Farm News July 12, 2022
When people find out we’re farmers, one comment we get a lot is “you must get up real early.” And often that’s true. On real hot days, we need to get the lettuce harvest done before the crop heats up, and the earlier the better. However, in November cutting spinach super early in the morning doesn’t do you much good because the crop is generally frozen. That time of year, we take it nice and slow and wait for the crop to warm up before we get out to harvest. Easy on the people, easy on the plants.
Shell on an early morning lettuce mission.
Spring and summer are a different story. One thing folks might not know is that a lot of what farmers must do happens at night. Take this evening for instance. I got a call at 4:30 pm saying the mower was smoking. Yep, smoking. We needed the mower early the next morning. So, I settled into repairing the burned belts and (literally) burning tangled cover crops with a torch from underneath the mower to free the rotor which flings the flails around and chops up our cover crops. All the while feeling grumpy about letting the vetch cover crop get too mature and viny. Talk about burning the candle at both ends!
Wash station still-life with broccoli … which is just coming in now.
It also hasn’t rained in three weeks, so we are irrigating like mad to keep the plants growing. A good time to water is at night. The wind is usually quiet, and overhead irrigation water soaks into the soil. So that means we need to set up a traveling sprinkler and get that started after dark as well. Elliott often helps me with this task, allowing me to get some rest on the off nights.
By midnight, an acre of corn, summer squash, and cukes was getting much needed moisture, and the mower was ready for another day of grinding up finished crops and their accompanying weeds. Time to head in and order some replacement parts.
Our onion crop has never looked finer.
If you operate a small business, this probably all sounds very familiar. The buck stops with you, and when something must get done and no one else is around, it ain’t going to do it by itself. I have a particular respect for folks in the restaurant business. Lots of moving parts to keep going, and a year-round busy season to boot.
There are some perks to working late. This night’s clear skies, cool temps and full moon made it feel like I was on a different planet compared with sweating it out in the garlic patch in the heat of the day just 8 hours before. The crew has been all-in for garlic harvest, and they’ve harvested 70% of a very fine crop as I write this.
One of the necessary evils of farming is that sometimes the day doesn’t end.
Another perk to night work in July is that I get treated to the fabulous firefly display that happens every year at the foot of Guarding Mountain, the big hill at the edge of our fields. It’s a spectacular show, and it’s comforting to see these mate-seeking fellas bio luminescing the entire forest.
We hope you enjoy the farm and the harvest,
Paul and Rebecca for the Fort Hill Farm crew
Featured veg:
Cucumbers: For growers, cukes are a feast or famine crop, but for eaters, they are indispensably one of the few veggies that literally taste like summer. After watching our carefully tended high tunnel crop limp along this spring, we are seeing the field planting pump out fruit. We are extra careful to keep the newly planted seedlings covered with pricey netted row covers that keep the cucumber beetles, which vector Bacterial Wilt disease, from munching on our crop. Keep in a cold, humid place—a loose plastic bag inside your fridge crisper should do. Eat within one week, as these are not coated in yucky grocery store wax.
Tendersweet cabbage: this flattened disc-like cabbage is very popular with customers. The name does not lie- it's deliciously sweet and promises an endless supply of refreshing summer salads. This cabbage is also beautiful enough to cut in half and gift to a friend! Store up to 3 weeks in the fridge crisper.
Also available:
Head lettuce, arugula, salad mix, pea shoots, carrots, radishes, salad turnips, scallions, Chinese cabbage, curly and lacinato kale, rainbow chard, fennel, cilantro, basil, parsley, dill, chives, radicchio, frozen ginger, red and Chioggia (kee-oh-jee-uh) beets, Purplette onions, garlic scapes, summer squash, cucumbers, fresh garlic, limited broccoli and sprouting broccoli, hints of the very first eggplant, heirloom & beefsteak tomatoes, and cherry tomatoes
Coming Soon:
Sweet corn!
Pick Your Own:
Flowers:
Flowers are in full swing! A sale on bouquets starts this week!
Recipes
Suggested by Rebecca Batchie
For more recipes, check out the Fort Hill Farm Recipe Database
Cucumber Avocado Salad with Fresh Herbs and Capers
From CleanFoodCrush
This recipe highlights fresh herbs, which are in abundance at the farm right now.
Ingredients:
2 medium English cucumbers, seeded and sliced
3 ripe avocados, peeled, pitted and chopped
2 Tbsp capers, drained
2 heaping Tbsp fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
2 heaping Tbsp fresh parsley leaves, chopped
2 heaping Tbsp of fresh chives, finely sliced
1 fresh garlic clove, finely grated or minced
2 small fresh limes, juiced
1 Tbsp high quality extra-virgin olive oil
sea sea salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste
Instructions:
In a large glass salad bowl add cucumbers, avocados, capers, chives, garlic, and herbs.
Sprinkle with sea salt and pepper to taste and drizzle with olive oil and lime juice.
Toss very gently to coat. Serve immediately and enjoy! Serves 4.