foxlinecityfarm

Another happy and productive week in the garden. Ample rain at just the right times and the crops are all responding well.  Lots of changes everyday….and fun!  So much to see.

Peppers forming.

Eggplant flowering.

Cantalope blossoms on the vine.

Early raspberries.

Cucumbers!

The story repeats itself this week of weed, weed and more weeding.  But, it does feel good to be in front of things and it sure does look good. All our onions our now weed free (FINALLY) and glad that job is done as it is fussy and takes forever!  Our sweet summer onions are starting to head up and we are looking forward to the first harvest in a few weeks.

Sweet summer onions.

We quickly weeded our way through all the cauliflower in the back gardens and had a nice surprise.

Caulflower heading up.

Our garlic looks fantastic this year and so do the potatoes.  We have missed both of these items in our dinners for several months.  Maeve asked when we were going to have mashed potatoes again this week and I could finally respond “soon”.

The tomatoes are several inches if not a foot taller than last year at this time when we look at the photos.  The crop looks strong and healthy and loaded with blossoms and baby tomatoes forming.

Tomatoes on the trellis.

Tomatoes forming.

We are seeding in many late crops in the garden….and will start transplanting again this week the crops started in the greenhouse. Crazy that our thoughts are drifting to Autumn already.

All Carrots!

Baby transplants in the greenhouse.

We hope a few members tried Kale Crisps last week as we sure are enjoying this quick summer snack at our house.  Better than potato chips!

Maeve polishing off another bowl of Kale Crisps.

SUMMER SHARE #5

Todays garden bounty…..310 pounds!  Enjoy!!!

A reminder…..please return your share bag and any reusable packaging for future use.  Thanks!

SNACK PACK

Swiss Chard-Hoop house grown and oh so tender.  Much different than field grown chard.  Eat stems and all if you choose.  This is the end of the chard until Fall as we have pulled the crop.  Summer chard is not as tasty.  Slightly bitter and woody.  A new crop is started in the greenhouse now and we will harvest again in the Fall.

Chard washed and ready to be bundled

Collard Greens-A HUGE! favorite of mine.  It maked the best coleslaw ever!! And I like to use it for my “bread” with sandwiches or as a roll up.  Cut the center rib and use as you would loaf bread or wraps.

Collard greens harvest from a wet garden.

Head lettuce-A crispy, deep green summer romaine from the hoop house.

Sugar Snap Peas-Another bounty harvest from the patch!  Enjoy fresh is best or lightly steamed.

Picking the sugarsnaps.

Chinese Cabbage-An early mini head variety.  Great in fresh salads or delicious in stir fries.  LONG storage life in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator in a plastic bag.

Garlic Scapes-Last bundle of these little treats for the season.

Bundling up the last harvest of the garlic scapes.

Broccoli-The start of the harvest from the early broccoli patch.  BARABOO SNACK PACK ONLY THIS WEEK.

FULL SHARE

Swiss Chard-A nice big bunch….Hoop house grown and oh so tender.  Much different than field grown chard.  Eat stems and all if you choose.  This is the end of the chard until Fall as we have pulled the crop.  Summer chard is not as tasty.  Slightly bitter and woody.  A new crop is started in the greenhouse now and we will harvest again in the Fall.

Pretty bundles ready to be tucked in this week’s Full Shares.

Collard Greens-A HUGE! favorite of mine.  It maked the best coleslaw ever!! And I like to use it for my “bread” with sandwiches or as a roll up.  Cut the center rib and use as you would loaf bread or wraps.

Collard greens in the wash tank. The water pools on the leaves and looks like silver.

Head lettuce-A crispy, deep green summer romaine from the hoop house.

Sugar Snap Peas-Another bounty harvest from the patch!  Enjoy fresh is best or lightly steamed.

Sugar snap harvest. AND! that pretty visor again….

Shelling Peas!-A nice big container. A lot of work to shell but delicious.  Eat peas only.  NOT shell.  Enjoy fresh in salads or lightly steamed with salt and butter.

Chinese Cabbage-An early mini head variety.  Great in fresh salads or delicious in stir fries.  LONG storage life in the crisper drawer of the refrigerator in a plastic bag.

Scott double rinsing the chinese cabbage.

Chinese Cabbage soaking in the wash tank.

