The farmers are back in town. We had a fantastic trip to California to visit Vanessa’s brother & his family. we had great weather, great food, saw a few friends, toured the farm we both started on in Santa Cruz, and checked out a few farmer’s markets (Vanessa is a farmer’s market junkie). All in all it was a great trip. The interns worked very hard and seems like they put together a great CSA box last week and sold quite a bit of produce at the markets while we were away.
Our crew did a great job while we were gone. Our vacation week is a real test of what they have learned so far over the season and we are proud that they are so confident and competent!
It has rained and rained over the past few weeks, particularly the week we were gone when we had one storm that washed out about a third of some our fall vegetables. With the rain comes disease and this year seems to be worse than most. Our last two beds of summer squash succumbed early to a wilting disease call phytothphera. Similar to late blight in tomatoes, the crop can look fine and two days later, be wilted to the ground. It is heartbreaking. The same disease has taken the majority of our winter squash. So far, the butternuts are looking good and we are all keeping our fingers crossed for that. On the upside, the beans have been plentiful. The tomatoes are super abundant and although the ones outside aren’t looking good, the ones in the our greenhouse are looking strong.The flowers and sunflowers have been incredible. Our onion crop was good and we have plenty of potatoes. We have had lettuce all summer except for this week. The late cukes are starting in the hoop house as well. And the sweet potatoes plants look incredible as does our late round of melons. And we have three more rounds of sweet corn still to come!
The diversity of vegetables has always saved us over the years and this year, we hope, will be no exception. If one or two vegetables fail we have many others to work with, harvest and sell. This season has seen more disasters than any previous year. The bad is always hard to take, but the successes and our happy, hard-working crew have lessoned the bitter pill this season has been thus far. We are resowing and replanting the washed out beds, trying out some fall snap and snow peas and hopefully some quick growing greens.
Farmers, ourselves included, are always complaining about the weather and seem to take the bleak view but underneath that we are optimists at heart. Next year will always be better and we are planning and sowing for that right now. Also, we still have 10 more weeks of the CSA season and about 15 more weeks of markets, so this season is far from over!
Enjoy your vegetables. The abundance in your box is hard won!