The Great Snow

 Every season has a purpose. Each winter I am reminded that this is a time of replenishing, taking stock of what we have, and slowing to be more observant and introspective. Grateful for the weather that places us around the hearth; we take this opportunity to think to the future. To look forward to the coming seasons. We have used this time to focus on projects that have been waiting for us, but we've stayed in the present with tasks like processing some plants that needed attention. Green Tomato Relish is how we utilized our unripe Toms from the end of the season. I didn't know I would like it so much, but YUM! It has easy ingredients like pickling salt, apple cider vinegar, raw sugar, bell and hot peppers, onion, garlic, and pickling spices. Takes a while to make because you have chop everything up, salt all the veggies for multiple hours to draw out extra liquid, and then simmer everything together for an hour. This being the first year of processing though, it's been so much fun to learn and try. Plus, working over a stove right now is great, it's warm.

Print by Talia Migliaccio

Keeping us inside has also allowed Ryan and I face to face time to further our plan for this coming years Community Supported Agriculture boxes. A clear outline of it's functionality and what we'll specifically offer is coming together. We're figuring out how many weeks we can offer it, and what types of goodies you can, without a doubt expect us to deliver. If you have input on what you're interested in seeing please feel free to inquire about it, this early in the game we still have a lot of flexibility.

The Winter Solstice presented in our home and farmers market booth as hand made wreaths. Ryan has craftily produced some gorgeous, handmade, no wire, wreaths from plants around the farm. These include Grapevines twisted and entangled with incense cedar, sequoia, pine, and dried herbs. More symbolic and healing- St. John's Wort, Yarrow, Fennel, Mullein, and other unique herbs.  he's tied using jute, not wire which makes these fire worth when the season is over and you're ready to be out with the old and in with the new,

These now adorn our walls while they wait to find homes. They've been to the Oregon City Farmers market where they'll be again on the 17th of December, and we've donated to a neglected veterans grave in an Oregon Cemetery.  If you have a Hanging of the Greens Tradition for this Solstice or Holidays Season you can special order through our email: brownbottlefarm@gmail.com Or to pick and purchase a already made artful wreath by Ryan go to our online store:

Phlox and Figwort Etsy Store

I'll leave you with a thought. Most of us had a challenging year. Personally, my father passed away a few months ago. It has been incredibly debilitating, Instead of suffering alone though I have pulled close the people I love the most. I'm convinced that with all the fear being created in the world "bad things" are almost certain to happen. I hope for this winter to represent the melting away of what we don't need to make space for our true purpose. Let's transmutate all the fear and frustration into a new purpose. To every dark there is a light. Don't lose sight of the brevity and preciousness of life because horrible things happen. They happen to us all, and we must support each other through them so we can laugh another day, hold each other in a warm embrace, and melt the winter off our hearts when it's the coldest day.

The Oregon City Farmers Market

What a day! Brown Bottle Farm was accepted to produce vend at the Oregon City Farmers Market! So, in the face of 94 degree weather, we packed our freshly harvested produce and whipped together a farm stand.

The hot weather deterred a lot of folks, but the atmosphere was welcoming. We were positioned in the back corner by the Jimmy Buffet cover musician. Not the worst possibility. Our friend Sara who makes authentic Tamales was near by to help us keep going with a breakfast burrito. Double Jump Coffee was to our left, and was gracious enough to spare a cold press when it got really hot! Making new friends close to home is very important to us. Oregon City Farmers Market is a much bigger market then we are used to but it pushes us to produce better and keeps us closer to home.

Oregon City Farmers Market Website

Jackie, the Market Manager, has built up the Oregon City Farmers Market to boast 40+ vendors every Saturday 9am to 2pm. That includes homemade baked goods, meat, fish, grains and granola, pastry, bread, canned goods, canning equipment, ready to eat foods,  art, home decor, and of course FRESH LOCAL PRODUCE.


Another farm I'd highly recommend is Campfire Farms, they're also in Mulino, OR. They raise heritage pigs, and we picked up some of their bacon for BLTs tonight!
check out their beautiful video:
Campfire Farms

We're looking forward to building relationships in our community through this outlet. IF you can't make it to OCFM - check to see if you have one near you. If not, start one! It goes further then you know too help farmers and crafts people thrive.

In other news we've been busy in the packing shed! We moved our canning and processing equipment in and cleaned everything up! So far I've made Garlic Dill Pickles, Blackberry Jam, Kimchi, Sauerkraut, and soon Applesauce. Do you have a favorite preserved food? What is it?

