The solar eclipse on Monday was BEAUTIFUL and captivating. The light was mysterious and eerie, the sky was calm and everything felt still and silent. The temperature dropped considerably and it made for a couple hours of perfect harvest conditions in the middle of the day. We'll see if the eclipse confuses any of the vegetables? I am curious to see if having the light and temperatures suddenly drop in the middle of the day will cause anything to bolt? We'll report back if we notice anything out of the ordinary in the coming weeks!
It warmed back up quickly once the eclipse had passed and then around 4 o'clock a large storm cloud was building in the mountains and we could hear the rumble of thunder getting closer and closer. I was in the middle or harvesting turnips when I felt a couple raindrops and decided we should run and cover the greens, incase of hail, as the clouds were dark and the air was cool. A few minutes later it was pouring rain and we were forced inside for a couple hours waiting for the storm and lightning to pass. We weren't able to harvest as much as we had planned on Monday which made for a nonstop Tuesday harvest, but we completed everything right before dark. Go team!
Last Thursday we got the first round of the Fall greens planted. Wahoo! These went in a week later than last year so we'll keep notes on how they do. Kale, Collards, Chard, Spinach, Napa Cabbage, Bok Choy and Lettuces! Grow lovelies grow!
Here's a sample Fall CSA Share from last season
This reminds me... We are doing a 10-Week Fall CSA again this season and would love to have you join us! The Fall CSA Starts on Wednesday, October 11th and runs through mid-December. We will be harvesting greens out of the field and greenhouses to supplement the storage crops that make for comforting Fall meals. Think potatoes, onions, garlic, carrots, beets, turnips, rutabaga, cabbage, winter squash, etc. You can read up on the details and register here:
Mountain Roots Produce - 2017 Fall CSA
We're clearing beds in front of the moveable tunnels and hope to seed/plant those in the coming days with additional spinach, salad greens, kale, mustards and more. The plan is to pull the moveable tunnels over these crops once we have a hard frost that knocks out the tomatoes. I have been wanting to do this for years and am really excited to finally try it this season!
The cold dips we had last week seem to have slowed the hot crops down for a minute and even burnt the basil? Come ON! But then by Friday it was around 80 degrees and felt hotter than my body could handle as we haven't had too much heat around here in a solid month or so. Maybe it's going to return in September??
Mmmmm, the brassica block has been LOVING this cool Summer
The onions are beginning to fall! The red onion we grow always falls first and last season we pulled it out on 8/21 so I'm curious to see how much later it is this year. I'd say 10 percent have fallen so far and we'll wait until roughly 60 percent are down before we pull them out of of the field and set up to cure.
I started thinning the rutabagas on Saturday. Rutabagas are one of the most underrated and forgotten about vegetables. They're delicious and should be in everybody's kitchen for cozy Fall and Winter meals. We are growing the standard variety, Joan, which has a rich golden flesh that is sweet and delicious once the temperatures drop. In addition, we are trialling the Gilfeather Turnip, which I'm excited about! The Gilfeather has sassy serrated leaves and will have green shoulders rather than the the purple of Joan. Joan is currently tasting much sweeter than Gilfeather but, final taste tests will commence once November rolls around.
Fava Beans!
Mike completed the final irrigation on the potatoes and they'll be mowed in the next couple weeks. Oh potatoes! We need to prepare our bodies to harvest this crop... they're so heavy, but so delicious. The potatoes appear to be sizing up nicely and will be making an appearance in the CSA Shares in the coming weeks!
One last thing... Cauliflower! I harvested the first head on Sunday and squealed with excitement as I carried it up to the house. I'm in love with this crop and the first one of the year did not disappoint. We roasted it for dinner on Monday and it was very sweet and satisfying! The rest of the plants should follow soon, fingers crossed!
CSA Harvest - Week #12:
Red Crisphead Lettuce, Lacinato Kale, Collards, Tomatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Peppers (Sweet Bell, Poblano and Jalapeno), Carrots, Zucchini, Cucumber, Colorful Beans, Broccoli, Purple Scallions, Cilantro and Thai Basil.
Have wonderful day everyone and savor the last week of August! xoxo