Happy Thanksgiving!

A flash back to the beautiful creatures of my Summer. 

*Video by Tiffanie Ma 

Happy Saturdays!

My Prairie Heritage Farm Story has been Published!!!

Thank you writer Andrew X. Pham who is one of my inspirational writers and author of Cat Fish and Mandala for the opportunity!

Summer in My Saucepan

Pasta sauce of heirloom tomatoes, eggplant; 

a variety of peppers: red, green, Fehrozon Paprika, 

Jimmy Nardello, and Hot Portugal, 

topped with parsley.

*Photo by Tiffanie Ma

Cheers to my Fabulous Farm Family!

*photo by Raul Orrostieta

Zany Zucchini Pizza

From farm

to table

*photos by Tiffanie Ma

Succulent Squash Blossoms

From farm

to Table

*photos by Tiffanie Ma

Love the Life you Live

These are my friends Mélodie and David Frere. They are two of the most life-loving, adventuresome, and full-hearted people I know. And I am so blessed to call them my friends. The world is a small place indeed. The people we interact with and meet, whether we've known for years or just for brief moments, can be sweet and fleeting, or everlasting, carrying on for much longer in ways we could have never foreseen.

While my experiences and time and with David and Mélo have been short, I feel like our times together have been meaningful. I met David and Mélo at Taza, a coffee shop I worked at for a few months back home in Arcadia, CA. These few months became a period of waiting and searching for me, for what I did not know and was painfully seeking, a transition to somewhere else I longed to be but did not know where. David became a good friend at Taza, showing me the ropes behind the coffee bar, with incredible patience and skill. He is the barista.

I always admire people who are so passionate about their work. They love it so much, that it becomes more of a way of life than a means to make a living. David knows coffee; he breathes it; it's in his veins; his heart; his soul. Not only is he skilled at making coffee, it's not just about the perfect cup. I think David appreciates more the people, the conversations, the ideas, the art, and the good times surrounding this drink. Coffee houses can be a place of solace, of inspiration, of community, for so many; and I think that is what he cherishes most from this craft.

Together, David and Mélo moved their lives from their home of Belgium to California a few years ago. David studied at Fuller Seminary in Pasadena, and Mélo tutored French. Mélo is an artist with an eye for interior design. She can transform any space into a beautiful work of art. I had the privilege of being invited to David's birthday party, and saw for myself their beautiful quaint home in Pasadena. They had just moved there, and I was blown away by the simplicity, sophistication and delicacy of their place. With many European friends in attendance, the lit candles and art nouveau-coffered ceiling felt like a chic European lounge.

Shortly after, I moved to Montana for my apprenticeship at Prairie Heritage Farm and didn't think I would see my Belgium friends again. David and Mélo were planning to return home to Belgium. Their dream is to one day open up a coffee shop decorated with American artifacts and antiques. They wanted to celebrate America with one last hoorah, so began a road trip across the States, hitting national landmarks and cities along the way (they are still on the road as I write this), collecting things and stories of a country they have fallen in love with to take back with them.

We were reunited here in Montana. They stopped here before heading to Yellowstone. Raul and I got to host them in Great Falls at our apartment and on the farm in Power. It was a great time. We had a BBQ and cooked with farm fresh veggies. Mélo inspired me to make Ratatouille!

I'm so happy for their adventures to come in Antwerp, where David has a fantastic job lined up. He will be making coffee for a company that works to help heal human trafficking victims. The program gives women an opportunity to learn a craft and start a new life.

Mélo and David freely live and love life, fearless and filled with faith and outpouring love for all the beauties the world has to offer, to all of us. Cheers Mélo and David! We will meet again one day in Belgium!





*photo by David Frere

Ratatouille

From Farm

to

table. 

*Photos by Tiffanie Ma

Farmsitting

With the Cowgills out of town for the weekend, I am given the keys to a picturesque Prairie Heritage Bed and Breakfast. 30 acres all to myself! What more could a girl ask for? Next to taking care of the turkeys, chickens, cats and dog, I plan to explore more of this region.