Garlic Scapes-Last bundle of these little treats for the season.

Kohlrabi-Another snappy treat to add to this weeks salads.

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-carrots!, leaf lettuce, sugar snaps, broccoli, mini cabbage heads and more…..

Next week’s carrot harvest.

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A perfect rain- a little over an inch!  A great way to start the week.

Another powerhouse week in the garden.  The theme for the week was weeding and more weeding and then weed some more.  We stuck with it every day and it looks great!  It’s cool to have long long rows of carrots but daunting to have long long rows of carrots that need fussy weeding and thinning.  But, I stuck with it for hours and am happy to say we have 10 70 foot rows of weed free carrots that look perfect.

1 of the weed free carrot beds.

Another day was spent going through the summer onion bed and it too is weed free and looking strong.  We increased our plantings this year with hopes of a bounty crop later in the season.  All fussy work and oh so slow but worth it.

When we were not weeding our days away we were prepping another carrot/beet bed to plant this week for a late season harvest.

Maeve “watering in” the new carrot bed with a squirt gun.

The hoop house is just about transformed to summer lettuce now that the last Asian greens were harvested.  Several rotations of lettuce planted and 2 more going in this week.

Transplanted lettuce that went in where we harvested the last of the Asian Greens.

Other fun news around the garden.  We are seeing the shift to summer crops and soon to follow harvest.  The cucumbers and peppers are flowering and setting fruit and I bet we will pick our first zucchini this week!

Cucumber plants are climbing up the trellis and flowering.

1st zucchini!

AND! take a look at this…..

Tomatoes!

The greenhouse is filling up again with flats seeded in for late season plantings….I mentioned to Scott when I finished the seeding that I felt like I started a whole new garden again.  Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, herbs, leafy greens, and more are all germinated and ready for Fall eating.

A summer pac choi that we will harvest in 45 days, Crazy that we will be eating this in early August!

Look what else is happening in the berry patch….

1st raspberry! The patch is finally established and the plants are loaded.

SUMMER SHARE #4

A great share this week AGAIN!  Enjoy…..248 pounds of delicious garden produce!

SNACK PACK

Sugar Snap Pea Bonanza!-A fantastic harvest of this favorite crop.  We planted long rows of 2 varieties.  Sweet and delicious.

Sugar snaps chilled and ready to be portioned for the shares.

Sugar snap on the vine….

Scott picking the shorter variety of sugar snap.

Kale-A favorite in our house.  A big assorted bunch.  We planted many varieties this year.  Try baked Kale Crisps in the oven.  Maeve eats big bowls and thinks they are better than potato chips.  Also, a fresh salad of Kale is delicious.  Remove the center rib, tear apart the leaves, rub with olive oil and let sit a bit.  Then create a delicious salad with your favorite additions.  Also, a kale bean soup is tasty.

Washed Kale ready to be bundled.

Kohlrabi-2 in every share of this snappy treat.  Peel and eat fresh.

Kohlrabi washing.

Asian Green- This pretty, bright lime green variety is called Tokyo Bekana.  It has light ruffled leaves and tastes a bit like a fluffy chinese cabbage.  Add to a mixed salad to add “loft” or all on its own.

Garlic Scapes-Another round of these tasty treats.  We love to saute in olive oil and use as we would garlic.  Long storage life in the crisper drawer in a sealed plastic bag.

Arugula- A snappy bag of this peppery green.  A mildly spicy green that is a nice addition to a fresh salad or fantastic as a pizza topping.

FULL SHARE

Sugar Snap Pea Bonanza!-A fantastic harvest of this favorite crop.  We planted long rows of 2 varieties.  Sweet and delicious.

Harvest from 1/2 row sugar snap…..I know “nice visor” Pretty…..I’m trying this year to keep the sun off my face.

Portioning the Peas for this weeks share.  Hey, look out the window- it’s dark out….we don’t go to bed until everything is portioned and ready for share packing in the morning.  It’s 10:00!

Kale-A favorite in our house.  A big assorted bunch.  We planted 7 varieties this year.  Try baked Kale Crisps in the oven.  Maeve eats big bowls and thinks they are better than potato chips.  Also, a fresh salad of Kale is delicious.  Remove the center rib, tear apart the leaves, rub with olive oil and let sit a bit.  Then create a delicious salad with your favorite additions.  Also, a kale bean soup is tasty.

