Concrete Farm to School Report
by Rachel Muia, Concrete Farm to School Coordinator
Student employee Alex Olsen harvesting garlic scapes (2024)
Summer is finally here and with these longer days our garden is growing at a rapid pace (as are the weeds, unfortunately). Garlic scapes are one of the first things we have in abundance in the school garden. We plant our hardneck garlic in the fall, usually around Halloween, and it stays in the ground until early July. Every year it seems like we find room for a little more garlic in the garden. And that means more garlic scapes in June!
Scapes are the flower stalks of hardneck garlic. They shoot straight up from the stem of the plant and then loop around and make beautiful, bouncy spirals. To encourage the plants to devote their energy to growing hearty garlic cloves, we snap off the scapes above the first leaf of the plant before they bloom, ideally after they’ve completed one loop-the-loop and before they start to stretch out again and point down (they become tougher and more fibrous at this point). There are a lot of garlic scapes in the refrigerator right now and if you stop by the Farmstand in the Farm to School Classroom (located in Portable C at Concrete Elementary School) Tuesdays and Wednesdays, 9am-3pm, you can take some home!
Garlic scapes have a similar flavor to mature garlic bulbs, only much milder. At this time of year, I start almost every stir-fry variation (fried rice, sauteed greens, vegetable medleys) with some chopped up garlic scapes. They also roast well, or you can make a garlic scape pesto by replacing some or all the basil in your favorite pesto recipe. Freeze pesto in an ice cube tray and then transfer to a freezer bag to use in meals all summer long.
In addition to the Farmstand on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, Concrete Farm to School will be hosting community volunteer days on Thursday mornings from 9:30 am-1 pm this summer. A light vegetarian meal will be shared at the end of our work session. Bring your gloves! Children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.
In August, we’re partnering with the Concrete Resource Coalition and Glacier Peak Institute to bring back summer camp, now as the Concrete Summer Leadership Adventure (CSLA). The new CSLA serves youth 12-15 years old, Monday-Thursday, August 10-20. If you know a young person who would enjoy some games, good food, hiking, and biking, please send them our way! More information and registration can be found at UnitedGeneral.org/classes.
Hope to see you in the garden or at the Farmstand this summer! Stop by the United General District 304 booth at Concrete Youth Activity Day to say hi and sample a bicycle blender smoothie! Concrete Farm to School is one of over 50 programs offered by United General District 304 promoting health and wellbeing at every stage of life.