Lettuce Rejoice! July 6, 2023 - Summer Share Week 5

Lettuce Rejoice!
July 6 (What? How is it July!), 2023
Summer Share Week 5

It’s the fifth week of the Summer Farm Share - thanks so much for joining us!

You are getting this email to let you know it’s time to customize your share, you will have until 9:00 p.m. on Monday to do so.

Here’s a how-to file:
https://harvie.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/1260802865550-Customizing-Your-Box-

If you run into any issues, please email support@harvie.zendesk.com , you can also reach out to me at firmlyrootedfarm@gmail.com 

Please return your cooler bags and binder clips each week.

Thank you!

Mary Cowan Photo https://marycowan.mypixieset.com/

What’s in the Box?

Broccoli is stealing our hearts and plates this week.  While a good broccoli salad is hard to beat, my favorite method is to roast it briefly in the oven, then sprinkle it with parmesan cheese as soon as it comes out.  It rarely even makes it to the table before everyone has devoured it.  

We grossly overestimated our zucchini numbers last week.  It's a tricky one- 55 lbs of harvest one day, and 5.5 the next (and the next again).  We harvest it every day, but it hasn't developed any sort of consistency yet.  Sorry folks if you got extra sugar snap peas and no zucchini last week.

And speaking of peas, this will be the last week for them for a while.  A second planting did just start to flower, but the first planting is petering out.  We also picked the first few green beans today, not many, just a sample of the good things to come.

The other thing I'd like to highlight is butterhead lettuce. We grow a gorgeous variety called Skyphos.  It's big, and meaty, and makes the best lettuce wraps.  Add one to your share this week!

On the Farm

The organic certification application is in!  The email I got back said "You can tell you are very familiar with organic farming.  You have done a great job on the paperwork."  That was super gratifying, let me tell you!

The weeds are growing in earnest these days, with the early season pigweeds and lambs quarters joined by their terrible summertime friend purslane.  The Amish ladies that help us out sometimes call purslane 'July weed'.  It's succulent and fairly unkillable so we have to remove it by hand.  Once upon a time I didn't know that and simply uprooted purslane, flipped it over, and left it in the plot only to return a few days later and realize it had put all its final energy into it making seed and dropping it everywhere.  A formidable foe for certain.

The first few cherry tomatoes are beautifully pink, reddening up in time for Canada day I suppose.  I hope all of you have a wonderful Canada day weekend, full of back-yard BBQ's and picnics, and delightful early-summer foods.  

That's all for now folks,

Happy eating until next time.

 Farmer Tamara