Saturday mornings on the farm calls for: checking on food/feeding and providing water to chickens, baby turkeys, big turkeys, cats (Frida & Jackson), and dog (Lydia); letting chickens out of the coop to range in their designated area; turning on light for baby turkeys in barn; letting big turkeys out of their mini-barn to catch some rays; am yoga; sunny-side-up farm fresh eggs, bacon and toast for breakfast followed by usual Saturday morning catch-up on emails and reading.

Saturday mid-day calls for: checking on water supply for all animals; lunch of farm fresh veggies; a bike ride to Circle's Greenhouse down the road to check out baby goats and plants; a hike at the Rocky Mountain Front.

Saturday evenings call for: Feeding Lydia; gathering eggs; herding chickens back into coop and closing their mini-door; checking on all water supplies; herding big turkeys back into their home for the night; organic farm fresh dinner; wine; movie.

Life is good.

Thinking Outside the Salad

Basil and Cucumber Gimlet

After a day of laboring out under the sweltering 90 degree sun (probably add another 10 degrees in the high-tunnel), one sip of this refreshing Basil and Cucumber Gimlet made it all worth it for me. Every sweat drop melting into my eye and burning my vision with salty liquid as I stand on a ladder 10 feet above ground, tying string, and adding poles to trellis our dear tomatoes, holding a prayer under my breath as a I reach to make each knot, was worth coming home and shaking up this masterpiece.

Creativity is a powerful, effective, and contagious tool. With life, farming and veggies, believe it or not, creativity can take us far. It makes us more resourceful, like how we trellised our tomatoes and cucumbers with simple string, poles and rods. It allows us to challenge our routines, and more importantly, ourselves.

Cheers to Creativity!!

*photo by Tiffanie Ma

This Week's CSA Share!

1. Dinosaur Kale

2. Cucumbers

3. Rainbow Chard

4. Garlic Scapes

5. Butter Head Lettuce

6. Collard Greens

7. Beets

8. Cabbage

9. Basil

Did I mention how much I love my job?

*photo by Tiffanie Ma

The Mamas and the Papas

   

Our Heritage turkeys are free-range, cage-free and organic! They gobble-gobble around the farm, pecking at bugs, eating grass, sometimes ending up in places they don't belong, but we just herd them out. They travel as a pack, as a family of two dads and many moms.

The babies, more like teenagers.....

The polts have grown so fast..we had to move them from their little room to the barn. It's amazing how fast they have matured, right before my eyes. When I first arrived at the farm, they were cute little furry things. Now, they are big birds! They seem calmer in the barn, with more room to grow and live.

*photos and video by Tiffanie Ma

Weathered, worn, worked, this is how I look and feel at the end of some days, like today. This wood-carved tree stump in front of the farm house is my reflection. I feel tired, ugly, achy. I'm melting away by the forces of the merciless sun, whom I used to be best friends with but seriously having second thoughts. After hours of weeding what feels like endless rows of kale and broccoli stretching into eternity, and being eaten alive by mosquitoes, which I am sure were put on this earth for the sole purpose of torturing and testing a woman's patience, those thoughts slowly begin to creep into my head, breaking the undying silence of an open field. Is this the reality of the paradise I had dreamed of? Is this what love feels like? Do I really want to do what I love? Will it make me love less? Or is this simply, pain for passion?

*photo by Tiffanie Ma

Turkey Eggs for Breakfast...YUM!

*photo by Tiffanie Ma

Harvest Day

Harvesting Collards for Great Falls folks

Harvest days are hectic. Especially now that summer is officially here, so is the heat. We are running against time, the heat, mosquitoes, harvesting 20, sometimes up to 40 shares all before lunch. Today we harvested 20 full-shares of: radishes, bok choy, collards, Tuscan kale (a.k.a Lacinato or Dinosaur kale), Rainbow chard, and spinach for our members in Great Falls. 

