In Which the Notes on What to Write About Seem Adequate
WWOOFer week of David, Rebecca, & Neville, with a touch of Meg. All four of them will be gone next week, but two should be returning.
Rising heat and rising river.
There was weeding and tilling and whipping. Potato beetle larvae patrols subsided.
Transition continues. As it does. Constant change in northern climate – brief periods of varied warmth between frozen ice ages.
Planted a cucumber bed and installed a bug barrier. Replaced a dried up soaker hose.
Jim maintained the motorized fleet and headed up the louver-framing project in the high tunnel.
FUCKING VOLES
In the box this week:
- Eggplant: You have up to three varieties in your box. There are a couple kinds of bulbous squat purplish ones, some long skinny purple ones, and some white ones that are somewhere in the middle, shape-wise. The skinny ones are better for kebobs, and the fat ones seem a bit better for baba ganoush, but for the most part they can be used similarly. Ratatouille is a popular option. One trick to cooking with eggplant is to use a oil that you like the flavor of and use plenty of it. We like coconut and olive and sunflower seed oil on the farm.
- Turnips
- Onions
- Zucchini / Summer Squash
- Beans – our secret 3-color, 7-variety medley
- Cucumbers
- Curly Blue Kale
- Dill – would be good on sliced cukes – you can use the flowers as well as the frillies.
- Savory – this herb might be tasty sautéed with your zucchini, or you could dry it in a cool dark place to use at your leisure down the road …
- Broccoli
- Peppers – A mix of the earliest peppers in the garden – only the dark purple Czech black and the jalapenos (you will probably recognize them, although some are on the massive side for their type) are hot this week. Also some Italian Frying peppers and light streaky green/purple Sirenvyi peppers.
- Artichoke – Large boxes only This link may be helpful … they’re not exactly filling; they’re more of an experience. We boiled them and snacked on them, peeling the scaly exterior away layer by layer and scraping the soft undersides into our mouths with our teeth. I guess that’s just how it’s done. We were hoping to overwinter the plants under cover in the high tunnel, for larger second-year artichokes .. but the voles are already tunneling through their roots with voracious glee, and I doubt these poor things have a chance of surviving a whole winter of the onslaught. Turns out this is a big problem with this crop … sigh … those of you returning from last year likely recall how these colonial uncatchable unkillable unappeasable beasts have plagued us for years now. Oh well, they help define our limits, keep us humble, remind us of our lack of control, yada yada. Que sera, sera practice couches. Jerks.
- Okra – large boxes only – again, let us know if you’re interested in some in a future box, as we won’t ever have enough to give everyone them at once …
Some More of WWOOFer Rebecca’s Pics:
