
Last week I promised that we would get back to our usual full schedule after all these mid-week holidays, but it looks like the weather has other plans for us all. It's supposed to dip well below freezing (10 degrees!) tonight, and remain below freezing until at least Wednesday afternoon. Lest you think we're just too delicate to go out in the cold, vegetables cannot be cut when they're frozen solid. A possible few hours at 35 degrees on Wednesday afternoon isn't long enough to allow those vegetables to thaw completely (think about how long it takes to defrost a frozen turkey in your refrigerator), so it may be sometime late Thursday before we're able to harvest again. It's quite rare in the winter that the weather prevents us from harvesting or delivering your veggies, but it does happen on occasion. We'll be back to our usual full schedule next week - we hope!
The list of what we have available for this weekend is a little more uncertain than usual, also due to the upcoming big chill. Central NC hasn't seen temperatures this cold in about 15 years. I've only been farming for about half that time, so I can't claim from experience that everything we currently have available will survive. Sweet potatoes were harvested and boxed up for winter storage in September; I think our root crops will sail through though they may lose their leafy green tops; leeks are indestructible; I just pray we don't lose too many greens. We have everything tucked in and covered up as best we can, but it is entirely possible that our harvest lists will be a bit shorter by the weekend.
In the meantime, stay warm, and keep your fingers crossed for milder weather next week!