Summer CSA: Week 11

The crew harvesting onions and shallots

Howdy folks,

We have past the halfway mark for the CSA and with that I want to do a brief check in about where we are at in terms of value of that food. Thus far the share value has averaged out at $43.37 per week. The first few CSA distributions tend to be on the light side and as we progress into late summer and fall the value of each weeks share increases. Last weeks share value was 59.75.

Last week we spent hustling to get more fall crops transplanted and the first of our winter storage crops harvested. The clear dry days we have had have been perfect for onion harvesting. It has been one of the best onions harvests I've experienced and we have crammed them into pretty much every available space in the barns and high tunnel in order to let them cure. Like garlic, storage onions need to be laid out in a dry area in order for them to release excess moisture and for their skins to toughen. These onions need at least a few weeks to cure. If cured and stored properly they can last up to 6 months.

Another of my favorite late summer tasks is harvesting winter squash. Our crop looks great and we will start bringing it in this week. This year we've grown a variety of my favorites including kubocha and delicate squash. Winter squash also needs to cure in order to toughen the skin for long term storage. We are going to have to get creative with our storage space as the onions are taking up so much space already. This is a good problem for a farmer to have.



Onions laid out in the high tunnel to cure 

We've been chipping away at the weeding of the herb garden. We did not get as far as I would have liked but it will be open again for picking this week (thank you for your patience). The farm is super weedy this year and frankly its driving me bonkers. We have had really great growing conditions with ample rain. This has meant great crops and robust weeds. My timing has been off a few times with tractor cultivation and  when that happens we often resort to hand weeding which is cumbersome and slow. Being at peak harvest time we don't have much extra time to hand weed so here I am with a really weedy farm. If you feel so moved to pull a few weeds while you are harvesting your pick your own please have at it.


Tim laying out nice sized onions in the high tunnel

This weeks share:
Tomatoes
Peppers
Onions
Potatoes
Eggplant
Summer squash and Zucchini (this is a maybe, we have downy mildew and the plants are going down fast)
Cucumbers (also a maybe due to downy mildew)
Lettuce (I've been reminded that summer lettuce can be bitter, try a sweet dressing or use olive oil to balance the bitter flavor)
Beets
Cooking greens


PYO:
Cherry tomatoes
Hot peppers
Herbs
Flowers
Raspberries (there are not enough for folks to pick a 1/2 pint however please feel free to walk through and sample a few. Please be mindful that there are other CSA members who would also like to taste the raspberries.)

Your farmer,

Zannah