Dear shareholders,

Hey look what we found this morning!

 

We are currently in a bit of a lull, waiting for summer crops such as this delicious yellow tomato to come on in earnest while spring crops like peas, radishes and bok choy have all been picked through and mowed in.

Unfortunately we'll be without root crops for month or so. We had to mow down two whole plantings of beets and carrots since we just couldn't keep them weeded, and also couldn't let the pigweed and thistle throw even more seed on the fields. It's an incredibly sad thing to sit on the tractor and mow down those beds when you know there's baby carrots under there, but sometimes as a farmer you have to make those difficult decisions ...

On a brighter note, today is our Lavender Festival here at Chatfield from 9am to 5pm. And if you get to the farm between 9 and 11 you'll be able to catch our very own Royce Hale performing with his big band. And if you're there, make sure you bring your dancing shoes, because they really do swing.

For those of you with Fruit Shares we'll have cherries again this week before we have a little break while we wait for peaches, scheduled for August 13th and 15th, and then fruit will be weekly until the end of the season.

HARVEST LIST:

• Head lettuce
• Onions
• Basil
• Oregano
• Summer squash
• Collards

*Please note the exact share may change due to weather or crop conditions*

FEATURED RECIPE: Zucchini casserole

Since it's supposed to cool down a little here I suppose I can reasonably include this recipe. This comes from my notebook of recipes dating all the way back to 2003, and includes no amounts, but I remember this one being in heavy rotation for a good long while.

INGREDIENTS

• zucchini
• tomatoes
• peppers
• onion
• oregano
• basil
• shredded cheese

INSTRUCTIONS

Slice zucchini in rounds and layer with peppers, onions, tomato slices, basil, and oregano in a buttered casserole dish. Top with cheese. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.