Tuscan/Dinosaur/Lacinato KALE!

It's been challenging to stay hydrated and enthusiastic through the day while fighting off hordes of aggressive mosquitoes. I hate complaining, but these mosquitoes are unlike any I have ever encountered. I've been to places in the world notorious for mosquitoes: China, Mexico, Costa Rica; but none of these places have mosquitoes as cruel and tenacious as the ones here in Montana. They even taunt you with that buzzing mosquito sound I thought only existed in movies. Then, when you think you've scared them away with a swat of your hand, they come and get you from behind, and when you realize your butt cheek is itchy, it's too late.

Next to bugs to fight against are the weeds. With our veggies booming in growth, so are the weeds. In the next few weeks, we will be honing in on ridding them. I'm a lover not a fighter, but weeds, for my novice agrarian friends, take away nutrients, space and other resources from the crops we want to focus on. Weeding reminds me of my time at the Garden School Foundation and my reflection on weeds. Here on the farm, we have lots of lambs quarter and dandelions. 

It was wonderful to meet our share members of Great Falls today. It was my first drop-off here. Jacob and I stayed from 4:30 to 5:30 at Gibson Park. It was a nice to just relax under some shady trees and reap the benefits of our harvest today, the smiles and appreciation from our customers. It was nice to see faces and to  hear about how people are excited to try the recipes in our newsletter, which I am happily responsible for each week. 

All in all, the farm is looking more beautiful and lush by the day, and I'm getting antsy for tomatoes and peppers which we got into the ground this week!!

*Photos by Tiffanie Ma

Rain or Shine

There's a storm outside. Lightning, thunder, rain, wind...the works. I'm home, and it feels like gold to be sitting on the comfy couch with a blanket and laptop on my lap writing to my fine readers. Despite the incessant itching and scratching the wretched mosquitoes have cursed upon me since Monday, between a glass of red vino to top off a warm homemade meal with my farm family of meat loaf, mashed potatoes and salad, I'm feeling good.

Sorry I haven't checked in for a while. We are moving in full force at the farm, primarily taking care of weeds, thinning veggies like beats, and harvesting most of what's left of our greens in the high-tunnel to begin planting our summer crops of tomatoes and peppers.

Montana weather is ever changing. While you know what to expect on the weather channel, you never really know what you're going to get. Coming from Cali, anything below 70 degrees for me is cold, add some wind chill and I'm freezing. But, I have adapted well, and now 50 or 60 degrees doesn't feel so bad. I also always bring my fleece and rain jackets with me to work. Today was the first day I wore a scarf in June. But, with the wind and gray skies, I needed my scarf to keep me warm and working.

Luckily, I work with some great people, so when weather gets really bad, like hard rain or hail, we take a break and seek shelter. The weather is definitely warming up though, which makes me happy. Although the storm hit us today, we did reach 90 degrees during the beginning of the week. The clear blue sky and sunshine reminded me of home.

It's nice to work in the low or high tunnels when it's windy, rainy, or just cold out. Here I am planting peppers in the low tunnel, lots of peppers, both sweet and hot. Jacob and I also planted basil and eggplant.

Other times, when it's hot out, working inside the low tunnel, high tunnel or greenhouse can be unbearably uncomfortable. Not only is your body subjected to extreme temperatures, but you're kneeling and your legs are getting sore and you don't have much room to step because there is another row of something growing you don't want to step on an inch from your foot. So you have to learn to shut those senses off almost if you want to get the job done in time. I've been good about wearing a hat when the sun shines brightly, but the day I got home from transplanting in the low tunnel, I noticed the top of my scalp was red. It got burned from those UV rays. Luckily, it didn't hurt. My point is you have to protect your head and cover it with a hat, scarf, or something, not only to keep skin from burning, but also to keep yourself cool. Dehydration is the worst enemy.

