From the Farm: Garden Transition from Spring to Summer
We hope everyone had an enjoyable Memorial Day Weekend and spent time with family to remember those that served and gave their lives for this country. The guys at the farm took the day off, but the plants (and weeds) were busy growing like always. We have started harvesting fresh tomatoes, squash and cucumbers, and we had our first pickings of blackberries and blueberries towards the end of last week.
We also recently started harvesting Irish potatoes and will continue to do so over the next 2 to 3 weeks. Our spring greens and cruciferous crops are starting to fade as we transition from spring to summer and the weather gets warmer by the day. To be totally honest, we know most everyone is growing a little weary of cabbage and collards at this point. It's time for summer veggies!
The farm crew was able to get all of our sweet potato slips planted a couple of weeks ago, and the timing was just right. We had two overcast days after planting which helps the newly planted cuttings become established without too much heat stress.
Okra is a bit of a sore subject for us right now out at the farm. After really babying our early okra plants along, they all looked quite healthy and were 12-16 inches tall. Unfortunately, a few hungry deer discovered this plot and proceeded to munch off every single leaf and bud in the entire field. We haven’t had this issue in the past, but we think it may be time for some control measures (primarily an electric fence!).
We mentioned last month that we were going to be trialing an organic product called Agri Pro, that is supposed to support plant and soil health. It is still too early to draw any real conclusions just yet, but what we have seen so far looks promising. We took the photos above about 10 days ago and as you can see, one of these plants has significantly more pest damage than the other. These are eggplants that are the same variety and age. The only difference is that the plant on the right was treated with the Agri Pro product, and the one on the left was not.
The rows that these are planted in are right beside each other. This is a good reflection of the majority of each of the rows. As you may know, a healthier plant is usually less susceptible to pest pressure and I think this is a good example of that. Flea beetles are the primary culprits of the leaf damage seen above. Next month, we should have some yield data to share as we move from spring to summer, but as mentioned earlier, the initial observations are looking pretty positive.
That’s all for this month, so until next time, we hope the harvests are plentiful and the weeds are few!
We also recently started harvesting Irish potatoes and will continue to do so over the next 2 to 3 weeks. Our spring greens and cruciferous crops are starting to fade as we transition from spring to summer and the weather gets warmer by the day. To be totally honest, we know most everyone is growing a little weary of cabbage and collards at this point. It's time for summer veggies!
The farm crew was able to get all of our sweet potato slips planted a couple of weeks ago, and the timing was just right. We had two overcast days after planting which helps the newly planted cuttings become established without too much heat stress.
Okra is a bit of a sore subject for us right now out at the farm. After really babying our early okra plants along, they all looked quite healthy and were 12-16 inches tall. Unfortunately, a few hungry deer discovered this plot and proceeded to munch off every single leaf and bud in the entire field. We haven’t had this issue in the past, but we think it may be time for some control measures (primarily an electric fence!).
We mentioned last month that we were going to be trialing an organic product called Agri Pro, that is supposed to support plant and soil health. It is still too early to draw any real conclusions just yet, but what we have seen so far looks promising. We took the photos above about 10 days ago and as you can see, one of these plants has significantly more pest damage than the other. These are eggplants that are the same variety and age. The only difference is that the plant on the right was treated with the Agri Pro product, and the one on the left was not.
The rows that these are planted in are right beside each other. This is a good reflection of the majority of each of the rows. As you may know, a healthier plant is usually less susceptible to pest pressure and I think this is a good example of that. Flea beetles are the primary culprits of the leaf damage seen above. Next month, we should have some yield data to share as we move from spring to summer, but as mentioned earlier, the initial observations are looking pretty positive.
That’s all for this month, so until next time, we hope the harvests are plentiful and the weeds are few!