5/21/25 Birds on the Farm
It’s nesting and fledging season, a busy time for birds on the farm. We love supporting Mother Nature while growing food for you in a healthy and vibrant ecosystem.
First off, we’ve had quite the drama around Barn Swallows. We’ve had generations of these sweet birds living in our barn but last year, it became a food safety issue as they built nests near CSA boxes. We couldn’t move their nests as they had fledgelings in them but moved boxes and created space for them. This winter we sadly removed their nests and were hoping they would find some of the roosts outside the barn but under overhangs… nope! We even hung strips of tinsel from the barn doors for a week to no avail. They built nests in progressively worse and worse places in the barn, we moved them to areas that wouldn’t affect food and we and they have finally come to a place where they can raise their young that isn’t around CSA boxes. But the drama has been something. They are so determined, and the just sit above us with a little piece of grass in their mouth… the sweetest parents. So hopefully soon we’ll be hearing the loud chirps of their babes.
We had a family of ducks in our lower pond and one day last week, we’re not quite sure what happened but we had 5 ducklings wandering around the fields. We’re not sure what happened to mom and dad, but eventually they were re-united as I saw them all again in the pond together two days later. Ducklings wandering the fields is beyond the cutest site there is.
Our main pond is covered with pond weeds. In a battle against them 10+ years ago we learned that domesticated ducks could keep the weeds at bay. We build them a floating duck house to keep them safe from predators, until the river otter found them. We went through three clutches of domesticated ducks before we gave up, and we had a lot of very happy river otters. So the pond is beyond weedy and we were tremendously surprised that this spring two Canada geese made a nest inside the old duck house that has otherwise only been used by turtles or as a perch for herons. We have yet to have goslings show up but we’re giving them their space and yet peeking in on them.
Then yesterday, while harvesting Fava Beans for your box today we found something tremendous. Fava plants at the point that they make beans are 4-5 feet tall. Some birds made a nest with three blue eggs in it, 2/3 the way up a group of fava plants and weeds!
Beyond all these individual stories, the birds are cacophonous throughout the fields. They’re not eating our crops like they were earlier in the season, but they are all around us at all times of day, everything from Red Winged Blackbirds, Sparrows, Juncos, Titmouse, Robin, Quail, Finches but also Flycaterchers, Grosbeak, Oriole, Heron plus Red Tail Hawks nesting in our upper oaks and Great Horned Owl and Bats at night.
Lastly on birds… the domesticated kind… we’re thrilled to have Chicken Eggs on the CSA list again! As the girls are increasing production we have more space. Make sure to sign up for a share or we’ll begin adding them as add-ons soon.
Produce Notes & Recipes
This Week’s Box
Red Butter Lettuce
Little Gems: Red & Kolibri
Kale: Rainbow (SR) OR Toscano (WC)
Mixed Beets (SR) OR Hakurei Turnips (WC)
Summer Squash (SR) OR Cucumbers/Squash (WC)
Fava Beans
Basil (SR) OR Parsley (WC)
Family: Tokyo Bekana & Strawberries
There are so many of this week’s items on rotation from last week, I strongly recommend you look at last week’s newsletter on our newsletter blog for a long article on cucurbits plus also recipes and more!
Our Cucumber crop tanked this week, so we’re sorry, most of you have 1/2 cucumber and 1/2 summer squash. It was an irrigation issue we’re resolving.
We are excited to have Fava Beans for everyone today. A lovely spring treat. These guys definitely take some extra labor, but enjoy as a seasonal experience. We’ll have one more round in a few weeks with our second succession.
Fava beans must be shelled twice. Remove the beans from the pod. Then blanch the beans, boil in salted water for about a minute, drain and plunge in cold water to stop the cooking. Drain again and use your finger nail to pierce and slip the skin off each bean. Our toddler loves eating them straight out of their skins, but here are a couple more ideas...
FYI: 1 pound of fava beans in pod yields about 1 cup shelled fava beans. We have about 2/3 lb for you today.
Serving ideas:
Make a salad of them or toss them on a salad. (Goes great with parmesan cheese and/or bacon.)
We made a pesto pasta salad with fava beans and other green veggies.
Make a spread or dip with beans (see recipe below).
Sauté with other spring green veggies (spinach or other greens, peas, articokes, …) and serve over pasta.
Spring Pasta with Fava Beans, Kale & Herbs
Serves: 2–3 Time: 30 minutes
6 oz pasta (like orecchiette, rigatoni, or farfalle—something with shape)
1/2 - 1 lb fresh fava beans (in pods)
1 small bunch kale, stems removed, chopped
2–3 Tbs olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Zest and juice of 1 lemon
¼ tsp chili flakes (optional)
¼ cup chopped parsley or basil (or a combo)
Salt and pepper, to taste
¼ cup grated parmesan (or pecorino)
1–2 Tbs pasta water (reserved)
Optional additions:
A spoonful of ricotta or a poached egg on top
Toasted breadcrumbs for crunch
Prepare the fava beans: Shell the fava beans. Boil in salted water for 1–2 minutes, then plunge into ice water. Peel off the tough outer skins to reveal bright green beans.
Cook the pasta: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook pasta until al dente. Reserve about ½ cup pasta water, then drain.
Sauté the vegetables: While pasta cooks, heat olive oil in a wide skillet over medium heat. Add sliced garlic and chili flakes. Cook for 30–60 seconds. Add chopped kale and a pinch of salt. Cook for 4–5 minutes, until tender. Stir in the fava beans and sauté another 2–3 minutes.
Bring it all together: Add drained pasta to the skillet with the veggies. Stir in lemon zest, juice, and herbs. Add a splash of reserved pasta water to help coat the pasta. Stir in grated cheese and season well with salt and pepper.
Serve: Top with extra herbs, cheese, and a drizzle of good olive oil.
Optional: Add a dollop of ricotta or a poached egg for richness.
We once again have a good bounty of Spring Lettuce. Our Red Butter Lettuce is prime right now, soft and buttery. And everyone has one crunchy Red Little Gem plus a Kolibri. Kolibri is a new lettuce to us, it’s the speckled lettuce. Technically a little gem or mini romaine, it’s open faced. With so many salads, I’d love to share my favorite salad dressing, and last week’s newsletter also had a Basil Dressing.
Mellow Miso Salad Dressing (from family friend Meg Parmer)
Here’s one of my favorite salad dressings.
½ c vegetable or avocado oil
½ c water
½ c Mellow White Miso
(make sure it’s white - not yellow)
3 Tbs brown rice vinegar (or Apple Cider works)
4 Tbs honey
4 Tbs chopped scallion or parsley
Mix ingredients - in food processor is best but not necessary. Makes 1 pint.
“To Make a Good Salad is to be a brilliant diplomatist – the problem is entirely the same in both cases. To know how much oil one must mix with one’s vinegar.”
~ Oscar Wilde
Extra Shares
Flower Share: A fun mix
Lettuce Share: Leaf Lettuce Mix
Bunched Greens Share: Red Russian Kale