Summer Harvests and Winter Planting
|
|
Have a subscription with us? You are getting this email because you do not have a box scheduled for this week, but can still make a regular order through our store.
Order vegetables before Wednesday for pickup and delivery this week.
|
|
Farm Update
We are deep in both summer harvests and the beginnings of winter storage preparation. While we are adjusting to more and more crops in the harvest rotation (and figuring out how to manage that to-do list) we are also setting up to eat well through the winter. Last week we seeded the last major succession of cabbage, kohlrabi, broccoli, and cauliflower for the fall/winter.
This week we are seeding the first of two successions of storage carrots. There are quite a few crops that we seed weekly (arugula, radish) or bi-weekly (carrot, beet, spinach) throughout our main-season. Seeding smaller amounts regularly allows us to have them available consistently throughout the season. A lot can impact the success of each planting, including germination rate, watering, fertility, disease, weeds, insect damage… and each of those variables have their own list of sub-variables. We become used to it, but there are a lot of factors that need to align.
The key for these storage crops is timing, and the first step is planting on time. These storage carrots are timed so they're ready after temperatures drop in the fall (best flavour and storability). We plant in two successions to give ourselves a little flexibility in case something goes wrong with one of them (all those variables have to align!). The difficult thing is that it takes a week to see how densely they have germinated. If the result is not good (especially for the second succession) it may be too late for a re-do. The pressure is definitely on to make sure we have lots of veggies for storage. Wish us luck this week!
Another exciting seasonal milestone is here as we are going to start pulling garlic this week. Some sections of our garlic patch are further advanced than others, and we think it is because we used two different mulching methods. With so many other things happening right now, we don't mind having to spread that big harvest into two parts!
|
|
Now updated to 7 BANDS! Do not miss this! |
|
Amazing shot of our first celery harvest this year! more available this week |
|
FARM STORE NOTES
FROM OUR FARM:
Carrot bunches are on this week! Carrot slaw or salad has been a longtime summer favourite here. These first carrots will also have tops which are totally edible. Carrot tops taste a little like mild, earthy parsley. Great for pesto or salad dressing (think pureed green goddess-type) and even snuck into smoothies.
Hot peppers: A few of our hot peppers are ready including shishito, jalapeno and serrano. The red-when-ripe ones like cherry bomb, habanero, and cayenne are coming soon!
Field: Carrots, beans, zucchini, hot peppers, summer squash, new potatoes, herbs (dill, cilantro, parsley, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram), salad mix, beets, arugula, cabbages, head lettuces, green onion, grilling onions, kale, and chard.
Greenhouse and hoophouses: Cucumbers, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, basil, eggplant.
|
|
FROM OUR SUPPLIERS:
PRODUCE
Bluegroves Farms (West Lorne): Blueberry pints
Blueberry Hill Farm (Rodney): Blueberry flats (12 pints)
HOPE Eco-Farms (Aylmer): Galia melons, delicata squash, and sweet potatoes.
Forest City Microgreens (London): Fresh microgreens
Through Pfenning's: Ontario mushrooms. From further away; lemons, limes, ginger, turmeric.
DAIRY and EGGS
Mistyglen Creamery (Belmont): Non-homogenized and vat pasteurized milk, yogurt, and cheese curds.
HOPE Eco-Farms (Aylmer): Eggs.
Through Pfenning's: L'Ancetre butter and grass-fed cheese
Gunn's Hill (Woodstock): Brie, Handeck and Five Brother's cheeses
FROZEN
3Gen Organics (Wallenstein): Ground pork, sausage, bacon, ham, tenderloin, chops
YU Ranch (Tillsonburg): Pasture-raised ground beef, beef patties, stewing beef
New Leaf Foods (London): Plant-based beet burgers
BAKERY
Seth/La Houlette de vie (St. Thomas): Back again! Organic sourdough bread made using local grain that Seth mills himself.
Artisan Bakery (London). Sourdoughs and pastry made with local flour.
J&D Peters Tortillas (Aylmer): Corn, spelt, whole wheat and unbleached flour tortillas.
PANTRY
Aldred Maple (West Lorne): Amber, dark, or whiskey barrel-aged maple syrup.
Wildflowers Honey (St. Thomas): Unpasteurized honey from hives all over Elgin County, including our farm!
Mat's Fine Oils (Staffordville). Fresh, organic and cold-pressed, organic hemp and sunflower oil. Store in the refrigerator.
|
|
PICKUP/DELIVERY OPTIONS
Western Fair Market: Saturday 8 am to 3 pm / Sunday 10 am to 2pm
Farm pickup: Thursday 4 to 8 pm
Kitchener Farmer's Market: Saturday 7 am to 2 pm
Delivery: Thursday / Friday in London & St.Thomas and area, Saturday in KW / Cambridge (schedule will be sent out Wednesday night)
|
|
Why am I on this list? At some point you signed up for our previous "farmstand" list or our newsletter list. Want to get off the list? No problem: . Common Ground Farm 6986 Middle River Road St. Thomas, Ontario N5P 3S9 |
|
|
|
|
