Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley
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Views from the event....
This 4th of July a familiar face showed up at the Patriot's Parade in Waitsburg. Jonne Antilla from Götene, Sweden has been visiting eastern Washington almost every year since his first visit in 2007. His journey started in 1986 as an agriculture student in Sweden when he was given a brochure of various farming, forestry and ranching techniques. "There was a picture of a wheat field and I noticed right away this is not Sweden. There was a giant hill with combines coming towards you. The header...
A column by Gary Hofer All the world is in a curious Babel. Images of trouble flash and tumble and fears rumble. Those who desire power call with ever-greater urgency for more. Yet all the while the world rolls on, never missing a day or an hour. The sun comes up, the chickens cackle and the mourning dove calls. Switch-on harvest; time of gathering, the beginning of preparations for winter, the heartbeat of an ancient rhyme of seasons and work, a song of the gifts of nature and a miracle of earth, rain, soil and sun; where a single seed...
COLUMBIA COUNTY-Have you ever wondered how annual wheat yields are calculated? Local data-gatherer Joe Huether wasn't sure before, but he is now a part of the process, which he says he has found to be fascinating. This spring, Huether responded to an ad and was hired as a field enumerator to gather data for the National Association of State Departments of Agricultural (NASDA), which works to achieve sound policy between state departments of agriculture, the federal government and stakeholders....
DAYTON-John Laib is a third-generation Columbia County farmer. He and his wife Carolyn farm the 2,500 original acres on his grandfather, Albert Laib's, home place, and they lease and farm an additional 2,500 acres, growing mainly dry land wheat and alfalfa. They also raise cattle. Laib said the challenges facing farmers today are many, but the biggest frustration for him is that the state legislature is setting policies without understanding how rural communities in eastern Washington live. "It'...
According to the 2012 Census of Agriculture, wheat farms in Washington declined by 20 percent between the 2012 census and the 2017 census. However, harvested acreage only decreased by two percent, meaning there less farms with more acres. According to an article in the July 2019 Wheat Life Magazine, the census also revealed that the number of farms growing winter wheat declined 31 percent from 2012 to 2017. The good news is that the value of all commodities frown in Washington has increased nearly 95 percent in the last 20 y...
With prices rising, many Washington wheat farmers added chickpea plantings into their rotations. Unfortunately, trade issues with China and India, have resulted in a price drop. YoFiit is hopeful that chickpea milk, which has 10 grams of protein and 1,000 mg of omega 3 will become popular enough to turn the tide....
Each year the Washington Wheat Foundation awards educational grants to nonprofits that support programs and activities that increase public awareness about agriculture. This year grants were awarded to: AgForestry Leadership Northwest Natural Resources Institute Washington FFA Association...
Grains were among the first foods that humankind learned to preserve by drying. Flour, made from wheat, comes in many forms and plays an integral role in baked goods, as a thickener in stews and sauces, and as a base for breaded coatings on meat or vegetables, or in noodles. Washington is the third largest wheat producing state in the nation with more than 2.3 million acres in production. The bulk of the state's grain, approximately 85-90%, is exported. Shipped out of the Pacific Northwest...
1. Awned winter club wheat such as Pritchett (released by K. Campbell). Awned refers to the protrusions projecting from the wheat head. Wheat is either awn-less or awned. 2. Immature spring barley plant 3. 2-row spring malting barley 4. Tame, cultivated white oats and not wild oat. 5. Canola 6. Dry seed peas 7. Chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans. Find them in the chickpea crunch and Hearty Hummus. They’re yummy, local and naturally gluten free...
Chickpea Crunch 1 can or 1 ½ cups fresh chickpeas ½ teaspoon paprika ½ tsp chili powder ½ tsp garlic powder 1 pinch coarse sea salt 1 tbsp canola oil Preheat oven to 375 °F. If using canned chickpeas, drain and dry them with paper towels. Combine spices, then add oil. Toss the chickpeas in the mixture. Spread evenly over a flat baking sheet covered with parchment paper. Bake for 40 minutes or until crunchy, stirring at the halfway point. Cool before serving as a...
Hearty Hummus Spread 1 can or 1 ½ cups rinsed and drained chickpeas 2 tbsp sesame oil 1 lime 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 2 tbsp pine nuts 1 tbsp tahini (sesame seed paste) 1 tsp powdered ginger root 1 sprig cilantro 1 tsp coarse salt Crushed red pepper flake If using canned, drain chickpeas and add to food processor along with pine nuts, garlic, ginger, and salt. Drizzle the juice of one lime and sesame oil until desired texture is achieved. Garnish with cilantro and red pepper flake....
Banana Bread 2 tbsp unsalted butter, melted plus 1 tsp softened for pan ½ cup whole wheat flour ¾ cup all purpose flour ¼ cup ground flaxseed ¾ tsp coarse salt ¾ tsp baking powder ½ tsp baking soda 1 large whole egg, plus 1 large egg white ½ cup packed brown sugar 1 ½ cup tsp pure vanilla extract ¾ cup over ripe bananas ¼ cup finely chopped walnuts, toasted (optional) Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush a loaf pan with softened butter. In a bowl, sift together both flours, flaxseed, salt, baking pow...
Waitsburg Whiskey Ginger & Lime Waitsburg Whiskey is as local as it gets. Combine this medium-full bodied bourbon with Bundaberg Ginger Beer and fresh muddled lime over ice. The bourbon’s bouquet of vanilla, caramel and cherry are complemented by the sharper citrus notes. Please drink responsibly....
Views from behind the scenes....
An example of a flat house storage unit at Northwest Grain Growers in Prescott. The interior of the flat house showing the first pile of soft white wheat accumulating in the back. The grain is unloaded into an under ground pit where the leg, a belt with continuous flat sided buckets brings the grain up to the roof level. An auger then brings the grain the length of the roof to openings where it is released to specific piles. Buckets of pooled samples from each farmer's grain collected from this...
Local farm dogs say "hello"...