Yesterday was also exciting for me because I saw a deer in the field! I had never seen a deer that close before. It was a white-tailed deer and it was just roaming our vegetable field. I had been working on building our compost pile of grass clippings (nitrogen), soil (for micro-organisms), and straw (for carbon) and walked off the field to check with a visitor who had pulled onto our driveway. When I returned to the field, I saw the deer. We startled each other I think. Bambi roamed around for a few seconds and darted up and over the fence. They can cause real damage according to Jacob. It was a majestic sight for me.

I also got to try raw milk for the first time in my life!! A neighboring farm and friends of ours have milk cows and gave us some milk. I was a little worried at first, not sure how my body would react to milk straight from a cow, but I was fine. The milk tasted delicious. Cold and fresh. It tasted like half and half, creamy, but not too thick.

Today's Farm Lessons Include:

1. Always bring a fleece and rain jacket and scarf. 

2. Smile, even when it rains; it makes things better.

3. Drink lots of water, fresh milk, and some wine (especially after those long, rainy, windy, and cold days.)

*Photos by Tiffanie Ma

The Field of Dreams

This past week of farming has been the most wickedly cool and butt-kicking one so far. I've never felt so exhausted after a day's work, but witnessing the faces of whom I was working so hard for, made it worth it. This past Thursday, we celebrated our first CSA deliveries for the season! For the Cowgills, it was the first off their new farm, and for me, it was my first ever. Wahoo! It was a success. I delivered five shares to our members in Conrad and the Cowgills delivered 30 to our members in Great Falls. I got to meet Pat and his young son Patrick, who were hosting the drop-off point for Conrad at their home.

Pat and Patrick, our CSA members in Conrad.

While a quick exchange and drop-off, I realized on my drive back that that little boy Patrick and his family and other families in town were going to eat healthy and organic food while supporting their local economy and seeing a face of the farm they support. That simple connection made all the back-bending work meaningful and gave me a more realized-understanding of this local food web.

On that note of back-bending work, it really has been a challenge for me to keep up with Jacob, not that I probably ever could, but at least I try. He is fast and has a lot of stamina, probably because he is a mountain man by nature, but probably also because he's got nearly 10 years of farming experience under his belt. Still, I look up to his sheer ability to just keep moving, keep planting, building, making, fixing, tilling, hammering, watering, sowing...farming. My challenge is working fast. I can do a job well, but not always fast and well. On harvest day, especially, the day blurred by as I harvested 36 shares of Ruby Red Mustard greens, Green Mustard greens and some baby-looking Bok Choy veggie I forgot the name of. We're racing against the heat of the sun that is to hit after morning fades into noon, which could destroy our harvest. Plus we needed to deliver these precious goods between a certain time frame. We moved so fast, I didn't even get a chance to snap some shots of the harvesting process for you all, but don't be disappointed, I'll make it up with pictures next harvest time. There is also the cleanliness issue which dissuades me from snapping photos because I do not want to touch my phone and then go back to touching the food we are packing. Don't fret, I'll find a way to do both!

                               On the road to Conrad.

Driving to Conrad with precious green cargo in cooler.

It really wears on you, farming that is. It wears on you physically. You feel this ringing and vibrating in the joints of your fingers, ankle joints and shoulder joints. Maybe, it's just my ankle joints because I'm either wearing garden clogs or rain boots and not very supportive hiking boots as Jacob is. Anyhow, it's unlike any aches I've ever felt. No pain, luckily (knock on wood), but still aches. I suppose it is part of the job description. While all the squatting and bending over have been great for my legs, glutes and lower back muscles, I think my knees are paying the price for beauty and farming. I'm sounding more geriatric by the day!

