Big news this week, Local Apples have started, and I was able to get some. There’s more that’s gone on, but since so many people wait for the Apples I figured I could probably have just posted that one line and it would have been fine for the entire update. While it’s tempting, there are a few other things I think I should pass along.

In the field, the Zucchini have slowed way down. This is likely a result of the rain, and I am hopeful that the plants will push back into better production soon. So far, unlike quite a few customers who have gardens, my Cucumbers seem to still be producing. Hopefully that holds up for the remainder of the summer. I will be picking Snap Peas and String Beans again this week, and there will be Basil (Genovese, Lemon, and Ruby).

Off the farm, there has apparently been a bit of a hiccup at the berry farm, with a very limited amount of Blueberries available this week. To make sure I have enough, I also got some Jersey Blueberries (they will be clearly marked when they go out). While the next little bit of news won’t really directly affect the farm or any of you, I wanted to pass it along as a bit of information on what farming is like. Talking to the fruit broker, they told me that the same orchard operation that produces the Peaches (which I will have) also has farms growing Apples. This past week, they were about to harvest, but decided to give the crop one more day. Overnight, surprise thunderstorms with marble-sized hail pounded the area. The estimated loss due to damage is approximately a quarter million bushels (nearly 10 million pounds) of apples. From what I gather, nearly their entire apple crop was wiped out by the storms because they wanted to give the apples one more day on the trees.

Moving on, the day-old broiler chicks arrived on the farm on Tuesday. They’re currently sleeping quite a bit, and alternately are quite busy doing their best imitation of land piranha when I top off their food. It really is amazing just how fast they can move. The Laying Hens are also doing a great job, so I’ve been giving them some extra treats.

The flowers are pretty much all blooming at this point. There should be lots of Gladiola for the next few weeks, and Field Flower bunches when I can get a chance to put them together.

That’s it for this update. A very big thanks to everyone who has been able to come by and help support the farm. Hope you all have a great week.