Irrigating Potatoes
July is here and we're hoping she brings us clouds and rain. I find myself dreaming of raindrops in the evenings... and can hardly wait for the comforting smell of the first rain, for the pollen and dust to be knocked down, to feel the ground, the field, the plants and myself all let out a big sigh of relief as the temperatures drop and moisture falls from the sky.... Come on RAIN! We have our fingers crossed for a healthy monsoon season,
We made it through Spring and the long, hot month of June but not without a lot of sweat, tears, hangry moments and pure exhaustion. The season has honestly been kicking our butts, as we're trying to do a little too much. We're building ample amounts of infrastructure this year (prop house, game fence, moveable greenhouses, steel building for our produce wash/pack/storage area, etc.), growing a bit more produce than previous years and forcing ourselves to stay on top of the weeds. So, tackling those projects and adding in harvests and deliveries in June has not left much time for sleep, food prep, or down time. But, we're excited about July and hoping this month will bring us some relief in the form of rainfall. Rainy days let us take a break from irrigating and hopefully kick us out of the field for a day here and there.
Freshly weeded onions looking lovely
We finished the second weeding in the onion block on Saturday! Look at these beauties, aaahhh! It's my favorite block of the farm at the moment and I think they know it!
We harvested the garlic on Monday morning! Woop woop! With a slight chance of rain later in the week we decided it was time to pull the garlic. It was exciting to use an undercutter that we purchased last Fall but never had a chance to use... and it worked great and made the garlic harvest so easy and fast! We're hoping we can use this implement to harvest the carrots, beets, turnips, etc. this season.
We tackled most of the root block last week and everything is looking pretty good! The germination in the field is great, the plants are growing and we successfully cleared the weeds, well atleast for a couple weeks! Grow roots, grow! Out here we have the main planting of turnips, beets, carrots, parsnip, rutabagas, and winter radishes (watermelon, spanish black and daikon). The second succession of beets, carrots and radishes are just starting to pop up.
CSA Harvest - Week #4
I seeded the next succession of lettuce trays yesterday and Fall brassicas are on the list for tomorrow. Yes, you heard right, the greens we'll be harvesting and enjoying October through November are seeded now and get transplanted mid-August. Always planning ahead!
Harvest details for CSA - Week #5: Salad Greens, Head Lettuce, Kale, Chard, Mustards, Scallions, Carrots, Herbs and Garlic. Enjoy!