It's exactly one month until the launch of the 2010 Food Odyssey, and the weather folks say we broke a record for the number of rainy days in April; not the best conditions for getting crops in the ground.  Fortunately, drier weather in February and March gave us opportunities to get the earliest crops in.  The transplanted spinach and lettuce have leaves the size of quarters.  Some might even harvest at this size, but we're going for dinner plate size.  The direct seeded bok choy and mustard greens are sprouting their first true leaves, while the arugula and radishes are just peeking above the surface.

These crops are our early season insurance policy.  They almost always produce by the beginning of June.  They do weight the share toward strong flavored greens, however, so we remain on pins and needles through June waiting for the sweeter crops to arrive.  Many of these first crops are annual brassicas that put up flower stocks in the long days of June.  Since we live at a higher latitude than their native climates, our long summer days make for a short harvest window.  It is sometimes frustrating for the farmer,  on the other hand, our "sweeter palated" customers can rest assured that the spicy greens won't stay with us for too long.

We start to get backed up on our planting schedule in weather like this.  When a dry spell hits. it will be out to the fields until the light fails after eight.  We'll apply a planting triage, what's too late to plant, what has to be planted right now, what can wait.

Meanwhile the peas that have been in the ground since February continue their long climb up the wire trellis, heading for a late June/ early July harvest.  That is if they survive Peter Cottontail.  We watch him munch on the row closest to the blackberry patch from our bedroom window.  Diane, usually the animal sympathizer, wants to try and frustrate him, but Jim enjoys the show and thinks we'll have a row to spare this year.

Shares continue to trickle in, and we may land our first "corporate account", which ought to fill out our complement.  Jim was invited to write a piece for www.vancouverfamilymagazine.com.  It will appear on their website this week.  As one might expect, interest in CSA tends to pick up as the harvest season approaches.   Hopefully, all our local CSA farmers will benefit.

Diane & Jim Hunter, greens@huntersgreens.com
Hunters' Greens CSA, http://huntersgreens.com
Brush Prairie, WA.  (360) 256-3788