Much brain power does go into farming, especially organic farming. You have to consider what part of the land you are cultivating on and what type of plant, so that you can rotate with another crop like say a legume to fix nitrogen into the soil which your previous plant depleted. I know a lot of life and great things are in the works, and a lot more is happening underground than above most days, but sometimes, it does feel like I'm just pushing a wheelbarrow around in circles. You have to be able to see the big picture, always, otherwise, farming would just be a series of redundant and repetitive mechanical motions, did I mention redundant? For instance, stamping labels and packing 75 bags of grain can become redundant.

 

Farro grains

Packing Farro grains to include in CSA share.

While I suspected, and I suppose many would suppose that living out in the plains, in the country, in the backwoods, may be lonely, and while I have to admit, it can be lonely weeding beds of garlic alone, the farm is actually always filled with visitors every week. Whether it's friends or family, there is always some new faces I get to meet every week. So, it's really not that lonely to live outside of the city if you have a good group of friends and family who keep in touch.

I'm constantly awed by the giving nature of growing food, whether farming or gardening. It's just an atmosphere which promotes community, the sharing of ideas, produce, or just simple encouragement amongst friends. The Cowgill's friends Tony and Michelle stopped by for a tour of the farm and to donate a small greenhouse which Tony had built. Because they are moving to Ohio to begin their own CSA and farm, they wanted to give it to the Prairie Heritage Farm. They stayed for lunch and made for another day of good company to meet. Before they left we gave them shares of veggies which a few of our CSA members did not pick up. They were thankful, and as Michelle lifted the bags, declaring she was going to make a salad for dinner, my heart smiled knowing that those were the bags I had filled with carefully harvested greens.

Mixed Lettuce

I myself continued the contagious giving cycle by asking Jacob if I could bring some extra peppers and tomatoes we had planted which were dying due to lack of watering. The poor plugs were just eyeing me outside the greenhouse, desperately wanting a bigger space to live in and a home outside of those plugs. Not being one to ask for things, which I'm not saying is always the smartest or most beneficial characteristic of mine, I built up the courage to ask what Jacob was planning to do with them and if I could take them to share with the Pea Pods community garden. He happily agreed that that was a great idea and so that afternoon I shared them with friends at the garden who were thankful for some peppers and tomatoes.

After a long day of harvesting in the heat, driving 100 miles round trip to deliver and then head back into town to share and plant some peppers and tomatoes in the community garden, it was time to relax. So I headed home, took a nice shower, and indulged in my new favorite pastime, cooking. All in all, the crunchy taste of fresh, organic Pak Choy fried rice with garlic, carrots and scrambled eggs, doused in fish sauce at the end of a humbling harvest day, made it all worth it.






*Photos by Tiffanie Ma & Raul Orrostieta

While cleaning chicken poop is not the most pleasant of farm duties, it beats being cooped up in an office cubicle.




*Photo By Tiffanie Ma

A Quantum Leap

During one of our philosophical studies, my yoga family back home at the Yoga Cove talked about the "Quantum Leap." During our monthly meetings, we delighted in practicing yoga with each other and then philosophizing. Madelon, our spiritual teacher and guide, introduced us to the "Quantum Leap," a concept I had only theorized and contemplated, until now.

To me, it's a jump, from one place, no, more like one chasm of time, wonderment and way of life, to another one in another world. It's a jump which shakes you to the core of your being, shattering all you thought you knew and believed to be true, challenging you in ways you may have never expected or experienced and at the same time, in all they ways you thought you would.

In terms of agriculture, I went from working on a 3/4th-acre school garden two days a week for 6 months to a 30-acre farm in Montana working 5 days a week. While cultivating the earth, I must keep strong, and not forget to do my yoga whenever I can. I work on the ground, though sometimes, feel like I'm still airborne, waiting to land.







*Photo by Raul Orrostieta

Discover the Divine in the Mundane

While painfully weeding through a bed of lettuce...a long bed of lettuce, it was pleasing to know that there are still some things left in the world which can only be done by hand.








*Photo by Tiffanie Ma