We at Table Top Farm would like to express our gratitude for all the support and encouragement we’ve received from such a wonderful community of fresh food lovers. Things are looking up! Our new, little market downtown seems to be doing well (we’re doing a market every 1st and 3rd Wednesday downtown at the commons through mid-December). And the farm stand seems to have a steady trickle of people coming by to get ingredients for their suppertime meals. We’ve started to bring veggies from our farm to the new Foodshed Co-op and some of our items are even featured at Shorty’s and Toby’s from time to time. Thanks for keeping us excited about keeping the neighborhood farm going!
This is a time of year where transition is all around us – from the weather, to the crops, to the insects, on down to the different types of molds, rots and cankers…and even politicians (no association, of course – haha!). We have said goodbye for this season to the carrots and many other items. Yesterday was likely the last harvest of summery basil. We have a few more cucumbers coming, but they are moving on to cucumber heaven soon, as their scratchy leaves turn yellow and die back. The list goes on: potatoes, zucchini, dill, sunflowers, and many others. It seems that farming is all about struggling to understand that nature is change. Even though I’d like the basil, carrot, and cucumber harvests to last all year, its impossible!
But with change comes renewal and something else to look forward to – we had our first harvest of the larger-size tomatoes in the last week or so. We have 12 varieties of beefsteak type tomatoes growing in our greenhouse right now and are learning the subtleties of each’s personality. Yesterday, we harvested our first batch of winter squash – and there will be a lot to come! All sizes and shapes and fall-looking colors of hubbards, buttercups, butternuts, acorns, delicata, and more. They are lying among the yellowing stalks and leaves, beaming at us like colorful beacons from underneath: browns, reds, greens, the deepest oranges, pinks and yellows. We’re shining ’em up and putting them out in the farm stand. We hope that even the most bubbly-looking, knobby, bulbous ugly duckling winter squash will be an irresistible and memorable autumn treat. Also new to the farm stand this week is baby arugula. Soon we will be flush with salad greens and cooking greens – spinach and baby lettuce are next.
The farm stand is well stocked today with potatoes, celery, cherry tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, herbs, winter squash, cucumbers, arugula, zucchini, patty pan squash, beets, spring onions, chard, and more. Come by if you dare!
