NEWS FROM THE FARM: ARCHIVE - July 2009

July, 2009
This month has begun much the same as was the bulk of June - wet. Here it is the 4th of July weekend and we haven't seen the sun in two weeks! This morning I planted the fall storage potatoes in a very wet bed. The seed potatoes landed in the deep furrow with a "splat." We'll just have to hope for the best with those. Potatoes like moisture, but this may be overdoing it just a bit. There has been a late blight affecting potato and tomato crops that is rapidly moving north and around the country. I hope that you home gardeners are taking precautions and properly disposing of any plants

Thankfully the garden is yieldling a bit with all this moisture. I have snap peas ready for market as well as broccoli, cilantro, dill and parsley. In the coming weeks the garlic scapes will be ready as well as turnip greens, head lettuce and swiss chard. I'm hoping the fava beans will be ready, but they seem to be rotting on the vine.

Some things (like the basil) are just miserable in this weather. With each passing day the plants get smaller and more slug-eaten. Some crop devouring pests are thriving in this weather, and it will be a challenge to keep up once the sun comes out. Weeding has been a challenge as the garden is a mud pit and I'm trying to stay out of it as much as I can. The crops in the hoop house seem to be thriving as they're staying a bit drier than the fields and their feet are not sitting in water. The tomatoes and the peppers are both full of blossoms and I'm anxious to see the first fruit. To the left is one of the head lettuce beds this morning.

Other farmers I've spoken with are having a challenging season, too. We're all in the same boat (click here for an article titled "Crops in Crisis"), but some are seeing stormier times than others. One farmer I know is underwater - his crops are submerged and he is seeing fungus growing in the beds that he hasn't seen before. Another has a family of groundhogs wreaking havoc - as if the weather isn't doing enough! Berry farmers are having a tough go of it, and my fingers are crossed that the weather will dry up before the respberries set fruit - otherwise they will rot right on the vine.

The broilers are huge. We've chosen the end of next week to bring them to slaughter. Here is a picture - just for fun - to compare the size of the broilers to the layers (pullets.) Keep in mind: these birds arrived as day-old chicks all together on the same day. They are the same age. The layers probably weigh in at 1# pound and the average broiler weighs 7#.
(Note: the broilers are not raised with the layers - this broiler is in the layer's pen just for this picture.)



My brother Lee is visiting this month and he helped me build a wash stand on the north side of the barn. I'm thrilled with the results, and it gives me a great outdoor space to clean and bag veggies for market. So, some extra projects are getting done around the farm as we wait for the weather to clear.

I surely hope that I have more positive news to report in August!
Trish

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