In the Share: Week 10

 In the Share 

MUSIK GARLIC: Our hardneck garlic is at its peak right now. Use it fresh in the purslane salad recipe below. 

TOMATOES: A continuing mix of colors and varieties. 

CARROTS: These carrots are nice and sweet after a month in storage. Grate them fine into a salad, or snack away. 

SWEET PEPPERS: The August ripening is bringing red, yellow and orange sweet peppers to the shares. 

ZUCCHINI AND YELLOW SQUASH: With these cooler days a casserole is in order for those summer squash. Here is a recipe from our 2017 newsletter http://www.fairsharefarm.com/archive/info/Newsletter/2007/v4%20I7%20June%2027.pdf OKRA, 

EGGPLANT, SALSA PACK OR BEANS: Depending on your distribution day and our harvest, you will have a choice from this list. 

PURSLANE: Rebecca has been snacking on this in the field and now’s your chance. Check out Wiki for some great recipes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portulaca_oleracea. 

BASIL: This herb keeps coming back. Enjoy the taste of summer 

Farm Report

The last two weeks have been a blur. It is peak farming season with the summer harvest coupled with planting and tending the fall crops. The purslane in your share is a byproduct of how busy we are. The fall cabbage was almost engulfed in what is often identified as a weed. 

Treating it as such, the crew tackled the field one morning and now it has since doubled in size. 

However, not all the cabbage survived the foot of rain back in late July, but in its place grew the purslane. Purslane is often disregarded, yet its roots go back to ancient human history. The Greeks, Native Americans, many have enjoyed its succulent, tangy flavor and spoke of its curative properties. 

The monarch butterflies are a common site at the moment. The last generations are underway as the southward migration has begun. We’ve been able to see a few cocoons hatch in person. One we rescued from the tomato patch and held in our house until a thunderstorm could pass. We feel fortunate to work in the fields as they flit by. Double so, when there are two. 

We encourage everyone to plant native flowering plants that provide nectar for the monarchs, and plant milkweed species especially since it is the only family of plants on which they will lay their eggs. 

Speaking of eggs, this morning, 88 new fuzzballs arrived via our dependable servants at the US Postal Service. The day old chicks spent their first morning out of the shell in transit, but today they moved into their cozy brooder coop. 

These little girls will hopefully be laying lots of eggs come February and March 2021. Until then, they lift our spirits with their cuteness.