Only 2 more weeks of the CSA season, ya'll. This week we are 25 weeks into the 26-week main season (last pickups of the Summer CSA are Oct. 13th-15th). We'll miss seeing a lot of ya'll. Will you miss the veggies? No need to, you can still sign up for the winter season to eat fresh all winter long. Sign up for the winter CSA now at https://www.harvie.farm/farm/where-the-redfearn-grows-natural-farm/signup
Lots of folks have been asking when they can come out to the farm and lend a hand and see the place. Now is the perfect time. Great weather and a fun task to complete--sweet potato harvest. We'll be doing this the first 3 Saturdays of October from 3:00 to 5:00 PM. Hunt for sweet potatoes, brush off the dirt, carefully load up crates and then haul the crates back to our curing chamber. That's about it. Kids are especially welcome. For those who'd like to stick around for a guided tour, you're welcome to stay for an additional 45 minutes to see more of the farms and ask questions of farmer Dave.
First Frost Likely
Looking at the forecast, we're likely to get our first frost this week. The forecast low is 40 degrees, but in our low-lying farm, that most likely means frost for us. We're taking precautions, covering the most sensitive crops (like the sweet potatoes) and praying it stays above freezing for another couple weeks. The average date of first frost in the KC area is October 21st, however that's the average so there are lots of years that it comes earlier and again for us, it almost always comes earlier than that. The fields have been transforming over the last several weeks and months from frost sensitive summer crops to frost hardy fall crops, so a light frost won't damage the majority of the crops in the field, but there are crops like sweet potatoes, peppers, tomatoes and green beans that will be killed at the slightest touch of frost. We cover what we can with floating row cover but death to these crops is inevitable sometime in October.
What's HOT this week
Ginger is really sizing up and looking good. This would definitely be a frost sensitive crop but it's all planted in our heated high tunnels so we can keep the ginger going for several weeks past the first frost and well into the winter CSA season. This tropical plant takes a long time to grow (we started them in February) so there really isn't any way to grow them outside in our climate.
Beans: they're looking really good and with a potential frost late in the week, we plan on picking them hard this week to make sure you can get a lot of those.
Broccolini: They yielded nicely last week and we expect a good harvest again this week. FYI EAT THE STEMS! One of the main reasons we grow broccolini is the delicious stems. No need to peel them. They're tender and delicious.
Peppers: Again, these could get killed at the end of the week, so we'll plan on harvesting hard. Sweet Italian peppers and hot peppers are especially bountiful. We're adding an option for bulk spicy peppers this week so you can stock up for hot sauce or drying.
Bread and Cheese
Farm to Market 8- Grain Sliced Bread
Hemme Brothers Chive Curds
Hope you get a chance to get outside this week and enjoy the beautiful fall weather. We're sure soaking it in and feel blessed to be able to spend so much time outside. If you are itching to get outside, come on out to the next sweet potato harvest. We'd love to connect with you in the dirt.
Your farmers,
Dave and Sheri
