The cool, rainy weather has been so wonderful lately and many of the crops are loving it. Unfortunately, so are many of the insect pests. Aphids, grasshoppers, and other little critters come out in droves during rainy times and those aphids have been feasting on Willowbrook’s fall lettuce crop. Hopefully organic pest control methods can rid the fields of most of those little buggers so we can enjoy salad mix again soon. But this week we do have beautiful heads of lettuce from Whipstone (remember how terrific they looked in the fields a few weeks ago?), so salad lovers can rejoice.
Tomatoes are in full swing now, and you can expect to see them every week until the weather cools in earnest. If you are a slow tomato eater, it is easy to preserve tomatoes for later. Just wash, core the large ones, and freeze in a plastic bag either whole or diced. These frozen tomatoes can be dumped straight in the pot when you want to make fresh tomato sauce. Once they have thawed as you cook them, they can be mashed or blended. Just don’t let them go to waste!
This week we also have the world’s best carrots, more delicious broccolini, cucumbers, parsley, and garlic. We are beginning to look forward to apples, sweet peppers, and winter squash in the coming weeks and months. As many of you may recall, a late freeze this spring wiped out all of the stone fruit crops and many of the apples in the area. Oak Creek Canyon orchards do have some apples though, so we are hoping to have some of those soon.
Have a fabulous week!
Meghan
What’s in your basket – August 3rd
Carrots – Whipstone Farm
Cherry tomatoes – Willowbrook Farm
Cucumbers – Whipstone Farm
Garlic – Willowbrook Farm
Head lettuce – Whipstone Farm
Parsley – Whipstone Farm
Tomatoes – Willowbrook Farm
A reminder that Whipstone’s lettuce looks amazing and delicious!
Italian sweet peppers starting to ripen at Willowbrook.
Butternut squash in the field.
It’s getting close!