Caution

It has just occurred to me that growing conditions in the UK are quite different to those i am experiencing here in California, and my frequent references to the Love Apple Farm blogsite may be causing some of you Brits, and folk elsewhere in the world, to take what is written as correct for you.

There are several things that come to mind as considerations:

Planting things deep into the soil may be fine here, where the ground tends to be on the dry side, but will probably cause rot and disease to the stems in cooler or wetter climes.

Constant hydration (watering) to keep the potting soil wet at all times is now always advisable. Allow the surface of the growing medium to dry off between waterings is advised where humidity and temperature differs.

The season starts much earlier here than it does back home, so adjust sowing and planting dates accordingly. Surprisingly the last frosts are expected here on the farm at a similar time to those in southern England. The days, however are much warmer here.

More tender crops, tomatoes, peppers, melons etc do well outside here with plenty of daily warmth, many will, unfortunately require the help of a greenhouse or polytunnel elsewhere.

I don't want to put you off from trying, just to consider differing climatic conditions before proceeding exactly as suggested on the blog.

Happy growing.

Jacob Cooks Dinner

One of the chefs, Jacob, from Manresa often comes over on harvest days to help gather produce for the kitchens and has become part of the farm family.

He offered to cook dinner the other night and produced an amazing meal from the gardens.

Yes, a photograph of people n my blog,its a rare sight indeed, i know. Cynthia is on the right, then Jacob, next to Josh, a volunteer in the corner opposite Sarah, who is here for a year, learning all about biodynamic farming methods. Another extended family and great fun.

This is really short as i just gave you loads or reading about visas below and thought a few photos were in order. Hope everyone is doing great out there.

Visa Applications

I haven't written on this subject for a while. It's just good to know that the forms i sent are being processed. Not the forms that i originally thought that i would be sending, but a different set altogether.

To get you up to speed. I took advice from an Immigration Attorney in the autumn on setting up a business here in the US as the wording on the application document was unclear. The form stated that the applicant had to invest a significant amount of money in the business venture they were considering. For me, i need a truck and some tools to start by business, i explained this and it was suggested that if i were to purchase these items outright, it should, indeed, signify a significant amount, in fact the total amount required and would therefore qualify for that section of the visa application. I just needed to complete the whole planned business documentation to prove that it would be a ligitimate concern and have everything ready to go before presenting my case.

It all seemed so easy, time consuming, but easy.

I came back to the Farm so that i had easy access to all the information that i needed for the forms and to be in the right place to research and gather information and to get a better feel for the region now that i had a plan. It all went well for a good couple of weeks, i volunteered and then worked solidly on my application until i decided to have my progress checked out by the attorney. Just to see that i was on the right track and everything was going to be in order. We had a great meeting and it all sounded good. She was a little concerned in how little money i was going to invest and we devised a way to make it seem more with a little support from Cynthia and the farm, it all sounded great. The attorney also also that she would check with a friend in London to see how applicants were faring at the moment.

A couple of days later i received an email. Bad news. The embassy were rejecting all applications that were investing less that £125,000 without question. So it was a no go.

Cynthia immediately had a solution. For me to be employed by the farm and to expand its horizons to include vegetable garden instillation. I will run the instillation side of things and continue to provide support on the farm in return for board and lodgings. It all sounds great. There was a deadline for applications for this different visa, April 1. We had two weeks to get together all the paperwork and have it sent off for processing. Something that usually takes businesses several months to compile. We worked into the night most evenings to research all the requirements and put together the relevant forms, copying and compiling the document in the copy shop on the morning that it had to go into the post.

It is now in the hands of the authorities, we just have to wait until they get through the 45000 applications to hear if it has been successful. A patient wait.

My plans now are to return to the UK when my current visa expires then wait until October and, visa permitting, return to work on the farm then. I have yet to decide what to do for the summer, either get some work somewhere or travel europe helpXing and discovering more about the world. Will have to see what opportunities arise.

Berkeley

I spent the weekend with Andy and Sarah. Andy is an old friend form the UK and now lives in the bay area with his American wife Sarah.

We met up on Saturday on the eastern side of the bay, opposite San Francisco, had lunch and went on an amazing cycle ride along the bay trail, a pedestrian and cycle way running along the shoreline, stopping to enjoy the view, check out the renovated warehouses, do a bit of wildlife spotting and, of course refreshments.... We were out for the afternoon and probably covered a good 17miles which was more than enough exercise for anyone with a bit of a hangover.

Sarah created a wonderful meal and we sat and chatted about the old days and caught up on the last ten years until the early hours.

On Sunday, Andy took me to a viewpoint overlooking San Francisco bay, way above Berkeley, and then dropped me a small way down the hill at the Botanic gardens. They had a busy day and my plan was to meet Zach, Cynthias' son later in the day to take their truck back to the farm. Zach had been home for the week and is currently studying at Berkeley University which was still further down the hill from the gardens.

The air was clear and the view amazing. As was the botanic gardens. I spent several relaxing hours strolling through the flora of asia, australasia, europe and the US. The California natives was the most extensive and also the most surprising for me. I had no idea how many garden plants we commonly grow in England originated here. Ceanothus, Heuchera, Garrya, several sages to name but a few. Fascinating.

