretch of warm weather, even this farmer

  What is fun about market/truck farming is that the landscape is always changing. Every week we are planting something, then we add weeding to the planting, and then eventually you add harvesting to the planting, and weeding–which is where we are right now–and it is busy! Around September planting slows down your focus on harvesting and weeding. In October, you stop weeding altogether and keep harvesting, and then in November you take a long nap and wait till Spring to start the cycle all over again! 

But right now, it is local produce time and us local farmers are getting it out of our fields and delivered to your door

Your farmer in health,

-Tristan

The Stillaguamish River Valley has been the home of the Klesick Family for 70 years. I haven’t really given it that much thought till the last week on the 4^th of July. My grandparents moved to Oso in the early 1950’s, like many folks from that generation, they were WW2 veterans and settled in Puget Sound. And a good many of the 11 Aunts and Uncles ended up working for Boeing. My grandpa worked in the lumber yard in Darrington and Grandma worked for Boeing. 

Our family has been spending summers for the better part of 70 years visiting and playing and creating memories. As time marches forward and I am now a grandparent, the transitions seem faster. Almost, all of the great aunts and uncles have left this planet and the next guard has taken their place. Many of them sitting in the exact same spot their parents would have perched to take in all the festivities and catch up on all the happenings. 

And just as my parents have moved up a tier, so have Joelle and I. The new grandparent tier with my cousins are nearing a half century and a few us older, not by much though! And our collective children range from ages 7 to 28, and there are upwards of 23 of them from just the Oso side of the family.  

And now the older children are having children and they are continuing the family tradition of coming to Oso and connecting upwards with the “older guard”. Four generations laughing, playing, visiting and strengthening connections.

This past weekend, it really struck me. I was one of those little kiddos, splashing in the Stillaguamish River with my brother, sister and cousins 45 years ago and almost at the identical spot. I used to build dams in the side channel and splash my mom just like my grandkids were now doing to their mom. 

I remember my dad fording the river with me in tow and how I used to do the same with my children, and how the “worrying” side of the family would all caution us to be safe – some things haven’t changed.   Continued…

And this weekend I saw my son, with a tight grasp on two of the young ones fording that river at almost the identical spot I would have crossed with him and the same spot that I would have crossed with my dad. 

And although I can’t say for sure, I imagine that my grandpa probably forded that river with my dad in the early 1950’s at the same spot. As a matter of fact, if I close my eyes, I can almost hear my grandma Opal, “Richard, you be careful!” 

And in the blink of an eye and in the very near future, Joelle and I will taking up the “older guard” spots that have that unique vantage. Partaking in the 4 or 5 generations that are now below us, watching all those little ones play in the river and a few more ford it with their parents. I wonder who is going to be the one to assume the role of reminding them to be careful?!

Family and family memories are important, thanks for allowing me to muse! 

-Tristan

How many servings of fruit and vegetables should we eat? Can we group potatoes and sweet potatoes in the vegetable category? I hope so because this is potato Salad week! Grilling and potato salad are going to be highlights for the 4th, and of course, no end to fireworks, especially for rural folk.  

We have just added USDA grass-fed hamburger to our meat offering, joining Sockeye salmon, chicken, tuna and cod. While the grill is still hot, toss on some Walla Walla sweets, zucchini, and red peppers. You can even sear some romaine hearts.  

And now the summer fruit is starting to show up on the menus. Watermelon, nectarines, cherries, berries, grapes… When the seasons change and the different crops make their annual appearance, I get excited. The flavors, the smells, the lack of dishes to wash. Ok the lack of dishes to wash has more to do with being outside and eating more raw foods.  

Nothing like biting into a nectarine or peach and having to take a quick step back because the juice is pouring down your chin ?. Oh my! The Black splendor plums right now are really good. 

I know some of you are thinking Salsa and Avocados for chips and dips. Salsa and Avocados will definitely, get the recommended fruit and veggie servings moving in the right direction.  Eating healthy, feeding your bodies with good food is more than doable. The challenge is training ourselves to say “yes” to more fruits and veggies, and learning to leave the packaged foods at the grocery store or at Amazon. Easier said than done.  

