It is hot out there today. With all the doggy distraction last week, it’s hard to remember what else we have been us to. I do remember moving the big black tarps around, which is one of my least favourite jobs on the farm, the heat coming off of them is amazing and they are heavy as anything. I am happy once they are moved though, because it usually reveals nice clean beds, although how weed-free they are is often but a temporary illusion! It also means I get to smother parts of the garden that were full of weeds and can forget about them for a while. Some of the new beds have already been seeded into Salad Mix, Spinach and other fall crops, some we will probably seed with a cover crop or “green manure” which is a term used to mean a crop that is grown purely to build up the soil and suppress weeds.
Speaking of doggy distraction, it seems like she has decided to keep us, and we haven’t been able to find her previous owner. If you can think of a name for this good doggy please send it in.
There are a couple of fun new things in your shares this week. A nice variety of radish called Ostergruss, that looks like a long red carrot. I planted them for fall, but with all this rain lots of them are big enough to harvest. I also tried a crop this year called Highland or Ethiopian Kale, which is actually a mustard and not Kale at all, like other mustards it started flowering quickly so I will send some along this week for people to try. It can be used raw or cooked similar to Kale or Collard Greens, let me know what you think of it.
The salad mix this week is getting pretty huge, so if it is too spicy for your palate, remember you can always use it as a braising mix too!
This weeks shares:
- Tomatoes
- Swiss Chard (the new planting is green and red but it tastes just as good)
- Cucumbers
- Zucchini
- Carrots or Beets
- Ostergruss Radishes
- Spicy Salad Mix
- Highland Kale
- Eggplants
- Peppers
- Herbs
