Farm News – October 23, 2014

Hi Everyone, so we finally got a substantial rain last week- 2 inches worth. The fall crops should now begin to grow a little better. We also had our third light frost last night; this one a little harder than the previous two. We continue to try to glean what we can of the warm weather crops before each of these frost events.

We will have some peppers and some small eggplant for you this week and perhaps a few as extras next week. The tomatoes are done for this year (boo-hoo). Broccoli is coming in heavy now, so there will be adequate supply for all groups this week. We also have beautiful arugula again and perhaps some broccoli raab by the end of the week. This along with radicchio should make the Italians among you happy this week! Spinach will make a return appearance next week. Radishes will be the root vegetable for this week; carrots next week, I promise! Don’t forget that radishes can be cooked in stir fries or soups and lose their bite prepared in this way. The leaf is also edible and nutritious but needs to be cooked to be palatable. We will begin digging the sweet potatoes in earnest this week. I expect a good crop so they will be featured frequently during the final weeks of the season. This week it will be Beauregard, the most common orange fleshed variety.

A few hardy souls came out to enjoy a farm tour this past Sunday on a chilly and windy fall day. At least there was abundant sunshine! Don’t forget about the last two farm events of the season this coming weekend. The campfire sing-along on Saturday and the garlic prep volunteer day on Sunday at 11AM. The weather promises to be a bit more hospitable for these events!

The share for this week will be: Peppers, eggplant, broccoli, potatoes, ornamental gourds, red onions, radishes, arugula, lettuce, radicchio, sweet potatoes, buttercup squash (kabocha) and choice of an herb.

Enjoy! Farmer John