The News from Windflower Farm
Hello from a wet Windflower Farm!
What’s in your share?
- Yellow bulb onions
- Ruby Red Swiss chard
- Squashes or broccoli or beets
- Cukes
- Our last garlic scapes
- Kohlrabi (perhaps our last)
- Red Romaine lettuce
- Red Russian kale
- Our first tomatoes (just a few)
- Genovese basil
Your fruit shares will consist of fresh blueberries from Yonder Farm. I asked Pete to set aside cherries for us, but the rain might have split them and he may have to send blueberries instead. Our own blueberries will come along soon and Pete’s peaches and plums will follow in the next few weeks. Cabbages, beets and more tomatoes will be in next week’s vegetable shares along with the usual salad crops.
What’s new on the farm?
We have yet to put our rain gear away. Another 1¼” fell last week, it’s raining now, 2” are expected overnight and the forecast calls for a rainy week. Wet stretches are not uncommon in summer but organic vegetable farmers fear them because of the diseases they bring. We have effective tools against insect pests, and better and better equipment to deal with weeds, but we are poorly equipped when it comes to diseases. When downy mildew strikes cucumbers or basil, when powdery mildew infects zucchini, or when late blight attacks tomatoes, we are essentially helpless. Sprays only briefly postpone the inevitable. Our techniques are almost exclusively preventative: we select disease-resistant varieties when available, we plant in a way that encourages good air flow, we grow especially sensitive crops in greenhouses, and, as a last resort, we spray a material like copper or sulfur – both of which are approved for organic production. And when it appears that there is nothing else to do, we harvest early. Last weekend, weeks ahead of normal, we began harvesting garlic and onions. So far, so good. I’d like to tuck the whole farm indoors until all this blows over.
Have a great week, Ted
This just in!
The fruit share will be Yonder Farm peaches instead of blueberries tomorrow. Most likely, we’ll send our own organic blueberries next week. Let’s hope the birds stay away from them!
We hope you enjoy your shares this week!
