September Thirtieth
Fall on the farm feels very different this season. It feels different because we are getting many of our storage crops out of the ground a little sooner than in previous years. We are also not doing Farmer’s Markets this year due to the fact that the market that we usually attend on the Capitol Square in Madison has been reduced to drive-up pick-up for pre-orders only that we decided was not in the cards for us this year. Not having to spend every Friday harvesting and preparing for Farmer’s Market has freed up the crew’s time to do field clean-up, harvest and ready the farm for winter.
Not doing Farmer’s Markets also means that neither Adam nor I need to get up at 3am on Saturday mornings and be gone all day in Madison. Instead we spend our Saturdays at home with our children. We are also able to use Saturdays to keep up with many of the week’s preparations for the next CSA delivery, maintenance on farm equipment and the innumerable jobs to be done on a farm like this. Our stress level is lower and our quality of life is higher. Strangely, we are enjoying a calm this time of year never before experienced in the history of our farm.
This week we begin our Sweet Potato harvest that we are very excited about. Our sweet potato slips arrived two weeks later this Spring than when we were expecting them, so we have been letting them sit in the field as long as we possibly can to give them the maximum time that we can afford to size up before harvest. We’re hoping for a moderate harvest. Likely the sweet potatoes won’t be huge this year, but we will definitely get a good crop! We are also excited to begin harvesting Brussels sprouts, leeks and parsnips. We will have fun items in the last couple Summer Share boxes like celeriac root and spinach as well.
The moral of the crew is strong. I am so impressed with the people who work on our farm. Even as the weather cools, the sunlight wanes, and the harvest is a little less fruitful and summery, workers continue to show up every day on time and ready to work as cheery as ever. We dress in layers now shedding slickers and hats and layers of coats and sweaters as the temperatures fluctuate from cool in the morning, to warm in the early afternoon, to cool again in the late afternoon. The farm truck and the packing shed are littered with sweatshirts, water bottles, sun hats and muck boots. Now there are scarves and winter caps in the mix. We change outfits and footwear depending on the temperature and the tasks ahead of us.
We are quickly entering a phase in the season that is not for the fair-weather friend. We will be working in the cool fall wind, sometimes rain if it’s a harvest day and we need to get the harvest in, and rain means mud. We will dig Fall Roots in cool, wet soil if needed and our gloves and sweaters and boots get muddy and somehow that mud gets on our faces, under our nails and it adds weight when we walk. Bins of fall roots are heavy to load onto the farm truck and there are many of them.
The crew will stay busy on the farm through the week of Thanksgiving when we pack out our final CSA boxes of the season. There is still much to do. We have garlic beds to prepare, plant and mulch. We have plastic mulch and drip tape to rip up and tomato trellising to take down. There are quite a few beds of carrots, parsnips and beets to dig as well as rutabaga, radishes and leeks. The harvest always get done thanks to the tremendous help of a crew of hardy workers and worker shares who think it’s pretty cool to work outside, on an organic farm and doing this kind of work that feels meaningful, even if it is a little rugged and heavy. I feel thankful that there are still people who are drawn to doing this kind of work, I know it sure appeals to me! Even after all these years.
Farm work builds character and hardiness in a person. When it starts to rain we don’t run for cover. When the wind picks up we put up our hoods. When our fingers get cold, we grab a pair of gloves or two. If we must endure a little discomfort at times, we are all the happier when we do feel warm and cozy. Interestingly, the connection between the workers becomes richer when we do hard things together and accomplish tasks in a time frame we would never have been able to do alone. It may be getting cooler, but fall is still my favorite time of year!
Red Beet- One large red beet for everyone this week. These beets are from a very thinly seeded planting and the beets all grew vary large. Beet greens are nutritious and delicious and they can be used like swiss chard in your cooking. They have similar texture and flavor to spinach as well (because they’re in the same family of plants, can you tell?)
Green Cabbage- Have fun with your cabbage. Make sauerkraut, egg rolls, coleslaw! This is not a storage variety of cabbage, so we recommend using it up rather than waiting.
Red Potato- 3 pounds per member this week. Potatoes are one of the few crops that we do not wash. They will keep better unwashed- and washing them can sometimes really scuff them up. The variety this week is called Red Pontiac.
Sweet Dumpling Squash- These is the squash that looks a little like delicata but are shaped like an acorn. Sweet Dumplings are similar to carnival squash and can be used as a substitute for acorn, butternut or almost any recipe that calls for squash. They make nice soup bowls as well if pre-baked and stuffed with your favorite soup/stew recipe.
Yellow Onion– Because onions go with almost everything!
Garlic- Another bulb of garlic, tucked in the paper bag with the mini-sweet peppers.
Mini-Sweet Peppers- Just a small handful of mini-sweets for everyone. We picked the plants clean with the chance of frost approaching this week.
Bell Peppers- 4 small bell peppers for every member. This will likely be that last of the peppers for the season.
Tomatoes- Just 2 tomatoes this week. Tomato production has now come to an end for the 2020 season. We will miss you tomatoes!
Kohlrabi– 2 per member (white or purple). Remember this treat from Spring? It has the crunchiness, crispyness and mildness of an apple. It’s not as sweet as an apple, but can be eaten raw, cooked, spiralized, shaved, matchsticked, or prepared in almost any way you could dream up! My dad use you love to to just slice them up and eat them raw with a veggie dip. (Peel off the outer, tougher skin). ALSO, don’t forget that Kohlrabi leaves are perfectly edible!
Broccoli or Cauliflower- Either one large broccoli (or 2 banded) or one large cauliflower per member. We expecting much more from these 2 crops for week 19 and 20,.
Red Kale- Lovely green bunches of kale this week. Kale keeps best in a plastic bag in the fridge.
Flat Leaf Parsley – Big bunches of parsley this week. Parsley is lovely mixed into soups, sauces, marinades and salads of all kinds. Find ways to sneak this super food into your meals.
Next Week’s Best Guess- Sweet Potato, brussels sprouts, parsnip, leeks, celeraic root, broccoli and/or cauliflower, spinach, kohlrabi, squash, collards?
Apple Cranberry Bacon Kale Salad with Slivered Almonds and Feta
Roasted Kohlrabi with Buttered Hazelnuts
