The hay is in the barn and the fields have the look of settling into a new haircut. Already the parts that we cut first are showing signs of new green growth. With a little more rain, and a dose of fertilizer to replace the nutrients we removed in the form of 3000 delicious (just ask the horses!) and nutritious bales, our second crop will be well on its way for a late August harvest.
In the mean time, we are back to vegetable land! This week we are focusing on planting cucurbits, a family that includes not only cucumbers but also zucchini, summer squash, winter squash, pumpkins and melons. We plant all of our cucurbits on beds covered with a biodegradable black plastic mulch to give them a little extra heat in the soil, and to help keep them weed-free as they begin to stretch their vines for the aisles. After planting we are usually able to weed the aisles twice with the sweeps on the tractor before the patch turns into a continuous sea of leafy vines that we have to wade into for harvest. Cucurbits are one of the crops we grow that make me particularly happy that we have honey bees. Their flowers are only open for a single day, and if a bee doesn’t visit the plant and pollinate that flower it will be aborted. I recently read in an article from University of Nebraska that it takes nine visits by a honeybee to each flower for good pollination to occur! So get busy, little bees!
Once this week’s planting and weeding push is complete we’ll be through the heavy lift of early summer on the farm. To celebrate, we’d like to invite all shareholders to a potluck dinner next Friday, June 29th from 5:30-8pm. We’ll take a little walk through the lower fields at 5:30 and break bread on the lawn (or in the barn if it’s raining) around 6pm. Bring a dish to share. We will have paper plates and utensils, or bring your own. The more the merrier!
Cheers
Norah and the Sweetland Crew