Author: Bryan Housel

Hi Everyone, So, we have reached the end of the line for this season.  I would say the finish line, but my crew and me still have several more weeks to finish out the season.  There is still some garlic to be planted, the stock up shares to put together, and various root crops to harvest for storage through the winter and into next spring.  And there are a myriad of other chores to be done, to put the farm to bed for the winter.  As I mentioned last week, we are entering a very cold stretch of weather.  We have been busy harvesting many of the crops that will be in the shares this week and in the stock-up before they are damaged.  And we have been moving many of the crops in storage into the barn where they can be better protected from the cold nights ahead. (more…)

Hi everyone, So, I guess we knew this balmy weather couldn’t last forever! We have two nights of frost coming up and then a brief warming before some truly frigid air rolls in over the weekend. We will be shifting gears from protecting the tender crops from a few hours of below freezing temperatures, to covering the cold tolerant crops to protect them from being damaged by temps in the mid-twenties. (more…)

Happy Halloween everyone!   I hope you are all enjoying this spooky holiday.  We made it through several very cold nights over the weekend with minimal damage to the crops and are looking forward to a week of sunshine and mild temperatures.  We are busy here on the farm preparing beds to plant the garlic and digging the last few beds of sweet potatoes.  As soon as the last of the sweets are out, we can begin planting our final round of cover crops – winter rye and hairy vetch.  These serve to protect the fields from wind erosion over the winter, build organic matter in the soil, and provide straw for mulching other crops next season. (more…)

Hello Folks, So it seems we are down to the final four. I’m not speaking about March Madness, more like November sadness, as we head into the ultimate weeks of the season. I know that many of you are sad when the CSA program ends for the season, and the long winter without fresh veggies lays ahead. On the other hand, I expect that some of you are relieved to not have to work so hard, searching for recipes and preparing all that we provide. If you are the former you may consider buying a stock-up share, which will keep you eating good, local produce for at least a few weeks after the season ends (hint, hint, nudge, nudge). (more…)

Hello Everyone! So, summer officially ended almost four weeks ago, but we are still trying to squeeze a little more summer out of the fields. We are about to experience 3 or 4 nights of frost, so this is definitely the last hurrah for the beans and peppers. We may even be able to send a few more tomatoes your way! (more…)

Hello Folks, we had our first hard frost here on the farm on Sunday morning. It killed the eggplant and severely damaged the peppers. We covered the beans and a few other tender crops, but they still received some minor damage. Most of what remains in the fields currently are cold tolerant crops. All the brassicas and mustard family crops can endure temperatures well below freezing. Lettuce and herbs such as cilantro and dill are also amazingly resistant to the cold. (more…)

Hi Folks, So, we are hanging to summer – but just by a thread! This will be the last week for summer squash and sweet corn. We had a good run with both – I know that this was the most sweet corn that members have ever received. The beans are coming to an end as well – we will have some for most groups this week and will catch up next week with those who lacked them. The brassicas should be starting up by now, but unfortunately, they are behind schedule – a consequence of the prolonged drought. For this week, we will have some baby bok choi. We are expecting a couple of cold nights over the weekend, hopefully nothing too drastic! (more…)