As a farm family full of educators, students, and parents, our hearts and minds are with all the families returning to school and work in one way or another in the coming weeks. If you find that your schedule for CSA pick up needs to be changed, we are happy to accommodate, and this link can help you switch in the Harvie system https://harvie.zendesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/360001542514-How-to-reschedule-change-a-delivery-location-and-hold-a-share-
We are grateful for the rain over the weekend and that we were spared from the violent storms last week. Our winter squash crop was grateful for the “free irrigation” and is coming along quite nicely. One of the few upsides to the drought is that many of the moisture-born leaf diseases that can negatively affect vine crops and tomatoes are kept at bay, due to the lack of rain.
The summer produce is still in full swing, though the increasingly cool nights mean that the tomatoes and such will start to slow down in another 2 weeks or so. We continue to offer extra tomatoes for sale at your pick ups this week, you can order them as Extras during your share customization period 2 days before your pick up.
One thing I have learned through this first year with the Harvie system is that sometimes it appears that very limited items are available for Swaps versus Extras. While the Harvie folks don’t recommend it, I have found that if there’s something in your share that you want to swap, you can delete that item first, and then as long as the value of the item you wish to replace it with from the Extras is equal to or less than the value of the item you dropped, you will incur no additional charge by adding in the Extra item.
Another helpful tip for swapping is that it will work best with Chrome as a browser; Safari is not compatible with the system and can lead to technical difficulties. We thank you for your continued grace, support and patience as we are all navigating through this unusual season!
Some of the produce you receive has been rinsed from the field, but like all fresh produce, should be thoroughly washed and, usually, refrigerated by you at home. Please keep in mind that we don’t grow organic heirloom tomatoes because they are classically pretty, or that they have a long shelf-life, but for their amazing flavors and often unusual colors.
Recipe ideas and tips from years past can be found on our Pinterest board https://www.pinterest.com/oxenhillfarmcsa/week-11/
