We have entered the dog days of summer, and the weather is cooperating! We’ve had some hot days, and our “hot crops”—the curcubit and nightshade families of plants— are finally growing at a more rapid pace. These crops had been growing more slowly than usual this season, which I attribute to the cooler, wetter weather we have had this summer.
The cucurbits include the summer squash, zucchini, cucumbers, melons, and winter squash. They like hot temperatures to grow, and are finally coming into their own. The nightshades consists of our peppers, eggplant, and tomatoes (potatoes are also in the nightshade family, but they grow a bit differently and do not necessarily require the hot temperatures that the others do).
Late blight, the fungal disease that kills nightshades in a short period of time, has arrived in New England already. It is early this year, and we will do everything possible to keep it at bay. This means that we will spray our tomatoes with an organic anti-fungal. This has worked for the past couple of years, and I am pretty confident it will keep the disease away, at least for part of the summer.
I encourage you to continue doing your work hours. We have a jump start on weed control this year, and we need to keep up with it in July and August. The summer is a good time to come out and lend a hand at the farm, before things get busy again in September. If you work the morning shift, bring a sandwich, and stay and eat lunch with us!
See you at the farm!
—Susan
