Contact us

We practice sustainability at the farm. Crop rotation, use of drip irrigation and re-using the flower water each week are some of the ways we are being kind to the earth.

We have two harvest boxes available for this coming 2019 season as of May 19th. If interested please email Lorrie at shadymaplefarmcsa@gmail.com and leave me a note. I will send you information. 18 weeks of fresh produce, herbs, berries and tree fruits when they are in season along with a weekly bouquet of beautiful flowers for $500.
We do have just flower subscriptions available.
A Full Flower Share is 18 weeks of gorgeous bouquets for $230 or a Half Share, every other week for a total of 9 weeks of flowers for $115.
Please email Lorrie at shadymaplefarmcsa@gmail.com if you are interested.

Pick up would be on Tuesdays between 4:00 - 6:00 pm at Shady Maple Farm, 8005 Portland Rd. N.E. Salem, Oregon. Our season lasts from May 28 to September 24, 2019.


Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Week 13

My zinnia obsession continues this morning. I adore all the different colors, hues, petal shapes: curls, upright, and flat. I understand why bees like them too. 





Sunflowers with large brown centers. A break from zinnias.
A few more zinnias.
This one has dark orange in the middle part of the flower and light colored petals toward the back. It is unique.
This one has a darker center, too.
A wide range of pastels.
A yellow crocrosmia we are adding to our garden beds.
Sweet peas stretching to the morning sun.
This is a bi-color sweet pea. Lavender underneath, maroon for the rest. Very fragrant, too.
One of our new dahlias this year. We try to add more variety each summer. You could check out Swan Island Dahlias online to see all the different options.
You might remember the white Craig's List chair Lisa discovered? It is now painted a pretty purple and resides in our family remembrance area by the fuchsias Mom loved.
This dahlia is small and has variegated petal colors. Light at the bottom, darker toward the center.
This large white dahlia is full and slightly frilly. It also has a rather large bumble bee visitor.
Compared to my hand at the lower left of the photo, this dahlia is huge. It is close to pure white with a slight yellow at the center. These long petals don't like to touch other flowers as they bruise or tear easily. If you get these in your bouquet, treat them tenderly. Especially on the ride home in your car.
These purple morning glories with dark purple stripes and white centers are like a landing strip for bees and other flying critters. They can find the centers where the pollen, i.e. food, is rather easily.
This pink morning glory isn't as dramatically marked, yet it still has the white center. These flowers open in the morning sun and close up at dusk.
Cucumber beetles are all over this golden zucchini blossom. They can damage not only the flowers by chewing on them, but the fruit that develops, too. They have been known to destroy our slicing cucumbers by scarring them all over their skin surface.
Bulb fennel maturing in the field of broccoli and cauliflower.
So many colors of green and blue green in this patch. Broccoli on the left of the frilly bulb fennel and cauliflower on the right.
To the right of the previous photo are new sprouts of broccoli, cauliflower and on the far right, beans. Part of our succession planting to spread out our harvest and provide variety all summer.
Red Brussels Sprouts forming on their "tree" of a plant.
Crinkly savoy cabbage is putting on size. Drip irrigation tape is across the top.
Early crops have finished in these raised beds and new things will go in. Seeds have been started and are the right size to transplant right in. They will mature faster than if Florencio planted seeds right now. The row with poles and netting has about one foot tall beans growing where the peas had been grown and harvested in spring and early summer.
Alison on the left and Erin on the right are picking cherry tomatoes. Thanks ladies!
Our peanuts. Dad had grown peanuts here on the farm when Lisa and I were kids (a couple years ago). We thought we would try it again. A fun project. The peanuts form underground on the roots.
One of our "reclaimed" areas near the large hay barns. Two years ago this was all blackberry vines growing over old parked equipment and irrigation pipe. It has been cleaned up and "reclaimed" so our garden could expand (thanks to Scott and Florencio). Corn on the right, eggplant and tomatillos to the left.
To the left of the tomatillos are all types of pumpkins and winter squash. We had them near Portland Road one year and a few large pumpkins were stolen. :(
An overview of this reclaimed area shows several different plantings of corn to spread out the harvest. To the right of the corn are 5 varieties of bush beans including 3 colors of drying beans. Then there are flowers, the short ones are statice and the tall spiky looking ones are Sweet Annie. The foliage of Sweet Annie is used for wreaths and dries very well and stays, ummmm, sweet smelling!
Mary aka Grams is sorting out the sweet peppers.
Angie has finished picking the grapes for the day.
