5th week of August 2010

Watermelon Pictured is the king of the watermelon crop for the season. This 44 pound melon made a surprise appearance when the leaves started to die back in the melon patch. When we cut it opened we discovered it was one of the Orange-glo melons. It had divinely sweet and delicious orange flesh and amazingly, was devoured in 2 days (we did share a few wedges with friends.) I was also happy to see other giants growing in the melon patch, about a dozen large Libby pumpkins. They will probably need to be hauled to the house with the skid steer once they fully ripen. They have an extra thick wall of flesh and are great for puttin' up pumpkin. This year they will need to replace our old favorite Butternut squash which never made it into the ground in the June rush.

Weed Pile Visitors in the garden are a good thing! My garden was suffering from late summer neglect but the anticipation of folks coming for a cold frame seminar was what I needed to get in gear and clean things up. Thanks to the kids and a couple Amish helpers, here is one of the piles of weeds that came from the greenhouse area with even more wagon loads hauled off from various other spots. I was very thankful we did all that work because after the seminar the group wandered all through the garden (tasting mouse melons, nasturtiums and more) plus now some areas are all ready for for fall planting or cover crops. We still are waiting on rain though and I'm hesitant to plant too much spinach and lettuce lest I need to water endlessly. There are also several flats of Swiss chard, parsley, kale and escarole waiting to find a home in the garden. Hopefully the many folks that I shared cold framing tips with (30 at Local Roots, 21 on our farm, a group in Charm next week) will also find the right time and place to plant.

Local Choices Book This week's work wasn't all in the garden, much has been at the computer pouring over details for the final edit of our Local Choices book. Co-author Lisa Amstutz and I met with our editor this week and are excited to see things draw near to having a real book in our hands. The idea for the book began two and a half years ago on a winter day when Lisa and I were musing about how to get more people excited about buying local foods. As we drank our Mintbrook Meadow Tea, we decided there was a book missing on the local foods bookshelf, one that would offer a friendly invitation to beginners. We also heroically decided that the two of us were capable of writing such a book. Thus began a winter of brainstorming chapter topics, passing out surveys, checking out endless foodie books from the library and writing about our family farm experiences. Had we realized all the obstacles ahead, the idea might have fizzled when we drank our last drop of tea. However, now that it is nearing reality it is our prayer that this book will truly be a blessing to both "eaters" and farmers and will offer health, community and wise living to our small corner of the world. Click for ordering details.