As I type “Newsletter 1-22”, I can’t believe it’s been 22 weeks since the beginning of this season. Five and a half months ago we had our first pick up that somewhat resembles what is in the share today. The cooler weather is back and as you might guess, today’s share includes lots of greens and root veggies.

We were fortunately not missed this time the storms came around. I hated to postpone our CSA potluck, but with all the moisture, I think it’s best. I don’t think we accumulated much more than half an inch, but it was a welcome relief. The slow rains were different and more helpful than the past thundering showers where it rains an inch an hour. I’m excited that it didn’t all wash away, but instead permeated the soil. Rain is especially welcomed in the fall when it’s time to start cover crop seeds. Many of our fields have been waiting for weeks for signs of rain so that they could be covered with seeds of rye, oats, clovers, peas, and vetches. The fields are coming to life now as many of these seeds are beginning to germinate. Overhead irrigation works sometimes, but nothing is better than a nice steady rain shower.

It can be a tough decision to choose which cover crops to put in which field. I just finished my involved 9-year crop rotation, where no vegetable crop will be grown on the same piece of land for 9 years. I’ve included cover crops in this rotation and balanced them to meet the needs of the following crops. To handle the crop rotation, I first divided up the fields into nine 6,000-8,000 square foot plots. I then grouped the plants into 9 categories based upon familial similarities. After this, it’s a lot like playing cards. Elliot Coleman suggests cutting up photos of the different crops you have in a group and moving them around until the order makes sense. I did something similar and ended up with a rotation where no crop family occurs on the same land for 3 years and there are seasons (sometimes years) for each plot that involve an intensive series of cover crops. It’s neat to think that vegetables too have preferences as to what they’re planted after in the field. For instance, potatoes that follow soybeans are less resistant to scab, where planting them after oats yields the opposite result.

This week we’ve got some fun winter squash to share with you. New on the scene are buttercup squash and spaghetti squash.

The dark green/orangish Buttercup squash has a thin skin covering a yummy orange-fleshed interior. The flavor is rich, sweet, and nutty tasting. This squash has been noted as a good culinary alternative to a pumpkin, with a sweeter taste and creamier texture. Ways to cook include stewing for soup, using your favorite pumpkin pie recipe, putting it into casseroles, stuffing, baking, or pureeing. This squash will store for months in the right cool and dry environment.

The bright yellow spaghetti squash is one of my favorite squashes (perhaps it’s the kid in me or the amusement I receive from pulling out it’s stringy interior.) My preferred method for preparation is to either bake the thing whole or to slice down the center (lengthwise) and place in a pan. I bake it on about 350 until it starts turning brown. I then (carefully) scoop out the seed interior and start pulling the hot, mild, yellow translucent strands with a fork. The options then are numerous. I’ve successfully made a casserole, substituting the squash strands for spaghetti noodles, or adding a hunk of butter or a drizzle of olive oil and enjoying more than I’d ever enjoyed spaghetti. Eat soon because the spaghetti squash doesn’t keep as well as the others.

Farm news:

Our chickens just began laying eggs! We’ve been getting a couple of eggs a day now. The sweet little chickens that arrived the day they were born are now maturing and providing us with excellent food. It took exactly 5 months and 1 week for the first egg to come. It has been well worth the wait, the eggs are scrumptious and they have nice dark orange yolks.

You may have noticed our chickens moving around the farm. We’ve had them in 4 locations and will continue to move them throughout the seasons to different fields. They are amazing for pest control, weed control, fertilizer, and working up ground. The 160 foot electric chicken fence keeps the predators out, and at night we keep them in a 10’x10’ moveable PVC and chicken wire coop. We’ve been treating them as our 31 precious pets. Tell them hello next time you’re at the farm, they sure do love the attention!

Paige, Coby, and Turtle