Seeding for Fall

Village Farm Team,

These long, hot days of August thus far have been spent pining for fall as we seed our cooler season crops. The first succession we seeded a little over a week ago are already germinating! We’ve been seeding a mix of brassicas like cauliflower, broccoli, and kale along with another succession of winter squash, cucumbers, and zucchini. We’re trying out a different variety of cauliflower this year called “Amazing Cauliflower”. It is supposed to do well in heat and cold as well as heavy clay soils so we are excited to see how it does on the Village Farm.

We’ve been sun-curing our sweet potato harvests every week in order to prepare them for long-term storage and to allow their starches to develop into sugar. As we’ve been harvesting over the past few weeks we’ve been amazed at the variety of shapes and sizes. Despite all of our sweet potato slips being planted at the same time, there is an incredible diversity in both shape and size. This difference in appearance doesn’t seem to have any effect on flavor as all of the ones we’ve been able to sample thus far have been delicious!

About a month ago we spent time transplanting a few different types of tulsi basil into our planter boxes and into four-inch pots to sell at the veggie wagon. We’ve enjoyed watching them grow as they each have unique appearances and scent profiles. One of the most interesting to watch has been the Vana variety. It has large leaves that are fuzzy in texture with a more pungent, spicy aroma. Also called “forest type”, the Vana variety will produce white flowers and is often the tallest growing. We highly recommend checking out the different varieties we have at the farmers market on Saturday! Tulsi basil makes a great herbal tea when dried and if left to flower in the garden, it provides food for pollinators.