I had to take an unplanned one-week hiatus last week as everyone in our house got sick. As a result, we’re playing a bit of catch-up this week, but at least enjoying some cooler weather!...
August Photo Shoot
Keeping on
The heat wave broke gradually over the course of this week. Although we’re still having typical hot summer weather, at least the humidity is down slightly and it’s been getting cooler at night. An additional help were a series of overnight rains, easing the need to water in the garden despite the heat. One thing that I have always loved about farming and gardening is the cyclical yet changing nature of the work. Just when you start to get really sick of a certain task, the seasons have begun to switch and it’s on to the next thing. I always am so excited for the first harvest of greens in the spring, but by...
Oven-dried cherry tomatoes
Several years ago, while working at a farmers market, I learned from a customer about her method for drying Roma tomatoes in the oven and freezing them to use over the winter. Ever since, I’ve been dying to do the same, but never got around to it until this summer. Since we use most of our Roma tomatoes for canning and really needed another outlet for the cherry tomatoes (besides our mouths!), we decided to oven dry cherry tomatoes instead. The result was exceptional! This is a perfect technique to preserve cherry tomatoes for eating in the near future or for freezing to use in the winter. Even better, you can substitute these for...
Hot hot hot
We’re in the midst of a true summer heat wave, the kind where stepping outside feels like getting hit in the face with a wall of humidity. And the fact that it’s remaining quite warm and humid even at night means there’s really no relief. In the garden, this kind of weather has a few effects. First of all, the summer crops (tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, etc.) are ripening at lightning speed. Even the only remaining cucumber plant is managing to put out a nice cuke every other day! As a result, the kitchen has stayed busy, with pickled beets, canned tomato sauce, frozen cilantro, and several batches of oven-dried cherry tomatoes all...
Bacterial wilt
Earlier this year, I talked a bit about cucumber beetles. You’ll find these little black-and-yellow striped or spotted bugs on plants in the cucurbit family like cucumbers and squash. While damage from the beetles to the leaves and fruit of these plants is in itself not that problematic, as the summer progresses these insects’ bites can transmit a season-ending disease for some cucurbits. If you’re a gardener, bacterial wilt is likely something you have seen before or may even be experiencing in your garden right now. This disease is transmitted from plant to plant when cucumber beetles bite and the bacteria can even overwinter in the beetles’ guts. Besides cucumber plants, bacterial wilt also...
Crazy days of summer
As every gardener knows, summer gets crazy! From mid-July through late August, it seems that everything is happening at once. The weeds are growing like mad and seem to reach the same size and intensity just days after the beds were cleared of them. At the same time that the summer harvest has ramped up to anxiety-provoking levels, the fall rounds of root crops and leafy greens need to be planted. And, to add to the craziness, all of that summer harvest has to be put to good use, either for immediate eating or through preserving for winter. It’s enough to make me wonder how women on homestead farms in...