Agropraxis Farm

Though a bit short on rainfall, this season has been one for abundant plant growth. Nature's solar collectors, leaves and chlorophyll, have stretched and gathered as much as they can. I'm always amazed at the variety of leaves that food crops have. From the gigantic leaves on squashes or Swiss Chard to the almost feathery leaves on carrots or fennel they are amazing. The world under leaf cover is always interesting and almost fairy tale like. The abundance is noted in the bountiful harvest of early potatoes. Storing the gathered sunshine as carbohydrate starches in the tubers, potatoes are yielding as well as any year I can recall. 

Beets are another example. Beautiful tops with even hefty beet-root. A handful were leftover from market on Friday so they roasted in the oven and were perked up with some balsamic vinegar, olive oil, S & P and feta cheese to make a favorite salad (credit to Deborah Madison in Local Flavors). The variety of veggies for the table at this time of year is such a marvelous dilemma. What to fix? Which favorite to make for dinner, or save for that special holiday meal...

A bit of time has been used to work forward for the upcoming seasons. Strawberry beds have been prepped. They'll be ready for new plants when the time is right. I recall a visit to the Well's Family Farm a few years ago and Mike's work to keep the deer out of his strawberries. Deer and other animals will browse strawberries in the winter and spring resulting in a crop failure and losses. Mike had an 8' fence with electric wire strung outside to deter deer. Even that was not enough. He still occasionally had losses to deer.  Work done this year to make the future possible...

 Farmer Pete