Farm Notes
Our CSA is officially on break and this week has been all about getting fall plants in the ground. And to be honest, it hasn’t been easy! After several days in a row of intense rain, the weather has swung back to being super hot + humid (aka, typical August in North Carolina) – and unfortunately, a lot of our new fall plant babies are not happy.
Example of seedlings with minimal root system present (ie not a great start for transplanting).
I’ve done everything I can to ease the transition for our tender seedlings in their newly prepped beds – i.e., only planting in the early morning or evening, watering everything immediately by hand (and then additional waterings to cool things down in the afternoon), and even putting shade cloth over some of the beds right after they get planted… but despite these efforts, a lot of our starts have gotten fried by the heat, and we’ve lost a lot of plants. It’s been an incredibly frustrating few days, and it feels like such a waste of time, energy, and money.
So what went wrong? It seems that a lot of the seedlings that we received this week don’t have very strong root systems (see photo for what I mean… ideally there’s a lot more root matter present), and it’s clear that they just aren’t strong enough to handle being transplanted in this August heat. I haven’t had this issue before when I’ve gotten fall seedlings from our nursery partners, and I’m hopeful that it won’t happen again – though now I’m stuck scrambling to find replacement seedlings last minute. It’s a huge bummer.
And yet. With all of the pain and grief and hardship that is happening around the world right now, it feels silly to get upset about some perished fall seedlings. While this week has been stressful, I’m continually reminding myself how very lucky I am to be able to do this work, and that I can use this as an opportunity to learn + do better the next time around. I just wanted to keep it real with y’all on how things are going over here, as it’s not always puppies and rainbows and sungold tomatoes!
Today is a fresh start, and we’re getting some relief with cooler weather the next few days, so I’m on a mission to source some more seedlings this afternoon and we’re just gonna have to try again.
If you’re curious about what seedlings we’re planting (or attempting to plant!) this week, here’s a quick rundown:
Broccoli
Cabbage
Collard Greens
Fennel
Kale
Kohlrabi
Leeks
Lettuce
Scallions
Meanwhile, we are also busy planting the following from seed (ie not seedlings/transplants):
Arugula
Baby Kale
Carrots
Beets
Radishes
Turnips
Kitchen Notes
Even though our sweet corn has already come and gone, there is still plenty of corn to be had this summer! Today I’m sharing fresh take on Elote, which is a traditional Mexican street food of charred corn on the cob, topped with a creamy mayo sauce, chilis, cotija cheese, lime, and fresh herbs. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about digging into sweet corn straight from the cob, but sometimes, you don’t want to deal with all the corn bits stuck in your teeth.. ya know? Enter this recipe for Elote Salad, which features all the classic Elote ingredients, but is made by first removing the corn kernels from the cob and charring them in butter (or oil) before combining with the other ingredients. I’ve also taken the liberty of adding some shredded purple cabbage to the dish, for a little added color + crunch. This recipe is pretty loose, so use what you’ve got / feel free to mix it up! Recipe adapted from Serious Eats.
Elote Salad
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons butter (or vegetable or olive oil)
5 ears fresh corn, shucked, kernels removed (about 3 cups fresh corn kernels)
Kosher salt
1 cup finely shredded purple cabbage
1/4 cup feta or Cotija cheese, finely crumbled
1/2 cup finely sliced scallions, green parts only
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1/2 of a jalapeño pepper, seeded and stemmed, finely chopped
1-2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced on a Microplane grater
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons freshly squeeze lime juice, plus more to taste
Chili powder or hot chili flakes, to taste
PREPARATION
Heat butter or oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat until shimmering. Add corn kernels, season to taste with salt, toss once or twice, and cook without moving until charred on one side, about 2 minutes.
Toss corn, stir, and repeat until charred on second side, about 2 minutes longer. Continue tossing and charring until corn is well charred all over, about 10 minutes total. Transfer to a large bowl.
Add shredded cabbage, cheese, scallions, cilantro, jalapeño, garlic, mayonnaise, lime juice, and chili powder and toss to combine. Taste and adjust seasoning (possibly adding more salt, mayo, lime juice, chili flakes, etc) to taste. Serve immediately.
Today’s Stats
Low temp: 94F
High temp: 71F
Sunrise: 6:39am
Sunset: 8:02pm
Moon phase: Waxing Gibbous
Additional notes: Hot and humid