San Marzano, the best paste tomato

Considered by chefs as the best paste tomato in the world.  Compared to the Roma Tomato, San Marzano tomatoes are thinner and more pointed. The flesh is much thicker with fewer seeds, and the taste is stronger, sweeter and less acidic. Also, unlike the Roma Tomato  San Marzano vines are indeterminate and have a somewhat longer season than other paste tomato varieties. As is typical of heirloom plants, San Marzano is an open-pollinated variety that breeds true from generation to generation, making seed saving practical for the home gardener or farmer.

According to Wikipedia, "the first seed of the San Marzano tomato came to Campania in 1770, as a gift from the Viceroyalty of Peru to the Kingdom of Naples, and that it was planted in the area that corresponds to the present commune of San Marzano sul Sarno. They come from a small town of the same name near Naples, Italy, and were first grown in volcanic soil in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius.

In the United States, San Marzano tomatoes are the genetic base for another popular paste tomato, the Roma Tomato.  The Roma is a cross between a San Marzano and two other varieties (one of which was also a San Marzano hybrid), was introduced by the USDA in 1955.

The future of community supported agriculture

There is a lot of talk about changing the way food gets to market. It's nice to see people who are willing to put the time, and effort to see if they can make it work. Farming, whether it's "old school" dirt farming or soil less hydroponic farming is hard work. Will the younger generation be willing to put in the immense effort needed to bring our food to table?

South Fork Farm at Gold Hill is owned and operated by Jaclyn Moyer and Ryan Dorsey. The couple lease 12 acres from The American River Conservancy, which recently purchased the historic 272 Veerkamp property at Gold Hill. The property is the site of the first Japanese colony in North America, The Wakamatsu Tea and Silk Colony.  As we drive by the farm twice a day on the way to and from work my curiosity brought me to the farm. I was met by Jaclyn and Ryan who took the time out of their busy day to show me around.

The farm is certified organic and a Community Supported Agriculture enterprise.We walked through the fields where their first crops we're growing and being harvested. Since this is early spring there was lot's of lettuce varieties as well as other leafy greens. Onions we're planted as well as garlic. Inside a hoop house built over the soil we're young seedlings of heirloom tomatoes, many of which will be planted in the hoop house so as to provide an earlier crop.

A wood fired oven has been built to bake bread that will be made out of heirloom wheat being grown on the farm.  This is interesting  in light of renewed interest in heirloom wheat. Some people feel it may be an answer for our current problems with obesity and diabetes, which we talked about last year. They have planted the majority this year in Sonora Wheat. According to slowfoodusa.org Sonoma Wheat"comprised the majority of production by 1880 in California’s Central Valley, where 2,550,000 acres of wheat were grown, the largest wheat enterprise in history at that time...Since the 1950's "it has not been used in commercial production anywhere on the continent."

The last couple of days we have driven past the farm where we could see smoke rising from the oven as it's being "cured" in preparation for it's first loaves, this fall.  It will be fun to try the bread baked from this grain, and grown just down the road from us. I would like to see this type of enterprise replicated in other communities, both urban and rural. While there is like no doubt the commercial mega farms are not going away, the rise of these smaller farms producing organic food closer to the market should be a growing trend. Even more exciting is to find younger people like Jaclyn and Ryan who are willing to make the commitment to try this new enterprise. It's from these efforts that we will carve out a new way forward in growing our safe food supply.

Exciting times in gardening

I have been remiss in cultivating this blog, and thank a long time reader for reminding me to do just that. We have been busy at the nursery with a spring not dominated by cold and rain, like last year. The weather has cooperated and people continue to buy edibles like there is no tomorrow. I enjoy the edible crowd as they have put a lot of effort into their garden, and they will do what's right to keep it productive. When you hear that generation x or y are not into gardening, check the source. No sign of that here. My customer base is at least 50% under 30 years of age. They are excited about growing the stuff they consume and want to patronize local business, if you have what they want. They don't want synthetics! Get your organic groove on, because they want to know how to do it all! I disagree with those who say we are not in the job of education. I think that's exactly what is needed, and what we should do. Teach a person how to garden...

Small is cool! After thirty years in this biz I can say, keep it small and keep your cool! It's so easy when everything is riding on your decisions to work yourself to exhaustion. If it feels like it's getting out of control, slow down. Take the time to focus on the person in front of you at the moment. That's what it's all about. Not saying we don't need to "make hay while the sun shines", but we can only do so much.

There is no better time for the smaller garden business. Being small means you can react to changes that come faster and faster every day. Being small means you can excel at your craft, and command the price for your work that you need to stay in business. The future of garden bio-diversity rests in the hands of gardeners, and small garden businesses.

How great it is to be alive when so much is changing. In the garden trades we get to help guide people in their efforts to live better.It's a trade that is perfectly suited for the world we live in. Did I say these we're exciting times?

Why not heirloom fruits?

Spent Sunday pruning our Arkansas Black apple tree. It hadn't been pruned for a couple of years, so it was due. We planted it about 20 years ago when I worked at Gold Hill Nursery. It's an old variety from 19th century Arkansas. Apparently you can keep the apples for up to six months under the right conditions. That would have been an important attribute back in  the day when you didn't know when the next taste of fresh food might be after a long winter.

