It's been such a week we're not even sure where to start. The rain is an obvious candidate but it's bad news in that department, so let's start with good news. The clouds parted for a while last Thursday to allow our Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger (VA-07) to visit and tour our farm for two hours! She serves on the House Agriculture Committee and wanted to learn more about what farms like ours need (organic research!) and how we work. She asked questions, she took notes, and it was a complete joy to share our farm with her. After she and her staff drove away, it started raining again. :)
Rain and weather update: When areas of our county experience such damaging and dangerous flooding as they did last Saturday, our perspective on the recent weather shifted to gratitude for our health and safety. But obviously there are impacts on the plants on our farm. We had at least 13 inches of rain in the first two weeks of August. Plants generally like 1 inch per week. We're averaging almost an inch per day. So, some plants here on our farm are starting to drown. If you've been wondering why there hasn't been the option for Green Beans in your share recently, it's because 1,400 bed feet of green bean plants have been badly damaged by the rain. The plants aren't completely dead yet but the majority of the fruits are rotting right at fruit set. See below. You have to look closely -- see the teeny tiny baby green bean with the rotten and fuzzy end? Oof.
Back to good news! Our sweet pepper plants are healthy and productive for now and we have hundreds and hundreds of fruits! We hope you enjoy these summer delights as much as we do. We stuff and bake them; we dip them into cream cheese dip or tuna salad/salmon salad; we dice them with tomatoes and garlic and seasoning and eat it with a spoon; we saute with onions and protein and make stir fry or fajitas; we roast them and serve with anything and everything. They are a staple of summer and they survive hot and dry conditions as well as (for now) cool and wet conditions. We also have a bulk special on them right now. Some people (like us) simply enjoy eating them in bulk, others use bulk quantities to roast and freeze for wintertime enjoyment. Pictured below: Varieties called Carmen (red) and Escamillo (orange). 
Eggplants are also suffering from this cool rainy spell, and we hope Lettuce doesn't rot between today and tomorrow when we harvest them for you. Shishito Peppers (frying peppers...meant to be cooked whole in a saute pan with oil and salt until blistered) are producing beautifully right now (see cooking guidance here) so eat them up! Flowers are holding their own for now, so we have petals to light up your home.
Crop updates: Our Salad Mix is out of season for the month of August, but we've spent the past six years trialing methods for having Lettuce to harvest in August. Last year was our first year with the results that we wanted, and we scaled it up this year so that we have hundreds of heads available to harvest over the next three weeks. (Granted, rain was also needed to allow these plants to stay alive, and we got it, which was great, and now the tender leaves are having a hard time not rotting. Wow!)
For more good news: Our adopted kittens are doing very well, having doubled in size and captured the hearts of us all. We've named them after the beloved peppers above. The grey cat is Carmen/Carmyn and the orange-ish one is Escamillo. Technically, they each have double names: Pixie Carmyn, and Lavender Escamillo. We love long names around here. :)
We'll keep you posted on what the next week brings! Thank you for being an absolutely critical part of our farm!
Blessings on your meals, and keep masking up and washing your hands ~
