Week 9, 2023
I believe that predictable practices are good for a person, a family and a crew. There is no questioning whether the job or the task set before us is worthy or important, it simply must be done.
Archives
Week 8, 2023
I believe that predictable practices are good for a person, a family and a crew. There is no questioning whether the job or the task set before us is worthy or important, it simply must be done.
Week 7, 2023
It’s only week 7 and the season feels like it’s in a teenage stage of development. Many of the plants are looking full sized, healthy, strong, and like they’re approaching the season of setting fruit. The potato, tomato, squash, melon and cuke fields look fantastic to name a few.
Week 6, 2023
With the hot weather the summer squash and zucchini harvest is hitting strong. Cucumber harvest will likely begin next week. Cucumber and zucchini harvest needs to happen every two days to make sure that the fruits don’t get over-mature. We also harvest broccoli and cauliflower every two days to cut the heads that are fully mature and to make sure they don’t over-mature in the fields. Broccoli and Cauliflower are both stored in the cooler and iced until box packing on Tuesdays.
Week 5, 2023
With the hot weather the summer squash and zucchini harvest is hitting strong. Cucumber harvest will likely begin next week. Cucumber and zucchini harvest needs to happen every two days to make sure that the fruits don’t get over-mature. We also harvest broccoli and cauliflower every two days to cut the heads that are fully mature and to make sure they don’t over-mature in the fields. Broccoli and Cauliflower are both stored in the cooler and iced until box packing on Tuesdays.
Week 4, 2023
The farm in in full swing. We are finally caught up on all of our summer plantings and we have a couple week break before we will begin transplanting some of our fall brassicas. We seeded our first succession of Fall carrots before what we thought was going to be rain on Saturday night. Another 3/10 inch of rain fell which was just enough to wet the surface of the ground but not provide anything substantial or satisfactory to the plants or new seedings. Farmer Adam continues to irrigate day after day keeping everything in a rotation now which is a time consuming and a laborious effort
Week 3, 2023
On these long, warm, sunny days on the farm we are enjoying the full length of a summer day. The heat has felt enjoyable thus far although I may feel differently by the end of this week. We’re drinking bottle after bottle of water and I notice sweat on the brows of the crew as we work now even when movement is minimal.
Week 2, 2023
In our second full week of June your farmers have been having a hard time thinking of much else other than the very, very concerning drought conditions we are experiencing. We are in a moderate drought zone here in Southwest Wisconsin.
Week 1, 2023
The Small Family Farm is beginning its 18th growing season as a CSA farm and we’re so thrilled to begin sharing with you the bounty from yet another fruitful growing season on the farm! An impressive 70% of you are returning CSA members who have been with us for several years returning to the table like faithful family members who journey together through another unpredictable Midwest growing season on our little small family farm!
Week 18, 2022
We’re feeling the shift on the farm this week from the summer weather to the cool, fall weather. The crew is coming to work with their long johns, stocking caps and layers of warm clothing. We are excited to be harvesting some of our favorite fall crops these next couple weeks.
Week 17, 2022
September Twenty-First As we officially approach Fall on the farm with the weather transitioning from warm to cool this week I am reminded that we are in a time of transition. Back to school season, tomato sauce canning season, apple-picking and cider pressing season and craving-for-pumpkin-bars season. The colorful harvest, these stunningly beautiful, misty, shadowy […]
Week 16, 2022
September Fourteenth This week on the farm we are feeling the transition into Fall. The cool, misty mornings turn into sunny, warm afternoons and then the temperature drops again into cool, dark, sleepy evenings. I’m dreaming of pumpkin bars, apple cider and tomato soup with fresh baked bread. The darkness in the evenings, the sound […]
Week 15, 2022
September Seventh On Week 15 out of 20 Summer Share deliveries, your farmers are aware of their bodies. It is interesting to watch how a farm-worker’s body changes throughout the season. When a season is young and new our bodies are rested and seem to contain a storage reservoir of energy and agility that will […]
Week 13, 2022
August Twenty-Fourth I would like to take a moment to speak of gratitude. A subject I like to touch on throughout the season from time to time. I am reminded of it at meal times when my family sits together around the table and we allow a moment for us each to recall something that […]
Week 12, 2022
August Seventeenth A magical evening was had by all at the Summer Evening Farm Dinner this last Saturday night! We were so excited for this event that celebrates local, seasonal, and organic food on a Community Supported Agriculture farm! We had over 60 guests on Saturday night dining with their farmers and getting to know […]
Week 11, 2022
August Tenth This week on the farm we finished up our onion and garlic harvest which are always two large harvests that take a lot of time and labor. It feels very good to have the onions all tucked away into the greenhouse curing and laid out to dry safe from the heavy rains, drizzle […]
Week 10, 2022
August Third I want to take a minute to celebrate you! The home cook! I want to celebrate your daily practice of preparing nourishing food for your families using fresh, local, organic vegetables. Your decision to source your vegetables from an organic vegetable CSA farm is applaudable and has far-reaching effects that go beyond your […]
Week 9, 2022
July Twenty-Seventh I felt a slight shift on the farm this week when I heard the cicadas sing for the first time. Their whining, buzzing sound that only comes on the hottest of summer days to begin with. I am also noticing more monarch butterflies and flys! The cool nights and the shadowy evenings reminded […]
Week 8, 2022
July Twentieth High Summer on the farm feels hot and muggy. We received a perfect rain last Friday with exactly one inch that fell in the morning. We were planning on getting some weeding done that morning, but were happy to find a little inside work to stay out of the lightning and thunder and […]
Week 7, 2022
July Thirteenth In these full summer days of endless to-do lists with the demands of the farm getting heavier and stronger, our bodies begin to feel like they’re moving with less briskness and pep. All the stored energy from a winter’s rest feel like it was used up already somehow. The broccoli, zucchini and now […]