Harvest #14 (Week B) should include zucchini, beets, carrots, sweet peppers, fresh onions, scallions, tomatoes, fresh garlic, lettuce, italian dandelion, cucumbers, eggplant, okra, watermelon, cantaloupe, and herbs. Some items will be a choice. U-pick should include edamame, cherry/grape tomatoes, green/snap/string beans, tomatillos, husk cherries, flowers, and herbs.

After a rare mid-season trip off the farm to visit Maine, we're refreshed and ready to be immersed in farm tasks again. The farm was in the best of hands while we were away and everything was well taken care of. An enormous, from the bottoms of our hearts, Thank You goes out to our incredible farm crew Pat, Sarah, Craig, Addie, Jeff, and Wayne!

Since coming back late Friday afternoon we've done our field walk, had Saturday CSA distribution, reshaped a few thousand feet of raised beds for this coming week's round of transplants, mowed and weeded the leek patch, irrigated everything that was thirsty, and harvested about a million cantaloupe. Thankfully the heat wave has now passed. And we are definitely fortunate to have received some rain while gone.

This coming week we have a lot of crops to get in the ground: radishes, turnips, kale, napa cabbage, arugula, kohlrabi, lettuce, romaine, radicchio, chard, beets, cilantro, and dill. All prior to the forecast midweek inundation. Crops need to be cultivated, harvested, irrigated. Weeds need to be pulled, aisles mowed...farm to tend. We're excited to be back!

We've miraculously made our way through the mountain of donated grocery bags that we started the season with. If you have extra used grocery bags you plan to recycle back at the grocery store, consider bringing them to the farm instead!

This is also a good time to remind members to BYOB (bring your own bags/baskets) if you don't already. I've finally developed a good habit of bringing my collection of canvas bags when out shopping - super satisfying. There are many reasons to engage in this habit, one of which is reducing plastic waste. Over the weekend one of our new member families pointed out that their household plastic waste has decreased by HALF since they started getting veggies from Anchor Run Farm instead of the grocery store. This is amazing! Our food community is awesome!

This week's workshift schedule:

Please bring gloves, water, a hat, and sturdy shoes! We meet under the large red maple at the end of the barn by the pick up room.

Workshift Guidelines. Workshift Sign Up Instructions.

Two new veggies will be available in the U Pick field: edamame and husk/ground cherries.

Edamame - aka soybeans tend to be easy and fun to pick because there are so many on a single plant. Look for the largest and filled out beans towards the lower part of the plant. Much has been written about the health benefits of soybeans - excellent source of protein, iron, calcium, vitamin K and antioxidants. They are also delicious and store well while still raw. Place them in fridge in a plastic container for up to 10 days for best quality. To enjoy, they must be cooked. Boil in heavily salted water and begin testing for doneness at 9 minutes. Use a larger pot than you think necessary because they boil over easily. There are a lot of recipes on this site - from Soybean "Hummus", Edamame Burger, Edamame and Carrot Salad with Rice Vinegar and more! Try them all and eat some simply boiled with either a nice sea salt or sprinkled with herbs.

Husk or Ground Cherries - another member of the nightshade family, these look like mini tomatoes or tomatillos. They are high in antioxidants and vitamins and can be stored for literally months on your kitchen counter. Do not remove the husk before you are ready to use them. To harvest, simply look on the ground under the plants. The husks on ripe cherries are dried out and even brown. To enjoy, they are a delicious tropical tasting snack, or check out this site for uses - my favorite is the Fresh Ground Cherry Salsa.

A farmer's note on the husk cherries: For a reason we haven't determined yet, husk cherries have begun to perform poorly on the farm, starting a year or two ago. While similar in growth habit and a cousin to tomatillos, which have been robust, husk cherry plants' vigor has been lacking of late. There will be some fruit available but not an abundance. We'll try something different next year.