Planting for Fall & Harvesting Cucumbers

Village Farm Team,

Our fall tomatoes and peppers went in the ground last week! They were transplanted into an area that had been covered with a tarp for a couple of months. Covering sections of our fields with tarps once they are turned under allows us to control weeds and moisture levels in the soil. This ends up producing an improved soil texture and a lot less weeds to keep up with. So far we’ve been pleased with the results the tarps are yielding so we have employed more to prep the soil for fall and winter crops.

Our second succession of cucumbers are coming right along. We were able to harvest the first of our Tasty Jade cucumbers this past week. Tasty Jade is an Asian cucumber variety that yields long, glossy green fruits with a thin skin and a small seed cavity. We also have the Corinto variety planted and expect to be making the first harvest within the next couple of weeks. Corinto is a slicing cucumber that can be grown in both greenhouse and field settings. So far we’ve noticed that Corinto is a quick grower and tends to produce one single vine that easily climbs the trellis rather than producing bushier growth.

The first of the cool season crops were seeded this week bringing us that much closer to cooler temperatures. We predominantly seeded brassicas like cauliflower, broccoli, and kale. Though we won’t be harvesting these for quite a while, you can still get a taste of fall with the butternut squashes we’ve harvested! All of our remaining butternut squashes have been harvested and cured in order to prepare them for storage. That means they’ll be around for a bit even if you aren’t ready to eat them just yet.