Our mission from day one: work with local organic farmers and other organic farmers to make eating healthy easier. Connecting the local consumer to the growers. It was important 21 years ago, and I would like to think that it is still important today. 

Enjoy the 4th and enjoy some really good food. 

Be safe, 

-Tristan

Last week we had a good “drink” of water from Heaven and that evening we were treated to an intensely rich pink sunset. This world is a beautiful place if we take the time to be still. There is so much to see all around us, so much intricacy, delicacy, and grace. We are blessed.

I have been working with nature for what seems a lifetime, but it wasn’t until I began my organic journey that I realized how small I am in relation to the micro and macro ecosystems I inhabit.

Take the rain we were blessed with last week. We haven’t had meaningful water for a few weeks, but we didn’t have a lot of high temperatures either. When the rain comes, the plants are built to receive it, maximize it, and use it. Plants are amazing collectors of water. A lettuce plant will funnel untold amounts of water into its base and hydrate it leaves and roots, then it will trap the moisture under its canopy and hang on to it to extend its benefit.

The Pea plants are incredible. Their waxy leaves and tendrils shed water almost immediately and almost all of it makes it way to the roots. And as most of you can attest, Klesick Farm peas are especially sweet!

Rain can come at a bad time, too. Thankfully this spring was just hot enough, dry enough, and wet enough to not have a negative impact on our early crops. Even our Strawberries have “weathered” the weather fairly well. For sure they would have appreciated a little more heat, but then the peas and lettuce would have been a little less happy.

Have you ever noticed that the birds are always noisiest in early morning? At 5 a.m. this farm is anything but quiet. I believe that is by design, and I believe that the birds’ chirping is music to the “ears” of the plants. It is almost as if when the birds sing, the plant opens its stomata and takes in the dew that has collected all evening. And when the birds go quiet for the day, the plant closes its stomata and traps in the nutrients and moisture to tide itself till the evening. This also coincides with the sunrise, which the plant also uses as a signal to open its stomata. 

Knowing this, we spray a foliar kelp and micronutrient mix in the early mornings or late evenings and, when the plant opens up its stomata, we “bless” it with extra nutrition. When I refer to working with nature, this is one way that we do that.

The balancing act as a farmer can be dicey, especially on a mixed vegetable operation as ours. We have a good start with a few mishaps, but no more than usual, and what we have harvested has been beautiful on the outside and inside. And for me, as a farmer, the real joy comes from feeding your family and my family produce that is, yes beautiful, but most importantly produce that is brimming with flavor and nutrition. 

-Tristan

This is the best tasting crop, and it only lasts for only a few weeks! And we got them earlier than ever to boot! That incredible stretch in March is paying dividends now.  

For some reason, I remember picking peas on June 11th in 1999 when our farm was located in Machias. That is the earliest we have ever harvested this variety. We have tried to have peas for the box of good this early every year, but so much has to go “right” to get an early crop off and this year a dry March, wet April, and hot May was the right mix of weather. Go figure??!?!?!!? But this year, it happened!  

So, it will be Klesick Farm pea season for the next few weeks. You can order extra’s as well. If you love sweet, plump and juicy peas, now is the time to treat yourself! 

-Tristan

Soil is critical to human health! Healthy food comes from healthy soils, and a healthy citizenry comes from healthy food. That means the health of our citizens is tied directly back to the health of our soil. 

And sadly, one doesn’t have to look very far from the farm to see that there is a burgeoning population of unhealthy folks today. In addition, any healthy food that is being grown is converted into a myriad of processed products which, I would contend, have substantially lowered the quality of food. 

And, sadly, sugar, fat, and alcohol are all the rage in the food scene, organic or otherwise. It is called “value added,” but overly processed foods, organic or otherwise, are not the solution to America’s health crisis. 

