Colored Carrots!

Baby Colored Carrots

So today I decided I would weed the carrot beds. I really have not looked closely at them since the last time I weeded them, and I was very happy to see how much they have grown since then. They still have a way to go but are getting there. I should have orange bunches, white bunches, purple bunches, and mixed bunches of yellow, red, orange, purple, and white. I am hoping that we will have some available sometime around either early or mid August.


There are many interesting facts about colored carrots, here are some of them:

~ Just one full size carrot will fulfill your daily quotient of the essential vitamin A.

~ Each color of carrot has a different health benefit of its own:

*Orange carrots - contain beta carotene pigments - essential for well-being, healthy eyes
*Red carrots - contain lycopene pigments - believed to guard against heart disease and cancers
*Yellow carrots - contain xanthophylls pigments - support good eye health, fight aginst macular degeneration, may prevent lung and other cancers, and reduce the risk of hardening of the arteries
*White carrots - lack pigments - but contain substances called phytomchemicals - can protect against disease
*Purple carrots - contain anthocyanins pigments - act as powerful antioxidants, can prevent heart disease by slowing blood clotting and are good anti inflammatory agents

~ Colored carrots may be new to some people but purple and yellow carrots were actually eaten more than 1,000 years ago.

~ In fact orange carrots are actually the "mutant" carrot, carrots were originally purple and yellow.

~ Carrots are a member of the parsley family, along with dill, caraway, cumin, chervil, coriander, fennel, anise, parsley, parsnip, and celery.

~ There are so many different carrot varieties that there is actually a variety for every letter of the alphabet.

~ Carrots could be used as a bio fuel, you would need approximately 6,000 carrots to drive one mile. (That is a lot of carrots, sounds to me like the idea needs some work).

Some New Veggies For This Year

Since I was sitting here early this morning with not much to do since we are not going to market, I figured I would take the time to post some pictures of a couple of new vegetables we grew this year, that we should have available very soon.

Jimmy Nardello Italian Sweet Pepper

Yes that's right this is not a hot pepper but actually a sweet pepper. And I think it is one of the sweetest sweet peppers I have ever tasted. It is great for just snacking on. I had a hard time controling myself from eating all of the ones that I picked right away. I wanted to save some of them for a stir fry, but instead I think I am going to use them for my vegetable pancakes this morning. These peppers have a very mild pepper taste and can be eaten seeds and all, just take a bite!

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Dragon Tongue Beans

This is another one that I am really excited about. They are Dragon Tongue Beans, and they have got to be the tastiest, juiciest beans I have ever tasted. Well, raw that is I have not actually tasted them cooked yet, but will be soon. I only grew a small area of these since it was my first time growing them. But I am going to be putting in another seed order for the spring, for some things that I ran out of, and will for sure be ordering more of these. Should be able to get some more plantings in once I get the seeds.

These beans can also be used for shelling as dried beans. In fact if I have a large area where one of my summer crops have failed (which it looks like I will) I may plant a bunch of these for drying.

The only down side to these beautiful beans is they loose their purple color when cooked, which is ok because they still end up a beautiful yellow which is still different than the common green.

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Well I do have more pictures to share but I think that is going to be all for now.

About the Header Photo

Do you know what this is a picture of? It is actually a type of cherry tomato, in a way, actually I am not sure exactly what kind of tomato it is considered. This tomato is like a whole bunch of cherry tomatoes fused together, that are suppose to easily pull apart without a problem. I was so excited to see these tomatoes start to develop, this is the first time I have grown this variety, and I think it is going to be pretty cool.

A little bit about the Reisetomate Tomato
Also called "Traveler Tomato" ("reise" is German for "travel" or "journey") for the ability to tear it apart a piece at a time, with no need for a knife. This type of tomato traces its roots to Central America where the native people would carry traveler tomatoes on trips, to eat as they walked. Bright red tomatoes taste-well, rather sour, strong and acid. The perfect tomato for those who love raw lemons, but who cares? They are still far-out and groovy.
-From Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds Catalog

Bad part is these tomatoes, and all my tomatoes, are really far behind. The weather has had a big impact on almost all of our warm weather crops. Well, that is the way it goes, sometimes you win, sometimes you loose, but better late than never, right?

That being said, the new header picture pretty much sums up what is going on here at BA Farm. Things are coming along, but are way behind.

Reisetomate Tomato

Basil Varieties

I am very excited about all the different varieties of basil I have available this year. The varieties are: Sweet Basil, Lemon Basil, Licorice Basil, Cinnamon Basil, Opal Basil, and Blue Spice Basil.

Sweet Basil

Lemon Basil
I just made chicken and pasta with this basil an also some lemon balm. It was wonderful. I will be posting the recipe very soon.

Licorice Basil

Cinnamon Basil
Looks very very similar to Licorice Basil, in fact I apologize to anyone ahead of time just in case I mix up the two when tagging them in the bunches. My sense of smell is not the greatest to I have a hard time telling the two apart.

Opal Basil

Blue Spice Basil
I have not gotten a chance to cook with this one at all yet, but it smells really beautiful. I think it is my favorite smelling basil.


The above varieties of basil will be available in bunches.
I have one more variety of basil that I also grew this year called Pistou Basil. It is a very small, very cute basil that is perfect for pinching off individual leaves and throwing them in a salad or cooking in your favorite dish. These basils are sold in pots.

Pistou Basil

While looking up some information on basils I came across a really good site with a lot, and I mean a lot of information on what must be every type of basil that there is. I would love to grow them all, of coarse that would take a very long time, but there are definitely a bunch of different kinds that I would like to try next year. The site is: romanasbasilgarden.com/basil-list

Micro Greens Coming Soon

Micro Greens

I have been meaning to start a bunch of micro greens for some time now, but have not gotten to it. Well yesterday I finally started a bunch of them. I am hoping to have them ready for this Saturdays market for in my salad mixes and for selling in the containers they are grown in.

Arugula Micro Greens Just Sprouting

I stared many different varieties for in my spicy salad mix such as: broccoli, radishes, a large red mustard, and arugula. I also started two types of onions, one red and one white. Last week I did not have any greens for in my Greens and Lettuce Salad Mix, since my hoop house has now become too hot for the greens. Well this Saturday I should have the Greens and Lettuce Salad Mix available again thanks to my micro greens, since I planted collards and three types of kale. I think I will be starting some swiss chard soon also for in the mix. I also started some Sweet Basil, which will be a good addition to my Herb and Lettuce Salad Mix.

Radish Micro Greens Just Sprouting

I also started a mix of arugula, radishes, mustards, and broccoli in the same container, that I should have available for sale, in the container, as a spicy micro green mix.