A special shout out to a few of our shareholder families, Staabs and Garlinskis, for helping to harvest 70# of green beans which were donated to the food shelf. We figure if 1# feeds a family of 4 over 280 families will be served with this donation.
After harvesting last week, we knew we had way more then all of us could use. With the help of a few shareholder families, we harvested 70 pounds of green beans and 78 pounds of cucumbers that were then donated to our local food shelf. After a few estimated calculations, we figured that the green beans alone would nourish over 280 people. Thank you to the Staab and Garlinski families for your help with harvest.
The food shelf had great appreciation for the fresh produce. Thank you for helping us to feed those in need.
Garden Science
We have been reading Farmer Boy this summer. If you have read this book, you will remember where Almanzo fed his pumpkin milk to help it grow bigger then any other in the county receiving the blue ribbon at the county fair.
Well we have talked about doing this experiment for a few years, and this weekend we found time to start it and at least give it a try.
Fist we selected a pumpkin, I think we should have started a tad earlier. But nonetheless, we cut a small slit in the stem on one pumpkin and on the vine on another. Then carefully inserted a candle wick which had been soaked in milk into the slit and wrapped gauze around the slit and candle wick.
Next, we had selected a jar and drilled a small hole in the top; threaded the wick into the hole and placed tape on the hole and wick. Then we placed it into a hole we had dug and secured it in the hole. We will check it daily to see if the milk is being absorbed.
Boxes of Produce
This list is prepared before we harvest your share. Some guesswork is involved! We do our best to predict which crops will be ready to harvest, but sometimes crops are on the list that are not in the share, and sometimes crops will be in the share even though they’re not on the list. Remember food safety in your kitchen when preparing, always wash your hands before working with your produce and always wash your produce before eating.
Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce – Some of the crops are ran under cold well water to take the field heat off of them so they last longer in your refrigerators. They are not washed – just cooled. So wash your vegetables before eating.
Red Oak Leaf Lettuce – Beautiful red lettuce leaf.
Beets
Yellow Onions
Zucchini and Summer Squash – Some insects may be getting the best of this crop. We are trying our best to figure out why some of these plants are dying off.
Cucumbers growing right behind the flower. The cucumbers are growing like crazy. If you are interested in canning some, please let us know. This past week we had so many that we donated 78 pounds of cucumbers to the food shelf.
Cucumbers – You received both varieties of cucumbers this week – new is the straight 8 variety (longer variety).
Carrots – Here is a good link to carrot recipes.
Green Beans/Purple Beans– This crop is bountiful. If you have not been able to keep up but hate the thought of throwing them away. Try these easy blanching steps to freeze the green beans to use throughout the year.
Kohlrabi – Here are some ideas for using your Kohlrabi.
Kale – Are you still trying to figure out this vegetable? Here ae some more ideas.
Tomatoes – The tomatoes are starting to come in with a variety included in your boxes including: Yellow Girls, Roma, Fourth of July and cherry tomatoes.
Sweet Corn – One of my favorites. Here is a way to freeze the corn before it gets to old in your refrigerator.
Cilantro – Enjoy in salsas, fajitas, eggs and more. Learn more about cilantro here.
The boys were happy to share some flowers with their Grandma.
Fresh cut arrangement – A variety from sunflowers, Rudbeckia, straw flowers, marigolds and zinnias.
Recipe of the Week
I thought you might enjoy hearing how some of our shareholders are eating some of their veggies.
- Carrots and Cucumbers – slice and dip in peanut butter
- Beets – peel and eat raw and/or in salads. I like to eat them cooked with some butter on them.
- Kohlrabi – peel and slice then eat like an apple.
