Whew, a lot going on!!

Where do we start? We had a busy week and weekend. We started off the week building a new sign for out front here on Cole Grade Rd. We picked up two Open flags and attached one to the store and one to the sign.

We went with the blackboard concept because one of our customers said it would be nice to see what we have when they are leaving for town so they know what they can pick up here. So we listened!!

We still need a ton more signs and a ton more creative people to help us with that! So come on out when you can.

Our greenhouse renovation day was a great success!

Thanks to everyone's hard work. We still have a ways to go to be finished but we got our first row of salad mix into the ground. Honestly, YOU all make this possible. It's growing a great product for you that brings us to work everyday!

In our mix we are going to have Mesculin, Mizuna, Arugula, Red Oak Leaf, Red Salad Bowl, Corn Salad, and Black Seeded Simpson! It's going to be a great mix. It will take about 45 days so mid-July we are looking to have it in stock!

We have Honey!!!

We have honey in our store!  Well, we did as of this weekend.  The stuff goes fast and why shouldn't it? Our honey is a mix of citrus and avocado blossoms with wildflowers.  It tastes great and is so much better for you than just sugar as a sweetener.  And don't forget it's organic.

Today's blog is a guest blog done by Natasha Pekin.  Natasha is a Dietetic intern who volunteered some of her time to the farm.  So enjoy the read and don't forget to get your jar of honey!

Bees on the Farm

After spending a week at the Tierra Miguel Foundation and Farm all I can say is wow what an educational experience. I want to share with all of you something that I never really knew much about, Bees. This farm houses twelve bee hives on its property and for good reason: Pollination. 

Honey Bees pollinate a variety of fruit and vegetable crops which help produce a plentiful harvest. Since Tierra Miguel Foundation and Farm is certified organic, the Bees and their honey are organic as well. This means that the bees are not given antibiotics, pesticides, or any other chemicals or additives. These bees are also not fed high fructose corn syrup; a practice adopted by many non-organic bee keepers.

Most farms will only rent bees during crop season and then return them to the beekeeper once the crops are harvested. This is not an ideal situation for the bees because many will be lost during transportation which will hurt or destroy the hive. Tierra Miguel has taken a progressive and a humane approach to their bees. They are permanently housing their bees on their property. 

To provide the bees with pollen during off seasons the farmers are planting wild flowers throughout the farm. Keeping the bees on Tierra Miguel Farm will help grow the hives and as the hives grow in size they will be able to harvest honey, a benefit lost to those farms who only rent bees. 

This humane bee treatment along with their commitment to organic and sustainable farming makes Tierra Miguel Foundation and Farm an amazing place for a Dietetic Intern, such as myself, to be a part of. I look forward to volunteering my time here on Saturdays and hope to see you there!

-Natasha Pekin, Dietetic Intern

Happy Memorial Day!

From our family here at the farm to all of you - our extended family - have a safe and fun Memorial Day!

Thank you to all of those who have served and are serving.

This Weekend's U-pick and Valley Center Western Day's

I am continually surprised by the amazing people that come to the farm.  Every farmer wants to sit and talk, or "jaw" like my granddad calls it.  Don't get me wrong.  Farmers love to be out in the fields and the peace and solitude that comes with it is priceless.  


Farming is a labor of love.  A love of the land, a love of the work, a love of the community, and a love to share.  That's why farmers love to sit and "jaw".  It becomes our chance to share more then the great food we produce.  It's our chance to share the stories of that great food.  A chance for us to share our knowledge with you and thereby create a connection that is much deeper.  


That is why I love the U-picks on Saturday and the Open Houses we have once a month.  This is also the reason why we are making every Saturday an Open House with U-picks.  We want more of a chance to meet YOU.  And we want to create the opportunities for this to truly become YOUR farm.  

We had a great time this past weekend exploring the farm and meeting the chickens.  We also had the opportunity to attend Valley Center Western Day's and set up a booth.  Christy, Colby, Will, Rachel, and Seth pulled the 2 day duty for us and made a bunch of new friends.  

They did some face painting and wacky hair designs for the kids.  Hula hooping was on the agenda as well.

We set the booth up to help us expand our presence in the local community and to help increase the size of our CSA.

We are looking to expand our CSA dramatically this summer.  German, one of our farmers, is gearing up to be in the tractor seat daily.  We want to focus our CSA growth in the local communities that surround us, Escondido, and San Diego.

Our group went around handing out free samples of strawberries and I think it is safe to say they truly are the best in town.  

We gave out coupons as well for a free pint of strawberries so hopefully everyone comes out to redeem them soon!  

We also held a raffle for a free 2 box membership to our CSA.

So we have a lot of things planned this summer and we look forward to sharing each of them with you.

