Since I last wrote, it really turned into summer! Much of the month was excruciatingly hot and humid. We harvested early in the mornings to beat the heat and then worked on more low key projects like seeding for fall once it got crazy hot out. While it's a bit mentally hard not to work on things like weeding projects that feel pressing, it's not worth it to push our bodies to their limits when we still have so much of the season to go. In fact it's always worth it to us to put our health or the health of our team ahead of our to-do lists. We planted our last succession of squash, cucumbers and melons planted which marked the last planting of summer.

Our summer crops have really hit their stride this month which we're so excited about! All of the flavors of summer are here to stay for a while as we say goodbye to the leave greens for a bit. Bryan mowed down the last of our spring crops (and weeds) yesterday mid-month to spread cover crop seeds. We did some crop rescue missions too, getting our path weeds under control by mowing and weed whacking so that we can get to the plants in the field! We are absolutely swimming in tomatoes at this moment in the year! More on that later…

Post weed whacking rescue mission of eggplant and okra

We also harvested our garlic and onions. They're hanging up to dry, or as we farmers say, cure, for the next few weeks, and then they'll start showing up in your boxes. We had planned to hang them up under the eaves of our new barn, but alas our barn has neither eaves nor a roof yet. It's frustrating, but we're adapting. After a number of years piecing it all together at our old farm with impermanent infrastructure, we're used to it. We also harvested the first chunk of our potatoes - our favorite!

The second half of July also involves planting up a storm: broccoli, cauliflower, scallions, raddichio, brussel sprouts, kale and collards. We seeded carrots (twice) and beets, we got some RAIN finally. It’s really challenging to put these tiny plants in the ground during the high summer heat. It’s even more difficult when it’s been really dry - these plants need lots of water in this sensitive moment of transition. But so far everything looks great thanks to our tireless irrigation efforts.

We were lucky enough to go on vacation to my family reunion on the north shore of Massachusetts. We brought less produce with us than usual since we flew, but we were still able to feed our food to our family. It’s really one of the best parts of being a farmer!

We also came back to our barn looking very much like a barn. The project has taken way longer than expected and has cost much more than we budgeted for, which has been a stressful combination. But the wiring is almost complete and the insulation team is coming next Friday, so we're very close to being able to use the barn even in its rough form.

Our barn is now insulated on the first floor (that's all we're doing for now)! The Earthbound crew is bringing in some extra help for the roof and siding next week while they work on the two porches that will be overhanging the building. We're really getting very close to moving in, which is so exciting! It's not ideal timing since it's August and we have a bunch of other things to do, but it's exciting none the less!

Now back to the topic of tomatoes…do you need more of them in your life? We’re offering bulk flats of heirloom tomatoes this week - 20 lbs for $50. You can pick up at any of our CSA drop off locations this week - here’s the list: https://www.gooddogfarmmd.com/our-csa. To order one (or more), Venmo @gooddogfarm and in the comment, include your last name and your pick up location.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this glimpse of the farm and that you’re having a lovely summer. Stay tuned for lots more next month!