The first
CSA pick-up will be this Tuesday after 3pm. You'll have a variety of greens to choose from including
mesclun, arugula, and baby spinach. We'll have more details posted on Tuesday. This pick-up will be different than usual — there will be no bags with your share name on them; instead there will be crates of bagged greens for you to choose from.
I ate my first mesclun and arugula last night, and it was amazing. Unfortunately, the mesclun and arugula are not as pretty as we're accustomed to. Many leaves have tiny holes in them caused by a common New England pest called a flea beetle. We haven't had much of a problem with them in the past, but this year, either due to the weather or just a gradual increase in population, they are a real menace. We can't do anything about our first beds of greens, from which we'll still get several cuttings, but we'll be using row covers from now on to keep the beetles out of any new beds that we sow. Fortunately they don't have much of a taste for spinach or lettuce!
The spring in general has been difficult due to the excessive rain and dimness. After we planted our first crops, the constant rain made it impossible to get the tractor into the field, or to use our push seeder. As a result, we were behind schedule. The lack of light also slowed the growth of our basil and tomato seedlings. This last week the field was finally dry enough to get the tractor into it and to use the seeder. We are now pretty much back on schedule — and all the plants (and weeds) have really responded to the addition of pure sunlight.
The initial delay means that some crops (radish, turnip, carrot, beet, raab) will be delayed, and the first share pick-ups will be slimmer than usual. However, as the season progresses we will be making up for it. We ask for your patience.
While the rain dropped, we were still able to plant certain crops like onions, head-lettuce, radicchio, collards, kale, broccoli, chard, napa, choi and cabbage. All those crops are right on schedule, and looking great.
The next few weeks we'll be doing a lot of weeding and planting. If you'd like to volunteer, please email or give us a call — all help is welcome!
