Agropraxis Farm

Pepo’s are the family of squashes that includes the summer squash and a few that are eaten in the mature form like Acorn and Delicata. With good conditions in the field I put in the variety that I start the season with. I have enjoyed eating these since I was a kid and have grown them for over 25 years. Natural curiosity led me to try new varieties and educate consumers about the variety this family of squashes offers.

Market sellers and personal favorites differ. The traditional zucchini and yellow summer squash rule the table at market with Acorn the favorite mature squash. For our own table the patty pans and heirloom Italian zucchini versions have come to be preferred. I planted a couple of zucchini varieties including the popular Zephyr, yellow summer squash, patty pans in green tint and yellow, Ronde de Nice, and the mature group including spaghetti squash, acorn and delicata. A succession of the fresh eating squashes is added in June to keep up harvest through the season.

Advice from “experts” encourages the first group be started indoors. I’ve found this type of squash germinates well in field conditions and has much more vigor when field grown. Over the years I’ve often transplanted early plants and seeded directly on the same date. The transplants do produce a bit earlier in good years, but suffer in stressful conditions. In many years the field grown plants produce at the same time and with much heavier yields. The field grown plants have a much longer harvest period than the transplants. The vigor of field grown plants and better yields means no transplants this season.

Farmers Market went really well last week. It’s good to see market friends and customers. I’m in the same places week in-week out through the winter and market put me in the public in a way that no other place can. So I kind of made note of a new forceful  advocacy of personal view points from the public. T-Shirts proclaiming political viewpoints. Conversations that quickly divert from pleasantries to important points of view.. One young guy was wearing a gun rights shirt from a prominent organization. After hearing his view I asked if the organization supported the value and importance of rising up against unjust leadership and making change; similar to the concept that lead to the American Revolution…he gave me a bewildering line from the organizations rhetoric that they are protecting our freedoms! I asked if that was best done with money and lobbyists in the halls of congress?  In another conversation a Veteran shared that our countries economic problems are related to our high tax rates. More rhetoric…Respectfully I kept my tongue on this one! But I was thinking about the 40’s 50’s and 60’s when we had the longest extended period of prosperity and growth with the highest combined real tax rates in history. We need to question the rhetoric and educate ourselves. Not turn into advocates for someone else’s political agendas.

Farmer Pete