Summertime Grind
The farm is nearing its halfway point in the CSA season. It is a moment when we are turning the ship away from summer and into fall produce. The transition is not easy.
We are threading a needle between crashing and burning or coming away on top of the season. Daylight is receding from our northern latitude and frost dates are looming closer. The opportunities to plant crops are waning. There simply isn’t enough time for everything to finish.
The hard deadlines of impending fall add pressure to otherwise normal tasks. As crops finish, they must be removed to make way for the next. Each day these tasks linger, the chances of longer season crops lessen.
Higher daytime temperatures and less rain make soil conditions tricky, chunky. It takes time for 6-foot-tall pea plants to decompose into the soil and yet fall crops demand planting. The turn from spring to fall crops demands attention, energy, and strategy. Heat places higher demand on equipment and July is often the time when tractors break down or pumps fail. Currently our own 4 wheeled workhorse is taking a nosedive, hopefully we can get it fixed enough to pull just a couple more beds.
In the wake of this turn is the increasing demand of weeding, maintaining, harvesting, and selling. The workload is only growing as we move towards peak season. In a sense, July is the time when everything is happening simultaneously on the farm.
It is enough to drive even the most organized and level headed person crazy. July is ripe for burnout.
The importance of this part of the season cannot be understated. The plantings, weddings, and maintenance now set the stage for the season’s finale. Effort put in today is realized in a few months. July is also the time when a farm hopefully breaks even from the expenses accrued over the past year, entering a sustainable state of profitability.
Ironically, in the heat and craze of our busy season, this is also the most potent time to slow down. A more calculated and strategic approach to accomplish the tasks at hand is demanded. Taking the extra moments now lead to less mistakes down the line, increasing to odds at crop success. For example, raking a freshly turned bed instead of planting directly into the dirt clods, or mentally walking through the entire process of tillage to make less equipment changes on tractors.
If you interact with a farmer at market in coming weeks, make sure to thank them. Maybe bring them a drink. We are all in the thick of it and could use the extra support.
Farm News
Peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches, peaches! Western Slope fruit is pumping and filling our Farm Stand cooler. This could be the last week of cherries, and the peaches have been super tasty so far.
We are going to start harvesting a round of pickling cucumbers this week. A welcome treat after several high tunnel rounds of cucumbers fell to pest issues. Basil, cherry tomatoes, and beefsteaks are starting to come in as we welcome summer’s bounty.
Hope to see you this week!
Farm Stand Hours- WED-SUN 9am-6pm
Larimer County Farmers Market, Saturday 9-1
Lafayette Farmers Market, Sunday 9-1
Folks Farm Harvest List
Greens- Hearts and Souls Salad Mix, head lettuce, gem lettuce, kale, chard, collards
Fruits- Cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, pickling cucumbers
Roots- Beets, carrots, radishes, fresh onions
Vegetables- Fennel, kohlrabi
Herbs- Parsley, basil, mint, thyme, oregano, sage
Colorado Fruit (available at the Farm Stand)- Peaches (organic and conventional), red cherries (maybe last week)
Local Products- High Point Grassfed beef, Goblin Valley Mushrooms, KREAM Kimchi, Rey Atelier herbal products, Bee Squared Apiaries honey, Roberto’s Salsa, Abuelita Guille hot sauce, Fox Den coffee, Bread Chic sourdough, Jodar Farms eggs
Thank you for all that you do! Your farm stand is wonderful!!!
Thank you Alex.
"mentally walking through the entire process"
Your sanity is your guide.