Fall and Winter crops are a go as well. We've put down a buckwheat cover crop that's booming so when it's ready to be turned over into green manure we'll plant onion, garlic, and hearty greens. Just remember friends, this is all new to us. We're so engaged with learning this process and we're grateful you're interested. Feed You Soon!

Brown Bottle Farm with Phlox and Figwort, Who?

First of all, Thank you. We have an enormous amount of gratitude for anyone interested in what we do, or what we're trying to do. It's been an incredible journey to get to this place in time. 

Brown Bottle Farm(BBF) and Phlox & Figwort are two different businesses based on the same property in Mulino, Oregon. We've only recently moved here in April 2016, and have been working hard to ground both businesses. Business is a difficult term for us to use, it's more of a lifestyle or homestead.

BBF is an organic market garden and 40 acre farm. We actively farm 1 acre and hope to expand to two next season. Our goal is to have a CSA, Community Supported Agriculture, that includes healthful produce and canned goods. We are currently involved in the Damascus Farmers market and Oregon City Farmers Market. The farm will also be an event location.

Phlox & Figwort creates hand rolled native plant incense cones using natural resins and aromatics to connect us with place and spirit for healing. P&F has been making incense for two years. We also make candles, salves, hydrosols, smoking blends, and many other treasures in season with the plants and planets. We've been students of Western herbalism for four years.


Now you know a little more about what we're doing, but who are we?

Both BBF and P&F are the co-creations of Anna Wilson and Ryan Falk. The two of us have been working in tandem for nearing 6 years. Anna comes from a ranching family in California and Idaho. Ryan is Originally from Pennsylvania, but moved to the west coast 15 years ago to pursue a life on Mount Hood. 

We both consider Northwest Oregon our long term home, and look forward to growing food and herbs for our neighbors. 

This blog is an opportunity for our customers and friends to see what we're doing. You can expect beautiful pictures and more fun posts soon!

Flowers are growing - Roots are stirring!

This Morning we started to harvest for Summerfest at Beaver Creek Telco tomorrow. We haven't finished yet and it's 10. We've taken a lot of moments to work on the new property as things come up, but this event marks the first major community opportunity for us.

For this event we're are able to bring our incense and produce, the top list is what we'll have:

Valmaine Lettuce (related to Romaine)

Parsley bunches

Four kinds of Beets

Salad Mix

Three Types of Kale

Napa Cabbage

Nash Cabbage

Kohlrabi

Fennel Bulb

Yukon Gold Potato

Irish Fingerling

Collard Greens

Rainbow Swiss Chard

Zucchini

We're also growing and wild harvesting!

Blackberrys

Elderflower

Hazelnuts

Calendula

Mugwort

Motherwort

Lavender

Rose

Apples

Mullein

Saint Johns Wort

Lilac

and more...

Pretty exciting for our first season here!

If you can make it out here are the details:

Summerfest 2016

Brown Bottle Farm Is excited to  keep chipping away at the tasks at hand. 

If you want to help us raise money for our Packing shed and next seasons CSA we would love the help. Our page tells you so much more about the infrastructure we're looking forward to building. Go check out our Go Fund me Campaign at:

Brown Bottle Farm Raiser

We'll have a post specifically about this fundraiser soon! As well as the purpose of Community Supported Agriculture(CSA), and why we chose to get involved.

Gardens and Farms strengthened people physically and spiritually. Taking a moment to sample a wild blackberry or listen to a bird sing the anthem to the day changes us. Here on the farm we praise this astounding life around us by pausing to observe it throughout the day. It's easy to feel the pressure from tasks at hand, but whether or not there's encroaching stresses the best thing for our produce and for us to breath and step back. If you're not completely blown away by your amazing life you're following the wrong path. We struggle to make ends meet and pile way too much on our plates, but we take one bite at a time and feel the magic. 

"'Then I will chant, ' he said. And he began, looking like a strange boy spirit. 'The sun is shining-the sun is shinning. That is the Magic. The flowers are growing- the roots are stirring. That is the Magic. Being alive is the Magic- being strong is the Magic- The Magic is in me- The Magic is in me. It is in me- it is in me. It's in everyone of us." 

-The Secret Garden, Frances Hodgson Burnett. 

Played this song on the ole record player today, seems perfect to share with you! Until Next Time!