Catalpa Ridge News–Volume 21 No. 3–June 28, 2016

Super Dry Weather

 

News from the Fields & Farm:  We transplanted more hot peppers into the field at the farm where the lettuces were harvested last week. We also were able to transplant more heirloom tomatoes, basil and parsley into the round field. With the irrigation on the fields another bed of lettuce is looking good, especially because we lost a lot last week to bolting.

 

The beets, celery, zucchini, onions and cabbages are all getting close to harvesting over the next few weeks. The fava bean crop is almost ready for harvest and we hope that they will ready next week. We also added another row of zucchini.

 

The garlic is going to be an early crop this year and we should start the garlic harvest next week. We harvest then put them in the greenhouse on wire racks to start the curing process. This is when the unique flavors for each variety start to set in.

 

 

Franklin Greenhouse Report: Tonight’s potatoes were harvested for the most part from the Franklin greenhouse and those beds were then seeded with three varieties of Oriental greens. The eggplants and peppers in the greenhouse are doing great. The eggplants are flowering and the fruits won’t be far behind. Of interest to many is how the greenhouse plants get pollinated. Many varieties that we grow are self-pollinating including tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, some of the cucumbers and squash as well. The flower structure includes both male and female parts in the same flower and this allows for the self-pollination.

 Weather report: It continues to be very dry we little if any rain. We have been irrigating to keep the crops watered in each of the fields, but sooner or later we do need a nice soaking-in kind of rain. The peas are especially vulnerable as without sufficient water and the hot temperatures the plants will start shutting down. They actually stop flowering at this point and without the flowers they won’t produce anymore peas.