Dear Newsletter Editor
Nir Halfon
Dear newsletter editor,
Thank you for your message requesting an article for tomorrow, Monday the 22nd of June 2020. I am sorry I cannot write an article this month. I do try to write one every month but this time I will have to let you and the readers down. I do apologise.
The reason is that we have now reached the summer solstice. It is the time of the year when every plant (weed and vegetable alike) is racing to grow as quickly as possible. It is the busiest time of the year. When I stand in the fields, all of them are now planted. Last month, the last crops, squash and leeks, were planted out.
The tunnels are growing mostly vertical; full of beans, tomatoes, cucumbers and, of course, salads. Overall, all the vegetables are growing quite well but the weeds are growing faster. In fact, it feels that by the time we have reached the end of one bed, it needs weeding all over again. Our poor beetroot crop has been overwhelmed by weeds. Thanks to the response from volunteers from the local community, we can now see rows of red leaves in the field. Every Tuesday to Thursday from 09:30 to 12:00 we have had at least 3 people weeding the long beds of beetroot. We have nearly finished the whole field but now our sights must turn to a different part of the garden.
That part is the soft fruit patch where the fruit is now ripening. So, dear newsletter editor, we will be weeding and harvesting soft fruit for the next 3 weeks. Some of it will go to the shop, however the bulk of it will be processed in the dairy for fruit and drinking yoghurts and also frozen for the winter months.
Meanwhile, the list of Plaw Hatch vegetables in the shop is getting longer. In the last month we started harvesting peas, beans and cucumbers. As of next week, there will be tomatoes, courgettes, celery and possibly kale. From now until autumn, harvesting is what we are doing most. This year, with a smaller group of dedicated volunteers, it takes a bit longer. Nevertheless, after the day’s harvest arrives at the shop, they are ready to do yet more weeding and planting (now just in the tunnels). This year we have a remarkable garden team!
We are extremely grateful for the help of the local people who volunteer in the mornings. Local volunteers help with the tasks where many hands are needed. While those are being done, the garden team can concentrate on other tasks.
It is the unique flavour of this time of year; the fast pace of the race to the top of the sky. Today the sun made it. It will do its widest arch making it the longest day. Things will begin to change from now. I hope that next month, a few weeks after the solstice, I can write something for you about what is happening in the garden.