It rained some more. It’s hard to keep up with mowing because it never really seems to dry out in the deep grass and weeds. Sandy soil like ours can be a challenge in many situations, but it’s a blessing when it;s wet like this – we aren’t working in mud puddles, and our plants aren’t literally drowning with rotting roots, as many of our fellow farmers face with their richer clay soils.

This week we attacked the growing menaces of weeds and potato beetles. We tried to get fancy and use a 18v battery vacuum on the potatoes beetles, but it wasn’t really any faster or easier than old fashioned hand picking, so we returned to the tried and true, the bug guts goo.

The weeds are a little different this year – in the areas where we didn’t till (most of the field) it’s dominated by Mare’s Tail, which is kind of nice. They are weakly-rooted and easy to pull. Anyplace where we tilled is the usual lamb’s quarter and quackgrass dynamic duo.

We fed the fruiting tomato plants some calcium to ward off blossom end rot, and built the pole beans a trellis to maintain their upright stature.

It was a good week, with no disasters or stress to report. Hope your week was similar.

inside box 4

• Zucchini – so it begins. The zucchini plants are off to a slow start this year it seems, due to the cool and rainy weather … but started they have. Here’s some of the tender first wave. Great as part of a veggie sautee.
• Salad Turnips
• Mint (peppermint and/or spearmint) – mojitos or teas, or just tuck some inside a facemask and walk around huffing it for joy
• Broccoli – these have quite enjoyed this cool season.
• Snap Peas – oh my so have these. We haven’t seen pea plants this tall and productive in many years here.
• Snow Peas – if you’re overwhelmed with peas at the moment, these might be good ones to blanch and freeze for later.
• Kale – the hail put a lot of holes in our kale leaves, but the plants aren’t perturbed. We picked the pretty ones for y’all.
• Green Onions
• Broccoli Microgreens – Not all heroes wear capes; widely considered a Superfood thanks to their nutrient profile and sulforaphane content.