Make sure you come out next weekend, Saturday June 4th for our inaugural summer weekend schedule.  Here's the schedule for next Saturday and pretty much the schedule for all of them.  The only things that will change are the workshops and what's on the menu for the cooking class and potluck!  We are looking to make the workshops complimentary so that each one of them builds off the previous one.  We need to get the word out about Biodynamics and why the farm is so special!  Also after the day is done bring your own instrument so we can have a good old fashioned local hoe down!  Hope to see you all there!

9 a.m. - Introduction to Biodynamics Workshop:  What is Biodynamics and what does it mean to you and your food? $5

10 a.m. - Farm Tasting Tour - $5, Wear some good walking shows the tour can last around an hour

11 a.m. - Strawberry U-pick $5 a bag - the best strawberries around (and we aren't bragging!)

1230 p.m. - Cooking class - By Donations - We'll show you how to make something from the Strawberries you picked and another dish from what is in season and available in our store.

1 p.m. - Potluck - Free - This is where we'll enjoy what you learned to make and be able to show off your own cooking skills.  The center of any community is good food.  You are invited to bring your own refreshments.  We want everyone to feel as if they are home when they are here.

2 p.m. -?  Relaxing time!  If you are musically inclined bring your instrument for everyone else's enjoyment.  If you are artistically inclined help us make a sign.  If you have a green thumb then help us landscape the store.  In fact if you have any unwanted, neglected, or just too many plants around the house bring them on over.  We are especially looking for hanging plants to help us spruce up the outside of our farm store and outdoor classroom.

So come on out and spend the day in the country enjoying the good life.  Remember, this is your farm!  

Mother Earth helping us feed our Chickens

One of the things that we are always trying to do around here on the farm is cut costs. Who isn't these days? And our chickens are eager to help out.

We feed our chickens several ways. First we let them free range in our orchard. They help keep most of the weeds down and help with pests on the fruit trees.

We also give them organic feed to make sure they are getting their needed protein for the day.

Third we provide them with green waste. Green waste is the unused fruits and vegetables that some of the restaurants, who buy from us, would otherwise throw out. Thereby we are reducing the waste going to the landfill and closing the loop a bit on the nutrient cycle.

Lastly, we started getting the spent grain from Mother Earth Brewery in Vista. This is grain that is left over from the brewing process and would otherwise go to the dump. Again TMF is reducing the amount of waste to the landfill and closing another nutrient cycle.

Next time you are in Vista be sure to check them out. Next time you are at Tierra Miguel, check out our chickens!

That's one happy rooster

Farmer for A Day - The San Diego Little Explorers

On Monday we held one of our Farmer for a Day programs with The San Diego Little Explorers.

We started off the day with a tour.  This is where our Farmers for a Day learn how our food grows.  From seed to plant they get to learn what it takes to grow healthy food.

Of course there's time to feed the chickens and then it's off to the fields for a tasting tour.  Parents have you ever seen kids be so eager to eat their veggies?

Fennel, carrots, broccoli, beets and more.  Eating a raw beet and getting the juice on your face is a right of passage!

No tour would be complete without a stop to pick strawberries before they head back to the outdoor classroom for lunch.

Our Farmer for a Day program is customized to what you want.  This one lasted for only 2 hours but we have another one this Thursday that will be 4.  

For more information on Our Farmer For A Day Program contact Erin, csa@tierramiguelfarm.org 

Strawberry Potluck and U-Pick

This past weekend's Strawberry U-pick and potluck was a huge success and it was all thanks to YOU our members and supporters.  

Some people showed up a little early and pitched in by picking wildflowers for the vases on the tables in the outdoor classroom.  Then they strolled off to pick and eat strawberries in the field.

We ran 2 tours for the day with members from the San Clemente Community Market coming out for a visit.  Hopefully we can get them out here more often!

We had homemade strawberry preserves, homemade strawberry and rosemary bread, and our own Farmer Chris' Strawberry Vinaigrette drizzled over a roasted beet and strawberry salad made by Erin.  After some prying Chris has agreed to publish his family's secret recipe.

1 cup Olive Oil

2 cups fresh Tierra Miguel Strawberries

juice of 1 lime

1 tbs of coarse grind dijon mustard

salt & pepper to taste

Combine it all in a blender and mix till smooth.  Makes one Ball jar and will keep for a couple of weeks in the fridge.


Any of you that have good recipes email them to Erin at csa@tierramiguelfarm.org and we'll post them up here.

On May 28th we are having ANOTHER Strawberry themed potluck and recipe swap.  

Bring your favorite strawberry dessert/beverage/sandwich/preserve to share from 1pm to 2pm.

Strawberry U-pick - $5 a bag 10am -4pm

Edible Farm Tours $5 ages 8 and up 11am and 2pm   

May 28 Stop by our booth at Valley Center Western Day's and say hello 

We'll have a booth open looking for new CSA members and we might be doing some face painting as well.