Author: Bryan Housel

Hello all, we received 5” of rain from tropical storm Isaias but no real damage from the wind. It was too much rain all at once, but we have sandy, well drained soils, and most of the precipitation soaked in. We had just finished rolling up the sidewalls on most of our high tunnel greenhouses and had to run around closing them all up again or risk damage to the structures. I hope that those of you who lost power have been restored by now and did not sustain too much other damage. (more…)

Hi Folks, Batten down the hatches! We’re going to have a blow! For the second time this season we are counting on a tropical storm to bring us some rain. I am reminded of the lyrics of a Michael Franti song- “…when rain didn’t have to mean a hurricane”. We just hope it does not come too hard, too fast, and that the winds do not do much damage. At least you will not have to read my complaints about how dry it is for a while! (more…)

Hello everyone, we received about 6/10 of an inch of precipitation this past week from 2 light overnight rains.  It seems Mother Nature is doling out the moisture with an eye dropper!  These light rains help a little, especially when they occur at night and have a chance to seep in.  We really need a good soaking rain, and our best chance for the week is tomorrow – 50%. (more…)

Hi Folks, I guess I do not need to tell you how hot and humid it is!  It’s July in New Jersey!  We are once again waiting and hoping that some summer thunderstorms bring us some much-needed rain.  In the meantime, we are moving the sprinklers around and laying out old drip tape to trickle some water on a few crops and help the germination of recently seeded plantings. (more…)

Hi Everyone, we received 3½ inches of rain on Friday from Tropical storm Fay.  It is a lot of water in a short time, but fortunately it fell at a steady rate here on the farm and was not accompanied by heavy winds.  The ground was very dry after a month with almost no rain, and it soaked it up easily.  We are now able to get back to planting and caring for the tomatoes and other crops without the added burden of moving sprinklers around. (more…)

Hello Folks, So we still have not received any rain.  The 90% chance of precipitation we had on Friday did not happen.  The storms moved to the north of the farm, and we got only a brief dust storm.  The storms that we thought we might get Monday afternoon also passed around the farm.  We are working hard to keep everything growing and newly planted crops germinating.  I have purchased more sprinklers, and we are reusing old drip tape to trickle water onto seed beds and crops on bars ground.  We will be mulching certain crops with straw to retain the soil moisture.  (more…)

Hello Folks, Since my last writing we received .3 inches of rain.  While this was welcome, it was not even close to what we need.  We typically look for 1” per week of precipitation, so 3/10 of an inch over three weeks along with significant heat, has left us very dry.  We are moving sprinklers around constantly, laying drip tape over newly planted seeds and generally trying to keep everything possible alive and growing.  We just do not have enough water to irrigate everything. (more…)