I am a huge fan of veggies and fruit staying as close to their original, recognizable self as possible. Eating foods grown in soils that are minimally processed is the only viable solution to curb America’s health crisis. Will eating more fruits and veggies, solve every disease problem? NO. But clearly the Standard American Diet (SAD) isn’t curbing anything either and, if anything, it is making us worse off. 

Almost all the treatment is just that, it is focused on treating the ailment instead of changing the underlying cause – poor nutrition. The hard part is that we need to attack these illnesses from a dietary perspective and treat the condition to provide some relief. Eventually, if our food policy could switch to more fruit and veggies and less of the current food system, there would be less need for the expensive and intrusive procedures we default to today. But for now, we mostly have a “treat the condition” model.  

I know that there are educational advocates and government programs encouraging the American population to eat a more balanced diet, all things in moderation. This is America, of course they are going to say that. Our political system guarantees us a diet that can never be healthy, because of lobbyist groups.  

So, the only choice we have to remain healthy or be healthier is to make the choice ourselves. At least for the moment we don’t have to buy “their” food, we can take charge of our health. It is at the fork or spoon where healthy food enters our bodies and, if we put good food on that fork or spoon, our bodies will absolutely put it to healing, nourishing, and cell-building work. 

For 21 years, Klesick Farms has been growing, sourcing, and delivering food that your body will be able to put to good use to nourish itself.  

Thanks for allowing our family to serve yours, 

-Tristan

This is the hardest time of the year for me as a farmer. We are primarily vegetable farmers but also grow some fruit and hay. Vegetables are incredibly slow growing in the spring, and then all of the sudden – BAM! A little heat and little water with increasing day length equals growth. This time of year, everything is just getting started. 

As an organic farmer, I spend a lot of time thinking about how to get my soil as alive and healthy as possible. It is pretty simple for me. Take care of your soil, and it will take care of the plants. It is similar to: “you are what you eat.” If we as people choose to eat good food, our bodies will do the rest. Of course, just like the soil, our bodies have an incredible ability to absorb lots of toxicity and still function, but not thrive.

As a farmer, I know when a plant is starting to show signs of stress. It comes from knowing your crops. It is almost as if you are listening to what the plant is telling you. It is not mysterious. Good parents, doctors, counselors, farmers, you name it, are all good listeners. Paying attention to what the crop is telling you is what a farmer has to discern. Does it look piqued, why is it not growing, does it seem dry? And even if I have properly prepared the field, fertilized, planted and watered in the right time of year, some plants just aren’t feeling their best. But when I have done the right things at the right time, almost always, most of the crops do great. 

I consider myself a good listener, maybe I have always been or maybe raising 9 children (5 married so far) has further tuned my sense of hearing. Really, farming and parenting have taught me that you do your best. You try to prepare your fields and children for the next season, and then a lot of other factors, most out of your control, come into play. And yes, often the next seasons will keep you on your knees because so much is out of your hands.

Ironically, it is that part where we have influence, where we can lay the foundation is, also, critical. It is where diligence pays dividends. Equally important is recognizing that the process is bigger than any one person. Understanding what you control, and what is out of your control, is also freeing. 

I do believe that in farming, parenting, or eating, little decisions in the right direction and over long periods of time, lead to healthier crops, healthier children, and a healthier us. Our crops, our children, and our bodies will use the foundations we have laid to finish their race. And amazingly, as if it is a miracle, crops do get harvested, and people are healthier when they eat better food, and children can even navigate Seattle traffic when they are 16! 

Thanks for eating good food!

-Tristan

We are getting so close to the local season exploding! The next few months are going to roll in like morning fog, and then heat up like hot summer day. The rain last week has hydrated the crops and added moisture to the fields. The moisture is especially helpful this time of year for 2 reasons.

The first is what you might expect, it waters the crops, and after that hot stretch, the peas and lettuce are happy for the cool weather and a drink! Plants are so amazing. When you look at a plant and study it’s leaf structure, you will notice how they have a center rib that funnels water towards the roots and/or the outer circumference of the plant. This is sometimes referred to as the drip zone. The leaves are accumulators of moisture and funnel it to where the plant needs it most.

