Farm Update 11/4/25
Gold and Silver, Vegetable Currency
The nights are cold enough that we have to load produce in the truck market morning. Not risking a deep freeze hurting onions or garlic. The drive was dark just before daylight savings time. Smoke rolled from the exhaust, and we could see our breath as we unload.
While setting up for the market our 16-foot stall feels small. We have such an abundance of crops for this late in the year. It all barely fit in the booth, and we forgot potatoes and red onions at the farm!
We have been gearing up for this all year. Winter production. Shoulder season sales. Season extension. Storage crops. These have been the top of mind since last winter when we pivoted our farm away from summer veg towards storage crops.
If you consider our production in terms of currency, then these crops are the gold and silver. Carrots, once stashed into storage, get sweeter and hold their value even after months of living outside the ground. Winter squash, while not usually as long lasting, will feed us for months while also growing more complex in flavor.
Compared to the quick cash of tomatoes (who’s salability is a couple weeks max), these staples are solid. Hence, why we moved much of our farm’s production into them.
However, you got to have some cash too. Our winter tomatoes are doing great, and we are pleased to offer such an out of season product, directly opposite to the storage crops.
The Farm Stand fridge is still out of service but should be getting repaired soon. We are currently stocking dry storage crops like squash, onions, garlic, tomatoes, and potatoes.
Until then, find our fresh veg at the Fort Collins Winter Farmers Market.
The farm has definitely slowed down, but we still have many projects to catch up on in the coming weeks. Looking forward to cleaning up and putting it to bed for a little while.
Weekly “To-Do” List
Planting- Done with planting for the year!
Harvesting- Lots of greens in the high tunnels living under row covers like lettuce, Asian greens, kale, and chard. We have harvested everything from the field and moved those crops into storage that we will wash as needed for the next few months.
Cultivating- Transitioning our greenhouse from using ditch water to city water until the canals run next May. Putting pumps away, cleaning up the field irrigation, and removing plastic from beds. Also, lots of farm clean-up as we prepare for winter construction projects.
I want to clean and organize tool sheds, tractor sheds, a shipping container, the wash station, and our farm stand’s back room. Getting these areas dialed before winter will make other projects go smoothly, give us an idea of what supplies we already have, and help transition into the next growing season.
Another project upcoming is stashing away our gallon perennials for overwintering. These are now well over a year old, but I am hopeful they will return next spring. We will be putting them under the display tables they are currently resting on. Then these tables will get covered with white plastic for insulation but not sunshine. Come next spring we will remove the covers, trim the survivors, and restock the tables.
Wonderful bounty!!