Frost Warning
We had our first frost warning issued here in Sussex County. As you will read below, it was issued far earlier than usual. We did have a low of 35ºF so luckily no frost as there are tomatoes to be harvested. The tomatoes in the field are slowing down due to the short days & cooler temperatures. Once is freezes at the farm the warm crops will be gone but the cold crops will continue. These include mustards, chard, kale, fava greens, and onions. The late plantings of tomatoes have thousands of flowers but have not set tomatoes. Seems Farmer Rich made a mistake on the varieties he chose for this planting.
Weather Report: Some rain fell on Sunday morning, but that was it for the week. There also was a frost warning early on Sunday in Sussex County. The usually fall frost date for Sussex county is 10/2 so 9/16 is a little early. As per the Farmer’s Almanac: Tender plants will die back during a frost (temperature range: 29-32ºF). The next level, classified as a moderate freeze (25-28ºF) will have a widely destructive effect on most vegetation.
What’s Up & Growing: The favas are up for the fava greens and the turnips have gone ballistic as have the mustards. You should start seeing them in your deliveries soon. We did have problem with the Torazorah, but they seem to have come back o.k. Our last planting of Chinese cabbage is struggling; seems to have been slow to germinate. They should start to “pop” soon.
Animal Report: Very quiet this week. I guess the cooler temperatures have slowed down even the gourmet groundhog. There are a lot of Monarch butterflies around. Perhaps we are on their migration path south.
From the Fields: Hopefully we can get the potatoes out of the ground this coming weekend. The horseradish is doing well and we hope to start to harvest it soon. This will be our first season growing horseradish for deliveries and we have experimented at home with some immature roots so should have a few recipes for delivery time. With the cooler temperatures it is time to start winter squash and you will have Acorn squash in your delivery tonight. Pumpkins & gourds are on the horizon.
Reminder – if you haven’t read last week’s newsletter regarding the proposed changes by the DEP to limit use of land within 300’ of streams – please do. NJ Farms ARE AT RISK if this goes through. We must plead to the NJ DEP & NJ Dept of Agriculture to exempt 100% of farmland from this proposal and we encourage letters be sent to Secy of Agriculural, Charles Kuperus at: charles.kuperus@ag.state.nj.us . So far only a handful of you have let us know that you have written to Secy Kuperus so we are reaching out to you again to help save not only our farm but NJ Farms!
Fruit Report – Harrow Pears –Freshly picked from Windy Brow Farm. Originated in Harrow, Ontario, Canada @ the University of Ontario. If you like to cook pears, this variety cooks into a lovely pear sauce or butter.
Pick of the Week: Click on the link below (or on the right) for your drop-off location. This time of year the deliveries will be the same in pounds & variety but may include different items at each location.
No comments:
Post a Comment