Hello Folks, The fields had dried out nicely during the past week and we were able to get back to preparing the ground for planting and to get caught up on transplanting of the fall Cole crops. Because we have a fairly sandy soil here at the farm it drains well and dries out rapidly; a blessing during rainy times and a bit of a challenge during drought. The newly transplanted Brussels sprouts and cauliflower were looking quite sad during the hot spell last week and I was hoping for a little rain to perk them up.

Hi Folks, Moderation in all things; that’s what my mother taught me. Mother Nature however, doesn’t seem to want to follow this rule. In a few short days we have gone from the Mojave Desert to the Okefenokee Swamp; from dust bowl to mud bowl.

Hello Folks, We finally got some rain! Nearly 2 inches of precipitation fell during Thursday’s deluge and Friday’s all day drizzle and showers. The Thursday storms were accompanied by gusty winds and a brief bout of hail, always a scary event. Some peppers were knocked over and a few tomato plants broken, but thankfully, no major damage.

Hello Folks, Hot enough for you? We are still very dry here at the farm. Saturday’s storms passed mostly to the south of us and we received only about a tenth of an inch of precipitation. Many of the summer crops have drip irrigation, but not all and so we are busy moving the sprinklers every day.

Hello Everyone, It’s been hot and dry here at the farm. We had only a passing thunderstorm on Sunday- what I call a nuisance rain, because it only served to chase us out of the fields and did not drop enough precipitation to do the crops any good. The forecast gives us a 50% chance of rain on the 4th of July; keep your fingers crossed!

Hi Folks, It’s been hot and dry here on the farm; not a good combination. The storms that passed through on Friday dropped only about a quarter inch of rain. They began with strong winds and hail, which fortunately abated quickly.

Hello Folks, Here I am again at the end of a 14 hour day trying to get out my late update! I intended to write this morning after consulting with my lead worker, but my day spun out of control and I never got back to my desk. We got two ailing tractors up and running again but left a pickup truck broke down by the side of the road.

Hello Folks, We have arrived at the week you’ve been waiting for, when your investment in my farming endeavors begins to pay dividends. I truly appreciate the faith and confidence that the members have in the farm. My crew and I have been working hard these last 3 months and now you will begin to taste the results.

Now that you have your stock up share, how do you keep it edible if you don’t want to refrigerate everything? If you don’t have a root cellar, and my guess is few of us have one, can you leave it all in the garage or is it safer in the basement? There is a good amount of information out on the web, but a fairly concise report from Ms. Hillers, an extension food specialist at the Washington State University (Google the article “Storing Vegetables and Fruits at Home”), offers some insight into not only how to build a root…

Hi Folks, The final share of the season is not as bountiful as I would have liked, but we have done our best under difficult conditions. The lettuces and spinach that remain in the field are very small, so we are sending 3 small heads of lettuce and a bag of baby spinach. We also have a fair bit of red or purple mustards which I thought might be useful as a garnish for your holiday tables. The share for this week will be: Several small lettuce, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, parsnips, carrots, tatsoi or other mustard, baby spinach, butternut squash,…