CSA Week 18-2011
Posted 9/23/2011 10:27pm by Larry Brandenburg.
Friends,
We will have another bag of sweet potatoes for you this week. They have cured for a week -- the minimum I think for getting good flavor. The longer they cure, the sweeter they get. Curing is actually the process of allowing the water to evaporate and the skins to become less fragile. As the water evaporates, the sugars become more concentrated which gives a sweeter taste. We will be digging more over the next two weeks so there should be plenty.
Usually September is a relatively dry month. We average a little over two inches. So far this monty we have gotten close to five inches. We had hoped to dig more potatoes (the regular kind) this week but it has just been too wet. We will share a quart of Yukons with you but they were dug earlier in the season.
Everyone will get some Winter Squash. I wish we had more but the squash bugs were relentless this year. Hopefully the cover crop we plant this fall will help disturb their habitat.
The wet, cool weather has pretty much done in the summer crops (except the peppers?) but it has been great for the lettuce we planted in August. It is growing well and we hope that we will have it for you before the end of the season.
It is beginning to feel like fall and our thoughts will be turning to preparing for next year. Starting next week we will be removing crops that are no longer producing and if it dries out enough I will begin tilling them under. Then we will go in and plant a fall cover crop of Rye, Hairy Vetch, Clover and Austrian Peas. Next spring I will till in the cover crop and it will provide fertility and organic matter for next year's crops. However, we need some dry weather. I need to get the cover crops in by October 15. This year the costs for our cover crop seed are being funded by the Natural Resources Conservation Service through a program for organic farmers. Thank you Washington for finally doing something for organic farmers.
We look forward to seeing everyone this week. We have a GREAT group of people in our CSA. I wish we had the opportunity for everyone to get together and meet. You would like each other. Because of your convictions about local, organic food, we are inspired to continue to meet your needs and make the world a better place.
Thanks,
Larry
We will have another bag of sweet potatoes for you this week. They have cured for a week -- the minimum I think for getting good flavor. The longer they cure, the sweeter they get. Curing is actually the process of allowing the water to evaporate and the skins to become less fragile. As the water evaporates, the sugars become more concentrated which gives a sweeter taste. We will be digging more over the next two weeks so there should be plenty.
Usually September is a relatively dry month. We average a little over two inches. So far this monty we have gotten close to five inches. We had hoped to dig more potatoes (the regular kind) this week but it has just been too wet. We will share a quart of Yukons with you but they were dug earlier in the season.
Everyone will get some Winter Squash. I wish we had more but the squash bugs were relentless this year. Hopefully the cover crop we plant this fall will help disturb their habitat.
The wet, cool weather has pretty much done in the summer crops (except the peppers?) but it has been great for the lettuce we planted in August. It is growing well and we hope that we will have it for you before the end of the season.
It is beginning to feel like fall and our thoughts will be turning to preparing for next year. Starting next week we will be removing crops that are no longer producing and if it dries out enough I will begin tilling them under. Then we will go in and plant a fall cover crop of Rye, Hairy Vetch, Clover and Austrian Peas. Next spring I will till in the cover crop and it will provide fertility and organic matter for next year's crops. However, we need some dry weather. I need to get the cover crops in by October 15. This year the costs for our cover crop seed are being funded by the Natural Resources Conservation Service through a program for organic farmers. Thank you Washington for finally doing something for organic farmers.
We look forward to seeing everyone this week. We have a GREAT group of people in our CSA. I wish we had the opportunity for everyone to get together and meet. You would like each other. Because of your convictions about local, organic food, we are inspired to continue to meet your needs and make the world a better place.
Thanks,
Larry
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