CSA #22

Dear CSA-ers,

This week’s Preassembled Bag will contain Arugula, Lovelock Head Lettuce, Cherry Tomatoes, Mixed Peppers, Beets, Oregano and Tulsi Basil. Orders may now be placed on the online market at: https://magneyfarm.locallygrown.net/market

Fall planting continues on the farm and the first of some of our summer planted vegetables are beginning to come to fruition this week. Notably, Arugula is back for a limited time, and this round is looking good with all the intermittent down-pours we have experienced in Princeton. Lettuce and carrot harvesting continues, along with many of the other summer vegetables you love. This week saw the removal of our first rotations of both cucumbers and squash; we hope to have these back as late plantings before frost.

Timing is the nature of everything in agriculture. From the correct planting of seeds, efficient management of weeds, and predicting harvests to maintain a diverse CSA; all these things require tuning into a rhythm of rhythms. Sometimes we hit a wrong note, and that can really throw things off. For instance, an incorrect setting on our walk-behind seeder made for a sparse planting of beans in one of our plots this year. Ordinarily a thick planting of beans would shade out many of the weeds, but at such a diminished rate, the opposite became the case. This limited the productivity of the existing beans and required much more intensive weeding to salvage the beds than ordinarily would have been the case. Live and learn.

Our commitment to the USDA Organic Standard and our own sustainability goals, often increase the amount of labor that it takes to grow the delicious food that arrives in your bag each week. We do not use herbicides to level field weeds or synthetic amendments to blast vegetables into productivity. Our process is slower and gentler. Instead of forcing the land to produce food, we nurture its soil and its ecology. The goal is to evoke the natural productivity of the Earth and improve our own little corner of it over time. We believe it is the better way to grow, and that the deep flavor and rich nutrition of our produce reflects this.

We sincerely thank you for your support of this endeavor. We are always striving to improve our service and offerings to you, our West Kentucky community. Your support makes what we do possible.

Sincerely,
The Magney Legacy Ridge Farm Team