Happy Day!!! It rained!!!

Greetings shareholders,

 

This week, we'll have the first onions, more bok choi, Chinese cabbages, lettuce, the last spring turnips and radishes, broccoli, kohlrabi, kale, and the last garlic scapes.  The onions will be small, as will most of the onions this summer.  Bok chois are still delicious.  Here and here are a couple of recipe ideas for chois, Chinese cabbage, and other flavorful leafy greens.  You already know my advice - when in doubt, stir fry. 

 

The lettuce and broccoli might be a little damaged this week.  Heat is the enemy of good quality in those two vegetables, and we're going to have plenty of it this week.  We try to keep ahead of it, but aren't always able.  Lettuce "bolts" in heat, giving up on leaf growth and getting ready to make flowers.  It starts to look like a Christmas tree.  The flavor can be a bit strong, but still good, I think.  We've got more heat tolerant lettuces (we hope) that should be ready next week.  Broccoli turns brownish on the top when it gets too hot, and sometimes the stems separate too much.  Once again, heat is giving the plant the message that it's time to go reproductive.   Doesn't seem to hurt the flavor, but looks funny. 

 

Next week, I think we'll have beets and chard, small cabbages, summer squash, and new potatoes.

 

We had two rain events last week, .15" on Wednesday night, and a wonderful 1" rain yesterday morning.  I'm looking forward to taking a break from irrigating for a couple of days.  We had all of our hay down, drying.  It's not so dry now, which is a bit of a problem, but I'm sure glad the tiny alfalfa plants under the hay finally got a drink.  I was worried about their survival.  The moisture also softened up the ground a few inches down, so I hope that I can till some more garden in the next couple of days.  We've run out of space, and a few more rows will make it possible to plant okra, cantaloupe, brussels, and more beans.

 

The Japanese beetles have emerged and are starting to cause trouble.  Here is some info from Iowa State to help you identify them, and here is more info on management. 

 

See you this week,

Laura