Greetings from the Garden. This week's box has cabbage, leeks, bok choy, lettuce or cutting lettuce, arugula, parsley, raspberries, turnips, the first of the winter squash and the last of the cucumbers.
Field Notes. Autumn arrived with a touch of frost Sunday. And that has pushed Ken to clear out less productive hot weather crops like cucumbers and summer squash in preparation for fall plantings for this fall and next spring's crops. So, he picked the last of the crops, removed vines and fences and started preparing beds for planting crops. His focus now is the garden, and soon will shift to field and hoophouse.
We are both glad to get some good dry working weather. As Ken works garden and field, I am starting to sort and store fall and winter crops like onions, shallots, and garlic; while I clean and pack I am also sorting garlic for fall planting. Ken harvested and brushed off the winter squash. Soon we will be digging sweet potatoes and potatoes. And we will be harvesting root crops to store in the root cellar for winter boxes. Even though the days are getting shorter we have plenty to do!
From the kitchen. This week's box has some summer crops and the start of cooler weather favorites like squash - I can imagine lighting the cook stove and baking some now! Sunday I previewed some fall vegetables in an earlier blog entry - leeks for one. Check it out.
This fall cabbage is a nice dense head - and not only for kraut. We saute leeks and add sliced cabbage until it turns to a brighter green and top with cream, vinegar or any dressing. The bok choy is a great addition to soups and stir fry. Both cabbage and bok choy are crucifers believed to prevent cancer.
Turnips are also from the brassica family. I usually peel the roots, cube , boil and top with butter and salt and pepper. Some years I blanch and freeze some as they add zip when soups seem a bit blah in January. The greens are also a nice addition - good as you would cook cabbage or kale.
Enjoy the raspberries as they seem a bit scarce this season - the early ones got moldy in the hot humidity in August and the next crop had a couple weeks of so much rain the berries were too mushy. Do I sound like Goldilocks? Berries are a fragile crop and sometimes the weather isn't co-operative. We will get you what we can before the season ends!
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