We have not quite pulled the last of the spring carrots, but we just planted the first carrots of the fall. Same with the beets--we are still making our way through the last beds of spring and the first seeds of fall are in the ground. This week we will start to put the fall brassicas in. It is always a challenge to plant those little babies in the blazing heat of July and August, but they persevere somehow and will be ready when the temperatures start to go down.
We started the potato harvest and it looks unusually good. The fingerlings are bigger than we ever remember, and the yields are too. Only in the last three years have we become successful potato growers. Success can be defined in so many ways, but for us a crop needs to germinate well, grow without a lot of assistance and stay healthy. The potatoes of 2021 required very little help from us, once we got them planted. I hilled them three times, which means I pulled the soil up over the potato plants with an implement behind a tractor that weeds the aisles at the same time. The plants were vigorous and beautiful and the potatoes multiplied underground, like magic.
So much of this does seem like magic sometimes. A carrot seed is tiny and white. It takes a little over a week for the first green sprout to push through the soil, which is often crusty and hard if it has rained in the interim. Progress is slow, with the green blade eventually turning into a two branched plant, and then some fuzzy little leaves. It takes about 100 days to make a carrot. Someone has to keep the surrounding area clear of weeds because carrots really cannot fend for themselves. Someone has to make sure there is enough water to keep the little plant from giving up. But after 100 days, under the ground there is a full sized, flavorful, deeply orange carrot. It is always miraculous.
Questions about your vegetables? Take a look at ID That Veggie! For more recipe ideas you can find us on Pinterest!
