Farm News – July 20, 2026

Hello everyone, Oh the critters! Last week it was the coons in the corn; this week our watermelons have started to ripen, and the crow are descending on them to poke them full of holes! We have covered them with netting and old tattered row-cover, but it is a lot of extra work, when we already have too much to do. It is also not completely effective, impedes the growth of the vines and complicates the harvest. Soon the cantaloupes and other melons will be ripening, and they will be feasting on these as well! I have never been good at napping, but I may have to give it another try, since I need to go out at midnight to scare the raccoons, and get up at 5 am to chase away the crows!

So, we had eggplant on the list for last week, but when we were halfway through, we ran out. The cause of the pause in fruit production was the heat wave we had two weeks back – when the plants are exposed to excessive heat, they abort the flowers that would have grown into fruit. This happens with tomatoes and peppers as well. Production has resumed a bit, and there should be eggplant for the end of the week. Despite it all, we have a nice share for you. Little by little we are adding the warm weather staples of summer – soon there will be corn and tomatoes.

The share this week will be: Lettuce, kale, cukes, zukes, beets, scallions, green beans, peppers, broccolini (or eggplant), and choice of an herb (summer savory, parsley, garlic chives).  There will be some broccoli for the premium shares and extra garlic scapes.

No fruit for this week.  There will be flowers- mixed bouquets or sunflowers.  The mushroom will be oysters.

Enjoy! Farmer John