Casey does final bed prep in a high tunnel before we plant some broccoli. Small farm tools are super handy in these compact spaces.
Casey and I have gotten pretty lucky, all things considered, during these recent winter CSA harvests. The more dramatic rain and cold weather seem to consistently fall on days other than our harvest day (although honestly there hasn’t really been too much of the extreme winter weather either way).
This afternoon, as we headed out with the kids to bunch greens, the weather was as mild and calm as ever. I grabbed light jackets for the kids just in case as I closed the door to the house. A half an hour into harvesting, however, the sky grew darker. By the time we finished the chard, the rain was coming down steadily, and the kids retreated to the cover of their play house (hoorah!). By the time we were in the thick of the kale picking, we were really working in a downpour. Thankfully, the temperature was still mild enough that we weren’t in danger of dangerous discomfort — but we were getting wet!
Broccoli planting almost complete!
And, so we were thankful for our post-harvest plan of planting broccoli in one of our field tunnels. Casey recently put end-walls of greenhouse poly on our two older houses, to prepare them for more late winter planting. As we entered the space, we were greeted by calm air, cheery diffused light, and dry air.
The children helped plant a little bit, but mostly tumbled and ran and jumped in the beds that had recently been worked up but were not yet planted. Barefoot kid feet + freshly tilled riverbottom soil = sensory pleasure to the max.
We have been grateful for these four high tunnels of ours this winter. We’ve been slowly preparing them for those hungry months of late winter and early spring — that inevitable season when our over-wintered crops are finished before spring crops are ready to pick. Greenhouses like these are perfect for getting us through that gap by providing little pockets of “man-made” spring under cover.
Running in the greenhouse barefoot! JOY!
They’re also just wonderful places to work in the winter. Outside, but not exposed to the harshest of the elements. Casey often takes the kids with him as he trellises our peas or sows more greens or weeds the strawberries. At this point, they’ve learned the rules of where they can and cannot walk or play, so they scamper about enjoying all the same things we love about these places.
The plants seem to love them too. They get more than a bit “babied” in these spaces, and grow in very different ways than they do outside. They are earlier of course, but they also grow faster and produce different textures and flavors, providing more variety in the seasonal eating experience.
In another greenhouse, peas grow on either side of shorter season crops like radishes.
You’ll receive the first of the greenhouse grown crops in this week’s share: head lettuce! This is just the very first of this crop (and of the greenhouse bounty in general). Most of the crops are still young and have a ways to go before reaching maturity. But we love checking in on all of them and appreciating these early glimpses of the coming season.
Speaking of coming season, I just have to share a few important seasonal notes from the outside world. We picked our first daffodils from our yard this week, and I know we are not alone because I have seen their cheery yellow smiles elsewhere as well. We also picked the first of the spring nettles in the woods and enjoyed in one evening three nettle delights: nettle-apple pancakes, nettle pesto, and nettle tea. In my mind, I associate nettles and daffodils solidly with March, but after two mild winters I am beginning to lose track of what is really “normal” around here. Are they truly February phenomenon? Am I just recalling my experiences from farther north in Washington? Or, have the last two years just been extra early, as I tend to think? I suppose we’ll remember in coming years, as we inevitably experience different winters and springs. For now though, we love having both in our home.
Enjoy this week’s vegetables!
Your farmers, Katie & Casey Kulla
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Meet this week’s vegetables:
- Apples
- Head lettuce — The high tunnels share their magic with us! This week’s harvest is really truly just the first, and we’ll have to limit it to one head per household. We want to make sure everyone gets to have the special treat of a lettuce salad in February. This lettuce will be very tender and should be dressed lightly just before eating.
- Turnip rapini
- Chard
- Red Russian kale
- Marina di chioggia winter squash
- Butternut winter squash
- Parsnips
- Sunchokes
- Carrots
- Potatoes
- Garlic
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And this week’s extra goodies from the farm:
- Eggs! — $6/dozen. We hosted some guests overnight this weekend (an old friend from Bellingham and her partner), and on their way out the door, they paused to share an important parting message: “Those eggs this morning at breakfast were perfect.”
- Pork — Roasts and ground pork are $8/lb; pork chops and hams are $12/lb.
- Lamb — Roasts and ground lamb are $8/lb; chops are $12/lb.
- Ground beef — $8/lb
- Beef CUTS and bones! — A few items are left, but these went fast last week! Roasts are $8/lb, bones $4/lb.
