Farm Notes

I often say that running a farm (and raising a baby) takes a village, but let me tell you… this week, it REALLY took a village! Our CSA this week was brought to our members *entirely* thanks to a crew of Farmbelly team members, neighbors, and friends old + new – as baby Sawyer, Matthew, and I all tested positive for COVID on Monday evening, and since then we’ve been hunkered down and feeing downright crummy. We aren’t sure how/where we were exposed, and even after 2.5 years of being very careful and cautious, I guess at some point it was bound to happen!

Needless to say, I’m incredibly grateful for our village who have stepped up and helped us get through a really tough week. It was humbling to see that even with me on the sidelines, this little farm keeps humming along and keeps cranking out some beautiful veggies for our community.

While I wasn’t involved with the CSA this week out of an abundance of caution for our members, there are still plenty of other farm chores that I have been tackling solo. From trellising tomatoes to weeding to planting our first succession of green beans… let’s just say even when I’m not feeling my best, it’s tough to force me to sit still.

One of the tasks I was able to accomplish was getting most of our winter squash went in the ground. Last year we really struggled with all our cucurbits (pests, fungus, bad luck, stupid mistakes on my part, etc) and this year I am bound and determined to get a better winter squash harvest.

For one, I did more research on varieties that tend to do well in our hot, humid, pest-ridden climate - and I learned about a variety called South Anna Butternut (pictured here) that I’m excited to try. In addition to South Anna butternut variety, we are growing 3 kinds of delicata squash, 2 kinds of acorn squash, 3 varieties of baby butternuts, and a few standard butternuts. Fingers crossed that this season will be a bumper crop!

That’s all for this week friends… time for some rest (which we already know I’m not very good at…) and cuddles with baby Sawyer. Stay safe and stay healthy out there, and take care of your village!

Kitchen Notes

I’ll be real honest, there hasn’t been much cooking going on around here this week! The one thing that I’ve had the energy/inspiration to make this week has been my Spring Quinoa Tabbouleh Salad. This salad absolutely never disappoints, lasts for days in the fridge, and I just use whatever veggies + herbs I have on hand… it’s a super flexible recipe, so go wild and make it your own! I’ll be back next week with a new recipe, I promise. ;)

Today’s Stats

Low temp: 69F
High temp: 95F
Sunrise: 6:07am
Sunset: 8:20pm
Moon phase: Waning Gibbous
Additional notes: HOT and sunny