There were many trays of seedlings waiting to be planted in the fields this morning.

Some had been waiting a long time. They should have been planted last week, but the soil was too wet, thanks to the rain from Hurricane Beryl.

Today the soil conditions were good and planting was progressing well – until it rained again.

But rain is good! Sunshine is good too!

We need both to grow our crops and so far this season we have received a goodly amount of each. Just not always at the right time – at least according to our wants & wishes.

And so we adjust. Rainy & too wet to plant? We’ll harvest in our rainsuits, catch up on equipment maintenance, work in the office, seed in the greenhouse, run errands … At least I don’t have to water anything today! When it is sunny & hot, we weed, seed, transplant, harvest, drink a lot of water & ice coffee and hope for rain! It all works out.

Until it doesn’t!

Too much rain? The kohlrabi can split. The broccoli rots. The cauliflower turns black. The lettuce turns to mush. The cucumbers & zucchini get disease. The weeds overtake.

Too much sunshine & heat? The lettuce turns bitter. The spinach shrivels. The tomatoes & eggplant drop their blossoms instead of setting fruit. The weeds overtake.

We have experienced all of this in the last week or two. While it can be stressful, none of it is unexpected or unusual. The weather always affects our crops. That’s why we grow 40+ different vegetables, herbs & flowers, and multiple varieties of each, and why we seed & plant weekly. We know somethings will always be thriving and somethings will always be struggling. The goal is to have enough great vegetables to keep the CSA boxes full & the market table sagging.

So far, so good!

What’s in the box?

Tomatoes, green beans, spicy salad mix, arugula, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant?

Extras – kohlrabi & garlic scapes.

Fruit share – peaches.

(Peaches are from our neighbours at Pineview Orchards. That’s their barn in the picture below, as seen from our farm. If you did not sign up for fruit, we encourage you to visit the fruit stand at Pineview and purchase your fruit there. Along with their fruit & vegetables they offer baked goods and ice cream. Ask Lorie for directions when you pick up your vegetables. Check them out at https://www.facebook.com/pinevieworchards.)

• It’s tomato time! We have been picking a very few cherry tomatoes these last few weeks, and now there is finally enough to include in the CSA box – not a lot, but enough for a good taste. There should be more each week now and the larger tomatoes are beginning to ripen as well.
• Our 1st green beans are ready too. Beans are something we seed every Monday (except when it’s raining – like today!). We have had some issues with a few of the plantings (ie. weeds – totally our fault), but beans are something you can expect to find in the box often from now on.
• Spicy salad mix is this week’s salad green. We call it spicy because arugula, mustard, mizuna and kale are included along with our lettuce mix. These give it a boost of extra flavour. Spicy salad mix is not only a delicious salad, but it’s great on sandwiches too. At market, it is our most popular green and we sell out every week.
• The sharp, peppery taste of arugula adds excitement to salads, sandwiches, wraps, pizza … This healthy green is high in vitamin K and calcium.
• We’re quite pleased to have had cucumbers in the box for several weeks already. Those of you who have been a part of CSA for a few years know we often struggle to grow decent cucs. But this year we pulled it off and we are perhaps just a little proud. The patch has about given up now, but we have a 2nd planting coming. Fingers crossed we continue to have success with our cucumbers this season!

• Zucchini rounds off the CSA …
• … Unless we have eggplant – and chances are pretty good that we will. We harvested an ample amount for market on Saturday and it looks like there will be enough for the box this week. We won’t know until we pick them tomorrow. While eggplant is never the most popular vegetable, those who like it really like it! So give it a try. Fresh eggplant is quite delicious!

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Around the farm this week …

The garlic leaves are turning brown & drying up which means it is almost ready to harvest. Then we will let it dry & cure for a few weeks before offering it in the CSA boxes.

The first dahlias are blooming.

More variety & more colour on our tables each week at market.