Spinach is a favored leafy green that performs so much better in colder weather. The weather these last few days has been ideal for growing spinach but not so ideal for harvesting and post harvest cleaning. We harvested this morning in a steady rain with the temperature hovering at 45 degrees. Not quite the worst spinach harvest session we've ever experienced but let's just say it was one of those days where the thought of doing something else indoors did cross our mind. Knowing how much everyone loves spinach and with the final delivery for the season this Thursday we couldn't wait for a more better day. In October you don't always get a farmers dream day so you take whatever you're handed and deal with it! Cleaning spinach under wet and muddy conditions always leaves a little soil on the leaf even after a four step washing and spinning process(above photo). With that, we'll have to leave the final wash step to you.
It's been a memorable summer for me and the crew. Today we're all stunned at the pace summer's flown by as we prepare for this weeks final delivery for the season. Summers are short in Wisconsin but there's no better way to celebrate our brief summers than by eating a grand assortment of vegetables and fruits as they comes into season. I truly hope you've had a great summer sampling many of the vegetables and fruits that are possible to grow in our region.
It's been a long standing tradition to pack as much food as possible into our last couple deliveries. It's our hope that everyone may have an extended supply of Rare Earth produce to get them through another month before we all default back to grocery stores for our produce needs.
Thank you all for being with us on our first summer using our new CSA management program called "Harvie". Even though its required more on our behalf, the response by our members has been quite positive. Harvie has been created to provide farm members with a number of features that were never possible in the past with our traditional CSA. So next summer I'll be using Harvie again to fulfill your weekly orders. If you have anything to say about your experience, whether good or bad I'd like to hear from you. Send me an email with your comments. rarearthfarm@frontier.com
CSA renewals for 2021 will begin in December. You will receive a message from me when the open enrollment period begins. Membership once again will be capped at a level we're able to accommodate and so it might be best to renew your membership sooner rather than later. We don't want to deny this years members the chance to return for 2021 but all shares are reserved on a first come first serve basis. Hope to see you all back on the roster next summer. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to be your farmer. Take care and have a warm and peaceful winter!
Regards,
Steve Young
Rare Earth Farm
