Indian Creek Farm

When we found him in the orchard, we gave him a name and plopped him in a crate. Like any good apple.

But Henry Quinn Underwood didn’t much like that.

We showed him a giant squash; but, he stayed in a pout.

Things brightened a little when he played with Baby Squash.

But that didn’t last long. The apple crate was making Henry a real grumpkin.

Ringgg ringgg! “Henry Quinn speaking, how may I direct your call?”

Blimey! Another call about apples. “Yes, ma’am, the Northern Spies are ready for picking. Yes, those are the ones native to Upstate New York. That’s right, they are great for making dumb old apple pies.”

“Ma’am, you just have to look for red ribbons in the Vintage Orchard. There are only a few Northern Spy trees, so don’t throw a tantrum if somebody gets there first.”

Back to Henry: What were we to do? It was apples galore around here. Everyone had apples on the brain. Everyone, except Henry Quinn.

He seemed to be in a far off place. The slightest provocation, the faintest aroma, seemed to send Henry into a deep reverie.

So we tried something different. We set him down in the pumpkins.

And then we saw a change. It was like Henry rediscovered his own feet.

The kid was coming alive.

Even cloudy days were funny.

At last we knew: Henry’s not a grumpkin, he’s a pumpkin!

And now the dude is content.

Come out to the farm and find YOUR bliss! Apples and pumpkins are picking, and the stand is packed with delicious produce.

It’s going to be a rainy few days – but you got boots.

Dear friends of the farm… Happy Autumnal Equinox! Today is the first day of fall, and the crops are right on time.

Last week you picked the farm clean of McIntosh apples and made a real dent in the Cortlands. There are still Cortlands to pick – they make terrific salad apples since their crisp white flesh won’t turn brown. Also great for straight noshing.

Pumpkins join the show this week! It’s a little shocking that we are hurtling toward Halloween – but the pumpkins don’t lie. Come find the one with your name on it.

Here’s how it works! Get up close and personal with your chosen pumpkin for the price check…

Tiny wittle fing – definitely 55 cents per pound.

Let’s call that one a match! 45 cents per pound!

Whoa! That’s bigger than me!

A bargain, only 35 cents per pound!

Good kid! Now how about some Swiss chard? All kids love THAT, right?

Okay, how about fresh-pressed cider instead?

Or fall raspberries?

Plums?

And more plums!

And more!

Just to be clear, this is called “corn.”

It’s true about the Twizzlers, but who is Stephen?

Folks, we keep telling you about the cut flowers – only 5 bucks to cut your own bouquet – but the flowers are taking over.

What more invitation do you need? Come out and share the farm with us… the season won’t last forever!

It’s time, everybody — APPLE TIME! The Cortlands and McIntoshes are ready for picking, while fresh-pressed Orchard Ambrosia is in the jug.

Wander around the Vintage Orchard and you will see trees marked with ribbons. Orange means, “Pick me, I’m a McIntosh!” Sweet, tart, and juicy.

A yellow ribbon means, “Pick me, I’m a Cortland!” It’s a famous salad apple, because the brilliant white flesh doesn’t oxidize and turn brown.

But be careful, we bit this Cortland specimen 20 minutes ago and it is still too bright to observe with the naked eye. Set your solar-powered welding helmet to a shade of 10 or higher for safe viewing.

Reality bites — this year’s crop is showing a dab of “scab.” New York has received historic rainfall in 2011, and we don’t like to spray. That makes ideal conditions for fungus to leave a mark on the fruit surface. But, you will find plenty of pristine apples to pick as you wander. And truth is, the scabbed apples are totally edible. Adventurous foodies, these are the real thing!

There’s also a gorgeous crop of Mutsu apples that will be ready in a few weeks. Mutsus are quintessential pie apples, and they are virtually scab-free! The fruits this year are huge, as big as little pumpkins. Stay tuned for that crop alert in October.

Back to the here and now — we are picking crates of apples, and you know what that means? The cider press is in high gear!

Each press starts with juicy apples. Mountains of them!

Also an admixture of Indian Creek Bartlett pears.

Into the grinder they go. Bad ones are hand-selected for exclusion.

Could get a little messy; wear your mud boots.

Mmmmm, mash! The grinder creates a pulpy paste that we dump into the press.

Fill it up all the way, we got gallons to make today!

Screw the stainless steel lid real tight.

Fire up the pump. When the inflatable bladder fills with water, the mash is squeezed up against the grate, and out flows the juice!

The amber nectar — clean and fresh — gets pumped into the big tank.

Two jugs are filled at a time. Pretty rinky-dink operation… but dang tasty!

Each session takes 6 hours and produces 50 gallons. Jugs are set on the little wagon for their 20-foot ride to the farm stand! Read more about Orchard Ambrosia, including why it’s not really called cider, on our web page here.

Well, if you can’t tell from all this apple talk, autumn is right around the corner. Yesterday was cold and rainy, so these awesome farm gals camped out by the wood stove. Cozy times at the ‘Creek!

