Summer heat and abundance: How our farm survives during drought conditions

Phew we made it to August! As much as I hate to wish away these glorious summer months, as this extreme drought continues and temperatures continue to soar, I can feel myself craving an early sunset and a cool morning - which is saying a lot because I'm definitely not a winter person.

This is certainly the hottest and driest summer in my living memory (I think!) and is it ever a doozy. I'm amazed everyday at what our little crew is able to accomplish during these trying times - so thank you to them and to all you for your support. We're lucky to have a well that we hope can carry us through this drought. We are cautiously optimistic as this well serves not only the fields/ irrigation, the packing shed where we wash the vegetables, and the seedling greenhouse, but also our (soon to be) 2 homes. So to say that water resilience is on the mind is an understatement. We have applied to funding to dig a new pond to take over some of the irrigation needs and are installing more gutters and water catchment systems around the property. We are limiting our irrigation so as to prioritize young crops and leafy greens. Even still, the little bit of water that we can supplement them is insufficient when it's nearly 30 degrees every single day. The forecast is bleak, but we ask that you all do a rain dance with us so the plants can survive and thrive.

Friends helping with the garlic harvest - our most beautiful garlic crop to date!

There's often talk of the impact that these conditions have on the farm and on the crops themselves, but we less frequently discuss the impacts on the farmers. Of course there is physical impact from heat exhaustion to dehydration. We've been working hard for many months now, so there is also a general fatigue setting in. The harvests this time of year get bigger and heavier (yay!) which also strains the body. For the moment, I'm proud and grateful for the adjustments my body has made to keep me moving through this heat as a I now scoff when it's going to be merely 27 degrees rather than 30. The stress and grief both in the immediate sense of watching plants shrivel and panicking every time I flush the toilet to the broader sense in recognizing that climate change and genocide are steeped into our reality are extremely troubling and harder to get rid of by drinking electrolytes. For now, we hope for rain and celebrate the abundance of cherry tomatoes, the community that gathers to harvest garlic, and the hundreds of meals that we garnish every week.

Farming is a beast and is arguably very intense from the beginning to the end of the season, but if I had to pick a peak, it would likely be right now. We're still flipping beds, the weeds have outgrown the crops (not in many places thanks to our great team this year!) and we're harvesting daily. There is some relief in knowing we're at the most intense moment because that means it's all downhill from here, right? Being a team of four means we're enough people to get things done, but also small enough to be nimble and flexbile to our respective schedules. I was thrilled to have a long weekend away for

my birthday last weekend and Raphaelle will pop out next week to entertain friends visiting from France. It may not seem like much, but building in these little breaks makes a world of difference in a very taxing and stressful job.

This was fairly doom and gloom - for a good reason I think, this drought is very intense - but, we are still harvesting beautiful abundance to share with you every week, so here's some fave recipes of the moment.

Eggplant is on the go and can be somewhat controversial. I love this recipe from Smitten Kitchen for Black Pepper Tofu and Eggplant and think it could convert any eggplant hater.

Hopefully you've already made some, but if not, I encourage you to squirrel some basil (or any herb) and garlic scape pesto into your freezer. Simply combine the scapes, herbs, lemon, olive oil, salt and pepper in a food processor. If you want to get fancy with it, add some parmesan and nuts. It's amazing in all it's forms in my opinion. I made a very tasty version with shiso, thai basil and sunflower seeds last week.

Thanks for reading! Stay cool! Rebecca