Harvest Time on the Farm

Our summer series at Fishkill Farms drew to a close today with a very special harvest program. Walker was on hand once again, much to the kids' delight, and we spent a good part of the morning romping through the muddy rows of the vegetable garden helping with the early part of the harvest.

In days of old, the late summer harvest began at the beginning of August with the festival of Lammas or Lughnasadh (in honor of the Celtic craftsman god Lugh). The belief was that if a farmer harvested his grain before Lammas it meant that the previous season's grain had run out too early which didn't look good to the rest of the farming community. When the first grain was finally cut, it was celebrated with the baking and sharing of the season's first loaves. Other early crops were harvested as well and celebrations revolved around summer's first bounty.

In keeping with this tradition, the kids' morning on the farm began with kneading the dough to make the bread that we would share at the end of our farm work that day. Intrigued, the kids sat around the picnic tables and were each handed a lump of sticky dough that had already been through it's first rise. Accompanied by rounds of Oats and Beans and Barley Grow (the peas lyric was rejected for whatever reason, by my daughter) they sprinkled the table in front of them with flour and kneaded their dough to smooth, elastic perfection.

All the buns had been put on the baking sheets and the tables cleaned and cleared as Walker arrived to take them to the garden. By now, most of the kids knew Walker's friendly face and he was calling many of them by name (which is something that, as a teacher, I took note of right away--he's really got a knack with kids). We learned about which plants could be harvested on rainy days so as not to encourage diseases to spread more readily through the plants--something I didn't know about. Mental note, don't pick tomatoes or beans when it's raining. Thankfully the rain that had been steady only a few minutes earlier took a break just as we headed down the lane to the vegetables, Walker leading the way, the pied piper armed with bushel baskets.

Our first stop was the carrot patch where the kids watched while Walker loosened the earth with his pitchfork to make the pulling a bit easier for small hands. They set right to work digging away in the rich loam of the patch, searching for carrots among the clumps and exclaiming with joy and surprise as the long, orange vegetables were lifted from the dirt.

When the basket was full, Walker took us over to a bed of potatoes--blue potatoes! The kids hunkered down searching for the camouflaged tubers. Because this patch had likely been harvested that morning before some of the growers headed to the farmers' market, it wasn't as plentiful as was the carrot patch. The kids were still able to harvest a basket load before heading to the orchard to pick some of the farm's enormous, ripe, white peaches.

Our muddy crew headed back up to the picnic tables for some hand washing, bidding Walker farewell with gratitude before beginning work on our harvest wreaths.

When they were finished crafting we set the table with lemonade and honey and just-washed carrots and brought out their freshly baked bread.

An early harvest feast indeed.

Wacky Wednesday Dip at Gory Brook

After taking much the summer off aside from our farm outings, Kids Unplugged threw a Wacky Wednesday on the calendar earlier in the month and promptly forgot about it. When the 19th rolled around, a reminder email went out about the hike along the Gory Brook Trail in Rockefeller State Park. Figuring that everyone's summers have been as laid back as ours has been, I really expected to be out there with my girls and maybe a few other folks. Imagine my surprise when the cars started rolling up to the dead end for the hike with kids spilling out ready to hit the trail. Parents and kids alike said they really missed Wacky Wednesdays, and I was delighted to be met, not only by a dear friend with whom I haven't managed to connect in ages, but 4 other new families as well, bringing our total up to 17 families for the hike.

Our crew set off down the shady path with kids and parents both happily reuniting after 6-weeks of summer vacation. It was wonderful to meet folks who have been following the blog and our adventures for some time but had not managed to join us until now. One mom told me that she had arranged her work schedule so that she wouldn't miss Wacky Wednesdays this year. How great to be greeted by such enthusiasm! Thanks, all.

The Gory Brook Trail is truly spectacular during all four seasons. There is an amazing, triple-arch stone bridge along the trail, reminding visitors of the Preserve's rich history. And while it may be at its most beautiful in the autumn, when the leaves, bursting with fall color surround you on all sides, for today's steamy, summertime visit, it was the perfect remedy.

