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Posts Tagged ‘Bee Heaven Farm’

Treasures in the weeds

Posted in csa, events, farm, location, photo, tagged , , on May 17, 2012|

Potluck lunch in the barn.

CSA members gathered at Bee Heaven Farm recently for Gleaning Day. They brought potluck dishes to share, and bags and containers for their loot. Because on Gleaning Day, you’re allowed to forage for your veggies.

Lisa and Alex chat with Farmer Margie.

Digging for treasure among the weeds.

The challenge is to find what’s left. To the uninitiated, frondy carrot tops look like the weeds that surround them. But with a little effort, the orange treasures release their grip on the soil jump into your bag.

Hanging out in the pump house.

Bali the horse loves Gleaning Day, because people want to feel him carrots. Bali looooves carrots!

Making new friends.

Browsing for raspberries.

Gleaners braved scratchy thorns in the raspberry brambles and had a berry berry good day.

Bags of veggie loot (mostly carrots — berries went straight into the mouth).

Napping in the shade of the java plum tree.

Seeking beets.

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Memories of a moveable feast

Posted in agritourism, chef, events, farm, locavore, tagged , , , , on April 29, 2012|

About 50 people registered for the Slow Food Miami Farm Bike Tour last week. It was a pretty good day for a bike ride, and even better for munching your way around the neighborhood.

The Miami Herald sent a reporter/photographer, who took pictures at Bee Heaven Farm and Paradise Farms. Some pictures are published in the Homestead/South Dade print edition of Neighbors today. Or, look online to see a slideshow of the event.

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Bagging the beans

Posted in csa, farm, intern, photo, vegetables, tagged , on April 29, 2012|

Luis (left) weighs a bag of beans, with Victor and Donna.

Early on the last Friday of the CSA season, the sun rose steadily in the sky, and late season tomatoes in vegetable beds overrun with weeds glittered with the last fat drops of morning dew. Inside the big metal barn at Bee Heaven Farm, work had already started on packing the last shares of the season.

Bagging bushels of beans.

First, green beans had to be weighed and bagged. They had arrived the day before from Witt Road Farms in La Belle. Several full bushel boxes needed to be portioned out equally. Family shares got one pound, and small shares got half a pound. The farm interns got into two teams to divide up the work. In each team, two people bagged and weighed, and two tied and counted the bags.

Exactly one pound of green beans.

On my team, Victor and Luis bagged and weighed. Donna and I had the job of tying and counting. Donna showed me a cool, quick technique to tie a bag. She explained, “First you smush the air out of it, then fold over the top edge. Hold the two corners, flip the bag around a couple times, then knot the corners together.” The first time I tried flipping the bag, I smacked myself in the chest and Donna and I both laughed. “Better than your face,” she teased. She and I placed bags of beans into rows of five, counted, then loaded them into a green tote.

Bag, weigh, tie, count. Bag, weigh, tie, count.  The two teams bantered back and forth as they packed with a quick and easy flow that came from weeks of working together. Bag, weigh, tie, count. In 20 minutes it was all over — the crew packed 115 one-pound bags and 242 half-pound bags — and it wasn’t even 7:30 yet!

L to R: Victor, Sadie (hidden behind) Margie, Tim (hand showing, behind) Marsha, Luis, Donna

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Farm Bike Tour

Posted in agritourism, events, farm, food, locavore, tagged , , , , , , on April 16, 2012| 2 Comments »

Sunday April 22, 2012
Registration: 8:30 am
Tour: 9 am – 1 pm

Slow Food Miami and Bee Heaven Farm have collaborated to organize the Farm Bike Tour, a fun locavore family event in observance of Earth Day. Start by registering at Bee Heaven Farm, then follow a 12-mile route that takes you on a tasting tour of three other local farms. Show up at the various stops and get a bite and something to drink (better than trick or treating, and you don’t have to dress up). You’ll also get to see a pretty part of farm country and visit various farms that you might not ordinarily get to see.

Begin at Bee Heaven Farm, where farmer Margie Pikarsky will start you on your way with fresh berries, black sapote muffins and herbal iced teas. Next stop is Paradise Farms, where farmer Gabriele Marewski will offer mango smoothies and small bites. Then cruise over to Teena’s Pride, a family owned 500 acre farm known for its heirloom tomatoes, where you can take part in a tomato tasting. Next stop is Fancy Koi 2, an aquaculture farm where they grow not only koi and other ornamental fish, but also the very tasty tilapia, which you will get to sample. Then, finish the tour and come back to Bee Heaven to cool off with Gaby’s Farm ice cream and sorbets, made with local tropical fruits, and frozen lychees (Mother Nature’s own popsicles) from LNB Farms.

Tickets:
Adults: $30 – Children under 12 free
Buy online at https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/237345
More info: Renée 888-580-4480

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Signs of the times

Posted in artist, market, photo, tagged , on April 14, 2012|

A couple months ago, a crop of fresh new market signs popped up at the Bee Heaven Farm tent at Pinecrest Gardens Farmers Market. The colorful creations were drawn by Rachel, farmer Margie’s daughter, who is studying illustration arts at SUNY Purchase.

But hurry, you don’t have much time!

This coming Sunday, April 15th, is the last day that Bee Heaven will be at the Pinecrest market. (The market runs through May, but Bee Heaven’s growing season is already winding down.)

It’s also going to be quite the day, with the 3rd Annual Pinecrest Earth Day Festival going on throughout the Gardens. Admission is free.

By the way… these pictures were taken back in January…. so they’re not necessarily representative of what’s in season and available now at market. Different signs will be up, too. Go take a look for yourself!

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