History of Pesch Farm and Produce

July 18, 2006
It seems kind of strange to write about the history of Pesch Farm and Produce since there is so little of it, but I thought you’d like to know how we got here.

Cast of characters:
Me – Ryan
Mar – Maree, my wife
Sylvie – Sylvia, our daughter

We hightailed out of St. Paul and moved to our farm halfway between Pelican Rapids and Vergas two years ago. I’m originally from East Grand Forks and Mar’s from Lake Elmo, so we lucked out in landing halfway between both our families.

So how did you get into vegetable farming?
Some 6 years ago I was a kid out of college living in St. Paul. After a stint in a law office shuffling papers and realizing just how boring the real world of employment actually is, I decided to make a sharp left turn and find an apprenticeship on one of the many local organic farms in the “vegetable belt” around the twin cities. I ended up working for Paul and Chris Burkhouse of Foxtail Farm for two seasons before Mar and I got married. At Foxtail I learned all there was to managing a produce farm and CSA (community supported agriculture).
In 2002 Mar and I did a “dry run” on our own. We were tenants on her uncle’s land in Lake Elmo and sold at the Northeast Minneapolis Farmers Market. Also at the same time I worked at Mississippi Market Food Co-op in St. Paul as a greengrocer, a job I had until we moved up to Otter Tail County.
So, for us, being able to afford a small farm and actually start up our own place is a dream come turn. It’s been a long road, but we’re happy to be here.
OK, Ryan, thanks for the history, but I just want to know what you’re bringing to market on Saturday…
Cucumbers (new)
Eggplant (new)
Pickling cucumbers
Summer squash: zucchini, crocked-neck, sunburst (new)
Green onions (last week for season)
Broccoli
Green beans
Garlic
Sweet Onions
Zinnias
Maybe potatoes…

Local Foods on the March

July 14, 2006

I’ve decided that we have really turned a corner with how people view what they eat.

For a long time only a small group of folks were talking about the importance and pleasure of buying fresh and local food. Not only is a local head of lettuce about 100 times fresher than the three-week old head of Iceberg, but you encounter a huge variety of produce, support local farmers, and learn a lot about your local community in the process.

But two articles have changed my view. 1. Wednesday the Star Tribune ran a series of articles on the ethics of buying food http://www.startribune.com/438/story/547730.html 2. Today I read an article on Wal-Mart bringing organic foods to their stores http://adage.com/article?article_id=110482 When Wal-Mart joins in, you know all this talk about organic and local foods is no longer relegated to crunchy people who hang around health food stores! This is big.

In our own small way we’ve seen this at the little Lakes Area Farmers Market. The number of people shopping is up from last year as is the number of vendors selling. Sometimes we just think we’re a backwater–a bit behind the times–but, on this, we are right in the mix. We’re growing our own local food system right here.

Coming to Market:
Peas
Green Beans
Broccoli
Pickling Cucumbers
Summer Squash
Lettuce
Sweet onions
Green onions
Kale
Swiss Chard

Market Day 7-8-06

July 7, 2006

Well, already another market day is upon us. The week has just whizzed by and tomorrow is already Saturday.

Market menu:

Lettuce: red bibb, green bibb, red oakleaf, romaine, and green butterhead
Scallions (or green onions, if you prefer…the two names are confusing!)
Kohlrabi
Green garlic (just hasn’t been dried or cured yet): it’s just more flavorful and with a little kick.
Summer Squash: zucchini and yellow crocked neck
Collards
Basil
Kale

The day of the leafy greens!

June 29, 2006

Well, the first of the year’s produce is coming in. We went to the Lakes Area Farmers’ Market for the first time last saturday (6/24) and people were out in full force scouring DL for fresh produce.

Mar and Sylvie holding down the fort
I think strawberries were the driving force. It’s all the talk about this time of year as people search high and wide for good berries.

We sold a lot of berries, but the garlic scapes certainly got the most questions from people. FYI garlic scapes are the shoots a garlic plant produces in an attempt to reproduce.

We actually set up on the “lakeside” of the market this year…we were there for a few market days last fall and we liked it, so we decided to return.

Nice Lettuce!
I’m terribly proud of this red oakleaf lettuce. The only problem is that people aren’t familiar with it and would rather have the green leaf.

Hey, come on, live a little. Red oakleaf tastes just as good as green leaf…I think it’s a bit “nuttier” in flavor and certainly prettier. Actually oakleaf and greenleaf make a good mix.

Coming up for July 1:
More lettuce
Greens: collards, kale, chard
Strawberries
The start of the peas
Basil
Fresh herbs

Saturday: First market day of the year!

June 22, 2006

Saturday is the first day we are going to the market in Detroit Lakes. I actually try putting off the first market day because you are “locked in” after that point. But things are growing well enough that we can’t put it off any longer…

At the market on Saturday:
Strawberries
Lettuce
Radishes
Greens (kale, swiss chard, collards)
Spinich

Not a lot going on just yet…but it will grow.

Again, we are at City Park in Detroit Lakes near the Pavilion (by the lake) from 10-2.