Student Life meets Farm Life, A Story By Jim Pfitzer
We know that you have learned about the groups that come out for field trips but what about groups that come out to work! This week the urban farm got some help from a very eager youth group that traveled all the way from Florida. Student Life is an organization that sends groups out all over the Chattanooga area to help with community service. This weeks’ group helped harvest potatoes, pick green beans, plant our last succession of tomato plants, weed and sort garlic! All things that would of taken us a week verses a few days. Though Crabtrees’ farmers work hard we could never do what we do, on this scale, without the help of volunteers.
This year we decided to plant a short growth, determinate (all ready at once) variety of tomatoes in the last succession as we are planning on picking them green so you can fry them up! We are still planting into plastic as well, it helps with the weeds if we can keep the farm dogs from running across it and tearing it up!
 |
| Worn out but still in good spirits! |
You Say “Tomato,” I say “Tomato…” (Continued) A story by Jim Pfitzer
You say “Tomato,” I say “Tomato…Cont’d.” 
Of the five tomatoes I covered last time, Valencia, Moskvich, and Peron Sprayless are Heirloom, and this week, Cherokee Purple, Paul Robeson, and Pink Beauty meet the standard.
All of the tomatoes grown at the farm, however, were chosen for their unique characteristics and just because they aren’t heirloom doesn’t mean they aren’t delicious, nutritious and well worth waiting half the year for!
And now for the next five tomatoes!
Cherokee Purple is a large, firm tomato with a sweet, almost smoky flavor with an irregular shape some might call “ugly.” They are a darker red than most-leaning slightly towards purple. Considered by many to be the best tasting tomato out there, I love slicing them thick and eating them raw with a little of my favorite salt on top. They also make a great hamburger slice!
Brandyboy. Not nearly as sweet as some, these large “ugly” tomatoes need a dash of salt more than most, but when they get it, complex, savory flavors emerge. They are medium in terms of firmness and because of that and their irregular shapes aren’t ideal for slicing, but dice them up and throw them in soup or sauces and they really shine!
Paul Robeson. According to heirloomtomatoplants.com, Paul Robeson tomatoes are an “all-time favorite” and a “top seller,” and it is easy to understand why. This “gorgeous, dark and dusky-hued fruit with intensely sweet earthy taste and a hint of tanginess,” reminds me of tomato juice from my childhood. It is “velvety smooth” and rich with juice. Another winner!
Black Cherry. After trying all these other tomatoes with their unique complex flavors, it could be easy to dismiss this little guy. It just doesn’t pack the punch. But don’t let it go; try drying it. As the water is evaporated, the flavors intensify, making this a wonderful option for preserving.
Pink Beauty is a tomato for the tomato enthusiast who loves great tomato flavor. Period. Not overly sweet, smoky, or particularly savory, this tomato just tastes good. It is smallish, firm, and keeps pretty well. Put them in a bowl on the table and enjoy one sliced with every meal!
As I was wrapping up this article, Greenhouse Manager Make Barron came over to the desk holding two tomatoes–a Cherokee Purple and a Paul Robeson. We compared them to the specimens in the photographs above and were struck by the differences in individuals, how difficult it is to tell two species apart some times, and how obvious it is other times. And, because in pollination anything can happen, seeds for the same variety will produce subtle differences. So, if you aren’t sure which tomatoes you have in your box, you aren’t alone. But don’t fret about it, just enjoy eating them!
You say “Tomato”, I say “Tomato…” A story by Jim Pfitzer
You say “Tomato,” I say “Tomato…”
It isn’t just growing practices that make tomatoes different from one another, though. There are intrinsic difference as well. There are red tomatoes, yellow tomatoes, purple ones, big ones, little ones, ugly ones… At the moment at Crabtree, there are ten different varieties coming ripe, and before the season is over we will be harvesting an additional six types. That’s a lot of different tomatoes, so this week I will attempt to demystify them just a little and hopefully give you some ideas as to what to do with whatever tomatoes end up in your box.Most of the tomatoes at Crabtree are heirloom varieties, meaning that these tomatoes are long-protected strains that are open-pollinated, have viable seeds, and whose genetic integrity predates World War II. If you want to learn a little more about heirloom, you might check out tomatofest.com.
This week and next I will cover the ten tomatoes currently being harvested. If you enjoy it, let me know, and I will write a third article as more tomatoes come in.
