News
from the Farm
By Rhys Williams
Last Saturday morning, we thought we had dodged a bullet. At 4:00 a.m. the temperature at the shop was 37 degrees. The shop is in a low spot so it is a good indication of the temperature of our valley. As we drove to market and listened to the lows across the state we thought that we had avoided the frost that blanketed many of the fields that we passed. Unfortunately, the fields where our melons and cantaloupe were growing did get frosted and many of the plants were damaged. It will be a few days until we can fully assess the crop.
So one of the strangest years continues. To have frost on August 20 is devastating to any agricultural enterprise. If it had happened in Florida, the papers would be full of pictures of ice covered oranges. In the apple industry the fruit would begin ripening at an increased rate and cause panic throughout the orchards. But in Minnesota itÕs just one more thing to deal with and one more adjustment to make. Many corn and soybean growers in Northern Minnesota have been forced to write off the year. It was probably a merciful ending to a very wet, cold year.
But what are you going to do? You accept the notion in agriculture that your biggest variable you can not control. It puts you at the mercy of the weather and you begin to understand why so many of the early farming communities were spiritually based.
Our farm will lose a couple of weeks of cantaloupe and the growth of many of our crops will be slowed. Fortunately for our CSA we still have a wide variety that will fill in any gaps that we may experience. Rebecca's planning and crop selection will help us to get through some of the problems that the weather has thrown at us.
Now we at Featherstone await the arrival of the locust. We will be one of the few farms in the Midwest that expect their arrival and are already looking up recipes for all of you.
Varieties
By Rebecca Claypool
Beets: This week we have a mix of Detroit Red Beets and Chioggia Beets. These bunches are still from our summer planting, and may be the best beets we have all year depending on how the fall crop germinates.
Bell Peppers: We planted a mix of red, yellow and green bell peppers this year. All peppers start out green and slowly change to red, yellow or orange, so there maybe some blushing on a few peppers.
Cucumbers: We are still picking from the only cucumber planting that survived. ItÕs giving more fruit than we can handle so youÕre getting a lot this week, and then we will drop off picking.Bok Choy: This is a variety of Chinese green. Both the stems and the leaves are edible. ItÕs great steamed and in stir-fries. It should be kept in a plastic bag in the refrigerator.
Red Slicer Tomatoes: These tomatoes are from our greenhouses. They are the typical red hybrid tomato that is sold in grocery stores. We planted a few varieties this year, but most of them are Buffalo Tomatoes.
Head Lettuce: This variety is a heat resistant type called Nevada. It hasnÕt gotten very big this late summer, although it has been in the ground long enough to be enormous. DonÕt expect the flavor to be nearly as good as spring lettuce, but hopefully it will do.
Broccoli: This batch of broccoli looks beautiful and should taste supper. IÕm looking forward to a large stir fry soon.
Watermelon and/or Canteloupe
Spicy Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry