pink-hearted celery What a mess! We've seen over 8 inches of rain here in just a few days, with still more on the way. There has been standing water on crops in some of the lower sections of the farm since Thursday evening. We have what I'd classify as slightly too-well drained soil, but the water still can't drain away fast enough before the next deluge arrives. Plants need air around their roots just as much as they need air around their foliage. Without it, the plants literally drown, and the roots rot away in the waterlogged soil. Our beans have taken a particularly hard hit. The bean plants are rapidly wilting, and I'm not certain they will survive before the soil dries out sufficiently. Not to mention we can't even get to the beans to harvest without sinking up to our knees in mud. Beans are still tentatively on the list this week, we'll just have to wait and see. If they don't make it, c'est la vie. Beans grow quickly and we'll replant as soon as possible. A recent planting of summer salad mix that would have been ready this week simply washed out, but again - we'll replant as soon as possible, and it grows up fast. Our sweet onions are still in great shape, and sweet as can be, but will come to you without green tops from here on out, as the tops are just too beat up from the excessive rains.
It's not all bad though. Carrots love water, and slip out of the ground like butter from the mud, making them a joy to harvest. Squash and zucchini deal with excess water by simply growing ten times faster. (Andrew wants to put a time-lapse camera on the zucchini to find out if it truly is growing the 3 inches an hour we suspect). We're awash with squash right now, and have it on sale at two pounds for $5. Cucumbers are sweet as can be, without a hint of bitterness given all the rain. And yes, those sweet little Divas are producing! Celery loves feeling half-drowned. We usually struggle to provide enough water through the irrigation system to keep celery growing nicely. It's growing like a weed, happy as a clam to have wet muddy feet day after day. We also now have heirloom pink-hearted celery on hand - something new I was anxious to try this year. It is a bit smaller than green celery, and the flavor's a bit more assertive, but it could lend a beautiful color to salads or veggie trays.
And last not but least, I really can't complain too much about anything when these sweet gems have finally started to ripen up. Quantities are somewhat limited this week, but the vines are safely tucked in out of the rain in our greenhouse, and we'll have truckloads of 'em in no time!
It's not all bad though. Carrots love water, and slip out of the ground like butter from the mud, making them a joy to harvest. Squash and zucchini deal with excess water by simply growing ten times faster. (Andrew wants to put a time-lapse camera on the zucchini to find out if it truly is growing the 3 inches an hour we suspect). We're awash with squash right now, and have it on sale at two pounds for $5. Cucumbers are sweet as can be, without a hint of bitterness given all the rain. And yes, those sweet little Divas are producing! Celery loves feeling half-drowned. We usually struggle to provide enough water through the irrigation system to keep celery growing nicely. It's growing like a weed, happy as a clam to have wet muddy feet day after day. We also now have heirloom pink-hearted celery on hand - something new I was anxious to try this year. It is a bit smaller than green celery, and the flavor's a bit more assertive, but it could lend a beautiful color to salads or veggie trays.
And last not but least, I really can't complain too much about anything when these sweet gems have finally started to ripen up. Quantities are somewhat limited this week, but the vines are safely tucked in out of the rain in our greenhouse, and we'll have truckloads of 'em in no time!
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