To a sprout free world

News that the authorities allowed a German sprout farm to reopen after the e-coli outbreak that killed 53 people is enough to get me to swear off sprouts forever.  According to the article in the NYT, the government is blaming a shipment of Egyptian fenugreek seeds for the outbreak.  That means every single shipment of sprouts should be held for at least 24 hours and tested before shipping to customers.  Want to bet it happens?  As long as farms buy seed from 3rd world countries with minimal safety regulations and sprout them without testing, you might as well play Russian Roulette with your fork as eat non tested sprouts.  Unfortunately, in this country, our regulations are tougher for foreigners shipping to this country than domestic producers.  So I think I'll take a vacation from sprouts.

weather and the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune

Fortune is what some people will make and others lose as the weather heats up across the US.  With temps over 115 degrees in parts of the south crops will suffer at the best and collapse with any other stresses.  Add the fact that many acres will never be planted due to flooding and there will be less commodity crops harvested.  Also, throughout the east and midwest, veg growers are facing the same challenges as their row crop counterparts.  Flooding, late planting, heat and now drought are setting markets in motion.  Farmers with average yields on many crops will make money.  Others with poor or no crops will lose.  Oh Fortuna.

lettuce follies

I can see from my own garden what is probably happening on a larger scale throughout the Northeast.  The green leaf lettuce is growing like gangbusters at a rate far faster than I can get rid of it.  It looks lovely, but after the first flush of enthusiasm for new local lettuce, many people have gone back to packaged salads and eliminated the tiresome washing and drying involved in the DIY salad process.  I have a feeling the farmer's market will be slow this Saturday and much of my lovingly grown green leaf will find its way to the compost pile.  Now where are the tomatoes?

One man's trash

I called on one customer in New York this morning to offer him new crop daikon radishes.  He seemed eager to start buying, but he asked if they could be packed with the tops still on.  This seemed a fairly unusual request, but according to the customer the radish tops are used in Indian cuisine.  So instead of throwing the tops on the ground, the grower may now have a new, profitable crop.  Now if only we could find a market for weeds...

timing is everything

Got a nice little half inch rain last night which should keep the garden growing for the rest of the week.  If we could get two rains like that each week it would be gardener's heaven.  We are finally starting to ship spinach and cilantro to New York markets today.
Timing is crucial there as well.  A hot spell in New Jersey will probably decimate their crops which should set up the market for upstate produce.  A $10 crate of spinach can turn into $20 with a little assist from the weather.  Here's hoping for a little more rain here and a lot more heat in the Mid Atlantic states.  Timing....

weather obsession

You can't farm or garden unless you obsess about the weather.  A cold wet spring and now a hot dry summer.   There is no justice in the farming world.  Since I have only limited watering capabilities, mostly confined to germinating seedbeeds and transplants, I have to depend on Mother Nature to do the heavy lifting for maturing crops like corn and potatoes.  Unfortunately, she seems to have decided to take a summer vacation.  We have not had a decent rain in three weeks and the top 3 inches of soil is dry.  There is abundant subsoil moisture, but for veg growers, the top of the soil profile is just as important.  The forecast is for isolated thunderstorms, but in my experience, the more you need the rain, the less likely it is to fall. 

the joys of yardwork

It   was shaping up to be a really productive day in the yard and garden.  Transplanted some broccoli and cauliflower, planted a bed of beets and killed many thousands of weeds, then decided to do a little mowing around the border fence prior to painting.  Big mistake!  One of the belts on my 44 inch Toro mower was starting to sever, and I tried to help it reseat.  The next thing I know I am dragging my crushed and bloodied thumb from between two rollers.  Made it back to the house and was promptly shut down by my better half.  Fortunately , having nurses in the family is like having your own private ER and Alicia's fiance who was a combat medic cleaned me up as well as the hospital could have and with a lot less wait time.  So tomorrow it's off to the doctor for the standard tetanus shot and dressing with admonitions I will have to ignore.  Hopefully I can still swing the golf clubs and keep transplanting.  My thumb nail is already a nasty blue color and I'm sure I can anticipate growing a new one over the next several months.  I wish I had been more careful, but that's not really me.