foxlinecityfarm

A beautiful week of warm weather for garden clean up with a nice burst of heat to push the last late summer crops from the garden.  Scott pulled all the cucumber vines down and to the compost pile, the melon vines are all cleaned out.  The start of the tomato patch clean up is scheduled for this coming week.  Truely the end of the summer gardening season but lots still going on and growing!  We have Autumn loving cool crops still outside in the the garden that are thriving. Late broccoli, Kale, Swiss Chard, Chinese Cabbage, Cauliflower, Celeriac Root and more….. we seeded in long rows of spinach outside this week to winter over for Spring Shares and continue to transplant seedlings in the hoophouse for Winter Shares.  Gardening does not end for us until December when we pull late carrots mulched in the hoophouse and perhaps pluck a bit of spinich nestled under double row cover from the hoophouse too.

Cauliflower heading up in the garden.

Cool loving Arcadia broccoli plants going in the hoophouse for Winter Share harvest.

Planting long rows of Arcadia Broccoli in the hoophouse.

Transplants to go into the hoophouse yet this season……cold lettuces, pac choi, kohlrabi, radicchio and more.

Tiny radishes.

We are still picking a pint or 2 each day of Fall Raspberries that we freeze for making future jams and syrups for a treat in the Winter Storage Share.

Raspberry picking after school.

The end of season survey will be in your share this week.  We would love to read what your thoughts are on the season and any suggestions are always appreciated.  Please return the survey with your box/bag return.

LAST PICK UP IS MONDAY OCTOBER 13TH!  PLEASE RETURN ALL EXTRA BAGS/BOXES AND PACKAGING YOU MAY HAVE FLOATING AROUND YOUR HOUSE OR VEHICLES.  THANK YOU!

We have a few Winter Storage Shares available if anyone is interested….  Baraboo Pick Up Only. Pick up Dates are November 10th and December 8th.  $160

WHAT IS IN YOUR SHARE.

364 pounds of garden produce went out the door today!

SNACK PACK

Leaf lettuce mix-A delicious just cut assortment.

Portioning out the arugula after a double rinse.

Arugula  ready to be banded.

Arugula-A nice big bunch of this snappy treat.  Several members mentioned on their surveys last season that they would like more arugula throughout the season…..hope this was enough for all the arugula lovers!

Salad Turnips-Wonderful!  Enjoy this Spring and Fall treat.  A Japanese variety called Hakurei.  Best eaten raw.  Greens are edible too.

Leeks-The wonderful Fall leeks we have been waiting for…..

Potatoes-We could not put leeks in the shares without potatoes.  Just did not seem right.  Adarondack Reds for everyone.

Green Beans-A surprise for us as we did not think this crop would amount to much in the cold weather a few weeks back.  A late season bounty.

Garlic-Music or German Red in every share.

Cherry Tomaotes-The end of the ripe tomato season for us.

FULL SHARE

Red Kitten is back!

Scott weighing out the Spinach.

Spinach-A huge bag of Spinach this week.  A green variety called Space and the pretty Red Kitten returns.

Arugula-A nice big bunch of this snappy treat.  Several members mentioned on their surveys last season that they would like more arugula throughout the season…..hope this was enough for all the arugula lovers.

Salad Turnips-Wonderful!  Enjoy this Spring and Fall treat.  A Japanese variety called Hakurei.  Best eaten raw.  Greens are eadable too.

Leeks-The wonderful Fall leeks we have been waiting for…..

Maeve weighed out the potatoes again this week-after we made a crown to make the activity seem “fancier”.

Potatoes-We could not put leeks in the shares without potatoes.  Just did not seem right.  Adarondick Reds for everyone.

Green Beans-A surprise for us as we did not think this crop would amount to much in the cold weather a few weeks back.  A late season bounty.

Broccoli-A bag of the smaller side shoots harvested off our summer  broccoli.

Storage Onions-A few in every share.

Winter Squash-A Variety called Carnival. A multi colored sweet dumpling. Sweet tender orange flesh.  Great for stuffing.

Summer Squash-A few little gems to mark the TRUE end of this summer staple.  The second patch vines are done.

Garlic-Music or German Red in every share.

The last cherry tomato harvest.

Cherry Tomates-The end of the ripe tomato season for us.

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-BEETS, CARROTS, SWEET POTATOES!!!!!, LETTUCE, KALE AND MORE.

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A pretty cobweb on the tomato trellis.

Another work of art that greets us in the morning dew.

The first day of Autumn is just around the corner and it feels like it out in the garden.  Damp dewy mornings and we busy ourselves with other duties while we wait for the garden to dry a bit.  Working with cold wet clothes and chilly wet fingers at this time of year is never fun.

Exciting news to report.  Scott harvested all the Sweet Potatoes this week-by hand!  The vines were slightly nipped by a light frost and it was time to harvest as growing stopped with the vine damage.  A bumper crop.  Our best ever and we are thrilled….Thank you Uncle Jim for your help!!!!!  We planted 500 slips in Spring and Scott weighed out just over 465 pounds when he put them in the greenhouse to cure. Sweet potatoes taste almost like a regular potato if eaten right after harvest.  They need a period of time in high heat to convert the sugars and sweeten up a bit.  We will let them sit in the warmth of the greenhouse for a week or 2 and then Tons!!! of Sweet Potatoes in the final weeks of the CSA.

Sweet potatoes coming in from the field.

Scott with some beautiful sweet potatoes in the greenhouse.

We also decided to harvest Maeve’s big pumpkin.  We noticed a critter was nibbling on a neigboring pumpkin and did not want this beauty to get a chomp or 2 on his backside.

Getting ready to harvest our great pumpkin.

He’s up and ready to be taken out of the garden.

Lots of wonderful produce yet to come out of the garden and hoophouse. Perhaps a few more tomatoes as the weather report is saying warmer days this week.  We will try for a few more for everyone.  It has been a good tomato year for us but it would be nice to taste a few more in these first days of Autumn.  Next week a big leek harvest of the delicious thick Autumn leeks and a great crop of thick jumbo stew carrots.  We pulled a few to test this week and they are fantastic.  A last big crop of beets in the coming weeks and ALL that fall spinach (including Red Kitten!) is just starting to leaf out beautifully. Oh, and it does look like all that popcorn that was blown down flat and Scott spent all that time standing back up is going to do something..  I really think there will be some popcorn.  We are afraid to peek just yet with fear of being disappointed but the ears are thick and the stalks are slowly starting to dry.  I know I said it before but this really is my favorite time of year.

WHAT IS IN YOUR SHARE

329 pounds of tasty treats from the garden this week.  Happy Autumn Everyone!

SNACK PACK

Pac choi-I have been looking forward to this return.  A nice juicy head of a variety called White Flash.

Cabbage all soaked and ready to be put in the cooler.

Cabbage-Those fun mini flat heads that we like so much.  Great flavor.  Perfect for salads and stir fry.

Storage Onions-The first of the storage onion harvest.  We have let them dry down and cure for many weeks and they are ready for the shares.   These will appear in the final weeks of the CSA.  Stronger flavor then the sweet summer onions earlier in the season.

Mini Snack Peppers-An assorted bag of these delicious mini sweet snacking peppers.  The last harvest for the season.

Spinach-BIG! delicious leaves.  Full of flavor.  Enjoy.

Ground Cherries-A sweet treat!

Chives-A nice garnish for soups or salads.  Great with eggs.

FULL SHARE

Pac choi-I have been looking forward to this return.   2 heads in Full Share this week.  A nice juicy head of a variety called White Flash and another taller variety called Win-Win.

Cabbage-Those fun mini flat heads that we like so much.  Great flavor.  Perfect for salads and stir fry.

Storage Onions-The first of the storage onion harvest.  We have let them dry down and cure for many weeks and they are ready for the shares.   These will appear in the final weeks of the CSA.  Stronger flavor then the sweet summer onions earlier in the season.

Peppers-A bag of “mildy hot” Anaheims and a bag of jalapenos. This week will finish the season with peppers for us.

Lettuce-We have made the transition to the cooler lettuces and this is a delicious mini head called “bambi”.

Beans-Perhaps the final bean harvest of the season.

Salad Turnips coming up from the hoop house.

Scott at the washing station cleaning the salad turnips.

Salad Turnips-They are back!  Japanese Hakurei Turnips. Our favorite salad turnip.  The texture is as smooth as butter and mild flavor.  Eat raw in salads or sliced thin on sandwiches. Raw is our prefered.  Can be lighty sauted too for stir fries.  Greens can be eaten too.

Chives-a nice garnish for soups or salads and great with eggs.

Summer Squash-A few tender little guys and this is the end of this crop for the season.

Spaghetti Squash- Baraboo Full Share only.

Celery-Erdman Full Share share only.

Tomatoes-A few choice slice or paste varieties. Sadly, this may be the end of the ripe slice/paste tomato season for us.

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-SPINACH, LEAF LETTUCE, KALE, LEEKS, WINTER SQUASH, CARROTS AND MORE……….

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September.  We marvel how we are leaving Summer behind.  The colors of the garden are deepening, space is opening up and  we are pulling those early crops of the season.  The final rotation of vegetables are going in and the Winter over crops are seeded in.  Our conversations often mention plans of next year’s garden configuration, where we will be planting the garlic this Fall, putting the garden to bed and perhaps something new we may try for next year.  I even heard myself speak of next season “Spring Share”  and we reflect that things are wrapping up.  We are excited to see the Autumn crops we cared for all summer long reach maturity.  The Winter Squash crop patch is developing  and harvest starts soon.

Winter squash on the vine.

Another variety of squash in the patch.

The brussels sprouts are forming.  A bit later this year but on their way……  A favorite and we plant tons!

Brussels  Sprout rows.

When Scott went to pull the flattened popcorn rows from last week’s storm he noticed the roots were strong.  He took the time to stand them all ALL! back up.  Well,  3/4 of it is standing tall and is acting as if nothing tramatic happened.  So, popcorn may really be in our future!

Popcorn standing tall!

The ever changing hoop house is all new again…..cooler crops settling in for the finish of the season.  Spinach, spinach and more spinach.  Red kitten is coming back!  leaf lettuces, pac choi, turnips, carrots, radishes and cooler lettuces.

Hoop house transforms again.

Next week’s radish harvest in the hoop house.

The tomato plants keep chugging along.  We had a nice harvest the last 2 weeks and expect to harvest for a few more weeks to come….  The crop is not as strong this year due to the cooler temperatures but we are satisfied with the yield after the near non existant harvest last season.

Lemon Drop on the vine…..

WHAT IS IN YOUR SHARE 

611 pounds of goodies from the garden this week!

SNACK PACK

Cherry Tomatoes Full Pint-A huge cherry tomato harvest this week with all the heat.

Black Cherries at the top of the trellis.

Slicers/Paste Tomatoes-A colorful assorted mix.

Potaotes-A bag of Red Norlands.

Leeks-The end of our summer leek harvest.   Fat Autumn leeks to follow soon.

Daikon Radish-Two varieties.  Peel and slice off a bit.  Store the remainder of the root in a sealed bag in the refrigerator.

Edamame-We love this summer treat.  Boil or steam in salty water for a few minutes, cool slighty, remove bean from pod and eat.  Delicious!

Scott pulling all the beans off the plants. A BIG! job.

Anaheim Peppers-A variety called Highlander. Classified as “mildly hot” (an odd discription to me….)and I do not taste any heat just that rich satisfying chili flavor.  Perfect for grilling, stuffing (chili rellenos), roasting and green chili stew.

Sweet Pepper-A tasty bell.

Lettuce-A nice summer crunch head.  It has been a great lettuce year for us with these cooler temperatures.

Sweet Corn-Perhaps the last harvest from Scott’s Uncle’s farm.

Maeve enjoying this week’s corn harvest her favorite way-raw!

Full Share

Cherry Tomato Mix-A double pint container!  Bounty harvest this week.

Sweet Sundrop cherry on the vine.

Slicers/Paste Tomatoes-A colorful assorted mix.

Potaotes-A bag of purple Magic Molly Fingerlings.

Daikon Radish-Two varieties.  Peel and slice off a bit.  Store the remainder of the root in a sealed bag in the refrigerator.

Edamame-We love this summer treat.  Boil or steam in salty water for a few minutes, cool slighty, remove bean from pod and eat.  Delicious!

Maeve casting a frozen spell on the edamame….

And magically the job is done……

Anaheim Peppers-A variety called Highlander. Classified as “mildly hot” (an odd discription to me….)and I do not taste any heat just that rich satisfying chili flavor.  Perfect for grilling, stuffing (chili rellenos), roasting and green chili stew.

Anaheim pepper plants in the garden.

Sweet Pepper-A tasty bell.

Lettuce-A nice summer crunch head.  It has been a great lettuce year for us with these cooler temperatures.

Broccoli-1/2 pound mix of 3 summer varieties.

Summer Carrots-These are the smaller quick growing wonders.  Summer carrots are not as sweet as carrots grown in cooler Spring/Autumn temperatures.  Delicious carrot flavor.  Fun to note the difference in the taste.  Wonderful roasted.

Baby Watermelon-Cute little sweet melons.

Sweet Corn-Perhaps the last harvest from Scott’s Uncle’s farm.

Another big bite!

Baraboo FULL SHARE  Group-those of you that missed out on the early summer raspberries….autumn berries are starting,  Grab a container in the cooler.

Autumn Berries….

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-tomatoes, fennel, celery, green beans???, summer squash,carrots, shallots and more…….

Next green bean harvest.

A sure sign Autumn is around the corner…….Maeve’s Giant pumpkin patch.

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