We've hiked this trail, and others along brooks, creeks, streams and rivers, in the past, and it is a long-running challenge to keep the kids out of the drink. In fact, if you follow this blog you'll recall numerous incidences of splash and splooge over the past several months. Today, however, was a joyous reprieve from parents' concern about having to hike back to the trail head with cold, wet children. At least today, they would be warm and wet. One smart mama even brought the bathing suits.

The kids were in the brook, in various stages of undress, the instant we arrived at the put in point. They waded, splashed, mucked, sifted, netted and fished. Our day's big find was a crawdad that a real dad pulled from under a rock.

Great hike. Added one more for before school starts. Looking forward to seeing everyone again soon.

Debbie Allan's slideshow:

Garden Sprouts--Coming this Fall!

Kids Unplugged is excited to announce Garden Sprouts, a program for preschoolers and their grown-ups, at Fishkill Farms two Tuesdays per month during September and October (dates: 9/15, 9/29, 10/13 & 10/27). Each session will be from 10:30-12 and will include a snack. The cost is $60 per child for the 4 session program and will feature singing, storytelling, nature games, crafting, farm chores and other farm & nature-based activities.

Fishkill Farms and its 300-acres of beautiful farmland, orchards, woodlands, pond, creek and meadows will serve as the backdrop for our adventures. Autumn and its bounty is a wonderful time at the farm and the orchards and gardens will be bursting with their harvest.

Space is limited to 12 children, so please register early if you are interested. Summer sessions at the farm filled very quickly. For more information about the program and to receive registration materials please contact us at kidsunpluggedny@gmail.com

Bugs in the Garden, Butterflies in the Meadow

Wasps and earthworms, leafhoppers and assassin bugs, butterflies and honeybees--what do all these critters share in common? They, and many others, are happy residents in the gardens and meadows of Fishkill Farms. Our recent farm adventure introduced us to all of these and other insects--some helpful, others not so much.

We were fortunate to have another visit with Walker, one of Fishkill's growers, for a tour of the farm's greenhouse, sunflower patch, and compost heap. It was a hot, sunny day on the farm, a welcome change from the many rainy days this summer has brought us, and the surrounding fields and orchards seemed to be postively buzzing with life. Kids arrived at the picnic tables and began doing some eyedropper painting to make the first part of the butterfly mobile we would be putting together later on. As we waited for the group to assemble for the day, a rainbow of butterflies emerged from creative hands and were set to dry in the sun during our hike.

Walker soon arrived having spent the morning caring for and helping to vaccinate some of the farm's sheep. He carried with him a small container with holes punched in the top. On the container was written "Walker's bugs" in magic marker. Walker reminds me of a big kid. He sat right down at the picnic table with his bugs talking to our group about the various critters they might see around the farm, introducing them to the ones he had captured and getting them excited to set off on their own bug hunt.

We set out for the greenhouse where Walker showed them a wasp's nest snugged away in the corner. We learned that wasps lay their eggs on the body of a host insect where they will stay until they hatch. While watching the wasps zip in and out of their home, we were treated to the sight of butterflies fluttering around the plants in the greenhouse, mostly monarchs and swallowtails, and the kids clutched their nets in anticipation of catching one back outside.

Right next to the greenhouse is an area planted with several rows of enormous sunflowers. There we met some of the most important insects on the farm--the bees--who were busily pollinating and frolicking from one giant flower to the next. The kids loved it in there. The sunflowers towered above their heads creating a magical space for them to run and hide and play.

Walker lured the children from this forest of flowers holding a cupped hand out to them and asking, "What do you think I might have in here?" Opening his hand slowly, he revealed a very large, brown leafhopper (and I'm not sure how this is different from a grasshopper!) who quickly leaped into the hands of a waiting child. We sat still for a moment and suddenly saw the insects everywhere around us, springing up from the thick grass in all directions. The kids' nets came in handy here.

Our last stop was the farm's composting area where the kids were thrilled by plump earthworms and even more so by the produce they saw in various stages of decomposition, including a large, dried out pumpkin/acorn squash that had been there for quite some time. They played eye-spy, spotting eggshells, carrots, beets, and a pile of chicken poop in and around the compost pile, amazed that this "garbage" would soon be going back into the garden.

By this time, our group was pretty sweaty and wilted, so we headed back up to the orchard behind the farm store for some shady read-aloud time before finishing the butterfly mobiles and enjoying some of the farm's newly harvested, super-sweet white peaches.