Delivery #9, Week of July 28, 2025

The News from Windflower Farm 

What’s in the vegetable share?

• Eggplant
• Summer squashes
• Yellow onions
• Tomatoes
• Basil
• Fennel
• Sweet corn
• Bunched beets from Denison Farm
• Lettuce from Denison Farm

The fruit share will consist of a quart of peaches from Yonder Farm.

The first of our sweet corn is coming this week. There is some bug damage in the tips. You may want to cut off the tips before shucking your corn. 

News from the farm

The water level in our primary irrigation pond, which is in a deep ravine in the middle of our farm, has been going down during these hot and dry weeks of midsummer, concentrating the aquatic wildlife in an ever-smaller pool, as happens every year at this time. The snapping turtles, fishes, frogs, and insects have come to reside in what I imagine is uncomfortable proximity. Nate and I were installing a dock on which to relocate an irrigation pump in a corner of the pond the other day when we encountered the remains of a crawdad that measured a whopping 7 ½ inches in length. Tracks in the mud suggested that the animal may have been mortally wounded by a racoon, a species known to relish crayfish. I once had crayfish at the Bobcat Café, in Bristol, Vermont, in a dish called prawns in marinara with linguine, and found them to be surprisingly good.

We were admiring the creature when Jan came running down the pond trail in pursuit by the county sheriff. “What had she done?” I wondered. “Are you OK?” she asked. It took us a minute to understand what was going on. It turns out that Nate had butt-dialed 9-1-1. The sheriff was surprised at how difficult it was to keep up with Jan, who first ran down a steep hill and then up another long one before getting to us. But I wasn’t – she was a track star in high school. He gets butt dials all the time, he said, and must respond to each one. He’s been to almost every farm in the county. The sheriff also said that Candelaria and Salvador, who are part of our Mexican staff, looked nervous when they saw him go by. “No kidding!” I thought.

After nearly an inch of rainfall today, the pond’s level has risen considerably, and its inhabitants are no doubt happy to have a little more space. And Nate is happy to have a break from irrigation this week.

Have a great week, Ted