Farm News- June 18, 2009

Hi Everyone,

We’ve arrived at the week you’ve all been waiting for the week of the first delivery. As usual there won’t be a large number of items in this first share, but what we have I think you will enjoy. I was hoping to have broccoli for the first share, as the early crop was beginning to head up last week, but it seems that it will need another week. I guess it isn’t necessary to tell you it’s been raining a lot. These wet conditions for the past 2 weeks have made it very difficult to keep up with the planting schedule.

The greenhouse is full of plants ready to be transplanted, but I can’t prepare the beds, because the ground is too wet to work. There are many seeds that need to go in now as well, and even though I have ground ready, the seeder won’t work properly if the soil is too wet. And there’s keeping up with the weeds in the already growing crops. When I am able to cultivate with the tractor in a timely manner a lot of hand cultivation can be avoided, but weeds disturbed by a cultivator easily reroot in wet soil. Sometimes people think that all the rain is good for the crops, but what’s really needed is a balance between rain and sunshine. Prolonged dampness can create ideal conditions for fungal diseases and frequent rain makes it difficult to spray for insect pests. I am always mindful of the maxim: Be careful what you wish for, in these circumstances. At anytime now the rain might stop and we could head into a long drought. For now I’m just hoping for a few days of sun before the next round of showers and thunderstorms rolls in.

The share for this week will be:
English (shell) peas, Red leaf lettuce, endive (frissee), garlic scapes, radishes, kale, choice of arugula or mustard greens, and a choice of oregano or mint.

Enjoy!
Farmer John