January News from Chetwyn

Published: Mon, 01/03/22

New Year, New Updates

Hi ,

The start of a new year is upon us! We are excited to discover what adventures, lessons, and friendships await in the upcoming months.

Enjoy reading through this month's newsletter where we share about our newest variety of avocado, avocado hot chocolate, mulch piles, and more.

*IMPORTANT NOTICE*

We will be bringing Lamb Hass Avocados to the market these next two weeks.

That is the 8th and 15th of January. We thought our trees were done for the season, but they had a second wind. And now we have more avocados for you! Find us at the Hayward Farmer's Market to pick some up. We'd love to see you!

A New Variety: Stewart Avocado

There is a certain section in the grove that we call the Library where we test out varieties of avocados to see how well they will grow and how good they taste. One variety, the Stewart Avocado, has graduated the Library and will start making appearances at the market!

We planted 18 trees in the Spring of 2021, so right now the trees are only a couple feet tall, but once they are ready we will be able to bring avocados to the market in January. The Stewart has skin that turns dark on the tree, but ripens on the counter. We are very happy to have found a variety that not only tastes good but also is in season when others are not.

Rain! Rain! Rain!

We have gotten over 17 inches of rain so far this winter. Our creek, which we have named Umbra Creek (umbra means shadow in Latin) is flowing, and a big pond we dug out two years ago is full of water for the first time! We love to rain walks with the family and have been able to get a few in with the kids coming home for Christmas. Because of the rain, we are also able to add some extra nutrients to our avocado trees. Dave was just out spreading potash (potassium fertilizer) under each of the trees. The rains help soak it into the soil.

More Mulch

On the drive down to our house, you would find a number of eucalyptus trees towering over the side of the road. A few months ago, arborists checked them out and thought it would be best to be taken town. This process took a few days and we were left with some huge piles of mulch.

These large piles will be a wonderful addition to the soil for our trees. With the rain there are already mushrooms growing in the wood chips and on cold mornings they give off a little steam.

Chickens in the Winter

Right now we are getting one egg a day from our flock of 29 chickens. Chickens slow down or stop laying eggs altogether when the days get shorter. It is the way for them to take a break and let their bodies rest. In the meantime, we get our eggs from the store and look forward to the days when our farm fresh eggs start coming in again.

Avocado Sipping Chocolate

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 cups milk of choice

3 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder

Pinch of cinnamon

Pinch of kosher salt

3 Tbs sugar

¼ cup smashed avocado

Steps

1) In a heavy bottomed pot over low heat put about a quarter of the milk. Add the cocoa powder, cinnamon, and salt. Whisk until smooth.

2) Add the remaining milk as well as the sugar. Combine.

3) Remove the pot from heat. Add the avocado, and puree the liquid until smooth with an immersion blender.

4) Return the pot to the heat and warm until the preferred temperature is reached.

5) Enjoy!

Happy New Year to you all!

Warmly,

Dave and Anna

Chetwyn Farm