Author: Bryan Housel

Hi Everyone, I hope you all have managed okay with this weekend’s scorching heat. It was hard on my workers, but, as always, they stoically endured it. Had it not been for the rain earlier in the week, it might have been devastating for the crops. We were hoping for some more precipitation today as cooler air moves in, unfortunately we got a scant tenth of an inch. Temps this week will be a little more bearable, especially with nighttime temperatures dropping into the sixties. Hopefully, there will be more rain soon. (more…)

Hi Folks, So, we have received some much-needed rain and are expecting more on Monday evening. Thus far we have not experienced the high winds or hail often associated with these summer storms. This will enable us to get back on our planting schedule and relieve us, at least temporarily, from the task of moving the sprinklers around the fields. We are still waiting to see whether my recent planting of carrots will germinate sufficiently to merit care or will need to be abandoned. Carrots sprout and grow very slowly and require extensive hand weeding. If there are not enough plants present in each row, it is not worth the effort, and I will need to replant. (more…)

Hello Everyone!  As long-time members will attest, I am wont to whine about the weather.  Thus far there has been little to complain about, but it has now been more than two weeks with no precipitation.  It is becoming very dry, and with temperatures heading into the nineties, dry conditions make everything more challenging.  We have been moving the sprinklers around the fields to aid newly seeded crops to germinate and to keep the broccoli and cauliflower crops moist at a critical time – as they begin to form heads.   (more…)

Hello Folks, I hope you all had a pleasant Independence Day and a relaxing long weekend.  Of course, here on the farm our weeks do not end – there is just too much work to be done.   Although it is officially summer now, we have some wonderful spring onions for you this week.  These are a sweet, heirloom variety – Ailsa craig – which we send with the tops still attached.  Some of the greens can be used like scallions, or you can use them to make a soup stock.  They are not good keepers, so keep them in the fridge and use them within a week or two.   (more…)

Hi Everyone, I need to keep it brief this time, because I must get back out in the field to get some planting done. I am almost finished with sowing the winter squash – just two varieties of acorn to go! I will be planting sweet corn and cucumbers later this evening. I like to plant late in the day, just after we till the beds. The seeds then have the night to soak up the humidity in the soil before the sun begins to dry out the surface. Tomorrow I will make the second planting of beets and the third planting of carrots. (more…)

Hello Folks! Curioser and curioser, this weather of ours. It was quite a chilly weekend, between the low temperatures and the high winds. My workers had their winter coats on again. I was busy planting the pumpkins and winter squash which I generally do in the evenings to avoid the midday heat. I was out planting all afternoon on Sunday with a sweater and a windbreaker on! Last night it dropped down to 48 degrees here on the farm. This cool weather is good for the greens, lettuces, and peas – but the peppers don’t really like it much. (more…)