Farm Report: JULY 2007

Farm Report – July 2007

On the 10th of July Victory farms was in full form. Most of the 55 raised beds were stretching towards the sky supported by stakes and twine. The roots of the plants had spread under the paths separating the rows, and the huge pile of compost was regularly spread down the rows and covered with straw. So when the rains come the roots are watered and nourished.

And rains have come fairly regularly – so far (although the last week has been dry). So the drip irrigation has been used sparingly, in special circumstances such as Charlie’s plan to produce mid-summer lettuce. We will see!

The key component to successful farming is, of course, the farmer(s) and their helpers. That became overly clear at the end of June when illness confined Charlie to bed for almost a week. His sister, Kate, who had been his main helper had returned to her home also for health reasons earlier in the month. So it was a real challenge to get the veggies picked and to the market. Several Sprout members stepped up to take up the slack, especially Drs. Deb Cohen and Theo Wu. (Dr. Koehn also saw to Charlie’s recovery and many tests). Two other folks stepped in and continue to provide regular fieldwork, Sprout Core Group member Amy Banks and Antwan, who discovered Sprout and Victory Farms at the Farmers Market. And others show up to volunteer every few days or so. Charlie is also exploring the possibility of finding one or two farm workers who will be available on a regular basis.

The veggies are mostly picked the day before delivery at the market, but some hardy items such as summer squash are picked daily and stored in a cool room which is kept at 55-60 0F are relatively dry. Tomatoes are kept in shallow cardboard boxes in the shade, but not cooled. (One Sprout member brought a number of vegetable boxes from Costco and Charlie could use more). Charlie has a substantial number of “2nd grade” tomatoes that are available at a good price for any Sprout members who could use them (for canning or sauce). Let Charlie know at .. if you are interested.

Some veggies that should be showing up soon are tomatoes, corn, melons, potatoes, onions and leeks. We saw the first tomatoes a week or so ago, but count on shares with 5+ lbs of tomatoes this coming week. All of this depends, of course, on weather, insects and critters. A raccoon is getting some of the corn, as are Japanese Beetles - and squash beetles are after the winter squash. The field is dotted with “bug bags” that are capturing many of the Japanese beetles, but the squash beetles are controlled by hand. Indeed, the best approach to disease and insect control is providing healthy plants via proper fertilization and moisture.

All-in-all it seems that we can look forward to more weeks with very satisfying shares.

John Gallini