July 15th, 2026
I like to pay a tribute to my hard working husband at least once each season in the newsletters. I don’t always find the time to make him birthday cards or Father’s Day cards and poetically express to him how grateful I am for him and everything he does. I do remind him in an ‘everyday’ sort of way periodically with as much sincerity as I can in the moment. But I do set aside every Monday night to write a newsletter to our CSA family. While this newsletter is not quite a personal love letter to my husband, a public tribute is maybe the best I can do right now. We’re busy, fast-moving people in the throws of raising our children and running a farm on high tide. Some days we barely get a word in edge-wise with the kids and their singing, and questions and general noise. We homeschool and they all play two instruments, so we have a lot of family time and we live in a very noisy house.
I especially notice my gratitude for him this time of year when the days are long, hot and the needs of the farm are high. He works hours that no one else I have ever met works. Even when he’s not physically working or walking or tractoring; even when he’s just sitting at the kitchen table or sitting on the couch in the morning, his mind is working-he’s a thinking machine. He’s lazer focused on the needs of the farm. And managing 40 different crops and all of their planting, weeding and harvesting needs is no simple task.
On top of managing the farm production, he also manages a crew of people-keeping them busy all throughout the day making sure everyone knows what to do, where to go and is hydrated. Managing people and personalities and skill levels alone takes a tremendous amount of people skills, wisdom and patience. I admire him for his impressively laid-back attitude when he clearly is managing more internally than we know.
Even after we received over 7.5 inches of rain a couple weeks ago, the weather has shifted and now we are getting some very hot and dry weather on the farm. Farm Adam is now making sure all of the crops are getting enough water. We have several new and fresh plantings of fall carrots, brassicas and lettuce that were planted last week that need consistent water. And of course, Adam is on it. Even tonight at 9:30 he went to check his tanks that were filling with water and the pump that was running irrigating the onions.
I am, of course, a tremendous help to Adam and the business. I’m his number one helper willing to do anything on the farm that needs to be done, almost anytime, and almost anywhere. I enable, support, and concede him. It’s not sustainable for us both to work the way he does. Not with kids and dishes and laundry and soccer practice and violin practice. Someone needs to be thinking about birthday parties and swimming lessons and wether or not the kids have shoes and clothes that fit them and books to read.
The bottom line is that we’re a really good pair. In my motherhood years, I’m only half the farmer I could be, but Adam carries the torch. He’s the conductor of this farm. He’s the CEO. He’s the king, the boss, the chief. And if you don’t mind me saying it, he’s damn good at it too. I’m not only thankful for him and appreciative, I’m in awe. He’s more like a hero, actually.
What’s in the Box?
Green Cabbage- One head cabbage per member this week. Stores best in the fridge.
Zucchini/Summer Squash- Yellow squash and zucchini prefer a 50 degree storage temp. The fridge is a bit too cold and the countertop is a bit too warm, so use them up! Squash plants are very generous in the heat and humid months of the summer!
Broccoli- 1-2 per member. Broccoli loves to be kept very cold. We store it on ice here at the farm, so get your broccoli home and into your fridge as soon as possible for maximum freshness.
Kohlbrabi- 1-2 kohlrabi per member. Could have been a white or a purple kohlrabi. Wonderful for slicing up and salting with a veggie dip, grating raw over salads or even adding to a stir fry. Kohlrabi greens can be cooked with like kale if you like to make use of everything!
Green Onions- 1 bunch per member. Next week some people will receive bunching onions and some people will receive actual onions. Bunching onions can be used all the way up to tip. Stores best in a plastic bag in the fridge to preserve moisture.
Green Curly Kale- We like to share a cooking green with you every week because the kale, chard and collard plants are so generous. There is a lot out there to pick! Natures way to tell you to eat your greens!
Garlic- Armenian is the variety. Fresh garlic has a thicker membrane around each clove. The membrane on cured garlic is more like paper, but this will be a fairly thick membrane still as they were just pulled out of the ground.
Lettuce- 1-2 heads per member. Green leaf or romaine. Stores best in a plastic bag in the fridge!
Cucumber- Very soon here the cucumbers will really start to hit hard. There are baby cucumbers and flowers everywhere out there.
Next Week’s Best Guess- green cabbage, celery?, carrot?, kale or chard, lettuce, garlic, onion, cauliflower, basil?, summer squash/zucchini, cucumbers
Recipes
Zucchini Rounds with Marinara Dip
