We are harvesting our late summer crops and preparing for fall.
We have had quite a bit of rain out at the farm over the last few weeks and although it came in the form of torrential downpours, we are grateful for the water, and are harvesting our late summer crops.
The lower portion of one of our larger fields continues to get washed out and we are looking into how we might create terraces to reduce the erosion that has been occurring. A couple of weeks ago, we received around six inches of rain in a matter of 3 days!
The heirloom corn varieties that we planted earlier this year have dried down enough for us to start harvesting, and we will save the seed again this year for a much larger planting next year. After two years of building our seed stock, we will have enough seed next year to make cornmeal that we will actually be able to consume! Heirloom varieties often require patience as you build your seed bank, but the produce is well worth the wait (not to mention you are preserving a piece of history).
Our second planting of pinkeye purple hull peas looks to be a bumper crop and the harvesting has already begun. The sweet potatoes are looking great after all of the rain and we will likely start digging those in the next week or so. The butternut squash that I mentioned last month is ready to be harvested and I am eager to start integrating those on the dinner plate. Butternut squash is one of my favorite vegetables and makes for a great treat as the weather starts to cool down.
We scraped some dirt up around our peanuts and were very happy with what we found. Our peanuts got choked out by native grasses last year because of an abundance of rain at harvest time; however, this year the crop looks beautiful and the harvest will be just in time to enjoy some boiled peanuts at a Saturday football game.
I hope everyone has a great Labor Day weekend and I will talk to you again next month!
Brad Kelly
Business Development
Kelly Products, Inc.