Kohlrabi-2 in every share of this snappy treat.  Peel and eat fresh.

Asian Green- This pretty, bright lime green variety is called Tokyo Bekana.  It has light ruffled leaves and tastes a bit like a fluffy chinese cabbage.  Add to a mixed salad to add “loft” or all on its own.

Garlic Scapes-Another round of these tasty treats.  We love to saute in olive oil and use as we would garlic.  Long storage life in the crisper drawer in a sealed plastic bag.

Broccoli-Well, this is a surprise….I was harvesting the kohlrabi and looked over and a few earlbird broccoli plants decided to head up.  Enjoy this first little taste of more to come.  3 varieties are planted in the field now and 4 more to go in yet.

Beets-A sweet bundle of these pretty gems from the hoop house.

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-lettuce, chinese cabbage, sugar snap peas, shelling peas, and more…..

Belated Happy Father’s Day to all the Dads in the CSA.  Hope you had a wonderful day yesterday with your children.

Maeve and Scott. We take a picture in this  spot on Father’s day every year.

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We have crested the hill and the bulk of the garden is now in and the greenhouse cleared out of first wave transplants.  It feels good to see a full garden and an empty greenhouse.  As usual we had our early season “we’ve run out of space!” and Scott had to till up an edge for a few more zucchini I wanted to get in.  All is well.

Carrots are weeded and we are pleased.  Really pleased……  In season’s past we have lost a few beds of carrots as we were not able to stay on top of the early weeding.  This year we were not going to let that happen-no matter what!

Our melon patch is in.  We finished up right before a few days of perfect rain.   3 varieties of cantalope and 6 varieties of watermelon were planted in the patch.  We are looking forward to a bounty this summer.

Finishing up the melon patch.  We plant on landscape fabric with irrigation.  An electric fence surrounds the patch to keep unwanted visitors out.

The job is done!

During the many rainstorms we transplanted lettuce in the hoophouse….

Lettuce transplanting.

Early crops look strong and healthy.  Garlic looks fantastic this year and we started cutting the scapes  (in the shares this week), 3 rotations of beans are in and 1 is starting to flower and the cabbage is starting to look like cabbage.

Cabbage starting to head.

This week’s big deal is weeding through all those onions planted in early Spring.  Our focus for a few days I’m sure.   The organic sweet potato slips will also arrive later this week and we will get those planted for a Autumn treat.  We ordered 250 more slips this year in anticipation of a bounty crop.  We also selected an additional variety that has purple skin and a lighter flesh color as a fun treat.

SUMMER SHARE #3

A full cooler all ready for Scott to pack up Monday morning.

WOW!  396 pounds of garden goodness going home with members today.

SNACK PACK

Carrots-Yes!  More of those sweet baby carrots.  Enjoy.

Carrots drying after they were washed.

Leaf Lettuce-A nice big bag of assorted leafy greens.

Scott weighing out the leaf lettuce.

Swiss Chard-A colorful bunch of hoophouse grown juicy stalks.

Radish Medley-2 variety mix.  Long French Breakfast and pretty red globes.  This is is the END of the radish run until Fall.  Phew!  I am sure we are all about radished out…..  Radishes store well in the crisper drawer in a sealed plastic bag.

Pac Choi-A delicious head called Win Win.

Harvesting Pac Choi from the hoop house.

Garlic Scapes-Those funny green curly things.  These are the tops of the garlic plant cut to promote head developement.  Tastes just like garlic.  Use just like garlic cloves in your meal preparation.

Garlic scapes at harvest.

Sugar Snap Peas!-A sweet pint.  Eat Pod and all.  The season is just starting with many weeks to come.  ENJOY!

The pea picker this week.

Look at that!

Basil Plant-Dark green Italian variety or a sweet cinnamon variety that tastes great with salads or fruit.

FULL SUMMER SHARE

Carrots-Yes!  More of those sweet baby carrots.  Enjoy.

Scott getting ready to weigh out the carrots.

Leaf Lettuce-A nice big bag of assorted leafy greens.

Swiss Chard-A colorful bunch of hoophouse grown juicy stalks.

