Abbe Hills Farm CSA

Good morning shareholders,

This week, we'll have sweet summer onions, cabbage, kale, kohlrabi, collards, broccoli (I think), swiss chard if the deer didn't eat it last night, leeks, cilantro, and basil.  Maybe we can find enough beets for everyone, and maybe we'll also be able to hustle a little more summer squash from Local Harvest CSA in Solon.  In our gardens, summer squash and cucumbers are maturing rapidly and I think we'll have enough of each to put them in the shares next week.  We'll also start digging potatoes next week.  YIPPEE.

We've also got 350 FABULOUS tomato plants, 200 of which are starting to set fruit.  Tomatoes aren't far away.  You old timers know this is another garden miracle.  Even with all the rain, the tomatoes have stayed healthy and are growing like weeds.  Really, they are outgrowing the weeds!  I think it helps that we mulched heavily and caged them the week we planted, which kept soil from splashing back on the leaves.  The spores for the organisms that cause disease in tomatoes are in the soil.  If you can keep the leaves clean, the plants stay so much healthier.  Take a walk back to the garden and check them out if you want.

The onions we will start pulling today are the Ailsa Craig type.  These are the big, yellow, sweet summer onions.  They will be uncured, so they need to be kept in the refrigerator until you use them.  I think we're going to have quite a lot, so use them up.  They are very mild and sweet.  Some people even cook them as a side dish.  I don't think they are going to be as big as they are usually.  Leaf diseases have made a big dent in the summer onions and will likely limit growth of the bulbs and yield, but won't diminsh the great flavor.

All the cabbage, kale, broccoli type plants are having a tough time with this weather.  A very serious leaf disease has got a good foothold in these types of plants and are wiping out much of the later crop.  We planted thousands of broccoli, kale, and cabbage plants.  You can sure see a difference in disease resistance due to variety.  Some can take it; some are dissolving in the field.  This weekend, I started tilling down diseased plants.  I hate to do it because there is always some hope that they will snap out of it when the weather clears, but they were pretty bad, and it opens up space to plant something else.  I've been filling in with winter squash and beans.  Hopefully, we'll have nice crops of both this fall.

For those of you who don't like kale, try the collards.  They can be more mild and more tender.  You can prepare them the same way.  I ate collards every day for eight years when I lived in the Everglades.  They are super good for you (like kale).  But they are real poor people's food.   That's why I lived on them.   Collards, and mullet that we caught in the ditches.  Every day.

Leeks are like mild onions.  They aren't huge like in the HyVee, but still nice.  I think they just don't get huge here like they do in California.  Wash them well.  They can trap lots of dirt in between their leaves.

We started pulling garlic last week.  It is super, super nice.  We're going to have enough to save plenty for seed and have several weeks' supply for you.  You'll see it curing in racks in the open shed.

Remember that you can eat the beet tops as well as the root.  I like the tops even better than the roots.  Just steam or saute them.  I like them sauteed in a little butter.  They also mix well with their cousins, swiss chard.

I'm once again selling raffle tickets to benefit Southeast Linn Community Center.  This is our biggest fundraiser and helps us get the income we need to keep the lights on and the insurance paid up so we can be there with the food pantry and lots of services for seniors, kids, and families in need.  Tickets are $1.  Please buy several.  Like the lottery, you can't win if you don't play.  And you might win a night in the Mt Vernon motel!!!  Don't want to miss out on that!!!

See you this week,

Laura