The farm stand still has summer bounty; live it up while you can. Peaches will be totally gone this weekend, but there are piles of tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, corn, onions, garlic, and more! See you at the farm.

Warning, friends — This crop alert contains the f-word (“fall”) and other curses like “end-of-season.” But don’t panic, it is still summer here on the farm!

Let’s get down to business. Time for an end-of-season sale on peaches. Everybody cries when peach season is over, so “peach up” while the getting is good.

We can’t stop time, but we can help you drown your sorrows in peach juice.

To soften the blow, there is a new wave of raspberries! The berry field is showing a robust fall crop, producing about 30 pints a day for u-pick and pre-picked.

And now back to summer proper! Just look at the bounty! Great time to hit your neighborhood farm and partake of the cornucopia.

Nectarines! We’ve picked some for the stand, and there are a few trees still available for you to pick your own.

Pears! The trees got picked clean this week, but there are plenty of pears to purchase at the stand. Crisp and delicious, sweet and refreshing.

Ginger gold apples — get ’em at the farm stand only!

Still tons of eggplant, zucchini, cucumbers, peppers, tomatoes, plums, corn, garlic, onions, and more!

Early Orchard Ambrosia, our third pressing of the season. Try some now, and note how the flavors change as apple season rolls on.

Our friend has ducks, her ducks lay eggs. Pretty simple.

Pick your own herbs for cooking, eating, drying, and… aromatherapy!

You can cut your own flowers and make a bouquet. Isn’t your love worth a fiver?

They look very wholesome and earthy hanging on the porch.

We are trying to balance all that earthmother stuff with manly matters. So, today we are melting steel chains. Torching big chains into little ones. Hear us roar.

They get welded onto the orchard mower, for safety and cutting efficiency.

As with any successful DIY project, we invited a couple friends over to the job site, to entertain us with gossip and bad jokes. “So a chickenhawk, a Cornish game hen, and a weedwacker walk into a bar…”

Meanwhile, Archie is calling for the toolbox. Says he is going to fix the backhoe. Roosters with powertools — run for your life!!!

Hello, farm fans. If you saw the Peachy Wheel of Plenty, you know that peach season at Indian Creek has been bustling for over a month.

But did you know that this year’s peaches are as big as a Bergamasco Sheepdog? Okay, technically this is a “Cavalier King Charles Spaniel Posing (Suspiciously) as a Bergamasco Sheepdog,” according to the artist, Sam Schonzeit.

Anyway… the peaches are easy picking. They are right at eye-level, or within reach on the stepstools. You can find the three-legged ladders scattered around.

And now it’s time to announce that the peaches have company! The first PEARS and NECTARINES are ready to pick! Remember, if you pick some that aren’t quite ready to eat, don’t panic or curse your local farmer; just give the fruit a couple days on the kitchen counter. Pears do well in a brown paper bag.

You don’t have to search far to find the pears. They are hanging right along the crossroad at the top of the driveway.

Wow are they lovely — many showing that classic bell or guitar shape — and ever so delicious: crisp, firm, sweet, and juicy.

The pear crop is brilliant this year, but there are only a half-dozen trees. THEY WILL BE PICKED CLEAN BY MONDAY, SO NOW IS YOUR CHANCE!

A few steps away, planted among the peaches, you’ll find the nectarines. Kind of like peaches, but fuzz-free. As the name implies, they’re packed with nectar!

Some nectarines have one-of-a-kind beauty marks. They look perfectly imperfect — like little works of art — and taste terrific.

Others have freckles. Cute, huh? Hey, who chowed down on that pear while the photographer was daydreaming?

You have to watch where you set down your booty around here. We caught these peckish perps red-beaked.

Shall we take one last moment to appreciate nature’s sense of style? Isn’t this spherical bud extraordinary?

And isn’t it amazing that this blossom is the result? Don’t forget to take home a bouquet of fresh cut flowers for your loved ones — or yourself!

Thanks for supporting the farm. The season is flying by, so come out to the ‘Creek!

Now through Sunday — Pick a peck of tomatoes and get a free quarter-pound of basil in the patch by the farm stand!

Celebrate summer with this classic pairing of red and green. Many a happy evening has begun with tomato and basil.

Basil is really something. In every plant, Nimrod’s ziggurat.

“Everything I think I see becomes a Tootsie Roll tomato to me.”

Our new lawn jockey.

This is your brain on tomatoes.

Once you’ve got your tomato-basil kit, browse the stand for everything you’ll need to make summer soups, salads, and salsas. To wit, garlic…

Onions…

And peppers a-plenty.

Meanwhile, back at the sign factory…

We’re gearing up for the tomato rush.

Holy crap-ple! Autumn is like totally just around the corner, and that means apples. Thanks to our magic tree called Esmeralda, we’ve got early cider at the stand now. Cold, crisp, and fresh-pressed. Nothing but fruit, no preservatives or artificial sweeteners. Yum. (Okay, technically it’s not cider; read here to find out why!)