Radish Medley-2 variety mix.  Long French Breakfast and pretty red globes.  This is is the END of the radish run until Fall. PHEW! I am sure we are all about radished out.  Radishes store well in the crisper drawer in a sealed plastic bag.

Pac Choi-A few delicious heads called Win Win.

Pac Choi cut and ready to be transported to the washing station.

Garlic Scapes-Those funny green curly things.  These are the tops of the garlic plant cut to promote head developement.  Tastes just like garlic.  Use just like garlic cloves in your meal preparation.

The long garlic rows.

Sugar Snap Peas!-A big box to enjoy all week.  Delicious.  Eat pod and all.

Peas!

Spinach-The end of the Spring Spinach. Scott followed behind and pulled the crop as I harvested.  A great season of spinach from the hoophouse.  4 plantings….We started cutting this crop in early April.  Spinach will return in the Fall.

Rhubarb-A nice big bundle for a pie or crisp.

Rhubarb harvest.

Basil Plant-Dark green Italian variety or a sweet cinnamon variety that tastes great with salads or fruit.

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-peas, kohlrabi, kale, Tokyo Bekana (asian green), collards, arugula and more….

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We had a great week!  All the tomatoes are in and happy. We are very happy to have this big job done..  Scott got the trellis up and I quickly followed behind with the plants.  We blasted through the job and got it completed in short order.

Scott putting the trellis up for the tomatoes.

Planting the slicer tomatoes.

We have added another row of slicing tomatoes this year looking forward to a jumbo harvest later in Summer.

Long rows of peppers went in and eggplant too.  We planted another round of beans and got all the celery in close to dark one evening.   A heavy week of planting but nice to see the garden filling up.  We are on top of the weeding or at least more on top of it than in years past.  We still are working our way through the long fussy carrot rows but hopefully this week we will have hit the end.  Our friend Barbara came for a few hours and made her way down the rows with me and we appreciated the help.

The shade cloth is on the hoop house and it has dramatically lowered the temperature in there.  Protection for all the delicious leafy greens as the hoophouse fully transitions to our “salad house” for the summer.

The big theme around here this summer is carrots and more carrots…..and more.  We are going to be carrot maniacs all summer long.  So our first carrot harvest of the season of many has begun.

We thought we would try something new…..Enjoy!

A HUGE thank you to Amy for the help in getting this into the blog.

SUMMER SHARE #2

A fantastic harvest this week from the gardens.  265 pounds of produce packed this week.  Enjoy!

SNACK PACK #2

Spinach-Another juicy bag of our hoop house spinach harvest.  This crop has been a powerhouse this Spring but may be coming to an end with the projected hot weather this week.

Head Lettuce-A pretty bronze head called Outrageous.

Head lettuce at harvest.

Asian Greens Mix-A  spicy mix that can be added to a mix greens salad or sauted.  Beautiful color and texture.

Radish-A big bag of red gems named Sora.

Radish harvesting.

Turnips!!-We LOVE these tasty treats….great flavor and texture.

Harvesting the turnips.

Carrots-We planted these mini TRUE baby carrots (4 varieties) in March for an early jump on the season.  They are delicious and what a change from grocery store carrots. Maeve calls store bought carrots “fake carrots”.  Enjoy the garden just picked flavor.  A treat!

Scott harvesting the baby carrots.

Maeve “helping” with the carrot harvest.

FULL SUMMER SHARE #2

Spinach-Another jumbo harvest from the hoophouse.  This may be the last week due to expected high temperatures.

Head Lettuce-A beautiful lime green head named Panisse.

Asian Green Mix-A  spicy mix that can be added to a mixed salad or sauted.  Beautiful color and texture.

Scott washing the spicy Asian Greens.

Asian Greens Mix 2-A mild mix of light colored greens.  Combine with the spicy for a great fresh salad or saute.

Radish-A big bag of red gems named Sora.

Turnips!!-We LOVE these tasty treats….great flavor and texture.

Carrots-We planted these mini TRUE baby carrots (4 varieties) in March for an early jump on the season.  They are delicious and what a change from grocery store carrots.  Enjoy!

Loading the carrots into the washing machine.

Wash.

Beautiful!

Carlton-An Asian Green.  Very dark green leaves.  Traditionally used in Japan in stir fries and soups.  Can be eaten raw in salads to add a bit of crunch.  Long storage life in the refrigerator sealed in a plastic bag.