Valencia is a medium-sized, orange-colored tomato that slowfoodusa.org says “has an excellent, full, complex tomato taste, with a great balance of acidic and sweet. It is meaty and rich with few seeds. It has been described as bursting with flavor, rich and buttery as well as pineapple-like, sweet and refreshing, like a really ripe ground cherry.” The Valencia is one of my favorite tomatoes, especially diced atop a plate of pasta with pesto and covered with fresh Parmesan cheese!
Moskvich tomatoes are typically a little smaller than a baseball, and oddly shaped with facets that make them almost hexagonal. This Russian variety has a wonderful sweet, slightly savory flavor. A touch of salt brings out a smooth, buttery taste that lingers in the back of the mouth. I highly recommend this tomato diced in a salad with a simple vinaigrette dressing that lets the flavor of the tomato shine!
Peron Sprayless tomatoes are a winner if you are into presentation, but without any sacrifice in flavor. Sliced, these tomatoes have a beautifully classic tomato look. They are sweet, a little tart and while they keep well, they are also great for canning and have a higher than average amount of vitamin C.
Bellstar. If you are looking for paste, juice, or canning, this is the tomato for you. They are small to medium and very dense. The pasty texture of these tomatoes makes them undesirable for slicing and dicing, but, hey, that’s not what we grow them for!
Sungold. I don’t know what to do with these tomatoes in the kitchen, because at my house they never make it that far. They are sweet, and ideal for popping in your mouth and eating whole right off the vine. They are what summer is all about!
In the next edition: Cherokee Purple, Brandyboy, Paul Robeson, Back Cherry, and Pink Beauty.
How Did We Get Here? A story by Jim Pfitzer
| How Did We Get Here?
I got to wondering this past week how this beautiful little oasis we call Crabtree Farms came to be. Obviously someone decided to build a barn, buy some tools, plow some fields, and plant some crops, but who, when, and how?
Joel Houser remembers reading about Crabtree that “Since the Indians were driven out” it has been a farm, but not always like we know it. In fact, it hasn’t been that long since there were goats, chickens, sheep, and cows on the farm, and there was a time when this land was managed for dove hunting-not a surprise to Houser who says he frequently finds shotgun shells on the property. Apparently after years of mixed use, the property was largely abandoned in the 70′s and left to grow wild. During that time it became a dump for everything from used mattresses to beer bottles, and fell into serious decay. Then, in 1998, things began to change when Will and McNair Bailey had a vision to turn this land with its long agricultural and community history into a farm with a focus on education. According to the website www.localharvest.org, the 22 acre property was donated to the City of Chattanooga by the Crabtree/McGauley families with assistance from The Trust for Public Land. Will and McNair founded Crabtree Farms that same year and were given a 60-year lease for the high price of $1 per year. The first farm managers, Nathan and Padgett Arnold-who now both work for Sequatchie Cove Creamery-grew vegetables and cut flowers, and raised livestock, but the livestock was too difficult without anybody living on the farm. Houser winced as he shared stories of coyotes getting animals, and sheep getting tangled in electric wire. I’ve buried a lot of sheep,” he said. The farm became certified organic in 2005, “and that pretty much nixed the idea of getting back into livestock,” Houser told me. “The split operation would be too hard. You need dedicated facilities.” When Padgett left in 2006, most of the flower business followed her to Sequatchie Cove, and Houser, who was promoted to farm manager at that time, said he would rather produce food anyway, so Crabtree focused its growing efforts on vegetables. Over the years, Crabtree has maintained its education mission. For years, Crabtree produced pamphlets to help small farmers, but Houser said that kind of effort proved to be too broad in scope. The meticulous research and record keeping from the very beginning, however, still brings small farmers from around the country to Crabtree for advice in sustainable and organic practices, farm finances, and efficiency. And of course the farm is happy to share everything it has with whomever comes calling. Starting in 2000, Crabtree made fields available to community gardeners,
but the management became too difficult with different planting schedules and plans, and the fields losing fertility without coordinated crop rotation and cover crops. In 2007, the community garden program shifted to one that provided seed money, workshops and support for gardens around the community-a program that ended up having a greater impact on many more people and co mmunities. Four years after that program started, more than half of the original gardens are still growing and more have been started every year, and hopeful would-be gardeners from Knoxville, Nashville and Atlanta come to Chattanooga for workshops on getting their own programs started. Now-a-days Crabtree is educating the public through school fieldtrips, a Juvenile Court mandated work program, and countless workshop and volunteer opportunities. As for where we’re headed next… I guess we’ll have to stick around and watch. Wherever Crabtree goes, I’m sure it will be exciting, educating, and delicious! Crabtree Farms is open Tues- Sat 9-1pm. Stop by and check us out! |