Friends of the farm — a happy, healthy August to you all. August is the month when lots of crops are really kicking. And that means picking!

So this week’s crop alert is good chance to remind you of our Peck Box Special: pick a variety of goodies from around the farm, fill a peck box, and pay only $12!

Your box could include fresh tomatoes, peaches, cukes, zukes, eggplant, and a garnish of flowers. A little u-pick adventure, collecting things that strike your fancy.

Just be sure to mix it up — the idea is to try new things and help us move all the different crops. If instead you want a whole peck of peaches, for example, that has a different price. Ask at the stand, they’ll help you out.

And now a heads-up about raspberries! The bees have been busy pollinating the berry patch, so you might be lucky enough to pick an early pint from the autumn crop.

Another insider tip — the lone tree we call Esmeralda provided a small batch of summer apples! There are precious few, so ask at the farm stand.

This little guy was nice enough to pose with a peach and a penny so you could see the size of these zucchinis. Whoa.

Whereas this big feller — some of you know him as Zorro — was a little in the doghouse, so we promised to put a photo of him in this week’s alert.

He was feeling a little jealous that Katrina was getting all the attention. She’s on the cover of this year’s brochure. Get your copy at the farm stand, there’s a field map on the back.

One more secret… Shhh… The first bottles of cold-pressed cider are only days away! Could be as soon as Sunday — ask at the stand.

Thanks, everybody, see you at the ‘Creek.

Helloooo, farmies! Here’s your crop update for August 12, 2011…

You can pick your own peaches, cukes, zukes, eggplant, peppers, herbs, and flowers. Plus there’s much more at the farm stand, including potatoes, tomatoes, garlic, onions, blueberries, and canteloupe.

Must be something in the air. We got a bazillion calls about hot peppers this week. Luckily we have about a bazillion hot peppers.

You can cook with them, sure, or just hang them on your door.

Zucchini and cucumbers are easy picking in the front field, a few steps up the gravel driveway. Can you tell the difference between cukes and zukes?

You can snip three kinds of basil right in front of the farm stand.

Chocolate sunflowers — kinda goth, sorta badass.

Our tomatoes are taking their sweet old time. You might find a few ripe ones this weekend, but what’s probably going to happen is they’ll all go nuts in about 5 days — so stay tuned for tomatoes to be the topic of our next big crop alert.

Meanwhile, down at the farm stand, you can get them picked, polished, and packed. Such as these marvelous orbs of tomatitude.

Peaches, too! You pick and we pick. The next wave is ripening as we speak. And remember, if you pick an unripe peach, give it 1-2 days on the kitchen counter and it’ll be dribble-down-your-chin juicy.

Eggplant season won’t last forever, but the Eggplantapalooza after party is still kicking. You all did an amazing job picking eggplant last weekend — you’re making eggplant cool again.

Blueberries. Just add mouth.

And a sneak preview of autumn apple harvest… a few earlies from the dwarf orchard.

And that’s a wrap. See you at the ‘Creek.

Remember — Crops come and go. Crops ebb and flow. We can’t guarantee exactly what you’ll find when you visit, but we try to provide WEEKLY crop alerts on our blog and DAILY updates on Facebook and Twitter.

Legend tells us that in the misty hills beyond time…

Where morning dew chills the eggplant blossoms…

And the fruits seem to quietly slumber…

( …drumroll, please… )

Eggplantapalooza rages on!!!

Lady EggEgg, Robert Plant, and other dreamy aubergines get top billing.

They hire scabby old apples to work the door…

You know, to keep out roving gangs of hot peppers. Those troublemakers.

It can be standing room only, folks…

So consider this your backstage pass!

HEY, FOLKS, PLEASE DON’T FILL YOUR BOX WITH BABY EGGPLANT – it’s okay to toss a couple on top, but please pick mature eggplant so the babies will grow up in the coming weeks.

Come join the party, and don’t forget about those peaches – they are in season and ready for u-pick!

See you at the ‘Creek.

IT’S PRETTY PEACHY around here.  This fresh crop alert is urgent.

The farm is bursting with food.  We need your help.  Come get picking!

We’re talking about cukes, zukes, eggplant, garlic, onions, peppers, tomatoes, peaches, potatoes, blackberries, blueberries…

Wait, did someone say peaches?  Yah hah!  Many trees are packed with their first ripe fruit.  You’ve all waited more or less patiently.  Now it’s time to be a first responder and hit the orchard!

We are also swimming in eggplant—delicious fried, baked, and grilled.

Look at these little cuties.

And gobs of peppers.  Try savory poblanos where you would normally use sweet bells—they are flavorful, tender, and have just the slightest piquancy.

Of course some of you are thrill-seekers; the hotties are for you.

Any way you slice it, there is something for everyone.  Come out to Indian Creek for a u-pick adventure, or just shop the shelves of the farm stand.

Thanks for supporting local farms.  See you at the ‘Creek.