Hungry, i headed down the hill and through the university campus, full of grand buildings sponsored by the good and great citizens of California, towering trees, rolling lawns and open spaces. A wonderful place to study. There was a bell tower , the Campanile, it was open and for $2 i caught the lift to the top to be treated to more panoramic views of the city and the bay, under the threatening weight of 62 huge bells. Thankfully they didn't chime as i think that i would still be deaf today.

I eventually satisfied my hunger in a rather uninspiring Thai restaurant. The decor was erring on faded but the food was amazingly tasty and a very good price. I had time to kill so i read my book for a while and ordered the only dessert on the menu. Shaved ice over beans. I had no idea whaat to expect. It arrived and i was none the wiser except to see a sundae glass full of red beans, like chilli beans topped with plain shaved ice. Try to imagine what it tasted like, i did and was delighted by the first spoonful. Sweet and delicate, soft beans in a syrup sauce, infused with coconut cream and little chunks of coloured jelly for added texture, truly amazing, i wish now that i had taken a photograph of it to show you all.

I caught up with Zach a little after 8pm, got completely lost driving south and ended up navigating my way over several bay bridges and through central San Francisco in the dark, which was interesting. Eventually getting on the correct highway and heading back to Ben Lomond.

A hint of Chelsea

The Flower Show that is. San Francisco's 24th and probably final Flower and Garden Show opened yesterday and runs through until Sunday evening.


















I had to go and check it out. Not quite sure what to expect I was pleasantly surprised with the diversity and extent of the show, though i must admit the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society) would have had a thing or two to say!!!!! I loved it, fresh inspiring show gardens and displays, loads of stands selling horticultural and garden accessories, dahlias, orchids and japanese maples by the truck load - they must be in vogue this year, at least in California, and that wonderful smell that you only get at horticultural shows. A mixture of damp peat, freshly sawn timber and the blended fragrance of hundreds of flowering plants.

The message, as ever, is conserve, reuse, recycle, save water, choose ecologically sound planting schemes and grow your own vegetables!!! There seems to be a fascination here with keeping gutters clear of leaves and debris, i must have counted six stands, and it wasn't that big a place.

For those in the know, the Franchi seed stand brought familiarity and a smile to my face, as did Tubtrugs and certain tool manufacturers. The world is such a small place at the moment.

Iron Chef America

I can't even recall seeing Iron Chef on the television in the UK, all i know is it originated in Japan and is now a huge hit here. Top chefs from around the US compete against the resident masters in a one hour culinary battle to produce amazing dishes from a mystery ingredient. Fast paced, informative inspirational and dare i say 'American' it is an amazing show to watch.

The Mystery Ingredient last night was the mighty cabbage and the challenging chef, David Kinch. David Kinch of Manresa restaurant who contracts Love Apple Farm to grow vegetables for his kitchen. He who turns up at the farm on a regular basis to collect the tidiest and freshest produce, chat about the weather and the surfing and a bit of world news.

We watched, of course we watched, but as invited guests to Manresa. (We being Cynthia and three volunteers) On a huge tv, with fine wine and delicious canapes, with all of the restaurant crew and their families and an explosive atmosphere. When chef appeared, everyone cheered, when he chopped, they cheered when the hour was up, they cheered. During the judging, much cheering and booing as the judges tasted and provided verdicts on meals the two chefs presented and the finale, when David and his team won, the whole place erupted in the most almighty roar. Then the party really began.....

The episode is taped and ready to watch again at the farm, without the reveling and cheering and conversations. I'll try and take in a bit more detail of what he actually produced next time. It was a spectacular show and a great evening. Congratulations to David and his Iron Chef team, Jean Paul and James.

I guess we'll be picking cabbage all next week!!

Down on the farm

I'm back in the swing of things now. It's been just over a week since i arrived and tried to blog and my mind has had chance to catch up with me now.

As back home, spring is an amazingly busy time in the garden, it just starts a bit earlier here in California. Seeds are being sown by the thousand for the summer garden and more urgently, the tomato seedling sale. The sale starts this coming weekend and runs for ten weeks, it is an important source of revenue for the farm. 126 different varieties of tomato will be available, batches of 50 or so, all sown and potted on by hand. I am so glad that there is a good team of volunteers here to help. It is great fun and interesting hearing everyones stories and reasons that they come to help out at Love Apple Farm.

Around the farm, overwintering green manure crops are being dug into the beds. Compost heaps turned and the oldest heaps incorporated into the beds in preparation for spring planting. Direct sown areas of numerous crops are flushed with young colour. Flats (seed trays) of seedlings are being hardened off and will be planted out as soon as the weather is warm enough and the ground is ready.

The lettuce, chard and pak choi that i planted in November are being harvested weekly and have grown steadily throughout the winter. Most of the winter crops, cabbage, broccoli and brussel sprouts have gone, their time over for another year.

I have been busy with my own project too. A very informative meeting with an Immigration Attorney, last week, has confirmed that my venture should be accepted by the powers that be and sees no reason why my visa application would be turned down. I am now knee deep in the paperwork and the unfamiliar jargon of US business regulations, visa applications and learning how things work in this new land....so many little things are different and have to be checked out. It is all quite amazing. When it all gets a bit overwhelming i check outside just to see that the Magnolia tree is still looking beautiful, listen to the rain on the roof and hope that tomorrow will be a sunny day.