SHAGBARK FARM - ADAMS COUNTY, OHIO

 

FARM OPERATION
Berries & Rhubarb
Melons
Mushrooms
Hickory
Culinary Herbs
Medicinal Herbs
Stevia
Wild Edibles
Hives

WHAT WE OFFER
AT MARKET
OUR RECIPES
BOOKS & GADGETS

 


 

BERRY & RHUBARB PRODUCTION
Our primary crop is red raspberries and our farm is the perfect environment for brambles. Gentle slopes provide the air circulation needed to grow large sweet raspberries. The field area we chose is surrounded by Tulip Poplars, one of the first trees to bloom in spring. The tulip poplars bring the first bees of the season, an important ingredient to raspberry growing!

We've learned a lot about growing raspberries since 2010. Farmers are the eternal optimists, there's always next year..and that's just about the way it goes. Raspberries aren't an easy crop, while we continue to grow the same acreage of red raspberries, as early as 2013 we began to add to our small fruit crops. First it was blackberries, then it was heirloom, uncommon berry types. Along the way we also added melons and rhubarb to our offerings. In 2017 we're expanding our strawberry production to hopefully be able to offer quantities at market.

You can read about our berries & rhubarb on this page and our melons here.


Art of the Pie: A Practical Guide to Homemade Crusts, Fillings, and Life

Smoothie Recipe Book: 150 Smoothie Recipes


Local Flavors: Cooking and Eating from America's Farmers' Markets

 

VARIETIES WE GROW
Our goal is to be able to offer fresh and unusual small fruit all summer.
Everything is dependant on mother nature, we can only plan and execute!

Our rhubarb may resemble the dry stalks you see at the supermarket, but they're not. We grow heirloom, old time varieties your grandmother would recognize.

We choose the berry varieties we do because they are not the kinds of berries the large growers produce for travel across the country to the local supermarket.

With the raspberries, they are varieties that have true raspberry taste, not like the ones in the plastic containers you find refrigerated or frozen at your big grocery. Those have no taste, and when you find a box with some taste, it's a plastic taste. The blackberries we chose follow the same reasoning as the raspberries, in that they have true blackberry taste.

We also have learned to grow heirloom berry varieties you won't find anywhere but the farmer's market. As available, we also forage and harvest a variety of wild berries as well. All sweet. All uniquely found at the farmer's market.

HEIRLOOM ANNUALS
 

CAPE GOOSEBERRIES
Originally cultivated in the Andes where they are still grown today. The plant was also grown by early settlers at the Cape of Good Hope before 1807. Today in South Africa they are commercially cultivated and exported. Australians gave them their common name after seeds were brought to Australia and cultivated.

Cape Gooseberries are a member of the nightshade (Solanacaea) family related to tomatoes. Grown as a perennial in the tropics, we grow them as an annual. Also known as Peruvian Cherries, Inca Berries and Aztec Berries.

The Cape gooseberry is wrapped in a thin, parchment-like husk. The fruits turn from a pale green to an amber or golden orange color as they ripen. Cape Gooseberries are much larger and sweeter than Ground Cherries. The flavor of the Cape gooseberries is very tart, earthy and citrusy. Fresh Cape gooseberries can be eaten raw, preserved or pickled. They become available late August into October.


The Berry Bible: With 175 Recipes Using Cultivated and Wild, Fresh and Frozen Berries

GARDEN HUCKLEBERRY
Originated in Africa, Garden Huckleberries have been cultivated for many decades.
A member of the nightshade (Solanacaea) family, related to tomatoes. They are not related to Huckleberries found in the Pacific Northwest of America.

Grown as a perennial in the tropics, we grow them as an annual. The mature berries are about the size of a big blueberry and have a tough skin.

They are a terrific fruit for jams, jellies and pies not so great for eating fresh. We use them primarily in jam which tastes blueberry-grape, and is amazing! They become available Late August into October.

 


The Lost Art of Pie Making Made Easy
AUNT MOLLY'S GROUND CHERRIES
Produces a little yellow-orange fruit inside a paper wrapper. Fruits fall from the plants when ripe and that’s why they are called Ground Cherries.
A member of the nightshade (Solanacaea) family, related to tomatoes.

