Summer Crops Galore & Weeding the Vineyard

Village Farm Team,

Our greenhouse is busting at the seams with summer crops! In addition to our summer squash and Bastan peppers, we’ve been able to seed dragon tongue beans, eggplant, winter squash, and basil. The dragon tongue beans are already germinating along with the summer squash. Now that the weather has been consistently warmer, we will be able to direct-seed several crops in the fields starting with watermelons, cantaloupes, and cucumbers.

Since we will soon have a plethora of summer crop transplants, our main goal on the North Farm will be to use the BCS tractor to shape rows on the newly-tilled soil. Once we shape the rows we can install the “plastic mulch”. This black plastic material helps to suppress weeds and moderate soil temperature and moisture content by shielding it from direct sun.

We are working on harvesting our turnips and carrots from the South Farm to make way for summer and winter squash varieties. We have both purple top and Harukei turnips in addition to a rainbow of sweet carrots. These spring root veggies will be available for purchase at the veggie wagon on Saturday so make sure to pick some up for yourself from 8am to noon. Need a little cooking inspiration? Check out our digital cookbook of seasonally inspired recipes.

Establishing a vineyard with sustainable practices requires a lot of time and attention. In order to ensure our Black Spanish grapes thrive, we are currently working on weeding the vineyard. Johnson grass in particular is the main culprit. Since it produces rhizomes in the ground, it is not sufficient enough to simply pull it up or mow it down. In order to try to eradicate it, the grass and rhizomes must be dug up and removed. Once removed, it will allow our clover cover crop to take over. The New Zealand white clover we have planted in the vineyard not only helps to fix beneficial nitrogen to the soil but it also regulates soil temperature and attracts pollinators. Thanks to our clover, the vines we planted back in January are already producing buds and foliage!