First Frost and Garlic Planting

24 Oct First Frost and Garlic Planting

After a beautiful stretch of mild fall weather it looks like the cold autumn winds are here. It’s hard not to forget that this time last year Hurricane Sandy was headed our way, and the year before we experienced that freak October snowstorm. Who knows what will be next, but reflecting on last year’s experience I am reminded again to be thankful for the luxury of electricity which keeps the house warm, the food cold, and the water flowing.

Here at the farm we prepared for the first frost by getting out the giant white floating row covers and blanketing the more tender crops like lettuce, arugula, radicchio, beets and carrots.

Only two more weeks of CSA pick-ups to go. A reminder that the last share is Tuesday Nov. 5 and Thursday Nov. 7th. These last few shares will contain butternut squash, one of my favorite fall vegetables. This recipe for Minestrone and Parmesan Biscuit Potpie from Martha Stewart is a favorite in our house, especially since it utilizes leeks, kale, butternut, the tomatoes I canned from earlier in the summer, and delicious buttery homemade biscuits. The perfect comfort food after a cold day.

 The last big job on the farm is happening this week: garlic planting! A major thanks to everyone who helped break up the garlic at the farm’s Harvest Festival Garlic Social– what an unbelievably huge help that was for us.

Each individual clove is planted 6 inches apart in rows of 3, in our 225 foot beds. This year we are aiming to plant 18 beds- that’s over 24,000 cloves!, then covering them all with a thick blanket of straw mulch where they will grow for the next 9 months. See you next summer, garlic crop!

Post and photos by Tricia Borneman, Blooming Glen farmer and co-owner. Additional photos by Tom Murtha and Alysha Day.