CSA Week 7
Posted 7/8/2011 9:44pm by Larry Brandenburg.
Friends,
Well, after taking some time off last week, today hit us really hard. Hard rain that is. It rained all day while we were harvesting, but the show goes on rain or shine.
We dug the last of the new potatoes in thick sticky mud and it took longer to wash them than it did to dig them. These are the potatoes that the Colorado Potato Beetles made a feast of and it amazes me how much yield we got from them. Unfortunately, about half the yield has some green showing. As I told you earlier, the heavy rains in the spring washed too much soil off of them and exposed them to the sun. However, all you have to do it cut off the green skin and they are fine. You will get a quart of "unblemished" Yukons this weekend but we are also going to let you pick from the green ones and take an additional quart.
Our large planting of potatoes is doing really well. They really enjoyed the two inches of rain we got this week. So far we have not any significant Potato Beetle damage. I think we have a symbiotic relationship with the Wild Turkey we have here on the farm. No, not the kind that comes in a bottle. Many times when I have gone out in the big field where the potatoes are growing I have come upon several turkeys quickly trotting away from the potato patch. I believe they are going over there to eat the beetles. Some people turn chickens out in their vegetable patch for them eat bugs but I guess we are doing it "In tune with nature" as our slogan says.
We are in a kind of a transition right now between spring and summer crops. Some of the spring things were effected by the rain and hot weather. The summer crops are a couple of weeks behind since we couldn't get them planted due to the wet ground. They are catching up though and it won't be long before they are in full production
We have lost quite a bit of our Crooked-Neck Squash and three fourths of our Zucchini to the dreaded Squash Bug. We had very little bug pressure on the squash last year so this came as quite a surprise to us. We have put in succession plantings of each of these and they will do better the next round as we know now what to expect and can deal with it before it gets out of hand.
Growing organically is very challenging. If you visit several Farmer's Markets in Louisville you will find that we are the only Certified Organic vegetable farm in this local area of Kentucky. There are many who say they grow "organically" or everything is "natural" but you have to take their word for it. Actually, a farmer is not allowed to use the word Organic unless they are certified. Why? To protect you -- the consumer. And in order to become certified your farm has to become totally transparent. Not only do we have all the record keeping and paper work that is so time consuming, but we also are inspected at least once a year. The inspection is very thorough and includes taking plant samples to test for chemical residue. Not everyone who says they grow "organically" can stand up to this type of scrutiny.
As they say, "If it was easy, everyone would do it." It is not easy and we are one of the few farms that have made the choice to do it the hard way. It would not be possible for us to do this if it wasn't for you and your commitment to the same ideals and principles that we believe in. Or, to put it more simply, a better way of living. Living better not only for ourselves, but for the world and our neighbors.
Thanks neighbor. We love you.
Larry
Well, after taking some time off last week, today hit us really hard. Hard rain that is. It rained all day while we were harvesting, but the show goes on rain or shine.
We dug the last of the new potatoes in thick sticky mud and it took longer to wash them than it did to dig them. These are the potatoes that the Colorado Potato Beetles made a feast of and it amazes me how much yield we got from them. Unfortunately, about half the yield has some green showing. As I told you earlier, the heavy rains in the spring washed too much soil off of them and exposed them to the sun. However, all you have to do it cut off the green skin and they are fine. You will get a quart of "unblemished" Yukons this weekend but we are also going to let you pick from the green ones and take an additional quart.
Our large planting of potatoes is doing really well. They really enjoyed the two inches of rain we got this week. So far we have not any significant Potato Beetle damage. I think we have a symbiotic relationship with the Wild Turkey we have here on the farm. No, not the kind that comes in a bottle. Many times when I have gone out in the big field where the potatoes are growing I have come upon several turkeys quickly trotting away from the potato patch. I believe they are going over there to eat the beetles. Some people turn chickens out in their vegetable patch for them eat bugs but I guess we are doing it "In tune with nature" as our slogan says.
We are in a kind of a transition right now between spring and summer crops. Some of the spring things were effected by the rain and hot weather. The summer crops are a couple of weeks behind since we couldn't get them planted due to the wet ground. They are catching up though and it won't be long before they are in full production
We have lost quite a bit of our Crooked-Neck Squash and three fourths of our Zucchini to the dreaded Squash Bug. We had very little bug pressure on the squash last year so this came as quite a surprise to us. We have put in succession plantings of each of these and they will do better the next round as we know now what to expect and can deal with it before it gets out of hand.
Growing organically is very challenging. If you visit several Farmer's Markets in Louisville you will find that we are the only Certified Organic vegetable farm in this local area of Kentucky. There are many who say they grow "organically" or everything is "natural" but you have to take their word for it. Actually, a farmer is not allowed to use the word Organic unless they are certified. Why? To protect you -- the consumer. And in order to become certified your farm has to become totally transparent. Not only do we have all the record keeping and paper work that is so time consuming, but we also are inspected at least once a year. The inspection is very thorough and includes taking plant samples to test for chemical residue. Not everyone who says they grow "organically" can stand up to this type of scrutiny.
As they say, "If it was easy, everyone would do it." It is not easy and we are one of the few farms that have made the choice to do it the hard way. It would not be possible for us to do this if it wasn't for you and your commitment to the same ideals and principles that we believe in. Or, to put it more simply, a better way of living. Living better not only for ourselves, but for the world and our neighbors.
Thanks neighbor. We love you.
Larry
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