From the Farmer August 3rd, 2011
It’s tough to work the farm when the power is out. It is hard enough getting soaking wet in the rain on Monday, tying up tomato plants or making a new goat fence with the humidity over 100%, but having no access to water (the well pump is electric) and not being able to cook (can’t open the fridge or freezers or wash veggies) or even get a drink of water is really hard. We called a rain day Monday afternoon and when the power went off and stayed off at on Tuesday morning, we finally called the day, giving our interns another day off.. And while they did come back to finish the short section of fence in the evening, it certainly did not accomplish the long list of farm maintenance jobs that really need to be done. We finally got the power back on today – Wednesday – about . Thank goodness. We had begun to think about contingency plans for generators to power our farm freezers full of meat and veggies to hold us and our crew through the year.
The storm left us pretty intact. Lots of plants blown, animal hoop houses damaged and one of the goat igloo’s blown half way across the farm and smashed in the horse pasture. The broiler chicks took the worst of the wind and rain. With the western exposure of their pen, the wind and rain blasted into their pen saturating them to the skin. Of course as chickens do when scared or cold or wet, they piled up. As soon as the storm abated, I checked on them, and pulled the piled up chicks off one another. Only one dead, suffocated on the bottom. The rest, soaking wet, and very unhappy looking are now fine, eating and drinking as if nothing had happened.
Finally, beautiful weather today and we put in a long day of making a new fence for the laying hens, planting strawberries and the last of the flowers, seeding more turnips, radishes and cilantro, mowing the lawn, building a new hoop house for the sheep (their old one was smashed down in the storm), and harvesting the first half of your veggies for the shares this week. By the end of the day – the long day – we are all sweaty and tired.
And tomorrow starts really early – to get the rest of the veggies harvested and to unload the 200 bales of hay that will arrive at . We had expected the hay to arrive on Tuesday, but because of the rain, it was delayed. So now we have to add that to our busy harvest/delivery day. Such is the nature of farming and dealing with the weather.
And tomorrow starts really early – to get the rest of the veggies harvested and to unload the 200 bales of hay that will arrive at . We had expected the hay to arrive on Tuesday, but because of the rain, it was delayed. So now we have to add that to our busy harvest/delivery day. Such is the nature of farming and dealing with the weather.
Until next week …………..
What’s In Your Share
Basil – Thai and Genovese
Beets - Red Ace
Broccoli – Blue Wind, Bay Meadows, Packman
Garlic
Onion – Sierra Blanca, Mars
Potatoes – Norland
Radish – Summer Cross Daikon
Summer Squash – Cash Flow, Lita, President, Spineless Beauty,
Slick Pick, Horn of Plenty, Sunburst, Cavelli
Cucumbers - Raider, Diva, Northern Pickling, Minature White
Swiss Chard – Fordhook Giant
Sweet Peppers - Islander and Gypsy
Hot Peppers - Jalapeno, Yellow Banana
