This Week’s Harvest
- Carrots OR Yellow watermelon
- Salad Mix
- Kale
- Tomatoes
- Sungold Cherry Tomatoes
- Sweet Italian Peppers
- Bell Peppers
- Sweet Onions
- Cantaloupe
- Cucumbers
- Zucchini (last of the season!)
- Spaghetti Squash
Farm News
I was noticing this box contains several items from the cucurbit plant family: cantaloupe, spaghetti squash, zucchini, cucumbers, and watermelon. They showcase the variety of fruits that come from this big leaved trailing habit plant family. Fun fact: loofah sponges are also cucurbits!
I’m slightly embarrassed to say that I just recently learned about the existence of the squash bee. We are hosting a couple bee hives on the property this year, but it turns out most of the pollination happening on our crops is probably being done by bees other than honeybees. Honeybees are not native, but there are about 4,000 native species of bees in the United States that are much more efficient pollinators. Take our curcurbits, for example. It is believed that 70% of commercial curcurbit plants are pollinated by the squash bee. It lives in the ground, by itself, often next to squash plants. They come out just as the squash blossoms open in the early morning and are active for just a couple hours after sunrise.
Our zucchini harvest is pretty much wrapped up for the year, but I am excited to pay better attention next year to all the bees present while we pick. I wonder if I’ll be able to spot and identify the different bees!
Recipes
Coming Up Next Week (our best guess….) Spaghetti Squash, Cantaloupe, Peppers, Kale, Potatoes, Celery, Tomatoes, Salad Mix and more!