Ardfield Farm

Starting this Wednesday, November 30th, Ardfield Farm will be a vendor at the Weaverville Holiday Market.  The Market will be held Wednesday’s from 2- 6PM at the Weaverville Community Center, 60 Lakeshore Drive, next to Lake Louise.  Check out the photos below for a glimpse of the delicious produce we will have available.  We will also have some prepared foods, Lavender Cardamom Lip Balm, and  new Crafts each week.

Farm fresh Greens picked the day of the market:  Baby Spinach, Arugula, Mescelun, Kale, Collard Greens, Swiss Chard…

We will also have beautiful Purple Plum & China Rose Radish bunches.

Come visit us and bring home delicious produce grown organically with love~

Today was Radish thinning day and we now have beautiful Radish Greens available for purchase.  Radish Greens you may think… what are they good for, compost?  Radish Greens can be used anyway you would use other greens… sautéed in your favorite stir fry recipe, added to green smoothies, eaten fresh in salad, or on their own.  Our favorite way to eat Radish Greens is in Radish Top Soup  or raw from the garden.  Althea has been picking at them for days now.

Radish leaves are high in Vitamin C , Calcium, Protein, Iron, and Vitamin A.   They contain nearly six times as much Vitamin C, and higher levels of Calcium and Protein than their roots.  They are a member of the Cruciferous family, which contain cancer-protective properties.  And like other greens, they are a good source of vitamin K and magnesium.

Radishes have been known through out history as a medicinal food for liver disorders, containing a variety of sulfur-based chemicals that increase the flow of bile.  Increased flow of bile helps maintain a healthy gallbladder and liver, and improves digestion.

Today we had slow steady rain and then a quick windy thunderstorm which blew rain 4 feet into the house.  The plants enjoyed both.  The Arugula is just starting to poke through and the Beets, Chard, and Spinach are picking up steam.

The Seven Top Greens Turnips and Radish varieties are ready for thinning.  Thinning is one of my favorite things because it is really the first harvest.  Get ready for baby Turnip Greens and Radish Tops!  Contact us for pricing and pick up info.

After two years of driving from Baltimore, MD to Free Union, VA to tend our garden we are now able to step out our front door and walk to our rows.  We have been settling into the beauty of the mountains since late August and things are getting under way.

Aaron has been busy double digging our Fall beds and we put our truck to work moving loads of organic mushroom compost from the giant pile on the driveway.  After spreading a layer of compost on each bed we added a bit of high Nitrogen Mexican Guano, Greensand, and Rock Phosphate to help build the soil fertility.  Our Friend, Dana, came by to help feed the soil and as you can see in the picture above we have had help from our little Dancing Fairy too.

It has taken a lot of energy to feed each bed, but when you compare the native soil (right row above) to the amended beds (above, left rows) it is all worth it.  The hard work building the soil now will continue to pay off in years to come.

The Fall colors have started to arrive and with the colors have come the emerging seeds.  The most vigorous by far have been the radishes… with lovely names… China Rose, Purple Plum, and Watermelon.

The Spinach is starting to poke out of the earth too.

Golden Beets, Detroit Dark Red Beets, Ruby Red Chard, Seven Top Green Turnips, Kale, Collard Greens, Arugula, Lettuce, and Carrots are soon to follow.