I brought home two new apples for the garden. The two varieties we are going to plant are antique varieties, "Cox Orange Pippin" and "Snow".  Apparently, Cox Orange Pippin  accounts for up to 50% of all dessert apples planted in The United Kingdom.  It was first planted in 1825 in Colnbrook in Buckinghamshire, England, by the retired brewer and horticulturist Richard Cox.  Wikipedia say's, "The flesh is very aromatic, yellow-white, fine-grained, crisp and very juicy. Cox's flavor is sprightly subacid, with hints of cherry and anise, becoming softer and milder with age. When ripe apples are shaken, the seeds make a rattling sound as they are only loosely held in the apple flesh. One of the best in quality of the English desert apples".

The other apple variety we are planting is "Snow". Snow was introduced to the US from Canada in 1739, but can trace it's heritage back to France and the 1600's. It "is delicious for eating out-of-hand.  Popular in the United States for more than 150 years. Deep crimson, tender, aromatic, juicy, sweet and tart, hardy and long-lived. Snow white flesh." Interestingly it is one of the few apples to reproduce true from seed.

Why don't we plant more of these antique varieties? Why do people come to the nursery asking for "Fuji" , "Pink Lady", or "Red Delicious"? I can go to the store or Apple Hill and pick up those varieties. We should look back to see what we might be missing in flavor and qualities of the forgotten fruit varieties. Did you also know the antique apples are also more healthful than modern hybrids? One of the benefits of heirloom apples is they help control blood sugar levels, which some have found contribute to obesity.

There can be issues growing these trees commercially in North America.  Certain non-fatal diseases  can make it harder to grow than some of the newer bred for disease resistance varieties. Never-the-less heirloom vegetables have many of the same issues when it comes to commercial growing. That doesn't mean the individual gardener cannot have success growing these delicious reminders of summers past.

The health benefits of antique apples

"An apple a day keeps the doctor away". Some apples may outperform others when it comes to the healthy benefits. According to research from The Royal Pharmaceutical Society, modern day apples strip away many of the health benefits of eating apples. Through years of hybridizing we have created more adaptable and sweeter fruit, but fruit that is not as healthy.

One of the benefits of heirloom apples is they help control blood sugar levels, which some have found contribute to obesity. Can it be that the so called "healthy" modern day apple, bred for ever increasing sweetness, is spiking blood sugar levels and contributing to obesity?

Are people ready to embrace growing heirloom apples like they have heirloom vegetables? There are many hybrids that are excellent fruit, and have increased adaptability to differing climatic and soil conditions. However, it's fun to think that these old apple varieties have something going for them that has kept them on the radar all these years.

Do we need to have progressively sweeter and sweeter food to just get people to eat fruit and vegetables? Through breeding  have we sweetened the taste, but lost many of the health benefits of the  fruit our grandparents ate?

Some food for thought.

Closed on Saturday's!

Companies that go against the status quo and are successful fascinate me. In retail there are assumptions made that are considered untouchable if you want to be successful. In the garden center biz one assumption is that to capture the maximum number of shoppers you need to be open 7 days a week. If someone works all week then you have Saturday or Sunday to be open for them. If your closed they may very well head to the competition. A company I have watched before was highlighted today at gardencentermagazine.comBaker Creek Heirloom Seed is a Missouri company that specializes in hard to find heirloom seed.  I first found out about this company from  their fantastic seed catalog. According to their web page, "Jere Gettle always had a passion for growing things, and at age 3, he planted his first garden. Ever since that day, he wanted to be involved in the seed industry. So at the age of 17, he printed the first small Baker Creek Heir­loom Seed catalog in 1998. The company has grown to offer 1,400 varieties of vegetables, flowers and herbs—the largest selection of heirloom varieties in the U.S.A."

In 2009 they decided to open a seed store in, of all places Petaluma, California. They bought a 1920's bank building and started "The Seed Bank". Here in the heart of The Bay Area and uber-hipness the company brought in Amish workers in traditional clothing to renovate the building. The company wanted to create an old time feeling with their business. To really set the tone they did something that is out of ordinary in retail, yet wen't right along with their beliefs. They are closed on Saturday! They do it for religious reasons, so their is no questioning them about the loss of business they might experience because of this. It's just the way it is. Their hours of operation are M-F 9:30 to 5:30 pm closed Sat. and open Sunday's, 9:30 to 4:00.

You can do this if you have something that nobody else carries. They "offer over 1,200 varieties of heirloom seeds, garlic, tools, books, and hundreds of local hand-made gifts and food items. Remember—everything we offer is pure, natural, and non-GMO!" If you want to choose amongst the largest selection of non-GMO heirloom seed's in a retail store, this is it. You'll work around the Saturday closing. The moral of the story is, carry what people want in a way no one else is doing.

As the world continues to change faster than we can keep up, people enjoy looking back to the old day's when things seemed simpler. This new store touches all the right points. Old bank building, lots of seeds, no GMO, people who are passionate about what they do, give back to the community, and live a life devoted to something bigger than themselves. Something so big they close on the what is usually the busiest day in retail gardening. Does this make them happier? I would hope so.

Instead of getting burned out this year, what if you closed the store for a day during during the week? Even in spring? What if you cut your hours of operation? What if you reduced the size of the nursery to better highlight what you carry? What if you only carried products that you believed in? It's a interesting idea. Live closer to your own beliefs, yet still make the money needed to accomplish your goals? Is is possible? We will see.