Category: Random Stuff

Well that was a quick change. Last week it was too hot, this week too cold. After 7 years in Mass, you’d think I’d be used to a typical New England fall…erratic, unstable, fickle. We had a very light frost up on the hill Monday morning, and our work-share, Denali, swore he saw snow flakes while we were harvesting for market on Wednesday. The tomatoes may not love our first rainy week of the season – this could be the end of the Great Tomato Harvest of 2016 – but it’s the start of lettuce season. So lettuce give thanks for a flavorful, bountiful tomato season as we transition to rich hearty winter squashes and green leafy things.

Speaking of green things, pea tendrils are back! A delicious snack on their own, chopped into salads or cook them ever so lightly. The celeriac also are sizing up nicely and have been added to the list, joining a million other items we’re harvesting right now.

And then the non-green things. We have meats, cheeses, and chocolates for sale to cancel out all that veggie healthyfullness. That’s right, Monday is the first Monday in October (?!?), meaning Jeff will be coming down with Short Creek’s incredible meats. And after a week off, the cheese is back in stock. I highly recommend their Adelisca cheese on some fresh Potter Hill eggs to get your morning started off right. Or try pairing their award-winning Franciszka cheese on your Potter Hill salad. And last but not least, I have added Anna Banana’s sweets to the online ordering system. Caramel Pretzel Apple…yes please! Please support these awesome farmers too!

Pickup Procedures:
Put your orders in online before 8am Monday morning. We’ll pick all orders fresh Monday morning and have it available for you to pick-up from 4-7pm Monday afternoon right on the farm at 64 Potter Hill Rd in Grafton. Take advantage of this short window of time when the best produce around is grown in Grafton’s backyard!

 

We progressed pretty quickly from a few tomatoes, to a lot of tomatoes, to time to sauce tomatoes! Unfortunately the drought has followed a similar pattern, despite the bit of rain we got last week. I didn’t even know there was a level up from ‘Severe Drought’ but there are actually two – a good chunk of Massachusetts is now on ‘Extreme Drought’ and we’re right on the border. Let’s hope the 10 day forecast of no appreciable chance of rain is incorrect, otherwise we might just get hit that lest level…’Exceptional Drought’.

Our tomatoes are the only crop that’s truly loving this dry weather, but there’s still plenty of other Potter Hill organic goodness you can order on our market page. With such little rain, the tomatoes are all flavor – all varieties will be good for making sauce or heirloom tomato soup. (go heavy on the basil, you won’t regret it). We picked 80 pounds of cherry tomatoes in two day – help us eat them all or we’ll have to start pulling up plants! Sweet cherry tomato and sausage bake? Cherry tomato paste anyone? Put them in a single layer in jelly roll pans in the oven and cook at 225 for hours till they are shriveled. Stop there for sun dried tomatoes, or into the blender with a little salt (or not) for paste – from Sarah, everyone’s favorite chocolate maker who will be at the farmer’s market this week. Discounts won’t show up on the website (far too technical for this farmer), but they will be given when you check  out: 10% off for 5 pounds, 15% for 10, and 20% for 20 pounds or more. The same discount applies for cherry tomato pints! 10% off for 5 pints, 15% for 10, and 20% off for 20 or more pints.

After a week hiatus, Couet Farm’s award-winning cheese is back in stock! Franciszka specifically was the big winner, according to the American Cheese Society, but they’re all winners in my book.

Mark your calendars – Jeff will be down with meat next Monday (the 29th) just in time for you to stock up for your Labor Day BBQs.

Pickup Procedures:
Put your orders in online before 8am Monday morning. If you’re too busy to choose, you can order a garden bag for only $15 by replying to this email or ordering it online. We’ll pick all orders fresh Monday morning and have it available for you to pick-up from 4-7pm Monday afternoon right on the farm at 64 Potter Hill Rd in Grafton. Take advantage of this short window of time when the best produce around is grown in Grafton’s backyard!

My wife’s been wishing for a snow day all winter, and finally we have one! Despite the cracking of tree limbs and more coming down overhead, I do love the beauty of a heavy wet snow. And we still have power, somehow.

I’ve been up to my ankles in alligators lately planning and preparing for spring, and with only a few veggie orders on non-meat weeks, I’m switching to every other week for the Monday pickup. That means this is an off week, so there will be no pickup on Monday. However, you can still find us and our carroty goodness tomorrow from 9am-noon at the Canal District Farmers Market. Hope to see you there!