Garlic:  I love garlic.  I love the the taste of it, raw roasted, and fried.  I love growing garlic, planting and mulching in the fall, watching it come up green and vibrant in early spring, harvesting scapes in June, pulling the heads in July, hanging it to cure, sharing the harvest with friends and neighbors, and doing it all again. 

Send an email to ask to be added to the “Garlic Lovers” email list. You will be first to know when the garlic scapes are up in June, when the freshly harvested garlic is ready, and when the cured garlic if available for sale.

After more than 15 years of trialing dozens of varieties, I have settled on the ones that do best on my little farm: 

German white – a porcelain variety with classic garlic flavor, mild but full bodied, and easy to peel (best for bulk garlic projects like drying and pesto).

Spanish Roja – a rocambole variety that is hot and spicy, a great keeper, and excellent roaster.

Brown Tempest – a purple stripe variety with purple-brown skin, easy to peel, medium spice, and great roaster.

Vietnamese Purple Stripe -  has a slow-and-steady hotness to it

County Rail Purple Stripe - big cloves, easy to peal, and just a nice amount of heat.

Maple syrup: The first harvest of the year is the sweet, sweet sap of the sugar maple, which my husband and I boil down “backyard” style in the sugar bush above the garden.  From February into March you can find us staring at boiling water, and sampling the rich amber nectar.