Another interesting tidbit about leaves is that the leaves “open up” in the morning to capture the dew and then “close off” to conserve the moisture and nutrition. There is also really good evidence that the birds chirping away are one of the mechanisms that causes the plants to open up and take in the nutrition. Joelle and I have intentionally planted trees, all types, on the borders of our property to encourage a diverse ecosystem. 

Starting in the spring, and running throughout the summer, it can get really loud at sunrise with all the avian activity on our farm. I would venture that a rooster didn’t get the farmer up at the crack of dawn, it was all the wildlife singing to the plants!

Another use for moisture is to help breakdown the remaining residue from our winter crops that we plant to protect and nourish our soil. Moisture and heat are critical for the fungi and bacteria world to turn the fibrous plant material into nutrients. Which, in turn, build soil health and feed the plants. Making sure the crop is incorporated into the soil, and there is adequate moisture, speeds up the process and frees the nutrients to feed the plants. 

Feeding the soil bacteria and the other host of unseen workers is job one for an organic farmer. Without healthy soil you can’t have healthy food, and without healthy food you can’t have healthy people. If the national health trend is any indication, our nation’s soil is not producing very healthy crops. And to compound the issue, the agricultural crops are turned into a myriad of overly processed foods that are even more unhealthy.

Organically grown fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and legumes consumed as close to their original state is the silver bullet to America’s health crisis. A simple solution, but one that eludes most.

Growing food for you.

-Tristan

When I think about small things, I am thinking about the little decisions that can elevate a conversation to optimism or an argument. Or on the farm, getting ahead of the weather by a day or two can also have lasting impacts on the crops.

Last week, we saw temperatures climb from the low 60s to the high 70s/low 80s. This is the season where a small decision can really influence a June/July harvest. Ideal weather doesn’t exist. The weather is just what it is. Which means, as a farmer, I do my best and then move on. Farmers have an edge about them, it comes with the territory. Some crops do great, some not so great and others just don’t make it. 

Years of farming inform many decisions. A collective wisdom that has been passed down season by season and crop by crop, which means that the weather plays a big factor. But it is out of my control, and when a crop flourishes it probably has more to do with the weather than I give it credit. But the little things like depth of tillage, timely weeding, and timely watering can go long ways towards working with nature to help that crop flourish, too.

80s in May can have a lasting impact on cool weather crops, and the variability of weather can really mess with a plant’s internal clock. Cilantro is always looking for a reason to bolt or “go to seed,” as is spinach. We have chosen to focus on crops that are less temperamental like lettuces, cucumbers, tomatoes, winter squashes, and garlic. We have tree fruits and raspberries, too.

We no longer grow blackberries. We had two varieties of thorn less blackberries. One came on early; I mean a month before any wild blackberries were ready to harvest, but every bird within a few miles descended upon them and feasted away. The other challenge was that a warm March and cold April with a late frost, killed about a half of them. Their shoots for next year will be fine, but the combination of bird predation and frost susceptibility have made them less desirable to grow.

The other blackberry came on in late August and the birds had plenty of wild blackberries to feast on, but I didn’t like their flavor. They were prolific, big and juicy. I would always walk by them and look for the plumpest berries and eat one and think “meh”. Every time I always thought “meh” when I tasted them. So last fall, I took them out and took out their trellising. 

The beautiful thing about farming is that there are lots of choices when it comes to what crops to grow and every farmer gets to match the crop to their microclimate, their personality, and their temperament!

And with the weather changing, we have new opportunities to grow different crops. But the warmer weather has also come with new pests. I noticed new birds flying over the farm that are now in the valley. Changing weather patterns come with lots of new variabilities and that definitely keeps a farmer on their toes!

Growing good food for you that loves to grow in the Stillaguamish River Valley.

-Tristan