Week 7!!
This will be our last share of July! Recently I had a conversation with another grower about the challenges of July and I have always gone back and forth about which month is the most challenging. She was certain July was the toughest. I used to think July, but recently I had considered May. After this season, I have to agree with the grower for a few reasons. July has all the things - planting, staying ahead of weeds, selling/marketing produce, summer crops are coming in while spring crops are still going strong, managing tomato production (pruning, watching for pests/disease, etc), and startling to think and plant out fall crops. It is a month about deadlines and important prioritization, communication with accounts and customers, and watching the field change on a daily basis. Everything on the farm is striving including the people operating it. May on the other hand, although challenging from a labor perspective, is about head-down work, but there are fewer sales to consider, and the cool spring mornings are filled with hope and possibility for the months ahead. In July hope takes a backseat to necessity and constant forward movement. August 1 is somewhat of an arbitrary date that I look forward to, more on that next week, but in the monthly “schedule” of the growing season, each month has its own unique qualities and I am looking forward to the big “letting go” which occurs in the month of August. But it is these challenges and successes that drive my passion for this work, truly understanding the extents of my abilities and feeling the range of emotions in connection with this land. I love it here.
The Share!
a bag of lettuce mix for your salad needs
two tomatoes - the first of the season
a bunch of dill - here is a recipe for quick refridgerator pickles. 2 cukes may not be enough but you could do a small jar or maybe you have others in the fridge too!!
cucumbers! Still going - we may see a break from cukes for a few weeks after this one.
red cabbage - here is a nice coleslaw recipe. We like the red cabb for coleslaw the best!
a zuke and a summer squash - they are a little bigger than I like but they grew fast over the weekend when we were not around! Genica added them to a simple, fresh tomato sauce over pasta last night.
A head of green garlic! We just harvested the garlic this past but I wanted to get some in the share! This has not been cured so it won’t have the common “papers” around the cloves. But you can still chop it and cook it just like regular garlic. It has a fresher flavor. We used some in the pasta dish Genica made last night!
a bunch of lacinato or “dinosaur” kale. This is an Italian heirloom variety. Tender and delicious. One member talked about doing kale chips. Here is a simple recipe.
big share got an extra bag of lettuce, an extra tomato, extra garlic, and a few onions!
just a new field across the road that I am happy about!!
Bringing in the garlic!!
Augustin laying out a layer of garlic to cure.
field garlic - I’m psyched on the harvest this season!
pretty pink moth I found across the road. Primrose Moth.
It was great to see the folks I did this week and I hope you all have a great last week of July! Thank you for being a part of our lives here at the farm!