Today's Sweet Million cherry tomatoes.
Sun Sugar cherry tomatoes. My favorite.
These are sweet peppers. The jalapenos are a variety called "Fooled You". They have the taste but not the heat of a regular jalapeno.
Angie slicing yellow Brandywine tomatoes along side regular Brandywine tomatoes for our up and coming lunch. Sandwich size slices.
Grams putting slicing cucumbers into harvest boxes.
Black Knight eggplant have such a deep color.
Brooks prunes with their dusty light blue film. So delicious.
Yellow zucchini. Dad always planted more than one variety of all his different crops in case one of the varieties had a bad year. We planted 4 kinds this year and they all did well. We have quite a few!
Staying hydrated on these hot days is important. Anna and Lisa make sure we have options. Water and lemonade are available. Bryan and Grams (his mother) do the sorting and filling of the boxes.
Part of our delicious lunch today. Green bean and bulb fennel salad.
Angie has finished slicing the tomatoes. The ones with wavy edges look like flowers.
Jillian helps Lisa in the flower house. She is stripping off the leaves that will be in water in the vases. If the leaves are left on they will cause the water to cloud and clog the uptake of water to the flowers.
Green amaranth hanging over the bucket. Last year we grew the red variety and loved it. So we added a new variety this year.
A beautiful and full large dahlia. 
Isn't this bright and beautiful? Dark purple dahlias with vibrant orange zinnias. Wow.
Teddy Bear sunflowers tend to not drop pollen on lower surfaces. One of the many reasons to love them. Besides they are so very cheerful.
Colorful statice. This is a variety of "everlastings" as they will dry nicely and last a long time. They do become more fragile as they dry so try not to bump them.
Ornamental grasses are one of the greens Lisa is adding this year to bouquets.
Eucalyptus we grew from seed that is living in pots in one of the greenhouses is large enough to pick for the bouquets. It adds a nice color and is fragrant when brushed up against.
This is a tri-color ornamental amaranth in with one of Mom's favorite scented geranium leaves, Mable Gray. 
A variety of asters called "Fireworks". Looks like a sparkler, right?
These are fireworks asters, salmon colored, with blue scabiosa. The white and lavender are other varieties of asters.
Other colors of fireworks asters. 
Another variety of asters, powder puff mixed.
A few of our 36 varieties of tomatoes we grow here at the farm.
Lunch is served. Build your own BLT sandwiches with the green bean and fennel salad. Most of us that work out in the sunshine wear hats.
The large striped tomato on the left is a Janet's Jewel variety. So pretty.
One of our large red tomato varieties.
The BLT makings hiding under bee and other critter protection.
Bacon being securely protected from the yellow jackets. They seem to really love bacon!
Crispy, crunchy lettuce from the garden.
Louise enjoying her tasty prune milkshake. She has started on her milkshake mustache.
She is really enjoying this!
She is enjoying this very much. I think this might be her second little cup. Maybe because she is wearing some of it. Sooo good!
Today's cherry tomato blend.
A Janet's Jewel showing off on top of the cherry tomatoes.
This is what picking tomatoes can do to your hands. Wearing gloves is highly recommended.
Jamie is due in a couple weeks yet she comes out to the farm to help us pick. We try to have things higher than ground level for her to pick. Like grapes.
She is happily posing for this photo. She is such a helpful picker and friend.
Jamie's little girl investigates the misting sprinkler on this hot day.
One of today's beautiful bouquets of green amaranth and coral zinnias with blue statice and scabiosa.
Mom had added ferns under the cherry trees by the house. Lisa included some of them in this bouquet.
Dark pink zinnias with baby's breath and the leaves of the scented geranium, Mable Gray.
Marcia selected a bouquet that matches her outfit! She looks pretty happy about it.
Teddy Bear sunflowers with the tri-color amaranth.
Tall blue delphinium and blue statice with pink and white asters.
Pink asters and zinnias, baby's breath, along with ornamental grasses. 
Light blue delphinium, blue statice and bright orange marigolds.
Lavender gladiolas and blue asters with pale yellow statice.
The rolling benches Lisa and I built last winter are covered with beautiful choices.
One of the few times we are all ready and have a quiet moment before 4:00 rolls around. Brea and the cherubs are snacking and coloring. Extra produce is set out on the pallet table and the carts. Cherry tomatoes and peppers are on the checkered table awaiting selection.
We were joking about the different tans, or those with NO tan. Amber on the right in red is as pale as Levi. Aren't they all so very cute comparing their tans?
Today's harvest box with flower options.
Louise has selected the flowers for her bouquet today.
Emma has also selected her bouquet. She included a flower in her hair!


See you next time on the blog.
Lorrie

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