Farm News- July 23, 2009
Hi Everyone,
The continued dry spell enabled us to get somewhat caught up on the work we fell behind with during the monsoon. Unfortunately we are now falling behind on the planting and some of the other tasks normal to mid-July, such as tying up the tomatoes and harvesting the onions.
We have finished harvesting the garlic and it is hung up to cure. The harvest looks good with good size bulbs and not much problem with rot. It will be in the share again in two or three weeks.
We have begun harvesting the onions and as I feared the wet conditions have caused problems with rot. We have tried to save as many as we could by spreading them out in the greenhouse to dry, but many were too far gone. We will begin shipping some white onions this week and a sweet variety called Ailsa Craig next week. For the time being I recommend using your onions quickly as the sweet onions don’t keep well.
A word about the updates: I try my best to make predictions about what will be ready during the coming week on Sunday, because some groups receive their delivery on Tuesday. Please bear in mind that this is a prediction and not a guarantee. Things change and sometimes there is not enough of an item for groups that receive later in the week. I keep careful track of who has gotten what and to keep things equitable. Generally if an item is on the list and you don’t get it that week you will get it the next. This is the case for a number of items this week such as cauliflower, and squash/ cucumbers as well as peas and favas which are ending vs. beans which are just beginning.
During the past week we were forced to harvest thousands of heads of lettuce we were about to lose to bolting. These are now in cold storage to be saved for distribution over the next several weeks. Lettuce keeps very well this way for two or three weeks, but we just have too much and no more space in the coolers. And since many of the heads are a bit small, we will be sending two different varieties this week, probably a Red Romaine and a Boston (no guarantees!).
The share for this week will be:
Yukon Gold Potatoes, White Onions, Lettuces, Carrots, Cauliflower, choice of Swiss Chard or Kale, Basil, Bok Choy, Peas or Beans, and Squash or Cucumbers.
Enjoy!
Farmer John
