Change is in the Air (Week 18)

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‘Space (on the farm) really is the final frontier’ – farmer brian

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Hi Friends & Farm-ily,

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Here we grow Week 18!  August and  September are the craziest whirlwind months here on the farm.  We keep saying “next week it will start to slow down” and we keep waiting for that to actually happen… ha ha crazy farmers…  It will though!  We are just about finished with our winter squash harvest so those precious fruits can be out of the weather and cure in the warmth of the greenhouse.  Next up will be the sweet tater harvest.  We dug up a few plants and found some beauties beneath so we’re hoping for a good yield!  Did you know that sweet potatoes need to be “cured” like winter squash?    The natural sweetness improves after curing but the primary purpose of curing is to heal injuries so that the sweet potatoes remain in good condition for storage/eating during the Fall and winter.  We keep them at 85 degrees Fahrenheit and a relative humidity of 85 to 90 percent for 7-10 days.

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We got 4 loads of squash in and only a few more to go!

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All of these steps/big items on the list require other steps – getting infrastructure set up, hauling, loading, stacking, building tables, etc… it’s never as easy as just the idea of it.  So, we remember, the only way out is through.  And we accomplish by doing.  You just gotta start – sometimes that’s the hardest part.  At some point this weekend, we also found ourselves shuffling about in the barn in the darker hours to put up another 4 tons of winter hay for the cows.  With the forecasted showers it needed to be done otherwise we probably wouldn’t have slept very well (even with only a 20% chance).  It ended up sprinkling the next morning so we felt glad that we pushed through and got it done (farmer brian asked the next morning, “at what point are you just too old to lift all this stuff”).  Between the hay, garlic, onions, storage maters etc it’s getting pretty full up in the loft of the barn.  With only 4 more tons of hay to go our bodies are already excited to have that chore finished!

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Covered space on a farm is like gold… Crispy Fall greens and checking in on our sweet taters!

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Change is in the air.  The autumnal equinox is coming up in the next week and the days grow shorter.  With the coming of the equinox we will start to see the box transition into Fall!  The rain showers will bring splits to the ol’ tomato patch and slow down all the summer crops.  Enjoy these gems while they are here!  It’s been one heck of a summer season and we’re not sure what the Fall will bring. . so we must enjoy what we have while we have it!  Nature teaches us a lot and to live in the day is surely one of those things.

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Once the sweet taters are harvested this weekend we will begin to prep ground for seeding in a mix of cover crop seed.  It’s that time of the season where we like to let part of the garden rest while feeding it the good stuff all winter long.  Cover crops are nitrogen-fixing, soil-conditioning, erosion-preventing, bio-mass-building things of beauty.  We look forward to building up the organic matter in the garden over time and feeding it the best we can so that all the plants that follow can have access to that wonderful nutrition.  There’s nothing better than seeing a big old stand of cover crop in the early Spring months… so much possibility awaits and the growing season begins again!

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Stacking 4 ton of hay into the night and Gloucester making sure the job is getting done..

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CSA Member Farm Day is coming up in a couple weeks!  Be sure to check your emails soon for an invite.

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Winter CSA!  We are thrilled about all the interest in the Winter CSA!  Our members sure do love them veggies as much as their farmers do.  All of us here on the farm thank you for all of your support!   We are excited for the winter season to begin and are so happy you will be joining us for the season ahead!  If anyone else would like to get on the waiting list please let us know and we’d be happy to add you.

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With some as big as your head!   The greens won’t always be so big… as the days grow shorter and there is less light available the leaves will naturally get smaller.. enjoy these jurassic park sized leaves while they are here!  

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WHF Pastured Pork!  We have our fall USDA certified pastured pork shares and sausage link shares available!  As well as unrendered leaf lard and pork back fat for all your cooking, baking and soap making needs.  Check the email “Fall Pastured Pork Shares” for more info and email us to make your order.

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WHF Grass Fed Beef!  Our 100% Grass fed, organic USDA certified beef shares will be available in the next few weeks.  We will keep all our members posted with the details.

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Cheers to you all, enjoy the week and we’ll see you soon!
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Your Farmers

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Jess & Brian

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dirty hands, clean hearts

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