Good Morning Friends;
This email is coming early in the week, b/c we are trying to sneak away for the night and I want to get logistics dialed in for the crew before we leave. You'll have until Thurs morning at 9am to finalize your share or make an order. I likely won't be at market this weekend, but you'll be in good hands with Shawn and Elaina, two well-experienced and friendly farmhands.
There are a few quick, but important items for this week.
1. I've been remaining optimistic, but it looks as if the weeks of smoke and evacuation have finally come home to roost here on the farm. Most of our crops fared OK, but there were a few casualties in the field that we now find ourselves missing in the final stretch of CSA season. The factors for this challenging fall are numerous, but the general impact has been a reduction in the diversity of our fall crops, notably carrots, beets, and lettuces. The carrots suffered from devastating deer pressure due to us (and our lovely dog Lana) being gone for 10 days. All four of our fall carrot beds were mowed down by a couple does and their fawns. The carrots were trying to recover (in low light and short days), but now the voles are well established and finishing the job that the deer started. Fall carrots are one of our favorite crops, for fresh eating and storage, so this is a big hit to us. We'll be OK, albeit with a slightly more empty cooler over the winter. The Fall beets suffered the same exact fate - deer, then vole, annihilation. The lettuces were just establishing when the smoke came, and they were covered with row-cover. Between the low light, and smothering smoke, and their tender age under an ash blanket, our fall lettuce successions have all but melted into the ground. I've been seeding like crazy since, but I'm afraid the slower Fall growth rates are not in our favor. Soooo.....
2. We are partnering with our good friends at Olde Moon Farm to bring you some lovely baby lettuce at least once this Fall. This week, we're offering half pound bags of Jay's baby greens mix. Many of you know Olde Moon Farm from market. We are so grateful to share this farming community with them, and to have fellow Organic farmers to collaborate with as we build a more resilient local food system. When Jay drops off the greens tomorrow, we'll be sending him with some yellow onions for their final CSA share of the season. This is food system diversity and resiliency at work! Thank you Olde Moon!
3. This week we are also wrapping up some housekeeping from the "fire time." Those of you who received a CSA share that smoky Saturday in the parking lot AND/OR the following week will be charged this week. I tried to NOT take any cash from current CSA members, and figured we'd get it worked out in the system later (now), BUT record keeping was very challenging, so if you did hand me cash for your "fire share", AND you get charged for that share in the system, please let me know. We don't want any double charges. And don't hesitate to reach out with questions or concerns.
That's all for now. Thank you everyone for your support and understanding.
Conner + Sarah
