Here is a little snapshot of harvest morning. Just what does it take to get the veggies to you? For 22 weeks we go through the thrice weekly routine of harvesting. The crew gathers at the farm for a 6:30 start. Clad in their wellies and rainpants (necessary for dewy mornings and veg washing) and fueled by strong coffee they head out into the fields. The first items harvested are always the tender greens - lettuce, chard, dandelion, etc. These crops need to get harvested and cooled down before the day's heat can get into them. Next are the bulky items like turnips, radishes, cabbages etc. Each crop is harvested into bins, loaded up on the trailer and every one hops on to head for the next crop. When the trailer is full the crew heads back to the packing shed where the items will be washed. Relatively clean greens go in the tub first and once they are finished the dirtier root crops can get dunked. Things like cabbages, summer squash and the like don't need to be washed, but are always carefully harvested into clean bins. Soon the harvest will start getting heavier with less emphasis on greens and more on bulky crops. This means we will be harvesting every day as it takes quite a bit of time to harvest the tomatoes, eggplants, zucchini etc. Once everything is clean it is packed up for drop off or brought upstairs to the barn for our local members. We are usually done by 11 and the crew goes off to breakfast. Usually Dan will stay to tidy up any loose ends before he heads home for a quick snack.
This week we'll be harvesting: scallions, lettuce, turnips, kohlrabi, kale, chard, peas, beets & more... |
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