This Week’s Farm Update
On Sunday, we said “see you down the road” to our farm managers, Myron and Colleen, who moved on to their family’s next great adventure as Camp Hosts in Arizona. We’re very pleased to have Ben Kleinhans, who has been managing our farmers’ markets on Sunday at Route One in Vandenberg Village, and another on Saturday at Los Olivos, step up to help us to run the garden. Jeremy is taking a big leap back into the garden to help rethink new processes and procedures that can keep us moving forward more quickly, with less manpower. The addition of our small Kubota market garden tractor should be of great help during our transition.
We’ve also recently welcomed back Preston Graham, who just spent five weeks in Spain and Portugal walking two different caminos. He’ll be great help in the garden as we begin to turnover some of the rows of summer crops that are fading as the season comes to a close. His fresh energy and passion for music, poetry, and creating beautiful spaces will be key to our heavy lift.
This week we tilled in a row of broccoli, and prepared three rows for planting. Next we will be tearing out our cucumbers and planting fava beans as a cover crop. As we begin to plan our fall and winter crops, we imagine that the area for our corn and squash will be planted to a mix of cover crops, then grazed by the chickens, and next year, tilled under and planted to tomatoes and cucumbers.
We just received news that our amendment to our CDFA Pollinator Habitat Program Grant which will allow us to implement hedgerows and wildlife habitat with over 300 plants around our garden and farm, as well as over a half acre of cover crops, to create pollinator and wildlife-friendly spaces. We’re eager to get the plants in the ground to soak up the fall rains, and establish themselves before the notoriously heavy rains in January.
Speaking of rain, we enjoyed our first sprinkle of the season last night, along with an exciting thunderstorm, which helped to dust off the farm. More residual rainfall from tropical storm Mario is expected, and we’re battening the hatches (or, tarps – this is a farm after all) in case we get more than we bargained for!
Check out what’s inside this week’s box, discover the value of the items and how to keep them fresh, and see our curated recipe using items in this week’s harvest!
What’s Inside?
Essentials Box
Cost: $18 | Retail Value: $23 | You Save: $5.00
- Red Russian Kale (1bu) $4
- Zucchini (1lb) $3
- Strawberries (1lb) $6
- Broccolini (1bu) $3
- Dill (1bu) $3
- Fingerling Potatoes (2lbs) $4
Original Box
Cost: $30 | Retail Value: $38.00 | You Save: $8.00
- Essentials Box, plus:
- Swiss Chard (1bu) $4
- Cherry Tom. (1pt) $4
- Beets (1bu) $4
- Frying Peppers (1lb) $5
Hearty Box
Cost: $42 | Retail Value: $53.00 | You Save: $11.00
- Original Box, plus:
- Delicate Squ. (1lb) $2
- Microgreens (2oz) $4
- Lemon Cukes (1lb) $4
- Heirloom Tom. (1lb) $5
Values are based on farm stand and regional farmers market pricing for comparable produce.
For full details, including a recipe for Ina Garten Roasted Fingerling Potatoes & Almost Any Green Vegetable, storage tips, most popular FAQs, and partner farms, you can view the complete newsletter at the link below.