We grow Aunt Molly's variety because it does well in cooler climates and matures faster than other varieties. Ground Cherries are easy to grow from seed, but need an early start, 8- 10 weeks before the last frost day just like pepper plants.

Ground Cherries have a very unique, delicious taste, very sweet and a lot like vanilla custard. They are good used in jams, pies, custards. We also dry these and use them like raisins. They become available late August into October.

 

 

MOUSE MELONS
Technically, not a berry, but they are an heirloom fruit we love to grow! Cucamelons (Melothria scabra), also called “Mexican sour gherkins” and “mouse melons” are native to Central America. They were a very common part of the diet of ancient Aztec people.

They look like miniature watermelons but are about the size of grapes and taste like cucumbers with a tinge of lime. They are packed with antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. Mouse melons are ready to harvest and eat when they are about the size of a grape and feel firm to the touch. They become available late July into October.

 

HEIRLOOM PERENNIALS

101 Recipes with Rhubarb

RHUBARB
The rhubarb variety we grow is an old time rhubarb with a tart Spring time taste. We have grown both green and red varieties, but now most of our plants are the red variety lending itself to beautiful fresh stalks for market sales.

Rhubarb is a pretty plant in the garden, it's deep green leaves are huge supported by beautiful red stalks. It's one of the first plants to emerge in Spring. High in antioxidants and vitamin C, it ought to be considered a super food. We bring fresh rhubarb to market in May and into June. We also produce rhubarb and strawberry-rhubarb jams in the Spring.

The Joy of Rhubarb: The Versatile Summer Delight (Fruits & Favorites Cookbooks)

 

STRAWBERRY
The strawberry plants we trialed were a pretty big success, so much so that we decided to install several hundred plants in the raspberry field. The raspberry field was the perfect place as the soil is the right pH, the field is protected from winged and footed critters. The growing technique we learned over the 2016 winter will allow us to bring a first year crop to market.

Nutritionally, strawberries are about as good as it gets, high in antioxidants and vitamin C and loaded with the flavors of Spring. Sweet varieties that you won't find at the supermarket, nor will you find with other farmers. We chose unique heirloom varieties that are tried and true. Sweet beautiful berries from the end of May to the end of June!


Raspberry Delights Cookbook: A Collection of Raspberry Recipes

RED RASPBERRY
We've been growing red raspberries since 2010. We've learned a lot. Our berries are probably the best you're ever going to taste as we chose varieties you won't ever find locally.

Considered a super food, raspberries are high in antioxidants and vitamin C. They are known to possess anti inflammatory, anti cancer and general all around wellness qualities. Red raspberry leaf tea is considered one of the best around for nursing moms. We offer red raspberries from the end of May to mid-July.

Many people have asked why we don't have Autumn raspberries and that's because many of these varieties are hybrids not heirlooms and nothing matches the flavor of true heirloom summer varieties of the Summer red raspberry!


BLACKBERRY
We've been growing blackberries since 2013. While not as difficult as our raspberries, they are challenging as we picked an interesting variety that requires severe pruning and training for the space we've given it.

Taking a page from the French fruit farmer, the Art of Espalier is all about selectivity pruning and training branches to a desired shape. Where the French fruit farmer gets to do the pruning once or twice, we get to do it every year. We have found this sort of pruning adds greatly to the production of the huge flavorful berries these heirloom plants produce. Our blackberries are the best you're ever going to taste and are available from early August to mid September.



Berries, Rasp- & Black
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The Fruit Gardener's Bible: A Complete Guide to Growing Fruits and Nuts in the Home Garden

Cooking With Wild Berries & Fruits of Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio

Juicing for Beginners: The Essential Guide to Juicing Recipes and Juicing for Weight Loss


Vitamix Professional Series 750 Blender, Professional-Grade, 64 oz. Low-Profile Container, Heritage


Breville JE98XL Juice Fountain Plus 850-Watt Juice Extractor

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