Wowie. One hot day after the next here. We’ve missed all the rain, even that nutty downpour/hail that happened in the village of Canton, didn’t make it to the farm.. We are seeing that in the stress of the nightshade family (potatoes, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers). We spend so much time watering the more delicate and direct seeded crops, that these have not gotten the moisture they require. It was a disappointment to see the scab on the blue potatoes we began to dig this week. At least they are still edible, one of our other varieties never got big enough to amount to anything. If you were a shareholder last year, you’ll likely remember the most bountiful crop of eggplant ever; ‘as you like’ eggplant offered for weeks through August and September. That won’t be happening this year, the plants are still quite small and the harvest will be too. The tomato plants are not as large as in years past, but there is fruit set and we will have some to distribute.
the drought can affect potatoes with smaller yields, scab on the skins and increased pest pressure
The drought tolerant weeds are well-adjusted to this climate and staying on top of them has been tough. In fact, the onions that were so beautifully maintained April, May and June, have since succumbed to weed pressure. There’s lots of good onions, but they are buried beneath the weeds. Harvest will be a challenge indeed.
In finer news, so far the fall crop of carrots and beets is doing well. We kept the area well-watered and have begun to thin the plants out, so the ones remaining have ample space to grow large. The beet greens in this weeks share are thinnings from the fall planting. The fall planting of broccoli, cauliflower, kale rainbow chard and chinese cabbage are also doing well. There is also head lettuce, mixed greens and spinach coming up for fall harvest. We’ve had a lot more deer and rabbit pressure around the fields this summer, so we’re trying to keep Rye dog active day and night to stave off significant loss.
apprentice chloe thinning fall planting of chinese cabbage
As you know, the garlic harvest happened and we’ve cleaned and hung the large bulbs to replant in the fall. Last weekend, we got the shallots out of the ground. The red ones look great and are curing for long term-storage currently. I’m ready for a culinary shallot revival here in the states. While smaller than onions, they are far more delicious and can store for over a year at room temperature!
harvesting red shallots, the champions of sweetness and long-storage
As with every season, there are difficult crops and abundant ones. This season it has taken non-stop supplemental watering, yet we remain humble and thankful for the harvest.
Mark your calendars for the August 13th Garden Morning.