The best crew just got better!
| We have the best crew working at the farm for the last several years and our crew just got better with the addition of Michael. Michael has been coming up to the farm along with his younger brother, and his Mom and Dad, to help with projects since he was probably about 4 ½ years old. Michael wants to pursue a career in agriculture and is looking into college programs once he graduates high school. We always told him that once he was legal to work and could drive, he would have a job at Catalpa Ridge and that time has come! Michael fit right in with the crew on his first week on the job. |
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Franklin Greenhouse Report: The ginger is coming along nicely and far better than in prior years. It will be slated for an October harvest. Oriental greens are doing well after they were thinned out. Unfortunately some that were harvested last week never made it to the delivery sites due to the excessive heat. Renee transplanted some more basil in addition to the basil planted at the farm. Renee also seeded more lettuce that will be planted at the farm.
From the Fields: The dry weather is slowing the crops. We continue to irrigate the fields but the crops really need the “soaking in” kind of rain. Our work hours are way down as it is impossible to work when it is so hot. The crew is starting early, and has to end the workday early well before 12 noon. The pond is dropping daily, due to the lack of rain. The round field is finally fully planted and all the crops are doing really well. That particular field is usually too wet, so little irrigation is needed. All the former garlic beds were wrapped with plastic on Saturday and the irrigation set up. They are ready for a new planting which will include Brussels sprouts, cucumbers, zucchini, oriental greens, yard-long beans, and lettuce.
Weather Report: Lack of rain and hot temperatures loomed over the farm for another week. The Forest Service in the area has posted a High Fire Danger warning for Sussex County. No drought conditions have been reported on the droughtmonitor website in our area, though about 28% of NJ is in an “abnormally dry” condition.
Animal report: The rabbits were the most comical animals this week. A few baby rabbits were running in the field and bumped into each other. Then one of them decided to chase after the other probably because it was mad! A white cat at the Franklin greenhouse decided to climb into Renee’s car and eat half of her sandwich. With drought conditions the animals are getting closer and closer to wanting to break into the fields to eat. We have been fortunate the first several weeks of the season not to have a severe problem with the animals. Just a few minor annoyances so far this season and we hope it will stay that way.
Trip to the Farm Scheduled for Saturday – July 21st
Want to help out at the Farm?? We like to schedule at least 2 work-days at the farm during the harvest season where CSA members can come up and help us with some projects. The first work-day is scheduled for July 21st starting at 11:00 am. Some projects planned will be to help with some mulching & transplanting. More details to come over the next few weeks. Please RSVP (by July 19th) so we can plan on lunch, refreshments & get you directions. Give us your contact # via phone or e-mail just in case the weather is iffy (it can be a whole different world at the farm) so we can give you a call if it will be a rainy day.
Week of July 16th - Pick of the Week: click on the links below or to the right to bring you to the delivery specific to your pick-up location. Deliveries will be of similar variety & poundage, but may contain different items at anytime during the season. Occasionally, some crops are ready to harvest but not enough to deliver to all our drop-off locations. What we do is start to filter them in each week to a different drop-off until there is enough to delivery to everyone.
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