Chronicles of the Long Shot Farm

Preparing for Grape Harvest

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Pre-harvest preparations started with the onset of veraison (when the grapes begin changing color) about 2 weeks ago.  We are taking periodic samples of grapes, crush them and then measure the pH, Brix and total acid content of the juice.  We are also getting all the equipment ready for harvesting and crushing.  At this point, we are thinking that next weekend may be the ideal time to pick – which would be perfect as most of our family will be visiting for labor day – and laboring they will be 🙂

One of our newest acquisitions is another stainless steel tank – again thanks to Zach and his connections to dairy farmers who are outgrowing their smaller milk tanks.   We had to build a small platform with  a step, so that we can easily look into the tank, clean it and later dump grapes into it.  We’ll try to use it as a fermenter this year, if we get enough grapes.

Sweet German Breakfast Bread

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Here is another favorite bread recipe – for Easter morning, we braid it in a circle and put colored eggs in the center, for everyday, just simply shape the dough into braid and glaze after baking.  The same dough can also be used for wonderful cinnamon rolls. 

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup hot water
  • 1/2 cup cold milk
  • 1 egg
  • 1/3 cup butter, cut into slices
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup sugar
  • 3 and 3/4 cup bread flour
  • 2 and 1/4 teaspoons bread machine yeast

Place ingredients into bread machine, in the order given above.  Then use the dough cycle, which takes about 1.5 hours.  When the cycle is done, and the dough has risen nicely, punch the dough down, and divide into 3 equal pieces.  With each piece of dough, form a long roll – getting rid of all air bubbles in this process.  Shape into a braid, place on cookie sheet and let rise another half hour.  Preheat oven to 375 degree F, and bake for about 25-30 minutes.
While the bread is still hot, cover with a simple icing (melted butter, some milk, vanilla flavoring and powdered sugar)

For Cinnamon Rolls:
Divide dough into half, roll each half into a rectangle, cover with melted butter and sprinkle generously with a sugar/cinnamon mixture.  Then roll up from the long side, slice into 2 inch sections, stand sections on end in a 13×9 inch pan and bake at 375 for about 20 minutes.  Spread icing generously over the rolls after baking.

Blackberry Post-Harvest Maintenance

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As soon as we finished picking the last of the blackberries, we started cutting out the old fruiting canes and tying up the new canes for next year’s crop. 

While the root system and crown of blackberry bushes are perennial, the canes of the plant are biennial.  During the first year of the cane’s life cycle (primocane year), it grows and initiates fruit buds.  The second year (floricane year), the canes will bloom and set fruit, then die once the fruit is ripe.  Primocanes and floricanes are present at the same time in a bramble patch.   So we are currently cutting out the dead floricanes, and tying up the primocanes for next year.  It takes two people about three hours to clean up a row of 100 bushes.

BEFORE
AFTER




  


Debris in the Middle
Still found some berries