BEST GUESS FOR NEXT WEEK-leaf lettuce, swiss chard, baby kale, pac choi, carrots, rhubarb and….maybe….

Look what is happening in the garden!  PEAS!

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A beautiful day!  Ample rain and sunshine and the garden is growing lush and strong.  The pea vines are blooming and beans are up.  Sure signs that summer is rolling in.  We are transplanting the peppers, tomatoes, eggplant and summer squash out in the garden and all the melons soon to follow.  We have increased our watermelon/cantalope area this year and planting 3 new varieties in addition to those planted in the past.  Our first radish crop has been harvested from the outside gardens and Scott will prep the space for more carrots.  Rmember we have a powerhouse carrot goal this year!   The seeds for the second round of broccoli and cabbage will be started as soon as all the peppers clear from the greenhouse.    Our hoop house will soon be fully transitioned to summer crops and  the shade cloth up.  Seems we are in full garden mode around here.

We have to water the hoop house 2 times a day on sunny days…..here I am watering the spinach the day before harvest.

SUMMER SHARE #1

We are excited to start the Summer Season and looking forward to weeks of wonderful fresh produce.  Thank you to all for sharing the season and welcome all new members to FoxLine.  We are thrilled to be sharing our gardens with all of you.

Paper receipts for your 2015 share purchase will be at all pick up sites in green envelopes with member’s name on the front.  Check with your health insurance provider as discounts or credits may apply.

SNACK PACK

Snack pack produce is packed in a green bag.  Please return your bag and any reusable packaging material the following week with your pick up.

Spinach-Beautiful hoop house grown big “donkey ear” leaves.  This variety is called Space and we love it.  Next week we will start spinach harvest from the outside garden.

Scott harvesting the spinach in the hoop house.

Head lettuce-Juicy lime green heads from the hoop house.  This variety is called Bambi and only grows well in Spring and Fall cool temperatures.

Lettuce cooling in the wash tank.

Beets!-A great early harvest from the hoop house.  Seeds were planted in early March and they grew slow and sweet.  Enjoy!  2 early varieties were planted.  Oven roasted beets are delicious!  But, we do enjoy a beet hummus (which is really pretty).  Remember the beet greens can be eaten too. Tasty with citrus.  Beet greens can be sauted, eaten raw in salads, baked to make “crisps” like kale chips or added to smoothies.

Harvesting beets.

Pac choi-A mini variety from the hoop house.  Enjoy fresh added to salad or on it’s own or saute with garlic, onion and soy sauce.

Radishes-French Breakfast harvested from the outside garden.  Mild flavor and crisp.

FULL SHARE

Full Share produce is packed in a orange bag.  Please return your bag and any reusable packaging material the following week with your pick up.

Spinach- A  jumbo bag of beautiful hoop house grown big “donkey ear” leaves.  This variety is called Space and we love it.  Next week we will start spinach harvesting from the outside garden.

Head lettuce-Juicy lime green heads from the hoop house.  This variety is called Bambi and only grows well in Spring and Fall cool temperatures.

Lettuce set out to dry a bit before packing.

Beets!-A great early harvest from the hoop house.  Seeds were planted in early March and they grew slow and sweet.  Enjoy!  2 early varieties were planted.  Oven roasted beets are delicious!  But we do enjoy a beet hummus (which is really pretty).  Remember the beet greens can be eaten too. Tasty with citrus.  Beet greens can be sauted, eaten raw in salads, baked to make “crisps” like kale chips or added to smoothies.

Another view of the beet harvest.

Pac choi-A mid-size beauty from the hoop house.  Best fresh in salads but can also be sauted with garlic, onion and soy sauce.

Radishes-French breakfast.  Also know as d’avaginion.  Long skinny radishes with a mild flavor.  These were harvested from the outside garden.

Radish harvest.

Fennel-A nice addition added to salads.  Shaved thin for a delicate anise flavor. The bulb can be roasted with to add a mild licorice flavor to a dish.  Taste great with chicken.  The stalks and fronds can also be chopped and added to a fresh salad or as a garnish to soup or pasta.

Best guess for next week-  leaf lettuce salad mix,  mixed green saute mix, carrots!!!!, lettuce, spinach, canton (asian green), rhubarb, and more.

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