Looking Ahead (Read me!)
Before we get into the dirty details, a quick and important note: our regular farm box schedule will change after this week. For the next two weeks, deliveries will be on Tuesday, and renewals will happen on Monday. If you’ll be out of town, please email us by Monday to pause your box.
Goodbye Tomato Season 👋
The last of the heirloom tomatoes were pulled out of the ground this week. The end of tomato toast season. They’d already done more than their fair share. Our tomatoes can sometimes last into January, but December is by all means a magic trick for tomatoes. Pulling them felt equal parts sad, satisfying, and long overdue. Behind them, butterhead lettuce is coming in strong—calm, reliable, and not asking for much attention, which we appreciate right now.
Watching the Birds (Ignoring the Technology)
Last week we put up a Bird Buddy to get close ups of the birds. So far, the birds have made it clear they prefer the crops and bugs in the garden to the free seed bin. They have been hopping around the beds, popping in and out of the crops, doing what they’ve always done—eating bugs and generally being helpful without needing documentation. We’ve been enjoying watching them work, even if it’s not through the app. It’s a good reminder that some of the best systems on the farm are already in place.
Artichokes, Reinforced
We planted 80 new Imperial Star artichoke starts on the hill to replace plants lost to gophers, who continue to move in with zero remorse. Each start went into the ground with a metal root cage, which added hours to the work, and optimism that they’ll last longer. These are quick-producing plants, so if everything goes well, we should be harvesting artichokes by late spring or early summer.
Farmer Tip of the Week: Protecting Roots Early
Gophers don’t care how carefully you planned your planting. For high-value, long-term crops like artichokes, root cages made of chicken wire or hardware cloth can make the difference between years of harvest or starting over. It’s extra work up front—but it saves heartbreak later.
People Passing Through
We said goodbye this week to Isa and Susanna, who wrapped up their time with us. The farm always feels a little quieter after people move on, and we’re grateful for the care and effort they brought into this space. We’re now opening things up for new winter season WWOOF-USA guests—fresh energy, fresh questions, and fresh takes on monotonous farm tasks.
Weeding (Again)
We’ve been doing a lot of weeding. The same kind. In the same places. With the same tools.
After the rain, the weeds showed up immediately, well-rested and highly motivated. We have responded with stirrup hoes and the weedwacker, moving slowly down the rows, around the farm, step after step, scrape after scrape. It’s repetitive work, which gives you plenty of time to think—mostly about how weeds never seem discouraged by past failures. We should all be more like weeds.
This Week’s Farm Box
Values are based on farm stand and regional farmers market pricing for comparable produce.
