It is time to trellis the butternut squash. Most butternut varieties grow on a vine, like a pumpkin, not a bush, like yellow squash. We’ve found the fruit quality is better if we keep them up off of the ground. Trellising the vines also allows us to mow the pathways between the rows of squash. We could mulch them with straw to keep the weeds down, like we do in the melons, but that’s a lot of work. I found a few little baby squash already on the plants as I was trellising.
On Thursday Randy, Robin and Joseph made another 27 beds. That will get us all the way through July planting and into the beginning of August. It a relief to
finally be ahead of schedule. We are continuously planting successions of tomatoes, eggplant, and squash all spring and summer long. We already seeded two more beds of okra. The first planting of watermelon and cantaloupe is in the greenhouse and will be ready to go into the field in about a week. These beds will also be home to our late summer pole beans.
The tomatoes that we have been putting in the shares and selling at market are grown in the high tunnel. We prune this plants to a single vertical stem but removing the suckers. The plants are clipped to a string that hangs down from an overhead wire. The tomatoes are looking great and are still loaded with immature fruit. Which is good because the first planting of field tomatoes is looking less great. I think perhaps all the rain we had in May has leached the nutrients out of the soil, leaving the plants pale and scraggly. The good news is the that both the second and third planting of tomatoes look much better, so I am happy about that.
Small Shares
- tomatoes
- cucumber
- carrots
- red potatoes
- green cabbage
- squash and/or zucchini
Full shares
- tomatoes
- eggplant
- carrots
- red potatoes
- green cabbage
- bell pepper
- onions
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