As we hoped, we were all (plants and people alike) able to savor the sunshine and feel secure knowing summer is here in these last few days of June. You’ll see more variety in this week’s harvest!
Welcome kohlrabi! We have collected some cooking & eating ideas here Remember that there is a list of produce on the right hand side – click to find ways to prep and enjoy! If you have a recipe you want us to include please send an email!
We also happily welcome the arrival of strawberries this week in the Upic field – we’ll give you guidance on harvest size when you arrive.
The news from the farm is short and sweet this week…Seth is graciously traveling this week with Griffin and 93 other 8th graders to our nation’s capital and every single place in between, and Maura is, thanks to our abundance of snow days, still at working at school. Our strong, caring, amazing crew has been keeping everything moving along steadily!
Fourth of July is on a Tuesday Pick-up will be Wednesday July 5th!
Since many of you will be in a hammock, an inner-tube, or the other side of a grill on the afternoon of Tuesday the 4th, we will move the pick-up to Wednesday (July 5th) 2:00-7:00 p.m. See you there!
Add-on Shares…
Add on shares (bread, cheese, yogurt, mushrooms, beautiful flower bouquets) have started last week, but you can still sign up. If you’d like to sign on for a weekly share (or any of the add-on shares), follow this link. Talk to (or email) Maura about pro-rating the costs of the add-on share.
Fresh Fish Delivered to Farm on Fridays!
Port Clyde Fresh Catch – order by 8:00 am on Wednesday the 28th to pick up fresh local fish on Friday after 3:00 here at the farm. Their website has lots of different options to order from and you pay them directly. Unlike the other add-on shares, this is not a commitment – order each week as you please, just pay attention to the order deadlines for each week. More information can be found here
What’s in the Share?!
- Cabbage
- Kohlrabi
- Chard/Kale
- Broccoli
- Lettuce Mix
- Escarole
- Scallions
- Summer Squash
- Garlic Scapes
What’s in Upic
- Strawberries (check in about quantity when you get here)
- Sage
- Marjoram
- Winter Savory
- Thyme
- Chives
- Oregano
- Flowers coming soon!
The weather is improving, crops look great and in a couple weeks the plants will catch up with the calendar. First on this list is strawberries. If we get some heat they could be ripe next week, if it is cold they may take another (this is a solid two weeks behind our usual date). Zucchini, cabbage and kohlrabi are doing their best and will be sizing up soon. Tomatoes and peppers are enjoying the protection of our field greenhouses and have no idea what all the fuss about cold and wet is.
In addition to our ever popular piglets we also have 11 heifers (young cows that have not borne calves) who are doing their level best to graze back the pastures along the CSA parking lot. On loan from our friends at Old Crow Ranch they will be with us for the next month or two. Old Crow separates their steers (young males) from the heifers to give the girls a break from the pestering of the boys. These young females thrive on good grass away from the boys for the summer (think all-girls boarding school). Beyond the gender politics we are happy to have them on the farm. Take a stroll on the trail off the CSA parking lot to get a closer look.
It’s dark. It’s cold. It’s rainy. Things are growing! Mother nature is persistent and even with the less than perfect weather of the last six weeks we are starting the CSA on schedule. That said the share is a bit light on diversity this week and most likely next as well. Please remember that the value of your CSA share comes over the course of the whole summer and that the harvests of strawberries, tomatoes, watermelon, and basil (just to name a few) will be filling your bags and boxes soon. See you this week on Tuesday or Friday from 2-7pm.
Come to the Farm Tuesday or Friday from 2-7pm next week for our first pick-up.
Add-ons
We are fully underway! After a very slow and cold April we have been in the fields for the past few days. When spring doesn’t follow the schedule we get a backlog in the greenhouse as the seedlings wait to go in the ground. Last week every square foot of space was filled by plants and we were hatching plans like using mirrors to redirect sunlight on the snow still covering many fields. Luckily we were able to import some Florida weather for a few days and thaw out!
also means covering with large fabric row covers to protect the seedlings from both temperature swings and numerous pests that emerge and have little else to eat but our tender crops. This step slows the process of planting our backlog of seedlings but Virginia, Alessia, Sarah and I have been powering through. There is nothing more exciting than trying to get a 40 by 350 foot piece of fabric to lay down in fifteen mile and hour winds at the end of the day.
All in all, even with the slow release of winter’s grip this year, we are on track to begin harvesting for all of you the first week or June.
This year we are offering lush flower bouquets each week with you share. For twelve weeks from late June-September your bouquets will be cut and arranged from our dedicated flower garden (not upic). Anemones, exotic poppies, dahlias and sweet peas are just a few of the varieties. A weekly bouquet as a gift for your Mother or Father on their day will knock their socks off! This is a starter project by dedicated crew member and second year farm apprentice Virginia. More info and 
Sign-up for 2017 Shares
Once the sun melts off all this new white stuff we are ready to kick into high gear. As always our first task outside is turning over ground from late last season, adding fertility (either with compost or organic fertilizer) and forming up new beds. By burying last years debris and turning up dark aerated soil help the ground warm faster, which is the only thing I use as a gauge as to when to start planting. Soil temperatures have become my touchstone in this new age of hyper-changable weather. I liken this standard to swimming in Maine. It doesn’t matter if the air temp is 80 degrees June 1st, the water will quickly make you hypothermic at 38 degrees. The plants feel the same way (and they don’t have the luxury of getting out!). Many damaged or lost crops in the spring have come from planting when its warm outside but not under our feet. First in the ground are peas (40°) then onions (45°), broccoli/cabbbage (50°), greens (50°), tomatoes/cucumbers (60°) and lastly the very sensitive peppers/melon (65°). 
